Chapter 28

I couldn't have been more excited for the rally. Everything I had just wanted to prove myself to Rosie, and the rally could not have been a better place to do that. The interview was just a warm up; it was only a practice round. This would be the real test.

When I got up on Friday morning, I was just so elated. I didn't even mind that I had to socialize with Maya during breakfast. Maya didn't really seem to get what all of the excitement was all about, but that was okay. She was allowed to exist in her own little bubble that was probably stuck in 2005.

I didn't see Adam on the way to work that day. I was hoping to see him, but he just wasn't there. I wished that he was though. I hated to say it, but Adam did make my day just a little bit brighter.

Work wasn't particularly interesting. Rosie and I just made a few last minute preparations for our trip. Finally, at around noon, we left for the airport.

Rosie and I took the train into Des Moines, and then took a taxi to the airport. Once we got there, we had our bags checked, went through security, and waited for our flight. "Are you ready for this, Ivy?" Rosie asked me as we waited.

"Definitely," I told her. I looked out the window at all of the planes taking off and landing. "This is just so exciting. Do we do stuff like this often?"

"We travel sometimes, if that's what you're asking," Rosie said.

"My friends are going to be so jealous," I said.

"Remember, this is a business trip," Rosie said. "When we get to Washington DC, there won't be much time for sightseeing. You're going to be taking pictures, and I'll be taking notes."

"I know," I said. "This is still going to be awesome."

Our flight finally arrived, and we boarded the plane. The flight wasn't particularly long - two and a half hours at most. Rosie read for most of it, and I texted my friends. It went something like this.

strange_quark: Hey, are you in Washington DC yet?

MochaKitty5: Nope, still on the plane. I think we r flying over ohio sector right now.

Oboetastic: Planes are the worst. I'm always nervous when I have to fly.

strange_quark: Henri? Since when did you have an Angel Wings account? Also, your username is cool, but "oboetastic" is not a real word.

Oboetastic: Maya helped me set one up yesterday. Thanks! I am happy that you like my username.

strange_quark: I could have showed you how to do it, or you could have at least told me your username so I could follow you.

Oboetastic: I'm sorry Jack. Will you forgive me?

strange_quark: Of course. It wasn't that big of a deal, and I love you anyways.

MayaThePsychic: Hey, what's up?

MochaKitty5: I didnt invite u 2 the group chat.

MayaThePsychic: Well, I didn't invite you to the playground yesterday, so I'm going to barge into the group chat.

Oboetastic: I invited Maya. I did not think that it was fair that you did not invite her.

MochaKitty5: Why do all of u txt with perfect grammar and stuff? I thought that my friend Chloe was the only one that did that.

strange_quark: It makes you sound more educated and professional.

MochaKitty5: grammar nazi.

strange_quark: I prefer to be addressed as a "member of the Grammar Police." The Nazis were evil, and I don't want to be compared to one. I am, however, proud of my grammatical superiority.

MayaThePsychic: Also, don't bring up Chloe. She's horrible and I hate her.

MochaKitty5: Dont insult my friends.

MayaThePsychic: Chloe said that MCR was Satanic in seventh grade. I think I have the right to hate her.

MochaKitty5: U didn't know Chloe.

Oboetastic: I don't know anyone named Chloe...

strange_quark: Don't worry about it, Henri.

MayaThePsychic: She also copied off of my chemistry quiz in September.

strange_quark: Did you know that about 59% of high school students cheated on a test in the last year?

MayaThePsychic: Nobody cares, Jack. I just really hate Chloe Fox.

MochaKitty5: Stop bashing my best friend. I have to go anyways. The plane is about 2 land. C u all l8r.

Oboetastic: Goodbye Ivy! Have fun in Washington DC!

I put my phone away as the plane began to dip downwards in preparation for landing. We landed in Washington DC a few minutes later. Rosie and I got our stuff and got off of the plane. "Where are we going next?" I asked her as I looked around the airport.

"We'll probably check into our hotel room first," Rosie said. "The rally isn't until tomorrow."

The two of us made our way out of the airport and found our hotel. Rosie checked both of us into our hotel room, and we climbed up the stairs to our room. Once we got there, I immediately started unpacking. The room was actually pretty nice. My bed was nice and fluffy, and we had a great view. I read one of the books that I had bought when I went to the bookstore until ten o'clock or so. Then, I went to bed. I needed my rest after all of that traveling.

"Ivy, wake up!" I heard Rosie yell. I rolled over and looked over at my phone. It said that it was 7:14, but I hadn't changed the timezone on my phone yet, so I knew that it was really 6:14.

"Why?" I mumbled. "It's so early..."

"We have to be at the Celestial Bureaucracy office by seven so we can watch everyone gather there," Rosie said. "That means that you're going to have to hurry!"

"Okay," I said, finally making an attempt to get out of bed. I tried to get ready as quickly as I could, and we managed to leave at 6:45. We still ended up being a little bit late, since I stopped to get a bagel and a mocha frappuccino, but we didn't miss anything important.

"The rally itself doesn't start until nine," Rosie explained. "I just thought that this might be a good opportunity to get some shots of the people here."

The people began to arrive at the Celestial Bureaucracy building, and I set up the camera and started taking pictures of them. "Rosie, come over here!" I exclaimed after I had gotten a particularly good picture.

"That's a nice one," Rosie said. "You even got the Lincoln Memorial in the background."

"How did that get here anyways?" I asked.

"The Lincoln Memorial?" Rosie said. "Someone rebuilt it. A lot of famous monuments end up being rebuilt here."

"Interesting," I said as I took a few more pictures.

"Good job, Ivy," Rosie said. "Keep up the good work." Rosie ran off to talk to a few of the protesters, and I just kept taking pictures. I would have to sort them out when I got home, but a lot of them ended up turning out pretty well.

By nine o'clock, hundreds, if not thousands, of people had gathered in front of the giant white building that was the Celestial Bureaucracy building. I was hoping to see Samantha in the crowd, but I didn't see her. All of a sudden, everyone went quiet as Azalea set up a podium near the building and stepped up on to it.

"Hello everyone," Azalea said. "I'm so glad to see so many of you here today. As many of you already know, my name is Azalea Harris, and I've seen a lot of injustice, both in life and in the afterlife. When I came here, I was almost sent to Hell, just because of the color of my skin. I know that many of you have faced similar injustices, but today, that is going to change!"

Everyone cheered, and Azalea cleared her throat before she continued. "Today, we are going to reverse centuries of discrimination and oppression, and break down the barriers that keep us from being treated equally in Heaven. We are going to change things, not only for ourselves, but for every generation that passes through Heaven after us. We will finally live in a Heaven that is free and equal for everyone, regardless of race, or any other factor for that matter. This was supposed to be a safe haven - a reward almost - for anyone who was good in life. Our goal is to return to that dream. We're going back to our roots. We're going to change the Celestial Bureaucracy!"

The crowd was growing wilder and wilder. I took a few pictures of Azalea, but I mostly just tried to listen to the speech. Rosie, on the other hand, was furiously taking notes. "To quote R2-D2, 'Do or do not, there is no try," Azalea said.

"That was Yoda!" the man next to me shouted.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Azalea said. "To quote Yoda, 'Do or do not, there is no try.' So today, we will not try. Today, we will do!"

Everyone cheered again. "Are you ready to enter the Celestial Bureaucracy building?" she said. The crowd screamed in response, and Azalea tried to pull open the door, but it was locked. "Stupid thing," she mumbled. "Why won't this open?"

"Let's go in through the window!" somebody shouted. Someone else picked up a few rocks from the ground and began to throw them at the window.

"No, that's a bad idea," Azalea said. "Let's keep this under control. Remember, this is a peaceful demonstration..."

"Let's get those Celestial Bureaucracy idiots!" another person shouted. Several of the protesters began to throw rocks at the window, and eventually, the window shattered.

"Do you want us to get in trouble?!" Azalea screamed.

I pulled out my camera again and took a picture as some of the more rowdy protesters tiptoed through the broken glass and ran into the Celestial Bureaucracy building. All of them were chanting different things. "I'm going to give God a piece of my mind!" one shouted.

"I can't wait to get rid of these racist bastards," another said.

Another group was chanting, "WE WANT CHANGE! WE WANT CHANGE! WE WANT CHANGE!" All of those people were climbing through the window and into the Celestial Bureaucracy building, and I just kept on taking photos. Azalea was still trying to get them to stop, and at one point, the police even arrived, but nothing was working. These people were out of control, and nothing was going to stop them.

It took about ten minutes before the first people started to return. "We couldn't find anyone who actually made those big decisions," I heard one person say. "Whoever runs this place isn't actually here."

"This was such a waste of time," someone else said. "All we succeeded in doing was breaking a window."

"I don't know," a third person said. "It did help spread the word. This is definitely going to be in the papers tomorrow."

After everyone started to settle down, I looked through my photos. I had gotten plenty of good pictures, and I hoped that the Celestial Post would like them too.

I left with Rosie sometime during the afternoon, and I even ran into Samantha on the way back to the hotel. "I'm sorry," she told me. "It wasn't supposed to get that crazy."

"Why are you apologizing?" I asked. "It wasn't your fault."

"I know, but this was insane," she said. "We didn't even get anything done! Whoever runs Heaven wasn't even there!"

"That's too bad," I said. "When is your flight back to Iowa Sector?"

"Tomorrow," she answered.

"Mine's tonight," I said. "So I guess I'll see you soon?"

"Yeah," Samantha said. "See you later, Ivy."

Rosie and I packed up our stuff in the hotel room, and then headed to the airport. We ate dinner at the airport, and then got on a plane back to Des Moines. I was exhausted by the time I got back home, but it was definitely worth it. 

A/N: Hey everyone! Hope you're enjoying Dead! so far! My story Gerard Way and the Triwizard Tournament was nominated for the PotatoYoghurt Fanfiction Awards, so go vote for that if you haven't already. Thanks for reading! :)