me. I was really happy to have met him. It was true—I felt really comfortable with him like we’d been friends for years.
Did I want him?
Okay, maybe I did. It was never going to happen, though. I wasn’t ready yet, and I didn't want to let my wounds cause someone else pain. And besides, Kole… He’d never been in a relationship. He’d told me that he wasn’t able to be in one on account of his job. So, it was a futile thought for me to have.
When it was finally time for my one on one with Mr. McCloud, Kole and I went up and sat down in front of his desk. All the parents were gathered around the snack table, and I could’ve sworn the volume of their conversation lowered a couple of notches as eavesdropping ears turned towards us.
“Mr. Plaintail,” Mr. McCloud said, offering his hand. “And…I’m sorry, we’ve never met.”
“Kole Shadowborn,” Kole said. “I’m a friend of Markos, and Elise’s tutor.”
“Oh, wonderful,” he said. “I didn’t know she had a tutor. That’s excellent to hear. Do you do general studies?”
“Divination,” Kole said, smiling innocently.
“Divination,” Mr. McCloud repeated, looking surprised. “Mr. Plaintail, I’ve spoken to you before about Elise’s issues focusing in class. It seems that this divination subject is the cause of her distraction. I’m surprised to hear that you’re encouraging it.”
“Well, it’s what she loves. I told her that if she wants to get into a good academy, she needs to work hard in class, and she said she would try.”
“She’s been trying, but she still has major troubles with distraction. Focusing on this…hobby…is, in my opinion, not going to help her.”
“It’s her decision,” I said. “I’m going to encourage what excites her, and this excites her.”
“My concern—and I mean no offense to you, Mr. Shadowborn—is that divination is a dubious route to go for a child her age. We live in a modern world. Of course, it’s only my opinion. What is a problem, however, is that Elise has been giving readings to the other children in the class.”
Kole and I exchanged a look.
“As her instructor, I’ll speak to her about that,” said Kole. “She’s not nearly at the skill level to be doing it.”
“The thing is she is quite good at it,” Mr. McCloud went on, “to the point where she’s gotten several of the other kids distracted by it.” He pulled open his drawer and put a book on the table—Divination for Beginners. “This has become the most requested book in the school library. I had to pull it just to make sure these kids stayed focused on their studies. I’ve had to talk to several other parents about this today. It’s wonderful she has a hobby she’s good at. I encourage that. But if it’s a distraction to the other children, then it’s a problem.”
“I don’t see what their performance has to do with my daughter,” I said. “But I’ll remind her that she needs to stay focused during class.”
“I would appreciate it if you asked her to keep her interests in divination outside of school.”
“Now, that’s a bit ridiculous, don’t you think? It’s what she loves.”
“If she can’t stop disrupting the trajectories of the other kids, it will be a major problem. The other parents agree with this. Please, Mr. Plaintail. Otherwise, we’ll have to reconsider Elise’s enrollment next year.”
“Always wonderful meeting with you. Is that everything?”
“That’s everything. Please understand where I’m coming from, Mr. Plaintail. Elise has a lot of potential, but I’m afraid it’s being wasted.”
I gave him a forced smile, patted his desk, and stood up. Kole followed me.
“I’m not gonna tell her she can’t geek out about divination,” I said to him, “but she shouldn’t be giving readings.”
“No. Definitely not. I’ve spoken to her about this, but I’m not surprised.” He shrugged. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t break the rules when I was her age. I’m interested to know how these readings went, though. He said she was good at them, which doesn’t come as too much of a surprise to me, either.” He smiled and touched my arm reassuringly. “I think I’ve discovered something new about my student. I’m glad I came here.”
I made my way for the exit, doing my best to avoid detection by the other parents when I heard Dani call out my name. I sighed and stopped as she, Leeroy, and several of the other parents walked over to us.
“We need to talk to you about your daughter. Mr.