Renzo stuck with his new group of friends throughout the morning, enjoying a leisurely breakfast before they all set out into the grassnds around the Academy. Taiko pretended to be impatient while the two women retreated to their rooms to change, but Renzo could sense the humor about his reaction and ughed along with him at Mae’s reply.

  “Aeri is not going out in her nightgown,” the woman snapped through her door. “Shut up and wait!”

  Taiko shot Renzo a grin, then nudged Varden none too gently in the ribs. “Don’t know why she tries so hard. She’s fine the way she is, and we’re not exactly going to a fashion show.”

  The Aurethi cultivator shook his head, a grave expression on his face. “You’re tempting danger with that one, Taiko. Are all Skarathi such reckless people, or is it just you?”

  “Oh, there’s nobody quite like me,” Taiko said easily, taking that opportunity to strike a pose, his muscles bulging. “At least, that’s what the dies tell me.”

  At that, Varden’s assumed wise exterior cracked, and he let out a snort of ughter. “What dies? You came from a tribe of almost all men, and the only women we know think you’re a fool.”

  Taiko lowered his arms, a hurt look on his face, though his orange eyes still fshed with amusement. “Did they tell you that? I thought I was doing so well!”

  “They didn’t have to tell me, you wildfire of a man. It’s obvious to everyone who knows you!”

  Taiko let out a gasp, a palpable wave of heat fring off his skin, the ember-colored veins on his skin glowing to match. He turned to Renzo. “You don’t think I’m a fool, do you?”

  “I don’t know you well enough yet to have an opinion,” Renzo said, doing his best to keep his voice level. Unfortunately, Varden saw right through him, and let out another ugh. For a short man, it was a surprisingly deep, booming noise.

  “He’s too polite to admit he agrees with me!”

  Taiko hunched his shoulders and stalked away, disappearing out of sight around a corner. Renzo was tempted to follow after him and see what pyacting he might get up to, but just then, Mae’s door opened, revealing her in a long dark green tunic that reached to the knees of her brown leggings, a dull but polished leather belt cinching it around her waist. Her hair had been done up in a simple bun, adding to her stern, silent air. But Renzo thought the look suited her.

  Mae looked from side to side, making an obvious note of Taiko’s absence in their midst. “I thought it was suspiciously silent out here. Did you finally succeed in scaring him away?”

  “As if,” Varden said. “He’s pretending to sulk around the corner. Aeri, are you almost done?”

  “Almost!” Came the smooth voice in reply. “Just another minute, please.”

  Renzo stayed silent while he waited, wondering at the interaction between Varden and Mae. Both were quiet and refined, but Varden was a little less strict in his appearance and mannerisms, allowing him to get along with people like Taiko and Renzo. The entire group was calm, in their own way, he thought. That made him think of how rash he was. Even a hothead like Taiko seemed calm and collected next to him. What if his mother could see them? There’s a fine group of young men and women, Renzo. Calm. Proper. You should be like them.

  But he’d always been a reckless one. He couldn’t help it, he was just naturally fast. Life didn’t slow down for him, so why should he be any different? It was his natural way to move as quickly as possible. Strike first, and you were safe.

  “You alright, Renzo?” He shook himself out of his thoughts to see that Taiko had returned and was staring at him. Even Aeri was there, peeking around the taller man’s shoulder, her eyes wide. She looked concerned…

  “Uhh, sorry,” Renzo said. “Just thinking… about some stuff.”

  Aeri moved forward around Taiko, her eyes studying his face. She was wearing a long dress of pale blue that blended with her skin perfectly, and her hair was tied back just like Mae’s, but into a ponytail. It showed off her slender neck quite well. “Thinking about your home?”

  Mutely, Renzo nodded. “Nothing bad, just…”

  He couldn’t think what else to say, but they all nodded in understanding. Even Mael’s previous stern face melted into something softer. “Don’t get too caught up in it. It’s normal. We all take some time to adjust to this pce, no matter how good it is. You’ll feel better in a few days, I promise.”

  Again, he found he had no words. He couldn’t really say that he was missing his home, as that had nothing for him but hard training, fish, and farming. He only had one friend, and he spent so much of his time helping his father with the forges that they barely met anymore. No, he was happier here, he was sure of it. But he was also here for a reason, and just then, he felt the expectations of his mother and vilge on him. He had to start his csses as soon as possible and make them proud.

  With a small smile, Aeri gave Taiko a little nudge. “You’re being too quiet, Taiko.”

  “Yeah,” Mae said drily. “I’m starting to worry you’re sick or something.”

  Renzo looked between them, wondering at the sudden change in subject. But Taiko only grinned, giving Aeri a little bump of his hip. “You’re sooo right! I really should be talking more, shouldn’t I? It’s my gift to the world, after all!”

  Mae rolled her eyes at him, slipping around him and heading for the stairs. “Come on, slow pokes. If we wait any longer, all the good spots will be taken and we’ll have to practice in a swamp or something.”

  “I wouldn’t mind that!” Aeri said, practically skipping after her. Varden and Taiko were quick to follow, animatedly joining the discussion. After a second’s hesitation, Renzo followed as well, wondering at how quickly they’d changed moods. Was that a sign of how used to this pce they were? Or did they not have as much riding on this as he did? It would only occur to him ter that Aeri and Mae, by ribbing Taiko, had gotten him to diffuse the tension in the air. He’d pyed his role admirably. For the time being, Renzo was just content to get some fresh air.

  ---

  As they walked towards the forest down a long dirt road, the others started talking about the Academy and what it had been like in the month they’d been there. Well, Taiko did most of the talking. But Varden and Mae had nearly as much to share, offering Renzo their own opinions, presenting choice pieces of advice for him to follow. Even Aeri jumped in from time to time, quietly commenting on the discussion.

  “You wouldn’t believe how x things are here,” she said, looking at him as he held up the rear of the group. “Our meditation teacher Dirran is so strict, though. He smacks you with a stick anytime you make noise. Even breathing too heavily gets you whacked!”

  She rubbed her elbow with a small frown, as if she could still feel a slight bruise there. Taiko ughed. “Hey, you didn’t have it nearly as bad as I did. I was nothing but bruises for the first week!”

  “Well, that’s what happens when you can’t keep your mouth shut in a css dedicated to silent reflection,” Mae offered, the corner of her mouth turning up in a satisfied smirk. “It was distracting, hearing you yelp each time he smacked you.”

  “Meditation isn’t just about being quiet and sitting on the ground,” Taiko grumbled. “It’s about doing what’s natural to you! That’s what I learned at home, and I was very good at i, thank you!”

  Mixed in with the chattering were occasional dispys of their progress. Once, when the clouds shifted to let a particurly strong ray of sunshine beam down on them, Varden paused to interact with it a bit, making it glow more brightly, then bending the beam of light as if it were a long pnk, then releasing his control with a sigh of mild frustration. Aeri grabbed some water out of a puddle as they passed it, spshing the contents all over Taiko, who spluttered and cursed. “Aeri! That’s not fair! That water’s all muddy!”

  “Is not,” she retorted, giggling and jumping back as he tried to flick some of the water back onto her. “My control’s too good, that water is pure!”

  “Then where did all this mud come from?” He asked, stalking forward with his hands outstretched, covered in gritty, wet dirt. She let out a squeal at his advance and spshed him again, which did rinse some of it off, but he was nowhere near clean.

  “I think that’s been there all morning,” Mae interjected, a smile on her face that was almost sadistic. “It looks good on you. Your natural state.”

  That turned Taiko’s attention onto Mae, giving Aeri a chance to hide behind Renzo, her body shaking with suppressed ughter. But he never got far as Mae turned one foot in a twitch, and the ground under Taiko’s feet shot up suddenly, making an impassable wall. They all heard a clear thud as he walked face-first into it. “Ow! Why are you so cruel to me, Mae?”

  Renzo, a little caught up in the energy, moved forward and flicked one hand in Taiko’s direction as the earthen barrier came down. It felt so natural, like… part of his instinct. The wind picked up a little more, and little clods of damp earth fell away from Taiko’s body. Everyone gnced around at him in surprise. Even Aeri hurried around to face him from the front. “Woah! Good job, Renzo! You did that so naturally!”

  He could only shrug his shoulders slightly, embarrassed at their attention and praise. “Just felt like the right thing.”

  “Shame it wasn’t powerful enough,” Taiko bemoaned, looking down at where the rest of the dirt on him still clung to his clothes. “You almost undid what the mean girl put me through. Ah, well, maybe next time.”

  “Oh, you poor boy,” Mae moved forward, ruffling Taiko’s hair to dislodge the mud and dust there, then made a downward swiping motion. Her control was much better than Renzo’s, and all the remaining little clumps fell off of him, nding scattered on the road. Taiko beamed and stood tall, pristine once more. Just in time to receive another faceful of water from Aeri, who giggled, pelting down the road towards the forest.

  “Oh, it is on!” Taiko said. He flexed his muscles for a second, and the air around them grew considerably hotter. The water clinging to him evaporated away, and then he was off, chasing the slender girl down. “I’m going to cover you in dirt!”

  Aeri’s squeal of protest and not-so-fake fear reached Renzo’s ears, almost drowned out by Taiko’s ughter. Shaking his head and ughing in his own turn, Varden quickened his pace, jogging to catch up with the others. Mae let them go ahead, turning to face him. “As you can see, we try to have fun when we can. As long as we don’t go too far or disturb the peace, the instructors don’t pay us any mind.”

  “I see,” Renzo replied. He liked that idea. He had the small inkling that Mae, out of all of them, understood him a little better—or maybe just didn’t expect him to pretend everything was fine.. Maybe she had strict parents, too. “What kind of lessons do you guys have? What are you learning today?”

  He couldn’t pass up the chance to learn more about this pce. He knew, from talking with Jorath on the way here, that he was a month behind the rest of the Initiates that he’d be training with. He’d have to make up that lost time one way or another, and for that, he needed information. But in response to his question, Mae only tilted her head, looking confused. “What do you mean?”

  “The lessons today,” he prompted her. “What do they cover?”

  She let out a snort. It wasn’t a ugh, but it was close. “There are no lessons today. Or tomorrow. It’s the weekend.”

  Then she strode away from him, walking swiftly to catch up with the others who were pying off in the distance, throwing fire, water, and earth around. He caught sight of Varden waving his arms and Taiko falling face-first into some grass, then struggling to get out. More ughter rang out. Two days off, he thought. Two whole days before he could start to catch up—and he was already so far behind. He watched the others throwing magic like it was second nature. What was he going to do while they pulled further ahead?

  RavensQuill