Friends

"What were you thinking? It's your first day and you are already in fights." Mr Woods was scolding me, Davy and Lleu in his office.

Once Mr Woods had caught me with my foot to the lion's throat I thought my school life had ended on the spot, but Mr Woods took us back to his office and another teacher took the two guys away.

"It wasn't Kate's fault Mr Woods. She was just protecting me and Davy." Lleu defended me, yet Mr Woods didn't seem to look convinced.

"I'm sorry I'm going to need to hear the whole story before I believe you. Kate has a history of violence, so I can't believe you before I have something concrete."

Me and Davy explained what happened from our own perspectives. I even told him about transforming only my arm and how it was completely unintentional.

Mr Woods looked at us dubiously. He had been keeping notes of everything we said and he shuffled through them once we were done.

"Davy, can you tell me why they were aggressive towards you?" He asked looking up from his notes.

"They kick me out old home." Davy replied meekly.

"I thought that might be the case. Damn this has the potential to be a lot of paperwork." Mr Woods let out an audible sigh and got up from his desk. "I need to talk with the head of the disciplinary department. You all have to stay here until I get back."

Mr Woods left leaving us alone with one another. For the first 30 seconds, there was an awkward silence until Davy broke it.

"Ss-sorry." His voice shook as he apologised. He was evidently upset, and tears streamed down his face. "It's my f-fault… sob You g-got in trouble because of me."

When I saw the tears gush from his eyes I couldn't help but share his sorrow. The cat-like cries he made were so adorable, but at the same time heart-breaking. "You don't need to apologise, I would do it again anytime. If anything I should be saying sorry for taking it too far. I shouldn't have let my urge to hit them get the better of me."

"Self defence is not something to apologise for. Without you, Davy and I would be in a lot worse condition. I should be apologising for my cowardice whilst you two were fighting all I could do was watch from the floor."

We were now all crying and we all blamed ourselves for the situation. To a blind person it would probably sound like the dying wails of a dog, cat and sheep. We cried until my sobs turned into snorts. "Bwahaha"

Both Lleu and Davy looked at me perplexed. From their expressions, I could tell they thought I was crazy.

"Sorry… haha, I can't remember the last time I cried this hard… Bwahaha, we're balling our eyes out over something this stupid." I managed to get my fits of laughter and crying under control with a few deep breaths. "It's so ridiculous to cry over something this dumb."

We all finally managed to calm down, although it took longer than any of us care to admit. We were now eating the snacks I bought before the fight. Davy had grabbed the bag before we left.

When we stopped being all emotional, Lleu turned to both with his cheeks beet red. He squirmed continuously before shyly whispering. "Would you two consider being my friends?"

I was taken aback by Lleu's declaration, and I nearly dropped the sandwich in my hands. It's not like I didn't want to be friends with them, but no one has ever asked to be my friend before. My friendship with Rose was more of an unspoken agreement after we had spent so much time together. I was too shocked to make any sort of response.

"I haven't had friends before, so I don't know if this is awkward to ask, but no one outside of my family has treated me this nicely."

"Don't worry, I'm pretty much in the same boat. I've only had one official friend, and they haven't been speaking to me lately." I smiled wryly after thinking about Rose. "I would also like to be friends with both of you."

"Friend? Is that like a mate?"

"N-No Davy. A friend is a person who makes you happy when they are around, and you help each other in time of need. You also visit each other's houses, and you share secrets." Lleu explained it in a basic way for Davy. It was oddly embarrassing hearing someone explain the concept of a friend.

"That sounds fun. I will be a friend."

There were still remnants of tears on Lleu's rosy cheeks, but it was impossible to see them because the light of his smile was blinding. The smile that appeared on his face could easily illuminate the whole room.

"Wait, Davy has been living in your house. How are you not already friends?"

"Well it was embarrassing, and it didn't feel right until this moment."

Before I could say anything more, the door to Mr Woods's office swung open with enough for the handle to break off. A woman stepped through the door with surprisingly similar features to me. Her hair was a light brown but her ears and tail matched mine.

"Hey Woods, did you hear about that first year who was able to pull off a partial transformation? I heard she was in your class…" After noticing Mr Woods wasn't in the office she saw the three of us. When her eyes were on me in particular they lit up and a wide smile appeared on her face. "I guess I didn't have to look for long. Are you Kate Carter?"

"Yes."

"Wow. To think I get to meet someone who was able to use partial transformation in a little over a month of their first transformation."

"Partial transformation?"

"I was told in the fight you only transformed your arm to scratch the leopard kid, right? That's what is called a partial transformation. Most Hybrids have it mastered by the time they leave Wylde academy, but to be able to perform it without even a lesson on how to do it is extraordinary."

"Excuse me, who are you?" Lleu interrupted us after recovering from his stupor.

"Sorry I started rambling without introducing myself. My name is Jane Duffy and I'll be your transformations teacher." Miss Duffy took a bow when she introduced herself. "I was honestly disappointed when I was told I was teaching the Omega class, but it's shaping up to be more interesting than I expected."

"Uhmm." The sound of a fake cough came from behind us. "Miss Duffy, what have I told you about coming into my office uninvited?"

Mr Woods stood by the door with a scowl on his face. Miss Duffy froze, and her ears and tail became rigid.

"Sorry, Woods. I was just checking out the new students, I didn't mean to barge in."

Miss Duffy tried leaving the room without provoking him but was stopped at the door. "I expect to see you here later this afternoon, with a formal apology and the money to replace this door handle."

"Yes sir." She sighed as Mr Woods closed the door behind her.

Mr Woods sat behind his desk and looked at us with a cold expression. "What did that coyote thief take from here?"

"Nothing. She just asked questions about the partial transformation." Lleu responded sheepishly.

"Tsk!" He sounded annoyed but after a few seconds he returned to his normal scholarly demeanour. "You're lucky. The other two confessed to starting the fight, so there will be no serve punishment. However, you will be required to help the cleaners in tomorrow's detention after school."

I was pissed that we had to help clean, but it's a lot better than getting expelled.

"Now that this is over, we can return to class. I've had Miss Phillipe fill in for me, and I said I would only be an hour but we've been gone nearly two."