Page 33 of Self Studies
“Right, well,” Roisin said, rummaging through the chest at the bottom of her bed. “You’ll find out in three days. I could tell you more, but I don’t want to mess anything up.” She nodded. “Your advisor should have a plan. As far as Coteries being shut down, let’s just say the chess club strategies involved an attempt to checkmate Director Fleming and escape. A lot of them end up with bad intentions. No one’s here by choice, and everyone’s on some version of their last chance.” Roisin turned to her bed. “A lot of us know we won’t ever get out.”
Mostly dressed, I paused. My heart went out to my roommate. Although I understood no one chose to be here, I suddenly felt it. As much as my peers were awful to me, they were all doing the best they could in a system they had no control over. I understood that too well. This might feel like freedom to me now, but it wasn’t really.
Saffron pounded on the door, cutting through the gloom. I rolled my eyes and yanked it open.
The Greek God looked me up and down. “You’ll grow into it with regular meals. I’ll show you how to do your tie at breakfast. You have shoes, a GS uniform, and a phone, correct?”
I grabbed the plastic bag and brought it to the door. Saffron helped me identify what I needed for today, and we transferred those items into a bookbag, identical to the ones younger students carried. I stuffed my new phone in a side pocket. Last, I pulled my hoodie over my head and tightened the hood.
“Let’s go,” Saffron growled, almost pulling me out the door.
“Not waiting around for Mercedes to get back to give her a morning kiss?” Roisin asked.
Saffron shut the door in my roommate’s face instead of answering her.
Without looking back, he marched toward the cafeteria. I trailed behind him, wishing I could go back and thank Roisin for hiding my stuff. Assuming she still did it for me after Saffron pissed her off.
Sigh.
As we reached the open double doors, I slowed. Students steadily flowed into the room with only a few trickling out.
My anxiety grew. I clasped my hands together in front of me to keep them from shaking.
Unlike the busy halls between classes, everyone took a moment to note my entrance. A few even pointed at me or took a picture with their phone. Despite my earlier logic, any notions of understanding for my peers vanished. I tried to plaster myself to Saffron’s side, but he put a firm hand on my shoulder, keeping me at a distance.
“Suck it up,” he said lowly. “Don’t show your fear. Your fellow students will use it against you. It will register in the Aptitudes.”
I swallowed. Despite his warning, I stayed as close as he let me. We began threading our way around tables and through little groups of chatting students to join a line. Studying the spacing between the students waiting briefly distracted me from my nervousness.
All business, Saffron turned to me with a black gem cut in the shape of a square. Eyeing it distastefully, he slipped it onto a simple metal chain. I moved my braid out of the way, and he clasped it behind my neck. His hands brushed across my shoulders. One of his fingers ghosted across my jawline, making a shiver of desire slide across my skin.
For a moment, our eyes locked. I swore I saw a hint of concern, but just as fast, he turned from me.
His usual scowl deepened. “I’m your liaison today and tomorrow. Then you’re on your own. Remember my warning.”
I bristled. “I’ve no plans to take advantage of Professor Garnet.”
Although I wouldn’t deny my attraction to the professor, or the relief his presence brought me, I didn’t want to add to his problems. I needed to figure myself out.
We shuffled our way to the trays. When I picked one up, my fingers twitched with excitement. As stupid as it was, making the motion to put food on my tray was terrific. Even if it wasn’t my magic making the food move. Looking closer, a set of powered runes, like the ones in Professor Garnet’s class, were easy to find, but still. It made me feel like I was part of something.
As I slid my tray along the rails, a collection of yogurts and fruits soon hid its yellow surface.
Saffron got my attention. “Whenever you’re ready to go, you make a circle with your hand under your tray. It’ll automatically deduct the price of the food off your gem. If you go all the way to the end, it’ll happen automatically.”
I nodded sharply. Unwilling to skip the hot food, I stayed in the line until the smells of French toast and bacon were right under my nose. I made the circle with my hand, and a tiny cloud of black seeped out of my gem. It vanished into a tablet mounted on the wall, leaving the square around my neck a dull gray.
“Once it’s clear you’re out of rations for the day,” Saffron explained. “Assuming you went to class, you get new rations every day, and the gems can store about three days’ worth of extra before they can’t hold more.” He narrowed his eyes and glanced at my tray. “That’s a lot of food.”
I flushed and wished I had a free hand to pull up my hood. Already focused on himself, Saffron also took a portion of bacon before moving us out of the flow of students. “Hand me your tie.”
I trembled under the heavy tray as I held it one-armed to fish around for my tie. Saffron’s hand joined mine under the tray, taking the weight off my arm. I paused in my search, unsure if he helped me because I needed it or he needed me to find the tie faster. I realized I didn’t want to know and accepted the help. A moment later, I pulled a long white length of cloth out of the bookbag.
The warmth of his hand left mine, and we awkwardly exchanged tray for tie.
“Have a seat in that corner,” Saffron gestured with his head. “You’ll make friends soon enough, but who you’re seen interacting with is important. Until you get a better idea of who’s who, I suggest you keep to yourself.”
I bit my lips together, hating how his words echoed Roisin’s advice yesterday. I didn’t want to keep to myself. This was my chance to make friends. I had the power to want things now, but they kept getting taken from me, just like my food the first night.