Chapter 2: Session 4

Evie was used to being in the principal's office. If anything, being sent there had been the primary drive of her educational experience over the past two years. Ms. Farwell had contacted the school security with the sending amulet that also acted as her teacher's lanyard. Security had teleported there in an instant and took the two injured students to the nurse's office. Evie hadn't mentioned her burned finger.

Her and the two uninjured kids were questioned individually. Evie didn't like lying but was far too familiar with how school "incidents" worked to want to tell the truth. The whole truth anyway. She told them what she saw when she walked in. That part was true. She then weaved a story about her pleading with the bullies and them laughing and tormenting poor helpless Cyrano even more. "Out of spite!" She told them. She said she had been the one who cried for help not Liam, and once they heard Ms. Farwell's footsteps the bullies retreated to the other side of the room. She wasn't sure if they'd bought it, she'd been a little too flamboyant in her description of things.

This principal's office was shabby. The lighting here was awful. It was dark, drab, and the only personal touches consisted of a few much younger pictures of them after their top surgery had healed. She sat in a chair, next to Cyrano, that needed new padding. She was nervous. She was always nervous in the principal's office, but it was more due to the looming feeling of knowing her father was coming.

Before this school, she had never been afraid of the impotent power of the administration. The worst they could do was exactly what she wanted. This time was different. A deal was a deal, she'd attend this school and cause no trouble whatsoever, or her father would call in all his favors and she'd go back to Andover. "And finish school. Period." She couldn't get expelled from here. She'd worked so hard to distance herself from the predatory, self-absorbed, and completely fake world her parents wanted for her. Even though the school wasn't in any way what she had hoped for, she wouldn't give her father the satisfaction of winning.

A moaning gurgle of hunger came from Cyrano's belly. It was somewhat concerning in its volume.

"Are you alright?" Evie asked him.

"I'm fine." Cyrano meekly replied. He kept his eyes to the ground and the arm the nurse had healed rested limply over his belly. His eyes were listless and gray bags hung beneath them. He didn't seem to be focusing on anything. Then it struck her, had he had anything to eat at lunch? She grabbed her 3 tier tiffin lunch box with an elegant floral design hand painted on it. Today Chef had made her daal and jasmine rice with naan.

"Are you hungry? I barely touched it. It's good though." She opened the daal tin and the creamy spiced smell of the lentil dish wafted through the office. Cyrano's eyes widened and their stomach growled lustfully. Without waiting for a response Evie placed all three tins next to each other on the principal's desk. She handed Cyrano her dirty spoon and Cyrano began devouring the food with a distressing urgency.

Before Cyrano finished Principal Hezkeia came in. He carried two large files and sniffed the air as he walked to his desk. Upon hearing him enter the room Cyrano stopped eating and leaned back into his chair fondling the spoon. Principal Hezkeia sat behind his desk and saw the beautifully designed tiffin tins lining the edge. He stared at them, and then eyed Cyrano who stared at his lap, rolling the handle of the spoon in their hand.

"Uhh. . ." Principal Hezkeia muttered.

"Sorry." Cyrano apologized before Principal Hezkeia could gather his thoughts. Principal Hezkeia gave a small sigh and stared at Cyrano with the same sad look Ms. Farwell had given him.

"No, please eat Cyrano." He said and placed the two large folders on his desk. Cyrano leaned over and grabbed the larger tin with the daal and sat back in his chair slowly eating small spoonfuls with an embarrassed look aimed at the ground.

Principal Hezkeia rapped his fingers on his desk and let out another sigh, this time of deep seeded frustration. He brought his gaze to Evie, who was very familiar with the energy of an adult about to give her what for. Principal Hezkeia looked back at the tins and nodded to whatever conclusion he had come to in his head.

"Thank you for sharing your lunch, Evaunsheil." He said and then opened a file. It was half an inch thick and as he flipped through it, Evie noticed the watermark of Fishburne Service Academy on one of the pages. Her nerves were on edge. She was going to be expelled. After all the destruction she had caused no school was going to put up with her. The only place that would even pretend to want her as a student was the one her father would build a whole new wing for. Bribery was the only way.

"Forgive me Principal Hezkeia, but before we begin, I've noticed some of the lockers have been replaced and others haven't?" Evie asked rhetorically.

Principal Hezkeia looked up from his folder and looked at Evie not knowing where this was going.

"I'd be more than happy to speak with my father to see if he might be willing to help quicken the pace of replacing the older ones." She offered with the most amicable tone she could muster.

Principal Hezkeia cracked a knowing half grin.

"If I feel the need to ask him when he gets here I will. Thank you for the offer though Evaunsheil." He coolly replied.

Fuuuuuccccckkkkkkk!!! Evie screamed in her brain.

"Thank you." Cyrano shyly thanked Evie. He gently rested the empty tin back on the desk. Evie resigned back into her chair and gave a good long look at the kid sitting next to her.

"You can finish the rest if you want. The rice is cooked with coconut milk." She offered. Cyrano looked up at Principal Hezkeia.

"Go ahead bud. My office can take it. Haha." Principal Hezkeia laughed.

Evie watched a light of pleasure glimmer in his eyes. He embarrassedly took the tin, took a bite, and smiled. Watching the transformation take place gave Evie a shelter to escape her fraying nerves.

"So, do you know why I asked both of you here together?" Principal Hezkeia asked. Cyrano paused his joyful eating and both kids shook their heads.

"Evaunsheil . . ." Principal Hezkeia began.

"Evie, please Principal Hezkeia, call me Evie." Evie corrected politely.

Principal Hezkeia nodded in agreement.

"Evie, you have a past of. . . disorderly conduct, and have gone through three schools in the past two years. Highly regarded institutions that may not need to put up with. . . more temperamental students." He paused to ensure Evie was giving him her undivided attention.

She nodded In acknowledgement.

"We are not as unfamiliar with that kind of behavior. However, considering you are a new student I am willing to give you the benefit of a doubt. This time." Principal Hezkeia let the warning sink in.

Evie looked down and acknowledged the warning with a more robust series of nods.

"Thank you Principal Hezkeia." Evie replied earnestly.

He turned his gaze to Cyrano and took a deep breath in.

"The reason I asked Evie to join us, Cyrano, is because Durrin is claiming you used a force spell to break his nose. Now. . ." He paused, finding the words, "You know how familiar I am with your history with Liam, Durrin, and Miguel. But we can't have students breaking other students' noses." He paused again to let the words sink in.

Cyrano nodded.

"Now, while Mr. Valin was healing your arm you told him it was an accident, and we are aware of that, but you also said you used a talisman?" Principal Hezkeia asked not hiding his puzzlement.

Evie's head shot back in surprise and she turned to Cyrano. Cyrano put the rice back on the desk. He fiddled with his stained oversized shirt. She hadn't noticed before but he had a tattered white one over another shirt. Its collar was frayed, and parts of it were a shade of yellow from sweat stains. There was a burn mark down near the bottom and a couple black grease stains in the center. Cyrano nodded in agreement to Principal Hezkeia's question. Both he and Evie looked at each other uncertain of the validity of what Cyrano claimed.

"Evie's father is an expert in Talisman. Isn't that right?" Principal Hezkeia asked Evie. She nodded back in agreement.

"This one's mine." She said to Cyrano, showing him her thin silver bracelet with elvish runes exquisitely carved in. Cyrano didn't pay the bracelet much mind. Instead he looked at her with a sense of awe.

"So Evie here can help us. . . better understand what your talisman is." Principal Hezkeia suggested.

"Sure, I don't mind." Evie agreed. She cocked her head towards Cyrano who was now looking gloomily into his lap while he played with his shirt.

"So Cyrano, would you be willing to show us the talisman you found?" Principal Hezkeia asked. Cyrano furrowed his brow and brought his chin to his chest. His long unwashed hair covered his face but Evie could see glistening tears falling onto his shirt.

"Hey bud, it's ok. No one here is mad at you." Principal Hezkeia consoled. Cyrano clenched his fists and shook his head. Evie thought he looked like a toddler trying to keep it together. She found it entirely off putting, but she needed this. If she could prove to principal Hezkeia that she was an asset it would be a way into his good graces.

"How bout this, my mom taught me an old elvish spell that allows us to link and see what the other is feeling. It only works with talismans because they're attuned to us. I just need to touch your hand and we can see if that works?" Evie suggested. Principal Hezkeia silently agreed. Cyrano shook his head.

"No! You can't read my mind!" Cyrano cried.

"No, no, no! I'm not gonna read your mind. Just surface level feelings. I won't know why you're feeling them, just what they are." Evie clarified. Cyrano thought about it.

"Ok." He acquiesced. Evie reached out her hand, palm up, for Cyrano to touch. He hesitated for a moment, catching his breath and wiping away his tears. He dried his hand and rested it on top of Evie's. Evie recited the chant in her mind. Once. Twice. Three times. Suddenly a suffocating wave of heartbreak crashed in her mind. She immediately pulled her hand back. The feeling lingered in her like a cat kneading its claws before laying its burdening weight atop her mind. She was tearing up. She sniffled and wiped away the tears hanging in her eyes.

"It's real." She confirmed through stuttering breath.

Principal Hezkeia stared at both of them speechless.

"Sorry." Cyrano apologized to Evie.

"No! No! You're fine. Well, obviously you're not fine! I mean, shit. Sorry!" She floundered, trying to apologize to both Cyrano for her rude comment and Principal Hezkeia for swearing. Principal Hezkeia didn't give any indication of caring about the swearing as he sat there in deep contemplation. He cleared his throat.

"Bud, I need to know what it is and where you got it." He insisted.

"No. I can't. I promised." Cyrano pleaded.

"I promise I won't get mad, but please I need to know how you got a hold of a talisman." Principal Hezkeia pressed.

"He told me not to tell." Cyrano's eyes bulged and panic stopped his breath. Evie could tell he wanted to take back what it was he shouldn't have said. She looked to principal Hezkeai for context but he had the same panicked expression.

"Him? Cyrano, did you see your dad?" He asked almost whispering as if saying it too loudly would make it real.

"No! No! I didn't say that! I didn't say that!" Cyrano yelled. His face was turning red with anger and he threw himself into the back of his seat with his arms folded tightly around him. He was simultaneously fuming and weeping. He pulled his legs up into his shirt and against his chest then covered the rest of himself with it like a tent. Evie could hear him trying not to cry inside.

"Evie, could you wait outside for a moment please?" Principal Hezkeai requested. Evie looked at the dirty ball of tremoring sorrow sitting next to her.

"I don't think he should be alone." She found herself saying.

"He won't be alone, I'll be here. Please go wait outside." Principal Hezkeai sternly repeated.

"No, ya, of course, but. . . I'd like to help, if I can." Evie offered. Principal Hezkeai let out a deep frustrated sigh. Evie met his gaze to show she was not going to budge willingly. In the friendliest way possible of course.

"I appreciate you trying to help, I do. But this is a conversation I need to have with Cyrano in private. You cannot be here, and I need to do my job. You need to leave." Principal Hezkeai firmly but gently told Evie.

It felt as if he had gently rested his powerful hand on her shoulder, to show the authoritative weight he commanded. It was clear she had no choice. She got up, and for a moment, she wanted to rest her hand on Cyranos curved back. But she didn't know him and he was trying to fight against some great weight she was foreign to.

"I'll be right outside." She told him and headed towards the door.

She heard the rustling of hair and fabric. As she looked back and closed the door she saw Cyrano watching back at her.