Kingdoms United Academy [DRAFT ONE]

25. Who Did this to You?

     While Cinder was being brought to the infirmary, Criss took it upon themself to keep an eye on Crispin. After all, they still couldn't trust him when he'd done almost nothing to prove himself to be harmless.

     Eyes were on all of their backs as Crispin was led to the headmaster's office by Madame Talon. They were both closely followed by Criss, but Criss could see the other students staring at Crispin as well. 

     "Ohoho, who do we have here?" Headmaster Willow asked. 

     Madame Talon adjusted her glasses. "A transfer student."

     Crispin lifted his hand very slightly, like he would wave hello, but he was scared to.

     "Can we get him the paperwork?" Madame asked.

      "Sure thing," Headmaster Willow said. 

      They all had no doubts about Crispin.

      Criss leaned further behind the doorframe to hide their presence. If they were seen, they were likely to be in more than a little trouble. But still, they would sacrifice themself for others' safety if needed.

      Headmaster Willow nodded and smiled while stroking his greyish, fluffy beard. "Just fill out all the empty fields."

     Crispin stared at the papers blankly. "rigHt, uH, whEn dO yOu need thIs bAck?"

     Madame Talon's expression looked slightly gentler. "You can read Irontongue, right? Since you can understand us in conversation, I figured..."

     Half of Crispin's face turned a bright blue green. "uh..."

     Madame Talon crossed her arms. "You won't be hearing any Underspeak here any time soon."

     Headmaster Willow let out a hearty chortle. "He can just get it back to me before Monday. Would you get him his dormitory, Madame?"

     Madame nodded. "Of course."

     Crispin's eyes smiled. He seemed a little bit more relaxed now that he knew he was safe. Criss decided to turn the corner to hide yet again.

     "Would you like a dormitory by yourself?" Madame Talon asked. "Cinder told me about you, and I don't want you to be stressed."

      Crispin's eyes widened. "shE-- riGht. Yes, PlEase."

      Criss watched as the two walked away and towards Madame Talon's classroom. They followed somewhat far away. Madame Talon shut the door, but Criss had elf hearing. 

      Madame Talon searched through her desk for spare keys. "Is it just about the Black Snow, or are there other reasons you want a solitary dorm?"

     Crispin paused. "um, a liTtle oF aLL..."

    Madame Talon was quiet for a little bit. "That's not a natural spread of the illness. Who did this to you?"

     Crispin's static returned. Criss could sense the unease in the air.

     "Apologies. I didn't mean to pry. However, if you or anyone else has a problem, you are always free to come to me to talk."

     The keys clinked as they landed in Crispin's hands, and Criss heard footsteps coming towards the door. They ran off to the side of the door and darted behind another corner. 

     "wHy..." Crispin fidgeted with his hands. "wHy arE all oF yOu so nicE tO mE?"

     Madame Talon crossed her arms. "You've come to the only place in our world where we believe that no one starts off dangerous. We're all here to educate, to help you learn, and to learn, ourselves, in the process."

      "ThAnk -ou..."

     Crispin rounded the corner, and Criss suddenly remembered they were hiding on the way to House Chimera's dormitory. They mentally swore at themself. They were stupid.

     Crispin's eyes widened when he saw Criss. "wHaT aRe yoU doinG?"

    "Ah, yes, I'm..." Criss looked over at the end of the hallway and saw the janitor's mop and bucket. "...I'm inspecting the amount of dust on the floor."

     "i'M nOt sTupid." Crispin crossed his arms. "anD i dOn't appReciate diShonEsty. i dOn'T do AlTerEd trUthS."

     Criss's eyebrows furrowed. "Weren't you the one who disguised yourself when we met you so you could freaking kill us?"

     Crispin looked like he could cry. "tHat waS LuCy'S iDea..."

     "Listen," Criss said as they crossed their arms, "if you don't prove yourself trustworthy, I'm not going to hesitate to do whatever I can to get you as far away from my friends as I can. Even if that means killing you."

     Crispin's face was blank for a moment, before it softened. "tHat's rEspeCtable. i'LL do what i can to ProVe myself!"

     "Right," Criss murmured. They turned away to go check on Cinder in the infirmary.

     "hEy," Crispin asked, "wHaT do hUmans LiKe?"

     "Wouldn't know," Criss commented. "I'm not human."

     "ClOse enOugh," Crispin chirped. "whAt do yOu likE?"

     Criss paused. What did they like? They were as bland as possible, as far as they could tell. They barely had any hobbies, they didn't have any special skills beyond fighting, and they weren't very smart or creative.

      Criss shrugged. "Cookies, I guess. Snickerdoodles."

     Crispin nodded, though his face said that he didn't know what that was. "hOw dO you sPell thAt?"

     Criss sighed. "I'll write it down."

     "thAnks! i'LL cRafT the BesT trUst coOkies!"