Magic Academy (A Fantasy New Adult Romance) (39 page)

But thinking of the sweet Mae’lin,
of the kindness and affection and quiet adoration… that meant
something. It wasn’t powerful, it wasn’t strength, but it
made her look forward to waking up in the morning. Didn’t that
count for something? Wasn’t that satisfaction?

“Varuj,” she whispered
softly, but her voice trembled and she had to stop. To try to get
herself back together as she swiped a tear from her cheek. “Varuj,
I love you. I do. I don't want to lose you. I…” she
swallowed a sob. “I’m so grateful for all you’ve
done for me. For my father. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t
for you. But I don’t know how I can… I don’t know
what to do.”

Her voice was barely audible, but she
forced herself to continue, to be honest with the demon that had
somehow stolen her heart and her virginity. “Varuj, ever since
you’ve gotten back… you’ve been so hard. So cold.”

“Because you’ve broken my
heart,” he said to her. “You gave your love to another
when I was out giving my all for you.” He steadied his
breathing, staring into her gaze. “I am what I am, Firi. I care
for you. I want us to be as before. But I cannot do that while you
waltz about the academy hand in hand with another man. When you shoo
me away in public, instead of embracing me.” He narrowed his
gaze at her slightly, as if inspecting her for the truth, like the
answer to his upcoming question would be written on her face, and not
said in her words. “How would you feel in my place?”

“Devastated,” she
whispered, her shoulders slumping. Yet what was she to do? Tell
Mae’lin it had been fun, and that even though she loved him,
she was going to date a new guy that no one even knew she knew? It
would look like she’d been… cheating on him.

She exhaled deeply, leaning back in the
seat and staring at him intently. “Ala would be so broken if we
started dating. Ever since you first came back she’d had her
eyes on you.”

Varuj’s hard, hurt look melted a
little, and he took her hand in both of his, smiling just faintly.
“Don’t worry about her. I’ll help ease things.
Everything will be fine… the world will be perfect, as long as
you’re mine, Firi. All mine.” He lifted her hand and
kissed the back of it tenderly. “Together we are bigger than
the world’s problems.”

“We’d be breaking two
people’s hearts just for the sake of our own,” she
protested, but her resolve was weakening.

He brushed the back of her hand against
his cheek, his smooth, dark cheek. The contrast of their skins –
light and dark – such a pleasant mix. “I would see the
world burn for you, Firi, and judge it worthy.”

She looked up at him with such sweet,
innocent concern that no longer suited her. “I did something so
horrific,” she whimpered, looking around the room briefly as
shame rouged her cheeks.

“I know you have,” he said
solemnly. “Why do you think I hurt so badly, Firi?” He
looked to her watery eyes with such disappointment. “But I can
forgive you your… infidelity. As long as you come back to me.
And be mine: heart, body and soul.”

Her mouth dropped open and she inhaled
sharply. How could he have known? She’d not told a soul about
it, and she wondered if what he was saying was true. If he still felt
that connection to her, even if she didn’t any longer. That
strange, emotional tether that bound them.

Yet in the end, she knew. She loved
Mae’lin.

And deep down, deeper than she even
knew, she understood she had to leave him. Varuj was what he was, but
no matter what happened with them, she wasn’t right for
Mae’lin.

She, like Varuj, was too cruel to the
ones she cared for.

“Say you’ll do it. Say
you’ll leave him and be mine, only mine, and I will forgive you
your sins and take you back into my arms and heart, just as it used
to be.” He gave her a hopeful smile. “Say you will do it,
and I will handle all the rest, as I handle all your problems for
you, sweet Firi. It shall be that simple.”

“Handle the rest? What does that
mean?” Her head tilted to the side and she stared at him. She
knew the demon that lurked beneath the surface, the cruelty he could
bestow on someone.

But was he any better than she? She
took Mae’lin’s innocence, knowing that she wasn’t
faithful. That she was lying to him, constantly, and hiding so much
of herself from him. He didn’t deserve her terrible treatment,
even if he was ignorant to it.

“Do it your way, my way, you can
wait until exams are finished, just agree. Tell me you’ll be
mine, Firi. Tell me you’ll forsake that elf, that you’ll
pledge yourself and your undying love to me, and all will be right
with the world. And more importantly, with us,” he pleaded. “Do
it.”

It took her a few moments, her gaze
dipping to the table as she sighed. “I will let him know, after
exams, that I can’t see him any longer.”
That I can’t
keep breaking his heart and living with this guilt.

Pressing her hand together between his
two palms, he lifted it up and kissed the tips of her fingers. “You
are mine, Firi. All mine. Say it,” he pled, “say it
again, as you truly mean it. And make me happy and whole once more.”

“Varuj, it feels weird to say
it.” She was exhausted with his constant pressure. “Can’t
you just accept that I love you? That I’d hurt someone I love
because of it?” It was hard enough for her without having to
say those words.

“It needs to be said, Firi,”
he murmured so softly, no longer any fear of them being overheard.
“After what I’ve been through… after what you did…
I need to hear it. I need to feel the words and their sincerity. I
need to feel your warmth about me.”

Firia inhaled deeply, sighing out the
words, “You have my heart, Varuj. You have for a long time.
Longer than you know.”

He gave a gentle smile. “That’ll
do. For now. Thank you, Firi my love. We are meant to be on this
journey together.”

Bran strode through the academy as
cocky as ever. Exams were nearly upon him, but he looked more than
prepared. He refused to rush about as the other students did, refused
to show any weakness.

So Ala’nase found him like that
and touched his arm, tugging him towards the dark alleyway between
the dormitory and the wall. “Ala?” he asked, his brow
furrowed in some confusion. “What are you doing?”

“Inviting you to continue our
discussion from last time, silly,” she said a bit saucily. “You
do
remember it, don’t you?”

Of course he did. He’d proposed
the two of them reuniting again. She’d have none of it, and
never thought she would. So it surprised him to see her even
mentioning it. Though he followed into the dim alleyway none the
less. “Of course I do,” he said, looking a bit confused
as he tugged at his mage’s robes, straightening them. “You’ve
reconsidered?”

“I’ve thought about it a
lot, Bran.” Her voice was low, conspiratorial but tinged with
something else. Something dark and seductive. “Things aren’t
the same without you. We could go so far together, you were right
about that.”

A faint smile tugged at the corner of
his lips. “I thought you might never forgive me enough to
realize that, Ala’nase,” he said, still holding his robes
in both hands as he looked her over. “And it’s a great
time for it too. The final test shall be a free-for-all event. All
the first-years pitted against one another. A secret alliance could
give us an edge over the others.”

She smiled back, her own hands
strategically straightening the front of her robe. The dim light
still managed to catch the little sparkles of embroidered silver, and
she traced over her form, drawing his eyes down. “I will
consider it, Bran, but only if you do something for me.”

The human male’s eyes dipped down
to that area between the shimmering silver, and he said gruffly, “A
favour?” He swallowed, wetting his dry throat. “Name it,
Ala’nase. It’s only fair I do something nice for you,
after our little misunderstanding.”

Misunderstanding. What a joke. He had
tossed her aside in the hopes of finding someone more “suited”
to him at the academy.

“I need you on my side this time,
Bran. Besides, I think you’ll like this favour.”

She stepped towards him, her hand
brushing her hair off her neck and letting the long tresses combine
over her shoulder. “We need to get Mae’lin out.”

Bran’s eyes widened in shock and
surprise. “Mae’lin? Why him? What’s there to worry
about that bumpkin?” He looked her over, the obvious desire
mixed with complete confusion.

“I’m surprised you’re
not more interested. If he falls, don’t you think someone else
may fall as well?” She reached her hand into a small pouch at
her hip, running over the glorious curve before handing him a small
item. “Just do it, and do it first. Once he’s gone, we’ll
take out the others. Together.”

The tall, brown haired human eyed the
trinket with confusion. Though he didn’t hesitate overlong
before he said, “What if I’m caught though? I would be
expelled myself, Ala’nase,” and she detected his worry as
the one thing that mattered to him was on the line: his own
advancement. It was such a tough obstacle to overcome with the
stubborn Bran.

“So wouldn’t that be proof
and more of your devotion to us? Come on, Bran, you didn’t
think it would be that easy to win me back, did you? You know what a
hot commodity I am, but I was too broken up after you to even
entertain all those others that were interested. Now I’m here,
giving us another chance, and you won’t even take a little risk
for it?”

His brows furrowed, and he stared at
first the trinket, then her. Then back again. “How do I know
you’re serious? And not just trying to use me? You know I’d
do anything for you, Ala’nase,” she knew no such thing,
of course, “but I need to be sure this is genuine. That you’re
ready to forgive and be my girlfriend again.”

Her fingers trailed to his chest,
flirting above his heart. “Then know it, Bran. You know me
better than anyone, and you stomped on my love. So you’re just
going to have to trust that this will make up for that.”

She was unsure if that would be enough
to sway him, but Bran gazed down at the crystal trinket as he thought
before finally wrapping his hand about it. “Very well,
Ala’nase. I will do this for you. And then we can go back to
being lovers again,” he said confidently. “Just like
before.”

Just like before he ruined everything.

She leaned in, brushing her lips
tenderly against his jaw, a little bolt of electricity passing
between them. “Just like before,” she agreed, her warm
breath washing over his skin.

All the preparation with Mae’lin
over the months prior had made the initial portions of the test a
breeze for Firia. A relative breeze, she assured herself. It had
still been tougher than anything she’d fared prior to trying
out for the academy.

She’d had to put her spells to
use in trial after trial, finding creative ways of using the most
basic spells. Solutions to puzzles that she scarcely fathomed could
be made, let alone solved.

Through it all, she’d persevered,
and yet…

Mae’lin walked up beside her at
the edge of the great ring at the heart of the academy grounds. A
broad, warm smile on his face as he reached out and took her hand in
his. Nary a word spoken, just that quiet pride in her, in them, for
succeeding so far where those far more prepared – far more
privileged – had done much worse.

There was no time for words, however,
out over the courtyard the voice of Professor Yae’ra boomed
out, amplified by some magic.

“For the final test of your
abilities – and your worthiness to continue here at
Gaul’di-mere Academy – you shall all enter into the Grim
Jungle. There, you shall face a free-for-all competition. A hunt to
find your first awards as students here, your finest accolades thus
far.” The fancily dressed wizard stood atop a hovering
platform, far above the courtyard, his golden robes not even able to
billow in the chill winds, it was so heavily inlaid with precious
gems and metals.

“Once you enter into the Grim
Jungle, your only rules are thus: No harmful spells against one
another. You may inhibit, stall, or slow your opponents, but outright
assault that causes or seriously risks life threatening danger shall
not be allowed. Anyone in violation of this shall be expelled.”

Mae’lin looked to her, a
reassuring smile on his face as he squeezed her hand.

“Go into the ‘arena’,
novices. But emerge as genuine mages on the track to greatness. This
is your great chance to prove yourself, for take note: The masters of
this academy are watching, observing. Making note of who shall be
their apprentices someday.”

“Good luck, Mae’lin,”
she whispered, and she meant it with all her heart. She was excited
for herself, but she wanted, more than anything, for him to succeed.
For him to have joy in his life, true value and meaning, and she
squeezed his hand back.

She’d worn her lightest robe, the
one that fit her bodice tightly and didn’t trail much. The last
thing she needed was a minor snag to slow her down. Her hair was
pulled back into a bun, out of her face, and she’d been
practicing all night.

She knew she’d get this.

“Be one with the arcane,”
came the final words of the dour professor, and no sooner were they
said than Firia felt herself pulled through reality itself.

When she reappeared it was not at
Mae’lin’s side. Nor in any place like she had assumed she
would end up in with the title of “jungle”.

All alone, she stood beneath a great
mushroom, as big as some houses where she was from. It lifted up into
the air over her, sheltering her from the sky… sky?

Stepping out along the alternating
rocky, spongy jungle floor, she looked up and saw only stone above
her. Whatever sort of jungle it was she was in, it was within a cave
of some sort.