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on hold. Wanna come after school to check it out? Would
love
a second opinion.
    From: [email protected]
    To: [email protected]
    Re: Re: Prom attire
    Totally. Can’t wait. But don’t you think it’ll be hard to, like, totally get into the spirit of prom and graduation and stuff with all of the serious stuff going on lately? I mean, Ed in the hospital and that creepy “Droog” violence? It freaks me out.
    And speaking of creepy, just saw Gaia Moore in her usual sweats du jour—big change from the little black dress of Wednesday night, you know? I mean, could someone please get the girl a brush? Tell me what a hottie like Jake Montone—who
clearly
understands the importance of personal grooming—sees in a girl like that? I’m still thinking we should plan a little low-level revenge since she did lie to us about the party—whether everyone else is into it or not.
    Anyway, let’s meet on the steps after last period. I need caffeine if I’m going to keep my strength up shopping.
    LOCAL DROOGS ENGAGE IN A LITTLE OF THE OLD ULTRAVIOLENCE
    IV heads, or “Droogs,” as they are coming to be known by the media, may have a new way of getting their fix. The next wave of testosterone highs comes from an “Orange,” so named because it comes in the form of a tab stamped with small orange polka-dot icons. These “Oranges” are the most concentrated form of IV available, and those who’re hooked are acting out
Clockwork Orange
style—that is to say, indulging in a little of the old ultraviolence. IV almost completely inhibits fear, leaving those who’ve taken it free to wreak havoc around town in the form of pranks—some harmless, some less so. Police report that vandalism is up 12 percent since Oranges hit the scene and petty burglary 22 percent. Washington Square Park, sources report, has been heavily hit, and it is recommended that Village School students avoid the park after sundown.
    â€œYou don’t want to be out in the park—or even anywhere near there—once the sun is down,” Sergeant Mike Donovan warns. “The Droogs aren’t like other JDs. They’re more like serious addicts. Which means dangerous with a capital
D
. They’re not afraid of anything.”
    With prom and graduation rapidly approaching, we at the Village School have to wonder if the escalation of IV-related crimes is going to rain on ourend-of-the-year parade. Prom night, for example, traditionally known for its high levels of underage drinking and drug use, may be more closely monitored. But according to Principal Hickey, there are at present no intentions to alter plans for graduation or prom. “We see no reason not to carry on as usual,” Hickey confirmed, “though we may heighten our security. Neither graduation nor prom should be affected by this recent wave of petty crime.”
    Which means that for the time being, at least, prom and graduation—as well as all related events and ceremonies—will continue as planned.

Sudden Burst of Optimism
    GAIA FINISHED SKIMMING THE NEWS-paper article in the latest
Village School Weekly
and pushed the paper aside. She picked listlessly at her lunch—something vaguely Italian swam in a sea of watery red sauce, but it wasn’t doing the trick—and thought about the Droogs. So they were fearless, huh? It was ironic that this group of tweakers would replicate her very own questionable genetic mutation at the same time that she was acutely, unavoidably fearing just about everything that she encountered. The idea of a bunch of scumbags getting their jollies in
her
park, making life unsafe for
her
friends was the type of thing that would normally have motivated her to kick some serious ass. She’d have
deliberately
headed to the park, looking for losers to stomp on. But now? Now she found herself distractedly thinking about prom, relieved, surprisingly, to hear that it