Amakudari 1.3
Ms. Tilde the Art teacher helped Taylor to the Nurse's Office.
"Let me out!" Emma cried, pounding on the washroom door. Two girls from the outside pulled on the doorknob with all their might, which only forced the pennies to wedge even tighter in the gap around the door.
"Someone go get the Janitor," said Ms. Tilde as they walked past.
Taylor wanted to smile, but the pain and facial swelling from Sophia's punch prevented that. "It's not a locker, but it's a start." she thought.
At the Nurse's office, Taylor was given an icepack saying, "Well, at least it didn't break the skin," and shooed on her way to the office.
Sophia sat, arms crossed and fuming while she waited outside Principal Blackwell's office. She bristled at Taylor's entrance, and angrily glared as the beanpole teenager thanked Ms. Tilde for her assistance.
"So you mentioned paperwork to fill out?" Taylor asked.
"Yes, I've got the fighting report form right here." Mrs. Knott said, "Just signed my part and now Ms. Tilde can sign too."
"Hand that here when you're done with it," said Principal Blackwell as she motioned Sophia and Taylor into her office.
The two teens sat while Principal Blackwell read the report while she walked around her desk.
"This says that you showed Ms. Tilde the work you'd done on your art project so far when Sophia ran up from behind and attacked you."
"Ye.."
"Hey, that skinny bitch flipped me off!" interrupted Sophia.
"I don't care," said Principal Blackwell after she signed the form, "Fighting on school grounds is against the rules."
"But she.."
"What part of 'Don't Care' didn't you hear? No one punches another student in front of two teachers and gets away with it, even if they are ticked off they just got pranked by the entire Track Team." said Principal Blackwell as she pointed at the bedsheet banner Sophia brought with her.
"I have to call my Social Worker." Sophia interjected.
"Obviously. I'm sure she'll agree you've earned in school suspension for all next week and the rest of today."
"But you..."
"No matter who you are you don't get to take out your frustrations on anyone who crosses your path while you're in the middle of a snit fit." Principal Blackwell leaned in close to Sophia and said, "Grow up and stop throwing tantrums like a two year old."
Taylor had never seen this side of Principal Blackwell before and saw the barely constrained anger Sophia had at the teachers' words even as the aggravated teen answered, "Yes Ma'am."
What a difference rock solid evidence made compared to the typical alibis, plausible deniability, and cover stories the Trio provided each other.
The teachers had already left to go teach their classes when Principal Blackwell ushered Sophia and Taylor from her office.
"You better get to class," Principal Blackwell said to Taylor, "and you get to cool your heels over there for a while."
"I need to go look for my lost phones." said Sophia as she rose to her feet.
"No, you're going to wait here until your Social Worker shows up."
"But..."
"Stop arguing. Sit." commanded Principal Blackwell, pointing to an open chair.
Sophia glared daggers at Taylor. Principal Blackwell stood in the doorway to her office and waved the back of her hand at Taylor, shooing her off.
Taylor walked to class and briefly watched as the Janitor pull out a hammer and chisel to release Emma from her trapped condition. "Best three fifty I've ever spent." she thought.
Emma dialed her Father, "Daddy? … I'm trapped in a bathroom at school and the Janitor can't open the door…. …Yes' I'm OK… …No, he tried that… ...No, they've got bars on them... Alright, I'll see you when you get here."
Emma settled in to wait for her rescue, texting.
Taylor felt one of Sophia's phones buzz to life within the walls of Winslow, transported on the backs of a swarm of bugs. Pity she couldn't see anything besides kaleidoscopic blurs through her swarms or she could have replied to Emma's texts with some epic gaslighting, but she didn't know the unlock codes anyway.
Another pity the metal walls of the lockers only had unused half inch round holes for fasteners her swarms had been unable to enlarge. At least they'd chewed through the drywall blocking the holes behind Emma and Madison's lockers to improve what little access there was for later.
Taylor directed the phone-carrying swarms on to their eventual destination just as she arrived late at class. She still held the icepack to her cheek where Sophia had punched her. She appeared understandably distracted as the lesson progressed.
"Two down, one to go," thought Taylor while she prepared for Emma's father to arrive.
Even though it pained her, she smiled a slow cruel smile beneath the icepack in anticipation.