THRICE

4 -- Idiosyncrasies

Inigo swung open the door with a dramatic flourish. "Isn't it great?" he said, sauntering in and leaping up to the top bunk without bothering to use the ladder. Tatiana stepped inside and saw a large, well-furnished bedroom. A sturdy metal bunk bed stood to the left of the shuttered window at the back, and on the other side was a more traditional wooden writing desk and chair. Several enormous beanbags were piled in an empty corner, and the carpet was an angular patchwork of greens, grays and blues, matching the jumbles of squares painted on the walls.

Monisha followed them in, glancing around the room with a conflicted expression. "You have the room to yourself," she said to Tatiana, smiling gently.

"'Til all o' th' dorms fill up, at least," Inigo corrected, swinging his legs.

Tatiana peered over her shoulder inquisitively, and Roran said, "I'm gonna head t' bed. It's been a long day."

Inigo grabbed the edge of the bed and leaned out so far Tatiana worried he would fall off. "Oh, come on, Rory!" he whined. "You've gotta tell me what happened!"

"I wasn't on th' ground," Roran said with a shrug, but he came in anyway. "You should be asking Tatiana," he suggested with a wry grin. Inigo returned it and looked to Tatiana expectantly.

Monisha crossed her arms. "Don't pressure her!" she scolded them. Putting a hand on Tatiana's shoulder, she said, "You don't have to tell us anything, Tatiana. I know today was tough on you."

"No, it's all right," Tatiana murmured, setting the bundle of clothes and other necessities that Max had given her on the bottom bunk. She sat next to it, surprised by how comfortable the bed was, and said softly, "I need to gather my thoughts too."

Monisha and Roran pulled out a beanbag each, and they all listened while Tatiana slowly recounted how Squall had come into her classroom, brought her to the woods, and been only narrowly stopped by Azarel. When she was finished, she asked, "Is Azarel's Gift vertical teleportation?"

Roran nodded. "Cool, right?"

"Yes, but how did she know exactly where to stand to get into the helicopter?"

"She and the pilot have been working together for a long time," Monisha said. "They have a system."

Inigo's inverted torso appeared right in front of Tatiana. "By that, she means th' helicopter's navigation takes care o' it," he smirked.

She blinked in surprise as he nimbly stepped to the ground and wordlessly fought with Roran over possession of the striped beanbag. They each took half. When nobody was willing to break the silence, Monisha said cautiously, "What did you think of Squall?"

Tatiana's lips tightened. After a moment, she said curtly, "He was stuck-up."

A sad smile briefly crossed Monisha's face. "He's always been cocky. I assume he still doesn't have a sheath for that ridiculous sword?" Tatiana nodded, and Monisha rolled her eyes. "Such a showoff."

"So, you've met him?" Tatiana hesitated, unfolding her pale blue pajama shirt and flapping it out in front of her. 'CAMIO' was embroidered in a bold font on the right breast. "Did he track you down too?"

Monisha looked like she was about to say something, but she pointedly shut her mouth and stared around the room with wide eyes. "Well, he found us!" Inigo twinkled, elbowing Roran in the side.

Roran shoved him to the ground with a narrow-eyed smile. "Yeah, and I probably woulda gotten 'way if not for this dolt." Inigo stayed on the floor, chuckling.

Monisha stood with a yawn. "We should all get to bed," she said, pulling Inigo to his feet. "They'll probably want you to start bright and early tomorrow," she told Tatiana. She made for the hall, but stopped in the doorway. "Are you sure you want to learn that spell?"