The Rainbow Society

Chapter 17

Jade

Jade waved a forlorn goodbye to the others as they headed down the corridor to Sister Morten's classroom. She knocked on the Latin classroom's door before entering and curtseying to the teacher.

"Miss Hunter, take a textbook from the back of the room and work through as many exercises as you can in the next two hours."

"Yes ma'am."

She did what she was asked to, flipping through the pages until she found where they left off and getting to work. The classroom was silent save for the scratching of her and Sister Mary's pens.

As she worked, she could not shake the sadness that had settled in her as she saw everyone going the other way. She had not even done anything serious enough to warrant a detention, only looked out of the window once whilst Sister Mary was talking.

To make matters worse, she could tell everyone was pitying her whenever she got another scolding or detention.

She shook her head and focused back on her work; it would not do her any good to get another detention.

❀

"Your detention is over Miss Hunter, please pay more attention in my lessons from now on so you do not end up in this situation again."

"Yes ma'am."

She curtseyed before leaving the room only to be faced by Ruby and Miss Bella grinning at her.

"Good morning, Jade," Ruby said.

"I am relatively sure it is afternoon Ruby, are you plotting something?"

"No not at all, me and Miss Bella just have a proposition of sorts for you."

Jade walked with them, cautious to hear what came next. "What is this proposition?"

Miss Bella linked arms with her. "We were wondering if you wanted to make an alliance of sorts against the school."

Jade paused. "And what would this alliance include?"

"We are not entirely sure as of yet, but someone needs to make a stand against this unfair system, and since you are so affected by their biases..." Ruby said.

"I am not sure; I do not want to get in any more trouble than I am already in."

"Even by doing nothing wrong you are falling into trouble, at least now you can do something worthy of the detentions they give you," Miss Bella said.

What they were saying held truth, and even if she behaved, she knew the nuns would only find something new to punish her with. Perhaps it was time she stopped living under the shadow her parents had cast over her.

"I suppose I shall join this alliance then, since you made such a convincing argument," Jade said.

Ruby and Miss Bella smiled at her and linked arms with her.

"I think I may just have an idea of what we can do first," Ruby said.

"Oh, do tell," Miss Bella said.

❀

Ruby buttoned her shirt. "There, you look far better in your own clothes than those atrocious uniforms."

"I must say I have missed my dresses, the uniforms are far too scratchy," Miss Bella said.

Jade smoothed down her trousers, willing away her nervousness. "Sister Morten will not be very happy with this."

"Sister Morten is not happy with many things, Jade," Ruby said.

Poppy looked over at them an eyebrow raised. "Ruby, I was not aware everyone was making a stand against the uniforms today."