Linthiel walked around the early morning school grounds. Morning activities had been hectic due to the preparation of Sports Day. Every morning for the past two weeks, there had been groups of students practicing for races or for any activities related to the event. She passed by another group of students who were busy assembling the props needed and another group of students who were busy designing their classes' Sports Day T-shirts.
She could not help but smiled in response to what she saw. She liked this. This bond that the students have with each other in every class, it was something that she had not had the chance to experience until she arrived in this school. She marvelled at the clamour of mornings, where students would rush around, trying to finish their duties. It created a bond between students that would otherwise be difficult to forge.
She was told by Frankenstein that she was to not participate in Sports Day for any physical activities due to her modified condition. She understood that, she really did, yet, she yearned to participate in it, to be part of the students who were involved. She wished she could. It was a chance for her to know how these things worked. She desired for simple interactions that came easily within group activities. She had only been here for a short time, but it seemed to her, that this was the way to interact with others.
She turned around, prepared to walk to her class when she noticed a few students around her giving her certain glances. She tilted her head to a side. She did not know these students. It was not just one or two students, nor were they fleeting glances, but there were several groups. The glances did not bore any hostility, but it felt odd.
Am I dressed weirdly? Did I behave in a strange way again? But all I did was walk around the school grounds.
Her gaze caught a group of boys, who she had seen from a different class, but were in the same grade as her. A few of them nudged each other slightly and the others coughed unnaturally as her gaze landed on them. Their reactions perplexed her. She noticed one of them was about to start towards her when she heard a yell behind her.
"Linthiel! Good morning!" yelled a familiar voice.
Shinwoo's voice drifted towards her from behind and she spun around, a wide smile split on her face. The group of children always made her smile, their happiness contagious, their presence comforting.
"Good morning, Shinwoo," she greeted in return.
She stopped and her brows narrowed. She looked at the red haired boy and opened her mouth to ask a question.
"Why are you early, Shinwoo? It is unusual," she asked.
"Heh, I was up the whole night playing games and I haven't slept yet. So I'm early, though I'm so sleepy now," Shinwoo replied, rubbing the back of his neck.
The boy yawned really widely and started towards the direction of the classroom. Linthiel was about to follow him when she remembered about the group of boys whom she encountered. She looked behind her shoulder and noticed that the group of boys were now quite a bit of distance away. She shrugged and ran after Shinwoo who was now in the school building.
. . . . .
Cadis Etrama Di Raizel had a pair of scissors in his hands and he stared at them for a long time. He was told to cut a pattern from the piece of paper placed in front of him. The paper had a beautiful drawing of a crane and he was to cut it out. It was the rare times like these which he found himself powerless. He did not know how to use this pair of scissors that had been thrown into his pair of hands by Shinwoo. An unsettling feeling of distress formed in his gut as he continued to stare at the pair of scissors.
It was the lesson before lunch, and these days, due to the looming period of Sports Day, most classes were cancelled. Most of the time, the students in this class would leave Cadis Etrama Di Raizel alone and not request for him to help out in any way. He knew that the children were often involved in the preparation. It was different for him, he supposed, as he was to not partake in the events. The girl was not allowed as well but unlike him, she seemed to be happily involved in other areas of the event. He had seen her working with Yuna, Suyi, Shinwoo and Ik-Han on the preparations for decorations and props. However, something unexpected happened today. Shinwoo came up to him and put a pair of scissors in his hands, instructing him to cut out this drawing of a crane.
This posed a problem for him.
He had been staring at the pair of scissors for a long time now. He wondered if he should actually ask the children for help, but his pride would not allow him to. He looked up and saw a girl from the class staring at him. The girl had been staring at him for the past fifteen minutes, yet when his sharp gaze met hers, she turned away, her face bright red. He paid no heed to the student, it happened frequent enough, that female students in this class; no, he corrected himself, this school, often stared at him. It happened wherever he went. He looked over to the children and noticed that Ik-Han too, had a pair of scissors in his hands and he was busy cutting a design of blossoms from the sheet of paper he held. Cadis Etrama Di Raizel studied the boy's actions carefully.
He then held the pair of scissors on his left hand and on his right hand; he carefully took up the piece of crane drawing. He flexed his left fingers and the mouth of the scissors opened. He slowly inserted the piece of paper in between the sharp mouth of it and applied a minute force on his left fingers. The blank area of the paper was snipped. Cadis Etrama Di Raizel's eyes widen imperceptibly, undetected by a normal human's eyes. He felt a small surge of pride rose within his chest. He had figured out how to use a pair of scissors, and that tiny action felt like a huge accomplishment. He was filled with a sensation of warmth, spreading throughout his body. He looked down at the piece of paper and he readied himself to cut out the crane drawing.
He was so engrossed in his new accomplishments that he did not notice that time had passed. It was then that the bell rang, indicating that the period was over and it was time for lunch. Cadis Etrama Di Raizel put down the pair of scissors and the now many cut out drawings in front of him on his desk. He wanted to have ramen. Lunch was always an exciting time for him as he got to feast on ramen. He sat on his chair, waiting for the children to wrap up their chores.
The door of the classroom slid opened and a boy appeared behind the door. The student's eyes swept around the classroom before they rested on the children.
"Han Shinwoo, the P.E. teacher wants your help on the 100 metres race and the mixed gender relay race!" the student yelled across the noisy classroom.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming!" Shinwoo yelled back, dropping all his props on his desk.
"The IT department wants your help on the PR broadcast on Sports Day, Woo Ik-Han! It seems that the school computers aren't well equipped enough for the scoreboards or something!" the student shouted.
"What! Our school computers are top-notch! Tao hyung made sure of that!" Ik-Han howled back in indignation while standing up in a hurry.
Shinwoo glanced at the direction of Cadis Etrama Di Raizel.
"Sorry, Rai! Ik-Han and I have to help these incompetent people. Go on ahead with the others for lunch without us," he apologised hurriedly.
Cadis Etrama Di Raizel looked at the two children's departing backs until the door slid close. He looked straight in front of him and realised that the girl, Linthiel, was still engaged in her preparations for the festival. It seemed that she was the one who was drawing the illustrations. He felt another child's presence and he turned his head to the right, only to see Yuna now stood next to him.
From the corner of his sight, he noticed that the girl in front of him seemed to have sensed Yuna's presence as well and the girl looked behind her. She then shifted in her seat so that her back was against the window, her side profile facing him. He turned his attention back towards Yuna. Yuna smiled apologetically at both of them.
"Sorry, Rai, Linthiel. Suyi and I promised the student council yesterday that we would help out with their costume designs during lunch so we can't go with both of you," she said softly, "both of you should go on ahead without us. Sorry!"
She smiled kindly again and gave a short wave of her hand while taking off to the exit with Suyi. Cadis Etrama Di Raizel's mind contemplated that perhaps Sports Day was causing too much trouble for the students. However, as he scanned around the classroom, he supposed that almost all of the students were happy about this event. He supposed, he too, felt a new emotion of contentment in him when he was involved in this festival. He enjoyed leading a simple life among humans, trying to fit in and understanding the simple joys in life. He liked this concept. He pushed his inner musings aside as he could distinctly feel a sense of tensed anxiety from the girl in front of him and that had brought his attention to her.
What had caused her heightened sense of anxiety? I do not feel any presence of danger in the school. Frankenstein is not here to decipher this puzzle as well.
He looked at her carefully. He was fully aware that if her anxiety got out of control, there was a very good chance that the Pegasus could appear, and that, would be a problem.
. . . . .
Linthiel was acutely aware of the mutterings around her once the children had left. A few boys in her class seemed to have noticed that she was alone without the others. This had not happened ever since she started attending the school. While she was eager to be involved in the many activities of the school and to improve her socialisation skills, she was yet to be comfortable to be around others apart from the children, Frankenstein and Cadis Etrama Di Raizel. The feeling of being left alone without the children made her feel bare, almost naked in being exposed in sight. It felt as though the children had always shielded her from view and from being approached from others, which she supposed, was true. The other students had not approached her whenever she was around the children, though she had sensed that occasionally, while she was alone for a short time, there were others who had wanted to approach her, to communicate with her. She was usually spared from the matter, since before anyone could attempt to converse with her, one of the children would return to her side. Her attendance in the school had gained unwanted attention and it had not disappeared despite the few weeks of her being there.
It was both a blessing and a curse. She yearned to communicate with others, something that she was not allowed to in the facility, and the freedom of being able to do something as simple as this had given her an indefinite sense of joy. However, the thought of actually communicating with anyone else but the few people whom she felt she could talk to, terrified her, she was afraid of the possibility of her slipping or making any mistake. She knew enough from Frankenstein's stern words every night that any mistake could cause unwanted attention towards all of them. She did not want that to happen.
A few boys were now eagerly heading towards her. She felt trapped. She had not been without the children before and it seemed that she had gained unwanted attention. Within a few seconds, five to six of them had surrounded the space in front of her. Her muscles tensed up and she felt her back pressed further into the cold sharp feel of the glass window behind her. She bit the inside of her bottom lip, her eyes darting around an empty space around her to no avail. She gripped the back of her chair, knuckles slowly turning white as she looked at the horde of tall boys in front of her. She knew they meant no harm but all the same, she felt nervous. There were too many of them and while they were smiling, it felt as though there was a hidden deeper meaning to those smiles.
She tried to control her haphazard emotions spewing all about within her. She had to. She could feel that her power was about to be released if she were to continue down this uncontrolled path. She flexed her other hand slightly, gaining control of her powers, ensuring that it was not out of control. She had to tread carefully, or she could end up releasing Teru. She could end up hurting someone in class. She didn't want that to happen as well.
"Hey, you're Linthiel right? You're always hanging out with Shinwoo and the gang! Man, am I glad that I got to talk to you now. I'm Kun-woo," said a boy.
"Yeah, you're always hanging out with them. Come hang out with us once in a while! I'm Ji-Hu, by the way," said another.
"Yeah, Shinwoo and the gang hordes all the pretty girls. There was the time with Seira and Yuna and Suyi. Not that I don't like him but man, that's just unfair, isn't it?" said another boy to the others.
"Yeah, Ye-jun is right. Give us a chance as well," sighed the boy who introduced himself as Kun-woo.
Linthiel's nervousness peaked up as the boys continued to talk amongst themselves playfully. She wanted to escape this predicament that she had unwittingly got herself involved in. Her knuckles were starting to hurt from grasping the chair too tightly and she felt close to losing control of her power. She chewed the inside of her cheek and it took all her control to force her feet from standing up and taking flight. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Perhaps, if she replied, they might go away? She decided to give it a try. She tried to slow her drumming heart and smiled a little.
"Hello, I'm Linthiel," she replied softly, almost a whisper.
Her reply seemed to have generated a wave of increased interest from the boys. She swallowed, hard. That was not the reaction she expected. She thought that by answering, perhaps they would be satisfied and would leave her alone. But they were now gazing at her attentively, asking her questions so quickly that she was unable to process in time and answer. She felt hot and bothered; her heart racing from the confusion, eyes darting from one figure to the next, trying to take in the bombardment of questions. All she could hear was a mass of voices. She was unable to discern one voice to the next, let alone individual questions. This was becoming too much. She felt her power about to be released and it was all she could do to hang on to her control. She clenched her free fist, nails digging into palms, she was about a hair's width away from losing control and she squeezed her eyes shut, afraid that Teru would appear.
A flash of strong vibe came from her right. It was not power. It was an aura of elegance.
Her eyes snapped open and she whipped her head to the right. Cadis Etrama Di Raizel had risen fluidly in that moment. His jet black hair flitted about his dignified features. His blood red eyes pierced through her as though he could see into her soul.
It was an unsettling feeling.
Cadis Etrama Di Raizel stood tall and elegant. His sudden but fluid movement seemed to have stunned the group of boys gathered in front of her into silence. She did not expect him to rise so suddenly. Right at this instant, all her focus was on him. Her distress had been all but thrown out of the window, forgotten. Her knuckles no longer grasping the back of the chair, her clenched fist had relaxed from its grip. She looked at him, her eyes wide, wondering what brought on his unpredictable behaviour.
And all the while, he stared at her with his piercing gaze.
"Ramen," he said shortly.
She blinked a few times in response, stunned. She was not expecting this answer from him. But he stood still, staring, waiting for her. His gaze was overpowering but she could not pull herself away from it. It reeled her in, and made her thoughts muddled.
"Ye- Yeah," she stammered.
Her answer seemed to have sufficed. With her words, Cadis Etrama Di Raizel strolled towards the classroom door and turned his head behind to look at her, waiting. She stood up clumsily, gave a slight apologetic bow to the boys and left hurriedly after Cadis Etrama Di Raizel. Once she was beside him, he continued to walk towards the canteen.
Her heart felt lighter, as though a load of weight had been lifted. She breathed a sigh of relief. It was because of Cadis Etrama Di Raizel that she had forgotten about her flustered state. She looked down at her palms and flexed both her hands, feeling her power in control. Her gaze softened and she smiled. That was dangerous, that she came close to using her power. It was a sign that she needed to train more. She made a mental reminder on it and intended to request for a longer training session from Frankenstein tonight if he was willing. She turned her head at the man walking beside her and smiled gratefully.
"Thank you," she said.
Cadis Etrama Di Raizel's eyes landed on her briefly. His face conveyed no hint of emotion if he understood as to why she was expressing her gratitude towards him. His eyes flitted back forwards and as usual, remained silent. Both of them walked towards the canteen side by side, Linthiel relaxed and contented, Cadis Etrama Di Raizel deep in his thoughts.