The Exchange Teacher - Welcome to Dyntril Academy

Only twelve of his students chose to go to the festival. It was still half the class, and since this was the first time his students were mixing with the rest of the student body since the cafeteria incident, Basque had secretly hoped it would be fewer. Four would have been perfect.

Despite his casual attitude with Avae and Emilisa, he worried that something might happen. Even before the cafeteria attack, there had been orientation day—in front of every teacher in the school, the noble students threatened his class. Mingling with the classes from every year and scores of parents at the festival increased the danger exponentially.

However, Basque let them go because they deserved a break. They needed time to play, and he had confidence that his students could disengage themselves from any confrontation. He was still going to keep an eye out for them, though.

Checking the time on his interface, he ran his hands down the bluish-charcoal-gray fabric of his robes, looking for wrinkles hiding in the intricate white floral and golden-leaved pattern. Finding none, he stepped out of his room. It was 17:58.

At exactly 18:00, Basque stood at the top of the Grand Stairs. Students he didn't recognize yet, and their parents stared at him as they made their way downstairs. All of them were in Kruamian formal wear.

The women wore long, flowing dresses that matched or complemented their hair colors. The mothers' dresses were more form-fitting than the daughters, except for the fifth-year students, whose dresses tended toward the more risqué.

In contrast, all of the men wore three-piece suits of various colors, as they too wore clothes to complement their hair. Basque was sure that the Kruamians could explain the differences between each suit the men wore, but to him, they all looked the same except for the color.

"Whoa, that's a festive robe you got on there," Harnel's boisterous voice came from behind him.

Basque looked down at his outfit as he spun around. "Too much? This is a more customary style for festivals and the like in Hianbru."

"No, no. It's great. I'm just afraid you'll get mobbed by the moms and some of the dads. Bahahaha!"

Basque smiled at him. Harnel wore blue pants that cut off at his knees, a tan, button-down, collared shirt with a pocket on each hip, and open-toed sandals. "Well, looks like you get to be my shield."

"Oh? Is this a date?"

"Why not?"

"Bahahaha! Give me your arm, then!" Harnel crooked his arm out for Basque to loop his through. "You're practically wearing a dress anyway!"

Basque smiled. "These are much more comfortable than your getup."

"Yours looks so complicated, what with all that sash tying and inner strings."

"One word: no buttons."

"Bahahaha! That's two."

When they reached the bottom of the red-carpeted stairs, they unlinked their arms and headed out through the Grand Entrance Hall's massive doors. It was Basque's first time to see the three-story-tall doors swung wide open. The evening sun shone in through the opening, giving the cavernous Grand Entrance Hall an orange glow.

"Quite the sight, isn't it?" Harnel asked, seeing Basque's expression.

Basque nodded. "It's stunning."

"Dyntril does have its beauty."

Basque let the comment slide, and they joined the groups of people heading out to the front approach to the school. So wide was the doorway that none of the exiting groups were within arm's length of each other.

Stepping out into the cool evening, Basque and Harnel joined the buzzing people who floated around square tents with massive awnings that advertised their wares. The long pathway from the main gate to the school had been transformed into a carnival with booths and stalls going three, four deep into the grass along both sides.

People lined up at booths offering things from food and trinkets to rides and fun houses. Sweet and savory scents both came to Basque on the light breeze: the sickly smell of caramel, the pungent scent of barbequed meat. Basque's stomach rumbled. He wanted to try them all. Save for Reaggie, the Kruamians were skilled cooks.

Even though the path was wide enough for coaches to pass each other, Basque couldn't even see it through the crowd. There were far more people than just the students and their parents. He hadn't realized it would be this crowded. Basque's pulse quickened, and his stomach felt light. There was no way he'd find his students in this crowd. He had to have faith in them to take care of themselves.

"Wow, this is something!" Basque exclaimed.

"Yeah, happens twice a year, once at the opening tournament and once again at the year-end tournament."

"Just for the students and their parents?"

Harnel shook his head as he led Basque through the crowd. "No, the gates are opened up for the surrounding community as well. Lots of alums, too."

Pushing his way through the crowd, Harnel seemed to be leading them towards something with a purpose in mind.

"Where are we going?"

"To the beer booth, of course!"

"I need to be in good shape tomorrow," Basque said.

"Bahaha! Why ever for? You're not fighting! You're not done until you've tasted all the beers from all the beer booths!"

"Fine, I'll taste, but not finish."

"Boo! I'll tell Natt you're weak."

Basque chuckled, but he doubted Harnel heard him over the din of the crowd. Eventually, they made it to the stall Harnel was aiming for.

"Aight, Basky, choose your first one."

Basque chose one at random, and Harnel ordered two. It was a deep reddish beer that had a heavy oak flavor. They didn't have anything similar in Hianbru, and Basque found it enjoyable. Even the aroma had an oaky smell to it.

The crowd swirled around them as they stood and drank. Basque wanted to roam around more, but Harnel said they couldn't move until they tried the three other brews at that particular stand.

As they drank and talked, Basque watched the crowd. More people were dressed fancily, like the students and their parents, but a good number of people also wore the more casual look like Harnel. He still didn't see a single one of his students.

Small children ran between the adults, laughing and screaming in joy. They carried bags filled with treats and toys. Young couples held hands and strolled around while groups of young men loitered near circles of young women. They eyed each other, but few made moves.

More than one person watched Basque in return. Their looks ranged from ones similar to Julvie's, before she started hating him, to ones that looked like Krill's (and the way Julvie currently looked at him). There were also ones that went further to the extreme, expressions that looked like they were barely holding back from attacking him, either sexually or to kill him.

Basque didn't really care about any of them; he was just scanning the crowd to see if any of his students were around, but he'd never had the experience of looking for particular people in such a rainbow-colored crowd.

Back in Hianbru, everyone had black hair. It was much easier to find someone when everything was similar, rather than in the mixture of colors that distracted him every five seconds.

Once, he thought he caught sight of Malcalm, but Malcalm and his twin sister had opted to stay in the dorms. Basque was glad that of the four tournament participants, only Avae had chosen to come. She'd promised to make it an early night, though.

Harnel had finished his beer and ordered a second type. He gave a cup to Basque, who still had over half of his first left. "Less gawking, more chugging."

When Basque put the first cup to his lips, Harnel tipped it up more. Basque sputtered and coughed. "Oi!"

"Bahahaha! Sorry, but you're nursing that like a baby."

Basque shoved the half-drunk beer into Harnel's chest. "You finish it then."

The massive man grabbed it and downed it. He let out a satisfied "ah" and said, "That's how you drink!"

Basque nodded. "I'll let you do that then. Come on, I want to try some of the food."

"Oh! You've got to try some of the pig-squash. It's fantastic."

"Pig-squash?"

"Yeah, it's a festival thing. After the interface and Yani and all, our ancestors made some squash that tastes like barbeque pork. Of course, the tech that they used to first make it is long since lost in the annals of history, but at festivals we still get to eat that fantastic veggie!"

Basque blinked several times. "This is…something I really must eat!"

"Bahahaha! Finish that beer before we get there, and I'll get you two!"

The line for the pig-squash was long. Long enough that Harnel went to a nearby beer stall to get refills twice while Basque held their spot in line. As they waited, Harnel went into more detail about the origins of pig-squash. Ancient Kruamians tried to wipe out all pre-turned animals and become vegetarians to prevent Yani from coming into existence. They found, however, that the task of wiping out every animal, without killing off themselves as well, was impossible, and soon gave up.

The pig-squash was what the name promised. It was a pink gourd with a curly stem. The people running the booth sliced and skewered the vegetables, and then heated them over coals.

Basque took a bite of it, and though it was hot, it was incredible. As Harnel had promised, it tasted like barbecue pork.

"Good, innit?"

Basque nodded his head as he chewed with his mouth open because the food was so hot. "Yaff." He swallowed. "This is so good? Why isn't it something you can get every day?"

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Harnel swallowed his bite. "Too hard to produce. We can only get it during festivals."

"What a shame."

It was a shame. He finally found something in Kruami that was worth some sort of trade agreement. Basque was about to take a third bite when the fourth-year's head teacher, Saera, marched over to him, dragging Taraia behind her. Arion, Braelyne, and Kamron, who'd teamed up with Taraia for the festival, followed behind in their wake.

Shoving the remains of his pig-squash into Harnel's hands, Basque pushed his way through the crowd to meet them. Panic tried to force its way through Basque's body, but he stamped it down.

Taraia struggled in Saera's grasp, but the muscular teacher's arm and hand didn't even budge. The only reason Basque could tell that Taraia was struggling was that she jerked her body away from Saera every other step. Saera didn't even look at the girl.

He wanted to give the large teacher the benefit of the doubt, that she wasn't being cruel to his student, but all he could hear was the woman's curt tone as she reported her student death rates. The sooner Basque reclaimed his student from her, the better.

"Master Basque," Saera said and stopped in front of Basque and Harnel, who'd followed in Basque's wake.

"Madam Saera? Taraia? What's going on?"

Taraia stopped struggling and looked at the ground. That's when Basque noticed her knuckles were bloody and there were some dark spots on her school uniform.

"They started it," Taraia muttered at the ground.

Basque turned his gaze back to Saera.

"I found her beating a student from Class C. I've sent that student to the nurse's office, but this one needs discipline."

Basque's heart skipped a beat. Taraia fought another student. A noble student was in the nurse's office. His failure to warn the entire class about fighting. Krill's vindictive punishment for Taraia when he found out. All of it flashed into his mind at once. Calming himself, he focused on the situation.

He didn't doubt Taraia's words that the other student started the fight, but this was not what he wanted to happen.

"Thank you, Madam Saera."

She nodded her head. "I saw you standing here with that guy, and I thought you'd be the best to discipline her." She looked at Harnel. "No other teachers have heard about this. If our guest teacher forgets to mention this tomorrow at the morning meeting, well, I guess it gets forgotten."

"What about the other child?" Harnel asked.

"I've already taken care of him."

While they spoke, Basque's eyes widened. Her short reports. The near-rebellious attitude. It all made sense. It wasn't her gruff personality. She wasn't like the others who celebrated in Class E's misfortunes. She was an ally.

"Thank you, Madam Saera. I really appreciate this."

She turned her stern look back to Basque. "Discipline her properly, Master Basque. Don't make me regret my decision." She looked down at Taraia. "Obey your teacher, child, or I will teach you how to obey."

Taraia went stiff. "Yes, ma'am."

Saera looked at Basque. "One day, you will fight me with your tattoo out. But I still need more training." Then, without waiting for a response, she floated off with a grace that contradicted her size.

Basque watched her go for a second. She managed to be both gruff and eloquent at the same time. Since she was in a different year, he'd hardly ever spoken with her. He knew his duel with Krill was well-known in the school, and seeing Saera in a new light, he looked forward to sparring and getting to know her.

Turning his attention to Harnel, Basque handed him the two-thirds-full beer. "You can finish that."

"And the pig-squash?"

Basque grabbed it back, took a bite, and through the mouthful said, "No, sorry, this one's mine."

"Well, I can't say that I'm not disappointed." Harnel looked at Taraia. "There's one in every class, huh? I'll leave you to it, Basky."

"Thanks, Harnel. See you tomorrow."

"Yup." The big man walked off, and as he went, he didn't push his way through the crowd as much as the crowd parted for him.

"Where are the others?" Basque asked.

"Scattin' out the egg. No hotels," Arion said.

Normally, Taraia would have reacted to Arion's use of street, but she kept her eyes on the ground.

Braelyne interpreted for Basque, "We've not seen heads or tails of them since leaving the dorms."

"Heads or tails" was an idiom Basque was familiar with. "Okay, well, you four head straight back to the dorms. I'll find the others."

"Understood, Gerenet-Shr," the four of them, even Taraia, said.

They set off for the dorms, and Basque went in search of the other eight students. He finished his pig-squash, and when he went to throw the skewer away in a semi-secluded area, a violet-haired man and a hot-pink-haired woman approached him at the trash can.

The man rubbed his hand down Basque's chest. "Mmm, outwaller. How about you come back to our room?"

"No—"

The woman grabbed his crotch. "It's okay, my husband shares me and I want you."

"You're a Dyntril student's parents, right?"

The woman backed up a step. "Yes, why?"

Basque shook his head and pushed his way past them. The woman made an incredulous noise, like Basque had the gall to turn them down. Basque wanted to make the same noise back at her for having the gall to assault a teacher at their child's school.

After that, Basque made sure not to wander out of the crowd. As disgusted by the couple as he was, it was better than if someone had tried to fight him. He needed to find the rest of his students quickly.

He found Cayelyn, Medow, Thoms, and Kamryn coming out of a fun house. They returned to the dorm without hesitation or complaint. Twenty minutes later, he found the remaining four, Xav, Jame, Emilisa, and Avae, looking through trinkets. They all had looks of disappointment on their faces when Basque told them that the night was over, but they obediently followed him back to the dorm without complaint.

In contrast to when he and Harnel had exited, the inside of the Grand Entrance Hall was practically empty, as almost every student was out at the festival. The noises from the crowd gathered just outside floated into the giant room, preventing it from feeling as empty as it was.

The two girls and two boys followed Basque up the stairs in silence. He felt bad for ending their night early, but Harnel said there would be another festival later in the year. He would make it up to them then.

Once they reached the third floor, their floor, Basque was surprised to see Natt and every other student gathered in the far outcropping, the one next to the giant doors. Their chatting and laughing had been hidden by the sounds coming in from outside, but a surge of appreciation for Natt rushed through Basque.

They had dragged the chairs from the other study down to that end. Two students sat in each chair, and five crammed in on both sofas, while Jardan and Kolt, the largest two students, sat on the floor. Taraia's kiwi-green hair was nowhere to be seen. Natt caught sight of him and nodded at him, but her face told him not to go near her.

"Hey, guys," Basque asked the students following him, "why don't you go join them?"

Their faces lit up.

"Can we really?" Emilisa asked.

"Of course!"

"Thank you!" she said, and the four of them ran down to the lounge. Since he didn't see Taraia with the others, Basque continued on his way to the dorm hall.

As soon as the last four joined the class, an azure head spun towards Basque. Cayelyn burst from her seat next to Braelyne and came running after Basque. He stopped in front of the door and waited for her.

"Hi, Gerenet-Shr."

"Good evening, Cayelyn."

"I love your outfit."

"Thank you. It's called an Auktya. We wear them to festivals in Hianbru."

She stared intently at the end of his sleeves. "I wish I could get one."

"Is there something you needed, Cayelyn?"

"No—yes, well, Miss Cormick asked me to tell you that Taraia is waiting in your room."

"Okay, thank you." He put his hand on the door to open it.

"And! And, well, I wanted to know if you wanted to come back out and watch the fireworks with me after you finish scolding her."

"Fireworks?"

She grabbed the sides of her skirt and blushed while looking at her feet. "Yeah…Mama let me see them from one of the duke's attic rooms last year. They're pretty amazing, and I thought maybe you might want to see them."

Basque smiled at her. "I would love to watch them with you all. If Taraia and I finish our talk before they're over, we'll come join you."

Her face lit up. "That's great! And since, well, there's so many kids at that lounge, maybe you and I could go up to the fourth floor and watch? I know all of Class D will be out watching it, so there shouldn't be anyone there, and you can sit down. The windows up there aren't as big as our windows, so the view might not be as nice, but it would still be—"

"Cayelyn, it sounds lovely, but I don't need to sit. We can all watch it as a class."

She blushed again. "Oh yeah, of course. Well, then, I'll be going…back over there now." She pointed at the lounge with her thumb over her shoulder, then swung her arms in front of herself, clapped once, then waved to him before running off.

Putting Cayelyn's crush out of his mind, he opened the door and went into the dorm hall. Some of the groups must have brought food back because the hallway smelled like the festival. Basque's stomach rumbled, and the pig-squash jumped into his mind. He desperately wanted another. If he had time, he'd go buy one for himself, all the students, and Natt.

Once more, clearing his mind, Basque opened his door and stepped into his room. Taraia stood in the sitting area, facing away from the door and towards the couch. She didn't react when Basque came in. He walked around her and sat on the couch.

Basque motioned towards one of the chairs, "Please sit, Taraia."

She did as she was told.

"Why don't you tell me what happened?"

"Some goons from C nicked my pig-squash and shoved Braelyne. So, I shoved the Yani back and shoved him a couple more times with my fists in his face, then that kiwi gorilla ripped me off him."

Basque nodded at her story. "I see. What was the first thing you did wrong?"

Taraia was silent for a second. "Shoving him back?"

Basque shook his head. "No, that was the second thing."

Taraia furrowed her brow. "Going to the festival?"

He shook his head again. "No, that wasn't a problem, I allowed that."

Taraia made a face that said she had no idea what he was talking about and wasn't happy about it. "I dunno? Wore this Yani-shit outfit?" She pointed down to her standard school uniform.

"What was the first thing that happened in the altercation?"

"I got my pig-squash stolen."

Basque nodded. "Yes, that's what you did wrong."

"How is that my fault? That Yani was the one who grabbed it from me."

"How was he able to grab it, though?"

"'Cause he took it when I weren't looking!"

"Oh, so it's okay if one of the core's balls hits you from behind because you weren't looking at it?"

"What's that got…" her voice trailed off, and she stared at him. Understanding lit up in her eyes.

Basque nodded. "Exactly, Taraia. You're skilled at dodging, but your mindset is still wrong. This is part of the reason you weren't chosen for the tournament. You think of the balls as balls. You need to think of them as attacks, be they Yani or human attacks. You're good enough that no one should have been able to 'nick' your food."

She looked at the table. Basque could see the gears churning in her head.

"Now, we get to the main reason why I didn't allow you to participate in the tournament. We, our class, we're not fighting. We're dodging and avoiding. We're doing everything but hitting and being hit.

"Despite how mad Miss Cormick got, I wasn't lying when I said you'll be able to face a mage Yani one day. You will be powerful, Taraia. But I'm not giving you that power to hunt humans. I'm giving you that power to save them."

"But he—"

"Yes, he attacked you first, and that's also why we're starting with learning how to dodge, how to de-escalate situations."

"So, what's my punishment going to be?"

"By the time the next class begins, I want you to hand me a report outlining seven different ways you could have de-escalated the situation."

"A report?"

"Yes, handwritten."

"Handwritten?! Aww! You're so cruel! Can't you make me do some extra laps or sumtin?"

Basque shook his head. "You need to get better at using your mind. Seven different ways, Taraia. And, the report must be at least five hundred words long."

"Five hundred!" She put her hand on her forehead and slouched back. "In five days?!"

"Oh, and don't think I've forgotten about this morning. I want a second report giving me seven reasons why 'plum' is a great color for hair."

"What?! But I didn't mean it in that—"

"It doesn't matter how you meant it, Taraia. What matters is how Emilisa took it. You hurt her. I'm not asking you to write an apology to her, because that wouldn't be sincere. So, I'll have you just write why her hair is a good color."

Taraia stared at the floor. Basque stood up, walked over to her, and put his hand on her shoulder. He jerked his head towards the door. "Now, come on. Apparently, some fireworks are starting soon, and I want to go get pig-squash for the class. I need you to help me carry them all."

Taraia looked up at him. "Yes, Gerenet-Shr."

Basque smiled. He was finally getting through to her.