Chapter 4: Meeting Principal Darkholme
His last period of the day was art class, something that came as a huge blessing to Arial. He arrived in the class as early as he was able, and to his delight, the instructor said he could simply sit at the table toward the back of the room and draw in his sketchbook. Her students were almost through with a unit on paper-mâchíe, so it wasn't as though he could just jump into a group and get started on the project they were assigned, and in all honesty, he didn't want to either. The chance to be on his own for a bit and draw silently was a blessed relief. He perched on the seat and flipped the sketchbook open to a blank page, already thinking about what he was going to draw. That Pietro seemed to have something against him for running out of Biology, and it needled Arial; the more he recalled Pietro's taunts, that cold sneer, the angrier he got…and it was then he realized what he would draw.
He placed pencil to paper, letting his unvented anger flow through him, channeled into a tangible form as an image began to form beneath the lead. Harsh, violent, slashing lines added shade to the figure slowly taking shape. One of its hands came into being on the paper, clutching what seemed to be fabric, while the other was left unfinished at the wrist, raised high above the figure's head. Arial was starting to give form to the unfortunate soul wearing the clutched fabric, when something nudged him in the side. Startled, he jumped and looked to the seat next to him.
A girl was watching him with wide eyes, and when he jumped, her hands flew to her mouth, as though worried she'd offended him. It took him a moment of staring before he realized she was Tiras Lee, the horned girl from Xavier's Institute. Except her horns were missing, replaced by a rather fancy-looking digital watch on her wrist. Arial raised a blonde eyebrow. Did that watch somehow hide her horns?
Tiras blinked, then pushed a piece of paper across the table to him. Arial glanced down to see light, lovely handwriting at the top of the page, and he had to blink once or twice to actually see what she'd written.
'You're Arial, right? I'm Tiras. I'm sorry I didn't greet you at breakfast. It's because I can't, you see.'
Arial looked up and gave her a skeptical expression, and she pulled the paper back, quickly adding a line before giving it back.
'It's part of my mutation. You saw my horns, right? They distort my voice, make it so I can't talk too loud, or the sound makes people around me go delirious.'
Arial pushed his sketchbook back a little and wrote back, 'Delirious?'
When Tiras saw his reply, she offered him a sheepish smile and responded, 'Well, that's what Professor Xavier said. Delirious. Or it's just confusing or something.'
Arial snatched the paper back, seeing her about to write another apology, and scratched down quickly, 'Don't worry about it.'
When she saw his reply, Tiras ducked her head shyly, as though embarrassed he found out what she was going to do, and spent a few minutes playing with one long strand of her hair, rather than working on her project. Arial waited for a moment, then shrugged and went back to his sketch, convinced she'd said in the note all she wanted to. He focused on adding in details to the figures in his drawing, and was just about to start on the raised hand when Tiras's paper slid to him again, the corner nudging his hand slightly.
'What are you drawing? Can I see?' she'd written, and when he glanced up, he saw her surveying him carefully with a hopeful expression. He sighed, then pushed his sketchbook toward her warily, and she leaned forward, studying the lines for a moment before snatching her paper again and writing something furiously. 'That man looks like he's grabbing Pietro Maximo.'
Arial's cheeks flushed and he turned his gaze to the ceiling as he yanked his sketchbook back, taking in the number of ceiling tiles there were directly above his head. He heard the sound of more furious writing and then Tiras nudged him again. She'd added, 'It IS Pietro, isn't it? Did he do something to you?'
"Don't vorry about it, fraulein." he murmured out of the corner of his mouth. "I'll probably mention something to Frau Darkholme after school; she's already asked me to stop by her office."
"P-Principal Darkholme?" Tiras whispered in such a soft voice Arial had to strain his ears to hear her properly. "She's bad news, Arial!"
"Everyone seems to be saying that." he muttered grumpily.
"Lavig! Lee! No talking!" the instructor shouted back to them, making the two jump. Grumbling, Arial returned to his sketch, leaning in close and angling his arms to block out anyone else too curious. He refused to pass the note with Tiras for the rest of the class, so it was only by chance after the bell rang, that he heard her whisper behind him.
"But, Arial…Pietro's one of Principal Darkholme's favorite students…"
He paused, turning to look at her, but they were pushed along by the sea of bodies, and Arial instinctively made a turn down a wider hall, heading for the main office. Here the student population thinned out dramatically, none of them wanting to get too close to the principal's office, and Arial could hear Tiras trotting along behind him. Glancing up to find the door, he stopped in shock.
"Vhat are you all doing here…?" he asked slowly.
For Jean, Scott, Rogue, Kurt, Evan, Kitty, Chase, and the Russian boy he'd seen that morning, Petrov, were standing near the office door, attempting to look casual.
"Thought we'd stick around. You know, for moral support." Evan offered kindly, giving Arial a smile.
"Plus, you've got to have someone with you to help you find your way back to the Institute." Scott said bluntly. Tiras brushed past, heading straight to Kitty and Chase, ducking her head sadly. Arial could only stare. Why was everyone acting like he was attending his own funeral?
"Vell… danke schön…" he said lamely, ducking into the main office. A secretary glanced up as he came in, and he stopped in his tracks, feeling abruptly like an intruder. Wordlessly, he held up the missive, which earned a squint from the woman. She clicked her fingers and he came over, thrusting the paper at her and ducking his head.
"Mr.…Lavig, is it?" she said around a wad of gum in her mouth, peering up at him from her pink jeweled spectacles, which reminded Arial rather forcibly of that Skeeter woman in the Harry Potter books. He gave a quick nod and she waved him into one of the chairs. "Ms. Darkholme will be with you in a minute."
He sank into the chair rather reluctantly, clutching his backpack to his chest as always, and waited, thoughts rushing through his mind like the churning of victims caught in an undertow. What was Principal Darkholme like? Was Pietro really one of her favorite students? Why did all the other mutants keep saying she was bad news? Was she one of those anti-mutant people he kept hearing about? Instinct brought a hand up to brush his shoulder. Vill she notice…?
"Mr. Lavig!" a woman's voice called from the door labeled "Principal's Office" behind the secretary's desk. "I will see you now."
A tall, impressive-looking brunette woman with the severe gaze of a predator, dressed in a dark business suit, pumps, and glasses, was watching him intensely. Arial swallowed hard, got to his feet, and scurried past the secretary into Darkholme's office. The principal shut the door behind him and gestured for him to sit in the seat before her desk. Reluctantly he obeyed, settling nervously into the chair, setting the backpack on the floor beside him as he gripped the arms of the chair tightly to hide his shaking.
"So. Mr. Lavig." Darkholme said, walking into his line of vision, folding her arms and leaning against her desk.
"Y-yes, Principal Darkholme?" he murmured, praying he could keep his squirming under control. If he squirmed too much and she saw his shoulders…
"How are you adapting to life here at Bayville High?" she asked, giving him a cool smile.
"F-fine…" he said, looking at his feet.
"Just 'fine?' Are you having any…problems at all?"
He got the impression she was looking at him as though attempting to X-Ray him with her eyes, and he couldn't supress an uncomfortable shudder.
"N-no, ma'am!" he answered quickly.
"Are you certain, Mr. Lavig?" she asked, dark eyebrows rising up to meet her hairline. "I wouldn't want you to feel…unwelcome in my school."
"I-I-I'm fine, ma'am! Sehr gut! Honestly!" he stammered, flinching back in his chair.
"Really?" she said in a tone that clearly stated she didn't believe him. "Because I've heard from a couple of concerned classmates that Pietro Maximo was seen teasing you rather viciously."
Ten guesses said those classmates were the ones waiting outside for him.
Vhy did they say anything to her…? his thoughts seemed to whine as he suppressed another squirm and looked back down at his shoes again. Aloud, he said, "Vell…ja…he did…I-I don't know vhy he did, I've not done anything to him! I just started this morning!"
"So Pietro has been bothering you. And why did you feel the need to keep that from me?"
"Because he vas only talking…it vas just vords. He didn't try to do anything physical to me."
"But if you don't say anything to someone, Arial, then eventually he may try something. And you know what you must do then?"
"Tell you." he sighed.
"Fight back." Darkholme responded, a slow smile spreading over her face. Arial frowned at her, puzzled. Fight back? What in the world did she mean by that? She was a principal. Was she actually encouraging fighting in her school, or was that meant to have a double meaning, to say that he should tell her?
"O-okay…" he said slowly.
"Are you cold, Mr. Lavig?" she asked abruptly, and he froze. "That's a rather thick hoodie to be wearing at this time of the year. Not to mention, it seems a bit too big for you. Surely we can find you one more your size."
She reached out, and her nails suddenly seemed like jagged talons, reaching out to rip away the security of his hoodie and expose the truth. Instinct forced him out of the chair and behind it in a flash, scooping up his backpack as he moved out of reach.
"N-nein, thank you…I like this hoodie, I vant to keep it." he said. "Th-thank you for the concern, Ms. Darkholme, but if it's alright, I need to be heading home…"
She frowned at him, looking utterly less than pleased, but she made no effort to stop him. "Of course, Mr. Lavig. Far be it from me to keep a young person from returning home in time for supper."
"Thank you…" he murmured again for safe measure, stepping backward.
"You're welcome, of course. And remember, Mr. Lavig, if you have any trouble, you tell me." she said, her glare frosty. Swallowing hard, he gave her a nod before fleeing from the room. He met the others in the hall, but refused to say anything about the meeting, let alone the fact that Miss Darkholme frightened him.
Back in her office, Mystique dropped her guise, the features of Principal Darkholme fading into the blue-skinned, redheaded woman of whom Xavier's students were so wary. Her indigo lips curved upward into a smile as she peeked through the blinds of her window, watching the curly-haired blonde boy trotting along, white-faced, behind the other young mutants. He walked slightly apart from them, a good sign, one that meant he'd not fully accepted them yet. There was still plenty of room to make a…better impression on the boy.
"All it takes is a little nudge in the right direction. A little miscommunication and manipulation." she murmured aloud.
The locks on the window suddenly latched themselves, making her jump.
"Don't fail me again, Mystique. We cannot afford to lose the boy the way you lost Rogue." a cold, deep voice echoed in the room behind her.
"I won't lose this one, sir," she murmured, fear making her hands clammy.
"Be sure you don't." came the snap. "Arial Lavig is far too valuable. I won't let Charles take this one, even if I have rip the boy from his icy, dead hands."
A/N: Arial Lavig belongs to me! (And if you want to see what he looks like, check out my deviantArt account, under the username Yoruhoshi. /shameless plug)
Tiras Lee/Ultrasound is (C) to A-little-odd of deviantArt
Petrov Emppu/Prometheus is (C) to Labyrinthinemind of deviantArt
Chase Owens is (C) to Penguinsgrl of deviantArt