Kenzo tsked. “As if, bird brain. A moron like you? Yeah, right.”
“I happen to know I will be working with Evergreen,” Gael said with smug satisfaction, followed by a confident cluck of his rooster.
Based on his buzzing thoughts, he seemed quite confident in the fact.
“Sure.” Kenzo nodded mockingly.
“You don’t believe me?”
“I believe you believe it, but I also believe you’re an absolute idiot, so there’s that.”
“Oh yeah?” Gael dug through his book bag. “Would an absolute idiot get one of these?”
He held up a crinkled form.
“A waiver excusing the guild for any injuries you might have during your internship?” Kenzo skimmed the form, letting out a light chuckle. “They’d definitely give you one of those. Of course, Cerberus is worried you’ll injure yourself. Extra layer of legal protection.”
“It’s not from Cerberus,” Gael said.
I closed my eyes so I could focus purely on the sight of my manifestation, who glossed over the messy, stained form. It was a waiver of liability and far more detailed than the standard waiver that Gemini Academy had students sign for attendance or internships.
“Wait,” Kenzo nearly gasped. “Global Guild sent you a waiver?”
“Yep.” Gael had this arrogant smirk. “And there’s only one enchanter at Cerberus I know of that works at the Global Guild. So, looks like I’ll be teaming up alongside the best enchanter in the whole world, while you probably get assigned a custodian orsome shit. Maybe they’ll teach you how to clean up your bitch attitude.”
Kenzo balled a fist, creating a small burst of gray static before allowing the rage to fizzle away with his pent-up magic. A dozen or so quickly fleeting images of Kenzo bashing in Gael’s face flooded through the angry teen’s mind before he composed himself.
“You’re not the only one with a waiver.” Carter strolled up, revealing a pristine form unlike Gael’s stained pages.
“Wait, Evergreen wants to work with you, too?” Gael stared suspiciously.
“Ba-ba-bawk.”
“You’re right, King Clucks.” Gael nodded. “Totally, just bringing him on ‘cause he helped Frosty way back when.”
Wait, what? Did Milo seriously recruit Carter as an intern because he saved my life? And why the hell would he ever recruit Gael as an intern? Why would he recruit any of my students as an intern?
It didn’t take long before they projected all the internships, and I searched for my students among the very crowded roster.
Mentor: Enchanter Evergreen
Intern: Gael Martinez
The way Gael’s aura lit up, radiating bright orange, it nearly outshone the streaks of envy clouding the edges. His spikes shrank a bit when his peers eyed him. Normally, he enjoyed attention, not a spotlight hog, but definitely in a goofy extrovert way. However, the jealousy etched onto a lot of expressions made his stomach twist in knots, and in turn gave me sinking, sulking secondhand symptoms. His emotions and thoughts surged with insecurities, outweighing everyone else.
“Way to show everyone up, porcupine.” Kenzo shoulder bumped Gael, stealing his focus from the gawking crowd, and making him sheepishly smile.
I took a deep breath. Suddenly, the stress and fear withered away. All it took to calm Gael was a simple gesture of support from Kenzo.
“I mean, I didn’t really do anything to land the internship.” Gael’s sharklike teeth glistened as he fought to keep his smile.
“What the actual hell?” Gael shouted, accompanied by a loud cluck. “They clearly put the wrong last name.”
“Um, pretty sure it’s not a typo, dude.” Gael pointed further on the board. “Found you with another Global Guild enchanter.”
Mentor: Enchanter Diaz
Interns: Gael Rios-Vega; Tiffany Sparks; Wesley Monte
