Staff Lounge

[Britwitch]

"How did you managed to do this, anyway?"

"Believe me it was not intentional! I was trying to untangle them, I had them held up over my head and then the next thing...this had happened!"

She tried to stand still, to make things as easy as possible.

"And what were you planning to do if I hadn't come along? The building is almost empty right now, and students aren't even allowed here on their own..."

"Honestly? I have no idea. Probably would have camped out and hoped there were some biscuits or something to nibble on in the cupboard until someone showed up! The custodian or a cleaner...anyone!"

She watched as little by little the wires started to be unwound and untangled. Fingers fiddling with the material of her skirt while she waited patiently as he worked.

Eventually she was free and the decorations and lights were back in the boxes from whence they came.

Cheeks flushing more than a little, she thanked him again and tried not to think about their deal as he picked up his things and strode out, pretty much as he had entered, or his hands, or how he'd looked with his rolled up sleeves.

She'd spotted the Science teacher when the term had started and wondered if their paths would cross. It seemed now they would.

After taking a moment to calm the heat in her face, she started to continue decorating the tree. Wrapping the lights round the boughs, following them with the baubles and balls and other sparklies.

Soon it was ready and, with the boxes put away until after the New Year when the time would come to take it down, she left the lounge.

The tree glistening in the corner...

 

[Miss_Vivi]

She sits across from the school counselor when her phone beeps at her. The headmistresses phone is always beeping at her. And it would be nice to ignore the phone, but they are in a beautiful cafe and she's trying really hard to not lose her focus because of a dangling shoe.

The school counselor is a tease.

The phone beeps again, this time it's a text. She opens it grateful for the distraction and laughs out loud.

"Seems there has been some merrymaking back at the school."

Turning her hand, she shares the picture of her language teacher all wrapped up and twinkling.

"I do honestly think that she looks rather good all tied up and twinkling."

Soft laughter, and a nod of agreement meet her words. And then it's back to a dangling shoe, and a very good holiday indeed.

 

[Britwitch]

She had almost finished for the day.
A new school year meant new pupils to get to know, assessments to finish so she could plan out the rest of the year for each of them to ensure they got everything they needed from her lessons.
She had almost finished for the day.

The huge pile of assignments on her desk has slowly been read and marked, gradually relocated into three smaller piles. The makings of her groupings for the year ahead. The students had been challenged to write an assignment, no word limit, on why language mattered to them. It was quite the eye opener. Instantly revealing those who had written what they thought she wanted to read and those who'd written from the heart. Those would be her top set.

Just three papers left. Soon she'd be able to head home and enjoy the remains of her weekend before the lessons started up in full swing.
The top one was picked up and read through. Pale pink lips curving into a gradually widening smile as blue eyes worked down each side of the paper. Another for the top set. The paper was slid onto the correct pile and the penultimate paper was selected. Eyes began to read, but no smile was forthcoming this time. A tut was heard as the paper was placed onto a different pile. It was almost word for word the same as several others. She was all for students helping each other. But this bordered on plagarism. Something she had very little time for.

Final paper. Sighing she picked it up and...frowned. This wasn't for her surely?
Fingers flipped through the pages and a loud groan left her lips. The paper spoke of physics principles not the beauty of language. Whomever this student was? They'd obviously given her their Science homework, confused in the start of year madness.

Brow creased as she realised her own paper must be in the Science room. A place she didn't really want to visit this late in the day. She knew she had to though.

Heels clicked down the corridor towards the Science department before a small fist knocked hesitantly on the door she wanted. Inside was dim and silent. She waited.

A little longer.

Then knocked again, just to make sure.
No one was there.

Continuing down the corridor, hips swaying and sending the material of her skirt rippling around her knees, she headed for the Staff Lounge.

Pushing open the door she looked around. No one there either. It didn't surprise her. She was often around later than the others, it was almost like she was in a different band of time to the others. Crossing to a desk she peeled off a post-it and stuck it onto the front of the paper. Smooth handwriting adding a note.

I think you have something of mine.

Ms. Witch
​

Before carefully pushing the papers into the pigeon hole of the Science teacher and Dean. He'd find it soon enough, she was sure.
Nodding, satisfied, she turned away and her eye caught sight of the stock cupboard in the corner. She winced as she noted paper on the floor and what looked like the end of a ball of twine sticking out from under some shelves.

It wasn't her job. She didn't need to tidy it.

She knew she would do it anyway. She wouldn't be able to walk away having seen it in disarray.

Sighing, she moved to the cupboard and surveyed the chaos. It almost hurt to see it so disorganised. She knew the Head Mistress would not be pleased if she saw it. Everything had a place.
And everyone. She grinned at that last thought.

Eyes stole a glance at the clock, if she focused, she could probably be done in half an hour.
Another look inside the cupboard. A louder sigh.
Maybe make that forty-five minutes.

Pushing back the sleeves of her blouse she stepped into the mass of supplies. Might as well get on with it.

A few minutes later, she was on her knees, picking up papers and putting those that could be reused into the 'scrap' box and those that couldn't into the recycling. She'd already swept up and rehoused a box of paper clips that had been knocked off a shelf. Spying the box of Christmas decorations on another and giggling to herself.
This year someone else could trim the tree.

 

[Scuttle Buttin']

In the science room sat a stack of papers awaiting his attention, papers he had yet to even glance at, and yet his time was being swallowed whole in the Dean's office, attending to the many things that needed to be done at the beginning of every year. There may not be enough midnight oil to burn, at this rate.

Still, a break was needed. Something else for his eyes to look at, a bit of tea to wake him up.

Closing the lid on his laptop, he pressed his knuckles into his eyes and rubbed to clear them, then stood and pulled his jacket off the rack in the corner. Straightening his tie, he lifted the small cast iron pot off the edge of the desk and stepped out into the hallway, closing and locking the door behind him.

The sound of his footfalls echoed through the empty hallways, most of the classrooms closed up tight so their contents would not be disturbed. Soon enough, students would be making their way through these same halls, moving from dorm to classroom and back, another year of instruction under way.

In short order he was approaching the staff lounge, and his brows lifted as he saw the door open, light on, and heard the rustle of things being moved around within. Seemed someone else was working late with him, though whoever it was he'd not seen them.

Stopping in the doorway, a grin spread on his lips as he saw her. Sleeves rolled up, surrounded by a mess he suspected was significantly less than it had been when she started, the English teacher was on her knees working, and apparently oblivious to his presence. Her giggle floated to his ears, and he followed the direction she seemed to be looking to find the box of Christmas decorations sitting on a nearby shelf. Leaning on the door frame, he crossed his arms in front of his chest, the teapot dangling from one finger, and cleared his throat.

"Thinking of doing some decorating again?"

 

[Britwitch]

"Thinking of doing some decorating again?"
That voice. That almost infuriating tone. She could almost feel the smile she was certain would be painted on his lips.
"No," She turned her head to look back over her shoulder, eyes meeting knees and travelling up tailored trousers to waist and above. Not continuing until blue met blue. "Not today at any rate." She smiled in spite of herself. The memory of lights and baubles and a rescue passing through her mind.
He'd saved her from a long wait spent wrapped in fairy lights and, apart from an embarassing picture she was sure would still be saved on the Headmistress' phone, he'd wanted nothing in return.

Only. He had.
A promise also popped up in her mind. A promise and a threat.
A promise that was once almost kept and a threat that never was.

Cheeks pinked as she tore her eyes from his face and focused on the papers in her hands. Shuffling them into something resembling an organised pile and sliding them onto a shelf.
Fingers now reaching for the twine that poked out from beneath the unit she tried to forget he was there. Pulling and growling softly as she felt the ball at the other end simply unwinding. She didn't particularly want to bend down to get it. Not with an audience. Not with this audience.

"So, what brings you here at this time of day...?" She asked, her tone conversational as fingers worked quickly to wind the string into a new ball. Round and round and round, re-spooling it as quickly as it came undone.
"I left something for you in your pigeon hole." The ball in her hands gradually grew larger as her hands flew around. "There's no real urgency but when you have time to deal with it, I'd appreciate it."

Finally the remainder of the string sprang into view and she got up from her knees. Winding the last of it up and putting it back onto a shelf.
The way out of the cupboard was blocked though. She smiled at the Science teacher, brushing off her hands and walking closer.
"Did you need anything out of here or can I lock it?" She paused, stepping back slightly as if to let him by.
"If you do take anything though, please make sure you lock up. Wouldn't want things to get into a state again now would we?"

The silence drew out. And she waited.
With him still leant against the frame she had little choice. Unless she wanted to try and squeeze by. Somehow she didn't that would be the best course of action.
And so, she waited.

 

[Scuttle Buttin']

The pot was still held in his hands as he watched her, a bit of cold tea dancing around in the bottom of it. Cast iron, a solid chunk of mass dangling from the polished black handle hanging from his fingers, but he paid little attention to it as he watched her. Bending down and grabbing the ball of twine would've been exponentially easier, and yet there she was, fingers whirring as she pulled and pulled and rolled and rolled to create a new one. He couldn't help but to grin.

He was about to answer her question - what brought him was dreary eyes and the need for fresh tea, what was keeping him here turned out to be something else entirely - when she said she'd left something for him, and his eyes drifted from her to find the paper sticking out of the slot where mail and other items were left for him. A little below it he had a new one, a larger one, reserved for the Dean of Students, and he looked at the stack of papers poking out from it and felt a sudden desire to sigh heavily. Oh, glorious work.

Her approach grabbed his attention back, and he was more than happy to have it diverted from whatever it was that was lurking across the room, waiting to swallow up more of his time.

Head shaking, he moved out of the doorway and crossed to the sink, where he popped the lid off the teapot and turned on the water to rinse it out. Had he pondered making use of the room, and her, and leaving both 'in a state,' as she called it? Of course. But the box of decorations had reminded him, as he knew it had reminded her, of what had occurred in this room nearly a year ago, and the hour and relatively deserted state of the school had convinced him that now was the time for debts to be paid. Besides... he'd come looking for a break, had he not?

"I don't, actually, thank you. You can go ahead and lock things up."

The lid was set in the stainless steel basin of the sink, and he held the opening of the pot under the faucet, swirling the water within and then dumping it. The action was repeated, and then the faucet was turned off and the pot set, upside down, in the sink so the water would drain out of it. That handled, he unfolded a small towel and turned to lean his hips back against the sink, drying his hands as he watched her.

"As for what brought me, Miss Witch, I was just looking for a short break from work. Now, though... I think I'm looking for the repayment of a debt."

Hands dried, the towel was left on the counter behind him, and he slipped his hands into his pockets, watching her from across the quiet room.

 

[Britwitch]

Time seemed to stretch in between her coming to stand before him and his eventual response. His head and focus turning away and gaze fixing on other things, leaving her waiting, in the stock cupboard. Then he was gone from in front of her, long steady strides taking him out of the doorway and towards the sink. Sighing with relief, she let herself move quickly out of the store room and close the door behind her.

"I don't, actually, thank you. You can go ahead and lock things up."

She heard the splashing and pouring of water as he cleaned out his teapot. Fingers turned the key in the lock before testing the handle. After pulling and being satisfied that it was locked, she slipped her copy of the key and it's small leather key fob into the pocket of her jacket.

She turned to find him leant against the sink, drying his hands, she'd taken little more than four steps from the door before his voice stopped her in her tracks.

"As for what brought me, Miss Witch, I was just looking for a short break from work. Now, though... I think I'm looking for the repayment of a debt."

Feet stalled and she glanced over. His position almost infuriatingly casual, just as her insides coiled tightly into a knot. She knew what he meant, what he wanted. She had no intention of insulting either of their intelligences by trying to pretend otherwise.
Paused in the middle of the room, her fingers played anxiously with the fabric of her skirt.

"Here?" She eventually asked, her tone edged with something like surprise. "Now?"
That little part of her that often got her into trouble almost won the battle in making her question if that was within the terms of there agreement. He'd said in his room... She knew though that to ask that would only end up in more terms being added to the debt that she doubted she'd enjoy very much. And the school was pretty much deserted, the autumn break was upon them. Better to deal with the debt she owed now when they were almost sure to be undisturbed. Delicate brows frowned slightly as she wondered if that might somehow end up being worse.

She knew he wouldn't respond to her questions so she didn't wait long. Pink tongue moistening equally pink lips as she looked at him, letting eyes drop down tailored suit to waistline and back again.
"Where do you want me?" Her voice was softer now. Compliant.

 

[Scuttle Buttin']

At the sight of her stopped there in mid-step, like she'd reached the end of her chain and been physically yanked to a halt, he could not help but to grin. His eyes descended half the length of her in a glance, watching as her fingers worried at the folds of her skirt, and then lifted back to her face. Silence floated in the air around them, punctuated only by the occasional drip of water into the stainless steel basin of the sink and the every-second tick of a clock, the location of which he could not place. Not that he tried all that hard.

She broke it finally, and his head tipped a bit to the side at her questions, a brow lifting as he considered her. They were at a crossroads now, two directions the rest of this night could go, and he found himself torn between the merits of each of them.

Again, his eyes descended, this time only to her lips as her tongue flashed out between them, and his decision was made.

Straightening his head, he fixed his eyes on her own and slid a hand from it's pocket. Held up between them, his index finger extended and curled twice.

"Over here, Miss Witch."

His hand dropped, slid back into the pocket, and still against the sink he watched as she crossed the distance between them. Once she was just within arm's reach, his hand was again pulled out and his arm extended. This time his index finger curled and remained that way, and he slipped the middle knuckle under her chin, and brought her in closer to him. The upper half of his body leaned forward, his tie hanging between them like a pendulum, the scruff of his cheek brushing across the smooth of hers as he whispered to her.

"Here. Now. Or... to my classroom."

His hand tipped forward, finger still curled under her chin, and the pad of his thumb pressed to her lips, then slid down to drag her bottom lip down. With her lips parted, his thumb slid between them, feeling the heat and wet within, the soft firmness of her tongue against the tip of his thumb.

"But choose wisely."

 

[Britwitch]

"Over here, Miss Witch."
Heels clacked across the floor, slowly and steady, hips swaying up above. Her jaw was set ever so slightly that she, a grown woman, responded so willingly to so simple a summons. Closer and closer until she felt the pressure of his finger under her chin, making it tilt ever so slightly towards the ceiling.
She drew in a slightly trembling breath as he leant closer, his breath hot when it danced wickedly over her ear.

"Here. Now. Or... to my classroom."

Her lips parted under the pressure from his thumb and soon she felt the smooth pad of the same digit just within her mouth, resting gently against her tongue.

"But choose wisely."

Instinct, habit, one or the other, meant that her lips did seal slightly around his thumb, the pressure within her mouth increasing just a shade. And there she stood and thought. Considered her options. With the Dean's thumb in her mouth.

Stay and risk, even though unlikely, the potential arrival of other staff members to catch her in a less than professional appraisal. Or go to his classroom and, while far more private, it would put them in his 'home ground'. Put him within easy reach of whatever equipment he kept in those cupboards around the room.

The minutes went by, still his thumb was cushioned on her tongue, blue eyes searching his warily.

The walk from the staff lounge to anywhere private would be longer, after...whatever happened between them had happened. At least from his classroom to hers the walk would be short.

...Choose wisely...

She knew there were pitfalls to both, that's why the choice was given. Either way, she knew she lost in the end.

Parting her lips around his digit and drawing a breath she spoke, not moving her mouth away so the words were slightly muffled. But she knew he'd understand.

"Your room."

 

[Scuttle Buttin']

His room.

"Excellent," he said, and his thumb was absent from between her lips just as the word left his. Both hands now free, he left her standing in front of him for a moment as they raised to his tie, fingers working out the silk knot and pulling the patterned strip free of his collar. His bent finger returned under her chin, this time only remaining long enough to tip her head back a few inches, and then the silk was looped around her neck.

A quick half-Windsor knot was tied around her neck, then cinched up tight and centered over the column of her throat. His eyes lifted to her face above where his fingers worked, and with one hand on the knot and the other on one length of silk, he pulled it a little tighter around her.

"Then let's go to my room."

He smiled at her, a pleasant and good-humored smile that didn't reach up into his eyes, and he closed his hand around the longest end of the tie. Straightening up from where he leaned on the sink, his body was close against hers for a moment, and he took the opportunity to drop a question into her ear.

"Do you think you chose wisely, little witch?"

The question, perhaps rhetorical, perhaps just meant to give her something to ponder as they walked, was all he said before he moved away from her, smooth and even steps out of the room, and through the school towards the locked Science room. And just behind him, being led by the strip of silk around her throat, the English teacher followed.

 

[Britwitch]

"Excellent,"
Before she could take the decision back or change her mind the option was gone. The movement of his hands drawing her eye curiously, watching as carefully tied material was worked loose and slipped out from around his neck. Then the oddly cool silk was around her own throat. She fought to stand still as every twist and flick of the material around and about his hands made the tie slip just a fraction, making her shiver at the funny little tickle the silk gave her. The tickle and the tingle that inevitably followed it.

She fixed her eyes on the cabinet behind him. Within which were the staff's personal mugs and chinaware and a variety of teas and coffees, cocoa beverages and other things. In her head she visualised each shelf, trying to keep her mind from what was happening. Trying to keep her composure for as long as she could.

Then eyes dropped suddenly and moved to his face as the tie was tightened around her throat.
"Then let's go to my room."
She sensed the purpose of the tie before it actually happened, doubting it was simply an addition to her outfit.

"Do you think you chose wisely, little witch?"
She didn't reply, either before or after they started moving. She had none. Her mouth was closed and gaze fixed on his back as he led her out of the staff area and into the school, taking her towards his room. As she'd requested.

The tie was now a lead of sorts, a collar. Forced to walk behind him like a lesser thing. Up the stairs they went, towards the Science block, her chin having to rise higher to keep the rest of the tie from bumping her chin as he tugged her smoothly onwards. He didn't yank it or drag her, somehow that might have been easier to deal with. He just kept hold of the end and she followed.

Obediently.
Like a well trained pet.
Like he no doubt knew she would.

People played with pets, didn't they? The English teacher felt a sense of worry in her stomach as the door to his room came into view as to just what games he had in mind.