6 HEADMASTER VISITS MOTHER

Adrianna Kasha Woods threw herself onto the worn-out couch with a sigh. She had a headache and her fingers hurt from all the typing she had done that day.

She had, however, begun feeling woozy at noon and her senior had allowed her to take the rest of the day off. She was just drifting off to sleep when she heard a swift knock on her door.

'Ignore them, Anna. Maybe they'll go away.' she thought as she turned to find a more comfortable position on the couch. Not more than two minutes later, another knock snapped her from her sleepy haze.

"Who the fuck wants to wake me up when I am in such a mood?" she whispered to herself as she turned and sat on the floor. She frowned. Another knock made her stand and walk to open the damn thing.

She rubbed her sleepy eyes and took in the boy and three men who stood before her. "We don't want any cookies or whatever it is you're selling," she said and went to shut the door.

A hand on the door stopped her in her tracks and she really took in the people in front of her. The boy did not seem any older than her Lexine at the first glance. However, after looking at him well, she noticed he looked almost eight years older, maybe more. He had light blue hair that fell to his nape and was shaved around the sides. He was covered up in a dark purple suit. The three men behind him were tall and very muscular and Adrianna went into defensive mode.

Her eyes fell to the hand that was stopping her from closing her door and frowned. The only reason she had mistaken him for a boy was because of the way the men towered over him. However, he was her height. Which meant that the men were way taller than she was.

"Apologies for the intrusion," the man spoke up, "we are looking for Mrs.Woods?"

Adrianna's eyes furrowed in confusion. "Why the fuck would you be looking for me? Has Lexine done something?"

"The matter involves your daughter but she has done nothing in particular. We would just like to have a word with you if you do not mind." he smiled and Adrianna's frown deepened further, "May we come in?" he said but pushed the door open anyway and walked in with one of the buff guys in tow.

"I did not say you could come in," she protested as he walked in, "bastard," she muttered under her breath as she shut the door on the two men who remained outside. She walked to the living room where she found the man seated on the couch she was laying on not a few minutes before. The other man was standing next to the couch his hands behind him in an almost military pose. Adrianna huffed and placed her palms on her hips, "What is your name again?"

"I did not tell you. Can I have some tea?"

Adrianna's hands fisted on her slacks and she frowned at him. "You, young man, are in my house and have no fucking right to tell me what to do. So it is either you tell me your fucking business with my daughter or I will kick your high-end ass out of my house." she pointed a finger at him, "Now start talking."

The boy chuckled and muttered something under his breath that was too low for Adrianna to hear. "Alright, I am sure you are aware that your daughter was chosen to join our school, Eirene Academy to begin her first year in the Academy as she has come of age. She is seventeen if I am not wrong?" Adrianna nodded her head and sat on the seat that was on the opposite side of the room.

Her head had begun to feel woozy again. Were they here because of the 'consequences' part? Damnit. She'd told Lexine not to disregard whatever the letter said. It had come back to bite them in the arse.

"Well, she did not avail herself at the bus stop as she was instructed. That was a week ago. The rest of the students have already settled in and will begin their classes in the next two days."

"Wait." Adrianna put her hand up to silence him, "Who are you again?"

"I am Headmaster. I run Eirene Academy and it is usually my duty to enquire why students have not joined the school as instructed. Believe me, it rarely happens, so I take it on myself to know why a person has not joined. At the moment I have sent three senior students to get Lexine and take her to the school. To avoid searching for her, I have come to speak to you"

Adrianna processed this information in her head and she had more questions. "So you are kidnapping my daughter?" she crossed her arms over her chest, "and you expect me not to contact the police?" she laughed.

"Mrs. Woods," Headmaster said calmly, "This academy is the best for your daughter. She is not like other people her age. You must understand that."

"How would you know and you have never even met her."

"Her energy signature, ma'am, is very strong it can be felt for a three-mile radius. I do not know where she got it from because you do not have a strong energy signature. In fact, yours is the same as any normal human should have. This brings me to the question, who was Miss Wood's father? Or was she adopted?"

"Before I answer any question, you must answer some of mine as well. I cannot just let you take my daughter without knowing who any of you are." she snorted. How could she be sure she had not let a murderer into her house? "How are you a headmaster and yet you look so young? You say that you are the headmaster of this Eirene academy. There is nothing on the internet about such a school. Believe me, I looked it up because Lexine was skeptical about the scholarship. And what do you mean when you say Lexine has a strong energy signature? Why have you referred to me as 'human,' when you yourself are one?"

"Mrs. Woods, most of those questions I cannot give you the answer but I will answer those that I can," he said and crossed his feet. Adrianna's frown deepened. Should she believe him if he was not disclosing all the information? "Eirene academy is a school for people like Lexine, I cannot tell you further than that. She is special, how though, I do not know yet and that is what I intend to find out. She was given this scholarship because you are human, you do not have what it is we require to join the school. I myself will fund everything your daughter requires in the school. We do not need to put the details of our school on the internet because our target audience will not receive it." He shrugged and chuckled.

"Every living being has an energy signature Mrs. Woods, down to the earth slug. These signatures differ depending on the strength of that living being. Usually, for humans, you notice an energy signature subconsciously. When you want to approach someone, their energy signature is what tells you if they are approachable or not."

"For higher beings, however, energy signatures tell us what living being you are, for one, and many other things. For Miss. Woods, her energy signature is too high for her to be considered human. In fact, it is too high to be considered normal. This is why she has to go to the academy. One is to figure herself out and second is for us to know why she is as she is."

"I see," Adrianna nodded. "So what you are trying to tell me is that my daughter is not human?" Headmaster nodded.

Adrianna frowned deeply, "So you're crazy." Adranna pointed to the door. "Get out."

Headmaster was not expecting this reaction. "You must believe me Mrs. Woods. I do not jest."

Adrianna frowned at the Headmaster's words. She did not believe him in the slightest.

"If you want proof, I can show it to you."

He pointed at the glass of water that was half full on the table. The gem on his right ear glowed a light purple and the water in the glass rose.

Adrianna rose up from her seat in shock. "What are you?"

"I am what you humans may know as a fairy. However, the more technical and correct term is sylph." He paused and let it sink in. Adrianna sank into the seat once more. Her mind was suddenly boggled up.

"Can my Lexine do this as well?"

"I am not sure what element she might use or what species she is. However, she might be able to do something like this as well."

Adrianna nodded, her eyes losing focus.

"Now, can you answer some of my questions, Mrs. Woods?"

"Please call me Anna," she said as she lay the back of her palm on her suddenly hot forehead.

"Alright, Anna, to begin to know more of where Miss. Woods gets her signature, maybe it came from her father. Which makes me ask, who was her father?"

"Well," Adrianna swallowed and shook her head to clear her conflicting thoughts, "how about some tea?" she chuckled softly as she glanced up at the tall man standing next to the man who claimed to be a headmaster.

He noticed her hesitancy and said, "You can go wait outside with the others Braws, I will be out once I am done speaking to Adrianna."

The tall man nodded once and walked out of the house. Headmaster smiled at Adrianna and said, "You said something about tea?"

Adrianna stood and he followed her the short distance to the kitchen. She put the water to boil then turned to him. "I met Lexine's father at the circus. There is one held here every year and I was taking my nephew to see the clowns. He looked... lost." She chuckled at the memory. "His name was Angelus Woods. Two years later, we were married and another year later we had Lexine. He was a bit queer sometimes and when we first met he would disappear for days on end.

He blamed it on his family though. He then got a job as a minor composer and the rest is history. He died a few years ago though, so if you wanted him to answer any of your questions, I am afraid that he is incapable at the moment. You know, because of the whole death part of his life."

The water boiled and she gave him a mug and a teabag. He declined the sugar. They sat in silence for a few minutes as they sipped their tea, both immersed in their thoughts. Did this mean that she, Adrianna, had lived with a man she did not really know for a good part of her life? She knew him pretty well though. His favorite color was blue because it was the color all around him as he grew up. That was deep enough was it not.

She groaned and ran a hand through her short blonde hair. Who was she kidding? She never met his family and he blamed it on the fact that they had disowned him for marrying her.

She had tried to speak sense to him more than once not to break off ties with his family because of her, but he just smiled and brushed her off. Each and every time. Maybe, just maybe, Lexine going to this school could give her answers on the cryptic man she had given her heart to.

"If she goes with you," Adrianna broke the silence, "Ensure she is safe. With time I want answers to everything, Headmaster. I want her to send me a text every week so I know she is safe and if this does not happen," she frowned, "I will hunt you down myself and rip your heart out of your chest. You understand me?"

The headmaster was slightly taken aback by her words but he nodded. "If anything does go wrong Mrs. Woods, go to the park, at the cherry tree and knock on it thrice, pause then knock twice. Do you understand? However, she cannot use a cellphone there, so a letter will have to suffice."

She nodded. "One more thing. If in four weeks, Lexine is not happy with the school, she comes straight home."

Headmaster nodded and finished his tea down to the dregs. "I will let Braws take the walking wardrobe and the trunk. Was she able to open the wardrobe?" He said as an afterthought.

"Yes, she was. But the trunk. She was unable to open the trunk." she stood suddenly, "Wait for a minute here please," and rushed to her room.

"Curious. There might be more to this story than it seems." Headmaster said lowly, thinking of the backstory Adrianna had told him of Lexine's father. He knew no one who was called Angelus Woods in any of the Sylph Families. So maybe he was from another species?

Adrianna returned a few minutes later with a folded piece of paper in her hand. "Give this letter to her. I know how she is. If you do not I am sure she will burn your fancy school down." He nodded and flashed a smile to Adrianna. "I have to be leaving now," he stood from the kitchen counter, "I bid you goodbye, Anna. Your daughter is under my protection." He walked out leaving Adrianna with more questions she could not get answers to.

She was so immersed in her thoughts that she did not hear Braws enter and take the wardrobe and trunk out.

S/T:

Arkien: (Straightens his suit) Do I Iook like a Headmaster?

Braws: (With a small bow) Yes

Arkien: (Looks at Braws suspiciously) So I didn't look like a Headmaster before???

Braws: ... *wut?*