I arrived back at Kara's apartment in the council's private apartment building and I saw the remnants of lunch and supper on the kitchen table. I quickly cleaned it up, since I knew she would expect it of me, and I went to the bedroom. She was on her side of the bed and pretended to be asleep, so I ignored her obvious attempt to ignore me and went to the bathroom. I took a quick shower and changed into my actual pyjamas.
When I transferred things from my old robes to the new ones I would wear the next day, I discovered that Lashina had tucked her panties into my hidden pocket. I almost laughed out loud and quickly tucked them into my new robes, then I hung up the robes and climbed into bed on my side. Kara still didn't speak to me, so I didn't speak either and closed my eyes. I was a little tired after pretending to sleep for part of the day, so I took a deep breath and let it out and let sleep take me. I didn't even need to do a mental technique like I usually did.
We got up the next morning and Kara acted as if nothing had happened between us the last few days. I was fine with that, since I didn't have to explain where I had been the day before. I made breakfast for the both of us and we ate in silence, then I followed her to work. We were there early, so we had arrived in plenty of time to witness the funniest thing I had ever seen. The fluffy puff-ball alien came in and looked like one of those hairless cats. I immediately covered myself in a layer of Presence to contain my laughter and directed it away from being heard.
Kara on the other hand had gasped and covered her mouth. “Gruskluan! What happened to you?”
“As if you don't know.” Gruskluan grumbled.
“I really don't.” Kara said, surprised. “Where is all your beautiful fur?”
“Ask your apprentice.” Gruskluan said and sat down in his chair, and I saw that he was significantly shorter than he should have been.
“Ullir has been tending to me the last few days.” Kara said, and conveniently left off that she had dismissed me the day before.
“This happened before that.”
Kara sighed in relief. “He had been within my Presence constantly before that, so I don't see how he could have assaulted you and done such a thing.”
“It happened at night, so I'm sure that...”
“Ullir has never left my bed at night and sneaked out.” Kara said, adamantly.
The entire council caught their breath and turned their heads to stare at her.
“Did you just...”
“You sleep in the same bed with your apprentice?” The scaly alien asked. “He doesn't have his own bed or even his own room?”
“When he became my apprentice, I forbade him from leaving my side without my permission.” Kara said. “Why would going to sleep at night be any different?”
The council members exchanged glances and then looked back at her.
“Your... sleeping arrangements... are highly unorthodox.” Gruskluan, the previously fluffy and no longer puff-ball like alien said.
“Are you questioning how I treat my apprentice?” Kara asked, and you could hear the incredulity in her voice. “If you are, then you can keep your mouth shut because no one has the right to question how a master trains their apprentice.”
Gruskluan winced at the venom in her voice.
“A master and their apprentice share a delicate relationship that needs to be built on trust and mutual respect.” Kara said. As she talked, her voice became louder and louder. “For you to think... for any of you to think... that I am mistreating him is absolutely unfounded and completely absurd!”
“Calm down.” One of the other council members said. “No one is questioning your integrity.”
“I certainly hope not.” Kara said and closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them and glared at Gruskluan. “I hold the precepts of The Order in very high regard and I would never do anything to compromise my beliefs or besmirch the reputation of this fine organization.”
No one spoke for several minutes to let Kara calm down some more. I didn't bring up the trust issue between Kara and I, mainly because I wasn't allowed to speak in the council chamber unless spoken to directly, then the meeting officially started. It was another long and boring one, as it almost always was, so I converted the layer of Presence around myself into a solid and relaxed against it. I could have stood there and reinforced my body to stay still; but, why go through the trouble and exhaust myself by using my skills for so long? There wasn't any point, and I could be ready in an instant if anything happened, because I was completely rested the entire time.
Nothing happened, though.
The meeting ended and I followed Kara out of the council chamber and back across the central courtyard. She started to head over to the training grounds and I had to stop her.
“The med-bot said no fighting for three days.” I said.
“I'm not fighting.” Kara said, and I could see that she was still angry about the council accusing her of the mistreatment of her apprentice. “I just need to deal with some frustration.”
“I'm pretty sure that falls under the same category.”
Kara stopped walking and glared at me. “Ullir, do not question me.”
“I wasn't questioning you, Kara.” I said, and her eyes squinted at me. “I'm only concerned about you possibly hurting yourself against the med-bot's orders.”
Kara's face lost its anger and she closed her eyes. “How am I supposed to deal with this situation and how I feel, if I can't deal with it like I usually do?”
“I have an idea.” I said and used my wrist communicator to call someone.
“HI, HI!” Lashina yelled out of the little speaker.
“That was almost a sonic attack, Lashina.” I chuckled, and she giggled.
“I knew you'd like it.” Lashina said. “What can I do for you?”
“Something happened in the council chamber today...”
“Say no more.” Lashina said. “You know where my office is. Bring Master Moor over to me right away.”
“We'll be right there.” I said and ended the call.
“Ullir...” Kara tried to say something, and she stopped talking when I took her hand.
“Come on.” I said and pretty much dragged her back across the courtyard in the other direction and over to the administration building.
“I know where her office is.” Kara said and tried to let my hand go.
“She told me to bring you.” I said and held on, then we entered the building.
“Kara! How are... oh, hello.” The woman at the desk changed her expression from happy to neutral when she saw me. “What can I do for you?”
“I know where I'm going, thanks.” I said to her and walked by the desk as I dragged Kara with me. I saw the woman and Kara exchange looks, and ignored it. Just from the aborted greeting I knew that they knew each other. I took Kara into the lift and went up to the right floor, then led her down to Lashina's office and went inside.
“Ullir!” Lashina said happily and then she giggled. “Long time no see!”
I couldn't help myself and chuckled as I continued the joke. “It has been a long time, hasn't it?”
“I see you brought me a present!” Lashina said and looked at Kara's surprised expression. “I'm joking, of course.” She said. “Please, come with me into the patient area.”
“But...”
“Give Ullir permission to stay here in the waiting room for you.”
“Ullir, you can...”
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“That's good enough.” Lashina said and took Kara's hand from mine. “Ullir, we'll be back in about half an hour. Can you amuse yourself until then?”
“I doubt it.” I said with a smile. “A good prank takes a lot longer than that to set up.”
Lashina giggled and dragged Kara into the back room and shut the door.
I looked around the small office and wondered how many patients she had during the day. Her specialized mental prowess was practically unique among Order members, and it made me wonder why she was here on their home planet and not on a constant tour of all The Order outposts that were scattered all over the place.
I sat down on the small armless couch and didn't try to make myself a nuisance by searching through everything that I could see. With my Detect Presence technique on all the time, I could clearly see that some things glowed more than others, so I knew they were either important or significant. I didn't try to figure out why, though.
I might ask Lashina about them later. I thought and waited patiently.
*
Kara had been surprised at how easily Ullir had talked so familiarly with the short and very pink pixie-like alien, and she had let that alien drag her into a private room and out of Ullir's sight.
“Relax, Master Moor.” Lashina said and pointed to a pair of chairs and sat down on one. “Ullir is concerned about you and he called me to help you.”
“How do you know each other?” Kara asked as she sat down on the other.
“I can't divulge any information about what happened after he graduated training.” Lashina said. “I think it's also classified under Ullir's private files in the archives.”
Lashina smiled as she successfully planted the idea to check the files into Kara's subconscious. She didn't physically put the idea there, since her mental powers didn't work like that; but, just giving her some of the basic information and piquing her curiosity was enough to goad her into doing it.
“So, you seem to have a lot of pent up anger.” Lashina said, and Kara's eyes widened. “Don't worry. Everything we discuss is completely confidential and doesn't get entered into the archives.”
Kara took a deep breath and let it out.
“That's it. Relax.” Lashina said and sat back as she crossed her legs. Her robes fell open and Kara saw that she wore a skirt and not the regulation pants.
“Master Oleneth...”
“Before you start to rant, I have permission from The Wise One to wear a skirt.” Lashina said. “Pants interfere with my movements too much to be practical.”
“He likes seeing you in a skirt, doesn't he?” Kara asked and covered her mouth. “I'm sorry.”
Lashina laughed. “It's all right.” She said and leaned forward to pat Kara's knee once and leaned back. “He definitely appreciates seeing a flash of leg occasionally; but, it really is a practical choice on my part and not rebellious against the pants policy.” She said. “You don't see me walking around and telling every woman I meet that she needs to wear a skirt instead of pants, do you?”
Kara shook her head. “No, in fact I barely see you around at all.”
“It's because I'm so small and short.” Lashina joked.
“You're not short.” Kara said.
“I'm a foot shorter than Ullir and almost two feet shorter than you.” Lashina said, and held a hand up to stop her protest. “There's a reason people refer to my people as pixies and pixie like.” She said. “I think it's the combination of our height and the pink skin.”
Kara took another deep breath and let it out. “Why are we talking about this?”
“I'm calming you down and distracting you.” Lashina said and Kara raised her eyebrows. “I'm not just a pretty face, you know.” She said and smiled. “I've got a great body, too!”
Kara snorted a laugh and covered her mouth again.
“Ha! You thought I was going to say mind.” Lashina said and Kara nodded. “I have that as well and I use it to make people feel better. It's not really a job, since it's more of a tendency on my part.”
“So, you've always done things like this?”
Lashina nodded. “Once I became a member of The Order, they sent me here to take care of the most important members of the organization.”
“The council.” Kara said.
Lashina barked a laugh. “Of course not!”
“But... aren't they...”
“It's the new trainees.” Lashina said. “The next generation. The next flow of Presence in the universe.”
Kara blinked her eyes at that thought, and Lashina leaned forward and pat her knee again.
“There's nothing more important than shaping young minds when you know that they are going to make a huge difference in the world we live in.” Lashina said. “You know what I'm talking about.”
Kara took another deep breath and let it out. “Ullir.”
“He's strong and powerful, and he has a huge potential.” Lashina said. “His command of Presence alone set him above every other trainee.”
“He did graduate very early.” Kara said.
“I don't mean that.” Lashina said. “He could have graduated when he was seven.”
“Wh-what?!?” Kara exclaimed.
“You didn't know?” Lashina asked. “Have you done any research on your apprentice at all?”
“I... I have.” Kara said. “Nothing like that came up.”
“I would suggest talking to a few select individuals... I'll give you a list before you leave... so you can get a more detailed account of what he's gone through.”
“Thank you.” Kara said.
“Now, what happened in the council chamber this morning?” Lashina asked.
“Well, it was like this...” Kara said and told her about what had happened and how she had been accused of being inappropriate with her apprentice, and how she had firmly shut that argument down.
“Hm.” Lashina rubbed her chin. “I suspect they assumed you were having sex with him, despite his age and being your apprentice.”
“I WOULD NEVER!!!”
“Calm down.” Lashina said and pushed Presence out to cover Kara and blocked her Presence, and she calmed down. “I didn't say I assumed that, since I know for a fact that you haven't.”
Kara sighed. “I'm sorry. I overreacted.”
“It's all right; but, you shouldn't have reacted so strongly.” Lashina said and absorbed her Presence back. “Does that mean you, on a personal level, want to have sex with him?”
“Wh-what? No!” Kara exclaimed.
“I didn't mean right now.” Lashina said. “Perhaps at some time in the future when you finally admit your feelings for him.”
“Wh-what? No!” Kara exclaimed.
“Master Moor, I said it's all right.” Lashina said.
“N-no. I... I don't have feelings for him.” Kara said. “He's my apprentice and that's the end of that.”
“Really? So it ended after barely getting started?” Lashina asked.
Kara opened her mouth to change what she said, then closed it.
“Master Moor.” Lashina stood up and stepped close to her.
Kara looked at her in the eyes and saw a depth there that was both appealing and scary.
“You are going to overreact every time someone suggests that you have more than a casual relationship with Ullir, unless you can admit, even to yourself, that you care about him.” Lashina said.
“I... I can't have a relationship with him.” Kara said. “He's not even a proper man yet, and I haven't taught him how to...” She stopped talking and stared at Lashina.
“You want to change him into your ideal man before you admit to yourself, and him, how you feel.”
Kara could only nod, and Lashina took a breath and let it out.
“You have a lot of work to do.” Lashina said, despite her belief that it was fruitless. She also knew that if she tried to discourage Kara's efforts, it would only make things worse between Kara and Ullir, and not better like she wanted it to be. “Good luck.”
Kara didn't say anything as she stood up, nodded slightly to Lashina when she gave her a list of people to talk to about Ullir, then she left the room and shut the door.
“You poor deluded fool.” Lashina whispered sadly. “You need to love him for who he is, not for who you want to change him into.”
*
I stopped looking at the picture on the wall and imagining the water was actually moving, when the door to the private area opened. “How did it go?” I asked after I saw Kara come out and close the door.
“I'm fine.” Kara said and walked over to the door to leave. “Let's go.”
I stood up and looked into the private room with my Detect Presence ability, and Lashina didn't look like she was coming out to say goodbye. So, I gave the wall a little wave and I followed Kara out of the office and down the hallway to the lift. She didn't say anything else as we left the building, not even to the woman she knew behind the desk, and I followed her back to her apartment.
“Since we can't train physically today, I'll teach you a mental technique to sharpen your Presence focus.” Kara said and pulled off her robes and tossed them onto a chair.
“I can already do that.” I said.
“I didn't ask for your opinion.” Kara said and put two pillows from the couch onto the floor and pointed to one. I sat down where she indicated and assumed the lotus position without being asked, and she sat down across from me and did the same thing. “Clear your mind.”
I easily did so and she took a deep breath.
“Now, I want you to concentrate on just the flow of Presence.”
“Which one?” I asked.
“What do you mean?” Kara asked.
“Mine, yours, the room, the people around us, the air, or the planet.” I said. “What one should I focus on?”
Kara blinked her eyes at me for several moments, then gave herself a little shake. “Your own.”
“Done.” I said immediately.
“Ullir, that's not funny.” Kara said. “It takes...”
I held my hand up and swirled the Presence around it like a cloud, then absorbed it again.
Kara stared at me for a moment and then I felt her focus on my Presence flow. “I need you to draw in Presence from the air and pull it into your core.”
“You mean into my soul, right?” I asked, and she blinked her eyes at me.
“I mean into the center of your being.”
“That's the soul.” I said.
Kara opened her mouth, I assume to try and explain if there was a difference. She didn't, though. “Ullir, just do it.”
“How much do you want me to take?”
“As much as you can.”
“Are you sure?”
“Ullir.”
“Yeah, I know. Just do it.” I said and closed my eyes. I didn't need them with Detect Presence active all the time, anyway. I took a very deep breath and let it out, then started to draw in the Presence that was around me. My body started to glow immediately and I pulled in more and more, and the glow brightened. I saw Kara's eyes widen and her eyebrows go up as I pulled in more than she thought I could.
I held in my smile as I activated my own constructed mental technique to cycle Presence throughout my body and started to move it in waves as I gathered even more Presence and added it to my own flow. Kara reached a hand out towards the bright glow around my body and her hand stopped when it touched something solid.
“How are you doing that?” Kara asked.
“It's just a modification of the same technique I use to make solid energy boxes.” I said without opening my eyes. “I stumbled across this technique when...” I stopped talking, because that was when The Order had taken Emari away from me and I had destroyed half a dozen apartments. Kara didn't ask me to finish the sentence, thankfully.
“I need you to change this slightly.” Kara said, and explained what she wanted me to do.
“No.” I said.
“Excuse me?”
“That would weaken my technique and allow others access through my flow of Presence.” I said and opened my eyes to look at her. “Is that what The Order wants? For me to be weak and vulnerable?”
“Wh-what? No.” Kara said in denial. “I was just...”
“So, it's you that wants me to be vulnerable.” I said. “Why?”
“Just do it.” Kara said.
“No.”
“Ullir, you are my apprentice and...”
“...I'll learn anything you want to teach me, as long as it's useful.” I interrupted her. “I will not intentionally make myself weak for you or for anyone else.”
“It's to help you expand your...”
“Lie.” I said and her eyes widened.
“I'm not lying.”
“Then you're delusional, because I felt a tremble in the flow of your Presence just now.” I said and let the extra Presence I had gathered seep back out into the air and let it go. My body tingled all over from holding so much. “Unless you have something important to teach me, I'll go and get lunch ready.”
Kara didn't respond, so I stood up and went to the kitchen to make her meal. I was quite proud of myself that I didn't spit in it.