Moonlight Nocturne

"Yeah, I. Nattie's place?" Nick asks, quickly carrying her into the car.

 

She nods, curling up tight. "... They were .. saying things. I lost my temper."

 

"....do you... want to talk about it?" Nick hesitates, then hands her knife over.

 

She takes it and shoves it back in its hilt, leaning her forehead on his shoulder, starting to cry again. "... they said that I was having sex with you and that's why you drove me to school in a fancy car. And then they said that Mom was."

 

"....I would've punched them, too," he frowns at the road.

 

"... uhhuh. And then they ganged up on me and started kicking me?"

 

Nick's voice comes out in a loud growl. "....we're gonna talk to Gabe."

He pulls out his phone, handing it over. "You still shouldn't have had the knife, but if they aren't getting their butts in mondo trouble... Call him."

 

She relaxes a little, forehead still resting on Nick's shoulder.

"... he didn't say if they got suspended? He just dragged me off to the principal's office."

 

"...well, call Gabe," Nick replies, voice low and rough and still rattling with an angry wolfish growl. "Tell him what happened. In detail."

 

"... okay." She sniffles and fusses with his phone. "Um. Mister Wilkins?"

 

"He, hello?" Gabe's voice comes from the other end, a mite confused at how Nick has managed to become a twelve year old girl.

 

"... Nick said to call you and say what happened?" she says nervously, looking up at Nick for approval. "Um. Also I'm kind of expelled and, um, stuff."

 

"I'm aware, go on." The voice is even. Not angry, but not exactly reassuring.

 

She sniffles unhappily. "Um... They said..."

She bites her lip, and then starts reciting, mimicking intonation as well as she can. Apparently, she threw the first punch, but in the melee, someone got a good hit in and knocked her over, and the three who were still in the fight started kicking her in the ribs and legs until she pulled her knife and scared them off. And that was when a teacher stepped in.

 

Gabriel sighs "You're coming to the station anyways, might as well get a report. I mean if you file criminal charges, they can slap you with that illegal carry, but they can do that regardless. Meanwhile I'm going to call the principal back, meet you when you get here, and tell Nick if he gets another damn speeding ticket I'm going to take the money out of his hide!" he yells the last part, hoping the boy will hear him regardless.

 

Nick is growling loud, audible even over the phoneline. "Yeah, Yeah...."

 

She flinches. "Um. Okay. Bye?"

She hangs up, and looks up at Nick. "He says that if you get another damn speeding ticket he's going to take the money out of your hide. Do you think I'm going to go to jail because I brought my knife to school?"

 

"No, you're a minor."

 

"No, no bye, put me on loudspeaker!"

 

She looks down at the phone, having hung up as he spoke. "Oh. Oops."

"Oh. I don't think I want to be an adult." She keeps leaning. "Am I in... really, really big trouble?"

When Gabriel calls back, she obediently puts him on loudspeaker.