Principal Philip barges into the room, furious and about to fire every employee within his sight. But the rude comments and urgency he'd been faxed about seemed to elude the room full of decent lawyers. Even Shawn sat upright, displaying an air of decency he had never shown him or any figure who had disrespected his students.
Did the lawyers get to him before he could?
No… no, no. He finally had a strong backer to get Shawn down a peg, and it was all for naught!
"Everything seems fine here!" Philip said, not sure who to lash out at. "I presume someone wished for an iron hammer, yet all I see are harmless ducklings who have already reached an accord?"
"Had to explain a bit about the boss," said a lawyer. "You are too late in the case of Mr. Gibson, though." He pointed to the floor. "He doesn't have much talk left in him, I'm afraid."
"What did you do to the poor man?" Philip growled at Shawn. "I shall deal with both of you at once." He turned on his heels, stomping his way out and yelling at a clerk to get Klaire from her class.
When Klaire finally arrived, he shouted at her and Shawn. "Explain yourselves at once!"
"Okay…" Klaire looked around the room. "I got nothing. Who, what, why—go." She pointed at a lawyer and got the gist of the matter.
The way the lawyer bent backwards to Klaire's wimps made it clear that they had done this dance before. And that he feared Klaire more than anyone else in the room. For every question he didn't have an answer to, he'd release buckets of sweat. Shawn never bought into the fact that humans were sixty percent water. But after today, he'd trust the scientist more.
"I'm still a bit woozy about the 'who' part." Klaire's frown made the lawyer pass out, sending him crashing to the floor with a Splat.
"Mr. Tom," said a lawyer, making Klaire's frown deepen. "Mr. Toby O'Brian Mackerel… ass-up-his-head-tom!?"
"Oh…!" Klaire's confusion turned to cheer. "Been a while. How have all of you been?" She went in for a hug, only stopping because of Philip's glare.
"How can you not remember us?" they cried in unison.
"Were we close? Sorry. Maybe try your luck once you've turned into ghosts or whatever." Her genuine smile seemed like a warning. "I know where you live. I'll come by."
They looked at each other and shook their heads as one. "No, thanks. We are retiring soon."
"In fact, this is my last case." A lawyer raised his hand, and the rest jumped onto the same excuse.
"Aww! Now I don't have a reason to remember you by." Klaire pouted. "I'm a busy girl. Can we get down to why I am here?" she asked Philip in her best cheerleader persona.
The lawyers turned to Shawn for assistance, who shrugged and smiled at them. They then turned to Philip, who cleared his throat and swiped the air. "Expelled."
"That thing that's worse than death?" She chuckled. "At the risk of repeating myself—why?"
"We were promised an exemplary student upon enrollment," Philip said, stopping mid-sentence as he received new intel from a whispering lawyer. "Mid-term enrollment," he snickered. "If you had any parents or benefactors, we could've complained to them, held them responsible for a second chance, and let you continue."
Klaire tried to intervene, but Philip raised a hand while stepping farther away. "Decency, girl. Not that I expect such things from a bitchless pup." His face twisted in disgust. "But you hear when spoken to, and only respond when permission is granted. That's the decency one expects from students going to a renowned institute like Triple–S."
Klaire was ready to flatten him to the floor and turn him into the new carpet people walked over until his last breath, but the streets taught her patience. And for those who waited… they got rewarded with a wish—any single wish their heart desired.
"Sorry, sir." Klaire did a curtsey bow. "Please continue."
"Good." Philip puffed his chest while the lawyers, who had suddenly grown spines, stepped closer and handed him a file, smiling at Klaire.
Klaire smiled back. "Head office," she said, instantly making him falter.
The lawyers around him gasped and stepped away.
"We need to find new professions," they mumbled among themselves.
More like new souls, Klaire wanted to warn them, yet she prioritized her own situation and kept quiet.
Philip flipped the file open, ticking something off inside. "I see here you were missing half a day during your first day. My, my—if this isn't enough to ruin your career." His finger trailed lower. "Assault on our dear patron," he frowned, dismissing the next point. "A security guard. Here…" He smiled wider. "Roaming the roads like a hoodlum." He eyes her torn uniform stitched together in a hurry. "I doubt anyone with a bit of common sense will ever let you join any institution after I'm done writing your transfer certificate."
"Sir, if I may," Shawn tried to intervene.
"Didn't you already stick your long neck too far out for this girl?" Philip dismissed Shawn. "Thank him on the way out. Or rather, wait outside." He turned to Shawn with a mischievous grin. "He might be joining you soon."
"Unless he takes your high-ass place," Tsuna chuckled as she knocked at the door with her cane.
"The knock goes before the dialogue," Lilly scoffed.
"Read the situation, kid!" Tsuna mumbled with gritted teeth.
"Oops, sorry. Force of habit," Lilly said, bowing at the lawyers.
Tsuna clenched her teeth harder. "They are the bad guys!" she snapped, popping out, and Mr. Terror went around the room apologizing to every bad guy as he bumped into them.
He did catch up to the slippery teeth at some point, leaving a trail of saliva and aching feet in his wake.
"I'm missing a tooth!" he yelled, raising the dentures high. "It's the wisdom one."
"We are here for Klaire," Lilly declared, grabbing everyone's attention. "If you're going to kick her out, you have to draw out two more forms."
"Too far," Tsuna mumbled.
"And we'll spread rumors, truths, and everything in between until your institute is shut down."
"For God's sake, woman, shut up!" Tsuna stubbed Lilly's foot with her cane.
Lilly groaned, leaning forward to cradle her foot. Tsuna seized the opportunity to hook the handle of her cane into Lilly's shirt and yank her away. "Excuse her. She's new to this kind of dance." She smiled at Klaire, who was frozen in shock.
Lilly wore the latest floral dress for the meeting, wanting to display an air of wealth and power. But as Tsuna yanked on her dress, a few strands became entangled in her splintered cane, pulling her collar close and choking her.
Tsuna snapped her fingers. "Paper." She stretched her hand out and waited for papers that never came. "WOMAN!" she muttered aloud, her hand still outstretched. "Anytime today!"
Terror Junior skidded into the office, bowed to the lawyers and his superiors, and took Tsuna's hand, unsure why she, of all people, wanted assistance. "I'm here, Grandma," he said, puffing out his chest and standing straight. "No one can touch our fami—"
Tsuna punched Junior in the stomach, folding him in half. "Get me the damn paper from your mother's purse," she ordered, reclaiming her pose for another five minutes as Junior dug through Lilly's purse, ignoring his choking mother.
"I don't think a fake emergency will resolve this issue, Mom," he said, slapping away her hand for help. "Where are the papers? Also, what are the papers?"
"Oh!" Mr. Terror smacked his head, sticking out his tongue. "I think I got them," he giggled, checking his blazer pockets. "I took them from your mom to post on social media." He couldn't contain his huge, goofy smile. "Which reminds me, we have to go somewhere after school." He finally fished out an envelope and playfully tapped Klaire's forehead with it. "On second thought, let's go right now." He looked at her tattered uniform. "After shopping. If you'd like, of course."
"ENVELOPE!" Philip yelled. "Also, you can't take a student for a casual outing during class hours, Mr. Terror."
"Ah! So you agree she's still a student." Mr. Terror's response left Philip dumbstruck.
"Read the room, Dad!"
"And that's coming from Junior," Tsuna scoffed.
"Junior!" the lawyers gasped as one, stepping away—which scared Junior even more, making him hop onto Tsuna, who was surprisingly strong enough to hold him up.
"Not that, Junior!" Philip reassured them.
He ignored the weird family and tore open the envelope, prompting a gasp from Mr. Terror and a high-pitched screech from Junior.
"Oh!" The lawyers finally realized and relaxed.
"Daughter!" Philip spat the word like a curse.
Mr. Terror turned to Klaire and stretched his hands wide. "Klaire Terror," he announced.
Klaire took a step back, terror evident on her face. "No!" she said without thinking; her vision blurring; her shoulders sagging under the weight of surfacing memories. "I'm a Sowle," she said angrily.
Click!
A heel knocking against the marble floor halted the words in her mouth.
Click!
A sense of calm washed over her; the water trapped within her eyelids evaporated, clearing her vision.
Click!
She watched the soft glow in the Terrors' eyes, still intact. Still accepting. Waiting.
Click!
This had happened before, Klaire recalled. It was when—
Metelda strode into the room, her usual indifferent eyes holding a hint of fury.
———<>||<>——— End of Chapter Sixty-Five. ———<>||<>———