Imaginary Worlds

The Master was hard to fool when it came to Koschei, if anything went funny in this passed week, he was going to assume it was Koschei's fault till proved otherwise. Dropping down on the sofa, the Master sighed and let Sigma join him.

He didn't mean to fall asleep on the sofa and miss the alarm but when he woke up, he was half an hour late to get Koschei to school and he hadn't packed the boy a lunch. "Koschei! Get up now!" He yelled up the stairs as he dashed into the kitchen to get ready.

Koschei walked down calmly, already dressed and ready to go. "Alarm woke me." he said simply, shrugging. He calmly headed out to get settled in the car to go, trying his hardest not to smirk. Because the Master wasn't going to be happy.

But he was. There was no doubt about that. He was going to be happy and enjoy himself. He was going to need to play it just right. He would have to miss lunch and whatnot, but oh well. It was worth it.

The Master took to hastily slapping together Koschei's lunch and getting on his shoes, he'd com back to shower and change anyway but for now? He had to get Koschei to school and fast or he'd be late for his first lesson.

"Remember our deal Koschei? One wrong move, one ditched class, one misstep and I'm withdrawing you from the school," the Master warned as he'd warned yesterday. He was not enabling the boy any more, he had no reason to. Shoving lunch into the boys had, he ushered him out the door.

The best part was that Koschei wouldn't have to say anything. Epsilon and Theta would help and hint toward a certain teacher. Koschei wouldn't say a word. And if he was found out? Well. He would simply claim he was protecting Epsilon and that it was an accident. Simple.

As it was? He took a bus home on a regular time, slipping into the house with his head ducked to try and hide his blackened eye. The school probably called the Master to inform him that Koschei had been hurt and a certain science teacher was pending investigation. But he didn't honestly care.

It was always convenient when someone annoyed Koschei, they were mysteriously removed from his little world. The Master listened to the report when they rang him up and pointed out, as his own private testimony, that he highly doubted this was true and Koschei's mental records as well as his ability to lie compulsively spoke against him. The officers tune began to change from sympathetic to suspicious rather swiftly as no one knew his son better than his own father.

Course, he didn't need much evidence and all he had to do to confirm what had happened was to confront Koschei head on. He could always tell when the boy was lying. "Koschei! Get down here right now!"

Koschei cringed and headed down, shoving his hands into his pockets and shooting his father a sullen glare. "I didn't do anything." he said firmly. An automatic response to that tone. Not to mention he'd forgotten to factor one key point into all of this. His eye hurt.

In fact, it sort of hurt a lot. The amount of fights Epsilon managed to get into honestly made him think otherwise. "Sorry...'M sleepy." Koschei amended softly. And he was. Not to mention he wasn't looking forward to this in the least.

"Who was it then? Who punched you in the eye?" Grabbing the boy by his shirt so he didn't walk off, he dropped down into a crouch so they could look at each other eye to eye. The best way to catch a liar out was body language. Not that he needed convincing?

"Let me guess? Did you pay an older kid? Get into a fight and pass the blame?... Or does Theta just have one hell of a right hook?" the Master quizzed, knowing Koschei's lie was impossible to be true. "I'm not stupid, it wasn't Mr Smith. Tell me now."

"I didn't say anything." Koschei murmured, ducking his head away and shrugging. The best part? Everything he had to say was completely true. "I don't wanna talk about it." he murmured, pulling against the other's hold slightly.

As for the other accusations? "I didn't do anything!" he added firmly. He hadn't. He'd provoked Epsilon and let everything else fall into place. Then again? Provoking a kid already on thin ice legally whose mother worked with the Master probably wasn't his best choice.

"Well, I was told that Mr Smith did this and if that's so then we can't keep you at that school. I'm withdrawing you tonight and tomorrow you can enroll back at your old school with that charming bitch of a teacher," the Master informed him bluntly. It made total sense and besides, it would keep Koschei rather unhappy.

"I'm going to ring Epsilons mother as well, have a bit of a talk and see if she will get Epsilon to talk to me. Maybe he can tell me. I mean, its so convenient that Mr Smith decided to hit you. You of all people. The one that wanted him to go away and now he may have to?"

"I didn't say anything!" Koschei protested. And he hadn't. Actually, Theta had blurted out the first name she thought of while Epsilon stood there in shock over what he'd just done. But that also meant that calling Verica to speak with the kid was probably a bad thing. He did actually care for his friend.

Grasping hold of the Master's wrist, he gave a curt shake of his head. "Send me away. Don't call her." Koschei protested firmly. Because she didn't know and, while this had worked out for him, he didn't want to see Epsilon in any more trouble.

"You don't want me to call her? Then by process of elimination, I have worked out that it was Episilon... huh, didn't consider that," the Master mused with a smug smirk. Well, Koschei could throw a fit all he liked but this was not a bargainable offence.

"Koschei, here's my offer. Tell me everything that happens or I'm going to ring up Verica and discuss this whole mess, maybe even invite her around so we can quiz the both of you... but you have to tell me everything now," the Master asserted because he would not cost another man his job because of this little brat.

"I didn't say anything! Don't call her. It's fine!" Koschei protested with a frown. "'M not telling anyone he did it." he added sharply. In other words? The three who knew the absolute truth weren't speaking it, leaving the investigation to take place.

He didn't care if the Master was unhappy with him at the moment. He was getting his way and he was protecting his friend. Besides, it's not like this was the first time he'd been hit. It was the only reason he'd known Epsilon would do it. "Don't call her."

"You're not telling me the truth," the Master informed him with a look of clear annoyance because they were stuck in a loop. "Either you tell everything or I'll tell Verica's that Epsilon punched you, the investigation will find out and call it off and you will transfer away and Epsilon deals with the punishment because of everything this has caused," Seemed fair to the Master. He was not being played by his own son, no was in hell.

Heading to the kitchen he grabbed his phone off the side and scrawled through his contacts. He'd ring Theta's father straight afterwards as well, just to get as much as he could on all of this. "Last chance Koschei, walk me through what happened today or I'm going to rat you and Epsilon out. Think about it."

"Epsilon didn't mean to! I made him angry an' it's fine! He can't get in trouble again...They're gonna kick him out." Koschei said softly, shaking his head curtly. "He's hit me harder. 'M fine." he asserted softly. Probably not the best way to try and keep his friend out of trouble.

Truth was? He didn't even need to try that hard to piss his friend off. "I didn't say anything..." Koschei murmured, ducking his head with a sharp glare. And that was honestly it. Theta had been trying to protect Epsilon and he wasn't saying anything that would get his friend expelled.

"Look, Koschei, I'm sorry that you pushed Epsilon and he punched you but it sounds like you three got one another into this mess because yes, I know Theta is uaully involved, but you can't expect me to lie for you," this was not how the real world worked and he couldn't always lie and help Koschei get things how he wanted them.

"A man could lose his job or have this on his record. So no, you, Epsilon and Theta have to confess all of this mess. So, here's my deal, I'll help you come up with a potential alternative to Epsilon but you're going to admit this wasn't Mr Smith first thing tomorrow," the Master insisted as he looked over his phone... he'd probably ring Verica anyway.

"Why do you care? You don't know him." Koschei said slowly, shaking his head. His teacher was nothing more than another person in this place. The fact that the Master was bothering enough to help keep the man's job was absolutely baffling. Never mind dealing with Koschei.

"I don't like him. I do like Epsilon. 'M not gonna get him in trouble for someone I don't like." Koschei said softly, shaking his head slowly. What did it matter? The Master didn't have this much trouble with the last teacher quiting.

He actually did, which was why they had started the star chart for good behaviour... then it got ripped, put aside and forgotten but he had tried. Besides, he empathies with Mr Smith, it was hard being a single dad with an awkward son. "Its the right thing to do and its not right to enable you. Now stop being a brat, understand?"

The Master couldn't think of any way out of this without Koschei telling the truth. "I'm going to ring Verica and we can talk this over and see if we can't come up with something but you're now grounded for a month for letting all of this get out of hand and lying."

"Don't call her an' I didn't lie!" Koschei protested. And he didn't! He had told the Master the complete truth. He just wasn't going to back down and let his friend get into trouble like this. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair. Because Epsilon had a future and it was reliant upon the kid making it through the academy's program.

It just wasn't something he could agree to. "I don't wanna tell on Epsilon. I didn't do anything, but I won't tell on him." Koschei asserted. He didn't care about his teacher. He did care that his friend was protected.

"Okay, you haven't told me the truth, have you? I had to blackmail you to tell me it was Epsilon. Now, from what I gather Epsilon hit you? Not normal, right? So I'm guessing that you provoked him? I'm sure that is entirely your fault. So here is my theory on what happened," the Master started as he leaned against the wall and gave the boy a disapproving look.

"You don't like Mr Smith, so you decided to provoke Epsilon and get a blackeye and then somehow, I can't say for sure how, but it got out that it was Mr Smith even though it wasn't and you went with it, despite being fully capable of denying this and now a man is going to face not only a loss of his job but perhaps a fine or a mark on his record as well thanks to you," the Master summed up because no, it seemed like Koschei had done a fair bit of lying and manipulating.

Eh, he was a bad teacher anyway. The only thing that Koschei felt remotely bad for was the fact that the man might lose his kid. And that was only because he knew from Epsilon what it was like to go through that. Other than that, he really didn't feel bad.

And as for Epsilon? "He gets mad." Koschei dismissed with a small shrug. In other words? Not exactly common, but it did happen on occasion. Just never in his face like this time and the only reason it was his face was that he had moved to avoid his shoulder. Besides, not like he couldn't hit back. He usually just didn't want to bother. "I don't want Epsilon kicked out."

"Then you shouldn't of provoked him. But look on the bright side, neither of you are going to that academy now so you can both stay in public school. Much cheaper. And besides, Epsilon might forgive you-- I say might," the Master pointed out because he knew Koschei didn't feel anything and that pissed off admittedly. He wanted a son who at least felt guilt.

Well, maybe having his friend in trouble would help. Dialling up Verica, the Master turned his head to the side. "Hey, sorry to call so late but can me and Koschei come over. We have a matter to discuss regarding Epsilon and that whole business at school."

Except he did feel. Just not toward that teacher. "No! They're gonna take him away!" Koschei protested sharply, clinging to his father's waist. He didn't want them to take his friend away from Verica. It didn't matter if the kid was seven. He was a bit of a menace to society.

Unfortunately, that didn't get either kid off the hook. Verica sighed softly on the other line, already knowing where this was going. "Feel free. Perhaps you can get more out of Epsilon than I can." she murmured. It wasn't exactly easy.

"I'll be down shortly and we'll work it out," looking down at Koschei as he hung up, he gently pushed the boy towards the door. "Go put on your shoes, we're going to go discuss this and work out which option to go for. We might be able to get Epsilon off this but I'm not just giving you an out, you will be in trouble for this."

Slipping on his coat, he held open to door and ushered the boy outside. The sooner they got to the bottom of this, the sooner they coudl start damage control and salvage Epsilons future.

At least he'd never have to deal with Mr. Smith again. That was one positive to being sent to the public school again. So what it he would need to get one other teacher to quit and he started to fail? He would take his punishment. But he needed to make sure that Epsilon was alright.

"'Kay...Don't let them take Epsilon away. I can go to the other school." Koschei agreed softly, climbing into the car and settling into the seat. Well. He would be able to see Epsilon again. Just not during school hours.

"You can't dictate how things go, do you understand?" the Master asserted, he was really tempted to force Koschei to stay at that academy longer just to deal with Mr Smith but he doubted either of them would be there long enough. Besides, Koschei hated all his teachers, there was pretty much no winning.

When he pulled up outside Verica's, he marched Koschei right to the front door and knocked tentatively. "Now Koschei, you behave and you sit still the whole time. Don't do anything or you'll be in a lot of trouble."