"Back again, ?" asked the office secretary.

"Not for what you would think, Gladys," replied Roger, smiling at her. He reached over the desk and snatched 2 peppermint candies from her plate. He popped one in his mouth, and offered the other one to Rouge. She looked uneasy at first, but Gladys gave her a small nod so she plucked the mint out of his open palm, and stuck it in her mouth. Gladys laughed at Roger's antics, and gestured towards the two green chairs in the office. They each took a seat, and Gladys walked up to them.

"So, what are you and your girlfriend here for today?" the secretary inquired, pushing up her glasses. Rouge reddened instantly, but Roger just smiled.

"Rouge here, my classmate," he emphasized, "ran into a bit of trouble. Would Nurse Crocus be here by any chance?"

"You're in luck, he just got here. You know where to go."

Roger took the still blushing Rouge's hand, and walked with her to the nurse's office. They walked in silence, and Roger couldn't help but feel something was either really wrong, or really, really right. They finally reached the medical room, and Roger pushed open the door.

"Croc?" he called, pulling Rouge in. The door closed behind them, and Roger let go of Rouge's hand. A small man, whose hair resembled that of a flower appeared from another corridor.

"Ah Roger! Back again I see," the man said, stepping towards the two with small, quick steps. "And who might this be?" he asked, gesturing to Rouge.

"This is Rouge," said Roger, "my classmate. She hit her shin by accident, and it looks kinda bad. You think you can take care of her?"

"Well, I'll see," replied the nurse, "sit right here, Rouge," he said, pointing at a small elevated mattress. Rouge obliged, and took a seat. Crocus pulled up a chair, and held up her leg.

"It's bruised pretty badly, but it'll be better soon. You might feel a bit sore for a few days.

"It's ok…" Rouge muttered, "I'm used to it."

Both Roger and Crocus looked at her for a second.

"I-I'm really…Clumsy!" she stammered, franticly. Crocus nodded his head, but Roger didn't seem convinced. Rouge looked downwards, and some of her hair fell down, covering her face. Crocus finished his examination, and declared she was otherwise 'OK'.

"Would you like some ice?" he asked, already heading to the freezer, "By the way, that wasn't a question," he continued, "I'd like you to stay here until lunch, resting. You're not to move until then. Doctor's orders."

"You're a nurse," Rouge said as-a-matter-of-factly, and then, as if she'd realized she was being rude, she followed it up with, "Sorry, it's just, I'm going to miss a lot of my classes, and I can't afford to—"

"I'll take notes for you," Roger offered, "we have the same classes first period anyways."

"There you go!" said Crocus triumphantly, "Now, regardless of my position," he said, looking at Rouge with a twinkle in his eye, "I'd really like you to rest. If you push yourself, that thing's only going to get worse." Rouge nodded, and swung her leg up to a laying position. She rested her hands on her stomach, and Roger couldn't help but notice how distressed she seemed.

"Hey," he began, "don't worry, I'll get you some good notes. You just take it easy, OK?"

Rouge nodded, and bit her lip. Roger walked out the door, but not before taking another glance back at Rouge.

OOOOO

"Where were you?" whispered Rayleigh. Roger said nothing, and took out a pad and pen.

"Dude, where were you?" Rayleigh pushed, "Squard came in here saying something about a girl."

"Look, I need to take notes," said Roger, looking Rayleigh in the eye. "Can we talk about this after?"

Roger turned back to his notes while Rayleigh stared at him, stunned. Roger was never so studious. What had inspired this change in the great 'Pirate King'? Roger looked up at the board, and realised he had no clue what the teacher was even talking about. What did 'Machiavellianism' even mean? Hestarted freaking out, and turned towards Rayleigh, looking for an answer. Roger caught his eye, and Rayleigh begrudgingly pushed his sheet towards his captain. Roger grinned at him, and took to copying everything down. 'Machiavellianism- The political doctrine of Machiavelli, which denies the relevance of morality in political affairs, and holds that craft and deceit are justified in pursuing and maintaining political power' Roger printed, thinking of it's meaning. Simply stated, it meant the belief that it was ok to be nasty if it you could get more powerful politically. Roger snarled. Whoever this Machia-bastard was, he was crazy and heartless. Even worse were the idiots who supported him. Justice. It was such a vague word, different in everyone's eyes. In Roger's, it meant that everyone got what they needed. Not necessarily equality, because everyone has different needs. But whatever anyone was deserving of. That seemed right in Roger's mind. Unfortunately, the world was filled with Machia-bastards who believed in doing whatever they wanted for power.

Roger shook himself away from his thoughts, and hunkered down. Rouge was counting on him. He had gotten a bit behind during his daydreaming session, but caught up quickly thanks to Rayleigh. He thought about how he was going to give Rouge these notes anyways. Taka's? He didn't know if she was there during lunch. Probably. He never saw her anywhere else around town. He brushed some eraser bits off his paper, and against his will, he started daydreaming again. Unfortunately, saw him drifting away and called him out.

" !" He shouted, his voice jolting Roger back to reality. "Do politics not interest you enough?"

"No sir!" Roger replied, bolting up straight in his chair. "I mean yes sir! I mean- Argh!" Roger hated these kinds of trick questions. Unfortunately, seemed to be rather fond of them. smiled cruelly at Roger.

"Detention, ," he said, and Roger could've sworn that there was an evil glint in his eye.

OOO

"What's gotten into you, Gol?" said Rayleigh, as soon as they'd left Politics.

"Look man," said Roger, "I need to ask you a for favor."

"Tell me what's going on, and I just might give it to you," replied Rayleigh, crossing his arms.

"Ok look," Roger began, "there's this girl, Rouge, and I said I'd take notes for her. She's with Croc, Squard messed with her a bit. I was supposed to give her the notes after school, but now I gotta hang with Nolas. You mind doing it for me?"

Rayleigh sighed. Roger was always taking on things he couldn't handle. But afterall, that's why Rayleigh was there. To rein him in. Roger offered Rayleigh the papers, and Rayleigh took them reluctantly.

"Thanks Silvers," said Roger, grinning.