Walking Up Next To You
Gwyntref City, Kaze Realm
Elspeth's POV"It's another sunny morning, not to mention yesterday's big event, the annual winter festival and I saw a lot of friends there."
"That's right Marcus, I even got to talk with the royal family. Did you see the gown the queen was wearing talk about expensive?"
"They are the royal family, looking good is in the job description and Prince Rain definitely had his choice of the ladies. Can you believe it’s been eighteen years since that little guy was born?"
"I still remember the birth ceremony, such a cute little one he was. Talk about time flying by…”
“And now I feel old.” Laughter followed after the simple remark.
“Well for everyone who was old enough to remember here is a special song for the Prince."
"Maybe he reme...." A hand smacked the off button on the alarm clock, the fingers were slender with the occasional chipped fingernail. The hand slithered back looking for warmth beneath a comforter and rested alongside a fair almond beige colored cheek. The covers rustled around the bed concealing the young adult beneath. The voice of a congenial woman from outside of the room flooded the pleasant stillness from the night.
"Elspeth it's time for you to get up, your exams begin today and being tardy is not an option."
"K." the girl replied in a muttered, still only half
in the real world, and in all honesty she truly wanted to stay within the
explainable, completely undeniable world that created her many wondrous
dreams. Although she wished to stay in the realm of dreams her brain had
already began waking from its slumber and slowly caused her eyes to become
exposed to the brilliant rays and face the fact that morning had come.
She laid on the cloud-like by DeleteAd"> mattress
with a pair of feathered pillows below her
head and a warm blanket laid above her. For what reason would anyone ever want
morning to come when a bed and a dream are far better. Elspeth blew her
air with her bottom lip in an attempt to remove the lonely strands of hair
that found themselves dancing over her eyes. She turned the comforter corner
over, thou the room was fairly warm Elspeth's body shivered for a moment and
all she wanted to do was return to the warm quiet place she had been for the
last nine hours. She scooted herself to the side of her large bed. Her toes
hung inches above the floorboards, not do to her height but because the deep
mahogany wooden structure set the bed itself off the timber floor. As she
placed a lone toe on the ground she pulled it back from the icy boards. She
glared at the floor, obviously it was at fault here. She placed both her feet
upon the floor and scurried to a wardrobe, aged by both time and use. Five
drawers with two rounded nobs on each were on the right along with a cabinet
above them. Clutching one of the decorative bronze handles she pulled the top
draw open. Her eyes bounced about her attire, taking a quick second to find
what she needed. Pants and skirts rested neatly on in the draw. Switching to
the third drawer she grabbed a pair of white knee-high leggings and a green
plaid tie which were all thrown in the single drawer. She dropped onto her toes
and pulled out the bottom drawer. Sat beside the vibrant colored tops. Beneath
was a shelf folded shirts, mostly short sleeved but there were two long
sleeved. They were all white. A grossularite green vest laid a crossed them,
unlike the shirts it was only folded once. On the left of the wardrobe was a
spacious hanging area with a mirror on the inside of the door. Though you may
presume to see a dinning dress, or possibly ceremonial wear, this space was
filled with armor. A leather breastplate leaned to one side, chain mail laid in
an unorganized pile. Shoulder armor laid on its side and a pair of shoes hid
themselves below the messy armor. Hung above the armor was a sheathed blade
with a length of 30".
Elspeth grabbed closed the wardrobe completely and with a shirt, vest, skirt, and tie that match. Along with her undergarments and stockings in hand she rushed over to her bed and jumped onto the still warm bedspreads. She pulled her night shirt off and tossed it to the wood floor. Her back stretched out as she put her bra in place, re-shifted her breasts and pulled her shirt over her head. The shirt was lined with buttons down the front but what was the point of undoing them all just to re-button them, Elspeth found no reason to waste on trivial matters such as this, so she always kept her shirts buttoned and slipped them over her head and arms all at once. Every once in a while she found a button missing, and on the rare occasion she found the seams unhemmed. She pulled her tangled hair out from the shirts collar. Sitting on her bed she looked a crossed her room, antique furniture lined three of the walls while a window occupied the fourth and opened up to a balcony overlooking the backyard. Her floor was cold and bare with thick bamboo boards lined perfectly. Her mahogany directly across from the door, the headboard had Celtic knot work and ancient runes carved throughout it. The silent clock set on the side table along with an oil lamp, only a few hours ago it was topped with a warm spark. The wax slowly collected at the base and the smoke dispersed throughout the room. A silver pique and tortoiseshell hairbrush's handle laid slightly under the lamp's curled handle.
She feel back onto the pillows, her arms spread wide allowing her to stretch. Her body resembled that of a cat slightly awake but unwilling to move from its space of sleep. Without moving her head off the cushions she slipped her skirt over her smooth pale legs, thou they were not skin and bone her legs where quit thin with very little muscle tone showing. She rolled onto her right side, using her hand to clear the hair out from in front of her. Her hands grabbed the cold handle of the brush and unraveled the hellish disorder upon her head. Her auburn-brown hair flowed down her back, small strands of gold lined throughout her lengthy hair. Her hair was completely natural and as the summer drew closer she had an increasing amount of gold in her hair. After she thoroughly brushed her thick strands the hair settled nicely from shoulder to shoulder down to her thighs. Her feet once again dangled from the bed, she slid each of her legs into a stocking, the tops were lined with two green strips and the royal emblem, five waves intertwined with an owl in flight, was embroidered between the two strips. She never did understand the reason for stockings, they were of no use. In the winter she had to run to school to keep her legs from freezing. The stockings came to just below her knees. With the help of her hands she pushed off the bed and landed on the heels of her feet. Setting her toes down a cold chill crawled up her body. She walked around the bed, her hands spun her body around the bronze posts, and she picked up four books, four inches wide and seven inches across. The books were double bound; once with horse leather, then the spines were re-stitched in order to protect the old books from the many ravages of time. Each outer corner was covered with a thin piece of copper, two ninety degree triangles on the top and bottom. The titles were written in black ink, while the authors name was in gold leaf, along with the images in the center of each textbook. Their titles were as follows,
Magic and the Art of Healing
Beasts, Dragons and Deities Vol. 2
The History and Theory of Magic
Galade Magic: Combat Manipulation
Opening a small leather satchel she placed each book inside, one at a time. A knock came from the thick wooden door followed shortly by a deep voice.
"Elspeth c'mon, I don't want to be late because of you." She turned to the door with a gentle sigh and her eyes closed.
"Ok, I get it." she replied with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "You're always late anyway, so don't go blaming me." She said to herself as she tossed the Combat Manipulation book toward her bed, she didn't need it anyway. She had spent her entire life reading the same text over and over. In an attempt to understand how to use her magic, and no matter what she tried it never worked correctly. Sure she could use magic but she never used the right kind, if something needed healed she always seemed to use fire type magic not earth type. As she walked to her door a clatter came from behind her, she turned to her balcony window. Her eyes widened and her bag slowly slid off her shoulder and found itself leaning against her leg. She slowly moved toward the now shattered window. An elongated sigh came from her lips as she knelt down to all the shards.
"Hey, what are you doing up there?" the guy's voice echoed from a farther distance. Elspeth stood and ran to her door, standing against it she pushed all her weight onto the door. 'Please don't come up here, please please.' she thought as she replied.
"Nothing... I... I just dropped something. Don't worry, I'll clean it up. You go on ahead, I'll catch up." She was not the best liar so keep others from checking on her was hard. As the house's entrance gate glided closed and her mother yelled something outside. She knew she was clear.
"Well at least I can fix this faster now that they're outside." she said as she walked back to her balcony. She stood above the shards, careful not to cut herself with the pieces. She kneeled just before the glass. She put her hands together, palms touching and opened them until only her fingertips touched then she whispered with her eyes closed.
"Amin aino Xeo naham Nin na ant tûr helcë." Her hands began to glow a teal color, and her hair blew backwards, as a small wind picked up around her. The shards began to levitate, each piece swirled in a tornado shape they returned to their original positions. "I did it!" Elspeth clapped her hands, she performed magic and it actually worked. "I can't believe nothing went wrong." she said unable to hold back her excitement, however she soon stopped with entire disappointment.
"Why can't I ever do anything right when it comes to magic?" She placed her hands behind her and sat on the wooden balcony floor, away from the still broken glass. As she laid back, her eyes flew open 'What is that? It wasn't there before. It feels rough, but soft.' Her hands touched just the mysterious object behind her. 'Fur? But how did an animal get on my balcony?'
"God she's heavy! That idiot, this is his fault." A deep rumbling voice snapped from behind her. Elspeth's head slowly turned toward the animal, until her eyes met and comprehended the features of the animal. All Elspeth saw at the moment was a pair of deep amber eyes staring straight at her. They were mesmerizing, the amber color seemed almost nonexistent. As Elspeth stared at them she forgot everything around her, the floor seemed to disappear, the sounds outside vanished. It was as if she was alone with the animal and they were in the darkest of places. Yet she felt safe, warm, and completely relaxed. She could almost see the whole universe in those eyes. The animal closed its eyes causing Elspeth to shake her head and everything seemed normal again. As it stood off the floor, its legs stretched out and the fur shifted as its body shook.
"Wolf?" she stuttered quietly.
Steel gray claws extended from the wolf's large black paws. Black fur with silver tips stood up. The wolf's long snout cringed, his lips were tight and pulled forward. His ears were pointed slightly forward, while his forehead, neck hair, and hackles raised. Ivory teeth appeared between the jaws, its tongue moved about inside its mouth. The occasional sneeze came out. As it stepped toward Elspeth she glanced at its paws, large black paws with dark colored nails. Its paw was larger than her hand and once it was standing she had to look up to see its eyes as she leaned on her hands.
"At least you know what is going to kill you. So I can kill
something smart for once." The wolf snapped by DeleteAd"> stepping closer to her.
'I have do something, what? What do I do?' Elspeth's by DeleteAd"> heart beat faster with
each passing second. The wolf lifted its right paw partly above the floor; its
claw glistened from the rising sun. 'My voice won’t come work! Why won't it
work? Dammit to inferno!' Elspeth pulled her legs to her chest, blocked her
head with the back of her arms, and closed her eyes.
"Kedna down!" a voice beckoned toward the wolf, it was
too deep to be a women’s and it did not sound familiar. As her eyes slowly
allowed colors and light back in; she saw a figure standing between her
and the wolf. There was not anything wrong with him. He appeared normal; well
as normal as a well-toned person could. Her eyes moved across his backside, he
was wearing the by DeleteAd"> school uniform. 'Maybe he is a knight trainee. I should ask.'
she thought only to contradict herself a second later. The wolf stepped back
and retracted his claws as much as he could.
"Are you okay?" the guy asked turning his head toward her and scratching his scruffy copper colored hair.
'He's got a strange energy aura around him; I've never seen one like that before.' Elspeth thought as she stood up while wiping the dirt off her skirt.
"I'd be better if your pup didn't try to kill me."
"Did you just call me a pup, girl!?" Kedna snarled almost going at her again; however the guy interfered again.
"I told you not to go around attacking humans." the guy yelled at the wolf. The wolf's eyes meet with the guy's shoulders. Elspeth stared at the enormous wolf, it had to be at least 5' 6" possibly bigger. Although most devil dogs didn't reach 5' and a hypocanis was only 5' 4" so maybe it was just big. But either way just the size of the animal peaked her interest, not to mention its fluency in human tongue and the fact that it listened to a human.
"Yeah well I'm not the one who used magic to win a sparring match."
"I didn't cast that spell and you know it. You're just trying to win that match."
"As if, I could beat you any dame day!" Kedna growled back.
"Um... excuse me." Elspeth by DeleteAd"> started until the guys
voice covered hers to yell at the wolf. Her checks puffed out and
turned red, like a small child when they get upset.
"Hey, I'm trying to tell you something. Now listen will
you." She spoke louder grabbing his forearm and turning him around, but
when he did she fell quiet and starred for a moment. His nose fit perfectly
between two deep sapphire eyes, which as strange as it seemed they matched the
wolf's down to the last by DeleteAd"> detail. He also had a devilish grin from his lips,
which only made his face more kissable. Elspeth felt his arm slipping out of
her hand.
"O' no you don't." she said tightening her grip. As she stopped moving he spun his hand and grabbed Elspeth's wrist. In doing so she stumbled forward landing on his chest, which felt very well-toned. Elspeth's heart began to pound faster with each passing second.
"Well at least you find me attractive." he said with a teasing smile.
"What are you talking about?!" She stuttered stepping back and pulling her hand away, rubbing it.
"That's very interesting." he muttered while looking
at the palm of his hand. Kedna sat down by DeleteAd"> next to him annoyed at both of the
humans.
"O yeah it is very interesting." he replied in a half yawn.
"Sorry, but what's interesting?" Elspeth asked with an
intriguing sounding voice. The guy looked down at her, which was normal for him
but strange for her; seeing how she was as tall as most 17 year old guys. His
strange colored eyes made Elspeth smile and her heart slowed back down.
They seemed very calming, yet complicated, like a puzzle that has yet to be
solved or a by DeleteAd"> game without a set end.
"What?" he asked with confusion on his face and irritation in his voice.
"Nothing." She said by DeleteAd"> closing her eyes and smiling even
more, the sunlight hit her face at such an angle that her hair was a dull gold
and her skin almost glowed.
"I was just thinking how..." Elspeth's voice trailed off at the sound of a bell chime. "The school bell! We're going to be late." Elspeth said grabbing and pulling him into her room.
"Hey, wait a minute." He said as his face finally turned a different color, he could have pulled off being a demon or vampire with such a pale face and emotionless posture. Elspeth turned and pointed her index finger at him.
"It's your fault that I'm going to be late in the
first place. So there are no waits or buts until we get to the school and in by DeleteAd"> class." Elspeth pulled him through the door, down a stair case and threw
the front door yelling back. "I'm leaving now!" Yoko leaned over the
counter with a confused look on her face.
"What's with her?" the woman's large, in muscle, husband asked.
"I bet its love." Yoko answered finishing her dishes as the man started to choke on his drink.
"Love!" he yelled in anger and disbelief.
"Yes dear, it's when two people like each other. Well maybe just one person, but always involves two or more people."
"I know what it is dear. But why does Elspeth have to fall in love first? I don't know how to deal with lovey-dovey girls." Yoko smiled with entertainment as she sat down with a wet plate in her hands.
"Honey, Von fell in love with a girl many years ago." She laughed as her husband's face fell deeper into depression. She whispered as her hands turned a green teal color and all the dishes dried at once. "Cheer up honey, Von has yet to figure it out. Something he got from you."
With the gate closed Elspeth let her feet guide her, the feeling of running was something no one could give you. The fresh air in your lungs, your chest feels like it is on fire, but most of all you feel like you could do anything. This was the rush that she got every time she ran somewhere, be it for only a moment or most of the day. Growing up on these streets she knew every corner, side road, shortcut, and back alley. The sky was not any blue color, it was a combination of bright yellows, vivid oranges, and crimson reds. Even the occasional violets appeared across the vase sky. This was nothing new to Elspeth, she was told that on the surface the sky changed from reds to blues to pink and purples every day. It was said that on parts of the surface had streaks of green across the sky. She could not even imagine a sky other than the bright one that spread around the city, however many traders and merchants spoke of this unknown sky; that she could not help but believe this almost impossible notion.
Not everyone who lived on the island could say they knew everything about it, but Elspeth made it her task to remember each road perfectly, nothing else better to do when you can only go so far before falling off. She also knew exactly what route to take in order to get fresh bread from the bakery, Panadeiro Pastel always had something for her whether it was a fresh baked meat pie or a handmade turnover pastry, and she made sure to have time before school previous years to be able to savor the smell that Pastel artistically designed each morning. Creating a bread for every person that could walk by his shop. He once told her that creating a pastry was similar to casting a spell, thou many mages use fire magic each one has their own specific flavor that makes it one of a kind. She found it interesting that he compared his pastry making to magic using, however her taste buds really did not care what he compared pastries to.
The school was the furthest building
from the living area of town. She did not need to think while her legs ran,
they knew exactly where to go. She turned right after the metal work section of
town, the three owners where brothers and although their jobs were very
competitive they seemed to always get along. The large buildings once owned by
Ferro and Parta Jamento, the original silversmith and his wife. They created
the first silver and leather work for the air ship docks. When the two of them
gave a third of the business to each son they went from brothers to
competitors. Elspeth, like most locals, found their rivalry fun to watch and
harmless to anyone. Across the broad street was a building with many windows
and a wooden sign attached to a pole above the door, upon which was an image of
a wolf’s head. The tips of the fur curled out into small clouds . Above the
image read ‘Elvish Earl’ while below the image read the word ‘Inn’ in slightly
larger letters. It shared its building with The Emerald Raven Tavern. Down the
street was Coitelo's Butchery, thou you would assume that he chopped up pigs,
cows, and the occasional deer. In truth he rarely saw these kinds of animals
but found it more profitable to cut the meat of a wyvern or a mokin, beast that
lived on the outskirts of the city. He was a master at cutting smaller animals
such as rabbits, birds of prey, and small goats. He talked about his journey on
the surface and how he had even butchered a dragon for the king of Hia. A nice
way to get the younger children to respect him, as time went on Elspeth found
it harder to believe he had left the island. As Elspeth by DeleteAd"> continued she heard
something behind her, small pebbles skipped across the cobblestone footpath as
she slowed herself to a complete stop.
“Did you say something?” she asked looking at the boy, she took deep breathes and tried slowing her heart down.
“Max.” the boy said
barely breathing heavily. A confused look crossed Elspeth’s face. “My name is
Max.” as he finished his sentence a second bell rang. Max’s eyes glanced toward
the school, it was another fifteen minutes away if they walked. Elspeth by DeleteAd"> started
toward the school; as soon as she did Max pulled on her hand so she stumbled
back onto his chest.
“I ask Ton to summon
thee to by DeleteAd"> grant me the power of time, and help grant my wish today.” He raised
his left hand straight above them. Little gold lights appeared from his hand.
The leaves stopped in midair, the air stilled, and all the noses silenced. When
Max re-opened his eyes they weren’t the same as before, they were darker now.
They had a certain loneliness shimmer in them.
“We don’t have a lot
of time, no pun intended, so come on.” His hand reaching toward Elspeth’s, who
was staring at all the things that were still in the air? Her hand twitched
back, but she reached her hand up to his. It was a strange thing but she always
had a trust problem with anyone, male or female. Their hands intertwined at the
wrist, Max’s warm hand engulfed hers making her hand warmer, until their hands
were the same tempter. Max’s hand tightened and they by DeleteAd"> started toward the school.
As they ran Elspeth saw everyone’s face expressions, and almost giggled. She
hit her head on Max’s back. She stepped back and rubbed her nose.
“That hurt! You're supposed to tell someone when you’re going to stop.”
“Did you say
something? Anyway by DeleteAd"> class is going to start.” He said dropping her hand and
walking off. Elspeth turned as she heard Von and Scarlet. Everything returned
to normal as though it was just a dream. A dream where Elspeth was held twice
by the same tall, dark, and extremely hot guy.
“Elspeth how in the
world did you, never mind. Just make sure you get to by DeleteAd"> class on time will yeah,”
“Yeah I know. Or someone might notice that I’m weird. I’ve heard it a thousand times Von.”
“Good then I don’t have to tell you, right?” Von said leaning over her, his ash mauve colored eyes looking deep at her. It was always the same; people never look to others they look at them with no wonder what are in them. Didn’t anyone wonder what made each person different?
“Yes I understand Von”
“Great, then I’ll see you in class.’’ He said leaving with Scarlet hitting and yelling at him, again. Elspeth slowly followed them listening to the people whispering down the hallway.
“Hay it’s the elite class members.”
“Von’s so hot!”
“Hey do you like Scarlet or Elspeth more?”
“Elspeth, but whoever wants to date her has to go through her brother.”
“Yeah that’s pretty bad; I think our best bet would be Bria-day.” Elspeth always heard the same thing every day, and they were always right. Von had been protecting her since they were little, and for that she did what he said. That and he was supposed to be the next knight commander after graduation, and getting beat up by a girl was not what the Knight Quadrant was looking for. But only at school was Elspeth the angel all the guys liked, once they got out of the building and away from people Von was going to get it.
Max’s POV
“Max your acting weird, weird for you. What’s wrong?” Kedna grunted walking across the school building’s roof ledge very carefully.
“It’s nothing Kedna.” Max said leaning over the roof’s railing. ‘That girl was weird; I mean she didn’t even act like a girl. Her aurora was strange to; it was two colors not one.’ Kedna jumped off the ledge he had been walking across and sat next to Max.
“You’re thinking of that person from this morning.”
“I’m not thinking of Elspeth, who can’t stop talking for a minute!” Max spat out in one quick breath turning his head to Kedna. Kedna stood up, turned and simply walked toward the door.
“I never said which person it was.” His tail wagged back in forth in amusement. Max stared turning red as he figured out Kedna’s trick.
“That little bastard,
I’m going to kick his ass. Just wait until I get my hands on you Kedna!” Max
said slamming the roof door, stomping down the three by DeleteAd"> flights of stairs. Max
knew full well Kedna would not be there no matter how fast he was Max was not
going to be able to catch Kedna in front of his classmates. As he walked
down the hall the girls whispered and giggled, the boys talked to. But no
matter whom it was they never got in his way, except Von and Scarlet-who pissed
him off for some reason. He noticed there weren’t very many people today and
those who were there all headed toward the arena. Max opened one of the class
doors to find no one there.
“Maybe I’ve got the wrong room.” He said sighing heavily.
“No it’s the correct room you just didn’t go to the ceremony that’s all.” Max turned to see Elspeth standing behind him. As he noticed she was right, the classrooms were empty and every human was in the arena or making their way to it, a smile crossed his face.
“So you skipped it to. How lucky for me.” He said leaning his back to one side of the doorway.
“No I finished my speech so I came to the class room, it wasn’t luck just a coincidence.” She said walking over his legs and into the room. The room was standard, one chalkboard, a counter in the back, and a wall of windows. The desks were arranged in rows of three and columns of five. Elspeth took the first row next to the window. Max sat two desks behind her, ready for a nap he leaned back. Unfortunately the chair wasn’t attached to the desk and Max fell backward. As his head hit the floor he heard a small laugh from above. When he opened his eyes Elspeth was laughing and looking over his desk.
“Are you ok?” she asked trying not to laugh, which wasn’t working.
“Yeah I’m fine.” He said slightly glaring at her in annoyance-more toward the chair then her but he didn’t care. She walked over to him, now stand a few feet from his fallen chair.
“I didn’t mean to laugh but it was really funny.” She said reaching her hand to him. Max looked at her, she was definitely different from others. She seemed more open and not scared of much, including saying what she wanted when she wanted. Max took her hand, and she helped pull him up.
“Glad you’re easily amused.” He said setting the chair on all fours again.
“So why did you and that dog show up on my balcony this morning?” ‘That is a good question, he didn’t cast a transfer spell and Kedna never ran. The only other person who could have done it would have had to be at the location of Kedna’s destination.’ Max was puzzled until it hit him.
“Hey can you use transportation magic?” The look that crossed Elspeth’s face told Max she couldn’t.
“Not really, I can cast spells but something else always happens. If I try a water spell something always flies at me. Fire spells usually cause storms, and don’t make me tell you about my earth spell.” ‘Three elements most teachers can pull that off.’
“By the way I’m Elspeth Kyodai. I don’t think I told you before.” She said smiling up at him. He smiled, already knowing her name he found it cute that she introduced herself in such a simple matter, until he noticed they were still holding hands, and he let go quickly.
“O I was wondering if you wanted to be on my team for the tests.” She asked sitting in her desk. Max’s eyebrow lifted as he replied.
“How do you know we are going to be in teams?”
“Being in the student council has its benefits.” She said in an over happy voice.
“I’ll think about it.”
He said with that teasing smile. Elspeth blushed and turned to the front. The
sunlight danced a crossed her golden-brown locks and tiny little face. Max just
sat there watching her and ignoring the sharp pain in his chest. He wasn’t worried
about it, since it couldn’t be his heart. Seeing how he hadn’t had one for the
last nine years. Max and Elspeth sat in silence for over twenty minutes before
the other members of their class entered. Myith was as tall as Bria-day’s
shoulder and had a gift for animals. He took a baby formu lizard with him
everywhere he went. It was about five feet long from head to tail, had two
small legs with four claws on each. A three foot long tail, two horns on its
head and could change its shape at will. Myith had short black hair. He was a
year younger than most of the other examines. He did everything Bria-day said,
not for any real reason except he wanted to. The twins, as they were called,
were in their own little league. The both stood 5” 4’ with dark brown hair and
crisp green eyes. They always finished each other’s sentences and were never
separated. They both wore knight uniforms and had bright green eyes. Scarlet
had very unique hair, the top and roots were crimson red, however the length
was a blend of black hair and poppy red colored hair, it was all natural to
which gave her a very dangerous look. Her hair was always loose and reached the
middle of her ass. She was also the only girl that Von still hung out with,
besides Bria-day and Elspeth who were like sisters. She wore a red uniform like
Elspeth’s and Bria-day’s. She was the best Fire Sage at the school, and was the
only girl that had a special uniform made because of her large breast size. Von
walked in backward, his attention was to the other male students that followed
him. He was known everywhere in town, since he was considered one of the best trainee
knights for the last decade. He had a natural way with the sword, or so the
knights all said but that did not stop him from always practiced. Every girl
liked him, except Bria-day and Elspeth. And all the guys though it an honor to
fight him in a practice match, except Max. Each one of them was of royal blood,
except Von, Elspeth and Myith. Von’s dad was a great knight and Myith got in
because Bria-day said so. Elspeth only hung out with them, she didn’t want to
be part of the group but everyone believed she was. Besides the seven student
council members there were three other girls, four guys, and Max in the class.
After everyone entered the class they by DeleteAd"> continued talking. The girls circled
Von, the guys talked about fighting techniques, and Scarlet practiced her
finger fire balls mostly on Von. Bria-day was short and wore glasses. She
always had a book in her hands and never forgot anything. Her pale blue hair
was always in a braid and almost touched the ground. She had the same uniform
as Elspeth but hers was tan not green. She also wore a deep sapphire green cloak.
“I believe the bell rang some time ago.” A tall lady spoke in a clear voice and waiting for them all to sit.
“I will be taking role and then explaining the testing rules once.” She said loudly so all the students heard her.
“Miss. Charlotte
Abington?”
“Here”
“Mr. Samuel Barker.”
by DeleteAd"> Accounted for
miss.”
“Mr. Zak and Mr. Jak
Chik?”
“Were here” they said together
“Miss. Scarlet Hian?”
“I’m present.”
“Mr. Tyler Hind”
“Present and by DeleteAd"> accounted for.”
“Miss. Bria-day
Kazen?”
“Here”
“Mr. Von and Miss
Elspeth Kyodai?”
“Were both here mama.” Elspeth spoke out.
“Miss Clover Narik?”
“Present.”
“Miss. Victoria
Prescott”
“Attending.”
“Mr. Myith Roiyaruhi?”
“Here”
“Mr. Gale Smith?”
“Present”
“Mr. Link Torsh?”
“Here”
“Max Yaragado?”
“Yeah?”
“Alright then there are two rules for your test. First you must pick your own team of five.” Von stood as others talked about the rule.
“Why only five. That seems a little small for beginners.”
“If you’re too scared to only have four guards you could always stay behind.” Max blurted, more of a grumble, out at him. Von glared at him at sat back down cursing him out.
“The second is you must stay alive.” With that all the students fell silent and looked up at her.
“What’s that supposed to mean?!” Victoria yelled with a wince in her throat. The teacher went to her desk and grabbed a piece of chalk and went to the board.
“Miss Kyodai who would
you like to be in by DeleteAd"> your group?”
“Why does she go first?” Two girls said together.
“She will pick first because one she hasn’t spoken out and two she is sitting in the first seat. That’s why, now Miss. Kyodai.”
Elspeth’s POV
“Just a moment I didn’t know I was going first.” Max smiled to himself at that comment. ‘That’s why she left earlier than everyone else. She’s smarter than most would think. Plus she can use three different elements I wasn’t expecting her to learn so fast.’ he thought as he reclined in his chair, knowing not to learn far back. Elspeth looked around thinking about everyone’s weaknesses and advantages. ‘The twins are great for defense but talk too much, they would give use away. Bria-day knows a lot about plants and can use wind magic.’
“First is Bria-day Kazen.” The teacher wrote her name under Elspeth’s. ‘Let’s see Myith does what Bria-day does and has his pet so that would help if we get into trouble.’
by DeleteAd"> Next is Myith
Roiyaruhi.” ‘After that is Von and Scarlet they are formidable but I don’t want
Von on my team if possible, so that takes them both out. I’m not sure I should
have girls I don’t know on my team, they won’t leave Max alone. I guess out of
the guys I’d pick Gale because his father and he run the blacksmith together so
that would be handy.’
“Third I would like Gale Smith.” As his name left Elspeth’s lips Von became confused and mad at the same time and she could tell by a glance.
“Alright one more please.” ‘This one’s simple as long as he doesn't mind.’ She glanced to Max for approval but he was not paying attention.
“Last will be Max
Yaragado.” She said and the girls by DeleteAd"> started talking out again.
“Why those four it makes no sense. Make her explain her picking.” The teacher sighed and nodded toured Elspeth, as a queue to explain.
Max’s POV
“I choose Bria-day because of her knowledge of plants and animals. Myith will help with defense and Gale can fix weapons and make tools. Last was Max because he is a good offense.”
‘Good, I’m the best
offense fighter in the by DeleteAd"> school you idiot. Although if you knew that little bit I
think it would freak me out.’ Max though in the moment watching as she sat back
down and the teacher spoke up again.
“Good enough for me.
Jak you're up by DeleteAd"> next.”
“Zak, Von, Scarlet, and Link please.” He said quickly and proudly.
“Ok then that leaves Clover, Tyler, Samuel, and Charlotte. You are now ready to take the exams.”
“Wait I’m not on a team?” Victoria blurted out again.”
“Maybe I should put her on my team and get her injured enough to shut her up for five minutes.” Elspeth whispered to herself. The teacher sighed
“Miss. Prescott, you were not forgotten about you have the job of keeping score of the three teams. This guarantees you a place in the graduation.” She said smiling and breathing in and out. Victoria sat back down in an upset manner that was supposed look lady-like.
“In the gym you may take any weapons or items you want. When you’re done go the courtyard and the magic teachers will transport you to your testing area.” She took a breath.
“Future knights and
sages or casters I give you your levee.” She finished with a small bow in their by DeleteAd"> direction.
Von's POV
After she finished bowing in respect everyone headed to the gym in their groups. Von kept his eyes on Elspeth as she talked and smiled at Max, the bastard could go straight to hell as far Von was concerned. What the hell was wrong with Elspeth today, she never would have picked someone over him, especially not Max of all people. As he clenched his fists a warm hand covered his own, heat shot through his arm into the rest of his body.
"Scarlet."
he looked over at her as she by DeleteAd"> walked next to him. She was slightly shorter than
himself, but that was only recently. From the time they had met Scarlet had
been the taller one up until a few years ago.
"You need to calm
down. Just because Elspeth went and picked someone else is no reason to get
pissed off." her eyes shifted up in his by DeleteAd"> direction as a smirk crossed half
of her face.
"I'm not pissed at all." Von said with overcoming pride on his face.
"How long have we known each other Von?" the random question caught Von off his guard.
"Eh.. Um..." He thought for a moment at Scarlet's question, he rested his left hand on his chin while he counted the years. "Thirteen years ago, I think." He did not actually remember how long it had been, when other people asked he just said they were childhood friends. He didn't see a need to remember.
"Yes. The
eighteen of winter during the year 581." Von looked at Scarlet quite
surprised that she remembered the exact date. "Do you know why I know the
day so well?" Von shook his head slightly. "Because that was the
first time I got to smile after leaving by DeleteAd"> home." Von cheeks turned a pale
pink, as Scarlet stopped and turned to face him. "So when Elspeth picks
someone and smiles at them you of all people should be able to understand how
that makes Max feel." She smiled at Von, she knew she was right. He sighed
and watched Elspeth get further ahead.
"You know one of these days she won't need you anymore." Scarlet said letting go of Von's hand, now that it was relaxed.
"I know that. I just don't like it."
"Maybe than you can look at someone else." Scarlet grumbled to herself.
"What? You say something Scar." He glanced at her as she walked off.
"Nothing!"
he smiled as he watched her by DeleteAd"> walk off.
Max’s POV
“Quickly now.” An older woman kept repeating to students in the gym. Elspeth stood almost shaking with nervousness as the teachers started sending groups to the testing arenas.
“You ok, El.” His deep voice almost took off her little neck hairs.
“Fine. And why’d you call me El?” She asked tipping her head back to see those sapphire eyes shimmer with amusement.
“It’s a shorting of your full name you spell it E.l.s.p.e.t.h.” as he finished she giggled. He gave a blank, yet confused look
“The ‘l’ is silent. You pronounce it Espeth.” The minute they stared at each other felt longer to Max, He wanted to grab her little ears and pull her closer to him. He didn’t really care if she grew taller or scooted back two feet; either way was fine with him. His eyes looked up when a teacher came over. Elspeth turned her face to the woman and bowed her head slightly. The woman just smiled and pulled a small piece of paper out of her blue cloak.
Elspeth’s POV
“Are you this group’s captain?” She asked her with a slight bow of her own head.
“Yes.” She stuttered out. The women just smiled at her and continued her speech.
“This paper must make it through the exam along with everyone in your group. Now if you are all ready I will send you to take your test.” Elspeth looked back to check everyone’s facial expression. Myith looked excited while petting Goku, his formu lizard, who sat on one of his shoulders with his tail hanging down Myith’s back. Bria-day was reading with her ever stern and expression less face-her and Max could have a staring contest . Gale’s face looked more scared than anything but Elspeth knew he didn’t like fighting, which was why he was a blacksmith not a knight in training. As her eyes fell upon Max, well in this case they looked up, but he wasn’t looking at her at all. ‘Ignore me will ya’ she though turning back to the teacher with a smile and slight nod. The teacher raised her hand above her and spoke clearly.
“I ask Uchu to grant my wish of Transportation!” as she finished she touched Elspeth’s forehead, Elspeth grabbed Max’s hand, Max grabbed Gale’s, Gale grabbed Myith, and Myith grabbed Bria-day’s.
Everything went black.
