Chapter 14

The first year dining was a large hall with tables well spaced apart. The spacing of the tables allowed students to talk or study without interfering with individuals at adjacent tables. There were a few tables capable of seating twelve, more tables capable of seating eight, but the most common tables were capable of seating four. The tables for four were often paired up to create seating for six.

Given that the same people visited the same dining room three times a day, Oscar found it surprising that it was not the case that the same people sat at the same table every meal. It was true that roommates usually ate together for breakfast and spent most of the time talking about what was going on among the students. However, lunch and dinner dining companions were usually based on study groups of eight and project groups of four or six. Meal times were spent discussing course material or projects.

After spending the weekend alone at the house, Oscar returned to the school early Monday morning and headed directly to the dining hall for breakfast. The people seated around the table were quiet. Oscar sat down and looked around at the unhappy faces. After a quick glance at him, they each turned to look at the table.

Wondering what was the matter, he asked, “What’s up?”

“Cole is missing,” answered Gabby with a mixture of anger and concern in her voice. She had spent the weekend looking for Cole on campus wishing that Oscar would show up to help her in her search, but he had been nowhere to be seen.

“Missing?” asked Oscar with a frown. He hadn’t heard anything about that and he was sure that Oliver would have asked him to help search for him.

“He disappeared Saturday,” said Mark realizing that Oscar had not known. “At least Saturday was the last time anyone reported seeing Cole.”

“What did Oliver say?” asked Oscar curious about the official response. As far as he knew, no student had ever left the campus without formally withdrawing.

“At first he was real concerned, but then last night he said was that Cole would show up in a day or two,” answered Gabby. She was very worried about Cole and didn’t know what to do. She’d been harassing Oliver to do something, but she’d given up on Sunday. She was on the verge of giving him a taste of her mind and she knew it would leave him with indigestion.

“Saturday was mid-summer’s day,” said Oscar thoughtfully. With all of the excitement Friday night, he wouldn’t have remembered that fact except for the conversation with William. He wondered if there was something significant in that.

The waitress showed up and asked, “Can I take anyone’s order?”

“I’ll have two eggs scrambled, bacon, white toast, and coffee,” answered Oscar absently. His mind was still considering the Cole situation. After thinking about it, he came to the conclusion that Cole had gone to the glade.

After taking breakfast orders from Mark, Lisa, Sharon, and Abby, the waitress left. Sounding very worried, Gabby said, “We have to find him. Doesn’t the second rule say that we have to search for him?”

“It won’t do any good,” answered Oscar.

Angered at the idea that Oscar would abandon Cole, Gabby shouted, “What? He’s your friend. Aren’t you worried about him?”

“I’m not worried. He’s not in this world at the moment,” answered Oscar.

Confusion and fear quickly replaced her anger. Afraid that he meant Cole was dead, she bit her lower lip. She couldn’t accept that. Staring at Oscar, she asked, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, he went to the glade. He’s with the Gods and Goddesses at the moment,” answered Oscar. A smile came to him as he thought about how Oliver, ever since Saturday, must have been going crazy over this. He’d never heard of a first year getting called to service.

All eyes were on Oscar as they thought about what he had said. Objections of all kinds came to mind. Finally, it was Sharon who said, “He can’t become a Druid.”

“Why not?” asked Oscar very surprised by the assertion.

“He’s a first year student. It’s not supposed to happen until the sixth year,” she answered.

“Tell that to the Gods and Goddesses,” said Oscar in a serious voice. The Gods and Goddesses weren’t bound by the rules of the college and could do as they pleased. At the shocked looked on their faces, he said, “We serve them, not vice versa.”

His words were greeted with silence as everyone considered the implications. Gabby looked at Oscar trying to decide if he was right. She didn’t know if she wanted him to be right.

The waitress arrived with their food. As she set plates in front of people, Oscar looked up at the middle-aged woman. She was naked except for her apron and tennis shoes. Noticing the attention that Oscar was giving her, she smiled and, in a teasing voice, asked, “So where are your girlfriends?”

“Debbie’s father had a heart attack and they went to see him,” answered Oscar.

The fact that Debbie had left the campus sounded ominous. It also explained why Oscar might not have known about Cole. Concerned, Lisa said, “I’m sorry to hear that. I hope he’s going to be okay.”

“They are going to put in some device that will open up his artery today,” said Oscar, “but the prognosis is pretty good.”

“I’m glad to hear that he’ll be alright,” said the waitress. She looked around the table and noticed that one of the people at the table didn’t have any food. Concerned, she asked, “Gabby, aren’t you going to eat something?”

“I’m not feeling hungry,” said Gabby coming to accept what Oscar had said. With acceptance had come a feeling like something had been stolen from her. She didn’t know what it was, but there was a definite sense of loss deep in her heart.

“You’ve got to eat, dear. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” said the waitress. She could see that Gabby was upset and wanted to help her.

“I just need to be alone,” said Gabby while pushing her chair away from the table. She stood and walked away without giving anyone a chance to say something to her. Although Cole wasn’t a boyfriend or anything like that, she had decided that that he was going to be leaving the college now that he was a Druid. The idea bothered her much more than she would have thought possible.

Abby stood up to follow her friend in the desire to comfort her. Oscar grabbed her arm and said, “Sit down Abby. She needs some time alone.”

“It’s about time she figures it out,” said Sharon cutting up her over- easy egg into thin strips with a knife and fork.

Confused, Abby looked from Gabby’s retreating figure to Oscar and then to Sharon. Gabby was her roommate and in pain. There had to be something she could do for her. “Figured what out?”

“That she loves Cole,” answered Sharon as if it was a widely recognized fact. She piled some of the egg on a piece of toast and took a bite.

“Cole?” asked Abby in surprise. She’d watched Gabby experiment with men and women for months. As far she knew, Gabby had never treated Cole special.

Considering his role in past events, Oscar asked, “Who was her first man?”

“Cole,” answered Abby. In light of that, it made sense Cole would be special to Gabby. A woman always remembered her first man with strong emotions. If it had been pleasant, then those emotions were positive. However, that didn’t mean that Gabby was in love with Cole.

Mike said, “I thought she had some football player back in high school.”

“That was heavy petting,” said Abby. Gabby had considered it having sex because she had an orgasm. There had been no naked bodies moving against each other.

“Who does she go to when she has a problem?” asked Oscar.

“You,” answered Abby to the agreement of everyone around the table. Everyone went to Oscar when they had a problem.

“I meant besides me,” said Oscar waving off her answer with a negligent hand. His roommates shared a look and exchanged winks knowing that he had not even considered himself as an answer to that question.

“Cole,” answered Abby deciding that he was everyone’s second choice.

After considering her behavior over the past few months, Mark was confused by the discussion. He said, “I don’t understand. I know for a fact that she’s tried to fix him up with other women.”

Hitting his forehead, things fell into place for Greg. Excited by his revelation, he said, “She only started doing that after Oscar announced he was in a triad. She’s been looking to create a triad with Cole!”

Interrupting Greg with a dismissive wave of her hand, Sharon said, “She might have been doing that, but I can assure you that she didn’t know what she was doing. If you were to ask her, she’d say that she was just trying to help him find a girlfriend.”

The group argued about the relationship through the entire breakfast. Oscar watched the group thinking how much they loved to gossip. It dawned on him that it wasn’t harmful gossip, but friends wanting to find ways to help those around them. Nothing was asked or spoken of in a harmful manner.

Later Oscar sought out Gabby, locating her in the library where she was crying. He sat down beside her and said, “It is okay to love a Druid.”

Face puffy and eye red from crying, Gabby looked up at Oscar and said, “He’s going to leave now that he’s a Druid.”

“I seriously doubt it,” replied Oscar staring off across the library.

“Why?” asked Gabby.

“Druids tend to place a high value on love. He’s crazy about you and will find some way to stay,” answered Oscar.

Letting her fears overrule her common sense, she said, “Oliver will force him to leave.”

Oscar laughed at that. He thought about how Georgia and he had negotiated with Oliver for them to be able to stay together somehow. He replied, “You’ll find that Druids are not quite so slavish to the whims and desires of Oliver as you might think.”

“What? You kept your secret about being a Druid,” charged Gabby.

“There was a bigger picture there. I was following the two rules more than Oliver,” said Oscar.

“How did you know that I love Cole? I didn’t even know it.”

“Easy. I listened to Sharon and she’s seldom wrong when it comes to observations about people.”

It wasn’t until Tuesday when Cole finally stepped out of the glade onto the path to the college. He was naked except for a gold medallion around his neck. His features looked gentler. The rough angular lines of his face had softened. His sharp nose had lost some of its edges.

Gabby was the first person to see Cole. Oscar had to hold onto her in order to prevent her from rushing over to the young man. He knew there were things that had to be accomplished before Cole could talk to her. He nodded in the direction of Catherine and Oliver even while restraining the struggling Gabby.

Catherine, carrying a number of robes in her arms, walked over to Cole. The delivery of robes and what ever tools were necessary for the newly created Druid was her service to the God. It was one that she enjoyed. In a commanding voice, she said, “Let me see your medallion.”

After hesitating for a split second, Cole held out the medallion. Catherine examined it and said, “I see that you serve the Goddess.”

In a soft voice, Cole replied, “Yes, I serve the Goddess.”

Catherine handed him a green robe and a large quartz crystal on a chain. Gesturing in the direction of her husband, she said, “Talk to Oliver.”

Cole looked at Oliver and then over at Gabby. A smile came to his lips at the sight of her struggling against Oscar in her desire to come to him. With a gesture in her direction, he said, “I’ll talk to him in a minute. I need to talk to Gabby first.”

“Of course, I’m sure the Grand Druid will understand,” said Catherine with a slight grin. Cole had only stepped out of the glade a minute ago and already he was demonstrating the same independence shown by all Druids.

Watching as Cole strode off to greet Gabby, Catherine looked at the other robes she had with her. Atop the pile of robes was a small wooden box for use by one of the new Druids. It contained items normally used in Druid rituals. Two more students were still in the Glade. She would remain waiting by the path from the Glade for another hour. If the students didn’t come out by then, they’d return to the Glade the next day before noon.

She returned to where Oliver stood. He was watching Cole. A self satisfied grin was plastered on his face as if he understood some cosmic joke. Shaking her head, she asked, “What’s the point of being the Grand Druid if the other Druids ignore you?”