Typhoon & Tempest

Chapter Twenty

"What did I even do?" Lily stammered.

Mrs Khan brought out a seed from her pocket. "You sucked the moisture from the air. The students said that the temperature kept rising and dropping - you were fluctuating the humidity in the room."

"Humidity?"

"The water vapour in the air." Mrs Khan explained. "When the temperature drops, humidity increases - it's why everything is covered in dew in the morning after a night of rain. But when the temperature rises, humidity drops, hence why some of the students said they struggled to breathe. When we walked into the classroom, it felt like an oven."

This time, a tear rolled down Lily's freckled cheek. "I... What?"

Mrs Khan and Mr Lauren locked eyes again. "We haven't come across something like this before - and we heard you gave Ms Marlowe permission to ask around in regards to your abnormal healing?"

Lily gripped the blanket tighter. "I...yes."

"No one has heard about your kind of healing, nor of your abilities." Mr Lauren readjusted his grip on the envelope now in his hands. "We don't know how to help you."

Lily froze. Mrs Khan quickly sat forward. "For the past few years, we've guided you emotionally. You're a lot better than you were when you first started high school, even though you had to repeat Year 7."

Lily curled herself inward remembering how dark Year 7 was for her. She'd just turned twelve, only a few terms into her year when she'd lost her family. She didn't have the energy, or room mentally, to deal with nosy school kids on top of planning funerals. When Aunt Ollie came into the picture it helped ease the load off her shoulders. When she recommended redoing Year 7 next year, it helped even more. Gradually, the weight eased enough that she could begin school again, but she had to keep the counseling up throughout her education.

"While grief counseling is something we're trained in," Mrs Khan continued. "This wasn't in our books. We have never had a student who didn't know what she was, and we've only had one other student with your level of power - but she's in complete control of her abilities thanks to steps her family has taken, and she knows what kind of creature she is. You have neither."

"I'm well aware." Lily whispered, putting her now cold tea on the principal's desk. Her heart fractured at the news she was receiving as she braced herself for what they were about to say.

Mr Lauren handed her the envelope. "This is a letter for your aunt explaining your suspension, active immediately after tomorrow afternoon."

Lily shut her eyes but her stomach was hollow. "There's nothing you can do?"

Mrs Khan laid a hand on her shoulder but Lily shrugged it off. "We've done all we can. We think that you need time for your abilities to manifest properly, for you to control them on your own. School is doing nothing but aggravating your creature. You need space from the crowds."

Lily's mind wondered to her grandmother and her constant gallivanting. Was she like her? Is that why she could never be bottled up in a home for more than a few months? Did her wish from her youth come true; that she would be like her, wild and free? It seemed more curse than dream now.

"The other student's methods won't work on you. They've used magic, and healing doesn't work on you, so there's no chance that any other kind would." Mr Lauren checked his watch. "Your suspension can be lifted when you have control over your creature."

"How can I have control over a part of me I don't even know?!" Lily whispered harshly, finally looking the principal in the eye. Her eyes were her normal deep brown, but the teachers were both haunted by the bright grey of her creature's soul. It was an eerie light, like a far away star on the brink of supernova.