Chapter One:
Évelyne was in her first class of the day, Advanced Visual Arts, and she was sitting on a stool by her canvas in the back of the classroom. The lighting from the windows was doing her wonders and she was a good distance away from the sinks. Her graphite was held in her sweating hand, she couldn't think of anything that symbolized her.
A family portrait? No, it was far too complex and would take her several class periods, something she couldn't afford. A memory?
Standing up, she hurried over to the art cabinets, opening them she bent down and grabbed the oil pastel tray picking it up and placing it on the counter. Then getting the tray containing watercolor packs. As she picked through oil pastel pieces back at her canvas, someone reached his hand in and took out a pristine looking red.
"Can I use this?" Vincent Tyler asked her, "Mine got stolen by some underclassmen."
"Just give it back," she said, nodding. He smiled and sat back down at his seat by his friends. As she began swinging her tight covered legs she turned the canvas landscape and began to draw a basic house with a simple sketching pencil. The palace began to rise from the ground, shadows extended where the moonlight couldn't touch-
"Évelyne? How are you doing?"
She sucked in a breath as a black streak appeared out of her original sketch. Gritting her teeth she looked into her teacher's face. Taking note of his eyes flitting from her to the turned canvas, she worked up a smile and said, "I'm doing fine, Mister Bertram."
"May I see?"
Students turned their heads and some snorted, turning their own paintings away, their eyes averted.
"This is a very powerful piece, Miss Wayne." Charles Bertram complemented. "Very much like the artist Dmitri Spiros' work, were you inspired by him?"
"I'm sorry, I have never heard of him, Mister Bertram, I am a bit out of touch with Russian art." She met his brown eyes and then said, "I was inspired by my memories, you see."
"Ah," He touched her shoulder, "This canvas will earn you an A, I am sure."
She smiled once more and dipped a flat paintbrush into her yellow watercolor, her neighbor, Kristen, peeked over at her painting once more and her eyes flitted from Évelyne's icy gaze. The art teacher moved to Kristen's canvas, commenting dryly on her paint strokes. Évelyne smile broadened as her academic rival cursed lightly when the teacher turned to another student. As she blended her colors together, she noticed, out the corner of her eye, Kristen's tablet had been left open on her word document.
As the class began to clean up, ten minutes before the bell rang, Évelyne was fuming. How dare that girl copy her work, a monochrome woman standing on a building? Standing up and tugging the headband so her dark locks fell around her face, she washed her brushes and put her canvas stand by the door, and then sat back in her stool. Tapping the power button of the tablet, she worked quickly, opening the document labeled; Winter Break Writing Assignment, English. Deleting the file and removing it from the recycling bin, she picked up the paintbrush with red paint left over from texturing, she went over to wash it as the bell rang.
Kristen gave her a look as she left the classroom, Évelyne looked away so she could smile.
After school, Évelyne waited by the school grounds for Alfred to pick her up. Her newest piece of work was wrapped and by her side. As a black window tinted limo pulled into the parking lot full of SUVs, Range Rovers, and a familiar butler stepped out of the driver's seat and caught her eye, she started forward.
"Wait! Évelyne! Hey!"
At hearing her name called out, Évelyne turned and scanned the crowd, seeing a fellow Latin classmate hurrying towards her. Her eyebrows raised in surprise as the girl stood in front of her, it was clear from her shortness of breath and slightly frizzy hair she had run to find her.
"Hi, Kaela. What do you need?"
"It's about Kristen Yale."
"Yes?" Évelyne's face did not betray the slight clinch in her stomach.
"You're number one on the principal's award list, it was just updated today."
Évelyne smiled, Kaela smiled back, it was clear the girl had a crush on her. Kaela was always partnering with her for work, asking her questions and blushing half the time.
"Thanks for telling me, Kaela. I'll text you later?"
"Yes. Uh, bye." Kaela waved as she got into a Range Rover on the other side of the parking lot, Évelyne waved back as she got into the back of the limo, NPR whispered from the front and Alfred turned it off. She liked Alfred, he always remembered she didn't like the seat warmers and always had a bottle of sparkling water in the fridge for her to drink. However, as it began to rain Alfred turned on the heat and the windshield wipers.
"Lady Évelyne? Is it alright if I go and pick Master Bruce from the office on our way back to Wayne Manor?"
"Of course, Alfred." She opened the bottle and took a swig.
As the downpour increased and the traffic to Wayne Enterprises slowed, Évelyne kicked off her Mary Janes and pulled her sketchbook out of her Prada bag. She had to turn in her sketchbook to be graded in a few weeks and she needed more projects in her book than on a canvas.
Bruce Wayne let out a curse as he entered the car, placing his wet umbrella on the opposite seat.
"Master Wayne..."
"Sorry Alfred," Bruce buckled himself in. "It's the accountant for the engineering sector." As the car turned out of the lot and the paparazzi failed to get a shot through the tinted windows as they waited for traffic to get moving, they sat in companionable silence.
"I'm the top of my class." Évelyne said as they moved through the city. "The results were posted today."
"That's good." Bruce was reading over reports from his overseas companies. Clearly he didn't have time to wish her anything else, so she continued working, albeit a bit louder with her pencils.
Dick Grayson walked over the threshold of Wayne Manor, he still wasn't used to the crystal and silver chandelier that hung over his head, or the clean marble floors that stretched until replaced by chestnut wood.
"Master Richard, what a pleasant surprise. There are some butterscotch brownies left from the Wayne Manor Picnic the other day, would you like one?" Alfred entered the room, taking his coat and police belt. Alfred raised his eyebrow and gave the bouquet of hyacinths, tulips, irises, and hydrangeas in his hand a look.
"These are for Évelyne, I saw the class scores today."
"She will be delighted, I am sure. I will find a vase." Alfred also took the bouquet off his hands and went into the kitchen, Dick followed after abandoning his muddy shoes.
"How is she doing?" Dick asked as he sat at the kitchen counter, a brownie on a plate in front of him. As Alfred filled a vase with water, he motioned for Dick to shut the doors. "Is it that bad?" Dick asked after he checked for bugs and closed the doors tightly.
"She has made acquaintances in class," Alfred admitted as he arranged the flowers in an ornate vase. "But her relationship with Master Wayne has not been improving much, I'm afraid to say. I fear it is getting worse."
"Shit," Dick cursed, then apologized as he was given a world-class batglare. "Sorry, Alfred. I just thought things would be getting better."
"You heard, of course, that he is refusing to take her on as Robin?"
"Yeah, Évelyne told me at lunch last weekend."
"Oh," Alfred's lip twitched. "I see you two are working past differences."
"More like avoiding them," Dick joked. "She tries not to show how much it hurts her, but its obvious. She spends most of her free time shut up in her room or in the gym. Didn't Bruce fix up the sunroom into an art studio?"
"She refused it." Alfred fussed over each flower's individual height.
"Oh, no wonder he was so ticked when we talked the other day." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Well, I better send up those flowers and my congratulations."
"Right you are, Master Richard," Alfred handed him a plate of brownies and the flower vase. "I hope you will be staying for pot roast?"
"I will," Dick called from the bottom of the stairs. As he moved up the long marble steps and on the second floor, he headed right to the west wing where the old children's rooms were. Balancing a plate and vase in both hands he stood in front of the door. "Évelyne, guess who?"
He heard a sigh of exasperation and he smiled as the door was flung open.
Author's Note: I just wanted to say I was in English today when I thought of this, I don't take art, I have no skills with a pencil except for writing stories. I will update at least twice a week because school started and I have to study and do homework! Despite the workload I am happy to be back. Bye! Read and review!