[Baconwizard]

There was no avoiding it. She would just have to do it. Just... go up and ask him. Yeah. Ava hid behind a towering bookcase, clutching her textbooks to her chest. The library was quiet, but there were enough people that Ava could hear the shuffling of paper and pencils and the occasional cough or giggle. The librarian at Beckenridge Academy was notorious for keeping absolute silence in her domain, but during study periods, she was a little more lenient, especially if a student needed tutoring. Which brought Ava back to her original point. She sighed, thinking of her mid-quarterly grades. Everything was fine, except for mathematics; it never was her strongest class, and Ava was so unfortunate to have the hardest teacher for her algebra class. So in order to keep her parents from getting on her case (and hopefully never knowing about her bad grade), Ava decided to take matters in her own hands and get a tutor.

However, the only tutor in her study hall that Ava knew just so happened to be Cyril Pearcival. Not only was he from one of the richest families to come to Beckenridge, but he also was the top of his class, and had been ever since he arrived in freshman year. Rumor had it that he had a private tutor most of his life. There was also a rumor that Cyril was a womanizer, as well; it was a stated fact that a majority of girls at Breckenridge found him attractive, if not drop-dead gorgeous. Ava didn't know about all that (yes, he was attractive, but that didn't mean he was nice), but she did know that Cyril was an impressively intimidating individual.

And Ava was going to ask him to help her solve polynomials. Taking a deep breath, Ava tried to steady herself against the bookshelf. She was nervous, very nervous, but it was for the greater good. Stepping out from behind the bookshelf, Ava made her way to the out-of-the-way table that Cyril Pearcival usually sat at. She stopped a few feet short of him, staring at the upperclassman with wide eyes, willing her hands not to tremble as she clutched at her textbook. "U-um! H-hi, um, would... Could you please do me a huge favor?"

[how's that for huge opening post x'D things won't be that long in the future lolol]

[zapdragon555]

[Eheh yep I doubt I can match that size I'm afraid. xDD Cyril is an enigma, until I get a handle on his highschool self.]



Cyril's pen stopped on the tip of a T on the word he was writing, not so much startled as not expecting the voice that reached his ears in the quiet library. His pause was little more than a second before he finished up the sentence, only a few more words, and he looked up at Ava with a cool smile, looking her over in one glance and then glancing up to meet her face. "A huge favor?" he asked, clicking his pen closed and folding his arms over his chest with a small smile. He didn't recognize this girl, but from the looks of things, she looked just about terrified. That wouldn't do at all; he really didn't like to give off an air of terror. Really, he didn't. Though, admittedly, he supposed it could be a little entertaining, but past that, he didn't like the notion that he was unapproachable. "Well, I suppose I could try. What would I be doing for you?" he asked, tilting his head at her, wondering if he could fluster her. It always fun to see how the underclassmen reacted to his attention. Not that he enjoyed teasing people. Really, he didn't.

[Baconwizard]

Her heart was beating about a mile a minute, pounding loud in her ears. Cyril Pearcival was about as intimidating as the rumors said. That said, he didn't look annoyed, and his smile was nice. Ava took a deep breath, adjusting the thousand-pound textbook in her arms, an imploring expression on her face as she looked into Cyril's. "Well, you see, I... um, I really need help in my math class. And--and I know that you're really good at math, and there aren't many other people in this class who can help me, so..." Ava trailed off for a moment before she summoned her courage and straightened up, her cheeks turning pink. "Would you mind tutoring me? Just for a bit?"

[zapdragon555]

Cyril's eyebrows raised slightly at that, a bit taken aback. So... that was all? Cyril was silent for a few beats, then leaned back in his chair and looked up at Ava, offering a bemused smile. "Well, I suppose I could..." he murmured, feeling the need to be quiet in the library as he unfolded his arms and picked up his papers, straightening them a bit. "I can finish this homework at home. Here, sit down," he said, tilting his head at the seat beside him. "What year are you?" he asked after a moment, looking back up at her once the papers were slipped inside a binder and replaced under his chair.

[Baconwizard]

It felt as if a huge weight was lifted off of Ava's shoulders as he agreed, and she grinned from ear to ear, her entire demeanor brightening. "Oh, thank you so much!" She exclaimed, her voice sounding louder than it was supposed to in the quiet library. Ava jumped, realizing her error, then looked around before she sat down in the seat next to Cyril. Taking care not to let her excitement getting the better of her, Ava pushed her textbook onto the table, and then opened up her math binder. "I have Mr. Simmon's class, and, um... I'm not doing very well in there, so I need to bring my grade up before progress reports come out." Ava pulled out a worksheet, which was marked up with a red pen. She cringed at it, then handed it to Cyril. "Do you think you  could help?"

[zapdragon555]

Cyril blinked at her excited outburst, but said nothing about it as he waited for her to sit down, an easy expression on his face as he leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms forward a bit. "Ohh, mm... It's been a couple of years since I had Simmon's... but I'll try my best," he said through his stretch, then sighed through his nose and scooted closer to the table. "But as for a quick grade elevation, I'm not certain I can promise anything," Cyril murmured, his tone growing apologetic, before his eyes flickered with mischief. "I'm sure you know as well as I do that Simmon is a rather disagreeable man. Unless he's somehow changed since I had him?"

[Baconwizard]

"Oh, that's fine. I really just need someone to tell me what on earth I'm doing." Ava smiled, fidgeting with her pencil, threading it through her fingers. At Cyril's very accurate description of Mr Simmon, Ava let out a huge sigh, relaxing her guard a bit. "Oh my gosh, he is such a difficult teacher! Like... he can be funny sometimes, but I have no idea what to do! And he expects me to just know these things! But I don't know anything about exponents or logarithms!" Ava huffed, her cheeks pink with emotion, and she looked at Cyril for a moment before she let out a sheepish laugh. "Um, but I think if I do well on this test, I can bring up my grade to a B. Which... Would be really fantastic, actually."

[zapdragon555]

Cyril nodded his head and smiled with a knowing expression, as if he'd heard all of this many times from many other students, and he chuckled. "If you learn how to play him, he isn't so bad," Cyril mused, then leaned a little closer with a smile. "And if you happen to learn how, do share it with me." Cyril laughed slightly at his own words, then cleared his throat and listened to Ava, his brows raising slightly. "Oh, so it's a B you want..." Cyril murmured, then tilted his head. "Well, what's your grade right now? Normally I feel it'd be rude of me to ask, but... I suppose I want to see what we're dealing with here." He sort of liked this girl, he had to admit. At least she wasn't scared of him like most girls, and boys, were. It felt strange to have a normal conversation, aside from that guy... but then, conversations with Sam were hardly normal.

[Baconwizard]

Ava leaned forward as well, mirroring Cyril's movements, and she looked a little surprised by his joke. After a small pause, Ava ducked her head, trying to stifle a sudden giggle. Who knew that Cyril Pearcival could make a joke. Her shoulders shaking, she leaned back in her seat. At Cyril's question, her laughter faded slightly, as the worry began to creep up on her again. "It's a D. Just barely a C. I'd actually really be happy with just a C, but, um...  a B would probably be better..." Ava kept her eyes lowered, watching her pencil flip from finger to finger. A B would be better, if only to keep her father satisfied with her. But Cyril didn't need to be weighed down with that particular problem.

[zapdragon555]

Cyril watched as Ava's expression slowly moved from laughter--cute, he thought offhandedly--to an anxious, worried one. Cyril's own smile fell slightly as he considered her for a moment. A C...? That's all she wanted? Cyril's eyes flickered, and a small, rueful smile appeared on his face. "Well, I think we can shoot for a B. A C for sure, though... I mean, well... Perhaps I shouldn't make promises. I've never exactly tutored anyone before, aside from my little brother..." Cyril trailed off, blinking at her downcast expression, and he leaned a little closer to her, putting an elbow on the table as he raised his eyebrows in a small smile. "But let's give it a try, hm?"

[Baconwizard]

At Cyril's words, it seemed like a huge weight had lifted from Ava's thin shoulders, and she straightened up in her seat, an eager expression filled with gratitude on her face. "Yeah!" She scooted the heavy chair a little closer to the table, then pulled her notebook out, flipping through pages covered in math and doodles to a blank page. Looking back at Cyril with an expectant expression, she shook her head. "Even just a little bit helps. Math is the worst, but I, um, need to get a good grade in it. Um... could you start here?" Ava pointed at the textbook page, indicating the part she was having trouble with. Her chest was filled with a rush of eagerness and embarrassment and excitement, and she fidgeted, wanting to start addressing the stressful thing in her life. It was a little bit of a surprise that Cyril Pearcival would be willing to help her. But... despite the rumors, Ava was getting the feeling that he was actually a really nice guy.

[zapdragon555]

Cyril straightened up a little in surprise as Ava suddenly scooted closer and began rifling through a notebook, and his eyes flickered as he noticed a few drawings in the margins, smiling a little at that. He couldn't see any of them well enough to tell what they were, but he was, in the back of his mind, reminded of Griffin's bad habits in school. Or maybe they were good habits; Cyril wasn't sure.

"Ah, mm... let's see..." Cyril murmured, leaning over the book and resting his weight on his elbow, as his fingers weaved through his own hair in thought. Another soft murmuring sound of thinking came out of him as he turned a page, then flipped back to the previous one, blue eyes flickering over the words. "Ohh, trigonomotry. I do not miss this," he chuckled ruefully, glancing at her face for a moment, before looking back at the book. "This chapter's just inverse trig functions, right? Nothing else strange and fancy?"

[Baconwizard]

"Um...." Ava hummed as she stared at the page, blankly at first, before she blinked in recognition, and bobbed her head up and down. "Yeah, I think that's what this is." Ava looked up at Cyril, a glint in her eyes, and she gave him a small, hopeful smile. "Do... you think you can help? If you could just explain step by step..." Ava carefully pushed the notebook towards him.

[zapdragon555]

Cyril smiled slightly at her halting words, and he nodded his head, pulling the textbook closer. "Yeah, of course. I'll try my best, at least," he murmured, clicking a pen open and beginning to number a few steps down the left side of the paper. "I'll write out a problem step by step..."

By the time he was done he'd written out a problem and a concise explanation in neat handwriting next to each one, and he let out a breath, clicking the pen closed and licking his lips once to wet them, dry from talking so much. "There. Does that sort of make sense?" he asked, turning his gaze to her, his smile a little bit hopeful.

[Baconwizard]

Ava had been watching Cyril work intently, turning her head to the side so that she could make sense of what he was writing. Her hands fiddled with the end of her pencil, and she fought the urge to chew on it. Ava squinted at the problem for a moment, thinking. "But how did you..." Her voice was quiet, and she trailed off for a moment before straightening up suddenly with an "Oh!" Ava put her pencil down, then bobbed her head. "Okay, I think I understand!" Ava beamed, then scooted her notebook back towards her so that she could see the problem again, muttering to herself. "Oooooohkay. I'm going to try one by myself; is that alright?"