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“Coming to live with you would not be ideal,” Ciar says, giving Necos a dirty look.
“I’ve got the space,” Necos says. “And it’s safe.” He turns to me with a hesitant kind of smile. “And I think you’d find it calming.”
“He’s only refusing because we’d be surrounded by guards,” Mael says, and Ciar nods.
“Ha!” Necos chokes out, surprising us all. “I’m not surrounded by guards. Sure, I’m monitored more closely, but I work with Secos. Do you think I do that because I like the pompous prick? No, I do it so that I’ve got freedom to do exactly what I want.”
“Like run around as an unaccompanied time witch,” Eirik says slowly. A slow grin appears across his face as he regards Necos in a new light. “Very smart. Duping the leaders to get your own way.”
“Very dangerous,” Jasper mutters, and I share a consolidating look with him. None of the others seemed to care.
I listen intently as they have a very tense discussion about the moving plans, the training, and so on, and it’s a little nerve-wracking.
Not in the way it was two months ago when we talked about uprooting and going to the castle. Likely because, this time, we’re not leaving anyone behind.
Necos is welcoming all of us into his home, and it’s something I think I’ll like. He swears his place has only been accessed by himself, and so the energy should be good there.
But I am worried about us leaving campus. Not for me because I agree that this will be better.
I can’t imagine waking up without worrying that I’m going to out myself.
Without worrying about someone getting hurt because I lose control again.
I’ll be surrounded by my bonded, and we’ll be hidden away from the real world. We won’t need Necos to stop time, or slow it down, so that we can have some stolen moments.
We’ll have an abundance of those.
But… I’m not sure how feasible this plan is, and I hate that I’ve already gotten my hopes up a little bit. Because if this turns out to be something we can’t do, I’ve given my mind the chance to let me feel disappointed.
“Are you all allowed to leave campus for an extended period of time?” I ask, interjecting myself into the conversation despite it having moved on a little. Nobody seems to mind. They never do when it concerns me. A concept I still find a little wild.
“Yes,” Eirik says. His simple reply convinces me of the truth in his words, so I don’t question it.
Eirik’s not a liar, and he’s not an optimist. Not really. He’s a realist, one who will only rely on what is reasonable, and not what he hopes to achieve.
“Eirik can leave without question because he’s matured,” Ciar explains, and my brows draw together as I consider that. “The rest of us are able to pause our studies because we’re enlisted in the Black Coats.”
“What about you?” I ask, swinging my head to the left to look at Jasper. Surprisingly, he’s made himself right at home, lounging in the arm chair with an air of righteous around him. “You’re not one of them, right?”
“No,” he replies, shaking his head. He’s scowling, but his eyes are kind. He’s appreciative that I’m bringing him into this. I think.
Or maybe my vision is playing tricks again and I need a stronger prescription for my glasses.
“But I’ve got to do an internship of sorts thisaestas,anyway, which will get me some time off campus,” Jasper says.
“I thought we didn’t have summer.”
“We don’t, not in terms of no school,” Jasper says.
“But we do experience the same kind of seasons that your Earth does,” Ryes tells me.
“So during the final term—using Earth language so you can follow,” Eirik says, and I smile at him in thanks. “Fourth years and above need to go through an internship. It’s a way of practicing their magicae in the real world, and it’ll help them find their place within our community.”
“Like a work placement.”
“A what?” Necos asks, echoed by Jasper and Ciar.
“Yes,” Eirik replies, considering my words before nodding. “But this is more personal to the different types. So, Jasper just needs an internship created—”
