Charlie’s mouth fell open. Kallie and Marcus appeared similarly nonplussed. I had a shorter fuse now than I had before I went into the Underground, and Esther lit it immediately.
“What the fuck is offensive about him determining what he wants to call himself?” I burst.
“Ew, language,” Esther said, and she wrinkled her nose. “There’s no need to use vulgarity. It’s a sin.”
“What’s wrong with being disabled?” Charlie asked.
“You’re still using the wrong language.Disabledis a really negative and outdated term,” Esther purred.
“I identify with that term, and I don’t have a problem with it,” Charlie said slowly.
“But the world doesn’t revolve around you,” Esther replied. “We should be using wordseveryone’scomfortable with.”
I was gonna jump out of this wheelchair and pound this cow into the ground. My fists still worked, and she was about to catch these hands, even though I was only strong enough to get one good smack in.
But Charlie already had his hands on my shoulders, and I couldn’t budge his firm grip on me.
I took a breath. “Look. It’s perfectly fine to use the termpeople-with-disabilities.But the worddisableditself isn’t a bad word, and shouldn’t have a negative connotation associated with it. And it’s especially ableist to tell adisabled personhow they’re allowed to refer to themselves.”
Esther sniffed. “I’m on your side. I want to be a good advocate.”
Oh, she was a social justice warrior, just like I was. But she was the worst kind— the type of person who liked using big words and talking points to act like she was smarter than other people. She had no real interest in being an ally to marginalized people. She just wanted to look smarter than everyone else.
Chancey was right. This bitchwasdangerous. She was intelligent enough to twist someone’s advocacy for themselves against their own self-interest. All she had to do was plant the wrong idea in someone’s head, then let it run wild.
“If you want to be a good advocate, you’ll listen to what disabled people have to say,” I pressed. “Everyone with a disability deserves validation, no matter if they’re chronically ill, need mobility aids, or have to take medication for mental illness.”
Esther gave a little laugh. “We all know mental illnesses don’t count.”
“Bitch, I swear to the ancestors, I’m gonna hit you,” I snarled.
“Ava,” Charlie warned.
“No! She’s an able-bodied person, and she’s dictating to us how we’re allowed to identify. That pisses me off!” I shouted.
“Excuse me,Ava, but you don’t know my life or what I’ve been through. I know what it’s like to have a disability,actually, because I have loved ones who are differently abled, so I get what you feelcompletely.And it’ssooffensive you would think otherwise,” Esther sneered.
“Every disability is different,” Charlie said calmly, trying to level the situation. “I don’t expect Ava to understand what it’s like being blind because she’s in a wheelchair, and vice versa.”
Esther puffed out a breath. She went to say something back, but I heard a low growl from behind me.
Kallie looked ready to shift into her wolf form. She hadn’t yet, but her eyes had taken on a yellow sheen, like she wanted to. Charlie could hold me down, but Kallie was a shifter, and he couldn’t hold her back unless he used his Elf powers to siphon her magic, which the inferichite bracelet made difficult.
If I didn’t start a fight with her, Kallie sure would.
A brawl on her first day would ruin her honor-student image, so Esther shook out her curls and said, “I was just trying to help, but as Uncle tells me, you can’t save people who don’t want to save themselves. If any of you want a listening ear, trust me; I’m here for you.”
I hardly waited for her to be out of earshot before I mumbled, “If she really gave a shit about your blindness, she would’ve made sure you could understand what she was communicating when she was mouthing words like a moron.”
“She just came over here to pick on us,” Marcus said.
“She’s trying to get into our heads,” Kallie agreed. “The Warden probably filled her in on all our weak spots.”
Charlie shook his head. “She’s a distraction. We have to focus on what’s important, which is meeting with Takahashi tonight. We can’t afford to let Esther get under our skin, because that’s what the Warden wants. If she can keep us busy with drama, we won’t be able to work on what matters.”
“She’s already out of my mind,” I grumbled as I turned my wheelchair around, so I didn’t have to face her.
The prison yard began to clear out as people went back to their classes. Eventually, the yard was nearly empty. We were going to move, too, until a loud noise boomed through the air. It was a deep bray, like the sound of a deer in pain.
