[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/nIlIbdu.png[/img][/center] [sub][@Lonewolf685][@Majoras End][/sub] [color=goldenrod]"Thank you, Suzy."[/color] Mika did not seem bothered that Suzuya was walking away from her, and would soon be out of earshot. [color=goldenrod]"That couldn't have been easy, and I appreciate you giving Cell a chance, even if she didn't take it."[/color] Lupin didn't have to chase Mika very far. She hadn't moved a single step since their confrontation. [color=goldenrod]"I see listening is not your strong suit. I would have expected otherwise given the size of your ears."[/color] Mika pinched the bridge of her nose. When she lowered her hand, she was wearing a pained smile. [color=goldenrod]"Tell you what? No one is thinking straight right now. Go apologize to Suzy before the day is over. Then we can put this event behind us."[/color] It was unusual that Lupin came around so quickly, but Mika wouldn't complain. Anyone could have seen that Suzuya did nothing wrong. The issue more had to do with how schools operate. Teachers and student counselors are not police officers. Nor are they judges, juries, or executioners. Their jobs are hard enough when everyone behaves, and many do not have the ability or desire to properly deal with infighting among students. This becomes even more difficult when you involve the parents who will often be unhappy regardless of what you do. This is why most schools have a zero-tolerance policy regarding "bullying." All aggressive behavior is punished equally. In an idealistic world, this would encourage everyone to be their best self. Suzuya may not have directly interfered with Lupin, but her confrontational language and choice to [b]start a fire[/b] would warrant intervention from anyone. This was ultimately a matter for the faculty to handle, and a student involving themselves just complicated things. If anything, both students should be relieved Mika was going so easy on them. This would have been a detention at any other school. As for why Mika was so easy on Tesni, that was anyone's guess. How Tesni conducted herself during an emergency was more an issue for the grand minister or her teacher. [sub][@TheWendil][/sub] The student counselor nearly jumped out of her skin when Ozma boomed her voice through the room. She pretended to clean her ear with her pinky while the non-faculty told everyone what was going to happen. [color=goldenrod]"Excuse me? we haven't even looked at the hexes in question. Moreover, where do you get off-"[/color] Her eyes drifted onto Merlin before she clinched her teeth. [color=goldenrod]"Never mind, as you were."[/color] She waved her hand dismissively. [sub][@KoL][/sub] She walked over to Eins and wrapped a hand around her shoulders. [color=goldenrod]"It's a bit crowded here. How about we go to my office and hammer out some ideas. Sound good to you, Strudel?"[/color] Mika chose to ignore the eldrich blow-dryer. That wasn't to say the gesture wasn't appreciated. Fresh air was nice, as was having dry hair. But they were departing, so Mika would have to thank them later. [hr] [sub][@The 42nd Gecko][/sub] Bonnie set out to slip the letters under everyone's doors. As soon as she entered the hallway, she spotted Mika. She stood there with a smile on her face. [color=goldenrod]"Oh! Is there one there for me?"[/color] She wiggled her fingers before slipping her letter out of the stack. It wasn't clear how she had noticed since it was buried. [color=goldenrod]"You know, you did well earlier."[/color] She peeled open the envelope and scanned the letter before chuckling. [color=goldenrod]"You have very nice handwriting. I would love to help out with this."[/color] She walked back towards her office without looking away from the letter. [color=goldenrod]"Very nice handwriting. Almost like calligraphy."[/color] [hr] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/BiXYSy2.png[/img][/center] [sub][@The 42nd Gecko][/sub] Silvia was a little surprised to see Bonnie skootching under the table with her. Part of this was because she appeared shell shocked seconds ago. Now she had her composure back. Equally surprising was Bonnie choosing to walk through several sprinklers just to get to her. That couldn't have been comfortable, and Silvia wasn't feeling too hot either. There was something about being wet, shivering, and squatting under a table that made her feel undignified. She felt a bit like a clown gazing out of a sewer drain at a kid who lost his paper boat. But the "Kid" had joined her under the table. [s]Bad move, Georgie.[/s] [color=tomato]"...You sure you're okay?"[/color] Her tone was filled with concern. Though it wasn't clear which of the two girls the concern was intended for. [color=tomato]"I'm Silvia. But if it's easier to call me Stripes, that's cool."[/color] Bonnie had asked Silvia about going to a sleepover in the same breath she asked her name, but she chose not to answer. Anyone who knew the introverted misanthropist wouldn't bother to even invite her. It wasn't really her thing. She hated crowds as a rule, and had an idea the more social students would be all over this. That and the idea of of her classmates parading around in their pajamas didn't rub her the right way. It felt juvenile. But she couldn't say no either. Silvia wasn't able to remember the last time she had been invited to anything. She knew Bonnie was being polite because Silvia had asked how she was doing. But even knowing that, this was still a rare occurrence. She wasn't going to force Bonnie's hand however. It seemed silly to sign herself up for something that was just a formality and- [sub][@Majoras End][/sub] A jacket flew under the table and landed on Silvia's shoulders. [color=tomato]"O-oh."[/color] Her eyes darted between Celina and Bonnie. She didn't like groups but kindness like this was nice. Nice, but it made her feel self conscious. [color=tomato]"I don't think I look that bad, do I?"[/color] She avoided looking at either girl and played with the end of her hair. Were they just concerned for her? [color=tomato]"I'm fine guys, r-really. Bonnie was fighting Roma directly. She deserves your concern more than I do."[/color] A warm, eldritch wind blew through the ruined cafeteria and warmed everyone up. This caused Silvia's head to snap over, though she noticed Xolys was doing this for everyone and not just herself. The attention of three different people would have been way too much. [color=tomato]"Xolys has the right idea. He's helping everyone."[/color] Silvia stood up, bumped her head on the table, but still managed to stumble out into the open. [color=tomato]"Weren't you going to beat someone up or something? I'm glad you calmed down."[/color] She rubbed her head while looking at Celina. [color=tomato]"Do I still look bad? I pride myself on my appearance."[/color] Silvia ran a hand through her hair. [color=tomato]"I'll go look in the mirror in my room."[/color] [hr] [i]That night...[/i] Silvia was a pretty light sleeper. Something slid under her door. There was just enough moonlight to see an envelope. She crawled over the sheets and reached for it. It didn't seem like recovering the letter from her bed was possible, so she transformed. Then she used her staff to trap the envelope and slide it closer to her bed. With a sigh, she picked up the letter. She turned it over in her hand, unsure of why something would have been given to her. Though after opening it and seeing the hand written letter in side, Silvia didn't even have to read to know who sent it. [color=tomato]"Guess I'm going."[/color]