I Dream of Dragons

2. Water

After her last class, Ailysia went to the student council room. The election booth was set up in the center of the room, without much fanfare. The table was covered with a faded blue cloth, apparently reused year after year, and set with a stack of forms and a single clipboard. Over the table hung a blue-and-red banner, announcing "Woo-hoo, politics!"

No one was staffing the table, however. Ailysia went to the next room, and found two girls working on their macbooks.

"Is Jennifer here?" Ailysia asked at the door.

The blonde girl with a freckled nose looked up, and smiled. "That's me. What can I do for you?"

"I'm here for the upcoming election. I want to register as a candidate." Ailysia gestured back to the empty booth.

"Oh! Of course." Jennifer looked slightly surprised. She hurriedly got up and walked Ailysia back to the student council room. "You are the first person to sign up since we announced the election. We thought no one was interested."

"Really. No one else has signed up?" For a moment, Ailysia was thrilled. If no one else decided to run, then this would be her lucky break! True, it wouldn't be a hard-fought victory, but a win by default would still be a win, right?

"Nope. We put out that poster last week, and the sign-up window is almost up. So far, you are the only one who responded."

Something in her tone gave Ailysia pause. It was a little hedging, a little evasiveness that made it seem like Jennifer was satisfied with the no-show. Ailysia blinked, snapping back from the fantasy of victory. Was there something else going on here?

Jennifer settled behind the table, snatched a form off the top of the stack, and snapped it to the clipboard. She filled out the top section of the form in an elegant script, and then handed it to Ailysia. "Please fill out the rest."

Ailysia took the form and began to write down her name, but stopped, letting the pen hang in the air. She swallowed, trying to decide if she should say something, all while Jennifer stared at her with a puzzled expression on her face.

Finally, Ailysia decided to poke the issue. "Have you only put out one poster announcing the election?"

Jennifer sat straight up, clearly taken aback by the question. "Yeah. Why do you ask?"

"Well, it wasn't very obvious. It was in a corner and buried among other posters. Why not post more copies? Or bring it up during the morning announcement?"

Jennifer laced her hands together, eyes narrowing in irritation. "That is a good idea. We will consider it."

But Ailysia wasn't ready to let it go. Since Jennifer wasn't taking the bait, she decided to be more straightforward. "If no one ran for office, then who would take charge of the next student government?" And she could tell, from the shocked expression on Jennifer's face, that she hit the bullseye.

For a brief moment, Jennifer sat there in rigid silence, face reddening with embarrassment. And then, to her credit, she made an admirable effort to collect herself, forcing a smile onto her face. "The current student government members are on the ballot as incumbents. If no one else enters the race, then they will run unopposed." She explained in a casual tone, as though describing a dinner menu instead of admitting to a scheme.

Ailysia would have rolled her eyes except for practiced politeness. Woo-hoo politics indeed! She couldn't wait to tell this tale to grandma, who would certainly tsk-tsk the shady high school politics with her trademark contempt.

But Jennifer wasn't done yet. Her voice suddenly took on a conspiratorial pitch, and her smile became even friendlier. "Except, of course, for the treasurer. He is graduating this year, and the president will get to appoint his successor. Are you at all interested in running for the treasurer?"