The Hermit, The Tower, The World (Vol.2 Complete)

25th of Inandyl - 4th Velron (cont)

The drudgery dragged on for hours, but this time, the setup was different from all the others he had participated in. Usually, each staffer was left to their own devices, only occasionally reaching out for assistance. Not today, it seemed, as some of the others came to Calas asking about the mouse, of all things. Like he was some authority on the new staffer. Why did they come to him, when that was Malakh's job?

"Cal," Wen called to him with a couple of dusty scrolls in her arms, "there 're some swords in the other alcove by Lighthammer's desk. Non-magical, I checked." Her thick, slurring accent was familiar to Calas by now and he nodded to her.

"I'll get them in a minute."

"Also, are you sure Serea can handle all the weird an' dangerous stuff on that desk?" She brushed a strand of bright red hair that spilled from the goggles on her head that held up the rest of the mess and nodded to Professor Elandria's desk.

Calas glanced over from the weapons rack he was tidying and saw Serea organizing Arcanum and tomes on Marblebrook's bookshelf against the far wall of the alcove. Chou floated beside her and they appeared to be talking.

"Yeah," Calas turned his attention back to Wen, confusion on his face. "What makes you think she can't?"

"Nothin'! It's just you had class together last term, an' well, I dunnae ken her like you do…" Her voice trailed off as her eyes anxiously roamed.

What was that supposed to mean? He released a scoff as a chuckle. It was laughable that anyone came to him for advice about the mouse. Especially Wen, considering that Chou's design was most assuredly one of hers. They had one class together. That didn't mean he really knew her but they were… what? Coven-mates? Acquaintances? Friends? He shook his head and pushed the thought away.

"I wouldn't worry too much about her, Wen. She's a lot tougher than she looks."

"Ooh," the tinker shifted the scrolls in her arms as her gaze focused on Serea. Wen grinned broadly then as she shifted her attention back to Calas. "That's high praise coming from you."
"Whatever, it's the truth." Calas only shrugged and turned back to the knives he was putting away.

That answer seemed to perk Wen right up, and she went skipping back to the other alcove to sort out all the junk for Professor Lighthammer. Calas shook his head at her retreating back. He wished that was the end of it.

Malakh approached Calas only a few minutes later with worry etched on his thin face.

"How's she doing?" Malakh asked softly.

Calas didn't have to guess who "she" was and he spared a glance for Serea, who was talking to Lamruil about some unknown potions she was identifying. A crease formed in his brow as Calas wondered why the Dean's aide would come to him.

"How should I know? I haven't talked to her since we started." Calas' voice carried the edge of his frustration.

"I've seen you checking, Calas. I would appreciate if you didn't try to misdirect me in this." Malakh clicked his tongue in exasperation.

"Fine," Calas sighed, "I think she's doing way more than the previous staffer for Marblebrook ever did." He waved a hand vaguely in Serea's direction, "Can you think of any of her other staffers that actually tried to label all that crazy stuff?"

"No, never. They all just assumed Marblebrook knew what each item was." Malakh nodded absently before he focused once more on Calas. "Do you think she'll stay? As a staffer, I mean."

Calas shrugged. Why was everyone asking him about this? Serea was literally twenty feet away. Why didn't Malakh walk over and ask her?

"Not sure why someone would willingly sign up for this, honestly, but it seems likely." Calas responded listlessly.

"Based on?" Malakh pressed.

"Her grit will surprise you." Calas smirked as he turned away from Malakh toward the other alcove and Lighthammer's desk. Out of earshot, he muttered to himself, "Impressed the hell out of me."

The task wound down as the clock did the same and the table became more visible. Calas was halfway through sorting through Blackclaws papers when Fara waltzed over. He glared at her, cutting her off before she got a word out.

"What the actual hell?" he hissed at her in a quiet, but harsh tone.

"I was going to ask you the same—" She hissed back, just as vehemently.

"Well, I asked first," he interrupted her with a growl. "Please tell me this is not 'making it up to us both'." He finished dangerously and the fur on her tail stood on edge for a brief moment before it twitched and she regained her composure. Calmly, she strode to the opposite side of the desk from Calas and feigned helping him with Blackclaw's papers.

"I promise you, I had nothing to do with this." She kept the hiss out of her voice only barely and paused for a brief moment before shrugging. When she spoke again, there was a playful note in her voice. "But tell me with a straight face that you aren't happy to see her again."

Again, with the mouse. What was wrong with everyone today? Frustration boiled within Calas and he glanced over his shoulder for a moment until he found "her" in the opposite alcove talking excitedly to Sigrid and Wen. He forced his attention back to the very smug looking feline in front of him, thankful that Serea was far and away from this conversation.

Calas opened his mouth to deny it and tell Fara off. When he thought about what he would be saying, though, he closed his mouth, and glared at Fara instead. Curse you, damned meddling feline. He could have lied to her. It would have been easy, and she might have dropped it, but he just couldn't manage it. It felt wrong to say it in the end.

He would have loved nothing more than to wipe that smug, catty grin off of Fara's face, but not this time. On a brighter note, she had finally given away her and Vesa's little game. Calas wasn't sure if he should be furious or grateful that they tried to play at being very misled match makers. Either way, he knew that was never going to happen.

"I have to go move some tables," he grumbled in a tight voice before leaving her at Blackclaw's desk.

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He joined Malakh, Marcus, and Sigrid at the back of the main room, and Malakh explained the setup in more detail to the three of them. They all worked together to move the largest table, now cleaned of the refuse, into place at the back of the room before breaking off into two groups to move the smaller tables.

While he and Sigrid set the smaller right-side table into place, Calas' attention was caught by colorful flashes of light. He watched Fara and Lamruil glare at each other as they split the room with their preferred hues. Fara set the four sconces on the right side of the room to a Drakonys red, whereas Lamruil had set the left side ones to a Temporia teal.

Wen and Serea huddled near the double doors at the entrance and Calas could tell that Wen was teaching her the gesture for the light spell. He recognized the spell and knew there was an elvish incantation that accompanied the somatic component. Calas couldn't help but quirk a small smile as he thought that this would have been impossible for her just a month ago. Desert sands, according to her, it was unthinkable only a week ago!

Calas moved benches and chairs as he watched Wen demonstrate for Serea, turning half of the red sconces to the deep blue of Unio Luminae. By the time he set the last of the chairs with Malakh, he watched Serea openly as she performed the spell. Two of the teal sconces turned to a vibrant Vodalysa purple.

I'll be damned. More than a weaver after all, mouse. He felt the same admiring respect he experienced when she flooded the training hall. He chuckled as he thought this time around was much better because he didn't have to clean up all that water.

Unfortunately, he only realized what kind of silly grin was on his face when he found her staring back at him with a warm smile. Since when did she look at him like that? He recalled every glare, sneer, and challenging posture from her last term, but when did she start smiling so beautifully at him?

A shiver of ink shifting under his skin alerted him to another kind of gaze, though. Calas turned, tearing his eyes from Serea, and glared at Fara's knowing, cheesy grin. She thought the little game of hers was working and it only made him more suspicious of what else she had planned.

Malakh announced to the room that the setup was done, finally. There were relieved gripes from the group and excited high-fives from Wen who congratulated Serea on picking up the light spell so quickly. Calas winced as she was not prepared for the force of Wen's strong, calloused hands, but chuckled as the mouse shook it out.

Malakh seized Calas' attention with a hand on his shoulder and said in a genuine tone, "Thanks for all your help today, Calas. Just for the record, I don't agree with what Fara said earlier today." He paused for a second and Calas shrugged listlessly as he started for the door to join Serea and the other ladies who congregated there.

"I mean it— Ah!" Malakh started, but was cut off by his own yelp.

Calas looked back at the outburst and saw Marcus grinning at Malakh with a playfully satisfied expression. Marcus passed by them both in a rush, saying, "Don't stay too late, Mal," and headed out the door with Kishi close behind.

The Croakin girl followed close behind the solid frame of Marcus, inclined her head to give Malakh a much more polite salutation in deference to the closest thing they had to a chief staffer. She said her goodbyes to Calas as she did so, and followed Marcus out of the Lounge.

"I heard you." Calas said absently to Malakh, but his focus was not on the flustered blond boy. He instead focused mostly on the mouse, catching a glimpse of the conversation between the departing Kishi and her.

"See you next time, Serea." Kishi said as she disappeared from sight down the hall.

"Next time…" The mouse's voice sounded bemused. She really has no idea what she was unwittingly signed up for.

"There will be— a next time— if you don't say 'no' when asked again." Calas interjected in a matter-of-fact tone as Sigrid and Lamruil made their exit, bidding them all farewell. "Did I not tell you, mouse?"

"Yeah, yeah." She waved him off with a surprisingly snarky tone. "Penance." Calas smirked.

Malakh clicked his tongue, fingers to his forehead in frustration. "For the last time, Calas, you are not being punished! It is a privilege to be an aide to the faculty here."

Calas imparted a scoff and a sardonic laugh. "Oh, yes, a privilege to clean up what they won't." Malakh leveled a look at Calas, which he met head on with a cool gaze of his own.

"Don't you understand that–"

"Malakh, don't forget to report back to the Dean." Fara interrupted him from the other side of the door and Calas felt his own frustration rise as she gave a catty, mischievous smile and strutted out of sight.

Malakh huffed a sigh, but pointed a finger directly at Calas. "We can discuss this later." With that last word, he turned on his heel and headed out the door at a trot.

Calas shook his head with a sigh at Malakh's retreat, but then noticed that the only ones left were him and the mouse. Silently, he cursed at Fara as he kept his face placid and he looked down at Serea. Her eyes found his, and he struggled to maintain that neutrality while staring into those deep ocean pools.

A strange kind of smile lit up on her face and as he tried to place what it was, she bit her lower lip, looking away from him. He inhaled deeply through his nose, letting it out slowly to combat a sudden impulse. That's just not fair. He thought while fighting the surge of what felt very primal, something very close to desire.

Calas forced himself back to reality and gestured to the door, asking in his most neutral tone, "Shall we?" She nodded and headed out the door.

"It wasn't as bad as you made it seem." She called back to him in a sassy tone as they walked.

"Not you, too," Calas rolled his eyes with a click of his tongue as they strolled down the hallway, his hands shoved into his pockets.

"I mean, the task was drudgery, but the company was not." Serea started toward the stairs as he caught up beside her and kept her pace.

Calas tried to keep his face neutral while stewing on Fara's plotting over the past week. He tried to tell himself that he wasn't that obvious when it came to his feelings about this particular mouse. It's just that like him, Fara was extremely perceptive of the body language of others. He would have to watch himself a bit more closely around her and Vesa from now on.

"Yeah, I would say that's mostly true." Calas finally confirmed her statement.

"Even though you argue with everyone?" She didn't hesitate at all! Vicious mouse is back, and Calas smiled genuinely at the thought.

"What? With Malakh?" He took his hands out of his pockets to hold them up in front of his body, a placating gesture, as they descended the stairs. "Nah, nah. That's just for fun!" He chuckled but was cut short by the flat stare she leveled at him.

"I'm serious! We all do it to one another. Even Lamruil." He thought about the statement he made and back tracked it slightly. "Although you and Sigrid are far too new for us to know how you will take it." He thought again about what Marcus must have done that made Malakh yelp, even though he hadn't seen it; it must have been a low blow.

"I'm not convinced." She turned away from him, continuing to descend again, giving a 'humph' noise.

They were silent for a moment as Calas lagged behind her slightly before a thought struck him.

"You seemed to make a good impression, though. It takes kind of a lot to impress Wen." He snapped his fingers remembering something else. "By the way, congratulations on learning elvish magic. Cira will be really proud of you."

"Wait, what?" She asked in confusion. "Elvish magic?"

"Yeah. That little light incantation. It's the kind of magic Cira prefers over all others from my recollection in the Halls of Equity. You are like a magical chameleon." Calas continued down the stairs passed her, but stopped when he noticed she had stopped. He turned on the steps to face her, and his heart sank.

Serea had stopped at the mention of the Hall of Equity and went quiet. A frown was etched on her pretty lips and her eyes were unfocused. She stared, unblinking to the side and her complexion had lost a bit of color. What had he said this time? Calas reached a hand out toward her, but stopped himself short. Instead, he offered it out to her.

"Serea?" His voice was soft and pleading, as if coaxing her to come back to the here and now.

She blinked at the mention of her name and found his eyes and his hand. A soft flush appeared on Serea's cheeks as she placed her hand gently into his calloused one. Her hand was soft in his and he absently caressed a thumb on the back of it. His heart leapt at the connection and the concern on his face melted into something warm and unguarded.

Suddenly, a large growl echoed into the stairwell. At first he thought it was his stomach, but her head leaning back, face to the ceiling was sign enough that the sound must have come from her. Chou fluttered up off her shoulder then, her voice like an excited breeze in spring, "Was that embarrassing?!"

Calas couldn't hold back a laugh at Chou's outburst. "Gods, yes, Chou!" His face spread into a toothy grin and by their conjoined hands, he led the mouse down the rest of the stairwell.

"Let's get this mouse some cheese!"