Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Word:preconcert



preconcert

\ pree-kuhn-SURT \  , verb;
1. To arrange in advance or beforehand, as by a previous agreement.
adjective:
1. Preceding a concert:  a preconcert reception for sponsors .


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                Jeff strode through the courtyard filled with an odd kind of confidence that only comes with knowing success is assured.  His professor for the lab class he was taking had posted lab partners for the semester.  He had gotten the one person who guaranteed he would get high marks on every assignment, with minimal work.  Her name was Violet, and she was the person who always got the highest scores on everything.  It was how she got those marks that had assured Jeff of his own success in that class.
                “Jeff, over here.”  Violet said from across the courtyard, waving in his direction to get his attention.  She didn’t need to; she stood out in a crowd just fine.  She was a very good looking girl, and caught the attention of just about every guy on campus, even if she didn’t necessarily dress for that purpose.  Her most noticeable feature by far though was her eyes.  They were bright purple, and almost seemed to glow if looked at from the correct angle.  In fact, it was those eyes that had made Jeff first talk to her in their freshman year.  She was friendly and easy to get along with, so they had been friends ever since. 
                Jeff walked over to her, Violet walking to meet him halfway.  Her steps were confident, and she seemed to know exactly where to put her feet to avoid obstacles others might encounter.  Violet moved next to him, matching his pace as they started walking together.  For a little bit, they chatted idly about various things.  Soon though, the topic turned to their latest assignment.
                “So, how much will I have to do?”  Jeff asked. 
                “You’ll have to do all of your part.  Don’t worry, it won’t take too long.”  She said.
                “I see.  And how long ago did you get your half done?”
                “I finished last week.”  She said, like it was no big deal. 
In all the time they had known each other, Jeff had noticed she got all her assignments done well in advance, before even knowing the content.  It was what led him to finding out her biggest secret.  Violet was an Oracle, gifted with the ability to see through time.  She knew exactly what was going to happen long before it actually did.  So far, Jeff had only seen her use this gift for two things.  One was acing all her classes by looking to see what was going to be covered and doing the assignments far before she needed to.  She even went as far as to ‘see’ the lectures days or even weeks in advance.  It was how she had the best grades in all her courses.  The second thing she used her foresight for was navigating her daily life. 
According to Violet, there were two kinds of sight; one was to see through space, and the other through time.  She claimed that having one prevented a person from having the other.  Violet had the ability to see through time, but as a consequence, she was unable to see through space.  In other words, she was blind.  Thanks to her ability though, she didn’t have any of the problems that other vision impaired people had.  It was how her steps were so well placed even though she couldn’t actually see her feet.  It also made it so people had no idea she was disabled at all, which she seemed to prefer.
                “So, I guess you’ll be pointing out what I should be doing?”  Jeff said, hoping to capitalize on her unique talents
                “Well, I’ll put you on the right track anyway.  I mean, you don’t want this to be too easy, right?”  She said. 
                “But I like easy.”  Jeff said, only half joking.  She chuckled for a few moments.
                “Oh, don’t worry, I’ll make sure you do everything right.  Oh, and you might want to take a step to the right in a second.”
                Jeff was confused at that, but he knew better than to question her.  He did as she asked, and a second later a Frisbee went rushing past the area where his head had just occupied.  He looked at the thrower who shouted a hasty and most likely halfhearted apology.  Violet for her part was humming confidently.  Even though he knew about what she could do, there were still things she did that surprised him.
                “Think I’m ever going to get used to that?” Jeff asked, more to himself than anything else.  “Don’t answer that.”  He quickly stated.  Violet had opened her mouth to answer his question, but she closed it and gave him an overly dramatic hurt look. 
                “Ok fine, I won’t tell you.”  She said, still acting hurt.  “Anyway, I’ll see you later to get started on that lab.  I think I’m going to get some work done now.”
                “Alright, see you later.”  He said.  Violet started to move away from him in the direction of her dorm room.  Jeff was going to let her go, but his curiosity got the better of him.  “So when is this assignment do?  And when will it be assigned?”
“Oh it’s my senior thesis.  It’s going to be pretty long, so I might as well get it done and out of the way now.”  She said.  She turned and walked away, humming to herself as she did. 
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Not sure how well this one sticks to the word I'm using, but meh, it's good enough for me.  Also, at times like this, I do so love being a fiction writer.  It's what lets me do things like this.  

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