The Vigilante's Handbook (Misfits #1)

Twelve: Sudden Credibility

Paramount Lake's auditorium was up to snuff with the rest of the academy. Which is to say it was as run down as the gardens. Unlike Renegade Fountain, the marble lions, and the generally well-kept landscaping, the auditorium was not meant to be seen by the public. In fact, judging by the shape of things, it was safe to assume the staff hoped nobody would ever see the auditorium.

The auditorium hadn't received a fresh coat of paint in a few decades. The velvet curtains were stained gray with dust. None of the spotlights aimed at the stage seemed to work. The school had opted to use the house lights, which gave the stage a clinical feel. It was like the audience was part of backstage. It felt like bad luck.

I had been to exactly three school assemblies before and this was by far the worst one--which is saying something since one of those assemblies was a pep rally for the football team that disbanded after two weeks of practice.

I escaped my van group to find my friends. I only managed to get a seat between Mona and Julien. My boyfriend/ex-boyfriend/whatever Julien was to me now wasn't my first choice of seat neighbor, but it would have to do.

Principal Merriweather was the one to quiet us down as the gathering started. "We are sorry to disrupt your day," she began as if it was still day outside the auditorium door.

There wasn't any feedback from her mic, impressive after all these years of disuse. It was probably because a microphone wouldn't dare interrupt someone as cool as Principal Merriweather. Even if she wouldn't give me a principal's note to get out of my classes earlier today.

There was an air of tension for all parties that even an expert public speaker like herself couldn't dispel. And it came from the fact that we were still in the dark. Not literally of course. The house lights might not have worked well, but they were still working.

Merriweather continued like nothing was out of the ordinary. "It has been quite an extraordinary week here at Paramount Lake. I'm sure none of you were expecting your last year to end like this." She forced out a laugh that we didn't return. Our year was ending? Didn't we still have two weeks until finals?

Valentine couldn't take it anymore. "Why are we here, ma'am?" I admired her tacking on a proper ma'am.

"That's the question isn't it," the principal said mostly to herself. Her eyes were bobbing just above the tops of our heads as if she was addressing an invisible audience standing in the back of the auditorium. "We have some changes for graduation this year as a result of this past week. After your romp through Lincoln City and the accident in Forrest's class, among other things, the school board has decided that you students need to be better prepared for what you will face in a few short weeks. We all know how the generations before you proved their mettle as vigilantes in the past."

There were groans. Was Merriweather going to make us take our finals now or add on extra exams? We were already going to be tested on everything we had ever learned at Paramount Lake. Combat, strategy, profiling, public relations, stealth, trigonometry. The rumor was that most people barely passed. We didn't hear about what happened to those who failed.

"In the past, we believe final exams were enough to test how prepared you children were. That had been how academic settings had always measured growth." That was a controversial topic that usually would have sparked a debate over the accuracy of tests that would quickly devolve into a shouting match. Most things at Paramount Lake ended in shouting matches when we weren't allowed to use our gifts. It was only Merriweather's demeanor that kept us in our seats. She was beating around the bush. "It seems that tests will not be enough this year."

Murmurs. That was what filled the auditorium until it felt like the room would burst outwards.

"No tests? No exams?"