A Different Kind of Integration [Closed]
Posted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 6:21 am
25th Bethas 2719
The Dormitories, Brunnhold
The Dormitories, Brunnhold
"Miss Gosselin, just a moment please?” Professor Heissman didn’t bother to look up as he made his request, sharp yellow eyes focused on the notes sitting on his desk. Math class had ended only a few seconds earlier, but the students were already packing up, shoving away papers covered in equations and leaving behind any thought of calculus as they went through their days.
Madeleine stopped from where she had been putting her notebook into her bag, turning wide-eyed to her professor. After the test they had taken the week before, not yet handed back, hearing that she needed to stay after class wasn’t encouraging. She swallowed, hard, finished putting the notebook away, and stood still amidst the desks as the rest of the students filed out, dressed neatly in her uniform, hands clasped tight around the strap of her book bag. There was a burst of sharp laughter from the door, and a few eyes slid back to her. Madeleine couldn’t bear to meet them.
“Over here, Miss Gosselin,” Heissman’s voice had a hint of sharp impatience.
Madeleine swallowed again, harder, and made her way forward amidst the desks, standing with her heart pounding and nervousness throbbing faintly through her field in front of the Professor’s desk.
“Control your field,” Heissman said, finally looking up.
Madeleine took a deep breath, swallowing her embarrassment and pulling the emotions out of the rippling flow of mona around her.
Hesissman lifted a stack of papers tied together with thick yellowed string and set them on the desk in front of her. “You had top marks on the last exam,” he said, simply. “But, if you’d like to earn some extra credit,” his tone called into question whether Madeleine really had a choice on the subject, “your classmate, Mister Maste, is in the infirmary. Take these notes to him and work through them with him so he can catch up.”
“Oh,” Madeleine’s eyes went slowly wide. “I – top marks?” She asked.
Heissman raised his eyebrow at her. “Keep up, Miss Gosselin. I know you can do it. Do you want the extra credit or not?”
“Yes!” Madeleine blurted out. “Yes, please.” She grabbed the notes. Eirik Maste – Madeleine didn’t know him well. He was odd, not just for his pale Gioran coloring, but because he was always out of class for being sick, and when he was there he never seemed to want to talk to anyone. Madeleine had said hello to him a few times, and he had just – looked right past her, as if she wasn’t even there. She couldn’t think of anything she had ever done to merit that kind of treatment, but it was pretty clear to her that the Gioran didn’t like her very well.
But, extra credit was extra credit.
“Thank you, Professor,” Madeleine said, holding the stack of papers in both hands, a bit tightly. “I’ll help Mister Maste catch up, I promise.”
Heissman nodded, continuing to work on the notes in front of him without looking up at Madeleine again. She stood there in front of the desk for a long moment, then turned and hurried out of the room. It was the last class of the day, and that meant – there was no point in putting it off, Madeleine felt. She should go and find Eirik straight away and get started. Maybe Professor Heissman would be impressed if she helped Eirik to learn about derivatives. Maybe he would send a note to her parents telling them how well Madeleine had done.
Madeleine couldn’t help a small skip in her step. Braving the grumpy Gioran seemed like a small price to pay when faced with such rewards.
The challenges, unfortunately, were immediately obvious.
“He’s not here?” Madeleine stood at the front of the infirmary, eyes wide. “Are you sure? Professor Heissman told me that – that Mister Maste was in the infirmary and I really, really need to find him.”
“I’m sorry, dear,” the nurse looked down at the ledger of student names. “Let me see if I can find out where he’s gone? My shift only just started.” She stepped away, leaving Madeleine standing alone and confused in front of the infirmary desk. Madeleine edged slightly to the side, peering down the rows of beds as if she might spot a really tall pale classmate sitting there, but she couldn’t see any students at all, let alone Eirik.
The nurse seemed to take ages, long enough that Madeleine had time to take down her now messy braid and redo it in a neater French braid, starting from the crown of her head and going down her back, reddish brown strands a bit frizzy after a long day of studying, but neater than they’d been before.
Finally, the nurse returned, smiling. “It looks like he was released to his dorm for bed rest just an hour ago. He should be there now, Miss.”
“Oh!” Madeleine’s face brightened. “Thank you! I’ll find him there. Thank you so much!”
Madeleine was halfway to the dorms before it really dawned on her. Eirik was in his dorm room. Eirik, like her, was a sixth form. That meant he was in his dorm room alone. A boy. Alone in his dorm room. She couldn’t – she couldn’t possibly! The thought was so horrifying that Madeleine stopped in the middle of the hallway, causing two students behind her to nearly crash into her, and provoking an angry flare of a field, sharp enough that Madeleine began to walk again.
Extra credit, Madeleine told herself, visions of Professor Heissman’s praise drifting through her mind. That, and she had given her world. If she were to be worthy of herself as a galdor, if she were to be worthy of the mona, she had to at least try. She had to.
Madeleine kept walking. It wasn’t too difficult to track Eirik’s room down, and before long she was standing outside his door, the notes still held in her hands. Madeleine took a deep breath, staring the door down, then shifted the notes under one arm and knocked on the door, once very softly, then a second time, more firmly.
“Mister Maste?” Madeleine called. “It’s – Madeleine Gosselin? Your classmate? Professor Heissman sent me with notes for you.” She took a half-step back, swallowing hard, and held the notes tightly to her chest. Oh, what if he was asleep? The thought hadn’t even occurred to Madeleine. She shouldn’t have – maybe she should have just sent him a note. Madeleine flushed red and waited, swallowing hard, already feeling awkward about the whole thing. Probably Eirik wouldn’t want her help with the notes anyway, but – she had said she would do it. She had to now; she couldn’t give up, at least not before she had tried.
Madeleine stopped from where she had been putting her notebook into her bag, turning wide-eyed to her professor. After the test they had taken the week before, not yet handed back, hearing that she needed to stay after class wasn’t encouraging. She swallowed, hard, finished putting the notebook away, and stood still amidst the desks as the rest of the students filed out, dressed neatly in her uniform, hands clasped tight around the strap of her book bag. There was a burst of sharp laughter from the door, and a few eyes slid back to her. Madeleine couldn’t bear to meet them.
“Over here, Miss Gosselin,” Heissman’s voice had a hint of sharp impatience.
Madeleine swallowed again, harder, and made her way forward amidst the desks, standing with her heart pounding and nervousness throbbing faintly through her field in front of the Professor’s desk.
“Control your field,” Heissman said, finally looking up.
Madeleine took a deep breath, swallowing her embarrassment and pulling the emotions out of the rippling flow of mona around her.
Hesissman lifted a stack of papers tied together with thick yellowed string and set them on the desk in front of her. “You had top marks on the last exam,” he said, simply. “But, if you’d like to earn some extra credit,” his tone called into question whether Madeleine really had a choice on the subject, “your classmate, Mister Maste, is in the infirmary. Take these notes to him and work through them with him so he can catch up.”
“Oh,” Madeleine’s eyes went slowly wide. “I – top marks?” She asked.
Heissman raised his eyebrow at her. “Keep up, Miss Gosselin. I know you can do it. Do you want the extra credit or not?”
“Yes!” Madeleine blurted out. “Yes, please.” She grabbed the notes. Eirik Maste – Madeleine didn’t know him well. He was odd, not just for his pale Gioran coloring, but because he was always out of class for being sick, and when he was there he never seemed to want to talk to anyone. Madeleine had said hello to him a few times, and he had just – looked right past her, as if she wasn’t even there. She couldn’t think of anything she had ever done to merit that kind of treatment, but it was pretty clear to her that the Gioran didn’t like her very well.
But, extra credit was extra credit.
“Thank you, Professor,” Madeleine said, holding the stack of papers in both hands, a bit tightly. “I’ll help Mister Maste catch up, I promise.”
Heissman nodded, continuing to work on the notes in front of him without looking up at Madeleine again. She stood there in front of the desk for a long moment, then turned and hurried out of the room. It was the last class of the day, and that meant – there was no point in putting it off, Madeleine felt. She should go and find Eirik straight away and get started. Maybe Professor Heissman would be impressed if she helped Eirik to learn about derivatives. Maybe he would send a note to her parents telling them how well Madeleine had done.
Madeleine couldn’t help a small skip in her step. Braving the grumpy Gioran seemed like a small price to pay when faced with such rewards.
The challenges, unfortunately, were immediately obvious.
“He’s not here?” Madeleine stood at the front of the infirmary, eyes wide. “Are you sure? Professor Heissman told me that – that Mister Maste was in the infirmary and I really, really need to find him.”
“I’m sorry, dear,” the nurse looked down at the ledger of student names. “Let me see if I can find out where he’s gone? My shift only just started.” She stepped away, leaving Madeleine standing alone and confused in front of the infirmary desk. Madeleine edged slightly to the side, peering down the rows of beds as if she might spot a really tall pale classmate sitting there, but she couldn’t see any students at all, let alone Eirik.
The nurse seemed to take ages, long enough that Madeleine had time to take down her now messy braid and redo it in a neater French braid, starting from the crown of her head and going down her back, reddish brown strands a bit frizzy after a long day of studying, but neater than they’d been before.
Finally, the nurse returned, smiling. “It looks like he was released to his dorm for bed rest just an hour ago. He should be there now, Miss.”
“Oh!” Madeleine’s face brightened. “Thank you! I’ll find him there. Thank you so much!”
Madeleine was halfway to the dorms before it really dawned on her. Eirik was in his dorm room. Eirik, like her, was a sixth form. That meant he was in his dorm room alone. A boy. Alone in his dorm room. She couldn’t – she couldn’t possibly! The thought was so horrifying that Madeleine stopped in the middle of the hallway, causing two students behind her to nearly crash into her, and provoking an angry flare of a field, sharp enough that Madeleine began to walk again.
Extra credit, Madeleine told herself, visions of Professor Heissman’s praise drifting through her mind. That, and she had given her world. If she were to be worthy of herself as a galdor, if she were to be worthy of the mona, she had to at least try. She had to.
Madeleine kept walking. It wasn’t too difficult to track Eirik’s room down, and before long she was standing outside his door, the notes still held in her hands. Madeleine took a deep breath, staring the door down, then shifted the notes under one arm and knocked on the door, once very softly, then a second time, more firmly.
“Mister Maste?” Madeleine called. “It’s – Madeleine Gosselin? Your classmate? Professor Heissman sent me with notes for you.” She took a half-step back, swallowing hard, and held the notes tightly to her chest. Oh, what if he was asleep? The thought hadn’t even occurred to Madeleine. She shouldn’t have – maybe she should have just sent him a note. Madeleine flushed red and waited, swallowing hard, already feeling awkward about the whole thing. Probably Eirik wouldn’t want her help with the notes anyway, but – she had said she would do it. She had to now; she couldn’t give up, at least not before she had tried.