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"Wow!" I'm truly impressed. I didn't know blue fire existed. "Do a lot of fire wielders have blue fire?"
"No, it's rare." Ezekiel shakes his head and glances up at Nyx standing behind me. "Granted, not as rare as an anomaly, but compared to other fire wielders, it's the most powerful."
"Sounds to me if there ever was another war, you should be there."
Something flashes in his chocolate brown eyes, and I fear I've said something wrong, but before I can apologize there's another knock on the Headmistress' door.
"Enter!" Headmistress Radcliffe calls out, though she is now comfortably seated at her desk, and doesn't make a move to stand to greet whoever is stomping inside the office. "Ahh! Late, but better than never, Professor."
"I apologize for my tardiness, Headmistress." The familiar deep voice stops my heart.
I slowly turn until I find Atlas standing in the back of the room. He meets my gaze and there's a twinkle in his eyes.
"Professor?" The word oozes out of my mouth like a bitter tasting fruit.
"Trouble with the first-years, Professor Harland?" the headmistress asks very matter of fact, glaring at Atlas' singed leathers.
He shrugs nonchalantly, before leaning his shoulder against the wall. "Draco's aim will need improvement, but I'm confident he'll get there by the end of the semester."
"Splendid!" Philomena's voice rings out, though it doesn't sound any friendlier than her normal tone, just a bit more emphatic. "Now, Princess Ilaria, we've paired you with Professor Harland as your Master of Magical Warfare because as I understand it, he already started your training on your journey here. We thought it would be best for him to continue his work."
"Is he the best you have to offer?" I ask without thinking and Nyx, who has remained stoic and mute this entire encounter barks out a laugh before stifling it with a fake cough.
Atlas smirks. "I assure you, I am the best."
The headmistress puffs out a laugh. "I'm sure Professors Fenwick and Darmas would care to argue that fact, but Professor Harland is a coveted instructor here and I'm confident he'll perform wonders for you." She pushes away from her desk and stands. "Now that everyone is here, we can give you a tour of the grounds before you start your lessons. You will have an introductory course with Professor Riggs before meeting with Professor Harland for your first training session."
She doesn't wait for me or anyone else in the room to agree as she leads the way out of her office. I wait for Professor Riggs to follow the headmistress before I stand to my feet. Atlas hasn't moved from his lazy position against the wall and even though he looks like he is waiting for me to say something, I ignore him. I trail the others with Nyx at my heels.
The moment we step out into the corridor, the headmistress' rigid posture softens. As she points out the different classrooms and murals, her hazel eyes light up, and she becomes extremely animated.
"Before the Great War over twenty years ago, Magikos Grammata was home to magic wielders from all over Dalerin."
That portion of the headmistress' rehearsed speech catches my attention. "You mean, at one point, this wasn't just a school for fire wielders?"
She whips around, halting her advance, just long enough to say, "Oh yes. When Magikos Grammata was established a thousand years ago it was open to all magic wielding mortals. It wasn't until the Great War that changed."
"Why did it change?"
The grimace on her face spears me through the chest. "Most magic wielders died. The Midorians feared if we didn't eradicate magic after the portals were destroyed that there could be another magical war, so they outlawed all sand and air wielders. And because there weren't many other elemental wielders left, each kingdom decided to keep them at their respective homes, just in case they were needed." She shrugs, "Eventually we realized that no one was going to come back, having established schools for their own affinities in their respective kingdoms, so we kept Magikos Grammata's doors open by teaching Tronovian fire wielders."
Shame creeps across my cheeks thinking about how my father, who fought in the Great War, also outlawed magic because he was scared. I can feel everyone's eyes on me, so I suck in breath, clear my throat, and nod my head. "Thank you for clearing that up for me, Headmistress."
"Of course." She offers a tight-lipped smile. "Now, if you will follow me this way, I will show you the Fountain of Bellmorrow which is said to have…"
Her voice tapers off as she and the others continue down the corridor. I motion for Nyx to go ahead of me and slow my walk just enough for Atlas to slip up beside me. Once Nyx sees who I'm with, he gives us some space to talk, which I greatly appreciate because I hiss, "Professor?" and ready myself for an argument.
I don't see him smirk because I refuse to look up at him, but I can sense it.
"Do you remember when you asked me in Bava what I do for a living?" he whispers, and his voice laces around me like a tantalizing embrace. "You assumed I was an assassin or spy."
"You could have told me last night that you would be one of my instructors before I was blindsided," I growl.
He clicks his teeth. "More fun this way."
"Ass," I mutter and he tsks.
"It's Professor Harland."
