Fowler School of Magic's

Cash

She went back to her dorm only to see Cash, fidgeting with his hair in his reflection on a window. He adjusted his beanie, pulling it forward as he moved his hair accordingly.

"Stop staring." He commanded, spinning on his heel. "What's going on?" She asked, moving closer to him. He backed against the window, eyes darting to the side. "Mind your business I-" she snatched the hat off him, waving it in his face as he gasped, hair falling down his shoulders.

He snatched the hat back and stuffed all his hair in. "What was-" "This is why we mind our business!" He shouted so loudly it felt like it could knock her over. When he stormed off she didn't follow.

Max knew him best. She checked Nathan's room, sure enough they were splayed across the bed, a bowl of cereal balanced on their stomach. They looked up as Nathan let her in.

"Sup?"
"I accidentally pissed of Cash."
"How?"
"I took his hat,"

They cringed, setting the cereal aside to sit up. They walked across the room, picking up a dark beanie with patches stitched into it from the floor.

"Give this too him. Second floor, door three, Mutatio."

So she went, Hugo walking alongside her. He played his work-in-progress song as she walked. It was nice. A soft melody that grew even softer as he began to sing.

She asked him to leave when she knocked on his door. He answered in the same clothes he'd been wearing earlier, including his beanie. He shut the door in her face.

She forced it open. "Max told me to give this to you!" He cracked the door, poking his head out to look at the beanie. She pulled it out of reach.

"Let mean in!"
"Go away."
"Cash."
"Whatever."

He let the door swing open, his room was a mess. Clothes covered the floor. Right about where his face would be was darkened out in the mirror. The curtains were drawn and the only light came from a fountain with glowing blue water on his nightstand. She looked at the empty bed next to his.

"He left after I beat his ass." She nodded and restrained herself from asking. Instead she offered the beanie. He took it, examining the patches before he tossed it on the bed.

"Is that all?"
"Why don't you like your hair?"
"Mind your business."
"Cash."
"I don't know you."
"You can though."

He scoffed and climbed back onto his bed, throwing a pillow at her. She caught it and set it on the floor.

"My name is Calliope and I,"
"Don't pull that shit with me, you really wanna know? I wasn't always a man okay?"

She stared at him blankly. He sighed and let his head fall back onto the bed.

"I was born a girl, or in a girls body I- I'm a boy though."
"And what's wrong with the hair?"
"I can't," she watched his fists clench and unclench as he sat up. A small part of her thought she was also going to be beat up.

"I can't bring myself to cut it."
"Then I will."
"What? No. I won't even let Max-"
"I'll let you cut mine?"

He paused, a slow smile creeping across his face. She'd cut her own hair a few times, not in over a year though. Now it reached past her shoulders, around where his reaches. They had similar hair and she'd cut boy's hair before. It should be easy enough.

So, she found herself sat on the dorm bathroom sink, holding scissors, a razor, and a towel as Cash combed through her hair. He parted it down the middle as she watched through the mirror.

"How do you feel about a bob?" She shrugged, hair always grew back. He grinned, taking the scissors and going straight to cutting. He nearly took his finger off.

In the end it stopped beneath her chin, choppy and uneven but in a good way. It was cute, a little longer in the front around her face too.

"Hand me the razor?" He asked, palm open. She handed it to him, hearing it buzz to life and quickly turn off. "Hair tie?" She handed him one, he tied up the back part of her hair. "I'm about to give you a wicked undercut."

So he did. She watched the hair fall from the back of her head before he flicked the razor off and brushed off the rest, tracing a zig-zag in the back of her skull. "It's a lightning bolt. I've always wanted one. You look badass."

She smiled, shaking out her hair, ignoring the hair she stepped in. She felt lighter than she had in years. But now it was her turn. Cash hesitantly took off his beanie, balance on the edge of the sink. She parted his hair, tying it into three sections, top and sides.

"Here's the idea: we both have undercuts. I shave the sides and trim the top. How about it?" Hands gripped on the edge of the sink, he nodded as she grabbed the scissors. First, she cut the parted sections, leaving jagged puffs of hair in it's place. The top she would deal with later. Now, she got to watch the hair fall out from underneath the razor, leaving a thin layer of hair.

She hoped he'd like it. He kept himself turned away from the mirror, afraid he'd back out if he didn't.

She got to work on the top, cutting several inches off before she pushed it to the side and trimmed it a little more. He gasped, toying with the hair that fell over his eyes. Calla considered herself finished, turning him around to look. That look was worth it. He ran his fingers over the sides and through the top in amazement.

"Why the fuck did I wait so long to do this? I look- wow."
"You look badass."
"Very funny."
"So I guess this means you forgive me?"
"Sure, but you're on thin ice. Now let's go show Max!" Without a second thought he grabbed her hand, leaving behind a mess of hair in the bathroom as they rushed over to the Mortem building.

He dropped her hand to open the door and took it once they reached their hallway, knocking quickly on the door. Max answered this time, clearly having been asleep. Their tired eyes went wide, reaching out to touch his hair. "Holy shit you did it. How do you feel?" He only smiled, throwing his arms around them.

"Calla helped." They looked up at Calla, touching her hair too.

"You had a haircut party without me?"
"Sorry. I know you wanted to do it I just..."
"It's fine man, it's just a haircut. There will be more."
"Okay, thanks dad!"

They froze momentarily as Nathan wheezed from inside the room. Cash went red. "Max. Yep. That's your name. I gotta- I'll be- yeah." Before any of them could stop him, he took off down the hallway. Max watched him leave before looking at her.

"Well?"
"I'm gonna go too, dad."