A story of going-to-Doomsday-Academy

“Here we are.” Adelaide looked at her three children, then looked back at the gate in front of them. She stole another glance at her kids and sighed.

Ameera had gone to Addergoole two years ago. This would be her third year there, and she looked both worried and eager. Lorccán was going this year. He looked eager. He didn’t really know what he was getting into.

But first, they were going to Doomsday. She wasn’t sure if she was going to tell Addergoole about her third child – and Doomsday started years earlier than Addergoole, anyway.

Milana had been born six years after Lorccán, two years after Adelaide had found a safe place to settle, a year and five days after she’d found a nice man — a mechanic and a tinkerer, so a well-off man, too — to partner with.

Edward was nice, but there’d still been fights when she’d sent Ameera off to school, and fights again when she explained she’d have to send Lorccán, too. That’s when she’d learned that Edward’s grandmother had gone to Addergoole, and passed stories about the school down the family tree. That was also when she’d learned about Doomsday Academy.

Adelaide swallowed and moved the car forward. She’d heard of Boom. Probably every Addergoole kid had. What would their school be like? What would Addergoole do, if they knew she was sending Milana there?

“My school is pretty.” Milana twisted to grin at her older siblings. “It’s not just a hole in the ground.”

Adelaide laughed. “This is just the town around the school, honey. And Addergoole is a lot more than a hole in the ground.”

“Yep,” Ameera joked, “It’s a very secure hole in the ground full of a whole lot of very sharp people. With nice carpets.”

Adelaide looked back at Cloverleaf. The horse-and-buggy in front of her had moved through the line, so it was her turn to enter the town. She found herself smiling. “It does look like a nice town,” she agreed. “I bet you’ll have a lot of fun at school.”

And it if turned out to be awful, she could always send Milana to Addergoole when she was older.

Cast Partial Family Tree

Adelaide, born yr. 57,  is the daughter of Lockhart

Who is the son of Laufeia and Moss, born yr. 41

Laufeia is the daughter of Cyan and Sigurd, born yr. 25

Cyan is the daughter of Eriko and Absalom, born yr. 3

Sigurd is the son of Aelfgifu and Yngvi, born yr. 8

Moss is the son of Ankara and Berry, born yr. 24

Berry is the daughter of Holly and Tristan, born yr. 24

Ankara is the son of Agatha and Bowen, born yr. 6

That makes Ameera year 73 or so

Lorccán year 75,

and this year 28 of Doomsday Academy.