“Don’t look so excited about it,” Mr.Jerk said and smirked.“I won’t bite.”
“Yeah, right,” Wave huffed.“What’s opposite to catnip?I need some kitty-cat repellent ASAP.”
Mr.Jerk actually laughed, and the sound did mean things to her insides.“See you on Thursday, Ms.Spinwell.I’m looking forward to it.”
Tulias was waiting for her in the hallway and grabbed her arm as soon as she was through the door.“Oh, my god!What did he want?Are you in trouble?”
“He just wanted to arrange private tutoring for my shielding.Something about making sure I won’t explode all over the place during the field trip,” Wave answered and followed along as Tulias kept walking down the corridor.
“You are kidding?”She looked even more baffled now, her steps faltering a bit.
“What?”
“I—but…Private tutoring?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re new, so I’m going to spell this out for you, girl.Mr.Whitfurst doesn’t offer private tutoring.Ever.To anyone.None of the Powerhouses do, whether they are TA-s, teaching a class, or doing anything else.”
“Really?”Wave gently tried to free her arm from Tulias’ hold, but the other girl seemed completely absorbed in the drama and didn’t notice.
“Really.”She nodded empathetically and then turned a corner, skipping up the steps.At least she was going to the same floor where Wave’s next class was.
“Then why—”
“And you threw a rain cloud at him, just like that.I would have crapped my pants just thinking about doing that,” Tulias continued, still pulling Wave after her.
“About that,” Wave muttered.“How much trouble am I in for something like that?”
Tulias stopped and gaped at her.“You don’t know?”
“Well, Iamnew.”
“It varies really,” Tulias said, looking thoughtful.“Tiny rain cloud, not much, especially since he didn’t seem too offended.But attacking a teacher could lead to expulsion.”
“And other students?”
Tulias narrowed her eyes and finally released Wave’s arm.“Are you planning to attack someone?”
Wave tried to look sheepish.“I might have a bit of a temper problem at times.”
To her surprise, Tulias grinned and started walking again.“Good.As long as the attack is not fatal, the school mostly doesn’t care.Too many variables to make any stringent rules about student altercations.”
“I’m not sure if I’m worried or relieved about that,” Wave replied as she followed along.The girl was a fountain of useful knowledge, too good to pass up.
“If you are on the top of the food chain, relieved, if you are on the bottom, very worried.But I have a feeling you’ll be working your way up there in no time.Especially after the rumor mill gets around about you dousing a Powerhouse.”
“What do I need to bribe you with to keep that to yourself?”Wave asked earnestly.
“Girl, we might become friends, but we are not there yet.Besides, the chance that I was the only one who saw you is pretty slim.”
“Damn.”Wave deflated.“I had kinda hoped to fly under the radar.”
“You are a new transfer and don’t look like a river ogre, so trust me, there was never a chance of you flying that low.”
“You can stop trying to cheer me up now,” Wave sighed.
“This is me,” Tulias said, pointing at the door as she stopped.“I’m so glad I sat next to you, Wayla.See you in class!”She waved and rushed to her class.
