fandomhigh | Fandom High Graduation Ceremony, Class of 2015, Early Saturday Evening [Part 2]

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!event: graduation

Fandom High Graduation Ceremony, Class of 2015, Early Saturday Evening [Part 2]

As the last new graduate sat down with their diploma, a roaring noise could be heard in the distance. The noise quickly got louder, and then it wasn't so distant at all as dragons began to swarm around the lawn.

Some of the dragons were real, with scales and tails and fire in their breath. Following in their wake were smaller, squishier dragons, in a variety of tasty jello flavors.

As the dragons descended upon the graduates, the Fandom graduation protocols kicked in, and an invisible barrier came down to separate the graduates from the rest of the audience.

Good luck, graduates. Hopefully there were some brave knight types among you!

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"Should've packed a weapon," Atton said, wandering her way once he was done talking to Sparkle. "I mean, these things are fiendishly predictable."

Karina glowered at him, then sniffed.

"I did pack a weapon," she said, since she'd brought herself. "But the sword sufficed."

"I guess you dealt with those dragons all right," Atton said, nodding vaguely towards the giant pile of mess up ahead. "I guess next year I need to start reminding students to pack a towel."

If he'd even be here next year. Right now he wasn't even sure he'd be here next week, but Karina didn't need to know that.

"I'd pity you for being stuck on the island that long," Karina said, "but then I'd have to care enough to do that."

Which she did a little? She did like Atton, as far as that went, but they hadn't exactly talked much.

Atton was a little sad they hadn't hung out when they were students. Then again, he wasn't exactly hugely proud of who he'd been when he'd been a student.

... or who he was now, but slightly less unproud than he had been?

"You wound me," he sighed. "Really, Karina, that hurts."

"You'll get over it," Karina said, and absently flicked a glob of Jello in his direction.

Oops?

Edited 2015-04-25 19:43 (UTC)

Atton rolled his eyes and batted it away with just a tiny bit of the Force, like the big cheater he was. "Yeah, yeah," he said, "I was going to congratulate you on making it out alive, but now I'm not so sure."

"What? That didn't even touch you," she replied, making a face at his dirty cheating. "Big baby."

"Hey, I did my time," Atton retorted. "When I graduated, we got giant bugs. That was fantastic."

Not.

"...No," she said flatly. Because no. Giant bugs were--oh god. "I think I prefer the dragons."

Which Karina had never, ever thought she'd say, let alone say it right after fighting them.

"Dragons are good," Atton said. "I mean, you get a lot of surface to hit, and they don't make creepy noises. They just roar a lot."

"Don't get me wrong," she said, picking a bit of Jello out of her hair with her free hand. "I don't like dragons. I was happier never having to fight them and, luck being with me, I'll never have to again. I just prefer them over giant bugs."

"My advice: never go to some places on Dantooine. Or Dxun," Atton said. "I went on to meet way more giant bugs post-graduation."

Beat.

"Though I'm hoping your future is slightly more dragon-free than that."

"The only dragons I ever knew about before here were in stories," Karina said, then frowned. "The only way dragons are getting to Sternbild are if they follow me from Fandom. That had better not happen."

Atton shrugged. "What's waiting for you back there, anyway?" he asked, actually sounding halfway curious.

She hesitated.

"Work," Karina said, after that moment. "And probably back to school for me, honestly, since the timeline kinda... stopped, back in my world. I'm hoping it'll start moving once I go back because endless highschool... not really my thing."

Atton could read an Important Hesitation as well as anyone with half an ounce of sense, but he wasn't going to press on that front. He shrugged. "Hey, if they keep you comfortable and fed the way they do here..."

She laughed.

"Just with 100% more nagging and a lot more effort," Karina said wryly. "But it'll be good for me. It's easy to get lazy here."

"I'm having trouble picturing you lazy," Atton admitted. "You're probably going to kick some ass. Someone else's, that is, instead of bitching at mine."

"You'll miss it," she retorted promptly. "But, yeah, kicking ass is totally in my future."

Both literally and figuratively.

... If Atton was lucky and the island felt like showing the right channel, he'd even get to see her on TV, doing it professionally.

"Good, then," Atton said.

He was quiet for a second.

Then he offered her a hand.

"Pretend I'm like a real teacher."

It was on the tip of her tongue to say something like 'You are? Since when?' or to just burst out laughing, but something about that silence before he offered her his hand that made her smile slightly instead.

A real smile, not one of her usual ones.

"I guess I can do that," she admitted, reaching for his hand.

Atton gave her hand a firm shake. "It's been good knowing you," he said. "Congratulations, and try not to hate this place too much once you blow out of here in style."

He hadn't smiled a real smile in years, but she was getting what amounted to a fond look in return.

What? He liked the kid. Who didn't let him call her kid.

She laughed.

"I didn't hate everything about it," Karina admitted. She didn't hate Sparkle at all, or Minako or Kathy or Elsa, though she knew Sparkle the best. She didn't hate Atton, either, though she knew him the least.

"But, hey, I'll take that in the spirit it was intended," she continued, and yeah, she was just going to kiss him on the cheek now, because she was terrible and could only pretend he was a teacher for so long. And because this was making her a little sentimental. Shh, don't tell. "Don't die, okay? And if the island gets too awful, hop to a better world. I'm not going to be around to bitch at you for terrible life decisions."

Because she already could guess that he'd make terrible life decisions.

Edited 2015-04-25 21:05 (UTC)

... Did she just kiss him on the cheek? Really? Was he respectable enough for that now? Or did he genuinely drag up that level of (platonic) affection?

Damn it.

He scratched the back of his neck with more nervous energy than he was inclined to admit, as that kind of threw him off his calm-and-collected streak just now.

"I'll be fine," he said, shoving what remained of calm-and-casual into his tone instead. "But, uh, thanks."

He bit back an and stuff.

Fandom High Graduation Ceremony, Class of 2015, Early Saturday Evening [Part 2]

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