Yes, but he get's an unexpected greeting.

Unfortunately, the young lovers immediately had to split up. Not only were their lockers on opposite sides of the school, but they actually didn't have a class together until after lunch. Which wasn't exactly what Mason wanted. But it seemed even Luxuria couldn't get him out of the crappy obligations in life.

So he steeled himself and prepared to just push through today. He opened his locker and swapped out the books he needed yesterday for the ones he needed today. It took a little arranging, he had a bad habit of using bigger notebooks than he really needed. But it was a dance he had done a thousand times before.

But as he did he felt an odd chill in the air. But this wasn't the result of winter weather. This was the result of a shift in social energy. Up until now, the hallway had been filled with the clangor of hundreds of teens. They were horsing around, gossiping, calling out to friends, and throwing vulgar insults at their enemies. But a hush rolled down the hall towards him.

And it didn't take long to figure out what was going on.

Walking down the hall was the single tallest woman Mason had ever met. She was a muscular brunette with broad shoulders that stretched out the blazer she wore. Every single aspect of her appearance practically screamed soldier. Her chestnut brown hair was pulled back into a tight bun. There was no makeup on her tanned face. She stood a ramrod straight even as she walked. Her dark eyes stared more through than at you when she talked. And the right sleeve of her jacket was mostly empty with the extra fabric rolled up and pinned well above where her elbow should have been.

Basically, Former Captain (now Vice-Principal) Barbara Rosso never needed to wear her uniform.

The reason a hush surrounded her as she moved was a pretty easy but also complicated topic. Every student in the school was absolutely terrified of Ms. Rosso. But that in and of itself was a little strange. Sure she was tall, but even after his growth spurt (in which he topped out 6'6" a full inch over her), Mason was still easily cowed by her. Sure she never smiled, but she also never seemed to get angry. Sure she was trained to kill people (and almost certainly had), but the only time she had ever laid her hands on a student was to help patch up that one idiot who ran with scissors. And sure she had put a guy in the hospital last year with a single punch, but that had been the crazy substitute who tried to mug a student. Really there was no logical reason for any of them to be scared of her.

But it wasn't really about logic. There was just a sort of aura the brawny woman exuded. It was similar to a shark. She was quiet and barely made any movements as she glided through life. But there was something that spoke directly to the ancient monkey instincts within them all. And it said a single word. "RUN."

And right now she was bearing down on Mason. He desperately wanted to believe she just happened to be passing by. But her piercing gaze was trained directly on him.

"Good," Mason started to speak but his voice cracked. So he started again. "Good morning Principal Rosso."

"Good morning Mr. Griffith," The woman said calmly. "I've been looking for you."

"You have?" He swallowed, his mouth and throat suddenly dry. Mason's thoughts spun wildly. He was grasping at straws for some reason the ex-ranger could be looking for him. If this was a few years ago he would suspect it was something to do with Viv. But here and now he was drawing a blank.

"Yes," She said bluntly. "I need to submit a preliminary budget for next year. And that means I need an inventory of our athletic equipment. But Coach Thompson is out with the flu."

Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy, Mason thought bitterly. Coach Thompson was an infamous asshole. So the tall nerd wasn't exactly saddened to hear he was suffering a little. But he still didn't understand what that had to do with him.

"So now I need to do it myself," Ms. Rosso said neutrally. "And I could use an extra set of hands. Preferably from someone who can help lift a few heavy things. Do you mind helping?"

"Um, maybe," He said, his mouth suddenly dry. The real answer to that question was yes and no. Yes, he minded, and no he didn't want to do it. But actually saying that proved difficult. "Wh-When? Uh, do you want to do it?"

That question probably could have been phrased better. But it was Mason's best hope for escape. If he was already doing something else she might decide to just pick someone else.

"I need to start today. I was hoping to get started right after school." Ms. Rosso said.

Ah, so the worst possible day, Mason thought to himself. If the terrifying woman had just said Thursday he could have at least get out of this or Yoga with his sister. Instead, he was potentially going to miss his first date. Worse still he couldn't just explain the situation, because Yumi wanted to keep their relationship secret.

"I kind of already have plans," He said awkwardly.

"It won't take long with the two of us. We can do a half-hour today, and another half-hour tomorrow. And whenever you need to leave you can." It was a reasonable compromise but that wasn't what caught Mason's attention. Normally Ms. Rosso was stoic, bordering on unreadable. But as she spoke he noticed something. It started when he realized she was tensing and relaxing her fist. Then there was a bead of sweat running down her temple. And lastly a strange gleam in her brown eyes.

It was like she was anxious. Maybe even ****. It was quite unsettling to see the normally unflappable vet like this.

"Okay," He said before he could stop himself. A lifetime of being friends with the perpetually nervous Yumi had trained him for moments like this. So he just instinctually agreed to help her.

"Thank you." And there was the slow exhale. Without realizing it Ms. Rosso had been holding her breath. "I'll meet you in the gym after fifth period."

And just like that the brunette spun on her heels and was walking away. Leaving Mason's rather shocked face to be mirrored on several of the students staring at him.

But it only took him a few seconds to regain his composure. Strange as that was, a lot of weird things had happened lately. Honestly, that probably didn't even crack the top ten. Unfortunately, it still did happen so he would need to send a quick text letting Yumi know the bad news.

But as he unlocked his phone he found Luxuria still open and three new messages.

You asked Yumi Kamiya out on a date and she said yes! You earned 6 silver for Yumi Kamiya!

You kissed Yumi Kamiya! You earned 8 silver for Yumi Kamiya!

Barbara Rosso was registered as a target! Your previous interactions have earned you 453 silver to start!