His fingers trace the bumpy texture of the wall. He digs his nail into one ridge and starts scratching out his name. It wasn't his fault. She knows that, but she's still punishing him. For his own good, she said, but what could be good about being stuck in the basement for a whole week? There's nothing to do. No games, no TV, no slip and slide and no one to talk to. It's only been three days and he's already going crazy. What does she think is going to happen down here anyway? It's not like he can control it. She can keep him down here for a million weeks and it won't change anything. Nothing here changes...
He thought maybe Richard and Raven had helped him because they might want to be friends. That would have been a big change. A nice change, but whatever their reasons were, that probably wasn't it. Richard ignored him when he asked after the incident. He changed his clothes faster than the Flash and left, saying they could talk later, but later never came. He doubts it will be today. When he snuck into the library yesterday Raven didn't even glance up from her book and he wasn't brave enough to say something first.
Why did they bother helping him if they were just going to ignore him anyway? Sure, he's grateful, but still... He almost feels lonelier than before. At least before he didn't know that people could actually be nice here. Now he knows two people who could actually be really nice, but they refuse to acknowledge him. So what if they helped him for those two seconds that he was naked, if they're not gonna stand next to him in the cafeteria while the other kids snicker. What good did it even do?
His face heats up at the memory of all those kids standing around laughing at him. His hand hits the wall and he regrets it immediately, because it hurts his knuckles. Before he even realizes what's happening his body shifts and he turns into a mouse. Damn it. He hears himself squeak instead of speak. Another moment later he's a snake and then back to himself. He quickly puts his clothes on. It happened again...
He sits on the floor and leans his head back on the wall. What if he can never control it again? What if it happens when he's in class? Will she even let him start class? She can't keep him in the basement forever... can she?
The door clicks open and squeaks at the hinges. Mrs. Huntington stands at the top of the stares and looks down at him. She pauses for a moment and even from the distance he can see her eyes narrowing. She closes the door behind her and walks down the stairs.
"Are you just sitting here moping or are you actually working on figuring it out?" she asks. He looks away. "Do I need to remind you what will happen if anyone finds out what you can do?"
"No," he answers quickly.
"No, what?" She crosses her arms over her chest.
"Sorry. No, ma'am," he says.
"This is a serious matter Mr. Logan. I don't want to find you a new placement. I know the trouble you had at your last one. Let's put our best feet forward." Mrs. Huntington says. Garfield nods even though he's not sure what that even means. How is he supposed to control his powers when he doesn't understand why they're going haywire in the first place? They didn't come with a manual and he doesn't have anyone to teach him.
"I suggest you pick yourself up from your pity party and think about what you can do to change your situation going forward." With those final words of wisdom, she turns around and heads back up the stairs. "Don't come up for lunch today. Dinner only. We can't have you making a spectacle of yourself."