Trial by Moonlight

"Harper, stop looking at me like that," stabbing a sausage link with a fork, Genie bit off the end with a snap of her teeth, and with her mouth still full of savory spices, added, "it's annoying."

"Like talking with your mouth full of food 'annoying' or..." Harper leaned across the table, the linin handkerchief she wore as a bib around her neck, trailed through the cinnamon and raisin porridge in the bowl in front of her like a directionless rudder, "kissing a Were beneath a full moon 'annoying'."

The table grew quiet as the other girls turned to regard them in unison, their expressions stilled in a pantomime of midchew. Leslie Brere of the Beast School lifted an eyebrow in Genie's direction and nudged her classmate Judith in the shoulder. Pushing Harper back into her own seat, Genie giggled at the other girls, "You know Harper, always one for a laugh."

Harper plopped back into her seat and hunched over her bowl of porridge. "Yeah, I'm a hoot."

"What's your problem, Harper?" Genie hissed once Leslie lost interest and left the table, Judith close behind her. Both girls brushed past the kitchen crawler who came by to collect the dirty dishes, a piece of leftover toast stuck between his teeth. "Why are you making such a big deal out of nothing?"

"Nothing?" Harper's gaze shot over to a group of boys who sat in the far corner of the room, one of whom sat with his arms crossed, staring with heated contemplation in their direction, "Tell that to Mr. Dow Eyes over there. He hasn't stopped staring at you since he and his shaggy-headed brethren walked into the hall."

Genie repressed the urge to turn around and look for herself, she knew who Harper meant and a tingle cascaded down her back. She tried to keep her voice neutral when she said, "Really? I hadn't noticed."

"I thought I was the one who made people laugh, Genie. What's up with you, anyway?" Harper glared at Genie through her bangs which were the same length as the rest of her hair but a smidge shorter. "I don't get it."

"There's nothing to get." Genie stacked her plates, dumping the uneaten food into a large bowl in the middle of the table. "So forget about it, would you."

"Forget about it? Do you know what School he belongs to?" Harper kept her voice low by a sheer force of will. "You do know 'what' he is, right."

Standing to her feet, Genie glowered down at Harper, "Yes, I do. I know exactly what he is, but you need to remember who you are, too." Turning away, Genie muttered, "You both can be monsters, but one has a choice the other doesn't."