"You may go because you want the math," Rhea said. "Not because you're being relocated for other people's comfort."
"I'll go," Imani said. "I want the math. And I want them to see I can take more without leaving my seat."
Rhea's eyes shone, brief and fierce. "That's my girl. And also: you are allowed to rest. You are not a symbol every hour."
Imani nodded. Being a symbol was exhausting. Being a person who sometimes became symbolic against her will was the actual job.
---
Two weeks after the board, Halberd held its autumn family night in the chapel-turned-assembly hall. Parents in good coats filled the pews. A string quartet of upper-school students played something polite. Dean Wexler spoke about community and excellence and the courage to grow. Imani sat beside Rhea in a side pew and watched Mr. Ellery across the aisle with a small cluster of math faculty. He caught her eye once and gave a nod so slight it could have been a trick of the light.
After the program, tables in the foyer held cookies and informational packets. Ms. Yoruba Dane—tall, dark-skinned, silver earrings like small moons—introduced herself to Rhea and Imani with a handshake that meant business.
"I read the summary," Ms. Dane said quietly, not performing privacy but practicing it. "I don't run my seminar as a holding pen. If Imani joins, she joins as a mathematician. Full stop."
Rhea studied her. "And if someone frames it as removal from core?"
"Then they can frame it to my face," Ms. Dane said. "I have tenure and a low tolerance for soft exile."
Imani felt a small unclenching. Allies did not erase systems. They made systems harder to operate without witnesses.
Mr. Ellery approached as Ms. Dane moved to greet another family. He spoke to Rhea first, correctly.
"The department is… discussing norms around stressor items," he said. "Slowly. I pushed. Not as far as you would. Farther than some wanted."
"I'll believe the norms when they're written and distributed," Rhea said. "Until then, we keep our logs."
"Understood." He looked at Imani. "Your office-hour work is excellent. You're impatient with messy arithmetic when your structure is right. That's a real habit to watch—not a moral failing. Just a habit."
Imani blinked. Feedback without ranking. She filed it beside her other complicated feelings about him. "Okay. I'll watch it."
On the bus home—family night ran late; Rhea had switched shifts—Imani rested her head on her mother's arm.
"Is it weird that I still want him to be a good teacher?" she asked.
"No," Rhea said. "It's human. Wanting goodness from people who harmed you is not the same as forgetting the harm. Just don't confuse wanting with receiving."
---
November arrived with thinner light and a quiz.