Chương 17: Roommates

Ch 17: Roommates Isa plunged through a whirlwind of emotions as the door shut in her face. She'd been feeling out of control now for days, not only losing an understanding of the politics and family drama around her, but of herself. She couldn't trust herself alone with Felix. That was the reality. Except being alone with him was pretty much all she wanted. Just the thought of it sent tingles up and down her spine. It warmed her skin and stomach and twisted her legs around her sheets the night before.

The water mana inside her, usually so calm and peaceful, was sloshing back and forth. It was like suddenly there was a moon in her peaceful world creating a tide. It made her feel wild, powerful. And completely off balance. Cara was trying to pull her back, to warn her, to protect her. She knew that. And now even Felix seemed to understand the situation, to have some kind of control that she didn't. She realized he must not be feeling whatever it was she was feeling, at least not as intensely.

The thought wrenched her gut. Could she just ask him? Talk to him about it? She felt like they had so much to discuss, except whenever they had a chance they were just kissing and touching and oh no is it me who starts it? She put her hands to her face and tried to control the mana sloshing inside her soul. She remembered her teaching—the many tricks even Pools could use to control it. She tried Numeracy—especially effective for water mana—playing with simple mathematics to distract and calm the chaotic waters.

It worked. Sort of. At least well enough for her to stop seriously considering opening the door and kicking out whatever student had been napping inside. She turned and forced her feet to the stairs and down towards Cara. Her guardian and best friend and basically sister was leaning against the wall with a scowl.

"That was quick." Cara looked up with genuine surprise before her eyes narrowed.

"You're planning to meet with him later, aren't you? When I'm distracted somehow. It won't work."

"I'm not planning anything." Isa grabbed her arm and trudged outside, kind of dreading the meeting ahead.

"What are you going to tell my father?" Cara's scowl got a little worse.

"I should tell him everything. I should tell him his incredibly valuable asset is at serious risk of…"

"I'm not." Isa let out a breath.

"I mean it's not like I intend to…" she looked around the courtyard.

"…have sex with him. I just…"

"What are you just, Isa? You know it's impossible. Whatever you're thinking."

"You think I don't know that? I know I'm being selfish. I just…I'll be married soon…"

"Yes and then I'll basically be married," Cara said.

"You know all the lords take Spiritguards as concubines. It's practically tradition, especially fire lords." Isa sighed and put her head on her friend's shoulder. They were in it together, and always had been. It was the main reason she'd never felt truly alone. That no matter what happened, Cara would be by her side, suffering the same hardships, sharing the same burden.

"It will be High Lord Savoy or one of his sons. We both know that. And we'll suffer that together and make the best of it. But before it happens I just wanted…" she trailed off.

"To feel loved, and not just a prize. For a little while." Isa nodded and fought the tears. Did Felix even really care about her? She couldn't know. It all seemed so ridiculous. They'd just met and hardly knew anything about each other. It was probably just lust and the fact he was new and exotic and had risked his life to protect her… But she felt how she felt. And it was so good. It felt like hope.

Like maybe there was a world and future that might be different than marrying a man twice her age who only cared about power. The thought of losing that tiny flicker of joy was breaking her heart already.

"I saw the soul gem, Isa." Cara shook her head.

"His soul is so bright. He'll mark your mana even if you just… I mean kissing him might be a risk." Isa nodded and choked back a sob. Pools weren't like casters. Their power came almost entirely from within, a 'Pool' of energy for which they were named. But that pool of mana could be altered, could be both removed and added to through interaction with the outside world. It was why they were so valuable. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

A powerful wizard could draw power straight from Isa's pool—could use it like he used his own to channel his magic. There were several ways, but physical touch was easiest. If it was a water wizard it made no difference, and so Isa had spent much of her life helping her family's water casters. But Felix… he was mostly a fire caster. The more he touched her, especially with a soul as bright as his, the stronger the chance it left a mark. A bit of fire mana added to Isa's pool to float amongst the waves?

It would just go out, no real harm. But the more they touched, the more it would linger. And there were tests to discover such things. Isa would be tested when she was married. It was tradition. And if Isa's pool wasn't crystal clear water, it would be like being found guilty of adultery. An impure pool was no different than an unchaste bride. It would destroy the marriage and shame her family. So Isa ran through her numbers as her friend squeezed her hand.

"If it ends now I won't tell your father, Isa," Cara said.

"If there's no mark it doesn't break my vow. Just promise me, and I'll believe you." Isa met her friend's sad eyes and nodded with a smile. They stopped long enough to embrace, not caring about the many eyes watching them.

"I'm sorry, little sister," Cara whispered, fighting her own emotion. Isa felt herself shake as they both cried. But she told herself it had been better than nothing. That for a little while she'd had the chance to feel what it might be like. It was better than Cara would ever have. She pulled back and wiped her friend's tears with her thumbs.

"I would never make you break your vow, Cara. I promise." They hugged one last time, then went hand in hand towards her lord and father, where Isa hoped at least she'd learn what the hell was going on in the isles. ** Felix sighed as he fought down the worst erection of his life. It was like the sun just left the room, and now he he was back to freezing in the dark. He sat on the child sized bed and looked at the kid huddled in a dark corner. He looked skinny. Kind of dirty.

There were potted plants all around his bed, and now that Felix was actually looking, the room was clearly lived in. The kid was taking deep breaths and seemed to be readying himself to talk again.

"Um, sir? I, um. That is. What are you still…I mean, you can stay, obviously. I'm not trying to be…it's just…why are you sitting in my …"

"Sorry, kid." Felix held up the key and uniform.

"I think we're roommates." He might as well have said they were supposed to duel to the death. The kid gaped like a fish, mouth opening and closing again and again. He looked sixteen or so, but small for his age. He had some acne on his cheeks, a bit of fuzz on his lip and chin, long greasy hair covering his forehead. Like most of the island men his arms looked like the only thing he'd ever had to carry were books. And not that often.

"I'm Felix. What's your name?"

"I, um." He swallowed.

"I'm Silas. From House Charnik."

"Nice to meet you, Silas. And sorry about…all that. Doubt it'll happen again."

"She was very, um. She looked beautiful."

"That she was. Better we both forget about it though." Felix tried to smile. He noticed a few candles on the desks and was about to ask if they could get some light when he felt a pulse from his eyes. The wicks lit with a whoosh, a tiny puff from the fire in his soul flicking itself as if bored.

"You're a fire wizard?" Silas blinked and stared at the flame. He took some eye glasses from a pocket and slipped them on, studying Felix with far more interest and sudden confidence, sweeping him with his eyes.

"You're not from House Amadi or their kin, then. You must be the stranger I've heard whispers about." Felix was still staring at the candles. Had he meant to light them? He supposed he had. That he could just do that now was a bit hard for his brain to fathom. He wasn't even sure how he'd done it. He'd thought it was dark, and wished it was brighter. But there was a pretty big difference between thought and action. Or at least there had been two seconds ago. It was kind of freaking him out.

"I'm an earth wizard," Silas said.

"It's unusual for someone like me to train here. But, my family sent me because I'm supposed to marry a girl from the water houses." The kid went beet red.

"I'm supposed to… win her over, I mean. But… I don't think she likes me very much. And I'd probably have been better off just doing well in school and then asking her father. Man to man. I don't… I have no idea how to talk to women. Or girls. Am I rambling? I guess I'm rambling." Felix took a deep breath and met the kid's eyes. Considering the poor bastard had been sitting on the floor in a corner, in the dark, Felix had a pretty good idea of how things were going for him.

But since he was pretty much the last man on earth to give any kind of advice on women, he didn't think he'd be much help. Also, despite having eaten like thirty minutes ago, his stomach was already grumbling. He didn't know if it was the islander's food or what, but he basically hadn't felt full for a day and a half.

"You got any food in here, Silas? I don't know why, but I'm starving." The young man grinned like this was funny, then shook his head.

"Wow. You're really not from the isles, are you? Fire wizards are always hungry. Watch this." Silas bent over a potted plant next to his bed, and what looked like green dust formed from his hand and scattered on the dirt. In seconds, something started moving in the soil. Felix stared in wonder as green stems sprouted and grew straight up. One by one, they formed little green buds that turned color, getting larger and redder until a dozen strawberries hung from the stems. Silas plucked one and ate it with a grin.

Felix let out a breath he'd apparently been holding. He stared in absolute amazement, looking at Silas and the strawberries again with a shake of his head. He was starting to realize his ignorance might be a lot worse than he'd thought. That these islanders could do things the rest of the world wouldn't believe. What else was possible? What else did the world just not know about magic? He slowly leaned over and plucked off a strawberry, taking a bite and chewing with a groan at the sweet, juicy fruit.

"Silas," he said.

"I think we're going to get along just fine."