Chapter Text
Changing schools just before the second year of A-Levels wasn’t ideal, but Dad said not to dwell in the negatives, so he would keep his chin up and bear whatever may happen.
Unfortunately, though, what happened was a seating plan. Captain had no idea why teachers felt the need to create a seating plan for A-Level students; they were all at least seventeen for pity’s sake. But there they stood: lined up at the back of the classroom, waiting to be told which chair to sit in. At least he knew there would be no squabbling over spaces. He wouldn’t return the next lesson to find he had been ousted by an obnoxious cretin who had apparently decided that their seating needs outweighed any call to order or consistency. However, it was still a seating plan and, on principle, he was against it.
In this particular instance, he was also against it in practice. He had been sat next to a blond, gangly boy named Julian, who he had heard loudly prattling on mere moments before the teacher had ushered them into the classroom. Worse yet, they were on a table of just two. Captain had no hope that he might be able to ignore Julian in favour of another, less annoying, classmate or that Julian would ignore him in favour of a more talkative one. He didn’t imagine for a second that he was Julian’s first choice either.
“So, your name’s really Captain?”
And there it was. Captain would likely spend the first half term assuring people that yes, that really was his name and no, he wasn’t just trying to be ‘edgy’. There was another reason why moving to a new school didn’t seem like the best of ideas.
“Yes, my name is Captain. Captain Major, if you must know.” He would find out anyway: best to get it all over and done with.
“Your actual legal name is Captain Major? What’s your middle name? Private?”
Captain sighed, staring at his blank notepad.
“Wait, it isn’t, is it? Your name can’t be Captain Private Major!”
“It isn’t. I don’t have a middle name.”
He heard Julian suck in air through his teeth. “So that’s all you got? Mr Military Military. I thought Montgomery was a bad middle name. At least I have one. Julian Montgomery Fawcett, by the way. Somehow the guy at this table with the better name.”
“Yes, thank you, Fawcett. As much as I have enjoyed this conversation, I believe we should be listening to the lesson.”
“Touchy.”
Despite this, Julian did settle down and make notes. It was mostly a recap of the previous year - and Captain was very grateful that this school was doing the same modules as his last one or he would have been doomed to dealing with first years whilst he tried to catch up - but still, he was glad to see his table-mate seemed to be putting some modicum of effort in.