The room was silent for a bit, its inhabitants contemplating what they'd all just heard from the Rogue Killer's belly. A few of them were in shock while others were holding on to the last bit of self-control they had to keep themselves from laughing at the birthday girl on the floor. Sandra did not dare approach her friend in the silence that had taken over the room. Instead, the girl shot daggers at Frost who immediately got a grip of the laughter that threatened to burst from him.
"Katie…" Jackeline called the girl.
"Yes, Jackeline," Katie answered, embarrassment filled in her voice.
"This new you is far more expressive. It's a good look for you. About the sound we just heard, did talk of the party make you fall hungry? I know you couldn't have left that house on an empty stomach," she said.
"I admit that I'm hungry, but I ate before coming here," Katie replied, sounding as vague to avoid revealing just how much she'd eaten that morning.
"Well, did you eat very little? We'd understand if you were on some diet to look nice in front of Cole…" Jackeline said.
Katie stopped her mopping and looked up to meet the woman's eye, "That had not crossed my mind," a problem that had not yet registered in her mind until now. "What if this happens when I'm with him today?"
"I never thought the Rogue Killer would have to worry about something as human as that, but I don't see how that should worry you now. We are going to help you solve it," Jackeline said.
Katie couldn't believe she had to explain herself to a conference room full of hunters. It was true that she'd grown up with them and they knew she ate more than the average human, but it didn't change the fact that she was about to appear to be more of a bottomless pit after this explanation. Katie put her head back on the ground and whined loudly, "That's not it, Jackeline. I ate almost thrice my normal today. I couldn't seem to get satisfied and by the time I got here, I felt like nothing was there."
Kenneth was not a gentleman in manners like this and collapsed on the table laughing. His laughter, contagious as it was, triggered his comrades to let out a few laughs as well. From giggles to explosive laughter, the likes of Kenneth and Trevor that didn't mind how loud they were getting, the room was filled with humorous laughter.
What was calming about it though was that Katie loved to see her comrades happy and this did not irritate in the slightest, 'You can all be so hopeless sometimes for the title of hunters,' she thought before laughing out with the others.
Anthony had to stop their happy moment to remind them that time was not one of their luxuries at the moment. Samantha replied him saying, "Can't you see our puppy is in need of some food? The whole world can wait."
Katie then had to explain that she'd met the moon goddess the day before, a detail she'd carefully left out before that would lead her to tell them how the goddess had taken her off the pills. The laughter came to a standstill once she was halfway through the explanation. Anthony, who was on the side of them keeping time decided to go to the kitchen and grab all manner of breakfast he could find. From the piece of the story he'd heard, this puppy was in need of a tone of food.
When he returned, they'd theorized that the wolf that still lay dormant was demanding food in preparation for her transformation later that night. "This is all I could find," Anthony said, dropping a vast assortment of different snacks and food that he could find. Three maids followed behind him with trolleys of food and beverages.
"You don't clearly mean to stuff all of that into this poor girl's belly. She's got a boyfriend for crying out loud," Jackeline teased.
"Cole and I aren't yet…"
"Well, it was already decided the moment you were born. You guys were made for each other…"
"I thought we'd all like to have something to eat before carrying out the day's plans," Anthony interrupted to plead his case with the female in charge. The males in the room refrained from making any comments regarding Katie's condition to protect whatever new feelings she seemed to be showing now.
"That's actually very thoughtful of you," Jackeline replied, "Katie, you know we care about you…"
"I know Jackeline. I'm grateful for that, thank you," Katie silently wished she could stay here for the whole day. The only other place she was free to slip up and no one would know a thing.
"So... Any of you guys think Katie's having trouble keeping her emotions inside because of her werewolf side that's now finally emerging?" Kenneth asked once they were finally eating.
"If you're trying to insinuate that I'll be less of a…"
"I wasn't insinuating anything, Katie. You choose your own path," he stopped her. 'Darned adults… He'd seen through me like an open book,' Katie grumbled internally. It was true that she was becoming more of an emotional mess since relieving her of the drug she'd been using. She knew this mainly because of the anticipation she had to be in Cole's presence once again.
...............
Katie's second breakfast ended thankfully without any other jokes about her condition. This time she ate till she was considerably satisfied, her belly remaining exactly the same. Unnatural as it seemed, she quietly thanked whatever supernatural forces made it possible. The hunters barely made it to school in time for the Principal's opening speech. The VIPs had not yet arrived which was a good thing as it allowed the hunters to get done with all the security procedures.
Kenneth and his group of juniors immediately got to checking the stalls from the different vendors that scattered around the school allowing an assortment of things to purchase when at the festival. Events such as these were rare as it was a tasking activity on the side of the hunters. So for all those that had businesses that benefited best in crowds as big as those that were attracted by such events, it was the time when they got the chance to sell their wares and make considerable profits.
On one of the festivals in the past, there had been a carnival that was set up in the dead of night just for that day. This time, it wasn't as flashy as it'd been that time. It was the time when the school was still considered the safest school in the whole of the world, but now that news of the dead werewolf was still spreading in the form of a rumour, the vendors had decided to hold back and pack light.
Nonetheless, the festival remained a sight to behold. A large stage had been set up in the field upon which the Principal currently stood to address the students. The hunters had come to the conclusion to expose the killer of the student to keep Katie out of detainment.
Much as this also raised suspicion of her involvement in the murder, the hunters stood by their word that she was innocent and that no claims were going to be tolerated in the face of the esteemed Agency.
Katie stood behind the Principal humbled in front of the student body. The hunters fanned out all over the school and the field. It was during this time that they did their job of checking through the projects that were to be presented that day.
"I know you are all eager to get your projects up and running. After all, that is what this day is about for most of you. I advise that you all be disciplined and diligent with your presentations. It's very likely that you can get a scholarship to great universities and schools to continue your studies. Though I don't see a place safer than here…" the short man joked. No one laughed when he said this, though it was clear he hadn't said it without intending it.
The Principal seized his laughter and dropped into a serene silence for a moment. The rest of the student body took this time to acknowledge the death of one of their fellow students, "Every single one of you knows what happened during the past week.
And for those that don't know or for those of you that heard rumours from a friend, I shall relay everything in the presence of our esteemed hunters and head of security." Katie took in two deep breaths as trained and assumed the mask she carried around with her everywhere she went to hide her emotions.
"I have been asked by the Hunter's Agency to reveal everything as it happened and withhold nothing of the truth. This information is to be published in the newspapers around the whole world as to what happened in this school," there were murmurs from the crowd as they wondered what it was that he meant by this.
On this day, the parents of the students that could make it were present and this was the source of the murmurs. The move the Principal was about to ruin the reputation of the school if anything he said was wrong or if he was suspected of fraud.
"Principal Brown…" a lone voice rose up from the chaos, quieting the entire field. Everyone looked in the direction of the one that had just caught the Principal's attention. The one person the entire school had come to respect… the same person that had caused the school to rise to the top in terms of safety. Since Katie's arrival, Brigadia High School had never been the same and the entire school knew her to be the one who ushered in an era of peace between the wolves and the humans.
She did not segregate between the two races and made the humans apologise as well in case they were the ones that had wronged the werewolves. If it wasn't for her reputation, she would have been suspected by the students as well, but everyone knew who Katie Chase was.
It would have looked like the Principal was trying to cover up for her if she had stayed back and let him relay the entire story as he'd been briefed earlier, but this way, they would hear it straight from the person who'd made the most progress in the case and was at the centre of all the blame. Katie walked up to the podium, the Principal stepping aside from it to allow her to get up to the microphone.
A hunter is supposed to be capable of suppressing their emotions as she'd succeeded with this whole time. This, however, didn't come in the job description. No one would train you to appeal to humans and werewolves alike after one of them was killed under your protection. She wasn't sure she could hold her façade… that was until she saw a sole face from within the crowd.
His blue eyes stood out amongst all the faces that stared at her and at that moment, she gained all the confidence she needed to make this speech and so much more…
Principal Brown gave the young hunter a warm smile when he realized what she intended to do at the moment, "Alas, I will be spared the trouble of reporting events that I also just heard from the Hunters. On behalf of the hunters, the head of security has decided to step in to explain the unfortunate events that occurred during the week," the man said before walking off the podium, giving Katie a tap on his way to the back where he'd watch the rest of the speech that she was going to give. "Good luck, Katie," he whispered.
Once Katie was up and close to the microphone, she spotted a distinct pair of bright blue eyes and froze, remembering the state he was in the day before. She couldn't tell what he'd do now that he'd seen her. 'Have I come to care this much? Of course, I have and it's only going to get worse… or simply more intense after today. I wonder… Cole, was I a good friend?'
A smile from the blue-eyed Royal got her heart beating again with confidence. She was glad he was back to his normal self even though the warmth that spread through felt like overkill. She could then proceed with the speech she was tasked with giving now. "As you all know, there was a murder that took place in the school of recent. Slightly before that murder, there was an attack in the forest that put the lives of many innocent students and citizens in harm's way. Thankfully with the help of the junior hunters and the werewolves, we were able to repel the attack and even detain one of the invaders.
I shall be brief as most of this is going to appear in the newspaper tomorrow. Most of this falls on my shoulders as you all know that the murder weapon was indeed a blade that was supposed to be in my possession," there were gasps as she revealed this, but that was to be expected, "The victim was someone who was among the rogues that attacked the students on that same day. This, however, means that the wolf went through a Prometheus evaluation and was deemed worthy of being welcomed into society.
Most of you knew Ash Myster as a fifteen-year-old boy that was struggling to keep up his grades, but that was not all that we should have known about Ash. Ash was indeed a girl…" gasps erupted from the crowd and she allowed a moment of thought for the people present to go through the information, "Yeah, I was also surprised by that after the autopsy. What makes me seem more likely to be the victim was the fact that when I arrived at the crime scene, Ash had written something in her own blood in an attempt to spell the killer, or so we suspect. However, she was only able to write one letter and that was a 'K'… Not a good look for me, I know, but that's what I found at the crime scene when I arrived."
Katie was getting more comfortable with narrating the tale of her investigation even when she continuously made everything seem like she was the one who'd done it, "Furthermore, I was at a loss of who the killer might have been. Usually, when there is someone behind something, I can tell. Come on, I know every face in this school and a name to match it. I continuously interrogated many of you who could have done it, but as I suspected, none of you could have done it. I'm not saying that knowing each and every one of you guarantees your innocence because the rogues that attacked the students a few days prior were also students whose names I knew.
However, Ash was able to reveal that there weren't any more that she knew of. Chandler, the rogue that we had in captivity was also able to confess that there was one more rogue in the school at the time and that he'd be leaving soon. We made a background check on every student to prove there wasn't any other rogue amongst us. Thankfully, every single one of you is clean and we are sure that there are no more spies amongst us. The details of the check will not be given for security purposes.
There is only one person who could go through all these security precautions and still not be discovered after all this and that was none other than Kyle Dwyer." Gasps and murmurs went through the crowd as she said, "Now the rest I have to say is nothing more than useless information that the rest of you don't want to hear. I don't deny that Kyle was my best friend almost since I got into this school. He was someone I deeply trusted and couldn't think would betray me. That is also why it took me so long to figure it out."
"Where is Kyle now?" one of the students yelled out, a few others yelling in agreement with him, 'Yeah, where is he now?' they asked. They'd already skipped the fact that Katie was still a suspect in this murder which even made it harder to reveal the answer to the question. She found herself seeking Cole's eyes from the crowd. She finally found them and allowed them her eyes to stop darting about.
"Well, Kyle escaped as soon as he realized he was soon to be discovered. By the time we found out the true culprit of the crime, there was nothing of him left at his house and he was long gone…" there was silence in the crowd as she said this, most of them simply afraid to voice the doubts they were now developing in her entire explanation. Katie sighed before continuing, "I'm not going to bow to all of you and ask that you believe what I'm saying just because I was a tad bit late and didn't catch Ash's killer, but I will say this… There is no rogue left in this school… and it will stay that way."
"What makes you so sure?" Cole was the one to ask this time.
Katie couldn't hide the smirk that appeared on her face momentarily, "As we all know, I grew up here. The rogues that infiltrated this school, all of them besides Ash were people that came here before becoming the head of security. I'm sure you've all heard of the incredible tales and rumours of the Rogue Killer."
"That's all a myth," another student yelled.
"Well, some of the tales are over-exaggerated. Quick as lightning, strong as a boar, I do not like that particular phrase when describing me, but who am I to reject such appealing praise?" she joked about, earning laughter from the crowd.
A hand came up from the crowd and she nodded to allow the girl to speak, "You claim to be the famous Rogue killer? What's your Prometheus gift… if you are even a hunter at all?"
"Well, for the license to prove that I am indeed a hunter," she said, retrieving something from her pocket. Katie raised up a red laminated card that, something the hunters that were around could not allow to be flashed around if it was fake. The hunters wore proud faces as they saw the badge on display, for this was a hunter they were indeed proud to call one of their own. "As for my Prometheus gift, that is not very important since any of the gifts can be effective against a werewolf.
However, I will say this. The Founder's festival is held every year and offers a large opportunity for many of the students here to receive scholarships that allow them to move on to follow their dreams under much better circumstances. Dreams to become scientists, engineers, doctors and so many other enticing careers and adventures.
I have a dream as well... No, I'll call it a mission because I will succeed, and that's to put an end to this war once and for all," she said, the conviction in her voice gripping the whole crowd. Some of the hunters around gasped at what she'd just said. After centuries of fighting against the rogues, this really did sound like a dream. The crowd was not going to take her seriously when she said this.
"What is your Prometheus gift?" this time Cole was the one who asked. Katie smiled at him. He'd been a big help during this speech and he'd just given her the opening she needed to go for the kill. The Royal couldn't wipe the smirk off his face when he asked her.
"Oh, both of them…" she answered innocently, "I know that I have a lot of work, but I am not about…"
"You don't have to explain yourself, Katie," a voice shouted from within the crowd. Her eyes scanned through and came face-to-face with a pair of green eyes, "We know you won't give up until you have that scumbag down."
This seemed to have the right amount of spark to rile up the audience into an uproar of praise. People continued to yell and shout out different praises. Some of them that had been present during the attack in the Junior Hunter's Training ground shouted things like, 'We saw her in the training grounds. She might just pull it off.' While those that had been ensnared by the speech from the point she spoke of dreams that the Festival was supposed to help fulfil shouted out things like, 'You can make it. All dreams can become reality.'
Principal Brown could only stare at the commotion that she had caused. The speech had gone far better than he'd expected with the Royal helping out to make it sound better every time he needed to. The duo had this all taken care of from the very start. From the way Katie spoke, everyone could finally relax and feel safe in her presence. He did not know if there was indeed a checkup that had taken place of all the students but didn't oppose it for whether it was real or not, it helped lift the spirits of those that were present.
Katie proceeded to tell everyone about how the security was going to be handled. Mentioning restricted areas and places where to approach the hunters in case of an emergency so that everyone knew the entire layout of the security system. The rules against fighting between werewolves and humans were to remain the same as expected. Most of the VIPs were to be given a tour of the projects in the afternoon and therefore the students had the whole of the morning to make sure that everything was working fine.
Katie finally concluded her speech. The second part of it had been to confirm that there was action taking place beside the words that she had delivered earlier and that everyone was indeed in the safest place at the moment. She stepped off the podium followed by an uproar of cheers and handclaps. "You exceeded my expectations, the Principal whispered as they passed each other."
"I'm glad… That was terrifying," she replied, doing her best to remain composed until there was no longer an audience. The fact that she had to focus to keep her emotions in was proof that she was becoming more emotional the closer they got to her birthday.
The Principal concluded the assembly and allowed everyone to go about their activities. Shortly after, Katie was also dismissed and she walked on with Sandra to make sure everything was running smoothly. The Head of Security didn't have a specific post and was not obligated to stay in one place, a part of the job that Katie found satisfying. This way she could also tour the festival just like everyone else while keeping an eye on what was going on.
"Hey, Katie, can I ask you a question?" Sandra asked as they walked up the stairs in search of the surveillance room. Their last location to check out before they were free to carry out whatever activities they saw fit at the moment.
"What is it?"
"Did you plan that speech with Cole beforehand?" she asked.
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