[center][h1]Collab[/h1][/center]

Dionne hesitated, eyes darting to her friends. Still, she got up from her seat. [color=moccasin]“I'm going to go sit by Seth -- carry on your conversation. I'll talk to you later, Ellie,”[/color] she said to her friend. Their eyes met, and a silent message was communicated: [i]You'd better spill later.[/i]

An amused smile on her face, Dionne slid into the seat next to Seth. [color=moccasin]“Good morning. How are you?”[/color] she asked, remembering the battle -- the injury -- the day before. [color=moccasin]“How's the injury?”[/color]

[i]"Just a clear sighted mortal..."[/i] Seth recalled the words Argus spoke earlier as he greeted the blonde. 
[color=MediumSpringGreen]"Hey, surprisingly I feel refreshed actually."[/color] He gestured to his side, [color=MediumSpringGreen]"It's gone for the most part. I've got a pretty wicked scar though which I think should give me +5 bonus points in flirting. I hear women dig scars."[/color] He joked, a cheeky grin on his face. 

[color=moccasin]“Only if they can see them which -- by the placement of yours -- would entail a flash of your midsection,”[/color] Dionne said, laughing.
 [color=MediumSpringGreen]"Well yeah! Exactly!"[/color] He said, almost a bit too excitedly, waking the neighboring bus rider from his brief sleep. He ignored the guy's glare and cleared his throat.
Sobering up, Dionne pulled a peacock feather out from her hair. [color=moccasin]“Seth, what's going on? What's going to happen to us?”[/color] she asked, rubbing at the fringes of the feather so that they started to come part. 

[color=MediumSpringGreen]"Well, I don't really know for sure, but..."[/color] His tone became serious as he attempted to recount his dream from this morning. [color=MediumSpringGreen] "..I had a crazy dream this morning.I saw Mrs. Lovell [i]vanish[/i]. Mrs. Sloan was talking to her and she said something about not needing her anymore and then [i]poof![/i]. She was gone. Mr. Argus was there too and I think he was ordered to go somewhere. A camp or something."[/color] He squeezed the bridge of his nose with his fingers as he tried to recall more.
[color=MediumSpringGreen]"He said the two have started to awaken. Something along the lines of a girl being clear sighted and the boy having the power of one of the elder gods in him."[/color] He looked at the peacock feather in Dionne's hand.
"Peacocks. For some reason there were a lot of them in my dream." he mentioned.

Dionne's eyes widened. [color=moccasin]“There were peacocks in my dream too!”[/color] she said, waking up the boy in the next seat again. [color=moccasin]“Schools in five minutes. You should probably just give up on sleeping,”[/color] she sniped to him with a shrug, turning back to Seth and lowering her voice as to not be heard again. [color=moccasin]“I had a dream too. I was sitting in the midst of a flock of peacocks, and Mrs. Sloan was sitting across from me. Well, Dram-Sloane, because she definitely wasn't normal. And then when I woke up, I realized that I was holding this peacock and stuck it into my hair.”[/color] Slightly panicked now, Dionne glared down at the feather. [color=moccasin]“What does this mean? Does Mrs. Sloane have something to do with everything? And what about the peacocks? It was just a dream, but what about the feather?”[/color]

Seth shook his head. [color=MediumSpringGreen] "Beats me. Maybe you had it somehwere? I don't even know how you could find a peacock this far North anyways. Could it be a symbol though? You know, like how Batman has the searchlight in the sky, the uh...Bat-Signal?"[/color] 
He cast a glance out the window, looking at the passing scape. Orange and brown leaves dominated the sidewalks and ditches in massive swept piles. Soon stands selling pumpkins, pumpkin pies and maple flavored treats would take over and as tradition (in Seth's case), he'd pay a visit to each one and eat all of treats they had to offer. He absolutely loved fall.
[color=MediumSpringGreen]"Maybe I could talk to Ozzy. I'm sure he has some answers. Probably gonna have to swing by his house afterschool though."[/color] he finally said, turning back to her. 

Dionne smiled at Seth's joke but was too shaken to laugh. Somehow their dreams had overlapped -- the same animals, the same people. [i]Well, almost,[/i] Dionne reminded herself as she put the feather into her pocket. [i]Mrs. Sloan is a single person.[/i]

[color=moccasin]“Is he not coming to school today?”[/color] Dionne asked with a frown, remembering the Satyr's hoofed feet. [color=moccasin]“How did he hide his feet before then? And Argus is at school -- we should drop by his class during break and ask about the dreams.”[/color]

[color=MediumSpringGreen]"Hmm, well Ozzy's a pretty smart dude. Shy with other people but smart as heck."[/color] He said. [color=MediumSpringGreen]"He's actually dual-enrolled with the college, so he goes there to take classes some days. He comes to school in the afternoon I think, but normally I just catch him afterschool at his place."[/color]
[color=MediumSpringGreen]"But you know, I still have yet to ask him about that."[/color] Seth motioned to his legs, [color=MediumSpringGreen]"the deal with his legs. Oh that reminds me!" He suddenly perked up, [color=MediumSpringGreen]"Remember Argus? He had like a billion eyes all over his body! We [i] have[/i] to ask him about that when we catch him! We should meet during lunch, maybe next to the library."[/color] Seth suggested to her.

The bus slowed as it entered the bus ramp and the students onboard started to stand and gather their things. Dionne parted ways with Seth at the gate, heading in the direction of her first period but mind still on Argus, the mysterious Mrs. Sloane, and her newfound dislike for peacocks.

[hr]
Dionne was out of the room before the bell finished its first ring to signal lunch, and she walked briskly towards her English class where Mr. Argus was subbing for Mr. Fletcher. When she got there, however, Dionne found not the kindly man from the day before but rather a new substitute who -- judging by the name scrawled across the board -- went by Mrs. Bingley. Freezing in the doorway, Dionne hesitated briefly before turning to leave. Clearly Argus wasn't subbing for this class today. 

"Can I help you?" the graying lady calledout . Dionne turned around with a polite smile.

[color=moccasin]“Oh, I was just looking for Mr. Argus,”[/color] Dionne said. [color=moccasin]“The substitute yesterday? I was hoping to continue discussing an idea I had about my... Science project.”[/color]

"Mr. Argus was unavailable as a substitute today, so the school called me," Mrs. Bingley said with a kind smile. "However, I'd be more than willing to help you with any brainstorming you need."

[color=moccasin]“Thanks, Mrs. Bingley, but I was planning on meeting with one of my friends for lunch,”[/color] Dionne admitted with an apologetic smile. [color=moccasin]“I'll see you later today for English.”[/color]

"Alright, bye dear," Mrs. Bingley said as Dionne exited the class and almost smacked into Seth in the process as she whirled around the corner.

[color=moccasin]“Oh!”[/color] Dionne exclaimed, eyes wide as she abruptly halted.

[color=MediumSpringGreen][i]"Yikes!"[/i][/color] He sidestepped and nearly stumbled, catching himself on the white walls, his balance intact. Seth looked at Dionne with raised eyebrows. 

[color=moccasin]“Sorry about that -- wasn't looking where I was going. Oh, and Argus is gone,”[/color] she added, waiting as Seth took a look into the classroom. [color=moccasin]“What do you think this means, Seth? Our dreams, and now this?”[/color] Dionne asked, a worried frown on her face.

Seth found the lump in his throat hard to swallow. [color=MediumSpringGreen]"Wait...Who is that?[/color] he asked, peering through the window. He craned his head to get a better look at the unknown teacher. Seth abruptly pulled his head away when he saw the teacher turn towards the door. He scurried back around the corner and planted himself next to Dionne.
[color=MediumSpringGreen]"No...we were supposed to ask him about our dreams...about yesterday!"[/color] He sighed. [color=MediumSpringGreen]"Oh he can't have just left like that. What if he's really headed for this camp thing?"[/color] Seth shook his head. 

[color=moccasin]“It's just a coincidence that your dream seems to have come true, right? No way our dreams are all real, right?”[/color] Dionne said, eyes wide in distress. [color=moccasin]“Because if the dreams were real, then Mrs. Sloan...”[/color]

[color=MediumSpringGreen]"...Obviously has something to do with all of this if it's really happening.. Also, did you remember history earlier? There was another teacher in there instead of Mrs. Lovell. I was really dreading coming into her class but she's not there anymore! It's crazy! I asked the teacher after class, whom by the way is really boring and monotoned in my opinion, and he mentioned she had a death in the family and wouldn't be back for a very long time."[/color] He let out a breath. [color=MediumSpringGreen]"All of this...yesterday...they're all connected somehow, I think."[/color]

Seth checked his watch, noting the time. They still had a little while before lunch was over.
[color=MediumSpringGreen]"Gotta grab lunch. I'll see you in English."[/color] He stepped away from her and rushed the other way towards the cafeteria.

Confusion written across her face, Dionne watched Seth leave in the direction of the cafeteria. [i]Huh. Haven't ever had a boy ditch me for food that quickly. This is new,[/i] she mused to herself.

"Dee! Are you skipping lunch or something?" Ellie called, waving the blonde over. Laughing, Dionne jogged over.

[color=moccasin]“Where are we off to? Not the bagel place again?”[/color]

"Nope. Feeling like burrito bowls today -- Cavan's driving. And don't think I'm going to forget about interrogating you."

[color=moccasin]“Lead the way. We can talk and walk.”[/color]