“God,” Rune said, swiping sweat off his forehead while he held a branch away from him with his other hand. “If it’s this bad after the humidity’s broken, I’m glad we didn’t come earlier!”
Willow turned and smiled at him, feeling drops of sweat make their meandering paths down her back. “The trees keep the heat in. It’s kind of nice when it gets nippy in the fall, but at the moment, it sucks.”
“Nippy?” Rune asked, grinning. “What are you, sixty?”
“Oh, shut up,” she replied, her lips twitching. Willow turned her attention back to the path in front of them. Not much could be seen of it as it snaked its way through the thick trees and denser underbrush. The heavy presence of plants pressing in on the path, sometimes forcing them to shove them out of their way, which had led to no few leftover rain deluges, didn’t bother Willow. What she was focusing on was the rocks that occasionally jutted out of the ground. She knew how to walk almost with eyes in her feet, feeling each stone before she put her weight on it wrong or allowed it to trip her. Rune, on the other hand… She shook her head, keeping her eyes open for any patches of pink or grey rock.
They walked in silence for several seconds, only the distant rustling of animals, the faint call of birds, and the occasional dripping of water from above breaking the quiet. It was Rune who spoke first. “So, what should our next article be?”
“That would be your first thought, you news junkie,” she replied, chuckling. “We could do something on clubs and their enrollment.”
Rune made a face. “Yeah…let’s not. I want something more exciting, more interesting. How about we do articles on the student government, their platforms, and how they have or haven’t kept to their promises.”
“We’re trying not to get shut down, remember? Besides, you have enough enemies as is. We don’t need to student government attacking you as well.”
“Wuss.”
She shook her head. “No, I just don’t feel like having to play bodyguard all the time. Because anyone attacking you’s going to have to go through me first.”
Rune fluttered his eyelashes at her. “Why thank you, kind sir,” he said in a terrible Southern falsetto. “I don’t know what I’d do without you to defend my honour.”
Willow could feel her cheeks heat up. “You know, there are days where I understand why people hit you.”
“My mom says the same thing. She says every day I come home without having been assaulted by my fellow students is a minor miracle. She says my mouth gets me into more trouble than the fists of any three other boys. Sadly, she’s not wrong,” he said, affecting a melodramatic tone.
“You could always, you know, try not saying stuff to provoke people.”
“I could. I could also try not breathing. I’d last about as long trying either.”
Willow sighed dramatically. “I suppose it’s true. You’re just that kind of idiot. Now, for an article, why don’t we do something on the school’s alumni? We could find out about some notable ones and try and research their history.”
“That’d only be fun if we included some that had failed at life, besides just the successful ones. And I’m talking about finding some that are in jail. I want mug shots.”
“Never mind then. Mr. Marsden would have a fit if he even heard the words alumni and jail in the same sentence. We could try and find the percentage of students who go on to post-secondary and where they go. Maybe even try and find out the most common programs they go into.”
“Hmmm…it’s not an awful idea. Especially if we include the percentage that don’t continue on. It’s only a pity we couldn’t get their grades as well, to show how or how not their grades predicted success in either life or further academia.”
Willow shook her head, glancing over her shoulder at him. “You really do like pissing Mr. Marsden off, don’t you?”
“It’s not my fault he can’t handle a little honest criticism.”
“He’s going to get the school to pass a rule where he can gag you when you annoy him too much. If he doesn’t just shut us down. Why don’t we do something about technology? Like how it’s changed how students learn and what are the good and bad things it’s brought to schools.”
“He’d get booted as soon as the PTA caught wind of it. Which they would, since I’d have no choice but to write an article about it,” he replied, flashing her another grin. “I do like your tech idea. Especially if we talk to the English teachers. My old one at PECI used to have a whole rant about spell check ruining our generation. I bet the ones here will have similar problems with it. Not to mention the prevalence of cheating with SparkNotes and sites like that.”
Willow sighed again. “You’d better not get beat up for revealing student secrets.”
Rune snorted. “Because the teachers don’t already know,” he said sarcastically. “One of my teachers used to lurk on Yahoo Answers and the like, looking for people asking for help on their homework. He had a great time giving out zeroes to any cheaters he caught. It’s sad how many of them didn’t learn.”
“Let me guess, he was your favourite teacher.”
“You know me too well.”
Willow shook her head, fighting against the smile that wanted to spread across her face. “That worries me. Spending too much time inside your head is only going to corrupt me, until I become like you.”
Rune laughed. “Mr. Marsden’s worst nightmare. Two of me.”
“It’s a pity I’ve already gotten my costume half-done. That’d have been the best and most terrifying thing we could have gone as.”
“You really are starting to sound like me. Soon, soon your brain waves will match mine and we’ll be ready to take over the world!”
Willow had to chuckle. “You’d be the world’s worst dictator.”
“Nah, I’d make you the dictator and be the shadow power. You’re better at fighting anyway.”
“Thanks,” she replied dryly, which only made Rune grin. In moments, she was doing the same as they headed deeper into the green gloom of the forest.
YOU ARE READING
Silver Bound Girl
FantasyWillow's a Byron and they aren't just your average family. Not just because there are so many of them, but because they have secrets and traditions far outside the norm. Like spending as much time outside as in, and doing everything to keep rumours...
