Chapter Text
Math class just ended for the first graders at Eden Academy and Anya was slumped in her seat after getting scolded by a teacher for getting a question wrong.
"Anya really does suck at school." A defeated Anya said.
"No you don't, Anya!" Anya's best friend Becky tries to console her. "Don't worry, you'll get em' next time!"
"R-Really?" Anya's face lit up in happiness.
"Yeah! I promise. You can do better next time!" Becky said, as they were about to head out for lunch.
"Tch, she wishes." One said in a sarcastic voice.
"Speak of the devil..." Becky replied, not wanting to be part of a certain someone's BS.
It was Damian Desmond and his goons, Ewen and Emile, who jump in to poke fun of Anya.
"Can't you guys just shut up and leave us alone!?" A furious Becky pleaded. "Come on, you do this everyday. Don't you three got something better to do!?"
"Nothing's better than making fun of this stupid peasant!" Ewen replied, as he always joins Damian and Emile on bullying Anya.
"Yeah! This peasant is such a brainless bird, it's hard to even comprehend how she even manage to study here! Stupid!" Emile also proceeded to jump in on the fun.
"S-Stupid!? Anya isn't stupid!" Anya replied, shocked by what they were saying.
"Oh come on, you are, Stubby Legs! Not to mention that you look like a pig with your stupid hair! So. Damn. Ugly!" Damian proceeded to throw his card down on Anya, who began feeling discouraged.
"Gosh darn it, y'all are so annoying!" Becky angrily talks back to the three. "Come on, Anya. Let's get away from these losers."
As they were about to head out, they were once again stopped by Damian, who went on to continue mocking Anya.
"Oh come on, Blackbell, won't you just stop defending her? We all know she's stupid. Everyone here knows she's stupid!" Damian proclaimed, publicly shaming her.
Meanwhile, Anya was just standing there, not knowing what to do, but all she could say in her mind was 'Anya is not stupid.' over and over again as she tries to hold back tears.
"And you, Stubby Legs! Won't your Mom & Dad ever think of how it was a joke to have someone like you as their child?" Damian goes the distance with what he's saying, while showing a smirk.
The whole class began to murmur, some asked what was happening, some were curious on how Episode 121 of 'Damian & Anya's Banter' was going to go down, and some think that the scion of the Desmond Family was taking it a little bit too far.
"P-Please don't say that. Anya does not like it..." Anya quietly pleaded as she was almost close to losing it.
"So what if you don't like it, piglet!? One day your parents are gonna have enough of how stupid you are and they'll send you to an orphanage. Loser!"
What Damian said was the final straw.
Tears started rolling down the face of Anya, whose heart was broken over the words Damian said, shocking Becky.
"A-Anya?"
The orphanage has been a bit traumatizing for Anya to say the least, she never really knew real love as she was adopted four times and was returned due to exposing her telepathy to the families.
It also didn't help that she was a test subject who ran away from a facility as the scientists' original intention for her was to bring world peace with her mind-reading abilities. She wasn't allowed to play and she wasn't allowed to have any ounce of fun during her time at the facility. She couldn't have a normal childhood around the places she's been in her past.
Everything changed purely after she met Loid and Yor, who gave Anya unconditional love and let her know what it was like to have a loving family. They fed her, clothed her, and they even allowed her to keep their dog, Bond. They took her to the movies, to the aquarium, to the beach. Anywhere you can think of, they took her there.
Their love was what made Anya respect her parents, which was why she didn't like the fact that Damian mentioned her parents in a bad light, after everything they've done for her.
As tears were rolled down on her face, a horrified Damian realizes what he had done. 'Oh no, was I being a bit harsh?' Damian thought to himself, shocked. "St-Stubby Legs, I'm sor-"
Damian's apology was abruptly interrupted by a heartbroken Anya, who went on to say six words he never thought he would ever hear from her, of all people...
"S-Sy-on Boy...I hate you!"
Anya tearfully ran away outside the classroom as fast as she can, while Damian stood there in disbelief.
"Anya!" Becky calls out her name, trying to catch up and console her. But before she can, she angrily turns to Damian, who was in shock over what he said.
"What the hell is wrong with you!?" Becky angrily shouted at Damian. "Didn't you realize what you've just done!?"
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mea-"
"Oh shut up and shove your excuses down your throat for god's sake!" Becky cut him off, not wanting to hear anything from Damian. "You are such a scumbag! I'm gonna-"
As Becky angrily approached Damian, she was stopped by Ewen and Emile, who apprehended her, trying to stop the whole situation from escalating,
"B-Blackbell. Come on, now. You can't risk a Tonitrus Bolt for this..." Ewen pleaded.
"Who cares about some stupid bolt when all I care about is how this pile of trash just made my best friend cry!" Becky said.
She didn't care about getting a Tonitrus Bolt, all she cared about was giving Damian a piece of her own mind, while Damian stood there with a shocked look on his face.
"Desmond, don't you ever realize how hard it is for Anya to be here!? Everyone in this school hates her! And it's all because of you..."
"W-What? M-Me?" A confused Damian said.
"Yes, you! None of this would've happened if you hadn't rejected her offer of wanting to be your friend!" Becky angrily replied.
"W-What?"
"You know what she would always say to me? She wanted to be friends with you for 'world peace!' Yet all you did was make fun of her. And we all know what happened on the first day. The punch. You were the reason she got a Bolt for that! Because you were talking smack about her." Becky yelled while being apprehended by Ewen and Emile.
'I...I was the reason for all this?' Damian thought in disbelief, while he couldn't find the words to say.
"And Desmond, don't you ever, EVER realize that she's the only girl in this grade to look at you for you!? All these girls here only suck up to you for your father's stupid position. Not for you!" Becky's voice started to break. "She's the only one who has truly been nice to you the entire time. The only one who didn't care about your status!"
Damian began to get a taste of reality, realizing how mean he's been to Anya. But he wasn't ACTUALLY mean to her. Being mean to her was the only way to cope with the feelings he had for her, as he didn't know how to deal with having her as his first love.
"And..." Becky's tears started to come out. "Y-You don't know how hard it is for her. To keep up a smile knowing the whole of Eden hates you! She's a commoner, yes. But everyone views her as a delinquent for what happened on day one! Can't she have any ounce of kindness from each and every single one of you!?"
Damian begins to feel even more bad, but couldn't let out a single word as he knows he messed up big time.
"I don't ever wanna see you anywhere near Anya ever again! Don't ever talk to her if all you do is just be cruel to her every single time!" Becky tearfully said, before running out to find Anya, who was long gone.
Awkward silence filled the entire classroom, with a regretful Damian covering his face.
'I screwed up...' Damian thought, disappointed in himself.