Principal Lava heard the entire story. There was pin-drop silence in the cabin except for the faint breathing that could be heard. The atmosphere remained tensed.
The three of them tried to catch some sort of emotion on Maw's face.
He looked back at them quietlt for some time.
His lips barely curved, but his eyes were laughing. He said to Laika, "You are lucky it was Vira; next time, use your discretion. Imagine if it had been someone else."
Laika was quiet. He was already regretting it.
"Nonetheless, we don't have a biology teacher other than Maw Mina. Let's give her a fair hearing. She may not take out her annoyance at Saka during class hours."
All three gave him a skeptical stare. He was not convinced himself.
He continued. "I can only think of one more solution. He can take a certification course and exempt himself from attending class. I can sign his On-Duty certificate. But he will still have to take the exams."
All three faces brightened. Maw Lava felt like he was still dealing with adolescent kids rather than adults. He smiled to himself.
"However, the certification should be from a reputed institute. Not something you guys prepare."
Both Laika and Roma protested. "Maw! Which institute will provide only a certificate?"
"Why can't Aunt Lila's certificate be valid?"
Vira asked, "Certification in which field? Should it be biology? Or can it be in any field of interest?"
"It should help with his university education. If it can add weightage to his application, I don't mind."
Laika interrupted. "But in case certification courses are not open, then?"
"Then Saka needs to learn to handle Maw Mina."
"Excuse me for a bit; let me check with my contacts if there are any suitable courses for certification. Laika, can I borrow your mobile?"
Maw Lava looked surprised. "What happened to your mobile?"
Vira bowed his head apologetically. "I gave it to Akat. He broke his. I will buy one this weekend."
Laika handed him his phone. He marveled at Vira at times. Though Vira didn't talk about it, everyone in the room knew he was rich enough to own the entire Island of Mann. Yet, to live so modestly, they just couldn't get used to him.
Vira walked out to make a phone call.
****
"Gran, Vira here. Are you free for a bit?"
"I have all the time in the world for the love of my life."
Vira smiled. He always did when he spoke to his grandmother. The overflowing love from her, he truly cherished. He had already informed her about his phone, so she picked all calls from random numbers, just to make sure she didn't miss his.
"I need a favor."
This was the first time he had asked her for a favor. She was delighted.
"Tell me, what can I do?"
"You know Saka, right? The kid aspiring to be a priest? He needs to do a certification course. Could you arrange a two- or three-month certification? September mid to November or mid-December? It would help if it was certified by Vayu, preferably on spiritual studies." He went on to explain the circumstances leading to this strange request. She was in splits.While to the outer world she was a terrifying presence, to her grandson, she was his best friend.
"We can do one thing. The final semester college kids need to choose between an extra course or an internship as a teacher. Let me see if any kid is willing for three months of exclusive training and certification."
"Thanks, Gran! Send me the details on email."
"Sure. Make sure to get yourself and your phone. I am taking a lot of spam calls thinking it could be yours."
Vira giggled. "Please bear with me till this weekend."
She laughed and bid him well before cutting the call. He walked back in, passing the phone back to Laika.
"Maw, regarding the certification details... I will send you on email by the end of today. If that works, then we will convince Saka to enroll himself for the course."
Laika thought to himself, "Saka is one lucky bugger, just to study under Vira." He was sure Vira would extend the same support to any student, not Saka in particular, if they had been in a similar, helpless situation. That is what made her a beautiful person.
He was also well aware of Vira pulling all the strings possible to get scholarships for his students. Of course, he was strict when it came to them putting in effort. He would fight for them, but they had to prove themselves.
Laika sighed mentally. His brother had collected a lot of good karma in his past life.
****
Tobi stood next to Saka. "Did you hear?" he asked.
"About what?"
"Mr. Potri. He won't be coming for the next couple of months."
Saka looked surprised. "Oh? What happened?"
Tobi shrugged. "Not sure. Maybe he slipped and broke a bone?"
Saka considered. "He must have decided to go for a family vacation. He looked more homely than most to me."
Tobi shrugged. "I'm quite sure he has some ailment or the other. Anyways. We now have a temporary teacher filling in."
"Oh? Who? Roma? He is the only one with free time after three in the evening. Maybe they'll move our biology classes to after three?"
Tobi patted him on the shoulder, sadly shaking his head. "Sen is handling the class from 6 to 9. And he's supporting Maw Vira with the focus group after class. He has enough on his plate."
Saka had forgotten about the focus group.
"So who is it?"
"Someone who loves you... Maw Mina."
Saka felt the color completely drain from his face.
"I'll be the only dropout in our family, I suppose," he muttered.
"Talk about bad luck!" he thought to himself. Tobi gently patted him on the shoulder, offering him little comfort.