The long, awful summer (for Uten)

[zae]

It was past ten at night at Hideyoshi Academy. At the female dorms, grade 8, room seven, three of the four beds were filled. However the teacher on duty, Tokuwa-sensei, stood waiting, as one bed was empty. The bed of thirteen year old Rinna.

He glanced at his watch as he stood in the shadows, awaiting her arrival. She was already on an extended detention - effectively grounded - for being previously caught smoking in the lavatories. As such, he felt, she was in for quite some trouble upon her return, unless she could furnish him with an acceptable reason for being out of bed after curfew.

[Terra]

Rinna stumbled in, her cheeks red. She went toward her bed, obviously drunk. "I'm only scheventeen minutes late, Mr. Man...." She slurred, falling onto herr bed.

[zae]

Tokuwa's eyes widened. She was clearly drunk, and there certainly wasn't a supply of alcohol on campus. Given the seriousness of the matter, he picked her up by the armpits and stepped out of the room, before setting her on her feet.

"Do you realise the seriousness of your offence?" he asked in a hushed voice. "You were already on thin ice for the smoking, and now you're drinking on campus - while underage to boot! Even the fact that you're an hour and seventeen minutes late would be enough to be serious. Rinna, you're going to be expelled for this, when I inform the headmaster. You'll probably be caned in front of the assembly, then sent home with a phone call to your parents. Do you realise?"

[Terra]

Rinna rubbed her head. "It was an accident.... I thought I could handle it..." She muttered. "Pleash..dun expel me...." She added, sincerity in her slurred words

[zae]

"I'm sorry," he replied, "but it's out of my hands: I have to report you to the principal, and he will almost certainly expel you. There is nothing I can do about it to prevent or change this. I can't even recommend the punishment - in fact at this level not even the principal can really decide, it's just written into the policy."

[Terra]

Rinna started to cry lightly. "I was just curious.." She said, holding her forehead

[zae]

"Well there are times and places to sate your curiosity - and you got both wrong in that respect. Look, it's not like there's anything I can do. I'm certainly not just going to let you off and not report this. I'm afraid this is just how it goes... you get to learn that the school takes these things seriously."

He sighed and patted her shoulder.

"As I said, it's out of my hands. I really wish the school did allow us some leeway there, and provide another option. But they don't."

[Terra]

Rinna shook a bit, biting her lip. She groaned, starting to feel sick to her stomach from everything that was happening. Shd turned to go back into the room, but fell forward, the stress as well as the alcohol making her a little unstable at the moment.

[zae]

He was quick to catch her when she fell, though. He was considered a hardline teacher, some called him mean or cruel... but he wouldn't let a student fall and be injured.

"Careful, you don't want to knock your teeth out on top of everything else. Look, how about you go to bed, go to sleep... that won't take long by the look of things... and we'll talk in the morning. I'll come around first thing and we can discuss the situation. I can't do anything to stop it, but at least I can make sure you remember and understand, and you might have an easier time accepting it then."

He then carried the girl back into her dorm room, setting her down on the bed.

"Honestly, you're a handful. If it could have prevented this I'd have spanked you myself, headed this whole thing off. But hindsight being what it is... goodnight."

[Terra]

"I wish I was a cat... then you wouldn't have to worry about me." Rinna said, referring to the "curiosity killed the cat" proverb. She curled intp a ball as she laid down, mentally kicking herself for her stupidity.

(this will be the only mention of dying I'll make. She isn't suicidal or anything; she just thinks if she wasn't around, stuff like this wouldn't happen. It's more her being upset )