Chapter 20: Tests, Teamwork, and Too Much Attention
"For someone trying to be a regular student, Velmir was alarmingly good at being the main character."
š« Scene 1: Back in the Buzz
The halls of Orion Heights Private Academy were alive again.
Backpacks thudded against lockers. Laughter bounced off stairwell walls. Someone yelled about spilled smoothie in the science wing (again). The vending machineāsleek and modernāstill refused to accept face scans, sparking a new conspiracy theory on the school forum.
And through it all walked Velmir Elvaris.
Crisp blazer. Tailored pants. Shoes polished enough to reflect self-confidence. His sky-blue hair shimmered faintly beneath the artificial ceiling lights, catching just enough attention without being flashy.
He moved like he belonged in a scene he'd written himself.
"Dude," Julian said, walking beside him, "you drive a Lamborghini and your hair looks like the prologue to a fantasy novel. You make the rest of us look like background files."
Velmir smiled. "At least you're not labeled 'Unnamed Classmate A.'"
Mina chimed in, eyes sharp: "Speak for yourself. I'm clearly the rival love interest with eyeliner and a tragic backstory."
"You forgot 'dramatic entrances,'" Velmir added.
"Right. That too."
They kept walking. The three of them. Normal. Almost.
š§Ŗ Scene 2: Chemistry ā With a Side of Boom
First period: Chemistry.
Dr. Anders, lovingly nicknamed Dr. Boom, stood at the front of the room in a cobalt lab coat and welding goggles that were, frankly, unnecessary.
"Today, class," he boomed, "we'll be working with simulated volatile compounds. No actual detonation. Unless you're careless. In which caseāgood luck."
Velmir took his usual seat near the window. Mina slid in beside him. Julian sat across the aisle, already eyeing the colored vials with theatrical distrust.
Dr. Anders warned, "Red then blue. Not blue then red. Unless you're in the market for a new eyebrow configuration."
"Define 'new,'" Julian asked.
Mina: "I define it as crispy."
Velmir didn't respond. His focus was sharp, subtle. He twirled the stir rod between his fingers like a wand. Not flashy. Justā¦ precise.
"Hey, Great Sage," he thought.
Yes, Velmir?
"If this thing explodes, prioritize hair safety."
Understood. Follicular integrity protocol initiated.
And thenāunsurprisinglyāsomething did explode. Not from Velmir's table, of course.
From the back: a hiss, a puff, and a perfect bloom of violet smoke.
Dr. Anders sighed, not even looking up. "Room seventeen has decontamination showers. Go."
"Y-yes, sirā¦"
Velmir hid his smile behind the rim of his safety goggles.
š Scene 3: Lunch Break Shenanigans
Lunch brought reprieve and fresh opportunity for judgment.
Velmir's bento box was immaculate: lacquer-black with silver trim, unfolding to reveal grilled duck in teriyaki glaze, hand-rolled sushi, pickled vegetables shaped like stars, and a tiny bottle of citrus dressing nestled in the corner.
Mina gawked. "Did your AI cook that?"
"Nope," Velmir said between sips of chilled plum tea. "Made it myself."
Julian stared. "You're an actual problem."
"A dragon has standards."
Mina: "Normal teenagers don't confit duck on school nights, Velmir."
"I only burned one batch."
Julian closed his box of sad turkey sandwich slowly.
"You are what the rest of us evolve into if we survive high school and gain divinity."
š Scene 4: P.E. and the Art of Not Flexing
Physical Education, otherwise known as "Panic Endurance," arrived post-lunch. Today's special: the obstacle course.
Mr. Griggs, a former marine and current sadist in gym shorts, barked, "Get movin', runners! The wall doesn't care about your GPA!"
Velmir stood at the line, surveying the battlefield: climbing nets, speed rings, ropes, balance beams.
"Great Sage?" he whispered.
Recommendation: 65% speed. Blend. Do not reveal gymnastic apocalypse potential.
"Got it."
Even at reduced output, he ran like raināfluid, sharp, perfectly calculated. He helped a classmate over a wall, caught another mid-fall, then vaulted the final hurdle like it was a hopscotch line.
He landed softly, then turned, and bowedābecause of course he did.
Julian stumbled across the finish line and collapsed. "You move like an Olympic spirit animal."
Mina wheezed. "He helped two people. I nearly dislocated a lung."
"Would you like orange slices?" Velmir offered.
"Die."
š Scene 5: Drama Club ā Brief, Chaotic
Velmir wandered into Drama Club during last period. Ms. Hemsworth, the director, looked up from a prop crate and blinked.
"Velmir. Fancy joining? You've got thatā¦ 'destined prince who dies in Act Three' energy."
"If I say yes, do I get to wear a cape?"
"You'd wear one anyway."
He read three lines from the script and accidentally made them sound like a Shakespearean monologue. Ms. Hemsworth immediately tried to cast him as the lead.
He bowed again. Declined. Promised to help with lighting.
"Props don't ask questions," he said. "I like that."
āļø Scene 6: A Moment to Breathe
The final bell echoed through the school, soft and strange.
Velmir sat in the courtyard garden, under the shade of a narrow birch tree. His fingers danced across his tablet, scanning SHIELD encryption logs, checking coordinates, monitoring Kamar-Taj energy shifts.
Still no reply from Fury or Romanoff.
Great Sage: Social integration: optimal. Mana regeneration: steady. Threat proximity: negligible. Emotional state: calm.
"Soā¦ a normal day."
Affirmative.
He closed the tablet. Exhaled.
For a moment, the silence settled just right. Wind in the leaves. Laughter in the distance. Duck confit in his memory.
"Not bad," he whispered.
He leaned back, sky-blue hair catching the golden light like glass threads.
Tomorrow might bring threats. Fury. Shadows. A test of trust.
But today?
Today he was just Velmir.
A boy. A dragon. A classmate.
And maybeājust maybeāthe main character after all.
ā End of Chapter 20: Tests, Teamwork, and Too Much Attention