Originally Posted by MsMorgan

Mariel watched, amused, as Star shot her an annoyed look. Shrugging, she turned back to her plants. Was she annoyed that Mariel came over? Mariel could care less. She figured she was doing them both a favor by becoming her partner. After all, everyone else was paired up, who else was she going to work with - or at least appear to be working with? At least she wasn't overly chipper and didn't try to engage her in small talk. Thank Merlin for small favors.

As Mariel looked in the direction of Sarah's partner - Gwen, as she called her - Mariel's eyes fell on another pair of girls. Nancy and that rude girl from the courtyard. Mariel narrowed her eyes as she watched them work, still wondering what her frantic hand motions earlier were about. She made a mental note to corner Nancy when she was alone after class to confront her about her bizarre behavior.

Mariel turned back to Sarah and shrugged. "No big deal. I was sitting in the back." She nodded and leaned towards her. "Everyone else had a partner and she was alone." Mariel glanced back at Star working with her plants before resuming her attention on Sarah. "She seems like a good student at any rate."

Mariel resumed her repotting. "Ow," she said irritably through clenched teeth as she pricked her finger on a thorn. "Where are those tissues we were told about?" she asked more to herself than anyone else, looking towards the front of the room.