The Banshee Teacher || TVD [BEING REWRITTEN ON MY PROFILE]

Chapter Twenty Nine

"Do things for people
not because of who they are
or what they do in return,
but because of who you are."
Harold S Kushner

There, standing in all his glory, is the man from Skylar's memory; the man that heals at work, and harms at home.
And when the man's eyes meet Bri's, they widen in a minute manner, going unnoticed by all but the teacher, and the teen.

Liz, her deputy, and Dr Martin go to the kitchen, leaving Bri, Skylar, Teresa, and Patrick in the living room.

"Did you notice his eyes widen when he saw you?" the teen whispers to the blonde.
"He was home when I brought you home yesterday, right?" Bri asks quietly, continuing when Skylar nods, "He probably recognised me."

The strawberry blonde is satisfied with this response, changing subject, "What's going to happen to me if they believe me?"

"You'll be temporarily put into somebody else's care until this is over," Bri explains softly.

"And if they don't?"

Before the teacher can respond, the deputy and doctor join them in the room, Liz getting her attention and motioning for the young woman to join her in the kitchen.

"How do you think we should handle this?" Liz asks as soon as Bri steps into the kitchen.

"You're asking for my opinion?" Bri asks, slightly taken aback.
"I'm asking for your professional opinion, and even an idea of how to go about this," the Sheriff responds.

Nodding, the blonde is silent for a moment, before voicing her idea.

"Two people with each of them; one man and one woman, one officer and one CPS representative. You and Patrick speak with Dr Martin; Patrick was studying the photos earlier, meaning he'll probably watch let you do most of the talking and study Martin's behaviour. Teresa and your deputy speak with Skylar; Teresa was talking to Skylar earlier, listening attentively and building trust, your deputy can watch for any signs of dishonesty."

"And what about you?" Liz asks, hiding her shock at the teacher's impressive impromptu plan.

"I will flit between the pairs," Bri states, "relaying information from one to the other, and voicing my thoughts or opinions if needed."

Sheriff Forbes nods, indicating her acceptance of Bri's idea, and the two rejoin the others in the living room, the plan in motion.

✯✯✯

Hours pass, Liz calling back to the station every now and again to check details mentioned by either of the two Martins.

Bri spends the whole time flitting between to serious conversations, relaying information, helping study behaviour, and taking intermittent breaks to use her abilities to access memories and figure out what truly goes on inside the Martin residence.

Teresa and Deputy Smith find Skylar's story compelling, and void of deceit, whereas Patrick and Sheriff Forbes find multiple minuscule discrepancies in Doctor Adam Martin's accounts of various events.

At around 17:00, both the Sheriff's department and CPS representatives conclude that Skylar should be placed into somebody else's care for the time being, until they can sort out a permanent solution.

The abuse Skylar endured at the hands of her father had been worse than any of them thought; the many hospital visits occurring because of the teen's clumsiness and accident prone nature was much too high to be a coincidence, the group had decided.