"So, allegedly, you broke onto somebody's property, someone defended themselves, and you won't name your accomplices?"

Briar is not impressed. She scrunches her nose and looks over at Felix. She knows how to control herself in public, but she can feel her anger building. It rages inside her, spoiling the contents of her stomach. A meal from yesterday, and she has not eaten since. It has been agonizing. Every second has felt like months.

Felix, unlike Briar, knows how to explode when others are watching. He's used to keeping a level head in front of the ballet master, so he is able to self-regulate in front of campus police. Regardless, he is shocked.

"You're serious," it's more of a statement than a question.

Briar turns up her nose and eyes Felix, "come now. No use wasting any more time."

They leave the campus police office, headed back onto the grassy campus. The officer doesn't offer them another word, and neither of them turns around to face him.

"We've got to arrange a meeting with the dean of students," Briar says. "This is absolutely unacceptable!"

"It's bureaucratic Hell is what it is," Felix corrects. "The dean of students will send us here, and they will tell us the same thing. We need to convince Poppy-"

"There is no convincing her," Briar says.

Poppy is too proud to grovel. She is a flower. She might wilt if plucked but hopes that no one remembers that. She is as potent as the plant for which she is named. Her roots at Hawkwood are deeper and thicker than the others. She's more like a fungal network than a girl.

"Well, I think I can," Felix argues. "I can do anything."

Briar doesn't know enough about Felix to know if this is true or not. Perhaps, from the limited interactions she's had with him, he is less than persuasive. Rather, he is petulant. Spoiled, like a child.

Felix continues to storm off, not bothering to wait for Briar, who pauses. He is exhausted, and hunger carves its way through his body. He needs a cold shower. He needs food. Saltines or wheat thins ought to do the trick.

Nothing with substance.

~~~

There is a knock at Poppy's door. She begrudgingly answers it. She is in the middle of studying, after all. The languages program is demanding. While she does speak a bit of several languages here and there, she is not fluent in anything but French and English. She is currently wrestling with Latin.

On the other side of the door is Ellie. She has come over during her break. She uses the Pomodoro technique to study. Twenty-five minutes on, then five minutes on. Repeated, followed by a longer break. It is her long break. Her watch counts the seconds. Her time is limited. She must act quickly.

"Come in," Poppy steps backwards and lets Ellie into her dorm.

This visit is not prearranged, but Poppy doesn't care. At their first meeting, she gave all of them, even the unfavourable, the location of her dorm as well as permission to stop by any time. It is important to keep one's promises.

"How's the wound?" Ellie asks. She's ought to know more about injuries. It would please her parents greatly. She knows that there is a chance they would be proud of her now, for not gaining the Freshmen Fifteen. Although, they might not be proud when they discover why.

She is still, but she is dizzy.

"Fine," Poppy says. "I saw a doctor this morning."

Ellie wonders if her doctor is some sort of mandatory reporter. Would that even apply since Poppy is not a minor? Ellie isn't sure.

"Well, if there is anything we can do, let us know," Ellie points out.

"I'm sure we will all reconvene soon," Poppy adds, with a smile on her face. "I should not expect The Divide to keep us apart for too long."

Ellie worries that all The Divide does is keep them apart, "of course."

"How's psychology treating you?" Poppy asks.

"Well," Ellie doesn't usually brag, but seeing the state4 of Poppy's messy desk, she cannot help but, for once, feel a bit of superiority. "I should get back soon."

"Right," Poppy smiles. "You work too hard, El. Relax."

Ellie smiles, but cannot agree. People like her aren't afforded breaks. If they want even an ounce of success and prestige that it appears Poppy possesses, they need to work for it. They need to work tooth and nail. Impossibly hard. Otherwise, everything will crumble.

"I'll try," Ellie nods her head, and heads back out. Just in time for the end of her break.

~~~

Roman likes to wander. A true sojourner. While they never have sought out poetry, poetry has sought out them. They make their way through the library and don't recognize a soul. Such is the pain of being alone. Walking clears one's head. Roman's is usually racing with quotes.

There are half a dozen study spots on campus besides the library. Roman has yet to discover them all. They walk by the solarium, which if the library weren't so gorgeous could be wonderful.

The solarium is entirely glass. In the middle of the room are three long desks, each surrounded by chairs. Along the walls are comfy chairs, each with coffee tables beside them. Roman looks inside and spots someone.

Jetta is buried in theory. She has never minded building complicated chords, and chord progressions are easy enough to deal with. Composing for a full orchestra on paper is not her strong suit. Transposition, especially by hand, is a mess. Her chair is overflowing with sheets. As she begins to pack away, she spots Roman.

They meet at the entrance to the solarium and begin to walk away.

"Do you know what to do?" Roman says.

Jetta shakes her head, "lay low, I guess. Continue to obey?"

"We are obliged to only obey legitimate powers," Roman says. "Give or take a few words."

Jetta knows that people like her are rarely awarded chances. Normally, it is easy to make friends, but people do not seem willing when they hear her last name. James is simple. Jetta is not the name of the child of an aristocrat.

"Roman, I need The Divide," Jetta says. Maybe she could succeed on her own, but with each passing day and each difficult connection, she's starting to believe that less and less.

"You don't need anything, Jetta," Roman says. Roman still wants to prove that they can't be scared away. Non-binary people belong in higher education. They belong everywhere. The Divide won't stop them.

They just hope it doesn't come down to The Divide stopping Roman with force.

Jetta smiles, "you use they/them pronouns right? I use she/her."

For a second, for Roman, their heart stops. They definitely belong in The Divide. They don't want to lose it for anything.

"Do you want to grab coffee?" Roman asks. "There is a one beside the library. They serve like tea and other stuff if coffee isn't your thing."

Jetta doesn't treat her body like a temple. She puts it through thick and thin, with cold nights and cigarettes and heavy dancing, "I'd love that."

~~~

The costumes were made a long time ago. Plays go by quickly, and so the fashion students don't have the time nor energy to make new clothes within the first few weeks of school. Tom reflects that the fabric is itchy. He's lucky to be in the play at all. Most first years are forced into lighting, creating sets, costuming.

All hands are on deck with the Romeo and Juliet debuting in a week. Evelyn has even been called in. She has been assigned to Tom. The clothing is too big for his frame. It's going to have to be taken in. She is currently filling him with pins.

"Are you going to go back?" Evelyn whispers.

Tom still hasn't decided. He's not as scared as the others. He comes from a much different background than them. However, he is also the most out of his element. He thinks of Viera. Will she leave? If she doesn't, he will stay. If she does, he might not have a reason to remain.

"I don't know," he admits.

Evelyn has no reason not to go back, other than fear. Kai said that it was probably the homeowner, coming to get them off the property. He probably ran when he realized he was out of bullets. The Divide would never harm them. They want to raise them.

"Stop squirming," Evelyn giggles, "you're like a worm."

"Sorry," Tom manages. He is still ruminating. He likes Viera, and he likes Roman. Even Ez seems somewhat tolerable. There are a few bad apples, but Tom needs all the ties he can have.

Evelyn does not feel alone. Everywhere she goes, she is welcome. Her classmates like her, the initiates like her, Kai likes her. What else matters?

"I think The Divide will say sorry soon," Evelyn says. "It only happened last night."

Tom isn't so sure, "you don't think they were responsible?"

"Of course not," she laughs, a sharp breath in. A few heads turn to face her, and so she lowers her voice. "Why would they try to hurt us?"

Tom doesn't know. He doesn't trust rich assholes.

"Didn't Poppy say they would've succeeded if they wanted to kill us?" Evelyn asks.

Maybe they didn't want to kill us, Tom thinks. Perhaps the initiates are simply in a game. Perhaps one of them was a target alone. Perhaps it will never make sense to him.

"I don't know," Tom says. "We shouldn't talk about it in public."

Evelyn bites her lip. Tom is so smart. If only his fashion sense matched his brain.

~~~

Ez is looking for a quiet place that isn't the library. People in the library like to come up and sit near him. They think they are so smart. He can hear their whispers. He can hear their feet tapping. Loud environments bother him. He can read in them; he can read anywhere. It doesn't impact his tolerance for noise, however.

He is walking through the Art Studio, glancing at the benches which are full of students waiting for class, when he passes by a room with Vieira inside. He peeks at her and hopes to continue onward when she smiles and waves.

He nearly rolls his eyes. Unfortunately, now he is forced to talk or else he will be perceived as anti-social.

When he enters the room, Viera's throat tightens. She's working on a deadline, with the professor letting her use the room. He would probably disapprove of her having a classmate nearby. Besides, she is anxious to speak.

"What are you working on?" he asks.

She swallows, "a still life."

Viera gestures to the skull and flowers on the table. Ez moves around to get a better look. He goes to pick up the skull, and though Viera opens her mouth she doesn't stop him.

"Is this real?" he asks, examing it. It looks real.

"Yes," she answers quietly.

He practically throws it back on the table. Viera winces.

Ez clears his throat and straightens himself, "that's pretty nasty."

Viera presses her lips together, her eyes wide. The gesture prevents her from laughing. For so long, she had thought him intimidating, perhaps even frightening. Now, she sees him for who he is: a rich boy from New York City.

"Yes," she manages.

"Anyway," Ez is entirely disinterested. The skull, the conversation, the girl before him, all of them are bores. "I ought to be going."

"I'll see you soon," Viera smiles.

Ez stops in his tracks and spins around to face her. She's staying in The Divide? A skittish girl such as herself, whose interests seem to be only art and boys? Perhaps, she is more interesting than he thought. Ez himself hasn't even decided if he would like to stay.

Perhaps, however, she is as boring as he imagines.

He leaves.

~~~

Luis is running around the track. It's not an abnormal activity (he enjoys staying toned) albeit he might have ulterior motives.

After all, Kai is just finishing rugby practice. It is the perfect opportunity to run into a handsome man.

As his mates hit the shower, Kai spots Luis running around the track. Kai is surprised at how quickly Luis moves. He keeps up a decent pace, in his joggers and t-shirt, despite the growing wind.

Kai jogs over and smiles at Luis. While Luis slows down, Kai joins beside him, beginning to jog.

"Aren't you exhausted?" Luis asks, looking over Kai.

Kai shrugs. While his legs feel like jello, what are an extra five minutes? Besides, he doesn't want to interrupt Luis' run. Even if, unbeknownst to Kai, it has just begun.

"Nothing can keep me down," he points out. "Not even The Divide."

That's exactly how Luis feels. Poppy hasn't steered them wrong. Not yet. She might know more than she lets on, but Luis isn't surprised. Everyone knows more than they let on.

"So, you'll go to their next meeting then?" Luis asks.

Kai nods, "wouldn't miss it for anything. What is Hawkwood without The Divide?"

"A learning opportunity," Luis jokes.

"You don't go to Hawkwood to learn," Kai corrects. It may be a selective school, with fantastic programmes, but no one really attends to perfect their craft, he thinks. Prestige matters, sometimes even more than skill.

Luis smirks. He is having trouble keeping up with Kai but doesn't want to slow down and look the fool. He might not be as athletic, but he is just as determined, "I know I certainly did."

"Say, there is a party this Friday," Kai points out. "One of the teammates lives in a house off-campus. We should invite the others, yeah?"

"Yeah," Luis agrees. A party could be fun. Any excitement at Hawkwood could be fun. The campus police keep a tight reign on dorm parties. "It'll help people loosen up."

"Exactly," Kai pats Luis on the shoulder. He wants to keep Luis close. He feels a connection with him that he doesn't feel with most of the others. Except for Poppy of course, though that feels more strained now.

Luis freezes as Kai's hand touches him. He nearly trips over himself. Reminding himself to keep it cool makes him remember something else.

He's ten minutes late for class.

~~~~~

Let's pretend this isn't two months late, mmkay? Nothing happened except exams, becoming a TA, and EXTREME writer's block. Like, I haven't written ANYTHING since late AUGUST! That's crazy.

Anyway, it's been so long that, now more than ever, how did I do in regards to your characters? I will literally rewrite parts if I messed up. Thank you for your time. RIP.