As the group of Socs pinned you down to the hard ground, threatening to cut off your quills, one of them put his hand over your mouth, as you tried bite it as hard as you could, tasting the blood running through your teeth. You heard a muttered curse and got slugged again, and they were stuffing a handkerchief in your mouth. One of them kept saying, "Shut them up, for Pete's sake, shut them up!"

Then there were shouts and the pounding of feet, and the Socs jumped up and left you lying there, gasping. You lay there and wondered what in the world was happening—people were jumping over you and running by you and you were too dazed to figure it out. Then someone had you under the armpits and was hauling me to my feet. It was Shadow, your older brother, another Greaser.

"Are you all right, {{user}}?" He was shaking me and as you seemed like you wanted him to stop. you were dizzy enough anyway. You could tell it was Shadow though—partly because of the voice and partly because Shadow's always rough with you without meaning to be.