by Lionel Law
Emily laughed at the face she made. âJust four more months, Kira,â she whispered in her ear. âBesides, from what I can tell it hardly makes a difference. It hasnât changed my life at all.â
âDarra is already engaged,â Kira pointed out.
âYes, I know,â said Emily with a wrinkled nose. âTo David Growler.â
Both girls burst into giggles at this. David Growler was something of a nerd, but he was also kind of cute. Kira and Emily had grown up with him as well, since he was the son of Nero Growler, and as such held in very high esteem. Most of the young ladies had had a crush on him at one time or another over the past twenty years or so, but it looked like Princess Darra would be getting the prize. Secretly, each of the gigglers was just a little jealous of the fact.
âWhat do you suppose Natalie had to say about that arrangement?â Kira chuckled. âYou know that she and Darra donât get on very well. Imagine having to share your brother with a hated rival. Iâm sure glad I donât have a brother, when I think on it. Iâd hate to have a new sister I despised.â
âDarra means well enough, she just canât please Natalie no matter what she does,â Emily excused her sister. âBesides, I donât really think Natalie cares to get along with anybody at all, so it wouldnât have mattered which of us our fathers chose in the end.â
âI suppose youâre right about that,â Kira agreed.
âExcuse me, Iâve spoken to you two three times now,â Tinker said sternly as she floated above the two young womenâs heads. âI said, is this a conversation suitable to share with the rest of the class, or do you intend to save it for later? Clearly, itâs very juicy gossip indeed, for you to have so blatantly forgotten that we are, in fact, in the middle of an assembly.â
âOh, sorry,â said both of them at the same time.
âIâll see the two of you in my office when we are done here,â she decided. âPerhaps you can finish your very important discussion during your detention.â
âYes, Madame Tinker,â they replied, suppressing groans of disgust. At least they wouldnât be banging erasers together since they didnât have chalk in them so early in the school year. Though, that did leave Kira to wonder what theyâd be forced to endure instead.
The speech the woman had been giving did not last much longer, and everyone cheered as they began to file into the school and head for their dorms. Emily and Kira stood watching them for a while before they too headed inside, and straight to the main office where Tinker was sure to be awaiting them.
âWelcome to final year,â Emily grumbled just before they stepped inside. Kira nodded her agreement.
Inside the dark and dusty office, they spotted the old witch standing beside the hearth, stirring a brewing pot over an open flame. She looked at the pair of them as they stood, unmoving, near the sofa.
âYou may be seated for now,â she said as she stepped over to them. âYouâre going to need the rest before you begin.â
âBegin what?â asked Kira nervously.
âThe bell tower could use a new coat of paint,â she replied. âYou know I like it to be gleaming white, and I have noticed that itâs beginning to fade.â
âBut Madame, that tower is thirty feet tall, and neither one of us is capable of flight,â Emily gasped.
âPerhaps not, but that just means it will take a bit longer for you to complete the task,â she replied. âYou will, of course, be provided with a ladder and the paint, since you are incapable of producing either of those yourselves. Really, sometimes I wonder why we even allow either of you to return to Oakenstaff at all.â
âYes, Madame Tinker,â the both said, bowing their heads in feigned shame.
âYou may go now,â she said. âIâll expect you to begin working on the tower just as soon as youâve settled into your dorm. Oh yes, and by the way, Natalie Growler will be replacing Annika Ross there. Miss Ross shows great potential, while, magically speaking, most of your group has proven to be lacking. Iâm sure you understand.â
âBut Tinker, we already had to put up with Nat all summer!â Kira moaned. âWe were looking forward to the break.â
âShe is a troublesome minx,â Tinker replied. âSheâs been in four other dorms over her four previous years here, and none of them has wanted to have her back the following year. Your dorm is mostly filled with people from the Black Hills area anyway. You, at least, will be used to her. Besides, itâs only this year that you two will have to tolerate her at all, is it not?â
âYes, Madame,â they both sighed.
âYou may go,â she said then, and turned back to her brew dismissively.
The girls needed no further enticement to leave as quickly as possible, before the old woman turned with something else to say. She had said more than enough already, as far as they were concerned.
Wordlessly the two made their way to their dorm with their bags, and when they opened the door each of them dropped them. Emily tossed her own onto her bed, but Kira stopped short when she found her own bed already occupied.
âExcuse me, Natalie, but youâre sitting on my bunk,â she said as politely as she could.
âI must always have the bed beside the door,â she replied stubbornly.
It was obvious from the looks on the other girlsâ faces that they had already been unsuccessful in their attempts to get the girl out of Kiraâs bed, and Natalieâs inscrutable face made it even more clear what opinions sheâd offered in return. Rather than escalate any further unpleasantries, Kira chose the greater part of valor and tossed her belongings onto the open bunk instead. The two other humans occupying the room sighed with relief.
âThat,â said Kira, indicating the bed and her belongings upon it, âis your one concession youâll get from me, Natalie. In this dorm, all of us cooperate. We donât favor Emily, and weâre not going to favor you. Remember that.â
âYou think youâre better than me just because my fathers created the viruses, donât you?â she snapped. âWell, your motherâs the one who couldnât manage to save to world, isnât she? She was never able to do anything even to slow down the spread. Thatâs how awesome my fathers are.â
âEmilyâs Jagger father is the ruler of America, and you never see her bragging about it,â Kira said. âWe girls donât concern ourselves with what our parents are capable of, but what we can do for ourselves. So what exactly makes you special?â
Natalie smirked. âI can fling mud in your eye!â she sneered, and magically did just exactly that.
âYou little bitch!â Kira shouted as she moved into the bathroom to wash it away.
The other girls all ganged up on Natalie, shouting their opinions of what sheâd just done. It was heartening to Kira in a way, knowing that every girl in that room cared enough to defend her. But she knew better than anyone that she needed to deal with Natalie and her behavior for herself. The girl was a menace, but surely she must have some redeeming qualities as well.
âThat will be enough of your behavior, Natalie,â she said as she motioned for the others to stop. âI may have kept you from your fate this time, but if I were you Iâd not try my patience again. Next time, Iâll just let the others have you.â
âSo youâve got the whole lot of them in your pocket as well, have you?â she scoffed. âA mere human, and all these paranormals simply bending to your whims. Itâs pathetic, really. Youâve no idea how disgustingly loyal they truly are. You should have seen their faces when I first set down my bags. As if the world was about to end. I donât know what youâve done to earn their hearts, but I can guarantee that you wonât have the same from me.â
/> âYour loyalty is not nearly as important as your cooperation,â said Kira. âWhatever you do wrong, it will cause all of us to be punished, not just you. I donât know how that was handled by your other houses, but in here we have ways of getting even when one bad egg tries to ruin the batch.â
âIs that some sort of threat?â she growled.
âOh no, indeed not,â she smirked. âOnly an observation. One which I hope we wonât have to prove to you.â
âWell, I heard you two have detention,â she said with a smirk. âIsnât there someplace that youâre supposed to be going?â
Kira and Emily grimaced, and rolled their eyes at each other.
âSheâs right, we do have to be going for now,â Emily said dryly.
âYes, but let us hope there are no more unfortunate incidents here during our absence,â Kira added. âI should think that every one of you ought to be prepping for tomorrowsâ classes. Weâve got a big day, and you know how very grueling the assignments tend to be.â
âUgh!â the other girls groaned.
Even Natalie couldnât help but agree with that last statement. âThank goodness itâs only my fifth year,â she added. âIt wonât be half as difficult for me.â
âFifth yearâs much worse than third or fourth, Nat,â Lyssa-Rose told her. âI wouldnât think youâre getting much of a break, if I were you.â
âAh, Goldeneye, glad to see youâre in here,â she said. âAt least one of the girls in this dorm is likely to take my side sometimes.â
âSorry, Nat, but in here there are no sides,â she said sternly. âIn here, we all work for each other. Thereâs no better way to get the job done. We all must keep the room clean, help each other with homework, and offer encouragement instead of ire. That chip on your shoulder will finally have to come off.â
âThen I am truly on my own,â she said with a heavy sigh. âSo be it. But do not think Iâll look upon any of you kindly after this day.â
*
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