Bang, Bang, On the Door, Baby (Arthur)

[Felicia Blackwood]

Felicia opened the door to her office, throwing her schoolbag aside. She blinked slightly when she realized that there was definitely more paper on her desk than there had been when she had last been inside. She let out a heavy sigh; she swore that more of her job revolved around paperwork than it did around actually helping people. Then again, it was probably a good idea, considering she was not exactly the most social person around. There was a time that she had been requested to provide orientation to new prefects and it had not gone over as well as Meredith had intended, much to Felicia’s chagrin and embarrassment. She shook her head a little; that was irrelevant to that moment. She needed to tackle the huge mountain of papers on her desk before touching anything related to schoolwork, not that she had much, anyway. The silver-haired young woman was a very diligent student, and often spent her free time finishing assignments that she started in class. It also helped that she was also very bright and intuitive, though sometimes, it drove her peers away from her because they felt intimidated by her presence. Of course, she did not really care what other people said or thought about her. She had heard rather mean things about herself that would have made a sensitive person cry, but had been in an environment where such a thing would certainly invite people to lay waste to you. So, she learned to just have a thick skin and not care. She waved her hand slightly and sat down firmly at her desk, slipping a set of earbuds into her ears. There was no time for dwelling on such insignificant things. She had lots of work to do, and she knew that she also had patrol duty with some members of team D that night. She idly wondered to herself where Nathan, the commander, had wandered off to, but she supposed it was none of her business, really.

Time slipped away from Felicia before she even realized it. Normally, the ruby-eyed young woman was very punctual and kept an eye on the time. After all, what was the point of doing something if you were going to show up late? Such a thing was a sign that a person truly did not care about what he or she did. Of course, the prefect commander had a reason to be late, mainly because of the paperwork that was nearly the size of the Empire State Building on her desk. She could have sworn she signed her name ‘Felicita’ after some point, because of the sheer amount. Thankfully, she had gotten most of it done. She figured it had piled up from when different prefects were shuffling in and out the previous year. Some reports had old commander’s and old Alpha prefect’s names on them, and those, she had filed separately, because she was not entirely sure what to do with them, because the person was either A) dead or B) missing in action, and there was no way she could mimic anyone’s handwriting. Her powers were mental, not motor. A knock on her office door startled the normally composed young woman. She pulled the earbuds out of her ears and abandoned her desk to head over to the door and open it. She was about to peek her head out to see what idiot had decided to bother her this time before she noticed there was someone standing right in front of her. She blinked slightly and looked at the young man warily. He wore the standard Ashford uniform, and properly, much to her surprise. The shining badge pinned to his chest caught her eye and she nodded slightly. She ushered for him to come in and spoke to him, leaning against her desk as she did so. She looked him in the eye as she spoke to him, and her tone was rather impartial and informative instead of warm and inviting.

“You must be one of the prefects I’m on patrol with this afternoon. My apologies. The administration decided to bury me in vastly overdue paperwork. You may take a seat in one of the chairs, if you care to. I just need to finish signing a few things, and then we can depart.”

[Arthur Bishop]

Arthur wasn’t sure what to expect of Felicia Blackwood. He’d heard the rumours regarding her brashness, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit defensive as he strode toward her office. It was early evening and the corridors were deserted. A finger of anticipation shivered down his spine, raising the hairs on the back of his neck. Although his pace was steady and his expression indifferent, there was a slight stiffness to the boy’s shoulders and his fists were clenched tight somewhere in the depths of his pockets. To most, Arthur did not seem the nervous type. The boy was quiet and polite, if not a bit odd in his mannerisms. Tall and well-groomed, Arthur radiated a presence of quiet confidence. It was likely that only someone who knew him well or possessed a Sherlockian sense of observation would notice the boy’s subtle anxiety. And yet, subtle as they were, the signs were all there.

As he approached the office, Arthur tried to pinpoint the specific source of his nervousness. Surely it was not entirely the result of adolescent superstition? He’d never been one to blindly accept a rumour for the truth, and yet here he was as apprehensive as a child on his first day of school. He exhaled slowly as he found himself at a pause outside of the office door. No, he decided, the rumours were not the source of his anxiety. For the first time in his life he was starting from the bottom. He was a prefect, that much was true, but he was a prefect of the lowest rank and tonight he would be meeting the commander of team C. The importance of a good first impression was not understated to the boy, and he decided that what he feared was not Miss Blackwood, but rather his own incompetence. The night would be an opportunity to prove himself.

Removing his hands from his pockets, Arthur straightened his tie and adjusted himself. He took one last sobering breath before rapping his knuckles lightly on the door’s wooden surface. At first he feared that Miss Blackwood hadn’t heard him, or perhaps she wasn’t in the office at all or maybe he even had the wrong room, but a moment later the sound of shuffling papers reached his ears and the door swung open. His first impression of the girl was that she was rather shorter than he had expected. He wasn’t sure why this surprised him, but in his mind he’d imagined her as an Amazon of a woman. Blinking down at her, he realised her height didn’t matter. The intensity of her scrutiny was enough to make him feel very small, but he composed himself and offered her a polite almost-smile. She beckoned for him to enter the office and he stepped in after her.

Leaning against her desk, Miss Blackwood wasted no time in jumping into her explanation and he nodded intently to show he was listening as the greeting he had planned and rehearsed all afternoon died somewhere in the vicinity of his stomach. Her words were direct and business-like. He met her gaze unfalteringly until at last she wrapped up her speech and he gave one final nod. “Very well. I understand, Miss Blackwood,” he replied dryly. Sinking into one of the chairs, he sat up straight with his hands folded neatly on his lap as he waited. The silence was uncomfortable but Arthur had never been gifted at the art of small-talk and Miss Blackwood appeared so lost in her paperwork he doubted she would appreciate the interruption. With nothing else to do, Arthur sat and waited as silently as if he had become part of the decor.

[Felicia Blackwood]

At first, Felicia was annoyed by being interrupted, but, once she put two and two together, she had calmed down a little bit. She found that it was much easier to cope with things if logic and reason were involved. After all, those two particular things were her specialties. She had been described by many of her old teachers as cerebral, along with other words like intelligent and smart. However, they never really said anything about her emotions or emotional reactions to others, but, they were pretty much non-existent, save for one exception. It was not that she lacked empathy or any capability for emotion; she just chose to repress it. Emotions were irrational and driven by the heart, not the mind, and such things were of little use to her unless they could give her an advantage of sorts. It was probably why so many people were not fond of her or only interacted with her when it was required. Of course, it never seemed to bother her very much, since she was used to being a lone wolf, for the most part. The hardest part of being a commander for her was, in all honesty, having to deal with a team that was not fond of her. She had not seen Autumn in the longest time, and her patrol with Ada and Louis was a horrible disaster, the likes of which she never wanted to experience again. She could only hope that tonight’s patrol with the young man who was standing at her door would be much better.

Felicia had not been given a description of the young man she was supposed to be patrolling with, but, there was really no other reason someone would come to visit her. Still, she was not expecting the newer prefect to be so… tall. Then again, she was not exactly the tallest girl around, but she was not short by any means either. She supposed that everyone’s expectations had to be proven wrong at some point; that is why they are temporary, after all. She had to admit, though, for a new prefect meeting a commander for the first time, he seemed rather calm, save for a small bit of nervousness she could almost sense coming off of him in waves. She had not introduced herself yet, so she could not exactly get a good mental picture quite yet. From what she could see on the surface, though, he was very proper and there was hardly a blemish on him. It intrigued her, to say the least, but she supposed it might just be very proper and diligent grooming. The almost-smile on his lips gained a nod of her head in greeting, and that was probably the best he was going to get besides a handshake, for propriety’s sake. The silver-haired young woman was hardly the type to smile and giggle unless she felt extremely comfortable around the people she was with or if she was a little drunk, but the latter was very rare, especially on the island, which was pretty much in the middle of nowhere.

Felicia was slightly impressed with how the young man did not seem to question her or change his facial expression. Maybe, she was finally dealing with someone who actually cared for once, and the idea actually excited her, even if it was deep down. She was grateful he did not ask any questions and did as he wished, taking a seat and remaining quiet so she could finish her work. With a nod, she sat back down at her desk and finishes signing the last few papers, grateful that she was done that work for the day. All she had to do was get through the patrol and she could relax until the next day, when she had to start the damn cycle all over again. She placed her pen aside and brushed her silvery bangs out of her ruby eyes, glancing over at the stoic-looking and silent young man sitting in a chair. She was not entirely sure what to say, considering she herself was hardly good at anything related to social interaction. After a moment, she pushed out her chair and stood up, cracking her neck and rolling her shoulders before approaching the young man. She offered her hand to him, more for a handshake than for him to get up. She had decided that she had been more cold and distant than usual, so she figured she could introduce herself in such away that did not make her look like a total b****.

“My apologies again. I seriously detest when they do this to me. But, I digress. As I’m sure you’re aware, my name is Felicia. Felicia Blackwood, Commander of team C. It seems as though I know nothing about you besides your team, though. Would you care to tell me your name at least? I would hate to keep saying “Hey, you,” the entire time when I know you have a given name.”

[Arthur Bishop]

The office was quiet and Arthur feared that he would doze off to the sound of Miss Blackwood’s scribbling pen. Trying to keep himself occupied and alert, the prefect boy sat up straight and allowed his eyes to wander around the office. As he expected, everything was kept in impeccable condition. Arthur entertained himself with the idea that the dust and dirt were so afraid of Felicia they didn’t dare enter her office. The office was so clean he suspected there might even bit a hint of truth to it, and his lips twitched slightly in amusement. He almost didn’t notice as the girl rose from her desk and stood before him with her hand outstretched.

“Ah, I beg your pardon,” he apologised as he took her hand, “my mind must have gotten away from me for a moment. And it’s no trouble. I suppose I was a bit early; I hope I did not interrupt you.” Arthur gave a polite dip of his head before introducing himself, wondering of the ‘hey you’ comment had been the girl’s attempt at a joke. He couldn’t be certain. She had said it like an order. “My name is Arthur Bishop. It is a pleasure to be working with you, Miss Blackwood.” His words came out polite and monotone, if not a bit nasally as if he were suffering from a perpetual cold. Meanwhile, Felicia’s tone had taken on a lighter effect. Arthur allowed himself to relax.

The prefect pushed himself to his feet with a motion that seemed to require no effort. He was once again struck by the height difference between them. Although Arthur was not exceptionally tall-- his friend Devlin stood a good half-foot taller than him-- it was something of a relief to learn that the brash girl from the rumours was not nearly as scary in person. In fact, she seemed pleasant enough, if not a bit serious. Arthur could appreciate seriousness. The almost-smile appeared once again on his lips and he gestured towards the door. “Shall we get on with it, then?”

[Felicia Blackwood]

Felicia was usually quiet when she was doing her work. Sure, she did listen to music sometimes, but that was really only when she had to take her mind off the amount of work she had to do. She did not really show it, but the young woman stressed out very easily, which might explain why she became so snappy with her classmates or people she did not really have patience with for one reason or another. She knew that it was a very apparent flaw of hers, and she was trying her hardest to get better with it, but it was rather difficult. She was raised to not make or take excuses; only the honest truth. There was a reason she had been called a ‘military brat’ before, after all, and it certainly was not because she was not deserving of the title. As a matter of fact, she found the term to be more on the endearing side then on the derogative side, so she took it as a complement. She wondered to herself if her companion was getting bored; after all, not many people found watching other people doing paperwork very exciting. She could not help but notice that he was looking around the office. She had to keep herself from chuckling; in all honesty, there was not much else to do. She wondered what he was thinking about, considering the fact that she could see that he was fighting an amused look from spreading across his face. Sure, she was telepathic, but she did not even know the young man’s name yet; there was no way they could have any kind of connection without at least a mere introduction. She swept the thought away with a flick of her wrist and returned to her task, sighing internally in relief when the last sheet was organized into one of two piles: ‘Status unknown’ or ‘Completed’. She had expected the loud scraping noise that her chair made against the floor to bring the young man out of his reverie, but he only looked up when he noticed her hand. Of course, she did not really mind; it was easy for one to get distracted when he or she was bored. It only became a probably when a person was constantly distracted and became annoying to other people.

“You were hardly an interruption. I may not hate paperwork as much as other commanders, but that doesn’t mean I like it by any means.”

She could not help when a soft chuckle slipped past her lips. Normally, she was either stoic and not showing any emotion at all or she seemed to be in a perpetual state of annoyance. She supposed that it might be due to the fact that the most tedious and stressful part of her job was done. Sure, going on patrol could be annoying sometimes, but this young man hardly seemed like someone she could not at least tolerate, if not get along with. Anything would be better than that last patrol with Ivy and DeGrandpe. She still wondered how she had gotten stuck with the laziest team, despite being one of the most hard-working commanders. Granted, there were only three, but the point was still there. She was relieved to finally get a name, though only part of the channels of his mind were open to her. It seemed he was rather reserved, so she would probably have to converse a bit more with him in order to get all the way in. She supposed she could wait until then; after all, there was no rush. Regardless of what was on her mind, she seemed in a much better mood than she had earlier. She chalked it up to accomplishing all that she needed to before having to attend to other matters, considering that having to stop one thing to do another drove her crazy. Of course, she would never admit that to anyone, but she was a perfectionist, so she rationalized it to be only natural. She could not help but notice that the young man also seemed relaxed after the facetious remark she had made. The sad fact was that what she had said would have been true, had he not introduced himself. She tried to avoid being vague, but when she was given no specifics it was hard to be specific herself.

Felicia heard something vaguely related to height bouncing around Arthur’s brain and wondered if it had anything to do with his initial expectations of her. It would certainly explained why he almost seemed surprised when he first saw her. Several people had been taken aback by the fact that she was around an average height. This did not surprise her in the least, considering the average height of a woman her age was around five feet, four inches, and she stood a mere inch taller than that. She had heard a few laughable rumors that she was an extremely tall, scary, and rather angry person. True, she could get irritated very easily, but she was neither extremely tall or really scary for that matter. Some people may have been intimidated by her, but that was really their fault, not hers. She presented herself openly and honestly; if someone wanted to make something up, they very well could, but it would only be proved wrong later. She nodded slightly when he gestured toward the door and headed toward the hallway, holding the door open for him so he could walk through before letting it shut with a ‘click’ behind them. For a few moments, she walked in silence. She figured that he would appreciate it a little bit; besides, she had to come up with something to talk about anyway. There were times that her stint as a reserved only child became apparent, and this time was certainly one of them. Once she finally found something to talk about, she tried to be polite, though she could not help the fact that she noticed the smallest (and sometimes oddest) things.

“I assume your time at the school has been somewhat pleasant, then? You seem rather content, if not a bit nervous. Then again, it might just be me. Don’t worry too much; contrary to popular belief, I am a nice person. Just a little more serious than most.”

[Arthur Bishop]

“Yes,” Arthur agreed with a sympathetic nod, “paperwork is, unfortunately, a necessary evil.” He swept past her through the open door uttering a quiet “thank you” as he went. The two walked side-by-side in silence for a while and Arthur took the opportunity to regard the girl with curiosity. She wore her silver hair loose and it fell at waist-length. Her facial features were mature and her body well-proportioned. Arthur couldn’t even begin to guess her age. She could easily have been in her 20s and the serious glint in her eyes only served to make her seem older. The boy wondered if she was an albino with her red eyes, fair skin, and silver hair, but that didn’t seem to be the case. He decided her odd pigmentation must have been a result of the same mutation that gave her her powers. A hint of a smile played on his lips as his eyes flickered away from the girl. Of course, he hadn’t meant to stare, but he had to admit that she intrigued him.

A strange prickle in the back of his mind caught Arthur’s attention, but a moment later it was gone. He blinked, surprised at the unfamiliar sensation before turning his attention back to Felicia. “Oh, yes. I’m afraid some of the students here are prone to embellishing the truth. The school is not nearly as terrible as some would like me to believe.” The half-smile had vanished from his face leaving his features an expressionless mask of indifference. Mentally, the prefect puzzled over the sensation. It had felt almost like he was being watched, but there was no one in the corridor besides himself and the girl and there was no place for someone to hide. He also noted that the sensation wasn’t quite like the paranoia of being watched. Although similar, there was certainly something different about it. His eyes flicked once more towards Felicia with the faintest hint of suspicion.

“How long have you been a prefect, Miss Blackwood?” he asked, his tone conversational, “I imagine that you have quite a bit of experience, being a commander and all.” Arthur kept pace with her, his steps long and even as they made their way through the corridor. He did his best to appear at ease with the situation, but if he was being honest with himself, he was on-edge. The mysterious sensation in his head had disappeared, but it had left behind a sense of foreboding. With Miss Blackwood being the only other person in the corridor, she was the natural target of his suspicion. Arthur had been at the school long enough to know that not everyone was as trustworthy as they seemed. However, he wasn’t ready to jump to conclusions just yet.

[Felicia Blackwood]

Felicia could not help but chuckle quietly at Arthur’s statement. There was no reason to argue with what he said because it was true. As much as she disliked doing it sometimes, paperwork was quite necessary, especially in her area of the hierarchy. For better or for worse, people attacked each other, reports had to be filed, and someone had to sign off on them. Sometimes, though, she did wonder how incident reports from other teams ended up on her desk. Most likely, it was because the team did not have a commander, but there was the occasional one from Team B that ended up in her paperwork. Thankfully, Oliver had been very kind about the report mix-ups and took them off her hands, albeit wearily, since he most likely had much more to deal with than she did. She decided to focus on paying attention where she was walking instead of reminiscing about paperwork mishaps. Rather suddenly, she felt like someone was staring at her and she glanced around, making sure that there were no other students about. There did not seem to be any, much to her relief, so she figured that it was her companion that was observing her. She did not mind really; it happened more frequently than one would think. She supposed her ruby red eyes and long, silvery hair drew the attention of others because it was so unusual. Unlike others, she did not dye her hair or wear contacts. For as long as she could remember, she had always possessed those two distinct features, though it was not until she was older that she found out why she looked so different from her “normal” classmates. Thankfully, it seemed like oddly colored hair and eyes were the norm amongst her fellow gifted peers, so there were times that she did not feel like such a black sheep, for lack of a better term.

Finally, she felt the gaze flicker away and she relaxed her shoulders a little bit. She was not really used to be scrutinized so much, so she supposed she now knew how it felt. Still, it was not completely unpleasant. She shrugged the thought off and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, careful not to let her gaze linger too long. He was tall and thin, but not abnormally so. His posture was straight and proper, and he carried an air of dignity that reminded her of how people described her. He seemed to be the type of person that really only spoke when he was spoken to or returning pleasantries. Not much seemed to bother him. Well, except for something that seemed to catch him off-guard. She was barely able to catch the surprised look on his face before it transformed into what she assumed what his “resting face” as he responded to her inquiry. His statement made her chuckle and glance around the empty halls. Indeed, high schoolers were prone to over exaggeration and blowing things out of proportion; hyperbolic tendencies often appeared when people were greeted with people and things that made them uncomfortable, Felicia knew that much for sure. She liked to think that the same things did not happen to her, but there were times that she had made a bigger deal of something than it was, though she usually apologized for being so ‘out of control’ later.

“Ah, yes. Hyperbolic tendencies are common amongst our age group. We really have nothing to compare the world to, so we make what experiences we have or the people we see larger than we really need to.”

Felicia had to ponder over Arthur’s question for a moment. Technically, she had started her training to be a prefect before she had actually arrived at Ashford. She heard that, normally, students just joined the prefects if they felt strongly. However, her situation had been different. They had sought her out as a prefect candidate and seen her skills. Somehow, she found herself in a commanding position with no real experience, save for one year of being a club captain, and even then, the club had been small. Thankfully, she had been able to read some books on leadership and observed the other commanders very closely during her first few days on the island. She was strict, for sure, but not completely unfair. She figured it was due to her no-nonsense family background, which never really bothered her very much to begin with. She was just grateful that somebody wanted her, since clearly she had not been good enough for her biological family. She abruptly refocused her train of thought after that; there was no need to dwell on the past. Living in the present was the only option she had, because the ‘what if?’ situations would drive her up the wall. After a few minutes of contemplation, she finally responded to his question.

“I’ve been a prefect for a little over a year now. I came into this situation a little differently than most. They saw my potential as a prefect and decided to train me before I came to the island. After I finished that training, they offered me a commander position, since the previous team commander had perished in a rather unfortunate battle that was, according to students who were present at the time, a bloodbath. My only hope is that we can prevent something like that from happening again; I would hate to see innocent people get hurt.”

Felicia frowned slightly as the last statement left her lips. Sure, she could be aloof and cold at times, but she did care about others, even if it was in a more quiet and subtle way. She was sure that many people believed she did not possess an emotional heart, but she actually did. It was a matter of knowing when to express emotions and when to use logic. She had a tendency, for better or for worse, to do the latter because it felt more natural to her. She could not help but notice that her fellow prefect seemed on edge. She did not say anything initially, but did raise a fair eyebrow in confusion and the slightest hint of curiosity. He may have been wearing a mask of indifference, but his body language screamed just the opposite. After a few more minutes of silence had elapsed, she supposed that she could at least ask him what was wrong.

“Is something the matter? You seem a little… perturbed.”

[Arthur Bishop]

“Too true,” Arthur responded to her comment regarding teenagers and their proclivity for gossip. He kept stride with the girl, glancing at her from the corner of his eye only to find her doing the same with him. He hadn’t expected her to giggle, but the sound of it seemed to take the edge off his tension. She was as unsettling as she was intriguing and the boy was almost enjoying the challenge of piecing her together, though he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to Miss Blackwood than what met the eye.

He listened silently as Felicia explained how she’d become involved with the prefects. Arthur raised his eyebrows in mild surprise when she mentioned the previous commander dying in a bloodbath. “That is,” he paused a moment, considering his words carefully, “regrettable, to say the least.” Pressing his lips together, the prefect reflected on the dangerous nature of their position. Of course, he’d known when he joined that being a prefect wouldn’t be without a few occupational hazards. He wondered if he should be more scared. “Yes, certainly,” he agreed with Felicia, “it is our duty to serve the students regardless of whether they are here by choice or not. Though some of them seem rather keen on making our job more difficult than it needs to be.” The almost-smile returned to his lips and he tilted his head in the girl’s direction. “But I do enjoy a challenge.”

As they rounded a corner Felicia pressed the conversation forward, catching Arthur off-guard once more. “Perturbed?” he asked, studying her from the corner of his eye, “Well, now that you mention it, something does seem odd.” The pair walked a few steps forward as Arthur collected his thoughts. “I hate to come across as accusatory, but I feel this matter demands a level of precaution. Miss Blackwood, a moment ago I noticed the most peculiar sensation and, seeing as you’re the only one around, I’d like to know whether you had something to do with it,” his tone was direct but not unpolite. He was doing his best to say what he meant without offending the girl. After all, it was possible that the sensation had been nothing more than a fabrication of his anxious mind. Still, the suspicion remained and he could see no way of avoiding the confrontation.

[Felicia Blackwood]

Felicia had been at Ashford for over a year at that point. She had met a wide array of students, from the most rebellious to the most strict and observant of the rules. She had to admit, though, she had not really been interested in getting to know them. Most of them were mostly one or two layers, but it seemed the young man beside her had more than that. Either that, or they were more similar than she had thought initially. Even though he seemed rather straightforward, she had come to find there was something… precise about him. He walked with a carefully maintained speed and posture, much like herself. They seemed to share an opinion based on observation, and no doubt they probably would share more the longer they spoke. The soft chuckle that she had emitted seemed to relax some of the tension in his shoulders, but she could still sense that he was still curious about her. In a way, she supposed she should be flattered; it seemed as though many people wrote her off as a strict prefect and nothing more. Then again, she never presented herself as anything but because she knew that people had a tendency to take advantage of any kind of weakness they saw. Their interaction was certainly among the more memorable that she had at Ashford, and thankfully, it was on the more positive side than the negative, and she was grateful for that. Her attitude often left a bad taste in other people’s mouths, or at least, so it was implied, and she had negative interactions with a number of people. Still, she was glad that she was able to have a challenge in figuring someone out. It was not necessarily a game, but, in a way, it kind of was. They were both volleying back and forth without fighting, something that she rather enjoyed. There was no need for violence unless discipline was needed and even then, the person should really be a repeat offender of something serious, like starting fights or attacking other students without warning.

“Yes, it is rather sad. I can’t say I knew the young man, though. I can only hope that he’s resting peacefully if there’s a place for souls to go. I’m not really sure myself since I haven’t died yet.”

The notion of religion and an afterlife was questionable to Felicia. She was very skeptical of blind faith; it usually led to assumptions that made even the most intelligent people sound obtuse. She was very much the type of person who wanted proof, whether it be physical or scientific. An even better option would be allowing her to see said proof with her own eyes, because someone could easily make up such a notion as well as facts to go along with it. She brushed the notions aside in favor of watching him contemplate for a few moments before speaking to her again. His words caused her to laugh silently, her shoulders trembling slightly. A small smile made the corner of her lips twitch upward at a memory from almost a year previous. She had probably been at her most annoyed that night, considering the fact that she was, essentially, babysitting the entire student population while trying to prevent the drink at the refreshment table from being tainted with alcohol. Sadly, someone had gotten past her watchful eye since she had gone to break up a fight and, before she knew it, she was dealing with a troublesome student and an equally distracting coworker. An actual laugh rumbled through her and she shook her head a little. It seemed like so long ago.

“You certainly speak the certified truth. I sometimes feel that the rebellious students antagonize us on purpose. I would like us all to coexist in at least a semblance of peace, but alas, there are some that are just so focused on revenge for past actions that have nothing to do with the current set of prefects. I suppose we can only hope that we can keep our cooperation with this rebel group that everyone mentions but no one actually knows except those who are in it.”

Felicia herself knew little to nothing about the alleged “Battle Front” other than their mission which was, in her opinion, actually kind of noble. The issue came when other students, prefects and otherwise, were put in harm’s way to attain this goal. His addition to his statement made her smirk just the slightest bit. She herself enjoyed a challenge; after all, it seemed like a lot of the schoolwork she was given was hardly engaging, despite being an entire grade level above her age. She instead found pleasure in deciphering her fellow students, even if they turned out to be boring in the end. She nodded slightly, as if to agree with him, though she did not add much beyond that. She had turned her attention to surveying the halls. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a flash of yellow dashing behind a wall. She set her ruby eyes in the direction that the figure had dashed in, and, surely enough, a sheepish young woman peeked out from behind the wall. She raised her silvery eyebrows at the girl and she seemed more than happy to dash in the direction of the girls’ dorms. Felicia nodded silently to herself, trying to keep a smirk from crossing her face. She prided herself on her excellent observation skills, and she only hoped that she would not have to give anyone else the look she had given the other young woman. They rounded the corner that the girl had tried to hide in and he spoke to her again, breaking her out of the comfort of her own mind. She continued to walk forward, but she kept her eyes angled toward him, listening to his words with a seemingly detached interest as she analyzed what he said. The mention of a peculiar sensation caused her brow to furrow slightly and she thought back to a few minutes previous. It quickly dawned on her that she might be referring to her powers. It was strange; she had never heard anyone mention a sensation before, but maybe everyone was different. She nodded a little bit, as if to confirm his suspcion.

“Ah, yes it does, actually. I must have been unconsciously exercising my telepathy. My apologies; I sometimes do not realize I am looking into someone’s mind at first. If it bothers you, I will refrain from doing it again.”

[Arthur Bishop]

Arthur tilted his head at the mention of religion. It seemed curious that the girl would bring it up. She did not strike him as the religious sort, a suspicion that she confirmed a moment later when she brought up her uncertainty. Arthur had not grown up in a religious environment. In the Bishop home God only existed where politics were involved. It was a name to be dropped around election time when the voting population’s eyes were on them and every detail of their personal lives were pressed and preserved like a museum exhibit. It was a word to be rehearsed and performed for the right people at the right time and to be studied objectively in history books. He’d never really considered his personal feelings on the matter. Lost in thought, the little frown returned to the boy’s face.

“I’m,” he hesitated, speaking softly before starting over, “I’m not really sure, either.” Unconsciously, Arthur ran a hand through his hair. He felt something sitting on the tip of his tongue but he couldn’t quite find the words to describe it. But then, suddenly, he seemed to remember something. There was a woman, once, when he was very young. She had a soft Spanish accent, a face like cracked leather, and a golden cross on a chain around her neck. She was a nanny, one of the many he would have throughout his childhood, hired to care for him while her own children would have to figure things out for themselves. An uncomfortable lump had formed his his throat and he swallowed it away, shaking his head.

“I’m sorry. I seem to have lost my train of thought,” he explained. Drawing a slow breath, Arthur angled his head towards Felicia, considering her for a moment before allowing his gaze to dart away once more. He seemed about to say something, but then changed his mind at the last moment. Instead, he listened to her commentary on the current status of prefect-student relations. It would have been a good time to voice his opinions on the matter and hopefully impress the commander, but for some reason Arthur’s thoughts faltered and he found he had nothing to say. Nodding his agreement, he withdrew temporarily from the conversation.

A flash of yellow brought him back to his senses. Arthur watched with curiosity as a girl peered at the from around a corner, only to dash away a moment later when Felicia raised her eyebrows at her. The almost-smile returned to Arthur’s face, though the rest of his expression remained vapid. “Ah,” he responded to Felicia’s explanation, “telepathy? That could be a dangerous ability.” He raised a hand to rub his chin, contemplating. The breech of privacy made him uncomfortable, but part of him wanted to let her in. To have someone to share his thoughts with sounded almost pleasant. However, he wasn’t certain she would even want to hear them. Arthur frowned down at his shoes. He was overthinking things again and the tension in his shoulders was back, but for a very different reason this time.

[Felicia Blackwood]

Felicia’s mind was always busy, buzzing and whirring with thoughts. The only reason she did not hop from topic to topic while she was talking was because she had managed to put a mental filter in place to keep her from seeming like a child who had eaten too much sugar and wanted to talk about everything and anything under the sun. Of course, there were some things that did slip through, like her comment about the possibility (or non-possibility) of life after death. It had not been something she had dwelled on too much when she was younger. It seemed as though her foster parents were more interested in money and finding new and creative ways to send her back to her social worker than they were sharing any kind of religion in her. Thankfully, her adoptive parents had instilled a sense of ethics, but religion was something neither of them really found time for. They had called themselves Christian, but they never really went to church, nor were they really interested in Felicia adopting their beliefs. She was thankful for that, because someone had finally acknowledged that children, no matter how old they were, had their own thoughts. Once they had settled her “undesirable” behavior down, Donna and Romeo had basically let Felicia think and believe for herself.

The puzzled look on Arthur’s face made Felicia grimace slightly. She was able to read other people’s minds, but she sometimes forgot that no one was listening in on her thoughts. She also forgot that not everyone thought the way she did. As Arthur brushed the hair from his face, Felicia could not help but do the same, though hers was for a good reason. The silvery white strands were getting in her eyes, and it was better to tuck them behind her ears. “My apologies for all that,” she stated after his confused utterance, “When I don’t control it, my mind has a tendency to wander.” She knew that an apology was probably not necessary, but she figured she would give one anyway. Speaking about something so deep as spirituality, no matter what her belief on the matter was, could land her in hot water, especially with people who were extremely on one side or the other of the issue. She could sense the small amount of tension in the air, mainly surrounding her fellow prefect and offered an apologetic grimace and fell quiet for some time..

She then decided a better topic of conversation would be the relationship between the students and the prefects. She had seen conflicts start to bubble to the surface before. One major example she could think of was when she had run into a troublemaker at a dance who had clearly spiked the punch bowl that she, unfortunately, had taken a drink from. Another prefect had come along and noticed the situation and quickly diffused it with humor, as he had always seemed to do. Felicia’s face contorted slightly at the memory; why did she remember that, of all things? Surely, she had seen better examples, but the only one she could think of was the passive-aggressive redhead who looked like he wanted to punch her and the brunette prefect who had come along to either hit on her, calm her down, or a little bit of both. “Don’t worry,” she reassured him, “It happens to all of us, really. Sometimes, we get lost in our own heads and forget to speak. It happens to me a lot, believe it or not.” Of course, if anyone said that Felicia did not talk a lot, she would have merely rolled her eyes and given them a look that said ‘no duh’. She was an introverted person, despite her position, and she spent a lot of time thinking and pondering, even when she was with others. She supposed that maybe the term ‘introspective’ was better than ‘introverted’, because the former did not conflict with her job title and requirements as much as the latter.

Felicia sighed a little as the young woman darted away. She was glad she had not needed to use any kind of coercion or threat to get the girl to go back to her room. Maybe some prefects wielded their powers against students to obey, but she refused to do so unless someone’s life was in danger. She knew what her powers could do, and she needed to be careful with them. Sure, it was not like she could cause explosions, by telekinesis was not by any means a weak power and, if she was not careful, she could inadvertently take advantage of it and even kill someone, if she got creative enough. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind; there was no reason to dwell on that now, especially when she was in the middle of a conversation about her other major power, telepathy. It was not as dangerous as her telekinesis could be, but that did not mean it was not benign by any means. After all, if she so desired, she could bring out the darkest thoughts in people’s minds and surface them. Of course, she would never do such a thing, but the fact that she could made her a little wary to use that part of her telepathy. She mainly used it for communicating via thinking with people she was not around or when she should not or did not want to speak. “There’s another one that is more dangerous than that of mine, I fear,” she replied with a small grimace, “I try not to use it unless danger is imminent.” Felicia noticed the fact that Arthur seemed all too interested in his shoes and she tilted her head slightly. Since his head was angled down, she could not get an exact emotional reading on him, but something told her he was wrestling with something. “Mister Bishop?” she asked in an oddly gentle voice, as if she were going to startle him if she did not talk to him that way, “Is something wrong?”

[Arthur Bishop]

Noting the girl’s sudden silence, Arthur peered at her from the corner of his eye. “Please,” he said, “there’s no need to apologise.” He struggled to pull himself back into the conversation. Nodding along, he half-listened as Miss Blackwood spoke of the mysterious ‘battle front’ and the trouble they were so keen on causing. Arthur had yet to meet a member of the battle front, but he’d heard of them. It seemed their activity had become subdued in recent times and the school was more threatened by a handful of self-proclaimed “crazies”. Although they seemed to act independently of one another, they were all dangerous and were to be treated with caution. The battle front was a very different creature. From what Arthur had gathered they were a sort of underground association of students dedicated to liberating themselves from Ashford. They were violent, dangerous, and smart enough to collaborate in pursuit of their goals. They also had a tendency to target prefects.

Frowning, he was brought out of his thoughts as Felicia spoke of getting lost in her own. He offered her a polite almost-smile and a nod of understanding. “I’ve been accused of being quiet myself,” said the prefect. As if to prove the point, he did not elaborate. The prefect contented himself with walking in silence until Felicia scared the girl away and the topic of her telepathy was brought up. He didn’t realise that he had grown quiet once more until she asked if something was wrong. Suddenly, he snapped out of his daze and turned his head to look at her.

“I beg your pardon?” By the way she was looking at him Arthur knew he had missed a question. He groaned internally. This was not the kind of impression he wanted to give. Pausing, the prefect closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He needed to pull himself together. Opening his eyes he fixed his attention on Felicia and began his apology. “My sincerest apologies, Miss Blackwood. I am usually much more focused and I can assure you this will not happen again,” he drawled. “If I’m being honest, it has been,” he paused, choosing his words with care, “more challenging to adjust to this school than I expected.” Once the words were out he felt better. Ashford was not what he was used to. Outside of the prefects, there was little structure and everyone just seemed to do whatever they pleased whenever they pleased to do it. There was no consistency or routine, two things Arthur thrived on, and the harder he tried to force it on the school, the more the school seemed to fight back. He gave a weary sigh and ran a hand through his hair once more before shaking his head.

“Sorry, perhaps that was inappropriate to bring up. Shall we?” he pushed himself forward with mechanical movements. The wall was back in its rightful place and Arthur could almost pretend that he’d confessed nothing at all. “You were saying something about your powers? I am very interested to hear more about those,” he continued in his monotone. His adjustment to the school wasn’t really any of the girl’s business, and though he felt lighter for saying it, he wished he hadn’t. They were on patrol as professionals and he was trying hard to come across as one, but it was awkward and forced. The girl seemed to have little trouble bouncing from one topic to the next, and he wanted to keep up as if it would prove something about the quality of his character.

[Felicia Blackwood]

Felicia merely shrugged at Arthur’s words. She knew it was not necessary for her to apologize for anything, but she figured that she owed him one before being so strangely wrapped up in her thoughts. She figured that her constant thinking and introspection might be why people perceived her as rude or distant. She never really meant to come off in such a way, but it seemed that way because she was thinking or pondering. The expression on Arthur’s face told Felicia that he was only half-listening, but of course, she was rambling anyway, so she was not expecting him to listen 100%. “I haven’t heard of any attacks from them recently,” she mumbled aloud, more to herself than to her patrolling companion, “But they’re not the ones I’m worried about. There are other students who want to wreak havoc independently, it seems. I can only hope they don’t try to meet up and form some kind of coalition.” The silver-haired prefect secretly wished that she would be able to look back on the encounter and laugh at her own horrible prediction skills, but she had a strange feeling that she would one day have to “eat her words”, so to speak. She wondered idly if the administration or Miss Monroe would want to step up patrols to monitor these students. Maybe, someone needs to gain their trust and keep them apart, she thought to herself, biting on her inner lip out of habit. She would think of some way to deal with the issue; for that moment, though, she needed to focus on finishing out the surprisingly uneventful patrol.

Felicia returned the half-smile that Arthur sent in her direction. She chuckled a little bit and turned her head to scan the area ahead of them before responding. “That makes two of us, then. Though I think some people take my silence as being aloof or rude,” she commented. His lack of an explanation did not really seem to bother her all that much. Honestly, she had come to expect it from a lot of students. There were a very rare few who explained themselves, and mainly, those were the ones who did not want to get into trouble. She supposed she could see why; not everyone was fond of prefects, even those who were not part of the battle front. There was no need for anyone to explain themselves to her beyond what she needed to know. Anything else anyone provided was self-supplied. It did concern her a bit, though, that the young man suddenly seemed more nervous than he had before, hence the reason why she questioned if he was all right.

“You just seem tense,” she said, nodding toward his tension-filled shoulders as if to illustrate her point. She watched out of the corner of her eye as the other prefect seemed to compose himself. She had to keep her eyebrows from furrowing slightly, like they always did when she was confused. He did not seem extremely emotionally distressed, so what need was there for him to do any of that? It only dawned upon her then that he might have come from a family who tried to keep emotion buried under a stoic mask. It was a sad thought, but she knew that there were some families in her old neighborhood that fit that exact description, save for the whole military part. She felt his eyes on her and she glanced back at him, listening to his words. She nodded slowly, as if to agree that adjustment was hard. It had been very hard for her, not just because she had left the only people in her life, but the chaos she had come in after was overwhelming, and she had to learn how to deal with it because she was so used to rigidity and structure, whether it was put in place by Donna or Felicia herself. “There’s no need to apologize, Mister Bishop,” she soothed with a small smile, “Not everyone can be focused all of the time. Besides, I’ve worked with much more… restless and irritable prefects than yourself.” She chuckled a little bit to herself as she remembered her first patrol with Ada and Louis. She really had no idea who decided to stick the three people who hated each other together. She was also reminded of her first meeting with another prefect who had tossed a bit of chaos into her life, mainly because of his hyperactivity. “It was an adjustment for me too,” she said honestly, glancing around the halls that they walked in, “I used to live according to a schedule, or a system. There really is no such thing here, and I still find it hard to cope with sometimes. It does get easier, once you start to understand the peaks and troughs of this place, though.”

“No need to apologize, Mister Bishop. You weren’t bothering me with that topic by any means. If there’s anything I can do to help you, just let me know,” she replied. It was quite clear that he wanted to keep a barrier up, and she was going to respect that. After all, she sometimes did the same thing, and she hated it when people tried to force their way in, even when she said no. He mentioned something about her powers and she tilted her head slightly, a curious look in her ruby eyes. “Hm? Ah yes, those…” she muttered, glancing at a nearby locker. She wondered if she might be to take the door off if she focused hard enough. She stopped walking for a moment and turned to face the metal objects. She closed her eyes for a few moments, zeroing her attention in on one door in particular. She snapped her eyes open and moved her hand out in a fluid gesture, effectively ripping the door off the hinges. She allowed it to float in the air a little before reattaching it, though it did hang a bit crooked. Felicia turned to Arthur, trying to suppress the small smirk that was trying to creep onto her face. “I haven’t quite mastered the task of putting them back on straight, but I’ll get there.” She figured demonstrating her telekinesis was easier than trying to explain it. She frowned a little as she glanced back at the locker and waited a few moments before trying to bend the one edge to fit properly. She almost had it, but she supposed it would be better for a metal manipulator to fix it. She then started to walk forward again, as if nothing had ever happened.

[Arthur Bishop]

Arthur was on edge, there was no denying it, but he did his best to relax his shoulders as Felicia gestured to them. He nodded in appreciation of her attempt to console him as he tried not to look at her. He uttered a curt “thank you” at her words but wasn’t sure what else to say. It was strange to be comforted by a stranger, especially when that stranger was in some way your boss, and Arthur was made rather uncomfortable by the whole situation. He did not try to apologise again and hoped that the moment would pass on its own as one topic moved into the next. Arranging his features into his usual indifferent expression, Arthur pressed the conversation back in the direction of the girl and as far away from himself as possible. He allowed his eyes to drift back to Felicia as he asked about her powers.

Much to the prefect’s relief, Felicia did not push him. She embraced the question about her powers and Arthur felt himself relax now that he was out of the spotlight. Genuine curiosity drew him in as Felicia paused and stared hard at a locker door. He watched in bewilderment as she closed her eyes and seemed to concentrate on something beyond his comprehension. A moment later the locker door dislodged itself from its frame with a rattle. Arthur blinked in mild surprise and amusement, watching without comment as Felicia allowed the door to float in the air for a moment before fixing it (sort of) back into place. “Very impressive, Miss Blackwood,” there was a note of inflection to his voice, betraying his sincerity. Sticking his hands in his pockets, the hint of a smile played on his lips as they carried on down the hallway. Who would have guessed that the two austere prefects would bond over the casual destruction of school property?

“So, telepathy and telekinesis, then?” he asked although she had already demonstrated the answer, “or can you do something else as well?” Arthur suspected that was the end of the girl’s power list, but he asked for the sake of making conversation. “I’m afraid my powers aren’t so easy to demonstrate. and they can be somewhat difficult to explain. There seems to be a lot of rules to them and I haven’t figured them all out just yet,” he explained with an apologetic dip of his head. His powers were still something of a mystery, even to himself. He knew he could replicate the powers of others, but only under specific circumstances. It was difficult to find someone willing to inflict the kind of damage he needed to take in order to practise his powers. At least it seemed a safe topic of conversation for the moment.

[Felicia Blackwood]

Felicia seemed slightly confused when Arthur stopped looking at her. At first, she thought maybe he was under the impression that she was pitying him, which she was not. She was merely trying to identify with him so that he did not feel alone. Clearly, he was not really too thrilled by the idea, by the polite ‘thank you’ was appreciated by the commander. She decided that it would be best to latch onto his question and change topics, that way, he did not feel so uncomfortable. She was certainly not a passive person, but she could see the tension and uneasiness, and really, anyone who observed others closely could. She supposed it was a better idea to change the subject then to linger on something that might be annoying or even painful. In all honesty, she had not really disclosed the fact that she had been uncomfortable to anyone. She felt that she always needed to keep a strong facade, not just for herself, but for all of the students she protected and the team entrusted to her. After all, how could people follow or expect someone to protect them if said person was on a constant rollercoaster of emotions? A few strands of silvery-white hair fell into her face and she tucked them behind her ear again, so they would not obscure her view of the other prefect. She did not realize how long her hair had gotten since she arrived, and even upon her arrival, it had been long. She brushed the thoughts aside and decided to indulge her fellow prefect. After all, he had asked about her powers, and it would be rude of her to ignore or deflect the question.

Felicia could almost feel Arthur’s eyes staring at her and locker, but she did not seem to care too much. Her family was not exactly rich, famous, or involved in politics, but she knew what being watched felt like, and she was pretty much comfortable with it. She had done a school play or two when she was in middle school, but she never actively seeked time in the limelight. She was content to do what she did best and only occasionally get recognized for it. It seemed she had made an impression, since the inflection of his voice told her his words were sincere. A small smirk crossed her face and she resumed walking after fixing the locker into place as best she could. “Why thank you, Mister Bishop,” she replied, the smirk still lodged in place. Clearly, they seemed to have a few things in common, and maybe, just maybe, she had made an acquaintance, or even, dare she say it, a friend. It was probably more of the latter than the former, though. Still, having people that you could associate with in a room full of people as opposed to standing by yourself in a corner was a much better image for a prefect to project.

Felicia nodded to Arthur’s question, “Yes. Those are the only two I possess. I guess I’m not as… gifted as others, I suppose.” The young woman really did not mind only having two powers. After all, the one could easily hurt or kill people if she trained it to its’ absolute maximum, and the other could certainly cause damage to peoples’ psyches or even bring out a part of people they did not even realize they had. She honestly did not know which of the cons of both of her powers that she disliked more. She turned her attention to the young man as he spoke, nodding to let him know she was listening. “Not everyone can demonstrate their powers on a whim, and not everyone knows the extent of what they can do,” she reassured him, trying not to sound too kindly. “I can almost guarantee you that I have more applications for these two powers,” she added, “I just haven’t found them yet.” She glanced at him for a moment to two, staying silent as they walked. Her ruby eyes flicked to a nearby clock, and she was surprised to find that their patrol “shift”, so to speak, was coming to a close. The hallway that they were walking in was more familiar than the last, and she knew for a fact that they were nearing the prefect offices. She was suddenly hit by a wave of unexplained exhaustion and was glad she had finished that stupid paperwork earlier. She wanted to grab her schoolbag, go back to her dorm, and go to sleep.

When Felicia and Arthur reached Felicia’s office, the commander turned slightly, facing the other prefect directly. “It was a pleasure to meet and patrol with you, Mister Bishop,” she said with a small nod of the head. She then offered her hand once more, even though they had shaken hands before they started. She supposed bringing the whole thing full circle was not such a bad idea. “I bid you farewell for the night. And maybe, I can see that power of yours in action sometime, when you figure it all out.” She winked slightly and a sly smirk crossed her face as she slid her hand out of his. She headed into her office to grab her schoolbag and slung it over her shoulder, grabbed the keys from her desk. She then locked the door behind her before heading to the female prefect dorms to sleep for the night.