Other Fan Fiction ❯ Gifted Moon Spinoff ❯ The New Teacher ( Chapter 3 )
[ P - Pre-Teen ]
The principal glanced over the application sheet in her hand. The information on it seemed dubious at best, and she wasn’t just thinking that because she was as special as her students. Granted, everything seemed to fit but…something was off, and she couldn’t place her finger on it. However, that was not reason enough to reject the applicant, and she had no other reasons.
“Well miss…Outai,” she said, checking the name again on the application – she knew the name was a Japanese translation, meaning Lone Wanderer, which added to her suspicions, “We have no teachers just yet. We expect to have them next term though. You are too old to be a student, and younger than any teacher I know. You might do well with one other student here, who is much the same as yourself. For now, we are a training grounds for those with special abilities, so that they might learn to control themselves better, and eventually blend in with society. I can’t see you blending in very well, dressed as you are, and the students don’t need that example.”
“I cannot see someone as intelligent as yourself rejecting someone merely based on their physical appearance.” Came the clear, ancient voice in front of her. Something was odd about that voice, but what was it?
“True. That aside, I see no reason to reject you. However, I strongly suggest you don’t make trouble. Teenagers have enough problems in their life – enough drama to fill a library – and those with special abilities are doubly so. The last thing I need is for more trouble. Anyway, it says you can heal. I might just station you in the medical ward. We get more injuries here than one might think, even for a Gifted academy. We have other healers here as students, but they lack control.”
“Would it not be best, then, for me to seek out those with similar abilities and teach them the control they need?”
The principal though this over for a moment. She did not want this woman – who was oddly dressed, in knee high black boots, a black dress with golden dragons trailing up one side where buttons held it closed, a black cloak covering her features, and an odd mask on her face, revealing only her eyes – near any students. She had a bad feeling about her. Still, the woman was right, and had yet to prove herself a threat to anything above that of a fly. She sighed inwardly and set the application back on her desk.
“Very well. Instead of reporting as the school nurse, you will be our first private teacher. However, I must place emphasis on the word ‘private’. You won’t be able to teach all of the students – just those with abilities similar to yours – and if everyone finds out, you’ll find far too many flocking to you, whether or not they can be taught. Tell only those you can teach, and make sure they know not to spread the word.”
“I understand.”
“Well, that is out of the way. I welcome to you to the Gifted Moon Academy.” The principal said, extending her hand for a hand shake.
Her hand was greeted by the firm, but ice cold grip of the woman in front of her. She gave the hand a couple quick shakes, noting the black cotton gloves on her hands that were dusted with frost, before pulling her hand away quickly. She did NOT enjoy such a cold grip.
“Forgive the cold hands. It is difficult for one like me to be warm. I will need a list of students to approach.”
“Begin with Rinsi Starlight and Nakya. Rinsi is a healer, and Nakya a telepath with cryokinetic abilities.”
“Sounds…interesting. I will go find them.”
The figure clad in black turned to leave the office, and was a step shy of leaving before she was interrupted.
“Wait! You are a teacher, so you must be paid. We should discuss your salary.”
“I’m not a picky person. I’ll trust you with that.” The figure said before leaving the office, closing the door quietly behind her. The principal slumped down in her chair, running her fingers through thick, graying brown hair. Steel gray eyes examined the door intently for a moment before she closed her eyes and heaved a heavy sigh, though she could not say if it was from exasperation or relief.
“What an odd woman…” she said, trailing off softly.
After a good night of sleep, Rinsi woke up feeling refreshed, and feeling a lot better. She still didn't want to be seen by anyone just yet, but her mood was a lot better. It was a lot more like the Rinsi that had come to the school, and less like the Rinsi that had hurt people with her blessing spell.
After a quick shower, she changed into something comfortable - a pair of tan shorts and a snug black shirt that accentuated her feminine features. She wasn't planning on leaving her room until tonight anyway, so she might as well get comfortable.
Rinsi grabbed her violin and the bow and began to play her favorite lullaby. It was soft and slow, but not at all sad sounding. Instead, it was happy and uplifting. Without even knowing it, her body began to glow as she played, and a feeling of friendship and protection flowed through her every fiber. Something told her this was a spell, and not at all a harmful one, no matter what the race, species, or element of the person's body. Still, she was a bit afraid of hurting people. She would have to sneak outside and get clear away from everyone, or wait until dark to do so.
It was late in the afternoon, and Rinsi was overcome with hunger. She hadn't eaten in - what - 36 hours? She knew she couldn't keep up this pattern. She was too energetic and as it was she was really fidgety. Finally deciding that she needed food badly, she decided to brave the halls of the school, and gosh darn the people that would glare at her in hatred. Right now, she was too hungry and fidgety to care. She had to get out and run. She had to do something productive with her time. Most of all, she had to get some food in her before she passed out from hunger.
She had left her staff in her room on purpose, so that she would not be identified as easily. Or, if she was identified, at least they wouldn't accuse her of abusing her power, or whatever. This also meant she couldn't cast any spells, and this was fine by her. Beyond the safety of her room and the darkness that shielded her at night, she was not inclined to cast any more spells and make more people hate her. So instead, she left her staff on her bed, which sat next to her night stand that still had her note pad on it, open to her notes that she had absent-mindedly left there for anyone who saw it to read. Instead, she opted for walking on her own, though still a bit cautiously down the halls towards the cafeteria.
As Rinsi walked down the hallway, she knew she was approaching Ki'iro's dorm. She was still afraid that he hated her, and with good reason. However, she also hoped he would forgive her, now that she had fixed everything. Still, she tiptoed by his room, hoping he wouldn't see or hear her, or at least that if he did, he wouldn't say such mean things again. Tried as she might to be quiet, her stomach betrayed her with a loud growl. She froze in her tracks for a moment, wondering if anyone was around to hear that.
After practically inhaling a bowl of noodles and a nice, thick sandwich - very much grateful that Ki'iro hadn't seen her and yelled at her more - Rinsi carefully made her way off of school grounds and out into a nearby forest without being seen. Or at least, she thought she was unseen. She had strapped on her hiking boots and grabbed her violin, simply itching to find out what her one and only violin spell would do. That, and she was still extremely fidgety from sitting around in her room and doing nothing. So, she decided she would get far away from the school, and perform her only violin spell to see what it was and what it could do, without the possibility of accidentally getting someone else involved.
As she trounced around in the leaves, sticks, mud and various plant forms that somehow left her feeling a bit peaceful, she came to a glistening lake in the middle of the woods. It glistened bright silver in the light of the sun, and the water rippled as a slight breeze passed, brushing a little of her hair that hadn't been tied back into her face. She smiled a bit and pushed the unruly lock out of her face and behind her ear. Mooney was by the water, watching it intently.
"Mooney, if you catch yourself a fish I will personally cook it for you." Rinsi said, doubting that her tame cat could catch a fish on its own.
Rinsi pulled out her violin and began to play her favorite lullaby, the one that had caused her to glow before. Once again that feeling of friendship and protection washed over her more and more with each note that she played. As she neared the end of the song, those same ethereal wings seemed to bloom from her back like a spring flower caught on high speed camera. Two words echoed in her mind. They were not pleading, or begging. They were not the words of a lover. Instead, these two words sounded excited, almost hyper. It was surprising to her, and at the same time contagious. As she played the final note, she couldn't help but utter these words in the same excited, almost hyper tone.
"Celestial Winds!"
As soon as she said these words, a little pale blue creature appeared out of no where. It did a few front flips upwards from where it appeared, and just floated there. It opened it's curled up form to reveal a small animal looking thing, with feathery ears and a feathery tail. It almost resembled Carbuncle from one of the Final Fantasy video games. It was absolutely adorable! Rinsi could barely restrain herself from running up to it and wrapping it in a big hug and cooing over it.
However restrained she was, though, it didn't matter. The little creature squealed in glee and made a bee line for her chest, nuzzling its furry little head between her breasts.
"Mistress Naomi!" it squealed in an almost childlike voice, "Why did it take you so long to summon Cecil? Cecil missed Mistress Naomi!"
"First of all," Rinsi said, embarrassed as hell and just as tweaked as she carefully pulled the creature away from her chest, her face as red as a tomato, "I don't appreciate being molested like that. Second, my name is not Naomi."
"Oh?" said the creature, it's face full of curiosity, "if you're not Mistress Naomi, then who are you?"
"I'm Rinsi." she replied curtly.
"But," the creature said as it floated around her, sniffing her in various places, some of which she was not comfortable with it sniffing, "You smell just like Mistress Naomi."
"Naomi was my mother's name."
"WHAT?! Why didn't Mistress call on Cecil earlier?"
"Naomi...she and Charles...my mom and dad....they died when I was young." Rinsi said, now looking sad at the thought.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" the creature cried as it floated circles around Rinsi, eventually landing on her shoulder and crying on it, "Mommy and daddy are dead?! It can't be! Cecil is sad now!"
"Why are you here, Cecil?"
"Mistress Rinsi summoned Cecil with Celestial Winds. Cecil has served the Starlight family for centuries."
"But you're just a baby."
"Cecil's race lasts very very long. Not like Naomi's race or Charles' race."
"So if my parents are dead, does that make you my summons now?"
"Not yet. Cecil can only be Mistress Rinsi's summons on one condition."
"What is that?"
"Mistress Rinsi must have a partner!" Cecil said cheerfully.
Rinsi blushed at the thought of this. The last boyfriend she had ran away in fear when she started glowing while dancing, and she wasn't sure if anyone here could accept her now that she had hurt so many. She cast her eyes on the ground and sighed softly.
"I'm....alone...." she said quietly, "I...cannot be accepted anywhere. Not even in a school filled with gifted people like me. Why must I have a partner for you to be my summons?"
When Rinsi looked back up, Cecil's eyes looked like they were full of tears that were threatening to break through the flood gates. Its cute little paws were covering it's cute little mouth, which she could tell was quivering.
"Cecil needs a mommy AND a daddy. Cecil cannot have just a mommy or just a daddy. Cecil needs both."
"But why?"
"Cecil needs to connect to Mistress Rinsi's mind and soul, but Cecil cannot do this when Rinsi is all alone. Rinsi will open up on her own when she has a partner."
"What kind of summons are you, anyway?"
"Cecil is a healer!"
"Yeah, so am I. What good does that make you?" Rinsi said, immediately regretting her words. "I'm sorry..."
"It's okay! Cecil is used to it. Each new master Cecil gets says the same thing. Rinsi can heal physical wounds, right? And with a spell she can restore energy. But Cecil can do more than that. Cecil heals body, heart, mind, and soul. Whereas Rinsi heals the body only, even with spells, Cecil heals everything. Cecil was chosen to be the Starlight family summons because of this, because the Starlights have a special power that can make everyone happy. But that power can also kill their soul, meaning no afterlife or anything. Cecil is here to keep that from happening, when Rinsi's world is finally ready to accept peace, so that when a Starlight performs the spell successfully, Cecil can keep them from dying completely."
"Wait...successfully complete the spell? You mean, it's never been successful, even when it's small?"
"That's right!" Cecil said cheerfully.
"So it wasn't just me."
"Hey, how does Rinsi not know Cecil? Someone should have told Rinsi."
"I was raised by my mother's sister and brother-in-law, my aunt and uncle. They didn't want me knowing about my powers, so they never told me. I only found out recently that the dances they taught me were spells."
After a long talk with Cecil, Rinsi decided it was time to eat. After all, she had skipped breakfast, and it was now well past lunch time. Mooney was certainly hungry - which he made clear by all the meowing and nuzzling of her leg - and Cecil had to be hungry too. She made her way back towards the cafeteria, but stopped in the hall when she saw a woman, strangely clad completely in black, who wore a cape and mask.
"Oh, hello." she said with a friendly smile, ignoring the growling her stomach was doing. "Who are you?"
"The real question is," the woman said, her voice clear and soft. Something was odd about it though, but Rinsi could not place her finger on it, "who are you?"
"I am Rinsi Starlight." she said simply, fighting back a frown. This woman seemed...odd. She asked odd questions, so much so it was borderline rude.
"So, you are Rinsi, the healer."
Rinsi knew what it was now. She wasn't hearing the voice with her ears. She was hearing it with her mind, like what Nakya would do. Her eyes nearly bugged out of her head at the realization, but she quickly schooled her features to composure. It should not be odd that there was someone else who was telepathic. As for how the woman knew she was a healer...she could have read her mind, or someone else probably told her. Either was possible.
"And you are a telepath." she retorted, trying to keep her friendly voice.
"You don't like people reading your mind, do you? Don't give me that look. I didn't need to read your mind to see it, and I don't read minds unless I need to, so long as the other person at least knows. To do otherwise is too dangerous to them. Let's chat over lunch - my treat."
The black cat that Rinsi just noticed had been resting on the woman's shoulder hopped down, and began sniffing her own black cat curiously. Mooney hissed at first, but then sniffed back curiously. It was like watching him in front of a mirror, pawing and sniffing at his own reflection.
"Your cat seems friendly." she said as she followed the woman into the cafeteria.
"As does yours. Mooney, come along or you'll miss lunch."
To her surprise, the other cat followed along behind her, as if ordered. So, their cats had the same name, or at least the same nick name. Even more surprising, her own cat followed too, also as if commanded. For once she cursed herself for teaching her cat such obedience.
“Well miss…Outai,” she said, checking the name again on the application – she knew the name was a Japanese translation, meaning Lone Wanderer, which added to her suspicions, “We have no teachers just yet. We expect to have them next term though. You are too old to be a student, and younger than any teacher I know. You might do well with one other student here, who is much the same as yourself. For now, we are a training grounds for those with special abilities, so that they might learn to control themselves better, and eventually blend in with society. I can’t see you blending in very well, dressed as you are, and the students don’t need that example.”
“I cannot see someone as intelligent as yourself rejecting someone merely based on their physical appearance.” Came the clear, ancient voice in front of her. Something was odd about that voice, but what was it?
“True. That aside, I see no reason to reject you. However, I strongly suggest you don’t make trouble. Teenagers have enough problems in their life – enough drama to fill a library – and those with special abilities are doubly so. The last thing I need is for more trouble. Anyway, it says you can heal. I might just station you in the medical ward. We get more injuries here than one might think, even for a Gifted academy. We have other healers here as students, but they lack control.”
“Would it not be best, then, for me to seek out those with similar abilities and teach them the control they need?”
The principal though this over for a moment. She did not want this woman – who was oddly dressed, in knee high black boots, a black dress with golden dragons trailing up one side where buttons held it closed, a black cloak covering her features, and an odd mask on her face, revealing only her eyes – near any students. She had a bad feeling about her. Still, the woman was right, and had yet to prove herself a threat to anything above that of a fly. She sighed inwardly and set the application back on her desk.
“Very well. Instead of reporting as the school nurse, you will be our first private teacher. However, I must place emphasis on the word ‘private’. You won’t be able to teach all of the students – just those with abilities similar to yours – and if everyone finds out, you’ll find far too many flocking to you, whether or not they can be taught. Tell only those you can teach, and make sure they know not to spread the word.”
“I understand.”
“Well, that is out of the way. I welcome to you to the Gifted Moon Academy.” The principal said, extending her hand for a hand shake.
Her hand was greeted by the firm, but ice cold grip of the woman in front of her. She gave the hand a couple quick shakes, noting the black cotton gloves on her hands that were dusted with frost, before pulling her hand away quickly. She did NOT enjoy such a cold grip.
“Forgive the cold hands. It is difficult for one like me to be warm. I will need a list of students to approach.”
“Begin with Rinsi Starlight and Nakya. Rinsi is a healer, and Nakya a telepath with cryokinetic abilities.”
“Sounds…interesting. I will go find them.”
The figure clad in black turned to leave the office, and was a step shy of leaving before she was interrupted.
“Wait! You are a teacher, so you must be paid. We should discuss your salary.”
“I’m not a picky person. I’ll trust you with that.” The figure said before leaving the office, closing the door quietly behind her. The principal slumped down in her chair, running her fingers through thick, graying brown hair. Steel gray eyes examined the door intently for a moment before she closed her eyes and heaved a heavy sigh, though she could not say if it was from exasperation or relief.
“What an odd woman…” she said, trailing off softly.
After a good night of sleep, Rinsi woke up feeling refreshed, and feeling a lot better. She still didn't want to be seen by anyone just yet, but her mood was a lot better. It was a lot more like the Rinsi that had come to the school, and less like the Rinsi that had hurt people with her blessing spell.
After a quick shower, she changed into something comfortable - a pair of tan shorts and a snug black shirt that accentuated her feminine features. She wasn't planning on leaving her room until tonight anyway, so she might as well get comfortable.
Rinsi grabbed her violin and the bow and began to play her favorite lullaby. It was soft and slow, but not at all sad sounding. Instead, it was happy and uplifting. Without even knowing it, her body began to glow as she played, and a feeling of friendship and protection flowed through her every fiber. Something told her this was a spell, and not at all a harmful one, no matter what the race, species, or element of the person's body. Still, she was a bit afraid of hurting people. She would have to sneak outside and get clear away from everyone, or wait until dark to do so.
It was late in the afternoon, and Rinsi was overcome with hunger. She hadn't eaten in - what - 36 hours? She knew she couldn't keep up this pattern. She was too energetic and as it was she was really fidgety. Finally deciding that she needed food badly, she decided to brave the halls of the school, and gosh darn the people that would glare at her in hatred. Right now, she was too hungry and fidgety to care. She had to get out and run. She had to do something productive with her time. Most of all, she had to get some food in her before she passed out from hunger.
She had left her staff in her room on purpose, so that she would not be identified as easily. Or, if she was identified, at least they wouldn't accuse her of abusing her power, or whatever. This also meant she couldn't cast any spells, and this was fine by her. Beyond the safety of her room and the darkness that shielded her at night, she was not inclined to cast any more spells and make more people hate her. So instead, she left her staff on her bed, which sat next to her night stand that still had her note pad on it, open to her notes that she had absent-mindedly left there for anyone who saw it to read. Instead, she opted for walking on her own, though still a bit cautiously down the halls towards the cafeteria.
As Rinsi walked down the hallway, she knew she was approaching Ki'iro's dorm. She was still afraid that he hated her, and with good reason. However, she also hoped he would forgive her, now that she had fixed everything. Still, she tiptoed by his room, hoping he wouldn't see or hear her, or at least that if he did, he wouldn't say such mean things again. Tried as she might to be quiet, her stomach betrayed her with a loud growl. She froze in her tracks for a moment, wondering if anyone was around to hear that.
After practically inhaling a bowl of noodles and a nice, thick sandwich - very much grateful that Ki'iro hadn't seen her and yelled at her more - Rinsi carefully made her way off of school grounds and out into a nearby forest without being seen. Or at least, she thought she was unseen. She had strapped on her hiking boots and grabbed her violin, simply itching to find out what her one and only violin spell would do. That, and she was still extremely fidgety from sitting around in her room and doing nothing. So, she decided she would get far away from the school, and perform her only violin spell to see what it was and what it could do, without the possibility of accidentally getting someone else involved.
As she trounced around in the leaves, sticks, mud and various plant forms that somehow left her feeling a bit peaceful, she came to a glistening lake in the middle of the woods. It glistened bright silver in the light of the sun, and the water rippled as a slight breeze passed, brushing a little of her hair that hadn't been tied back into her face. She smiled a bit and pushed the unruly lock out of her face and behind her ear. Mooney was by the water, watching it intently.
"Mooney, if you catch yourself a fish I will personally cook it for you." Rinsi said, doubting that her tame cat could catch a fish on its own.
Rinsi pulled out her violin and began to play her favorite lullaby, the one that had caused her to glow before. Once again that feeling of friendship and protection washed over her more and more with each note that she played. As she neared the end of the song, those same ethereal wings seemed to bloom from her back like a spring flower caught on high speed camera. Two words echoed in her mind. They were not pleading, or begging. They were not the words of a lover. Instead, these two words sounded excited, almost hyper. It was surprising to her, and at the same time contagious. As she played the final note, she couldn't help but utter these words in the same excited, almost hyper tone.
"Celestial Winds!"
As soon as she said these words, a little pale blue creature appeared out of no where. It did a few front flips upwards from where it appeared, and just floated there. It opened it's curled up form to reveal a small animal looking thing, with feathery ears and a feathery tail. It almost resembled Carbuncle from one of the Final Fantasy video games. It was absolutely adorable! Rinsi could barely restrain herself from running up to it and wrapping it in a big hug and cooing over it.
However restrained she was, though, it didn't matter. The little creature squealed in glee and made a bee line for her chest, nuzzling its furry little head between her breasts.
"Mistress Naomi!" it squealed in an almost childlike voice, "Why did it take you so long to summon Cecil? Cecil missed Mistress Naomi!"
"First of all," Rinsi said, embarrassed as hell and just as tweaked as she carefully pulled the creature away from her chest, her face as red as a tomato, "I don't appreciate being molested like that. Second, my name is not Naomi."
"Oh?" said the creature, it's face full of curiosity, "if you're not Mistress Naomi, then who are you?"
"I'm Rinsi." she replied curtly.
"But," the creature said as it floated around her, sniffing her in various places, some of which she was not comfortable with it sniffing, "You smell just like Mistress Naomi."
"Naomi was my mother's name."
"WHAT?! Why didn't Mistress call on Cecil earlier?"
"Naomi...she and Charles...my mom and dad....they died when I was young." Rinsi said, now looking sad at the thought.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" the creature cried as it floated circles around Rinsi, eventually landing on her shoulder and crying on it, "Mommy and daddy are dead?! It can't be! Cecil is sad now!"
"Why are you here, Cecil?"
"Mistress Rinsi summoned Cecil with Celestial Winds. Cecil has served the Starlight family for centuries."
"But you're just a baby."
"Cecil's race lasts very very long. Not like Naomi's race or Charles' race."
"So if my parents are dead, does that make you my summons now?"
"Not yet. Cecil can only be Mistress Rinsi's summons on one condition."
"What is that?"
"Mistress Rinsi must have a partner!" Cecil said cheerfully.
Rinsi blushed at the thought of this. The last boyfriend she had ran away in fear when she started glowing while dancing, and she wasn't sure if anyone here could accept her now that she had hurt so many. She cast her eyes on the ground and sighed softly.
"I'm....alone...." she said quietly, "I...cannot be accepted anywhere. Not even in a school filled with gifted people like me. Why must I have a partner for you to be my summons?"
When Rinsi looked back up, Cecil's eyes looked like they were full of tears that were threatening to break through the flood gates. Its cute little paws were covering it's cute little mouth, which she could tell was quivering.
"Cecil needs a mommy AND a daddy. Cecil cannot have just a mommy or just a daddy. Cecil needs both."
"But why?"
"Cecil needs to connect to Mistress Rinsi's mind and soul, but Cecil cannot do this when Rinsi is all alone. Rinsi will open up on her own when she has a partner."
"What kind of summons are you, anyway?"
"Cecil is a healer!"
"Yeah, so am I. What good does that make you?" Rinsi said, immediately regretting her words. "I'm sorry..."
"It's okay! Cecil is used to it. Each new master Cecil gets says the same thing. Rinsi can heal physical wounds, right? And with a spell she can restore energy. But Cecil can do more than that. Cecil heals body, heart, mind, and soul. Whereas Rinsi heals the body only, even with spells, Cecil heals everything. Cecil was chosen to be the Starlight family summons because of this, because the Starlights have a special power that can make everyone happy. But that power can also kill their soul, meaning no afterlife or anything. Cecil is here to keep that from happening, when Rinsi's world is finally ready to accept peace, so that when a Starlight performs the spell successfully, Cecil can keep them from dying completely."
"Wait...successfully complete the spell? You mean, it's never been successful, even when it's small?"
"That's right!" Cecil said cheerfully.
"So it wasn't just me."
"Hey, how does Rinsi not know Cecil? Someone should have told Rinsi."
"I was raised by my mother's sister and brother-in-law, my aunt and uncle. They didn't want me knowing about my powers, so they never told me. I only found out recently that the dances they taught me were spells."
After a long talk with Cecil, Rinsi decided it was time to eat. After all, she had skipped breakfast, and it was now well past lunch time. Mooney was certainly hungry - which he made clear by all the meowing and nuzzling of her leg - and Cecil had to be hungry too. She made her way back towards the cafeteria, but stopped in the hall when she saw a woman, strangely clad completely in black, who wore a cape and mask.
"Oh, hello." she said with a friendly smile, ignoring the growling her stomach was doing. "Who are you?"
"The real question is," the woman said, her voice clear and soft. Something was odd about it though, but Rinsi could not place her finger on it, "who are you?"
"I am Rinsi Starlight." she said simply, fighting back a frown. This woman seemed...odd. She asked odd questions, so much so it was borderline rude.
"So, you are Rinsi, the healer."
Rinsi knew what it was now. She wasn't hearing the voice with her ears. She was hearing it with her mind, like what Nakya would do. Her eyes nearly bugged out of her head at the realization, but she quickly schooled her features to composure. It should not be odd that there was someone else who was telepathic. As for how the woman knew she was a healer...she could have read her mind, or someone else probably told her. Either was possible.
"And you are a telepath." she retorted, trying to keep her friendly voice.
"You don't like people reading your mind, do you? Don't give me that look. I didn't need to read your mind to see it, and I don't read minds unless I need to, so long as the other person at least knows. To do otherwise is too dangerous to them. Let's chat over lunch - my treat."
The black cat that Rinsi just noticed had been resting on the woman's shoulder hopped down, and began sniffing her own black cat curiously. Mooney hissed at first, but then sniffed back curiously. It was like watching him in front of a mirror, pawing and sniffing at his own reflection.
"Your cat seems friendly." she said as she followed the woman into the cafeteria.
"As does yours. Mooney, come along or you'll miss lunch."
To her surprise, the other cat followed along behind her, as if ordered. So, their cats had the same name, or at least the same nick name. Even more surprising, her own cat followed too, also as if commanded. For once she cursed herself for teaching her cat such obedience.