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New Chief in Town

"...And that is why you must always aim high, kids. Never let anyone tell you it's impossible – Nothing is impossible if you try your hardest, and have the support of your friends! Now, together, let's make this year the best ever for the school!"

The speech met with the usual feeling of slight bafflement from the new first years, bored apathy of the older students, and the brooding fury of Mr. Vantas, head of Film and Media Studies. The new headmaster seriously rubbed him the wrong way. It wouldn't be so bad if the bastard didn't spout his optimistic slurry with so much goddamn conviction. He really believed what he was saying, and that sickened Mr. Vantas to the pit of his stomach.

As the students began to file out of the Hall, Mr. Vantas tried to slip in behind some 5th years, as most of the little bastards were taller than him anyway. He was nearly home free, when –

"Mr. Vantas! Just the man I wanted to see!" Oh god, look at him. Square glasses that didn't even sit right on the man's nose and buck teeth that any prudent mother would have slapped braces on before the man grew up to look like a terminally enthusiastic bunny rabbit. How the hell did this idiot get to be headmaster? How the hell did he get to work in ANY educational sector? In the opinion of Mr. Vantas, he should have been quickly deposited behind the cash register of some desperately cheerful restaurant that specialised in carting huge amounts of ice-cream to screaming children, and spent his nights mopping up the resulting sick.

"Yes, Mr. Egbert?" The note of low menace was apparently ignored by the headmaster, and he put a companionable hand on the professor's shoulder.
"When you've got a minute, could you pop up to my office and see me before first period starts? Just a quick chat, I won't keep you long." The hand failed to burst into flames, despite the best efforts of Mr. Vantas' stare.
"Of course," He said through gritted teeth. The hand patted his shoulder once, and then was thankfully removed. The new headmaster ambled away down the corridor, grinning at students as he passed.

The door to the staff room clicked shut. Mr. Vantas would have preferred a slam, but sometimes doors have no sense of drama. Speaking of Drama...
"I seriously don't think I can fuckin' do it, Kan! Another year of watchin' talentless idiots prancin' about, thinkin' they're actors. Every day, I die a little inside!" Mr. Ampora was sprawled theatrically on the sofa, addressing Ms. Maraym, whose usual facade of calm benevolence was cracking slightly around the edges. The Drama professor waved a hand in a gesture of weary struggle, almost spilling the red and blue coffee cup on the table in front of him. It was pulled quietly out of range by Mr. Captor, who caught Mr. Vantas' eye and rolled his own.
"Think the new chief ith looking for you, Vantath." he lisped over Mr. Ampora's continuing tirade, grinning a little.
"I know, the bastard just cornered me in the hall." Mr. Vantas growled, purposely turning his back on the smug heterochromatic gaze, busying himself with making coffee in the staffrooms tiny kitchenette. If there was anyone he hated more than the bucktoothed excuse for a headmaster, it was that smarmy waste of skin the school employed as a Computer Sciences teacher. He made himself a black coffee and lounged against the counter, seeing as goddamn Ampora had taken up the whole sofa with his theatrics. Maybe if he wasted the fifteen minutes before first period, he could escape having to speak to –

"Mr. Vantas!" A cheerful face had poked around the deceptively quiet staffroom door. Mr. Vantas nearly choked on the scalding coffee. How dare he come into the staffroom! It was sovereign territory of teachers, and a headmaster had no right invading their private sanctuary! He glanced at the others in the room, to see if anyone else had noticed this act of invasion. Ampora was still ranting to the glassy eyed Textiles teacher, Mr. Makara was staring out of the window, apparently mesmerised by the stunning view of the back of the art block, and Captor was looking straight at him with those freaky eyes of his. Grinning. Mr. Vantas swallowed the hot coffee.
"Yes?" he growled, voice laden with more chilly venom than cobra ice-cream.
"Just a word, please?" That bastard. Mr. Vantas put down his mug with an angry click, and followed the despised headmaster out of the staffroom. As the door swung shut, he could feel the mismatched eyes on the back of his neck. He really hated Captor.

Mr. Egbert smiled as Mr. Vantas slumped ungracefully in the chair, and sat down behind his desk. The room had changed, Mr. Vantas noticed, since the old headmaster had left. The walls were a light blue, the floor now carpeted rather than old wood. The chair he was sitting in was even comfy. On the desk, an assortment of stupid, cheap ornaments were arranged in what appeared to be a careful order. Mr. Vantas hated them.
"I won't keep you long, Karkat; I can call you Karkat can't I?" The headmaster grinned, "I feel that formality between co-workers just encourages bad feelings. I want you all to know, that even though I am, in a sense, the 'leader', I still hope to become friends with all my staff. I want you to know that this school is a group effort, and that my door is always open." Karkat tried to suppress a groan. He really believed it, it was maddening.
"What was it you wanted to see me about, sir?" The film teacher glared, skinny arms crossed over his torso, that today sported a t-shirt showing a rather angry looking crab. Makara had got it for him in last year's staffroom Secret Santa. He only wore it because the Religious Education professor was always far too spaced out to notice, letting him avoid the admittance that he secretly quite liked it.
"Yes, sorry, where was I? Forget my own head next!" Mr. Egbert said jovially. "Let me see, it's about your proposed selection of films this year..."
Karkat sat open-mouthed, while the headmaster burbled on about his needing more variety in genre, that his selection appeared to contain far too many romantic comedies to be a 'representation of the wonderful spectrum that is film today.' How DARE this idiot criticize his taste in film? Who was the goddamn PROFESSOR in the room? When the film "Con-Air" was mentioned as a 'Great and heart-warming example of the action genre', Karkat had to clench his fists to stop himself from screaming profanity at the man. Eventually the voice became white noise as Karkat slumped in his fury, and also in the goddamn comfy chair. Once he judged the idiots mouth to have stopped moving long enough to signal that he had ceased his blasphemous drivel, Karkat forced a smile that was frankly disturbing.
"A very interesting point, sir, and I will be sure to take it into consideration. Now, if there's nothing else?" Mr. Egbert grinned at him again, and waved a hand.
"No, that's all. Off you go, Karkat. Great to have this chat."
This time, the door did slam.