Kelpie, who was usually soft-spoken and hesitant to raise his voice, startled everyone when his hands came down on the desk with a sharp splash, droplets scattering over his notebook. "T–take that back, Boo!" he stammered, his cheeks flushing a faint pink as the water rippled across his desk.
"Children, children!" Alina stepped in quickly, lifting her hands in a firm gesture of calm. "This is literature class, not a… smell debate."
But Boo wasn't ready to surrender. He floated lazily over Kelpie's desk, leaned in, and took a loud, exaggerated sniff. "Mmm… fresh seaweed."
Kelpie's lips pressed into a thin line before he muttered something under his breath and flicked his fingers. A small splash of water leapt from his palm, hitting Boo squarely on the forehead. Boo yelped and zipped back to his seat, dripping and indignant.
Rocky, sitting nearby with his pencil poised, peered up at Alina. "Teacher… if I write that Kelpie is very… splashy, will he get mad?"
