The Sign of The Phoenix by Culbert C. M

Author:Culbert, C. M.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-11-07T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

Despite Aitheria’s initial optimism, things regarding the new teacher Mr. Smyth did not get better. And it was not just Kailani’s group of friends that found his presence unsettling, the whole grade and several underclassmen had also expressed unease with him. Everyone except Aedelon, that was.

​“I just don’t see what you have against him,” Aedelon said. They sat in classroom VII, awaiting Mr. Clark for their government class.

​“He’s creepy,” Teagan remarked.

​“He’s very … vaguely misogynistic,” Aitheria added.

​“No he’s not -” Aedelon started but stopped when all the girls in the class glared at him.

​“I just don’t like his mustache,” Natalya said, doodling the same extremely detailed eye several times on a piece of paper.

​“Same,” Kailani agreed. “I mean, I don’t like mustaches to begin with - either grow a full beard or don’t. But his is just -” she shuddered and made a face.

​“What about a goatee?” Caedmar asked her.

​“Goatees are on icy footing. Sometimes they make you look like a wise sage and sometimes you look like you live in the woods and only come out for holy days,” Iona replied. “But I don’t think what Mr. Smyth has even counts as a goatee because the top part isn’t connected to the bottom part, y’know?”

“Remember last year when Uillian tried to grow a beard?” Marcel questioned.

“Yeah, and then the girls came over ‘for a sleepover’ with Cassi and held me down in the middle of the night and shaved it off and gave me a haircut,” Uillian exclaimed.

“It had to be done,” Iona said solemnly.

“I thought it looked ok,” Torlach commented. Cassi threw her hands in the air.

“You didn’t have to live with him!” Everyone laughed as there was a soft knock on the door. Uillian reached out with his hand and flicked his fingers, causing the metal hinges to swing the door open. Autumn came in carrying a tray with a towel over it. She placed it in the middle of the table, removing the cloth to reveal a batch of cookies.

“I know it’s a bit early in the morning,” she said cheerily. “But I thought it’d be a fun thing to do since Tehara Day is Friday and we don’t have school then.” Tehara Day was a national celebration for both the founding of the country and the Creator.

“Does your family celebrate Tehara Day?” Kailani asked Aitheria next to her. Aitheria nodded as they both took a cookie, which were surprisingly delicious.

“We do,” she replied. “Or at least the national stuff because we’re Yatora so we have our own religious stuff that we do. And my parents have always made a point of praying that the wars between Etain and Athamyn might stop - cause that’s why they had to leave Etain - and also for King Henrikahn because he put an end to the relentless persecution of the Yatoramani and Larelim peoples.” She stopped as Mr. Clark came in. Kailani quite liked Mr. Clark, he had a kind soul much as Mr. Cairns did, yet with a more subdued and less eccentric demeanor.

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