Violet Waters

  Tap, tap, tap.

  “You know, you’re more like yourself again.”

  Facing forward, Ty continued to focus on this year’s adviser in front of the class, who was directing the class’s attention to an area on a large map on the wall with a pointing stick. It was a definite improvement from the one they had last year, who—at most—held one class a week and had only been present to answer questions before hurrying off to teach their next class.

  “After that week of practice and the placement exam.” Tap, tap, tap.

  Trying to take the lecture seriously, she continued to ignore Theo, wondering why the northern end of Chloris was the focus. The professor always knew more than he let on, so there had to have been a reason—or was it purely to prepare them for this week’s classes?

  “I’m still hesitant about—”

  Before he could finish his sentence, the pencil he had been using to tap his notebook flew across the room, hit the back wall, and then fell with a pathetic tick.

  The class was silent, and all eyes—even Elias’s—turned to Theo.

  Snapping to attention, the physician straightened, his eyes widening in surprise as the dark-cloaked professor at the front of the class pointed a finger directly at him.

  “If you keep on bothering the other students, it’ll be more than just your pencil next time,” the professor muttered irately. “Now explain to everyone else what kind of text you have to cross-reference before considering travel anywhere north of the Corsucant Valley.”

  “A meteorological chart,” replied the terrified student without even a second’s delay.

  “I’m surprised you could hear over your own chattering,” spoke Professor Moriya in a monotone voice. “Explain.”

  Theo blinked. He blinked twice, eyes fixed on the professor as if he were the only person in the room, and then cracked open his mouth. He took a shallow breath, about to speak but then pausing.

  “Just lu—”

  “No,” interjected Theo at once, finally finding his voice. “If you use Askandr’s maps, which are widely accepted as the most accurate ones—though incomplete because no one has been able to map the deepest valleys up north—you’ll find that the climate patterns north of the valley dramatically shift not only because of the sharp dip and rise in elevation, but because it also coincides with the Hythian Wind Stream. That’s why most of the territory past that point is inhospitable, even to the Ancients. You’d be hard pressed to find anywhere adequate to spend the night without consulting a meteorological chart.”

  Moriya nodded once, but said nothing, prompting the student to continue.

  “However…” Theo was grasping at straws. “The…the Circle of Graces somehow established a settlement there in worship of Ethy, believing that it was a test of strength to survive in the harsh environs. It was the ultimate test of faith. Though it was disbanded earlier this year before finals took place, I remember hearing about it over the summer break from…”

  And then he froze. He stared at the professor, who Ty could swear had a faint smile on his face.

  “Which means something could have happened with the Stream that only they would know about,” continued Theo slowly. “The Circle of Graces disbanded over the summer, but the settlement had announced its relocation before that decision was made.”

  Happy with the answer and epiphany, the professor nodded more decisively now, turning back to the board to trace a line south of the valley. “Yes. Well then, what fluctuations might occur toward the Sepica Strait, should the Hythian Wind Stream suddenly cease?”

  It wasn’t until Korinna raised her hand from across the classroom that Theo finally relaxed in his seat, letting out a long breath of air and slumping in his seat. “Graces,” he sighed under his breath as he distractedly searched for another writing instrument in his bag.

  Without a single word, Faris extended his arm across Ty’s portion of the desk and slapped a pencil down on Theo’s notebook before resuming his usual stance—arms crossed and leaning back in his seat with his signature frown.

  “Thanks,” muttered Theo, picking up the pencil and trying to look like he was paying attention by writing in his notebook.

  “Careful, or he’ll break that, too,” whispered Ty as well, her eyes trained on Korinna giving Nate a response he didn’t quite like.

  Theo didn’t dare respond this time.

  “Almost there,” the professor nodded before again turning to the map. “Should the bodies of ice up north melt as you hypothesize, the Sepica Strait would experience an overflow of water. Villages would have to relocate. But there’s one more thing that’s important that has to do with this area right here.” He circled a large body of green south of the strait, clearly some sort of woodland area.

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  Unprepared for a geography lesson after having focused much more on combat rather than studying old content over the summer, Ty was at a loss. South of that was…the Khione Steppes, which led up north to…it was the Malav-something. Along with Snowberries, which made for a fantastic cure-all, the forest was laden with them; dry it, grind it up into a powder, mix it with a few drops of water, add a bandage to soak for a minute or two…it was a surprisingly effective coagulant.

  Everyone was silent as Moriya looked at them expectantly.

  “No one?” he asked, surveying the class.

  Ty scratched her head. That has nothing to do with water overflowing. Blood coagulants were made with other safer, synthetic compounds too, so its dwindling supply would not be a threat. Water, water, water…

  Going around the class, Nate started with Kor, who sat closest to the door and looked peeved about not getting the entire answer the first time. Selene sat beside her without comment, as usual. Ty was slightly surprised that the botanist didn’t provide an answer before Nate moved on to the next group of students a column over.

  An attentive Cyril in the back row, sitting with a clueless Elias, offered a sheepish shrug. “There’s an herb there that you can turn into a coagulant, but I’m sure that’s not the answer you’re looking for.”

  A smile spread across Ty’s face, and so did a warm feeling of pride upon hearing that her healer had the same idea as her.

  In front of them, Alex and Callie in the front row. Alex shrugged candidly, and Callie didn’t meet the professor’s eyes, looking down at her notes instead.

  Then it was the column closest to the windows at the other end where the three were, sitting in the second front-most row. His eyes lingered on Theo, then glanced over Ty; they had exchanged a few words before class started, after all. Succinct, short words.

  You came back.

  I did.

  I see.

  You’re our adviser?

  All second-years.

  Convenient.

  Very.

  Beside Ty was Faris, who sat closest to the windows, who didn’t even bother to raise his hand before responding.

  “Spores,” he answered simply, looking less bored and saving the rest of the class from the child professor’s disappointment. Ty knew that look. He knew what he was talking about, even though he seemed displeased. “We had to learn during Field study last year which areas had dangerous fungus to look out for. There aren’t many dangerous ones in the north, but the Manifvosti becomes significantly more toxic when it gets enough water to spread.” He gave the rest of the students an apathetic side-eye. “I’m guessing no one else remembered it because they only become an issue during rainfall, which almost never happens up in the north; the last recorded incident was about a century ago. The toxicity was so short-lived, it was barely a footnote.”

  “Hah.”

  The laugh, one of the rarest sounds to escape the professor’s mouth, was short and quick, as if he hadn’t expected Faris to arrive at the answer. “Yes, good,” he mumbled with another short chortle. “Very good. Any idea how to cure the poison?”

  Faris averted his eyes to the window when he noticed his tactician’s blindingly proud smile radiating from beside him. “No. It’s supposed to be lethal.”

  “Correct.”

  With that covered, he went on to mention other items: changes in locations of communities, contested states, states about to become contested, enemy camps, MATS deployments, and a basic overview of battle strategies currently in use. Ty had to admit it was an adequate refresher, although she was still wondering about the Hythian Wind Stream and what had potentially happened. Hythe, after all, had been severed. What about Caspos?

  Most importantly, were there consequences to her actions? Real, concrete consequences she could not understand on a larger scale on account of her being so fixated on her single goal? The purpose she had attributed to her existence? Was this the Headmistress’s—no, the Earth Mother’s design?

  * * *

  “Ready?”

  Theo stood at the end of the lecture benches with his bag on his shoulder and his intact pencil in his hand while Ty silently stuffed her notebook into her pocket.

  “Well you’re looking rather ominous,” commented Theo before turning around to chat with Faris, who stopped him.

  As Ty scooted over on her bench, she could hear snippets of conversation around the classroom. Kor and Selene were contemplating going to see Darius in the workshop, Callie and Alex were going to grab a snack before comparing their class notes, and Cyril and Elias were already gone. Theo and Faris were talking about offensive magic spells, surprisingly.

  Nate was busy gathering his belongings to leave, undoubtedly preparing for the next class; they’d cross paths one way or the other, when it was time. She was sure of it.

  On her feet, leaning on the far end of their lecture benches, Ty absently ran a hand through her hair and watched everyone filter out, thinking about what to do next.

  Reports…there’s that duel in the evening. Elias should do it. If he refuses, Alex or Callie. They’ve both become more confident…though Alex is still too nice.

  “Hey, tact.”

  Ty turned her head toward the voice and focused her eyes on her caster.

  “New rotation.”

  She took the folded piece of paper from his hand and felt a pang in her chest at seeing the cold and calculating violet in his eyes. There was something there that was different. “Thanks,” she responded quietly before slipping it into her pocket, still fixated on finding what gave her pause.

  “Well, I’m off.” Unaffected, he began turning away when Ty leaned forward and grabbed onto the edge of his cloak.

  The caster stopped dead in his tracks. He slowly turned around and locked eyes with Ty again.

  “Do you…do you want to come up to Reports with Theo and me?” she heard coming out of her mouth.

  He took a few seconds to register the words before furrowing his brow. “You’re going to post it up later, aren’t you?”

  On point as usual. “Yes, I will.”

  “Then why would I go?”

  And then she finally found the faltering behind the violet, the small break in focus in his right eye: everything disappeared, like it did a year before, when she was standing in front of a field, in front of a dangerous opponent; she could see the blood again, the blood and what she had become, except this time the red was not only on her hands but splattered all over his crying, tear-stained face that had never collapsed before, not for her, not for anyone else, not for an unjust world that had left him all but bereft; it threatened to taint the pure and unwavering violet, it seeped into the break she found, it turned it red and red and red so she pulled him closer to see his eyes and the damage she had done and searched and searched but no matter how hard she looked, no matter how many years had passed, there was no monster.

  There was no monster.

  “Come on, Ty,” interjected Theo from behind her.

  Inhale. She let go of his cloak. Blood flowed back into her white knuckles.

  “Sorry.” Her hand fell to her side.

  Without a word, Faris turned around again to leave. Out of reach. Further, further, further. Gone.

  “Reports?” Theo nudged.

  Reports don’t matter, she wanted to retort and follow her beloved caster instead. Anything but play pretend.