Mom, Dad; I have some big news. I hope you won't be angry at me.

Apparently one of our Professors — Professor Grabiner — is English nobility. Something came up (it's complicated, and I can't really explain what it was, something to do with being nobility) and he needed an heir immediately. As in, within the hour if possible.

So he adopted me.

He's fine, I'm fine, it doesn't really change anything to much. It was just something that he had to do, and he thought I would be the best choice. It's kinda flattering, in a way. But I'm sorry I couldn't ask you ahead of time — there just wasn't time.

So… I'm English nobility now. I have a title and everything. And I'm going to be learning court manners, just in case. Because I'll probably need them, eventually.

Love, Susan.

(Dame Susan Mary Rose Grabiner, 13th Baronetess of Leigh in Magestshire. A mouthful, isn't it?)

Susan stared down at the letter she'd just written. Should she even send it? Would they throw a fit? Was it even legal to adopt someone at 16 without their parent's permission? (It obviously was in the magical world, but that wouldn't mean anything if her parents called the police.)

It seemed that there was a lot of stuff that she hadn't realized this could mean. She was beginning to wish Grabiner had just married her.

She could probably have kept that secret from her parents for a year or whatever.

She wasn't sure what she should do with this. Should she be trying to talk them into it? Pretend it hadn't happened yet?

"Maybe it'd just be simpler to have them forget I ever existed."

"Trying to figure out what to tell your parents?" Ellen was at her desk.

"Yeah. I mean, I love them and I don't want them to forget me, but…"

"I know." She looked sad herself. "Though my mom kinda hates me now."

"What?"

Ellen turned to face Susan. "You know how they kinda make up their own story about why you are at boarding school? My mom's decided I did something horrible, and she's punishing me. And, of course, she has to keep me there until I apologize and learn better. After which she'll take me back."

"But you can't go back either."

"Right. So therefore I'm not sorry, and I'm a horrible person, and she wishes she never had me."

"Ouch. Sorry."

"Not your fault. I mean, I like magic, but…"

"If they took away your magic, she'd probably still think she sent you away. It's just that you came back."

"Yeah, you're right." She sighed. "I hate it."

"I know. I mean, mine don't hate me, but they don't really remember who I am anymore, really. It's like the last three years since the Choice are just a blur in their minds. They know they are proud of me, and they want the best for me, but… And I'm sure I wouldn't want to never see them again. But we don't connect anymore."

"Yeah."

"At least Virginia is going to be happy with me."

"Why's that?"

"Because I ran into Professor Grabiner last night when I couldn't sleep, and when he heard I was thinking of dating Damien, he gave me the school's version of Damien's backstory. And it doesn't match what Damien told me. At all."

"So you agree with her that you can't trust him."

"Right."

There was a knock at the door; Ellen got up to check who it was. "Speak of the devil."

"Literally." Susan got up, and started collecting things from around the room.

"I heard about your adoption yesterday. I am sorry I missed it, and that it caused us to miss our outing…" He trailed off, noticing that Susan hadn't actually been listening. "Have I upset you in some way?"

Susan dumped the items she'd collected into his hands. "Here. This is everything I can think of that you've given me, except for the pie, which we ate. Sorry, I can't give that back, or I would."

He looked to be trying to ask again what was going on, but Susan overrode him. "I asked you if you could trust me once, so we could be friends. I cannot trust someone who has lied every time I've talked to him, and anyone who has does not trust me, no matter what they say. I will not date you. We are no longer friends, and you have nothing more to say to me. Goodbye." The door shut outward, and she had to give it a push to get it completely closed.

Damien immediately started hammering, begging for a chance to explain.

Susan locked the door.

Ellen's eyes were opened wide. "Harsh, girl."

Susan shrugged, and had to speak up over the din from the door. "Father doesn't trust him, and he gave me enough information that I don't trust him. I was advised to return everything he'd given me, and have nothing more to do with him. I'm pretty sure it wasn't an idle request. And I meant it when I said Damien has lied every time he's talked to me. I don't see why Professor Grabiner would lie about him, after all."

The knocking died away, and then after a moment a new voice came from the door. "Susan? Ellen? Is it safe to enter?" Virginia's voice came through the door.

Susan turned back, and unlocked the door. "Sure, come in. Sorry, just wanted to make a point to Damien."

"Looks like it got made, from the way he was storming out of here. What did you say to him?"

Ellen chimed in: "I think the relevant line was: "I will not date you. We are no longer friends, and you have nothing more to say to me."" She grinned.

"Ok, that I would have wanted to see. What happened?"

"I ran into Professor Grabiner last night and got the school's version of Damien's backstory. Which is not what he told me, or even close. Father said that Damien probably meant to harm me somehow, and this was the best way to get rid of him."

"And you are going to take "father's" advice on this. When you didn't take mine." She was a bit hurt.

"All you could ever say was that your brother didn't trust him. That could just mean they got into a fight your brother didn't tell you about, and he doesn't like him. Worth thinking about, and considering, but I don't have to be enemies of your brother's enemies. Father gave me a real reason not to trust him, and a real reason to avoid him. Actual evidence about how he's lied to me, not just that he doesn't get along with someone." She smiled, apologetically. "Sorry, I should have listened to you."

"Well, I'm just glad you got rid of him before you got hurt."

"Oh, it hurts a bit. I mean, I thought he liked me. Was that a lie too? I'm not going to find out now. But, as I said: I'd forgiven him once before, when he said he wanted to trust me. He didn't. That's clear enough for me."

"You seem to trust Professor Grabiner a lot though."

Another shrug. "I've always respected him. And he seems more open with 'his daughter' than with just some random freshman student. He's strict, but he's always been fair."

"And do you really feel comfortable calling him 'father'?"

"Not really, though I've never called my dad that, so it doesn't feel confusing. But we agreed to do some court etiquette courses, because I might need them, and I get the feeling that I'll get demerits if I make mistakes in that too. So I'm trying to practice."

"And 'father' is correct court etiquette."

"In informal or private settings, yes. If we are in class, or dealing with class, then it's Professor Grabiner. And, of course, in formal settings, he's 'Lord Grabiner', but we won't have any of those at school. 'Sir' would be an insult, in any setting."

"You are going to keep this all straight?"

"I hope so."

Author's Note: Re-arranging things a bit here: For the story, I want a couple of scenes to happen before Spring Break, so Ellen knows what her family has decided about her absence now. I could wait a bit, but if she found out about it over Christmas (which this timeline implies) then she'd be worrying about now, and it gives me some chances for interest in a bit.

And for once the MC gets to dump someone. I never liked Damien, sorry, though he might be back later in the story.

Wish I could use 'blockquote', or indent.