Maddie felt refreshed after her walk. Rain had started to fall a few minutes into it and just closed her eyes and let it cleanse her soul. Her problems were still there. Nothing had changed. But she felt better. She felt stronger. She felt…not happy, but content? No, she felt centered. She realized she hadn’t felt that way in a long time, not since magic class began. She was so happy then and she could be happy again. There were just things to do before real happiness could begin.

She walked back to her cage suppressing the slight feeling of dread she felt whenever she approached it. When she opened the door she had a big surprise waiting for her. Someone had been in there while she was on her walk and made it…nice. The cold magic lights were gone, replaced by a burning oil lamp. There was a rug on the floor by the bed and a new vase with some fresh flowers and an oak branch stood on the table. An extra chair had been added and everything had just been neatened up -- table and bed straightened and made. It was warm and comforting and nothing like the lonely room she had felt locked in. Someone had also moved in the things from her dorm room.It was a proper room, no longer a cage. Maddie sighed as the centered feeling returned.

Just as she had taken it all in, a deep bell tolled, signaling the start of dinner.She sat down on her new chair and waited, but nobody came with food. Another sign that she wasn’t a prisoner? She left her room and walked across the Academy campus to the student dining hall. The rain had let up and the grey skies had lightened.

Gaius was the first to notice Maddie. When she saw him looking,Cleo turned in her seat. Her eyes lit up and she waved her friend over.

“You're here! It's been forever since we got to eat with you!"

Maddie sat down. As she looked around she realized she was out of place wearing her simple dress instead of the brown robes of a first-year student. One of the cooks came over and placed a dish down in front of her. She smiled at him in thanks.

“How do you feel?" Gaius asked as she dug into her food.

She swallowed a mouthful and beamed at him. “I feel amazing, actually."

Gaius raised his eyebrows. “Really? Even after all that…that?”

Maddie's grin faded. Cleo kicked Gaius under the table and put her arms around Maddie's shoulders. She wrinkled her nose.

"You are absolutely *drenched*," she said, “what were you doing?"

“Oh, I was outside. It was raining."

“How hard? How long were you out?"

Maddie shrugged. “A while, I guess. It was pouring and then it started drizzling, and then it stopped.”

"So this is after you've already dried off a little?” Cleo shook her head in disbelief. Maddie only shrugged and kept eating.

“I'll bring you a cloth from my room so you can dry your hair, at least. And maybe I have a dress?"

Maddie swallowed her last bite. “Oh, they put my stuff in my room. My new room."

“You changed rooms again?" Gaius asked.

“No,it's the same room as my cage. They just put all my stuff in there and made it nice."

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Gaius leaned forward and whispered, “Cage?"

Maddie blushed. " Um, that's the way I used to think of it. I know I was allowed to leave, but it was all the way in the main building and it was so empty and when I woke up there I really thought I was locked up.”

" I didn't know you felt that way. " Cleo rested her head on Maddie's shoulder, making a face when the side of her face hit the wet dress and hair of her friend.

“I know. I didn't tell you. I've kept a lot of things to myself lately. But that's going to change."

Gaius smiled and reached his hand out across the table. Maddie took it.

“You know we really care about you, right?"

Maddie nodded. “I know."

“Let's see your new room, then. And dry you off."

When they entered Maddie's room, Cleo understood what she meant about it being a cage before. She hadn't really noticed the starkness before. The coldness. But this was nice. It was homey. And it looked a lot like the dorm rooms.

Cleo turned around to hug Maddie but stopped herself when she remembered one of the reasons they had come back here.

" I'll get a cloth,” Cleo said and started going through her friend's things.

Gaius looked around, commented that it was “very nice" and excused himself so the girls could be alone. Cleo helped Maddie dry off and put on a set of robes.

“I wish I could do something about your hair, but you have a lot of it," she said, eying Maddie's waist-length brown hair, “and I don't think it's completely dry. I know you usually like to braid it -- and I would love the chance to do something more interesting with it -- but I think we should just tie it back."

She pulled a ribbon from one of the drawers in the chest Maddie had never noticed before. She walked up to Maddie and gently took her hair and tied the ribbon around it. Then she just looked into her friend's face until she saw the hint of a blush coming. She kissed her on the cheek and stepped back.

“There, that's perfect."

Maddie sighed and relaxed her shoulders.

“Cleo, you're the best.”

"I know,” Cleo replied, her sly smile creeping into her face.

There was a knock at the door. Maddie supposed it was Scholarch Eloan or Corentin. She still didn't want to see Corentin and told Cleo so. Her friend walked to the door and opened it just a crack, using her body to shield the room from the eyes of whoever was outside.

“Yes?"

Maddie heard a voice she didn't expect.

"I would like to speak to Miss Brigantia,” Serverus said. Cleo looked at Maddie who waved for him to come in. Cleo opened the door and ushered the teacher in.

“Magister, what do you need?" Maddie asked as she stood up from the bed and walked over to the table, indicating that Servius should take one.

“The Scholarch wanted me to inform you of some changes going forward," the dour-faced teacher said as he took the offered seat.

“You will no longer be left to your own devices, nor will you be encouraged to stay in this room. Although you will not be attending regular classes, you will be receiving private tutoring in a few subjects.

"You will receive training in combat from me and training in magic from Magister Corentin.”

Maddie's face drained of color. " Does Corentin…uh, Magister Corentin have to be the one to teach me magic?" she asked.

“Hmph. Magister Corentin is the best magic teacher we have in this academy. He is also the only one who knows how to teach this method of magic that Tereus has started you on. If we want any measure of success, you must learn from Magister Corentin.”

Maddie leaned her elbows on the table and buried her head in her hands. “I don't know if I can learn from him. Not after what he did. “

Servius straightened up in his chair and peeled Maddie’s hands off her face. He looked her straight in the eye and said, “Miss Brigantia, you are going to have to. For all our sakes.