Arthur: When A Tree Falls

Chapter 7: The First Class in the Small Cabin

Elice and Finn greeted Arthur briskly. Both were busy reading and writing, most likely doing homework. They didn't even ask where Arthur had been all that time, considering time had passed quite a lot. Arthur sat down on his bed and only then realized Eylin still had his army jacket. Arthur decided to ask it back after dinner. He was still holding the picture and the Argentium, and quickly stuck them in his pillowcase, so Elice and Finn wouldn't ask why he had a headband of Wulix and a picture of this boy that resembled Arthur very much. Arthur felt bored. Even though dinner wasn't very far away, there was still a bit of the afternoon left. If Arthur had been at home, he would've gone outside, or played a game with his little sister. But no, Arthur was stuck in Arboria.

He spent the rest of the afternoon sleeping, as he couldn't think of something else to do. As the evening approached Elice, Finn and Arthur went downstairs again, through Vinchman, to the Tomato Soup door, and entered. A large group of people was already inside, and Arthur sat down at the same spot as the evening before. The Christmas lights had dimmed, as if they were putting emphasis on the fact that it was evening. It all looked very lovely, and Arthur decided he wanted some Spaghetti, so he said that to his plate. Mere seconds later, Dreamer's Dust exploded in his plate and reformed into a bowl of Spaghetti, which Arthur ate quickly. He scanned the Wulix table for Eylin, and saw her. She was talking to a girl, and burst out laughing. He then moved his gaze to Ella, who, again, was scanning the tables while eating. Her eyes fell on Arthur, and she smiled. But she didn't get up like last time.

"Say, Arthur?" Finn said next to him, and Arthur looked at him. "Where's the army jacket I gave you?" he asked, and Arthur shrugged.

"I think I might have left it in our cabin." he answered, and Finn nodded. "So, when do I know my schedule for tomorrow?" Arthur asked, anxious to change the subject.

Finn swallowed a bite of his Beef Stew with herb dumplings he was eating. "Oh, right. Ask your plate. Say: 'Schedule for Arthur, Uphlet.' It'll appear." he said, and Arthur did as he was told, hoping his Spaghetti wouldn't disappear in the process.

With a small burst of Dreamer's Dust a slip of paper appeared. It hovered over his Spaghetti until Arthur snatched it from the air, and looked at 'Monday - Block A'.

9:00-10:00 = AXE

10:00-11:00 = CHB

11:00-12:00 = CGS

He sighed as he saw he had three hours before he would have a break for Lunch. He wondered what each could be. AXE was branch 'A', then from there branch 'X', class... Arthur had no idea what 'E' could stand for. He decided to ask Finn. "What does 'E' stand for?"

Finn looked at his schedule for a second. "Oh, it could be several things. Escape, Explore, anything really. You'll find out tomorrow." he said, before scanning the rest of his schedule. "Hey! We have Observe together! Apparently Mr Qillian thought your self-observation was so good you can join the people who are in my class!" he said. Arthur smiled. At least he would know someone in a class.

He looked at Eylin at the Wulix table again. He would have to ask her for his army jacket, or Finn would ask questions. As if Arthur would say, "Yeah, my Wulix friend Eylin has it, I gave it to her when I went and impostered a Wulix!" That would be ridiculous.

After dinner Arthur lingered around a bit, hoping to see Eylin and catching her attention. But Finn was apparently very anxious to get back to the cabin, so Arthur had to make an excuse. "I-err, I need to go to the bathroom, I'll catch up with you guys later, in our cabin." he said, and mentally flicked his own forehead for his whacky excuse.

"Okay, well, be back before curfew, Evening patrol will kill you if they find out you're out of bed." he said, and Arthur nodded. Then Eylin passed him.