Shanine sat up on her new bed, easing herself into a comfortable position. From the expression on her face as she did, she would’ve preferred something more comfortable.

Zed watched her go through the process. She adjusted here, twitched there, shivered a bit. It was an amusing process executed in search of a solution. After a while, she settled with a resigned sigh.

Zed chuckled. “Hospitals, right?”

She glared at him for a moment before letting up.

“I’m sure the bed’s nice,” she said. “I’ve just never liked hospitals.”

Zed kept a smile on her face, waiting for her to get her bearings right. When she did, it was with a question he’d been expecting.

“Where are we?” she asked.

Zed looked around as if he hadn’t seen the place before, wondering how best to break the news to her.

Wait. It’s not like she’s one of Heimdall’s. No one said she hates the VHF… But what if she does? He barely kept his frown at his mental argument from his face. There was no point worrying her. She seemed okay with them in the forest so I’m sure it will be goo—

“Hi.”

Zed and Shanine turned their heads at the same time, drawn by the sound of Trevor’s voice. Shanine looked skeptical, aware. Zed was simply intrigued. His voice sounded awkward, nervous.

Zed grinned.

Interesting.

“What’s up, Doc?” he said.

Trevor hesitated. It was enough time for Shanine to respond to his greeting.

“Hello,” she said.

“Hi,” Trevor repeated.

Zed’s grin grew. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing, Ollie?” he asked.

Oliver’s answer was immediate.

“Nope.”

“I am,” Ash said. “I think I like it.”

Zed nodded, but rather than say anything, he held his hand out to Trevor who now stood a few steps away from Shanine’s bed. His place forced Zed to hold his arm across Shanine. Trevor looked at the offered handshake in confusion. After a while, he took it with a resigned sigh.

Holding his hand, Zed shook it once before letting go.

“So,” he said with a mock baritone, “what are your intentions for my daughter over here?”

Shanine smacked him on the shoulder.

“Don’t threaten the doctor,” she chided. “I get that he’s a mage but you shouldn’t make him uncomfortable just because you’re stronger.”

Zed chuckled and was about to respond when something else came to mind, a sudden realization.

“Wait. How do you know he’s a mage?”

Shanine looked at Zed, then Trevor. She leaned closer towards Zed and said with a lowered voice, “He feels like you… kinda.”

A frown creased Zed’s brow.

“He feels like me?” he asked in an equally lowered voice.

Shanine nodded.

“Just not as intimidating,” she added.

Zed’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“You can feel auras?”

“Wait, mages have auras? Like those mumbojumbo hobos and those spiritual people like to talk about?”

“I wouldn’t say like that. Well, you don’t really get good and bad vibes from them.” He paused, tapped a finger to his lips. “Come to think of it, I never really asked. You know what, you might be able to. Just gimme a moment let me check with my encyclopedia of aura.

Shanine frowned at him confusion, eyes searching his person. “And where do you keep this encyclopedia?”

Zed smiled. “The best place possible. I carry it around with me.”

Again, she studied him. “I don’t see anything.”

“Well, that’s because you’re new to this magic thing.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, voice rising in a mix of panic and excitement. “I’m a mage now?”

Zed nodded, his voice grew solemn as he said, “Let’s hope you’ll be a better one than the ones you’ve met.”

Around them, everyone remained silent, as if giving them their moment to converse. Zed’s words seemed to strike a chord in Shanine because her expression grew solemn the moment she heard them. They were pulled back to the forest, the expedition—drawn to the conversation she had held with Chris.

Shanine looked down and away. “I hope so, too.”

Zed nodded, the shook himself. Somehow, the simple action dispelled the sudden solemnity, shook it off like brushed cobwebs.

“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, wanna see my encyclopedia?”

Shanine perked up at that.

“I get to hit you if it’s not magical enough. Deal?”

Zed couldn’t help but smile. “Barely an hour as a mage and you’re already threatening to hit me. Anyway, we’re going tangent. My encyclopedia is voice activated so I’m guessing that should count.”

“Okay,” Shanine agreed, drawing the word skeptically. “And how do you access it? Don’t tell me it’s in your head.”

“Nope. Even better.”

Zed grinned, looking at Oliver. Oliver let out a resigned sigh.

“First I’m Andre,” he muttered under his breath. “Now I’m an encyclopedia.”

Zed chuckled. “Hey, it’s not my fault she’s sensing auras the moment she wakes up. Any idea how that’s happening?”

“If I may?” Trevor asked politely, hand raised. He was yet to cover the remaining steps between him and Shanine’s new bed. When he’d shook Zed’s hand, he had returned to his place, a few steps away from Shanine.

Everyone looked at him.

“What?” he asked, confused. “I’m a doctor that takes care of mages. I think it would be confusing if I didn’t know about their physiology. What I’m trying to say is this: I have a better knowledge of why this is happening than him.” Trevor turned to Oliver. “No offence.”

Oliver shrugged, clearly not offended. “I’d like to hear the answer too. Although…” he frowned then turned to Ash. “Do you remember what your awakening was like?”

Ash shook her head. “I just remember getting strange powers… Also, I think I broke someone’s scale the same day.”

“You had access to weigh yourself when you awakened?” Zed asked, surprised. “And what even gave you the idea to weigh yourself?”

“Because I feel very heavy,” Shanine answered before Ash could. “I’m guessing she felt the same.”

Zed’s brows furrowed. “You’re also more confident. Should I be worried?”

“Worried?”

“Well, the last time you were among mages like me, and,” he held out a hand at Oliver and Ash, “stronger, you were less outspoken.”

“Well—”

“Or is it the rush?”

Shanine looked confused. “The rush?”

Zed leaned forward even though he didn’t need to, peered at her eyes. “You are looking kinda wide-eyed over there, love. I remember when I advanced, I thought I could punch a tree.”

“At Beta category one you should be able to punch through a tree,” Trevor said.

“Not the tree I punched though. It was as big as a sasquatch if it had sex with big foot and surrogated with Yggdrasil.”

“What?”

Zed waved him aside. “Nothing important. The trees were just gargantuan. Anyway, does awakening also give the same feeling?”

“It has been known to. But—”

“That’s not it,” Shanine cut him off. “It’s just…”

“It’s just that you can feel auras now,” Ash finished for her. Then, pointing at Zed, she added: “You can feel his aura now.”

Shanine nodded hestantly.

“And no one’s going to talk about how she just awakened with aura senses when I had to train my balls off to get it,” Zed interrupted.

“You just sat on the ground for a few nights,” Oliver said. “You can barely call that training. Besides, she just awakened in a ball of mana. If that doesn’t scream anime main character, I don’t know what does.”

Zed lulled into thoughtful silence. “When you put it that way it does make sense.”

Besides, if no one was going to complain about the ball of mana, it didn’t seem so surprising that they weren’t too bothered by her ability to sense aura. Still, how normal was it to find awakeneds with oddities. A new thought came swirling in Zed’s mind, causing him to turn his attention back on Shanine.

“What do you mean you can feel me?” he asked. “Like, why does that make a difference?”

“Your aura could be quite intimidating before,” Oliver answered for her. “Now it’s just…”

Zed looked from Shanine to Oliver, then Trevor. When he looked at Ash, she refused to meet his eyes.

“Ash has felt the brunt of it,” Oliver said, as if explaining why his sister would not meet Zed’s eyes. “So did Chris.”

Zed frowned. “Maybe that’s why she wanted to fight me. Maybe it’s why she hates me more than usual now.”

Oliver looked away. “She doesn’t hate you.”

“Let’s not be that kind of story, alright?” Zed snorted. “This won’t be a case of you trying to see the good in her. I’m sure she has some good, but she has more than enough bad, most of them are kept for me. I know it, you know it, even Terent over here knows it.”

“It’s Trevor,” Trevor said without conviction.

A small silence settled between them. It wasn’t necessarily heavy but its presence was subliminal. It did not fill the room, did not settle over them like some wet blanket. But it was there, clear and unflinching.

No one wanted to break it, no one tried.