Page 142 of Scales ’N’ Spells: Volume Two

A soft, sweet smile stole over Nikki’s face. “Thanks, Gunter. I may need a little direction. I don’t know what’s against the clan’s rules, what liberties I have. And you say magic lessons, but is there like…a school? Or is this more a Jedi-Apprentice thing?”

“Not a school, and nothing like master and student. We’re rather in between. At this point, I believe Lisette has about eighteen students. She teaches all of them according to their schedules. Some are more advanced than others, so they have shorter lessons. Others need something more comprehensive. She’ll test you first, figure out where to start. You said earlier your parents taught you some things?”

“Little spells, yeah. The basics of magic. I was only ten when I was taken, so…not a lot.”

Gunter wanted to ask many more questions but sensed Nikki wasn’t comfortable with the topic. Now was not the right time. “Then she’ll want to test you first. After you get a better footing with magic”—Nikki’s mouth opened with wild glee—“that doesn’t involve explosions,” Gunter tacked on dryly.

Nikki immediately deflated again.

“You’ll review with the other mages all the tasks that need to happen in the clan and pick which responsibilities you want to take on.”

With a snap, Nikki perked back up. “I’ve been wondering about that! No one’s asked me to do anything. I didn’t think I could just loaf around without earning my keep somehow. So the mages work?”

“They work a great deal. We maintain a beauty product line to keep a steady income flowing in. Our products used to be subtly enhanced with magic, but ever since Ravi took us out of the closet, we’ve been more open with it all. The orders have been pouring in, and I think our mages are struggling to keep up with the demand. They’ll welcome another hand.”

“Oh.” Nikki went back to chewing on their bottom lip uncertainly. “So…this is a group effort?”

“Very much so. The mages spend the full day together some days, just making potions. I’ve been roped into helping more than once. Mostly to fetch more ingredients.”

Nikki didn’t seem very enthused by this idea. Gunter mentally sighed and resigned himself to being patient. Nikki’s trauma wasn’t something easily dismissed. A few encouraging words wouldn’t be enough to send them out the door.

Gunter and every dragon in this clan would be the first to agree they’d fight to protect any mage in trouble. They’d lay their lives on the line without blinking. After five hundred years without mages, Gunter felt very strongly about that. But sometimes, it was easier to wrap his head around dashing off to fight than to buckle himself down to something more day-to-day. And sometimes, he had to remind himself physical safety wasn’t the only thing a mage might need.

Right now, Nikki was safe. But they weren’t well. They were still scared on some level, still nervous, and while they’d chosen to stay, Nikki still didn’t see this place as home. It pained Gunter to see it.

No one else seemed to realize the problem. And it might be that no one else could help Nikki sort through all of this and come to a better place for the sole reason that Nikki might not trust them enough. But Nikki trusted Gunter, that was clear. He wasn’t clear on how he’d earned this trust, but he most certainly had it.

This wasn’t something Gunter would normally choose to do—be a support buddy, that was. Gunter felt ill-equipped for helping anyone through mental issues. But a precious mage needed his help, and nothing else took precedence over that.

Gunter re-evaluated the work he had scheduled himself for today. Truly, all of it could wait. Getting Nikki more comfortable in the clan took precedence over any other work he had lined up.

“Nikki, what country are you from originally?” Best to start there.

“Eh? Uh…” Nikki blinked at him. “That question came out of nowhere. The Netherlands, why?”

“If I’m to help you start all that paperwork, we need your birth certificate and such.” Gunter pulled out his phone and called Cassie, then put it on speaker.

“Speak,” Cassie deadpanned.

“Cassie, I want to help Nikki put together all the right paperwork to get them into the clan here. They said they’re originally from the Netherlands What do we do next?”

“First, thank you mucho for taking that on. I am drowning in immigration forms right now, no joke. People in this clan need to learn how to Google things. I’m not kidding. I can send you the links to the right websites and forms. Just fill those out, get those rolling. We’ll need to request copies of Nikki’s records before we can do much of anything.”

“Alright. What else?”

“That’s literally the only thing you can do until we have copies of birth certificates and stuff. Maybe get Nikki more stuff? I know they went shopping the other day for some essentials, but I dunno anyone who can get everything they want or need in just one shopping trip.”

That was an excellent point. “Thanks, Cassie. I’ll wait for those links.”

“Sure thing. Look for them tomorrow. Today Cassie has no time to go hunting for them.”

“Alright.” Gunter hung up and stared thoughtfully at the phone for a second. Shopping, eh? She was right, just one shopping trip wouldn’t be enough to get Nikki everything they needed.

And he had a hunch Nikki had only gone for essentials.

Making a snap decision, he stood and gestured for Nikki to get up. “Let’s go take you shopping properly.”

Nikki didn’t move immediately. Instead, they looked at Gunter as if he’d lost his mind. “I really am fine, though. I got enough clothes to last me a week. What else do I need?”