Victor

AN: Yeah I know nobody likes Victor and no, nobody requested him, but for narrative purposes I need a chapter in his POV. Sorry everyone, please don't bring out the pitchforks and torches. You'll want to save them for later trust me ;). See you at the end of the chapter.

"I don't know how she managed it Victor, but she did. When we altered her scholarship we knew how resourceful she was, but agreed to try anyway. I simply don't see how you intend to get her out of the school, and for that matter you never told me the why either."

Clasping my hands behind my back, I glared at Eric down the point of my hooknose. I rather liked my hooknose, I felt it gave me character. "The why is not important, Eric, what is important is that it failed. She is still at the school and is a constant thorn in my side."

"Goodness Victor, is that why you wanted her expelled? Your irritation is hardly a cause for the termination of a young person's learning experience," Eric frowned, hands folded like so on top of his desk as always, looking at me sternly.

I waved his concerns away. "It doesn't matter. Eric you are one of three people, myself and my doctor being the other two, who know of the diagnosis I received. There has to be some way to cure it before it's too late, and that is what we need to be focusing on right now."

"Ah yes, about that." The headmaster slid his glasses onto his nose and started looking through some folders. "Are you sure you don't want me to call that lawyer for you? He did a fabulous job of my will and I'm sure he would be more than competent for – "

"Thank you for your consideration Eric, but the decision stands," I interrupted. I marched towards the door and stopped with my hand on the knob. "I must get back to my house and make sure the miscreants aren't attempting to reproduce in their bedrooms or wreaking other such havoc. I will call you if I need anything."

I left and shut the door firmly behind me, cutting off Eric's protests that his son and his housemates would be involved in no such thing. Hmph. As if he knew. I walked down the hallways slowly, my scowl fixed firmly in place and growing deeper. Eric was the headmaster, able to rule over his kingdom from afar. He didn't have to deal with the day-to-day issues of teenagers, their tears and their emotions and their heartbreaks and their constant, ceaseless meddling. It was enough to drive any sane person mad.

I continued to brood on the difference between Eric's and my perspectives as I returned to Anubis, all the way across the grounds and up the stairs and into my office, where my thoughts were derailed by the new history teacher waiting for me. Or more accurately, the new history teacher standing in my office, back to the door, stroking Corbiere.

Folding my arms, I summoned my most intimidating demeanor. "What are you doing here?" I demanded, making sure to draw my eyebrows into a harsh 'V', just like how I'd practiced in the mirror over summer.

The teacher – I didn't remember or care about her name – gave Corbiere a final pat and turned to look at me, a serpentine smile on her face. "Why hello Victor. My name is Bess Abbott, I'm the new history teacher." She held out her hand. I didn't take it, and after a couple seconds the smile grew slightly more menacing and she slowly drew the hand back. "We have some things we should discuss."

I purposefully strode around my desk and sat in my chair. Ah. I loved this chair. An infinite number of sit-downs had molded the leather to perfectly fit my back and behind every time I relaxed into it. "Such as?" I built my fingers into a steeple and rested my chin on top of it.

Ms. Abbott rolled her shoulders into a shrug and inspected her nails. "Such as the aneurysm you were diagnosed with over the summer for starters."

Her simple answer rolled over me like a wave and I leaned backwards, momentarily at a loss for words. She took my silence as an invitation to continue speaking and added, "And how I can help you prepare for the afterlife."

"Prepare?" I scowled deeply as my tongue started working again. "If you knew the slightest thing about me you would know I do not wish to prepare. I wish to stop it." Unable to help myself, I gently pressed the tips of my fingers to the right side of my head, just behind the top of my ear, where a time bomb rested against my skull, ready to blow at any moment. I had mentioned headaches to my doctor in a routine checkup, and after a discussion he sent me in for an MRI. I had only told Eric of the results. Which reminded me. "How did you even know about my diagnosis?" I demanded. "I was of the opinion only my doctor, Eric and myself were aware."

That smile was back, so much wider than any smile should be. "Oh Victor," she crooned, plucking an imaginary thread off of her sweater. "There is very little we don't know."

I raised an eyebrow. "Who is this 'we' you speak of?" I prompted impatiently.

Bess perched on the desk and leaned forward as though confiding in me a secret. "You are not yet worthy of knowing." She looked entirely too pleased to inform me of this, as though she took pride in my supposed unworthiness. Maybe she did.

"Be that as it may," I countered, "I assume you are coming to me because there is something you need me for. I will not work with some faceless entity. I require a name."

A laugh bubbled out of her lips in delight and her smile stretched even wider, as though I were a dog who'd hopped up to stand on two legs. "Oh my, I forgot how deliciously innocent male arrogance can be." Raising both hands, one at a time, she cracked each individual knuckle before continuing, "We do not need you Victor. My… silent partner and I, have seen fit to extend to you an offer of assistance. With your position, you could prove to be…" she eyed me up and down, seeming to search for the correct adjective that described what exactly it was that I could potentially prove to be. "Useful."

I didn't have to feign disinterest. "And what exactly would I get out of this?" I demanded. "A pat on the head and a gold star?"

Fast as a snake, her hand was behind my ear, her nails piercing my scalp and I stared at her in surprise. "The human brain is a wonderful thing Victor," she purred, "But it is not without its faults. Aneurysms are incurable. There is not a god or goddess or demon or spell out there that can save you from it. Not while you rot here behind a desk anyway. You cannot rid yourself of it. What you can do however, is prepare yourself for the afterlife." Her nails dug in even further and my eyes narrowed, but aside from that I forced myself not to flinch. "There is no possible way to save yourself from this fate, all you can hope to do is ready your eternal soul for the next phase of its sacred journey. You have not been a saint Victor, this is no secret. Neither is it a secret that the god of the dead does not look kindly upon those who misbehaved while here, especially those who tormented children. Ancient Egyptians looked quite highly upon children, as I'm sure you already know. And that's not even to start on your abuse of the elixir of eternal life."

Leaning back, Bess retracted her claws and looked at me expectantly, while I ignored my smarting head in favor of focusing on her slimy smile, almost expecting a forked tongue to slip out from between her teeth. "We can help you Victor," she whispered enticingly, her eyes speaking of promises beyond my wildest dreams. "My silent partner and I, we can ready you for that next step. My partner, she is most wise, I will willingly vouch for her. All you have to do, is help us help you. And ourselves of course. You see, my partner and I are searching for the Book of the Dead."

I choked out a laugh, unable to help it. "Impossible. You might as well ask me to help you synthesize a cure for all diseases. The Ancient Egyptians' Book of the Dead has been lost for centuries. Historians and scholars have all sought it, but none have ever found it. It is simply not possible. The Book has been lost to time."

Bess looked pleased, as though I'd done exactly as she'd expected and I regretted it instantly. Routine was one thing, but I was no fan of predictability. Especially when it was with people I barely knew. "Once maybe. But no longer." I lifted my eyebrows in surprise. Now here was an interesting development. At this point she frowned and I was immediately intrigued. It was the first time that unnaturally white smile had left her face. "My partner persuaded the former history teacher to take a sudden leave of absence, and I assumed his post because we believe a boarder here, Nina Martin, has come to posses the Book of the Dead."

I was simply thunderstruck. Nina Martin. The American orphan, the Chosen One, the ever present annoyance in my life. I simply could not fathom her possessing such a powerful artifact without my knowledge, and I told Bess so. "Impossible. Nina Martin may be the Chosen One, but not even she can work miracles. How could she have possibly come by it?"

Bess did not look pleased to have to explain this to me. "Come now Victor, had we known you were a fool I would have convinced my partner to look elsewhere for assistance. We came to you because you are Anubis housemaster, and thus in an extremely convenient position should we confirm Nina Martin does indeed have the Book, but if you're going to play the fool then we can make other arrangements. You are a true practitioner and you reek of the water of eternal life. You know as well as my partner and I that the gods and goddesses of Ancient Egypt never left, that they do not walk among us but rather lurk in the backgrounds, in different planes of existence, keeping to themselves unless they require mortal assistance."

"And that is how the Chosen One and Osirian came to be, so that the gods and goddesses could have humans they could interact with in case they ever needed something done on Earth, I do know how the story goes. But I do not see what this has to do with Nina Martin supposedly having the Book of the Dead." I had grown tiresome with what I sensed was about to be a lengthy lecture on a dozen tales I had grown up hearing, and decided to cut to the point.

"Nepthys gave it to her," Bess announced flatly, red lips curling into a sneer. "And please," she held up a hand, "Don't say impossible. While it may be unusual, it is not unheard of for a god or goddess other than Horus to contact the Chosen One, just as one other than Osiris may contact the protector." She sighed and her green eyes – green like snake venom – turned to steel. "Here is our proposition. You will help us determine whether or not Nina Martin does indeed possess the Book of the Dead. If she does, we will proceed to figure out a way to take it from her. I assure you Victor, you will be well rewarded for your cooperation."

Right, by preparing my soul for the next phase of its sacred journey, I thought sourly. Bess held out her hand. "Do we have a deal?"

I flared my nostrils impressively and answered her question with one of my own. "Must I answer right this moment? I would prefer some time to think it over."

Her smile grew tight and the hand sank back to her side for the second time during our meeting. "Very well. You have until eleven o'clock tomorrow night to confirm you are on our side. I will be in my office until six thirty at which point I will return to Isis, the history teachers' dorm. If I do not hear from you I will assume you have decided against assisting us, and other arrangements will be made. Rest assured you will be the last to hear of them." She smoothed out imaginary wrinkles in her top and exited my office, the ancient door shutting soundlessly behind her. I crept over to the window and watched as she purposefully marched down the stairs and out of the house, looking for all the world as though she were going to meet the Queen of England.

I scowled, my mood considerably fouler than it had been prior to the unscheduled interruption. Walking to the other side of my desk I lovingly smoothed my raven's dark feathers and sighed, searching for something to shake off the cloak of unpleasantness Bess had draped over me. "Well? What do you think Corbiere? Shall I go spy on the delinquents and see what chaos they are causing?" His eyes seemed to shine with affirmation and I took that as a yes. "Very well. I will see you soon Corbiere." Making sure to fix my scowl firmly in place, I quietly skulked out of my office, locking the door behind me.

The hoodlums were spread throughout Anubis, and it took me a mite longer than expected to find and check on all of them. Ms. Jaffray was assisting Ms. Millington with what appeared to be basic science, and I sighed deeply to myself. Time and time again, I failed to understand what brain cells Ms. Millington could possibly lack that made simple principals so impossible for her to understand. Ms. Mercer was complaining to Ms. Williamson, though I couldn't tell what about. I paused outside their bedroom door, straining my ears, but from what I could tell Ms. Mercer's cramps were unusually bad this month, and Ms. Williamson recommended hot pads. I couldn't fathom why Ms. Mercer had cramps every month, or why this month they might be particularly bad, but it didn't seem to be anything noteworthy and so I moved on. No one else was on the second floor, and so I proceeded down to the boys' section of the house, where Mr. Lewis, Mr. Clark, and Mr. Miller were comparing what sounded like different sections of the anatomy they liked, although I couldn't fathom what they did with them. Mr. Clark apparently preferred to travel down a neck and to the shoulders, Mr. Lewis liked Eskimo, butterfly, cheek and lips, while Mr. Miller was apparently stuck on lips but was sometimes allowed to try the ear or jaw or eyelids. The whole conversation was really quite baffling, especially when Mr. Clark seemed to sympathize with Mr. Miller's apparent plight. Mr. Lewis however, seemed to be perfectly content with his situation. I didn't fully understand any of it, and after deciding it was not some sort of code, decided to move on.

In search of Ms. Martin and Mr. Rutter, I abandoned my post at the door of the boys' dorm room and crept over to the common room. I paused at the doorframe, listening closely for conversation and when none was forthcoming I straightened my shoulders and walked soundlessly into the dining room. I saw the back of a head of dark hair on the couch and marched over, but Mr. Rutter appeared to be absorbed in his schoolwork and didn't notice me. I, however, noticed a teenage girl curled up like a cat on the couch, her head lying atop Mr. Rutter's lap, her curly hair acting as a pillow as she slept while he absently brushed it with his fingers. I nearly had a heart attack. These students just had no sense of personal space or decency whatsoever. Back in my day, girls and boys never sat within three feet of each other when alone and gods help you if an adult ever found you and your partner in the position Ms. Martin and Mr. Rutter were currently occupying.

I cleared my throat loudly and he immediately looked up, facial expression becoming comical when he saw me and I felt a rush of pride. I still had it. "Mr. Rutter exactly what is going on here?" He coughed uncomfortably and muttered something, cheeks turning red. "Speak up," I instructed.

"Nina fell asleep," he said loudly, looking as though his ears had caught fire.

"So wake her up then," I demanded. "This is completely indecent." He opened his mouth and then quickly closed it, looking unsure of himself. "Mr. Rutter is there a problem here?"

He opened and closed his mouth again before saying, "Well it's just that, she's sleeping."

I sighed in impatience and straightened my spine. "Ms. Martin! Wake up!" Her head shifted but other than that she was unresponsive and I scowled. "Today, Mr. Rutter." He didn't look particularly thrilled about it, but he took her by the shoulder and gently shook her, making her eyes flutter open.

I raised an eyebrow as Ms. Martin sat up and rubbed her eyes, a shy smile coming onto her face as she mumbled a sleepy 'hi' to Mr. Rutter. "Hello Ms. Martin," I greeted her. Her head jerked around to look at me in surprise.

Her hand lifted, twitching into a slight greeting. "Heeeyyy…" she replied, nervously dragging the word out.

I continued to stare at the two of them impassively for a few seconds. "Ms. Martin, Mr. Rutter, need I remind you overt displays of physical affection have no place in this house? If you simply cannot contain your hormones I suggest taking them elsewhere." I didn't stay to watch the color flood their cheeks, rather I gave them an imperious nod before turning on my heel and striding back up the stairs and into my office.

I remained there for the rest of the day, only coming down twice. Once, to yell at Lewis and Clark for setting a tablecloth on fire. They claimed they'd just been trying to stimulate a hot air balloon, but I still gave them both a toothbrush and a knowing look. The second time was at 9:58pm, when I came downstairs and stood in the entryway until the clock chimed ten and I gave my usual speech, pin and all.

The rest of the time however, I remained holed up in my domain above the peasants, fondly stroking Corbiere as I pondered Bess' offer, turning it over and over in my head. I continued to sit there, stroking and thinking when the spot behind my ear suddenly flared up in pain and I felt a brief moment of panic. I continued to sit there throughout the night, and into the morning, until the clamor of students faded away as they left for school and the only noise was Trudy's quiet humming.

Late in the afternoon, I stood up, having reached my decision.

I silently exited the house, leaving the students to wreak whatever havoc they would before I returned, and strode over to Isis dorm, the sun just beginning its dip below the horizon, streaking the sky an ugly, bruised purple.

When I reached Isis, I knocked twice on the door, my knuckles sharply rapping against the wood. I waited a few seconds before knocking again. The world history teacher let me in and brought me to the living room where Bess and a male instructor were grading tests. I cleared my throat and Bess glanced up at me, at which point an abnormally wide smile stretched across her face. I waited as she set her work aside and lead me back out into the entryway, before turning and folding her arms expectantly. "Yes?" she purred, baring her teeth in a fiercely proud smile.

"About your offer," I began, before my throat closed up, suddenly dry. I cleared my throat, squared my shoulders and tried again, ignoring the prickling feeling at the back of my neck. "I've decided to accept."

AN: Hi everyone. Now I know nobody likes Victor but as I said earlier, for narrative purpose's I needed a chapter in his POV and later on, I will continue to need the occasional chapter in his POV to move the story forward. Sorry but that's just how it works. I do really struggle to write Victor though, so I'm open to any constructive criticism you have about my portrayal of his character. Thanks for waiting and as always:

Favorite, follow and review please. Let me know whose POV's you'd like to see.