The Overlooked

Chapter 6: Followed

Breakfast was always much quieter than supper.

Still, it was never this quiet.

The foursome entered the dining hall unusually early in an attempt to appear as if they were over their sudden illness and were now insatiably hungry. In fact, they arrived so prematurely that they were quite alone in the room.

A ghostly rendition of the dining hall greeted them, empty and vacant of any worthwhile light. Frin felt like a ghost herself, with distant metal clangs from the kitchen echoing as she walked through the desolation.

Cora would not have made a good ghost, or at least Frin thought so as she followed behind the girl. With her bright eyes and rosy cheeks, she didn't quite fit the melancholic description. That was unless it was an early morning such as this one, in which case she would have made quite the malignant spirit. Her uniform had been donned irritably and her hair pulled back in a huff, but her sour mood seemed to quicken her pace, so nobody bothered to say anything about it.

Despite having the choice of any table they pleased, the group settled at their usual middle-of-the-room spot. It was a comfortable ritual by then, even down to their seats. Frin and Cora on one side and Lowri and Efa on the other.

"Great. Now we're the weirdos that show up to breakfast first," Cora groaned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Second, actually," Frin replied, gesturing towards the corner of the dining hall, where a head of plaits peaked out from behind a large book. How anyone could read in such poor light eluded her.

Cora laid her head on the table and spoke into the wood, "That's even worse. Now we're the weirdos that show up to breakfast with Beca Morris."

In the little over a week that Frin had attended Lanton, Beca had made herself a rather prominent character. She had been attending the school longer than most everyone (which she made sure to reiterate at any opportunity) and was more than well-liked by the teachers. Quite the opposite could be said for her reputation with fellow students, however.

"Your fully awake self wouldn't approve of you being so mean, Cora," Efa scolded.

"My fully awake self should mind her business."

Beca leaned in closer to her book, seemingly sensing the groups' watch. A pile of folded newspapers lay on the table beside her; for it was her job, and quite the prestigious one in her opinion, to deliver the school newspaper once a week.

A beastly metallic screech from the kitchen doors announced Mr. Davies' entrance. He was carrying a heap of silver trays, subtly tottering in a way that somehow made him look more experienced. His entire person was like that, in fact. Scruffily dressed in a faded apron and socks that went over the cuffs of his trousers, but his nonchalance gave him a unique air of professionalism.

"Mornin' Miss Morris," he said, an obviously practiced greeting. It was only his second inclination to peer past his pile of dishes, seeming to suddenly notice the four other students. "And... you lot."

"Good morning, sir," they replied in unison, chirpy and hyperbolized for the sake of politeness.

Mr. Davies set his trays down loudly as a torrent of apron-donned servers emerged from the kitchen, each with a dish of their own. Their heads were held high and their steps were business-like, it looked like rehearsed choreography.

"Which one's your friend? The one that helped us out last night?" Cora said lowly, as if she were conspiring about something terribly heinous. Though, that was probably for the best.

Lowri was obviously made uncomfortable by the subject, but that was the case whenever she was spoken to directly. "Um, none of them. She doesn't work on weekends."