Chương 19: Chapter 18

The wind blew by as the pair faced off. Leaves danced in the air before slowly falling to the earth. Lily's advice echoed in his head. Cal turned around, walking the other way while fishing out his phone. His fingers stopped, not typing the message he'd intended to send. Cal had yet to determine if the Crown Prince knew, but he refused to entertain the idea that the royal family would entrust the secret of his presence to a thirteen-year-old.

What made him hesitate was that adults could overlook children when speaking between themselves. Ancestors know he'd been privy to enough classified information at that same stature.

"Showing your back? Do you not realize who stands before you?" Cal's steps halted, and he gave a tired sigh. Every day better not be like this. The kid walked around him, placing himself in the way again.

"I am Prince Sebastian, and I demand a duel." Cal extended his senses, finding them alone at the moment.

"Listen, kid, I don't have time to play with you right now, so leave me alone." The best choice of words? No, certainly not. However, the day had taken its mental toll, and he no longer wanted to deal with it.

"So you deny a fair duel?" The prince spoke with a loud voice.

"Did your house raise you with no honor?"

"I'm a bastard," Cal stated with a smirk. The kid would have to work harder if he wanted to get a rise out of him.

"They didn't raise me at all."

"Then whoever did must have been a wretch to raise such a craven coward." Cal released a heated breath at the memory, forcing himself to focus on the positive. Which, at this point, was that the kid might just be alright. That unfortunate face still made Cal want to punch him just a little.

"If you're trying to goad me into a fight, that's the wrong way to go about it." It was almost the opposite of what he should be doing.

"And didn't you just have one yesterday? It's early to go picking another one." The kid gave a huff and puffed out his chest.

"That was no fight; my victory was never in doubt." Cal doubted he was the only member of the audience to note how shaky a hold the kid had on his sword at the end.

"Right..." Cal let out skeptically.

"Go find someone else, not interested." Cal moved to walk around him, but the prince stepped in his path again.

"No, I wish to test the mettle of the one who bested my eldest brother. Trickery or no." That answered what this was about; Rolland must have blabbed to him.

"You have me confused with someone else because I have no idea what you're talking about." He was not above lying to children.

"The denials you spout are fruitless. I've been informed by a reliable source that you faced and injured his person while remaining unscathed yourself."

"That was a misunderstanding. He tripped." Onto Cal's fist. He envisioned it being a repeat occurrence.

"Are you suggesting a mere fall is enough to hurt him?" Cal nodded sagely.

"He's very clumsy." The kid crossed his arms and tried to look intimidating.

"The notion of that is insulting to my family."

"Fine, you got me. It was an accident, though. He wasn't taking me seriously." Cal decided to give up the charade.

"Even with that, you're a few years too early to go challenging someone who can avoid getting instantly clobbered by the top-ranked student." Cal's attempt to go around was stopped for a third time.

"I will be the one to decide that." The boy stood there, fist clenched at his sides and a determined look etched onto his face. Hah. Kids could be so stubborn. His princely status did nothing to help it. Cal imagined he'd not been told 'no' many times. He was close to dismissing him again, but he did sort of owe the tyke for lifting his idea to fight Benjamin. He'd executed it far better, of course. Shielding your eyes from sudden changes in light was easily accomplished.

Didn't quite work when the only thing to see was fire. It wasn't like that was enough to win, but the split second it took Benjamin to focus on his senses besides sight provided him an advantage. He wouldn't duel the kid. That was too public and invited complications. Giving him an important life lesson? That he could do. Cal flexed his senses again, finding them still alone. Good. He appeared inches in front of the prince, who remained stock-still, lacking the reaction time to make any move.

He pushed a palm against the center of the boy's chest, sweeping him from his feet. The boy landed on his back, dazed. Cal didn't wait for the kid to get his bearings, taking the opportunity to walk away.

"Ambush!" A startled cry rang out in the background.

"I was not prepared for such-" Cal blurred, and the boy's words were cut off as his head was flicked, earning a wince of pain. Cal spoke from a position behind the prince.

"Word of advice, kid." The prince's head whipped to face him, finding nothing.

"Try not to mouth off to people so clearly out of your league." Cal's voice came from the next blind spot he'd found.

"And if you do, keep the damn shell up. I could have painted the tree with you." The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. Cal felt they were wise words. Words he had a hard time following himself. Not dying did have its perks. He slipped out of the area while the prince frantically tried to locate him. There may be some fallout from that. Cal figured he'd find out when soldiers started breaking down his door. It'd work itself out. He'd only scared the kid; no real damage was done.

With a lack of witnesses, it would be a case of he said prince said. A case weighed against him and one that did no favors for his actual objective. Logically, he should have left the kid hanging. Turns out, he had a soft spot for mouthy little shits who didn't know any better. Alice was waiting when he arrived. Papers cluttered the table she sat at, so he hoped she'd be distracted enough for him to abscond into his room. That proved not to be the case, as her head tilted towards him.

"Should you not still be in lessons?" She said after glancing at her watch.

"I have you marked for that engineering class you were so adamant about."

"We let out early, first day and all," Cal told the technical truth.

"I would not grow accustomed to that," she said with a small frown.

"Your professors will expect much from you." No time like the present. Cal walked over, setting his bag down next to the table and pulling out a chair for himself. Alice raised an eyebrow at his demeanor. He considered calling Lily, the resident Alice wrangler. The idea was discarded; he could handle this himself.

"About that," Cal prepared to broach the subject.

"So I want to preface this by saying none of this is my fault and it's not as bad as you think." Alice stilled and slowly placed the paper she'd been examining on the table, resting her hands on her lap. She didn't say anything, and he took that as a cue to continue.

"Ferguson, the former Finger guy, meddled a bit with my schedule, and I'm no longer taking bookkeeping or history." She had no visible reaction to that portion.

"Instead I'm taking something called AMC, advanced magical combat." That did trigger a change as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Marcus Procellae is a member of the class." Cal watched the surroundings. Nothing was on fire. Yet at least. A loud exhale was heard, and Alice rose, walking to the small kitchenette in their living space. Emphasis on small; it was a glorified pantry. She opened a cabinet and rummaged through it, pulling out something wrapped. She tore it open and took a bite. Then another, and another until it was gone. She washed her hands, cleaned up any errant crumbs, and returned. She took her seat as if nothing had happened.

Cal withheld his comments; however, he noted the penchant for sweets for later.

"I anticipated this may happen once I saw the exempt on your results. When you received the course selection without being informed of needing a required class, I believed my worries to be misplaced. This was an error on my part." She rested her elbows on the table, massaging her scalp as she leaned forward with her eyes closed.

"It is not a desired outcome; did you petition the instructor for alternative accommodations?"

"Yes." He'd given it a solid attempt but was finding his powers of persuasion to be lacking when he couldn't physically threaten people.

"I'm stuck with it. For what it's worth, the Marcus fellow said he'd keep everything to himself."

"Do not believe any words that sprout from his tongue." Her eyes snapped open, and words lashed out. The temperature increased a degree.

"You would do well to remember that." Cal nodded, staying silent while she cooled down. The reaction she had indicated a more personal feeling. There was more to that than family issues. He chose not to dig; whatever the nature of their relationship, that was her business.

"You fought then, yes? What was the outcome? Who else was attending? It's a closed class, so I would appreciate any light you can shed on it." She rattled off questions, an intense look in her eye. He contemplated fibbing to keep her further in the dark. Too many potential pitfalls; better to play it straight.

"I sparred, unofficially, with Benjamin; I beat him." Her back got a little straighter, and her frown disappeared.

"Mind you, he was fighting with Rolland when I got there, so he probably wasn't in the best form. Aside from the teacher, the only other person there was Marcus." She nodded, seemingly expecting that.

"I don't think there's a set structure to the class. Ferguson's not the type for that."

"Defeating the third rank is impressive." He wondered how she would feel knowing the exact method of his win.

"It makes my showing against you easier to understand." She had pursed lips, looking to have swallowed a lemon.

"I've been…unfair to you. I should have given you the proper credit due for your victory rather than conjuring justifications to appease myself."

"No worries, I get-""Please let me finish." She cut him off with a raised palm. A resolute expression on her.

"This is not an easy feat for me." He waited with apprehension to see what she had to say.

"Our first meeting, I handled it poorly. When I saw you, I viewed the sin my Father committed. To a lesser extent, I still do. It's something I've struggled with. By reason, I can grasp that you have committed no fault. Indeed, you are another victim in this sad state of affairs. I know this, and yet these feelings persist. I tell you this not to excuse my behavior, rather, I would ask your patience as I sort through these intrusive thoughts." She bowed her head towards him.

Neither of them moved, and Cal realized she was awaiting a response. He should have taken up Albert's offer of being a staff member. He can't imagine that would have been anywhere close to as difficult as dealing with this sham.

"I haven't exactly made it a walk in the park. Like I said, I get it. This whole situation is-" He stopped himself from saying fucked.

"Unpleasant for everyone involved. We don't have to reach the level of liking each other; simply tolerating will be more than enough." He left out that they'd only need to do so for a year at most. Alice raised her head and shook it, red locks swaying back and forth.

"Mother was correct. Even if we appear united to outsiders, we cannot afford any more internal divisions in our House."

"More?" He spoke without thinking. Her eyes flashed with a complex set of emotions.

"Mother may have the strength to forgive Father. I have not. Not now. Perhaps never." They seemed fine when saying their goodbyes. Not that he was any expert in familial dynamics. Cal ran a hand through his hair, scratching the back of his head. Should he defend the guy? What he wouldn't give to trade places with one of those cafeteria workers right now. Hells, he liked cooking. Why had past Cal not fought this more?

"Can we not talk about this right now? It's been a day."

"Very well, I've said what I ought to. Moving to comparatively lighter topics." She didn't seem displeased by the shift in conversation.

"You did well keeping it off the record. Proving yourself more adept at this life than I originally believed." She sighed, her shoulders rolling back.

"I confess, when you first sat, I expected far graver news." Cal couldn't well be insulted by that. The edges of her mouth upturned, and the tenseness from before dissipated.

"Did you know Lily had the gall to wager you would assault the person of a royal by week's end? I look forward to collecting on her foolishness." It wasn't his fault. Those brothers had hereditary mental issues. Cal speculated it came from all the inbreeding. He'd make his own wager that the sister was equally messed up. Not that he planned on figuring that out. Meeting two out of the three royal students was more than enough for him.

"Lily has a weird sense of humor. You know she specifically told me not to punch them." Pushing and flicking were pointedly not punches. She hummed in understanding, her mind drifting elsewhere. Her brow furrowed in contemplation. Struggling with something if the way her lips twitched was any indication.

"I hesitate to ask you this. Especially in light of my recent admission." Alice looked out to the balcony.

"However, I would be remiss to pass up this opportunity." Her red eyes reflected the sun that'd yet to set.

"If avoidance is no longer practical, then we should alter tactics." She faced him.

"I'll ask you to, if you are willing, to ingratiate…no that isn't the appropriate word." She brought her head slightly down, holding her chin in thought. She released it after a moment, addressing him again.

"Observe him closely; discover what you can about his dealings. Do not force it; simply be amiable. Marcus is guarded but not infallible. Should he be careless, it would do us well to capitalize on it." Cal fought to keep the smirk from his face, the irony of the situation not lost on him.

"I realize you are not prepared and that this is much to ask."

"Don't worry," he stopped her. Giving her what he considered a reassuring smile.

"I got this." Maybe that whole show was meant to manipulate him. It would be very noble like. That didn't change the fact that he'd upended part of her life. The least he could do was help out a little here and there until he left. Something must have been lost in translation as a troubled expression came over her.

"On further thought, disregard that request." Cal got up, heading to his room.

"No, no, I got this. Promise." He was already spying on the whole school; paying one student special attention was no great burden. If he thought about it more, gathering the sheer quantity of resources needed to conduct the summoning was no simple task. The heir of a dukedom would have both the money and influence to see it done. If his snooping turned up an actual motive? Then he might just have his man. Two birds, one stone.

"I'll ask you not to." Her voice pleaded behind him.

"Ship has sailed." Cal finished, closing the door. He heard a thump from the other side.