Valiance to Valhalla

By DJ Shoemaker

Summary:  The Lawndale High students face endless madness when a freak snow storm traps them inside the school.  Note:  this is not a parody of "The Day After Tomorrow."

 4:37 PM         Tuesday, November 6

By the way this day started, I should have suspected that it would end up like this.  I must be losing my touch.  Either that or the cold is getting to me... 

7:00 AM         earlier that morning

"And that was 'what you give' by Tesla coming at you from Zeeeeeeeeee-93 in the morning!" came the voice of the Spatula Man from the radio sitting on the kitchen table.  "It's looking pretty nasty out there folks.  There is a report of at least two and a half feet of snow and most of the main roads are blocked off."

The Morgendorffer family was gathered at the kitchen table eating breakfast and listening to the radio report.  It had been snowing for hours the day before and by the sound of it, didn't stop when night came. 

"That's right Spatula Man," said Bing, the other disc jockey, "and the snow is showing no signs of stopping any time soon."

"Do you think school will be canceled?" Quinn asked sleepily.

"Not likely," replied Daria, "Li wouldn't cancel school for anything less than Armageddon.  Even then, only if her security cameras went out."

"Hush, girls.  I'm trying to listen to the weather," said Helen. 

"All interstates are closed, and the National Guard has been deployed to help those foolish enough to get caught on the highways.  Other residential and city roads are being assaulted by the salt trucks, but it looks grim for anything to be open today."

"Damn it!" exclaimed Helen.  "I won't be able to get to the office."

"Neither will I," added Jake.

"All schools in the county are closed with one exception.  In an unbelievable show of determination, or stupidity, Lawndale High has remained open for today."

"You've got to be kidding me!" cried Quinn.

"She is.  Ms. Li is just playing a cruel joke on us all," said Daria, though she knew this would happen.

"Mom, can we just stay home today?  You can't expect me to actually go to school with this much snow.  The cold air could ruin my skin!"

"Yeah, hypothermia doesn't even come close to the trauma of damaged skin," joked Daria.

"See, even Daria agrees with me," said Quinn, not picking up on Daria's sarcasm.

"Now, you know how I feel about you girls missing school," said Helen.  "Even in these less than ideal conditions, you shouldn't take your education for granted."

"You don't expect us to walk to school do you?" asked a very irritated Quinn.

"You can take the SUV," said Helen handing Daria the keys.  "I won't be needing it today.  Will you be ok driving, Daria."

"No problem, captain," said Daria giving Helen a salute.

Helen continued with a sigh, "You can pick up your friends, too, if they need a ride.  Just drive slowly.  This kind of weather makes the roads unpredictable."

"This isn't fair," complained Quinn.  "You guys get to stay home."

"It's different for us, Quinn," said Jake.

"How?" asked Quinn.

"Well, it's like this.  Um, uh...," said Jake, trying to explain.  "We... uh."

"Dad?"

"Hey, is that the loose floorboard I hear?" asked Jake running away from the table.

"It's different for us because we won't be grounded if we miss work," said Helen.  "Now, you girls better get going."

"Fine," said a defeated Quinn, knowing that trying to reason with her mom wouldn't work.  She and Daria left the kitchen and slowly trudged to the garage.

The garage door opened, allowing the SUV to back out.  It was one thing to hear about it on the radio, but seeing the weather conditions first hand was astonishing.  The sky was dark grey, on the borderline of black in fact.  The thick snowfall made for visibility of less than four feet, which made driving a daredevil stunt.  Walking would have been just as dangerous.  Daria progressed slowly down the street, moving even more timidly than when she first learned to drive.  This is one of the few times that she heeded one of her mother's warnings.

"You don't need to pick up any of my friends, they already have rides," said Quinn.

"Well, Jane doesn't.  So we're going to pick her up before we go to school."

Daria turned onto Jane's street and approached her house.  When they reached casa Lane, Daria exited the car and made her way to the front door.  She almost fell a couple of times due to all the ice, but she managed to stay on her feet.  Several moments after ringing the bell, a very haggard looking Jane answered.

"Now that you've applied the proper amount of makeup, are you ready to go to school?" asked Daria.

"Who said anything about going to school?" asked Jane through yawns.

"If I have to suffer, so do you.  Let's go."

"Since when has misery loved company?" asked Jane.  When Daria didn't respond, she just grabbed her backpack walked to the car with Daria following.  It was too early to argue.

Once in the car, Daria, Quinn, and Jane made their way to the school.  Tired of hearing weather reports, Daria changed the station on the radio.  The speakers began to blare out "nowhere to go" by mushroomhead.

Mornings gone

Echoes of dawn

Shaking my soul

All but done

Delirium

The rain with the cold

Nowhere to go

"Ugh, why are we listening to this?" asked Quinn.  This obviously didn't compliment her taste in music.

"Just something for mom the next time she starts the car," said Daria.  "I'm sure she'll appreciate us leaving it on this station and turning the volume all the way up."

"Oh," said Quinn realizing that this would be a suitable revenge for their mom sending them to school.

(We've been brought here for a reason

be it fate or internal treason

souls will be saved

or mutiny's waged

as we plead for something to believe in)

Ringing doubt

Full of ways out

Of something to hold

I erode

Fade like cologne

Shrink inside as I depart the throne

"Helen is so lucky to have such caring daughters as yourselves," said Jane sardonically.

If I could end this waking dream

Escape through a scream

And feel I'd won some way

Wade through this dark decay

Welcome an early grave

And put my heart away

To start another game

It's getting old

With nowhere to go

(Hollow hides

from life's embrace

echoes siren

my displace

my patience lies

beside my faith

denial behind this painted face)

All alone

More than you'll know

...

I should have seen that song on the radio this morning as foreshadowing.  Like I said, the cold is getting to me.  I can barely think straight.  Going through an entire day of school didn't help much either...

8:09 AM

When they finally arrived at the school, it was evident that most kids didn't even bother to show up today.  Daria and Jane's first period English class had less than half the normal amount of people in it.

"I think it's just wonderful that you all braved the elements just to make it to school.  You stared that snow right in the face and said 'I'm not going to miss out on my education because of you!'"  Being met with a class full of blank faces didn't discourage Mr. O'Neil from going on.  "I'm just so proud of you all!  Unfortunately, I wasn't expecting us to have class today, so I have no lessons planned."

"What a tragedy that is," said Jane.

"It is, isn't it?" said O'Neil, not picking up on Jane's sarcastic tone.  "I guess you can all use this as a quiet reading time for your novels."  This idea is met by moans of disapproval from the class.  "If you don't want to do that, we can all discuss our feelings about the complex emotions displayed in 'Pride and Prejudice.'"  At the thought of this, everyone in the class pulls out their novels and begin to read (or at least pretend to).  The rest of first period goes by without incident.

Second period with Ms. Barch didn't fare well either.

"I guess actually driving here through the death blizzard wasn't enough, huh?  I have to be punished even further by having the males show up today," ranted Ms. Barch.  "Your lesson for today is global warming, and why it is responsible for this freak storm.  If all of the brain dead men of the world didn't have to drive their big, road hogging trucks and SUV's, thereby releasing so much carbon dioxide into the air, none of this would have ever happened.  It's. All. Your. faults!" she yelled, slapping her ruler against the desk.

"I should probably wait until she leaves to go to the SUV," thought Daria.

"Shut up, Mack!" yelled Ms. Barch to a confused Mack.

The rest of the day went by as if it were the last day of school.  In every class, the teacher seemed to care less than the students.  History was the worst, because Mr. DeMartino was no where to be found.  Most suspected that he was stuck in his car somewhere bulging his eye out.  The ringing of the final bell was a godsend to the students.  Everyone left class and went to their lockers in anticipation of going home.

"My mom is going to pay for making me go through these seven hours of hell," said Daria to Jane as they were making their way to their lockers.

"I should make you pay for dragging me here with you," said Jane.

"Now you know you don't mean that."

"All threats aside, this weather does have me a little concerned," said Jane.  "Do you think Ms. Barch was on to something when she said that global warming was responsible for this storm?"

"I'm no meteorologist, but even coming from Ms. Barch, it does sound plausible," replied Daria.  "Either that, or the gas companies are thinking up some damn creative ways to keep profits up."

"Well, whatever it is, it better end soon.  Even Trent won't be able to sleep through it when we can't pay the gas bill."

They stopped at their lockers and gathered their things.  When that was done, Daria and Jane left to meet up with Quinn so they could finally go home.

AAAAAAAGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

The halls were silenced by the sound of a shrill, and squeaky, scream.  The source of said scream was from none other than Brittany.  Daria, Jane, Kevin, and the other LHS regulars gathered around Brittany, shocked at what they saw before them.  The doors leading outside were completely blocked by snow, with some of it poured into the hall because of Brittany opening the door.  Some students tried to dig their way out, but their efforts were futile.  The snow might as well have been a mile thick and high enough to cover the top of the door, so any attempts at digging out seemed hopeless.  Just then, Ms. Li came over the intercom.

"Attention students, I regret to inform you that due to heavy snowfall, all of the entranceways to the school are blocked.  As of now, we have no way out of the building, so everyone is going to have to remain here until told otherwise.  A call has already been made out, and it is only a matter of time before the National Guard comes to dig us out.  Until then, remain calm and stay in the classrooms.  And, don't even think about leaving from the rooftop door.  It's less than 20 degrees out there.  You'll never make it more than 10 feet alive.  That is all."

The students began to panic.  Many were trying to think of ways to get out of the school.

"Don't worry guys," said Kevin.  "We just need to wait for a silo full of salt to crash down in front of the school, and we'll be out just like that."

"Dude, you need to quit watching The Simpson's," said Mack.

"What, it worked for them, didn't it?"

Mack just sighed and walked away.

"Was it something I said, bro?"

...

It all went downhill from there.  Or, continued to go downhill is a better way to put it.  In an attempt by the teachers to try and keep some order, they put us all in the auditorium.  There, they just repeated Li's speech about how the National Guard was on their way to rescue us from our impending doom.  It was all just a matter of time, or so they said...

3:16 PM

All of the students are gathered in the auditorium with some of the teachers and other faculty members.  In total, there are probably no more than fifty kids there.  Everyone is in their usual lunchroom clique divisions, talking amongst themselves.  Some are trying to use their cell phones to call their families, but by the looks of it no one can get a signal.  Daria and Jane are, of course, sitting by themselves in the back of the auditorium.

"I don't know what I did in my past life to deserve this," said Daria.

"Don't be ridiculous, Daria," said Jane.  "This is obviously punishment for something that you're going to do.  And, by the looks of it, I'm going to be there when it happens."

On the other side of the room, near the stage, Quinn and Sandi are sitting together.  The other FC's didn't seem to show up to school today. 

"This is like, such a waste of time," complained Sandi. 

"I know," agreed Quinn.  "We were supposed to go to the mall after school today.  This is so unfair!  Why did mom have to send me to school today?"

"I guess Stacy and Tiffany faked sick or something."

"I hope the National Guard comes here soon.  If they don't, we might be here all night."

"Don't worry, Quinn.  I bet they're outside digging right now."

Sandi's words of confidence were short lived.  As soon as she finished speaking, the power went out.  A few flickers of light made their presence with the help of the backup generator.  But, soon it was dark again.

"Now there's a sign of good things to come," said Daria.

"You're always the optimist aren't you?  Hey, is it getting colder in here?" asked Jane.

"Now that you mention it, it does feel a little chilly all of a sudden.  How much do you want to bet that the heating was somehow connected with the electricity?"

"Is there anything that maintenance department can't do wrong?" retorted Jane.

The teachers tried to calm down the students, but none could be heard through all the concerned chatter.  With no power, the microphone on the stage podium wasn't working.  Eventually, Ms. Li came out with a flashlight and a megaphone.

"Attention everyone," yelled Li through the screeching megaphone.  The harsh noise was enough to shut everyone up.  "Due to a technical failure, the power will be out for quite some time.  Also, due to another completely unrelated technical failure, the heat will be out as well.  I suggest that you all put on as much clothes as you can and huddle together for warmth.  National Guard is still on their way and we will all be home shortly," said Li reassuringly.  "It will just take a lot longer without the homing beacon functioning," she said under her breath.

Upon Ms. Li's departure, all of the students began to put on gloves, hats, and anything else that they had to keep them warm.  It seemed to be getting colder in the auditorium after every passing minute.  However, everyone was reluctant to huddle together.  Daria and Jane didn't even move from where they were sitting.  After yet another speech from the teachers about the National Guard and what not, things began to calm down.  The students continued to talk amongst themselves, none seeming too worried about the circumstances before them.  Though, it was still easy to sense the anxiety in the air.  From even inside the auditorium, the eerie sound of howling wind could be heard.  Though there were no windows, everyone knew that it was still snowing.

...

Stuck in a human refrigerator full of helpless souls.  There's a poem in there somewhere.  But, right now I'm not in a mood to care.  We've been here for hours, and I have yet to hear the sound of a hundred guys with snow plows and shovels digging a pathway to our freedom.  So far, the mental constitutions of everyone trapped in here are holding out surprisingly well.  No one's tried to kill anyone yet, at least.  As for me and Jane, we're not doing badly either, considering the people we're cooped up with.  Jane has come up with some rather profound sketches.  And me, well, writing this is obviously what I'm doing.  We just need to try and keep ourselves busy, or risk going insane.

7:15 PM

By now, everyone is starting to get hungry.  All of the students were rounded up and taken to the cafeteria for something to eat.  However, the lack of electricity made cooking the food impossible.  The only things available to eat now were canned fruits, bread, and candy from the vending machines.  Anything else available, if eaten uncooked, would result in horrible sickness, and that was the last thing anyone needed.  Though, not happy with the limited selection, most everyone was too hungry to care.

In another part of the building, Ms. Li's office to be exact, there was another dilemma being fused.  Ms. Li sat in her darkened office alone, with a portable heater stationed next to her desk.  She spoke on a HAM radio with someone who we can't immediately identify.

"What do you mean you're delaying our rescue?" yelled Li.

"We've got emergencies popping up all over this city," said Captain Hark, the National Guardsman that Li is talking to.  "We're in over our heads here.  Even if we had the time, we won't be able to get the plows and other necessary equipment there until morning."

"But, you don't understand, Captain Hark.  It's my fault that these kids are stuck here in the first place.  If I would have just cancelled school today, none of this would be happening.  My students are counting on you to get us out of here alive!"

"Maybe you should have thought of that this morning," said an annoyed Hark.  He had a lot of work to do and Ms. Li was holding him up.  "Look, as soon as we're done here, I'll send some people over to the school to get started.  If things go according to plan, you'll be out of there by tomorrow afternoon.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go."

"But --," Captain Hark got off of his radio before Ms. Li could finish what she was going to say.  "Damn it!"  Li slammed the radio receiver onto her desk. 

Back in the lunch room, everyone was finishing up their "meals." 

"This sucks," complained Quinn.  She sat at a table with Sandi and the three J cronies.  "Why couldn't they just start a fire or something so they could give us some cooked food instead of this canned stuff?"  The three J's took this as another opportunity to try and cater to Quinn's every whim. 

"I'll start a fire for you Quinn!"

"No, you'll screw it up. I'll do it."

"No, you both suck at making fires."

"Don't bother guys," interjected Sandi.  "Even if you could get a fire started, the sprinklers would just put it out."

The three J's gave looks of dejection, realizing that they missed an opportunity to impress Quinn.

"Its ok guys," said Quinn.  "Which one of you would like to go and get me a soda?"

"I will!" said all three J's in unison.  They got up and ran towards one of the vending machines.  As they run, they pass by Daria and Jane's table.

"Why are they in such a hurry?" asked Jane.

"Maybe Quinn convinced them to try and dislodge the snow by running full speed into the doors," said Daria.

"It would be a lot easier to just crack open Kevin's head and let the hot air melt the snow."

"No, that's his only method of keeping warm."

"Yeah, and we'd probably need more than one of him to melt it all."

They're interrupted by the sound of glass shattering. 

"What kind do you want Quinn?" shouted Jeffy, standing on top of the shattered remains of the glass covering of the vending machines.

...

Jane had a point.  We would need more than one air head to melt all the snow.  If we combined Joey, Jeffy, and Jamie's combined air power with Kevin, they could melt the Arctic twice...

12:09 AM       Wednesday, November 7

After they ate, everyone returned to the auditorium.  Besides Joey, Jeffy, and Jamie getting yelled at by Ms. Li for breaking the vending machine, nothing really exciting happened for the rest of the night.  By this time, everyone was asleep.  Old pieces of carpet, tarps, and anything else suitable were used as blankets.  The arrival of nighttime made it even colder.  In the back of the auditorium, there is a small tarp with a large lump in the middle, indicating that someone is sitting up under it.  Inside is none other than Daria.  She turns on the flashlight that she took from one of the sleeping teachers and opens her notebook. 

I have officially entered my second day of hell.  They say that people come together in times of crisis, but I have yet to see this happen here.  No one is coming together, sharing inspirational words, or even asking how the other person is doing.  It's just like a prolonged day of school.  Though, I'm not surprised.  Expecting these people to act differently would have been foolish.  The only thing keeping me from destroying them all is having Jane here to keep me sane.  I'm starting to feel more and more fortunate that I dragged her here with me, though I don't know if I can say the same for her.  I'll have to watch my back.  She could get some well deserved revenge on me at any moment.

Her thoughts were interrupted by what sounded like footsteps and other banging on the roof.

"Sounds like the National Guard finally showed up," thought Daria.  "It's about time."  She closed her notebook and turned off the flashlight, placing it in her pocket.  Daria then took off her glasses and put them on top of the notebook.  Lying down on her back, she looked up at the ceiling for a few moments, and then closed her eyes.  Sleep was a welcomed friend.

5:37 AM

Ms. Li lay asleep in her office chair.  The portable heater still on, and the HAM radio off, Li slept comfortably and undisturbed.  That is, until her office door began to open slightly.  A dark figure slowly approached the desk.  The figure moved closer towards Ms. Li, so that their face was only inches away from hers.  Then, without warning...

"COMFORTABLE!" yelled the mysterious stranger, jolting Ms. Li awake.

Back in the auditorium, everyone was still sleeping.  The sounds of the National Guard hard at work echoed from the rooftop.  In the back of the auditorium, a small beam of light penetrated an opening door.  Then, a dark figure looking the same as the one that entered Li's office entered the room.  The person cautiously approached the two kids who were on the floor sleeping.  Daria began to stir; the glare from a flashlight shining in her face woke her from her slumber.  Standing above her was a tall man with a flashlight.  The man picked up Daria's glasses and handed them to her.  When she put them on, she saw who it was standing before her.  But, before Daria could say anything, the lights flickered back on, waking everyone up.  Ms. Li soon came on stage, megaphone in hand.

"Wake up! Everyone wake up!" shouted Ms. Li over the megaphone.  "A pathway out of the school has been carved.  Everyone, get up and proceed to the loading dock entrance."

The jubilated students all hurriedly got up and made their way to the loading dock.  Once there, they saw the door opened, and a pathway dug out to the parking lot.  The students all exited the building, taking their first breaths of fresh air in almost twenty four hours.  When Daria reached the door, she noticed something that no one else seemed to realize.  There wasn't a single National Guardsman to be found.

6:01 AM

The dark grey sky gave way for the sun to rise over the horizon as the now freed students celebrated in the parking lot.  Some of them throwing snowballs, making snow angels, and talking amongst each other.  It looked like the scene from a winter party.  The snow had finally stopped falling, and a cascading wind filled the dry air.  Many of the kids called their parents to tell them that they were alright.  Daria stood near her mothers SUV watching the festivities.  She was joined by the man that woke her up in the auditorium.

"How are you doing, Daria?" asked the man.

"A lot better than I was half an hour ago, Mr. DeMartino," replied Daria.  "Though, I wasn't expecting to see you when the lights came back on."

"I thought I would surprise you.  It felt pretty good giving Ms. Li a scare in her office."

"There's something I can't figure out, though.  Why did you come to save us?" asked Daria.  Mr. DeMartino was the last person she expected to go out of his way to rescue someone.  Especially considering that the students were one of the main sources of his stress.

"Well, I was on my way to school this morning when my car got stuck in a ditch on the highway.  After the National Guard pulled my car out, I overheard two of those imbeciles discussing the school.  I heard them say that there were students and teachers stuck in there.  At first, it was my dream come true.  But, then I remembered you, Daria.  I called your house to see if you were home, but your mother told me that you and your sister went to school."

"You can blame her for that," said Daria.  "It's my mom's fault that I couldn't take my education for granted."

"To answer your question as to why I rescued the children; you, Daria, must be one of my only students who can actually think for themselves.  Your sister's starting to show some promise as well.  Students like you are one of the few things that actually make teaching worthwhile.  I knew I had to do something to help you.  Knowing that National Guard, it would be days before they got you out.  So I took it upon myself to do the job right."

"But how did you manage to get in?" asked Daria.  "You don't have anywhere near the type of equipment the National Guard has, not to mention the numbers."

"Ah, yes.  But I have something they don't.  The ability to think logically.  A friend of mine who owns his own contracting company let me borrow his snow plow equipped truck, as well as some supplies.  I drove to the school, and found that due to an overhanging roof, the loading dock door wasn't blocked by snow, therefore making it easily accessible.  Using some portable heaters and a pick axe, I was able to bust my way through the door in a matter of a few hours.  As far as I know, the National Guard is still trying to dig their way through the front entrance."

"I don't know how to thank you, Mr. DeMartino.  You may have saved my sanity as well as my life."

"You've already thanked me more than enough Daria.  A student like you comes by only once in a lifetime."

The two were soon approached by Jane and Quinn.

"What do you say we get out of here?  It's getting a little too warm and fuzzy for me," said Jane.

"Sure.  I'm going to have to face the barrage of hugs from my mother eventually.  Let's go."

"Goodbye girls," said Mr. DeMartino.  "I'll see you in class soon."

"Bye, Mr. D," said Daria as he walked away.  She joined Quinn and Jane in the SUV, and they were soon on the road home.

7:12 AM Friday, November 9

"Well folks, it looks like the blizzard of the century has finally come to an end," came the voice of Bing through the radio on the kitchen table.  "The roads have been cleared of almost all snow and ice, and life seems to be starting up yet again.  All major businesses are now reopened for business, and things are finally returning to normal after five days of snowy insanity."

Just as Daria predicted, her and Quinn were welcomed home on Wednesday by a barrage of hugs from their parents.  Though, she couldn't blame them for being concerned.  Even if she wouldn't admit it, Daria was worried about her parents and Quinn as well during her night of hell.  The next day, everyone enjoyed a day off as the town was still being cleaned up of the mess left by the blizzard.  However, their vacation from school was a short one, as classes were back in session the next day.  Much to the dismay of Daria and Quinn, Helen was still making them go.

"But mo-ooom, are you seriously willing to take this risk again?" asked Quinn, very peeved about the fact that they had to go back to school so soon.

"Now Quinn, I doubt that you'll be stuck in the school again.  It hasn't snowed since Wednesday morning, and I think that this blizzard is over," said Helen, who was back in her usual morning rush routine again. 

"This is so unfair!" pouted Quinn.

"Quinn, I don't have time to discuss this with you any longer.  I have a ton of work at the office to catch up on in very little time.  I have to go now, goodbye," said Helen as she ran into the garage.

"Can you believe this Daria?" asked Quinn.

Daria just smirked, as she knew what was coming.  After a moment of silence, very loud music can be heard coming from the garage.  Inside the SUV, Helen shields her ears as the car radio, with the volume up all the way, blares out heavy metal music.

End   7/8/06

Authors notes:

First of all, my apologies to Roger E. Moore.  I unwittingly used his idea from "Winter in Hell," in which he stated the time throughout the story.  I hope that this can be considered for what it is, my sincerest form of flattery. 

The inspiration for the title of this story came after reading Peter W. Guerin's essay "Daria Fandom's Gotterdaemmerung."  In this essay he makes a reference to the opera called "The Ring of the Nibelung," in which part of the setting is castle Valhalla.  Valhalla (Hall of the Slain), in Norse mythology, is Odin's home for those who met glorious death in battle.  The title of this fic is a reference to the bravery of Mr. DeMartino (Valiance) in rescuing the people who are trapped in the school (Valhalla).

Kevin's "The Simpson's" reference: (warning: contains spoilers)

In an episode of "The Simpson's," Bart and Lisa are trapped in the school with the other students and Principal Skinner.  They are rescued when Homer and Ned, while attempting to save the students, crash into a salt silo at the top of a hill.  The silo falls down the hill and comes to a stop in front of the school.  The silo spills its load of salt, which melts all of the snow blocking the door.  For anyone who hasn't seen this episode, sorry if I ruined the ending for you.

Barch's rant on global warming:

Do I believe that global warming is a problem?  I believe that it will be if it continues to go unchecked.  I used to think that global warming was just a joke, but after researching the subject, I began to open my eyes to the problem at hand.  It does seem to be a serious threat to the stability of mankind.  If what scientists and meteorologists are saying turns out to be true, at some point in time "The Day After Tomorrow" will become a documentary.

Ms. Li shows remorse?

In one small scene in this fic, while Ms. Li is talking to Captain Hark of the National Guard, she states that it's her fault that the students are trapped in the school.  Though, it's not likely that Li would blame herself for anything, I just wanted to try and show that she could have a conscience.  Or, I could go so far as to say she cares for her students and faculty.  However, even if she does care for their well being, she still isn't above enjoying self gratification, as shown by her keeping a portable heater in her office all to herself.

Overall, I hope that I was able to entertain you with my third fanfic (or at least give you something to pass the time on a rainy day).