"Just don't do it in the future," was all Mrs. Floris said before turning and walking back to the back of the room.

"I'm sorry about that," Amethyst whispered to Natasha. She hadn't meant to get them in trouble, she was just upset that Natasha wouldn't appreciate art for the art itself, and not for it's spot on her resume.

"It's okay," Natasha replied, although from her expression, it looked like it was anything but okay to her. Thankfully, the bell rang then, saving Amethyst from having to endure more time with someone who was probably going to hate her for another hour or two until she (hopefully!) either forgot about it or realized that it wouldn't do much to her resume.

"What class do you have?" She asked Natasha.

"French. You?

"Choir."

"Cool. See you after class," Natasha called, then jogged off in the opposite direction of the science lab and into a bathroom. Amethyst felt a wave of guilt rush through her and sped through the halls with her head down until she reached room 317. She took a deep breath before she entered, then opened the door and stepped inside.

"So Long, Farewell. B4."

"W-what?" was all Amethyst could make out before someone shoved a paper into her hands and she was pushed up onto a riser. "Hey!"

"Who was that?"

Amethyst winced as a sharp voice rang out, echoing through the suddenly otherwise silent room. The angry eyes of a well-coiffed woman landed on Amethyst.

"Was that you?"

"S-sorry," Amethyst stuttered. "I just-I just fell."

"Very well." The woman pursed her lips. "Get into position, now."

"Position?" Amethyst asked nervously. A girl behind her grabbed her by the sleeve and pulled her up a step before shoving her to the right.

"Thanks," Amethyst hissed. She received an elbow to the ribs and a loud "Silence!" from their teacher.

"We will begin with auditions," the teacher instructed. "Daisy Ael?"

A blond girl with a bob stepped forward, gripping her music tightly.

"Um, I-"

"Begin," the teacher commanded.

"Right. Sorry Mrs. Lorins." The girl, Daisy, gulped, then stepped closer to the microphone and began to sing.

"There's a sad sort of clanging from the clock in the hall, and the bells in the steeple too."

She finished with a quick bow of the head and stepped back into line. Amethyst thought that she was pretty good. Amethyst decided that she would definitely receive a solo.

"Thank you Daisy. Mary Davidson?"

And so she went down the list of students. Amethyst was last and shaking by the time Mrs. Lorins called out, "Amethyst Wishbone."

"Thank you, Mrs. Lorins," she said, then cleared her throat and began to sing as best she could.

"There's a sad sort of clanging from the clock in the hall, and the bells in the steeple too; and up in the nursery an absurd little bird is popping out to say 'cuckoo'."

"Thank you Miss Wishbone."

"Thank you," Amethyst said again, then took her spot on the risers again. The class stood stiff for a good five minutes before Mrs. Lorins motioned for them to sit down. Another five minutes passed before Mrs. Lorins called them to attention.

"Class," she began, "I have picked those who will be part of the choir."

Amethyst's heart dropped. Shouldn't everyone in the class be part of the choir? Were only a few people going to be chosen to sing? What about everyone else?

"Our new choir will consist of Mary Davidson, Corin Bridger, Lacey McMan, Gemma Quizler, Elisa Darm, Calista Morison, Naya Cadalist, Mabeline May. Congratulations girls." Amethyst started to feel faint. "And our alternates are Remy Cashlein and Amethyst Wishbone." Amethyst let out a breath.

"What about the rest of us?" A girl asked shyly from the top row of the risers. Mrs. Lorins pursed her lips.

"The rest of you will either fail this class or switch electives."

Amethyst's jaw dropped. Students started grumbling and protesting about the unfairness but Mrs. Lorins merely raised her hand in a stop motion and told them, "It's not my fault you all suck at singing. Now leave."

The remaining fourteen students shuffled out of the room, leaving just the choir members and the alternates. Mrs. Lorins looked them over, then spoke.

"Mary, Corin, Lacey, Gemma, Elisa, Calista, Naya, and Mabeline, flip to page two. Remy and Amethyst, go do your homework and be quiet."

Amethyst sighed and headed over to her backpack. A small brown-skinned girl with two braids sat down next to her. Her skin was shiny and though she looked sad, she was still utterly beautiful, in a playful way, which to Amethyst seemed much prettier than Natasha's mature style of beautiful.

"Amethyst Wishbone?"

Amethyst smiled.

"Remy Cash, uh, Cash-Len?"

"Cau-sh-lee-n," Remy told her.

"Cau-sh-lee-n," Amethyst repeated, then nodded. "Got it."

"You're the new girl, right?" Remy asked.

"Yeah, I'm being hosted by Natasha," Amethyst explained.

"Fun." Remy reached over to her backpack and pulled out a thick novel. "Look, Amethyst, I really want to talk with you and I hate to be rude but the main character is about to get hexed and-"

"Go ahead," Amethyst laughed, glad that the only trait Remy seemed to have in common with Natasha was reading - she was fun and not uber-serious or ridiculously mature. Then she got out her journal and started writing.

What do you think about Mrs. Lorins? What about Remy? Could a new friendship be forming?

~ writesthetic