Stay with me, always.

Chapter 11. The Snake

I know I should probably be apologizing to Soarynn right now, but that can wait. Nothing a few kisses between her legs can't fix, I thought as I continued my hunt for Titus. I found him out in the courtyard, stapling flyers to the bulletin board. Perfect, he's alone. I'm not one for the element of surprise, but it'll come in handy when dealing with this situation. Seeming pleased with his work, he takes a step back to admire the board. I take this as an opening to press a firm foot to the back of his knee, causing him to topple over. I know it's a childish trick, but if it ain't broke don't fix it. 

Dumbfounded, he looks up to see me looming over him with a pissed-off look on my face. This, of course, causes the jackass to break into a smile. "Coriolanus Snow, to what do I owe the pleasure?" He asks not bothering to stand up. Good, because he'll never be on my level. "Oh just hoping to speak to you Titus," I say, picking at my cuticle as if this is a perfectly normal occurrence. "About what?" He asks, playing dumb. He, I can actually get mad at. I squat down until I'm at eye level with his ugly little face. He's not even ugly per se, but his character certainly is. "I heard that you've been spreading some rumors around and I don't quite appreciate it," I say, doing my best to remain neutral. "I didn't know you cared about rumors," he replies, causing me to clench my jaw. "I do when they have something to do with my family," I say, my voice dripping with false sweetness. Truth be told, I don't care what other jealous people say about the Snows. 

"Well then there's no reason for us to be having this conversation," he says suddenly standing up, causing me to back up. Prick. "You're sure?" I ask giving him a forced smile. "Because I wouldn't put it past you," I'm not trying to piss him off, but it'll be better if he throws the first punch. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" He asks clenching his fists. Ah, there we go. Titus is known for being very short-tempered, with other students, Professors, and even his parents. And we seem to have a knack for lighting each other's fuses. "Oh, it's just that it sounds a lot like you to start a rumor about you and Soarynn to get some attention," I say leaning into his face, "especially since she's wayyy out of your league," I say with a smirk. Before he can respond I'm turning on my heel to go back inside when I feel the first blow to my head. Titus can throw a punch, but I can throw a better one. It's just as I'm turning around that the bell rings, meaning we're about to have an audience.

I clench my own fist and sock him right in the jaw. That's gonna leave a bruise, I think with glee. I prepare myself as he regains his footing and starts back towards me, ready to grab his fist and stop it from hitting me in the eye. He almost always goes for the eye on the second punch. Sure enough, my prediction is right, allowing me to catch his fist. It's painful but better than a black eye. I start to hear yelling and know that we most definitely have an audience. Wanting to get this over with, I deliver a quick kick to his stomach causing him to go tumbling backward, falling on his ass. What I don't expect is for this psycho to start crawling toward me, grabbing both my legs. Now we're both on the ground. It's a nasty little catfight we have on the ground, rolling on top of each other, punching and scratching any part we can reach.

 It's when I hear Sejanus yelling, "KICK HIS ASS CORYO!" I look up to see him and Soarynn standing amongst our classmates watching this play out. Titus decides to take this as an opportunity, directly connecting his fist with my skull. I think I hear a crack. Lying on my back, wondering what the fuck was that? I quickly gather my bearings and decide I've had enough roughhousing for one day. I tear a page out of his book and crawl towards him, pinning him under me and my punches. All I see is red. And there's a lot of red. A lot of blood. He's probably going to need braces once I'm done with him. It's when he finally lets his hands fall to either side of his head that I know he's done for.

 Shakily, I stand up, wiping my bleeding nose with the back of my sleeve. Stumbling over his body, I make my way over to the crowd who immediately makes way for me. I steal a glance at Soarynn who has a single tear running down her cheek. I've torn away from her when I hear Dean Casca Highbottom's voice, "Mr. Snow," he starts, " I know," I said, cutting him off "Your office."

It's not that the Dean has a vendetta out against me, my Father is to blame, really. The way my Father tells it, he and Highbottom came up with the idea together and Highbottom coined it off as his own. I salute him for being able to pull the rug out from under my Father, it's not an easy feat. But ever since I started attending the Academy, it just felt like he really had it out against me. I suppose he thought he could get to my Father through me, jokes on him though, my Father doesn't even like me. But, he can tarnish the Snow family name, and that's something my Father doesn't take lightly. 

Titus was whisked away to the hospital, taking the easy way out, whereas I actually had to deal with the consequences upfront. We didn't say anything as we sat in his office waiting for my parents to arrive. It was the telltale clacking of high heels that let us know Mother was nearby, bursting through the door already in tears. "Oh, my darling!" She cried, grabbing my face, "Are you ok? Is anything broken? Who did this to you? Do we need to call our lawyers?" I tried to act like it wasn't a big deal, but I guess beating the shit out of another student tends to lead to pushback. My Father walked in, his eyes flitting to me, taking in the damage. I had a scraped chin, bruised jaw, and probably a mild concussion. You should see the other guy, I thought as my Mother coddled me.

Highbottom cleared his throat, "Please take a seat," he said, gesturing to the two empty chairs. My parents took their seats, Mother next to me taking my hand, still crying by the way. "Who did this to him?" My Father asked, not one for diplomatics. "Titus Fenton," Highbottom replied. He almost seemed bored. Surely this wasn't my first time in his office, but to act so casually, that worried me. "And where is this boy?" My Mother snapped, "I mean, look, at Coriolanus' face!" Of course, Mother cared more about my face than my well-being. "I'll have to reschedule our annual family portraits, I mean with the Hunger Games starting soon Coriolanus must look his best," she said looking at the Dean like this was his fault.

 "Madame Snow," he said rubbing his temples, maybe he was hungover too, "This isn't the first time your son has had...altercations, with this student, and we don't take things like this lightly," he said, focusing his stare on me. Maybe it hadn't been the first time me and Titus got into a scuffle, but it certainly was the last. "Exactly!" Mother exclaimed, "Which is why you need to have this young man expelled immediately," she said looking at my Father for support. My Father was a man of few words, so when he spoke people tended to listen. "Who threw the first punch?" He said without looking up from his lap. "We reviewed the footage from the courtyard, and it appears that Titus threw the first punch," Highbottom said scratching his beard, "However, it does look like your son pushed him to the ground moments before the fight broke out," he said, bringing our attention to the projector. 

My Mother scoffed watching the entire thing play out, "Coriolanus didn't mean anything by that, it could've been an accident or playful banter," she said, clutching my hand so tight it turned white. "Yes," my Father agreed, "If anything, your concerns should be focused on this young delinquent attacking our son, rather than Coriolanus, who has yet to receive any first aid," he said pointedly. "Titus' condition was more severe," Highbottom deadpans. My Father scoffs at that, "We are willing to let this go, under the condition, that you have this student expelled immediately," he says, finally looking up at the Dean. The Dean raises his eyebrows as if he wasn't expecting my Father to strike a deal so early on in the conversation. "Your son seems to have a track record of getting into fights," he says casually, throwing a file toward my parents. My Mother, hesitantly, lets go of my hand and reaches for the file. It has of course my grades, but it also had all my infractions. It appears old Highbottom has been keeping a track record of me, 

"Well, I never," she said, throwing the file back onto his desk. "Coriolanus is simply defending himself, lots of the children are jealous of him, it only makes sense for them to try to gang up on him." I nod, yes, yes it does Mother. "Sir," I say, speaking up for the first time, "Titus was spreading some vicious rumors about Soarynn, when I went to confront him...he got angry and attacked me," I say, doing my best to look shaken up over the whole ordeal. "Hmm, well considering this isn't Titus' first infraction either, I will see to it that he does not return to the Academy once discharged from the hospital." And there it is, Snow always lands on top.

Doing my best not to look smug as my parents breathe sighs of relief, I speak up one last time, "Sir, would it be possible for you to tell me which hospital Titus is in?" I ask trying my best to look concerned, "I'd like to make sure he's alright." Mother croons over what an absolute angel of a son I am, before my Father stands up, "Yes, I'll look into that," Highbottom says, giving me a look that shows he doesn't buy into my little act. Mother and I stand up and we walk towards the door, "I'll be seeing you, Mr. Snow," Highbottom calls as we walk out the door. My Father and I both turn, but he doesn't indicate which one he's talking about. We exchange silent glances, realizing that we're both on his radar now.