Page 9 of Group Studies
I had to bite my lips together to keep from grinning.
“My quiz was a breeze, like everything. The teachers here are nothing like our tutors back home, right, Saff?” She said instead of asking about his hair.
Saffron grunted, squeezing her closer as she rattled off stories about the two of them as kids. I wished I could tune it out, but I couldn’t stop listening. I’d never climbed a tree, or messed up a potion intended to slow your fall but made you float instead.
“We were little kids,” Mercedes ended the story. “But you raced up the tree and jumped so fricking high to keep me from floating away. I just knew, right then, you were something special, Saff. That we were something special.”
Our walk brought us to the massive foyer, a maze of staircases and hallways leading to every other part of the Institute.
The couple kissed. I studied the floor. Mercedes pulled back, licking her lips. With a smirk, she seamlessly moved around Saffron, passing suspiciously close to my back, before she headed toward a wing of classrooms.
“See you in GS, sweetie,” Mercedes said, blowing him an extra kiss. “Skeleton, you need to watch what you brush up against.”
I refused to investigate my back where she could see me. I didn’t need to add more embarrassment to whatever her plan was.
She gave me a disappointed but knowing look and spun dramatically to head for her next class.
Saffron jerked his head toward the main doors. With a sigh, I followed him into the crisp sunshine toward the Sphérique for Metaphysics.
* * *
“Why’s my magic still in you?” I asked softly, still walking toward Metaphysics. “Professor Garnet gets rid of it as soon as he can. Most of the students here might not know what it is, but the MA certainly does.”
“Aphy, you don’t know what this feels like at all, do you?” Saffron asked.
I tried to tug on my braid, but it wasn’t there. Saffron stepped in front of me and cupped my cheeks with both hands. My magic danced, and the barrier holding it back disappeared. Power tried to surge forward, but I shoved my fists into my gut and wrestled it back. Relief sagged through me when it stayed under my skin.
I had to stop making things worse.
“I spent two hours dumping your magic into my Golem last night, and maybe half of it is gone,” Saffron continued, oblivious to my internal struggle. “But I couldn’t let it all go.” His yellow rims burned into me, threatening my finite control. “Aphy, I’m on top of the world. I feel like I can do anything—everything’s clearer. I’m not in my mage trance, and the lines of magic powering the spells in the very stone of the Institute are showing me their secrets. You sparkle, Aphy.”
My heart fluttered. I leaned toward the Saffron I knew behind closed doors.
The Greek God ran his hands down my neck, across my shoulder, and started down my back. I trembled, my magic licking at his as he pulled me to him.
Suddenly the unpleasant smell of valerian, sea holly, and rotten potato combined and destroyed our moment. The noxious odor intensified as Saffron stepped away from me. My last few queasy mornings came back to me in a rush. I swallowed to keep from vomiting.
My barrier snapped back into place. A little puff of greenish-brown dust followed Saffron. In seconds the dust mixed with the oils on his fingers and dyed them a nasty green poop color.
Saffron scowled. His eyes flashed, and banana yellow fire engulfed the green dust before it could go anywhere else. The heat of it licked my back and burned away Mercedes’ petty prank. Fresh air, tinged with Saffron’s magic, filled my nose.
“We need to be patient with her,” Saffron said, flexing his colored fingers. “I know she’s making it hard for you here, but if it wasn’t her, it would be someone else.” He paused. “She’s not a bad person, just in a rough spot. A spot I put her in.”
I looked away from Saffron; both hurt he defended Mercedes and hoped he kept talking. It was so rare Saffron shared bits of himself with me.
“Look, we’ve been friends since we were kids,” Saffron added. He ran his fingers through his hair. “She’s got so much resting on her shoulders. Give her time to adjust.”
I bristled. The woman literally burned off my hair in the middle of the night. She lived to make my life miserable. And Saffron wanted me to be the bigger person?
The vision of Saffron’s fantasy, with Mercedes rocking a baby, bloomed in my memory. I tried to calm myself, keeping in mind I didn’t understand their situation.
“Adjust,” I repeated. I began walking again, hurrying now so we wouldn’t be late. “Like to what, the idea of my existence?” I snorted. “I know Professor Garnet’s pushing for me to join your harem, but Mercedes would rather kill me, and honestly, I’d rather kill her.”
Saffron focused on the ground. “I’ll make her understand.”
I tripped. “You’ve literally, not once, even mentioned me joining your harem. You keep me at arm's length all the time.”
“Did you see what I did with your magic, Aphy?” Saffron asked, raising his voice slightly. “I burned away dust with my mind. I didn’t need to draw a rune or identify the elements first. I smelled them, and with a thought, magic bent to my will. This might be normal to you, but it’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced.” He gave me a hard look. “Mercedes is a mage, maybe not as powerful as us, but she’ll understand.”