The Joys of Spring or: “Boys suck!” and “So do girls... with any luck.”

[Pan]

Duncan trotted outside into the welcoming morning air. His trademark scarf was absent, he wore a white shirt with rolled sleeves and a Burberry kilt. Anita Florence passed by accompanied by an unfamiliar boy, he greeted them both cheerfully and descended the steps from the main entrance. The golden light of day washed over him with a burst of warmth, he grinned and embarked on a stroll throughout the grounds.

The flora boasted by Dr. Cullen’s school was vivid and bright, it reminded him nothing of his home and the bleak romance of the wild Scottish Highlands but he relished the lush splendour of his surroundings all the same. Rainah Selvano had outdone herself in keeping the trees and plants in pristine condition all year round and now the fruits of her labour were there for all to see in the season when colours blossomed anew.

Taking a moment to relax, Duncan lowered himself onto a bench which sat in the long shade of an impressive Horse Chestnut tree. He had ten minutes before his next class began, they were a particularly delightful bunch of youngsters and he enjoyed their lessons together. In truth, the same could be said for all of his classes and he considered himself blessed to be working with such mature and engaging individuals.

He cast his mind back to the films he watched prior to taking his job; teen flicks revolving around high school life complete with conflicting cliques and outrageous shenanigans. It seemed silly to him now but he'd expected to find American schools to be just as they were depicted in the cinema, thankfully he was wrong: here at the institute there were no cliques, no divides, and no shallow conflicts. Here, students were mutants united.

Leaning back in his seat, he marvelled at the enormous tree which afforded him shade: if you were a high school student, thought Duncan, you would be a jock. Horse Chestnut trees were bold, healthy, domineering specimens which used their size to steal the light and keep others in the shade. They flanked the long driveway which led to the school but mingled amongst them were the smaller, beautiful Sugar Maples. These were the archetypal cheerleader types; pretty and vibrant, constantly animated, and change their colours dramatically depending on the season but their leaves are always prickly. The grass represented the geeks who were often walked upon but essential to the way of the world.

Congregated in tight knit groups across the premises were Grand Wormwood shrubs. These were the intellectuals; complex, bright, and shapeable. Like most shrubs, they mix well with others, possess great potential, and always a pleasure to watch grow. There are some shrubs which don't require much sunlight and often smell rather strongly, too. Then scattered randomly amongst the picturesque greenery were the wild flowering plants; these represented the remaining few, Duncan mused, who fail to fall into a specific category. Flowers were always pleasant to view from a distance, they lent splashes of colour and variety to their environment but despite having their uses, they were also difficult to manage and prone to cause problems. These plants were always worth a second look.

The clock tower chimed and Duncan rose from the bench, shaking his head in mild amusement. His class was about to begin and he needed to be rid of such inane thoughts. Gladly, he headed back to the main body of the school where the ring of laughter sounded, taking great pleasure in such a beautiful morning and anticipating what was bound to be a wonderful day. Spring had arrived.

[Ghost]

Hi, my name's Chris and I'm a Dandelion. I have a distinctive yellow head and am sometimes mistaken for a weed. I'm fairly attractive from a distance but admittedly, up close I'm not the best pick of the bunch. I am notorious for exuding a milky sap, which is pretty hideous but if handled properly, I can be fairly tasty. My short life at Mutant High has been spent mingling with the attractive crowd, causing problems for our carers and whenever my roomy is out, engaging myself furiously in some asexual relations.

But that's all changed now, thanks to Esme, a Rose: she looks gorgeous, smells sweet, and is sensuous and incredibly seductive. Alright, so she has her sharp bits too, but who am I to complain? This is the girl who's helping me get my pollen sacs off. God, I love her rose hips, and her rose bush is pretty neat as well. Most people wonder what a girl like that is doing with a weed like me but they're just jealous. Besides, I'm not a weed, I'm a Dandelion.

And I'm in love with Jacinda. I don't know what kind of flower she is except that she is some rare and wonderful species that resides somewhere deep within a rainforest where Dandelions can't go. And amongst all the wild wonders of the natural world, she is the most beautiful and desirable and all the little monkeys that live in that rainforest daren't drop their droppings in the wake of her majesty. I would snap my stem in twain just to catch a glimpse of her petals.

Not that it matters because she belongs to Carlos, a raging wildfire who burnt down the rest of the rainforest just to get to her. It is in the midst of a desolate wasteland of ashes and smoke that their unnatural romance was forged and I am forced to look on as she is held prisoner, enslaved to him and the whims of his perverse burning lust.

But things are looking up for this little Dandelion because Ethan, a superjock from Jacinda's past, has just arrived at the school and hopefully, he'll beat the dung out of Carlos. Then I'll get my chance - wish me luck!



Chris knocked on Jacinda's door.

[Jacinda Blake]

She was not hiding.

Sure, Jacinda had left the library and gone straight for her room yesterday. Sure, she'd been pleading sick from her morning classes today. She really didn't feel good! Presently she was in her closet, with the door shut and the little overhead lightbulb on, but that didn't mean she was hiding. She was leaned back against the wall, a cardboard box at her side that she had torn through the contents of..

On the floor of the closet around her were relics of a past Jacinda. A Swarovski rhinestone tiara. A white satin sash reading 'Homecoming Queen 2007'. Several photographs of her smiling brightly and looking like a Princess in a white prom dress on the arm of an equally perfect looking Ethan in a black tuxedo. Some serious poses, some whacky with her eyes crossed and him smiling like a goof. There were pictures of them in front of a limo before the dance. Pictures of them riding on the Apple Valley Arrows football teams parade float together. Pictures of her with her 'Arrows cheerleading squad. Pictures of them from a photobooth at the mall, four vertical shots, the first one they were smiling, the last three they were kissing and being otherwise obnoxious..

And then it had all gone to Hell.

Why did he have to be here? Now? She was not forgiving him. Ever.

A knock at her door drew her attention. There were only a handful of people, not counting faculty, that she would even consider speaking to right now and Ethan Evans was not on the list.

She quietly twisted the closet door knob, not betraying a sound. Using her abilities, just a little, she breathed in drawing any sound or smell from the other side of the door to her, to determine who it was before commiting to being in the room at all...

It was quiet. Definitely a male, wearing a hint of coconut.. maybe a touch of some male antiperspirant and... Clinique Happy...

Aha! Chris...

Jacinda scrambled to her feet and pulled the closet door shut behind her discreetly. She bounded across the room and opened the door yanking him in before anyone else took note that she was in fact in her room.

"Shh.. quiet. I'm not here." She intoned with all seriousness.

[Ghost]

"Well, if you're not here I'll just make myself at home until you get back. It's going to get lonely though..."

Chris crossed her room and sat on the edge of her bed. From the nightstand, he plucked a book, it was her personal diary and he opened it on a blank page.

"Perhaps some light reading," he said and cleared his throat, "April fourteenth, Ethan is back in my life and I don't know what to do about it. Hiding away doesn't seem to be solving the problem so perhaps I should talk to someone I can trust. Chris, maybe..."

He looked up at her expectantly.

[Jacinda Blake]

With a mock growl, Jacinda dived across the bed, and crawled over Chris in a made grab for the book. She grabbed her diary out of his hands and after thwapping him with it, several times, she shoved it under her mattress. Not seriously angry with her friend. She settled next to him, leaning against the headboard and tucked her knees up to her chest.

"Why does he have to come here?!" She sounded so personally affronted.

"I'm sure there are other perfectly good schools for mutants somewhere else in the world.. like Siberia.. Can't he go there?" She thudded the back of her head against the bed and groaned...

[Ghost]

"You know, there's nothing stopping us from going to Siberia."

It had been said pensively and hung in the air long enough for Chris to look over his shoulder and find Jacinda sitting against her headboard, staring into space with contemplation. She broke her gaze and their eyes met, both grinned. Light plunged in through her window and set her blonde locks ablaze like endless golden cornfields.

"Come on," he urged tenderly, "What's wrong?"

[Jacinda Blake]

"Ethan. He's what's wrong." She sighed dropping her legs straight, and then to the floor.

She walked to the closet door and bent to retrieve a single picture from the mess on the floor. Jacinda sat again next to Chris and handed over the picture of her with Ethan, on their way into the school dance. A perfectly matched pair of nitwits if she ever saw one..

"That was taken about an hour before my abilities ripped the school's gymnasium down...", she didn't elaborate. Most of her friends knew that story. It was almost theraputic to get out the worst things they'd been through before life at Cullen's.

"What I left out of the tale was that..", she breathed shaky. "It was him who hurt my feelings and triggered the whole thing..."

[Ghost]

The photo rested in his open hands, he tilted it away from the sun's glare and examined it closely. Two pairs of perfect smiles gleamed at him through the picture; Ethan looked exactly like he had the day previous when he arrived at the school, except he hadn't been wearing a tuxedo, and Jacinda looked arrestingly beautiful in a white dress. Her hair was lifted, exposing her slender neck, and stray tendrils of curled locks crashed down upon her shoulders. He glanced up at her and he grinned, no picture could surpass the real thing.

"You're too photogenic for your own good," he said and returned his attention to the photograph, "So this was the calm before the storm, eh?"

"Jacinda," he continued, "If this muscle-bound turd-burgler hurt your feelings, he isn't worth this... or that!"

The picture in his hand was poked in the direction of the open wardrobe and the other pictures scattered within it. Her nostalgic stash hadn't gone unnoticed.

"He isn't worth losing your smile over, know what I mean?"

[Jacinda Blake]

"I know.. you're right.." She sat in front of the closet and started shoving the stuff back into the box, none to gently..

"Besides!", she said brightly.. "I have Carlos now. He's much hotter." She turned and winked over her shoulder, dramatically delivering the double entendre.

She kicked the box out of the way and shut the closet door. "So what's on the agenda for today?" Jacinda was determined to leave her room now and not let Ethan's presence bother her..

[Ghost]

The remark about Carlos struck him in the gut and twisted like a knife. His expression was sober and he shrugged, suddenly aching for Esme. He rose from the bed, his feet scuffed the floor as he crossed the room and he considered Jacinda's question.

"Well, there's double art and Mad Yamada has something special planned... should be interesting..."

The sentence trailed off and Chris was filled with a grim sense of foreboding. Art lessons with Professor Yamada were unpredictable at best and otherwise outrageous. Jacinda had turned to her desk, paper and stationary arranged neatly on top, and was rifling through a drawer.

"So what did Superjock do to upset you?" he asked absently, "Said one boob was bigger than the other?"

[Jacinda Blake]

Jacinda was completely oblivious to Chris' feelings on her and Carlos. To her they were just a gang of friends and she and Carlos just happened to be more than that. Besides he had Esme and that was not a subject she was likely to open up again anytime soon after they had already had one fight over the 'pheremone fanning femme'..

She grabbed what she would need for class and shoved it into a bag, which was tucked over her shoulder. "Oh, probably nothing that anyone else at that school wouldn't have done. He just freaked out on me at the dance, acted like I suddenly grown furry and fanged and then left me to be taken down by a tranquilizer dart without so much as a 'Well Jas, it's been swell..', but I'm not bitter.."

Running some gloss over her lips and touching a bit of gardenia scented oil behind her ears, she turned, ready to go. "He's just a creep. Ready?"

[Ghost]

"Yep."

Chris raised a battered old Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pencil case to emphasise his point. Under his other arm was propped his portfolio and with some difficulty, he prized the door open and allowed her through, closing it behind them.

"Who can blame him really?" he thought aloud, "You do have serious wind issues."

Timed to perfection, he dodged Jacinda's swat and took off down the corridor with her on his heels. The school bell sounded marking the start of the next lesson and they flew up the three flights of stairs, Jacinda quite literally, until they reached the art department where Professor Yamada was waiting.

[Banzai]

"Welcome welcome! Hurry!"

Professor Yamada's wide open arms snapped together and the clap of her hands cracked throughout the otherwise still classrooms. She beamed at her students as they approached her and the uncertain glance they shared went unnoticed.

Isabelle Yamada was a short plump woman with eclectic dress sense; she wore a white knitted jumper with a breast of embroidered pearls and a flowing azure poodle skirt, a red twist scarf was wrapped around her bulbous neck and from her ears dangled earrings resembling emerald dice. Her feet were bare.

"Christopher," she pointed forcefully at the classroom door, and Chris took the hint, her smile never faltered, "Jaciiindaaa! Ahaha!"

She gave the girl a knowing look from over her plastic orange spectacles and pinched her playfully on the hips. It was fun to have a secret like the X-Men to share with members of the student body and since her induction, Jacinda had become one of her favourites. She plodded gleefully after her as she escaped into the classroom and gave her one last tickle.

"Very good! Yes, welcome!"

She paused and pointed a long red nail at each student, she counted seven students instead of ten. Her hands fell to her hips and she released a guttural sigh. She addressed her class with visible discontent.

"And who are we missing today?"

[Jacinda Blake]

Jacinda giggled a hello to Professor Yamada. She was a joy in class, and to be around as a team member of the X-men. When the brightly colored teacher made to give chase with hip tickles, Jacinda outright squealed and danced out of her reach.

She retrieved her smock from a peg on the wall and was tying a neat little bow at the small of her back when the art teacher inquired as to who was missing. Right away Jacinda had noted Carlos' absence, but it would not be the first time he was late for class, especially a morning class, she grinned to herself.. Who else was missing..

Her blue eyes darted around the room. Katie Pierce was missing, but she had not been feeling well, last Jacinda heard. Esme wasn't there either. She looked over toward Chris for confirmation, he just shrugged.

So flippin' helpful..

"Carlos, Esme and Katie are absent Professor Yamada.", she clarified for the teacher.

[Banzai]

"Carlo!" she crowed, throwing her hands into the air, "Why always Carlo? I despair for that boy!"

On the wall there was a large clock fashioned in the style of Dalí's famous melting clocks, Isabelle hated it for she could never tell the time off the damn thing, she leaned forward and with both hands forced her glasses against her face until her skin started to mold around the frame. Her eyes narrowed.

"It's five minutes past nine, professor," called a voice from the back.

"I know what time it is!" she hissed, waving her hand frantically in the direction of the student who'd spoken. She turned to the class and clapped her hands twice.

"Okay please! Pallets and brushes at the ready! I will find the disappearing children! Don't drown your brushes in the water! Relaaaxxx... aaarrrt..."

On the table behind her sat a brand new portable audio system, she hit a button and it began to play soothing Chinese folk music. The professor started to sway and wove her hands through the air in time with the music.

"Yes, you like Yamada's boom box. Er Quan Ying Yue. Enjoy..."

As the students collected their painting materials, Isabelle sauntered out of the room quite peacefully until, once she was out of sight, her hysterical wailing began:

"Carlo! Carlo! Carlo! Latino lazy! Five minutes past nine... I phone Professor Rhee! I'm ashamed for my life..."

[Caresse]

Esme walked into the room, wincing slightly at Professor Yamadas' wailing. She smiled as she caught Chris' eye, giving him a tiny peck on the cheek as she went to collect her materials.

"Bonjour, mon petit chou, ca va?"

[Ghost]

Throughout Professor Yamada's nonsense, Chris kept his head buried in his sketch pad and continued work on a cartoon featuring their art teacher bearing an uncanny resemblence to Dragonball Z's Cell character after he'd swollen to gargantuan proportions to blow up the world. He looked up the moment Esme entered the room and his expression became bright. He followed her to the supplies bench and rested his hands on her waist.

"Très bon!" he muttered from behind with a seedy French drawl, "Et vous, ma pêche savoureuse?"

To emphasise his point, he gave her bum a squeeze.

[Carlos Calaveras]

“Carlo!”

Carlos skidded around a hallway corner, the polished surface almost taking his feet out from beneath him. The sound of Professor Yamada's voice had caught him off guard and, in spite of having a fairly indifferent attitude towards getting punished, a scolding from Banzai was the last thing he wanted at nine in the morning. It was like being told off by a flock of hysterical crows.

He winched as she gave another wail, which urged him to jog on quickly into the art room.

“Mi dios, un qué ruido,” he muttered, edging through the other students until he found his place. Without any ceremony, his drawing pad and pencils fell onto the desk. The sketchbook looked thoroughly beaten and was full, for the most part, of drawings that Professor Yamada did not approve of, of superheroes and monsters. Of particular note was one sketch of Jacinda as The Tempest which was, as Carlos had argued, anatomically perfect and therefore a masterpiece worthy of serious commendation. The Professor did not seem to agree.

Bleary-eyed, he looked around the class.

“What are we doing today?”

[Jacinda Blake]

"Trouver une chambre.. huh?" Jacinda shot Chris a look, and stuck her tongue out. Although Esme didn't ever seem to mind the public groping, so who was she to complain..?

To Carlos, Jacinda beamed a slightly too cheerful for first thing in the morning grin, followed up with an affecitonate ribbing. "Buenos días, perezoso.. Nice of you to fall out of bed again.." She was busy lining up her brushes in an orderly line at the top of her easel. She'd already retrieved her paints which were equally as ordered, and set before her..

One could never tell with Banzai if the class was going to be planned or random, so Jacinda was just going to start painting whatever came to mind and to be honest she did rather like the music, even if it made her crave wonton soup with a passion!

[Caresse]

She giggled as Chris groped her bum, turning around and kissing him some more. She whispered something dirty into his ear before taking her spot between Chris and Jacinda. She set up her easel, taking a large box of chalk pastels and setting it on the ledge at the bottom of her paper. "Chris, do you know what we're doing today? Has Mme. Yamada set out a lesson plan, or are we winging it today?"

[Banzai]

"Settle down! Thank you! Shut up!"

Isabelle's voice sailed over the din of her class, she waddled to the centre of the room and clasped her hands while she assessed the layout of the easels; they formed a neat semi-circle and the students wisely stood in plain view. She muttered something to herself in Japanese then addressed her students.

"Couple of announcements: Katie Pierce has toilet problem and will not be joining us. Second announcement: I put you in pairs for Yamada's special surprise. Christopher! Carlo!"

She blurted their names with such sudden force that a couple of students flinched. When the boys looked up, her bright smile returned and she gracefully gestured to a couple of easels to her left.

"Where I can see you, yes?"

The boys did as requested, albeit with gloomy resignation, and she proceeded to arrange the rest of the class into pairs until she arrived finally at:

"Jaciiindaaa!" she sang, the features of her face scrunched with wicked delight and she directed the blonde-haired girl to a free easel. Then she snapped her fingers at Esme, "And you French girl, please. Thank yooouuu!"

There was one student left over, a boy with ginger hair and pale freckled skin. He was student number nine and the professor took it upon herself to become his partner for the lesson. As he joined her in the centre of the room with his own apparatus, he gave his classmates a last look like a lamb separated from the flock in the middle of wolf country.

"Okay, I tell you Yamada's plan! Today you paint partner portrait but you must exprrreeesss: love, hate, honesty, the truth! Now turn your easel back-to-back like..."

But the professor was drowned out by the chorus of screeching wood across the classroom floor, she cringed, spun around and violently yanked the volume slider on her music player. The noise was met with a rush of bamboo flutes and slowly, she turned around, bobbing slightly. The students were silent.

"And begin! Hurry! Aaarrrt..."

[Ghost]

From the sunken wooden tray beneath his canvas, Chris siezed a brush, he caught Carlos's eye and muttered:

"Remind me to slip a Xanax in her morning Karigane next time."

He glanced at the professor, she approached the canvas like a Tai Chi master and weilded her brush like an elegant jian, he shook his head darkly.

"She's starting with the Repulse Monkey form. Oh well, at least she didn't offer herself up as a nude... again."

He dipped the tip of the brush in his water jar and considered his work; his mind was as blank as the canvas.

[Carlos Calaveras]

Carlos shuddered at the thought of a memory he'd rather not have revisited. He positioned himself in front of his easel and, leaning out to one side, peered at Chris. His brush hung still in the air, poised but as of yet uninspired. Carlos frowned.

“Yo, Casper,” he whispered. “What's the deal with you and frenchie?”

[Ghost]

The vacant expression vanished from his face and he peered around the edge of his easel, his features practically aglow. Thus far he had failed to land a single brush stroke yet when talking about Esme, inspiration came quickly.

"Mate, let's just say I gave her the tour," he whispered, barely able to contain his excitement, "In the Wilde Carriage of Love!"

He grinned devilishly and added, "I'm telling you, for the things she can do I feel I should be paying her! So err..."

His voice lowered further and he nodded discretely in her direction, eyeing Carlos expectantly, "What do you think? Fit, eh?"

[Jacinda Blake]

Her perky smiled dropped, but only a little. It could be worse, Esme was lovely.. She would be a nice subject anyways..

Jacinda angled her chair and easel until she was comfortable enough, and then grabbed a charcoal to set to work on the delicate lines that were Esme. The mood music was a bit louder than she would have liked now, but at least it drowned out Chris' chatter and Professor Yamada's overly dramatic intonations..

[Caresse]

Esme had a similar reaction to her partner - it could be worse. She took a pastel in hand, setting it on her page and started drawing. Es leaned closer to Jacinda, a mischievous grin on her face as she caught a glimpse of Carlos and Chris.

"Hmm, so that's Carlos? You two are an item?"

[Jacinda Blake]

Jacinda gazed askance over at Carlos and Chris. "Mhmm, yep. That's Carlos. Yeah, we sort of hooked up this semester."

The morning light streaming in the window cast Esme's pale hair in a glow, which rather inspired Jacinda toward a more abstract feel for the painting. She finished up with the soft facial lines quickly wanting to get to the actual paints..

"Maybe you and Chris could hang out with us some time?"

Carlos, Chris and Jacinda were quite used to sitting around hanging out, but throwing the lovely Esme into the mix would shake things up for sure. If she was Chris' girl, Jacinda would make an effort to like her though..

[Carlos Calaveras]

Carlos found himself grinning to, though more at Chris than with him. She was pretty, but in a kind of self-aware way. At a glance, she reminded Carlos of a girl he'd date once who – he'd soon realized – didn't want a boyfriend, but a slave.

“I guess all your Christmases came at once, huh,” he laughed, smiling lop-sidedly as Esme and Jacinda looked their way.

[Banzai]

"Giiirls?"

Isabelle had caught the girls staring across the room. She stood frozen with the fine tip of her brush flexed gingerly on the canvas but from over the top of her spectacles bright eyes were trained on the offending students.

"Your painting need your time, please."

The girls returned their attention to their work but the professor wasn't finished yet, and in an astonishing display of grace and agility she spun around and barked:

"You too, Mister Christopher!"

She lunged like a veteren fencer and pointed her paintbrush at the yellow-haired boy. Her face trembled with condemnation and his was soiled with a spattering of red paint which had flown through the air.

"Your paint goes on canvas not face! Clean up! Hurry!"

[Ghost]

For as long as he dared, Chris glowered into thin air in the wake of the professor's mishap, he felt the streak of cold wet specks begin to run and retreated to the bench to retrieve paper towels. Suppressed laughter came from the back of the class and Chris tensed, behind him Professor Yamada was humming along with the music.

"Ping Hu Qiu Yue," she said with delight, her brush danced upon the canvas, "Still Lake Under Autumn Moon. My favourite."

His jaw clenched and he threw the used paper towels into the sink. It wasn't until after he skulked back to his easel and lifted his brush that inspiration struck. He smirked and started to paint.

"Things are a bit weird now that Ethan bloke's here..." he muttered to his friend from behind the canvas.

[Carlos Calaveras]

Carlos stifled a snigger, avoiding the wrath of Professor Yamada by hiding behind his easel. He made a few brush-strokes on the canvas, placed with surprising skill, and was just getting into his picture when Chris spoke again. Carlos, admitedly, hadn't really been paying attention to what Chris had said, and just the word 'Ethan' had jumped out at him.

“What, the Boss Man?”

Ever since he had been inducted into the X-Men team by John Rhee, Carlos had been eager to see the Ethan Daniels again. He looked up and around the room, brow creasing in confusion when he failed to spot the Headmaster.

[Ghost]

"No. Ethan. Jas's old flame from Apple Valley. He's come to Mutant High."

His lips hardly moved as he spoke but he kept the volume of his voice loud enough just so Carlos could hear. Engrossed in his painting, he swabbed his brush around the inside of the water jar, smeared blue paint across his pallet, added a smidgen of red, whisked until it arrived at a deep plum and resumed his brush strokes. When he muttered, his voice carried the slightest hint of surprise.

"Didn't she tell you?"

[Carlos Calaveras]

“Old flame?”

Carlos eased back down into his seat. He looked mildly confused, as if it was taking his head a little while to catch up with what his ears had heard. Then, with both eyebrows lifted, he gave a small shrug.

“Nah. She told me once that they were all jerks, pretty much, but other than that she doesn't talk about her old school.”

He painted a little more slowly now, frowning faintly in concentration.

“So, this guy's like... a student here now?”

[Ghost]

"That's right. He arrived yesterday."

A silence fell between them for a moment, a void filled by the swell of huqin strings, and Chris caught Esme's eye across the room. His face was filled with mischief, he repeatedly dipped his brush into the water and gave her a wink, the suggestion was clumsy but it gave her a giggle. He returned to his work.

"He's already spoken to professor Rhee about starting a football team, so I've heard. Big lad, you should see him, one of those captain-of-the-team types: I tell you what, if he flashed that smile at me even I'd have to think twice. Hahaha!"

His laughter caught the attention of Professor Yamada but he met her steely glare and left her disarmed by flashing her one of her own trademark grins. His painting resumed.

"No wonder she doesn't want to talk about it."

[Caresse]

"That would be nice."

She winced as Yamada flicked paint at Chris, but couldn't hold back a giggle at his suggestion. Esme caught his eye, winking and stinking her tongue out at him.

"So, who is this Ethan guy? Chris mentioned him, but he didn't give me any details. I think I saw him in the gym the other day - quite a hottie, huh?"

[Jacinda Blake]

The mention of Ethan had made her squeeze out a bit too much orange into her yellow, on the palate.. As a result Jacinda had to grit her teeth and add more yellow to achieve the sunflower color she was envisioning..

"Umm, yeah he would be in the gym wouldn't he?" She smirked and swirled her brush through the color..

"Well.. it's an old story and it's over now, but we were together at our old school. Personally, I think I'm twice cursed that he's here now.. Last person I wanted to see if you get my meaning.. "

She didn't need to comment on Ethan's good looks. They were plain enough for anyone to see. Didn't matter anyway.. She had eyes only for Carlos now.. Risking Madame Yamada's ire, she cast another slightly besotted gaze his way.

Chris looked rather irked about something, going at his canvas in a flurry.. Well at least the art teacher would be pleased with his progress..

[Caresse]

"Mmmhmmm," she was busy blending colors with her index finger, casting a look over her shoulder at the boys at the same time as Jacinda. "Old flames can always be..irksome. I would hate to think what Chris would do if he ever met any of mine!"

[Jacinda Blake]

Jacinda nodded in agreement. Chris was a hothead and would inevitably say the wrong thing in that situation. "Yes, let's hope they don't suddenly enroll as well."

Tucking her paintbrush between her teeth, Jacinda switched back to a charcoal pencil to add in some more fine lines around the edge of the canvas, every so often peeking over at Esme for a reference..

"He does like you a lot.. and he's a really great guy..", Jacinda said, off handedly..

[Carlos Calaveras]

Carlos laughed along with Chris, though perhaps with not as much gusto.

“Eh, it's in the past. If she doesn't want to talk about it, doesn't bother me.”

He shrugged and resumed work on his painting – though was halted, suddenly, when his paint-brush burst into flames. The Professor glared at him with goggle-eyes, and he quickly picked up replacement, hoping that no one would notice the tiny pile of ash the slip had left behind.

[Caresse]

"Well, if any of my exes enrolled here, heaven forbid, I'd be more worried about Chris then them, you know? He is adorable, but a fighter he is not. I mean, if Ethan or Carlos saw you with the other one, even if it was just a friendly chat, I'd be worried they'd start a fight or something. Especially if either of them has a huge mouth like Chris...Sometimes words cause more trouble than you'd think."

[Jacinda Blake]

"Ha.. yeah. Well.. as I don't have two words for Ethan right now, there shouldn't be much to worry about.." Jacinda grinned..

She started mixing a variety of colors, pinks.. blues.. even some dark reds on her palate and looking fairly determined to get to work on all of them at once, stopping only to sniff curiously..

"Is something burning?" Her gaze slid curiously over to Carlos...

[Ghost]

“Eh, it's in the past. If she doesn't want to talk about it, doesn't bother me.”

"Best way to be, mate."

Although his voice was hushed, he made it as reassuring as possible. His intent gaze could've burnt a hole through the canvas and the faint whiff of scorched wood made him smirk.

"It's a quality of yours I've always admired - envied, actually - the way you deal with stuff. Some people have trouble letting go of things like the past, buried feelings, old grudges. I suppose a Memory Box is one way of dealing with it..."

[Carlos Calaveras]

As Chris spoke, Carlos carefully smoothed lines of paint across the canvas with a steady hand. The brush wasn't his medium of choice, but the portrait of Chris was beginning to come to life in translucent watery colours.

“Memory Box?”

[Ghost]

"You use it to store little tokens from your past to remind you of happy times; trinkets, pictures, letters, that kind of thing. For girls, really, like Jacinda. Sickly sweet sentimentality with a smack of nostalgic nonsense."

He hummed along with the melody of the Yangzi Waterballet until he realised what he was doing and cast a wary glance around the classroom.

[Carlos Calaveras]

Chris's rendition of the Waterballet made Carlos grin. Casper was many things, but musically inclined was not one of them. He considered, then, what his friend had said. The idea of Jacinda keeping a box full of memories didn't seem at all alien. His sister had done something similar, storing away little 'important' things in a shoe box. One day, one of Carlos' older brothers had discovered the treasure trove and exposed it to the rest of the family – much to his little sisters misery.

“Eh, you know how girls are...”

[Caresse]

"Ha.. yeah. Well.. as I don't have two words for Ethan right now, there shouldn't be much to worry about.." Jacinda grinned..

She started mixing a variety of colors, pinks.. blues.. even some dark reds on her palate and looking fairly determined to get to work on all of them at once, stopping only to sniff curiously..

"Is something burning?" Her gaze slid curiously over to Carlos...

Esme wrinkled her nose, glancing over her shoulder at Carlos. When she turned back to Jacinda, she had a little grin on her face.

"Hmm, I'd hate to see what he'd do to Ethan "accidently" if he found out he'd hurt your feelings...Even if Ethan deserved it, Carlos would be the one who got in trouble..."

[Jacinda Blake]

"You make a good point..", She stopped painting for a moment and rested her hands in her lap. Carlos didn't have anything to worry about, and she didn't think he'd do anything stupid but still.. they should probably have the 'Ethan Talk', just so that he knew what was up..

"Well.. I sort of took the cowards way out yesterday and went to bed early. So later, after class, I'll give Carlos a heads-up on Ethan. Although I think Damien was the one who went into vengance mode yesterday..."

Jacinda giggled at the memory of the little imp diving out of the tree, earning herself a stern look from Professor Yamada.. again. "Sorry Professor...", she muttered..

[Banzai]

A grunt issued from the back of her throat which could've been mistaken for the lowing of some ancient cow and she returned to the task at hand. Presently, she was lighting incense sticks to combat the burning odour, her hefty posterior reared up like a small mountain of azure frills. Delicate trails of olive smoke snaked into the air and she sighed happily. The scent of fresh Sandalwood diffused throughout the room.

"Good music need good smell to enjoy..." she muttered to herself.

The music had ceased and the professor sought to replace the disc with a new one. The music resumed with the plucking of lute strings. Sadly, it was not her favourite, Voyage to China, it had been missing for two weeks after inexplicably disappearing from her office. Despite her most valiant efforts of interrogation, the culprit remained anonymous and Isabelle feared she had heard the last of her favourite music. She cradled the small stack of CDs for a moment then placed them back on the table to return to her painting.

"Yes, yes... Yamada love good music. Chinese music. Only thing Chinese good for is music! And greasy food! Ahaha! Our secret!"

[Ghost]

“Eh, you know how girls are...”

"The best and worst thing in the world," he said absently.

His eyes narrowed with scrutiny at his painting, it was almost complete and to his surprise, he found himself quite pleased with his work. In the past, he attempted subtlety in his art since that usually got the best marks but subtlety wasn't his strength. The portrait was bold and dynamic and the colours leapt of the canvas. It made him grin.

"Oi!" he whispered, poking his head around the side of the easel, "What's your next class?"

[Carlos Calaveras]

“Uhh...”

Carlos racked his brains. His memory wasn't great, even at the best of times. A glance down at his messenger bag - sports socks spilling out of it - and he remembered. He groaned.

“Gym - caray!”

[Caresse]

"It's always best to tell the truth, especially in relationships. Trust me," her grin turned a little sheepish. "Guys love when you lie, but not about things like this. Sure, it's easy to avoid talking about it, but it means it could be even messier later."

[Jacinda Blake]

"Guys love when you lie....."

Right, mental note: In the future - never heed advice from Esme.

Her painting of Esme was nearing completion, and Jacinda had to say.. It was one of her better ones. She could only attribute it to the fact that she was bouncing back from a really bad start to the year. She was.. happy.

She'd captured Esme's signature smile, looking rather like she was up to something at all times. Her pale hair was lit with sunbeams, but in truth the way the edging of flowers all leaned from the border toward her, it was pretty obvious that she was the sun.. All her little floral minions were just leaning toward her eager to do her bidding. She hoped Esme liked it..

Jacinda dipped a small brush into a tiny speck of black paint and affixed her signature entwinted initials to the bottom corner of the painting..

She yawned. "Are we about done here..? This music is putting me to sleep.."

[Banzai]

Five minutes passed and the bell marking the end of the current lesson was about to sound. Normally, Isabelle was happy to allow her students to continue their work and finish in their own time, much to the chagrin of the rest of the teaching staff, but today she wanted to end her class differently. She checked her watch; it was a small, elegant piece of gold jewellery which dug painfully into her thick wrist, then she lowered her paintbrush and clapped her hands twice, mixing the paint on her fingertips.

"Attention! Your class nearly over! No more painting, thank you! Carlo stop farting about!"

The students proceeded to empty out the water pots, clean their brushes and paletes, and return their aprons to the pegs on the back wall. The professor watched them eagerly and her face brightened when she was joined by her own partner. She rubbed her hands with hungry excitement. She addressed the class clearly with her loud shrill voice.

"And now for ceremony! We reveal painting to class then present to partner as gift of friendship, yes? Go round in semi-circle one at time, finishing with Carlo and Christopher."

Her open hand gestured to the boys, to whom she gave a warm smile, then she turned promptly on her heel and raised a finger.

"But first! Jaciiindaaa!"

[Jacinda Blake]

"Yes, Professor..."

Jacinda rose from her stool and lifted the still slightly tacky canvas from the easel. She started the rotation around the class with the art teacher and her partner, pausing to give them each time to examine how she had captured Esme in paint.

She moved along to Chris and Carlos, somewhat sheepishly. They were much better artists than she was, but she did have a knack for painting, if not sketching.. She hoped Chris liked the painting, as it was of his girl and all.. Out of sight of Professor Yamada, Jacinda gave Carlos a quick wink. They had plans later and she was quite looking forward to tonight..

Lastly she came full circle to Esme and turned the picture toward her, feeling somewhat shy. She didn't know what kind of a reception the French girl would have.. She was a hard one to read..

[Caresse]

Esmes' face lit up as she saw Jacindas' work. It had turned out much better than she'd hoped (frankly, she was worried the other girl would've depicted her a giant pair of breasts and blonde hair).

It was her turn to show off her work - a portrait of Jacinda in soft chalky pastels, her hair blowing in a soft breeze. "Taa-daa."

[Jacinda Blake]

Jacinda smiled.. It was pretty good!

"Thanks, Esme.. that's really nice.."

She reclaimed her seat and waiting to see what the other's had captured of their partners..

[Carlos Calaveras]

One by one, the students display their masterpieces. In the time they'd been given, they'd all managed to come up with something decent. Carlos was actually pretty proud of what he'd done, and when the time came for him to show his piece to the class, he did so with a smile. The portrait of Chris had been done in watery colours, as was befitting. The ghostly face looking out from the picture was wearing a mischievous half-smile.