As the Sorcerers and Mages filed out of the dungeon-like classroom, Velaya lingered behind for her lesson with Magus Tessa.

It had been an uneventful morning. The Mage class were all moving a little slower than normal, keeping their heads down and drinking extra coffee and tea. They had all stayed up too late, some of them having had a few too many drinks. Even Otto wasn’t his usual chipper-self, having to constantly ask people to keep their voices down. They were rewarded with a gruellingly long and mundane theology lesson, adding more homework to their ever-growing pile.

Velaya had eaten a quick lunch before slipping back to her room to grab the package that Nora, the housekeeper in Valreale Castle, had asked her to deliver to her granddaughter. As the last of her classmates left the room, she reached into her pocket and pulled it out.

“I have something for you,” Velaya said, holding the small parcel out for the Sorcerer Magus.

Magus Tessa finished closing the lids of the boxes holding the crystal balls that they had been using during their lesson and strode over to Velaya, her dark eyebrows peaked in curiosity.

“Your grandmother had asked me to give this to you,” Velaya said, watching the instructor closely.

Tessa’s dark lips tilted upward in a small smile as she held the package in her hand. “I really should make an effort to see her more.”

“Why haven’t you? She’s only across the bay,” Velaya asked, thinking back to all the times the housekeeper had taken care of her and the kindness she’d always shown.

“We’ve both been very busy,” Tessa said, putting the package in her pocket. “Shortly after I graduated, the Archmagus was promoted and she offered me a position to stay and teach. I’ve been rather preoccupied with ensuring you all receive a proper education.”

“You must be the youngest Magus ever,” Velaya said in awe. The Archmagus was only promoted at the start of this term, meaning Tessa couldn’t be more than twenty-two. She must be incredibly powerful.

The Sorcerer offered another smile. “Yes, and I owe it all to my grandmother. Her love of the Dark arts passed on to me.”

Velaya started, staring up at Tessa in surprise. “Wait, what? Your grandmother is a Sorcerer?”

“A Mage, like yourself,” Magus Tessa said, her onyx eyes dancing in amusement.

Velaya felt like she’d be hit over the head with a large object. Perhaps she was still suffering the effects of last week’s concussion. “Are we talking about the same person? Nora is a housekeeper for King and Queen Valreale.”

Tessa’s laugh was deep and smokey. “Yes. Nora Fyree was one of the finest Mages to graduate her class when she studied here.” Velaya’s jaw dropped. “Her abilities caught the eye of King Arthur’s father and he offered her a position of employment. She’s been there ever since.”

Velaya was too stunned to speak.

“I’m guessing you did not know she possessed mana?”

“I had no idea,” Velaya managed to say. Was Athone aware?

Again Tessa laughed. “Then she’s still as good as ever at her job.”

“But she only ever took care of the cleaning and tended to the staff and visitors. She waited on me every time I was there,” Velaya shook her head, refusing to accept that the kind elderly lady who’d never shown any hint of magical powers was not what she appeared to be.

“And tell me Miss Rosemore, did you ever feel unsafe when you were there?”

“No…”

“Not all guards wear armour and brandish swords.”

“Is that her true role then?” Velaya said.

“Amongst many others,” Magus Tessa’s voice was thick with adoration. “It appears you still have much to learn. But perhaps we should focus our attention on what I can teach you?”

Velaya nodded. “Yes, of course.”

The Magus took on a more serious tone. “Good. Now tell me, have you had a chance to read any of the book I left with you?”

“Yes, I finished it the other day,” Velaya said, and this time it was Magus Tessa’s turn to blink in surprise.

“You read the entire thing?”

“Yes. It wasn’t that long. But it was quite fascinating. I did not know that Dark magic was capable of so much,” Velaya said, unable to hide the pride in her voice.

Tessa recovered quickly. “Indeed it is. I take it you are now aware that you can fortify your own mind with Dark magic to provide an internal shield of sorts?”

“Yes, but how does that work exactly? The book made it seem like you could keep these shields up permanently. Would that not drain your mana pool?”

“For an untrained Sorcerer or Mage, yes it can. Which, as you are unfortunately aware, is a very dangerous situation. A spellcaster should never be left without mana. So learning to use only what you need is a priority.”

“So how does it work? How do I shield myself at all times without draining my mana?” Velaya asked eagerly, earning a quick smile from the Magus.

“You need to train it,” Tessa explained. “Think of this shield as a guard dog of sorts. Most days it lazes around, quiet and curious. You feed it and offer it the occasional belly rub, earning you its loyalty. In turn, a well trained dog will linger in the shadows, following you around and monitoring its surroundings for any danger. If it senses a threat, it will leap up in protection and prevent anything from happening to you.”

“Understood,” Velaya nodded her head.

“I’d like for you to draw on the Dark now to cast a shield around your mind. And with your permission, I will attempt to break into it.” When Velaya hesitated, Tessa offered a kind smile. “I will not peer through your thoughts. My only intention is to see how strong your shield is.”

“Ok.” Velaya squared her shoulders, receiving an encouraging nod from Magus Tessa.

Her mana pool was waiting for her, having just spent the last few hours fairly active during her class lessons. She reached out to the Dark and drew it into her, focusing on using her mana to fuel a shield of darkness around her mind. From the outside, she looked no different, if anything her blue eyes were a touch brighter. Inside, however, her mind was guarded by a thick cloud of darkness.

Magus Tessa watched her closely, her head tilted slightly to the side. For a moment neither of them said anything before Tessa offered a stunning smile.

“You are powerful,” she said. “I cannot penetrate past your shield.” Velaya beamed up at her. The smile from Tessa then faded, replaced by a frown. “However, as predicted, you’ve expended far too much mana for that to be sustainable for any sufficient amount of time.”

It was Velaya’s turn to frown. She didn’t feel as though she’d used very much.

“You may not feel as though you have,” Tessa continued as though she had entered into her mind, “but a shield powerful enough to keep me out would require a large consumption of mana. You may be capable of sustaining that shield for an hour, two, perhaps even a day or more. Eventually your mana will deplete.”

Not to mention, it is unstable.

Velaya took a step back in surprise as Magus Tessa’s voice filled her head.

Try and push me out, but this time rely only on the Dark shield around your mind to do so.

Velaya reached inside of her, locating the Dark barrier. It was still there, but it seemed unfocused. Unwilling to respond to her nudge towards the Magus’ presence.

“I can’t,” Velaya said, her blonde brows furrowed in concentration.

I would have been very surprised if you could.

“How do I do it?”

“As I said,” Tessa spoke aloud, “it requires training. Your shield is a pup. The prize of the litter, but a pup nonetheless. As you hold it in your mind, it wriggles and squirms. It is unfocused and undisciplined. You need to feed it, give it your attention. But you cannot do so all at once for it will only react in that moment, instead of sitting patiently and waiting. Once you reward it, slowly and over time, the two of you will grow together. Only then will it learn to be proactive and protect you, even in your subconscious.”

“Ok but how do I feed it?” Velaya asked, still trying to nudge the shield around inside her head.

Expel your Dark and release the shield, Miss Rosemore.

Magus Tessa waved her hand in the air and the room was plunged into darkness. The same darkness she had used within their lessons.

Velaya nodded, and forced the Dark from within her out towards the darkness in the room. Similar to during their class lessons it was expelled and they were bathed in torchlight once again.

“What I would like for you to do over the course of the week, until we meet again, is to focus on drawing in Dark magic. But only draw in a tiny amount each time. Just take little sips, once or twice an hour. Instead of expelling it, I want you to hold onto it. Do not worry about casting a shield. I only wish for you to practise drawing in a miniscule amount of Dark each time and to let that sit within you.”

“Ok, I can do that,” Velaya said.

Magus Tessa smiled. “Good. Typically when we draw on magic it’s with the intention of casting spells and you are accustomed to immediately expelling it. But if you are not used to holding magic within you for an extended period of time, even a tiny amount of it, it may become uncomfortable. This is why it is important you only draw in a little bit, so you do not become overwhelmed.”

Velaya shifted a bit, the idea of letting magic fester inside didn’t sound that appealing.

“I recognize that I may be asking a lot of you with this task,” the Sorcerer’s dark eyes were intense. “But learning to overcome this discomfort will be crucial in your ability to protect yourself. It will also help your Dark catch up to where your other levels of magic are, which will improve your balance and overall magical control.” Velaya nodded in agreement. “If you draw too much Dark or you find the storage of it within you to be too intense, you can use your crystal ball to release some of it. That should help ease the pressure. Though I do hope you will battle through it as I’m sure you do not wish to set your training back.”

“I will,” Velaya promised, and meant it. There was no way she would resort to using that crystal ball.

“Very good. Then I shall see you again in a week’s time to further these lessons.”

“Thank you Magus. I cannot express how appreciative I am for your teachings,” Velaya said earnestly, picking up her satchel.

“Then you can compensate me by focusing your time and energy on your assignment and your studies-”

And a little less on the wine. That goes for your classmates as well.

The Sorcerer’s eyes seemed to twinkle as Velaya flushed a deep red before nodding and heading towards the door.

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

“One more thing Miss Rosemore,” Magus Tessa called and Velaya turned back. “If my grandmother did not wish for her identity to be revealed, I must ask that you continue to carry that quietly with only yourself.”

“Yes of course,” Velaya said, offering a smile and exiting the room.

As she stepped out into the hallway, she paused for a moment and turned her eyes back to the classroom. Magus Tessa was still standing where Velaya had left her. She was staring down at something she was holding in her hand. Her face, normally so cool and calm, was full of sadness. Velaya watched as she wiped a tear from her face before continuing down the hallway to where Rose stood waiting for her.

“How was your lesson,” Rose asked as the two of them made their way through the Tower. “I don’t suppose you learned anything about how to clear a headache?”

“No, I didn’t.”

Velaya chuckled softly when Rose moaned. She turned to look back over her shoulder wondering what Nora could have given her granddaughter to cause that type of reaction. Whatever it may have been, Velaya was relieved she hadn’t opened it.

“What is it?” Rose questioned.

Velaya shook her head, “It’s nothing.”

“So what has the scary Sorcerer got you working on now?” Rose asked and Velaya told her of her lessons as the two of them left the Tower together.

~~~

To say that Velaya felt uncomfortable was an understatement. Over the course of the week, as she slowly added more and more Dark magic to her mana pool, she grew increasingly irritated. She hardly noticed it after the first day but her discomfort began to grow apparent after her first lesson with the Shamans.

She had been looking forward to studying with Magus Tytus and to finally be able to draw on the Elements again. She couldn’t remember a span of time when she had not reached out to them and she felt as though a part of her was missing. But she had remained true to her word to the Archmagus. She was disappointed when the Shaman Magus did not permit her to participate in the practical session of the lessons. Instead she was given more tomes to study while the rest of the class worked towards extinguishing a candle flame.

“It’s a good thing, Princess,” Rose had said afterwards. “This will help with your balance. We all know you’ve no trouble calling on the Elements. You’re not missing anything.”

She knew that Rose was calling her Princess out of endearment, and she was the only one she would allow to do so, but that didn’t stop Velaya from scowling at her.

Later on in the week during a potion lesson, Otto had accidentally knocked over a vial of putrid green liquid onto Velaya’s notes, causing her to demand he be more careful. During her Divination lessons, she had filed every prophecy she read as ‘UNRELIABLE’ despite the glaring evidence that supported the events were accurate.

Every night her classmates stayed up late in an attempt to keep up with the demands of their schooling and homework, and instead of sitting with them at the table she folded herself into a chair by the large fireplace the first few nights before eventually secluding herself in her room.

She knew she was being unpleasant and each morning woke with a sense of regret for how she behaved the day before and often spent breakfast apologising to her friends. They didn’t seem too phased by it, but she did notice they had offered her a bit more space than they had the previous week.

The tipping point came nearly a week later, on a Sunday afternoon. She’d been up early helping Magus Ossacus in the infirmary. After the second week of classes there were far more injuries. At first the work served as a nice distraction but as the morning went on, and her fatigue grew, she became quiet and withdrew from helping and instead perched herself in the back office, working on homework. The Magus eventually released her, citing her taking up valuable space, but not before informing her that the Archmagus was ready to see her that afternoon for her private lesson.

She’d been excited for it and looked forward to being told she was able to use her Elemental magic and be relieved of her duties in the infirmary. But when the Headmistress met with her, they weren’t together for more than five minutes. Archmagus Ena had tested her magical balance again, and while the Dark and Physical magics had made improvements, Ena insisted that she continue on the same course and dismissed her.

Her failure at not being able to realign her magic weighed heavily on her. She’d expected herself to be able to do it in one week - a task the Archmagus had advised was unlikely. Combined with the weight of the Dark magic demanding to be released, and her mana not being permitted to call on the Elementals she was decidedly frenetic by the time she joined her classmates in the first-year’s common building.

She hadn’t bothered saying hello when she sat with a huff at the end of the table next to Rose, everyone avoided making eye contact with her. Everyone except the Sorcerer, Zyler Vance.

“What’s the matter, Majesty? Did Ena forget to tuck you in last night?” Zyler called out from the corner nearest them. He was sitting in the chairs there with a few other Sorcerers, none of whom had bothered to say more than two words to her since arriving at Manatide, who snickered away.

“Zip it Vance,” Rose spat at him, as others in the room paused.

“Or what? I’ll find an icicle through my chest?” Zyler sneered.

Velaya froze, her eyes stopped seeing the words on the scroll in front of her. Her anger and frustration bubbled to the surface and she had to close her eyes to focus on keeping her mana locked down.

“Breathe, Velaya,” Rose whispered quietly, her posture stiff.

“Ignore him,” Ingrid urged from across the table. She shot Zyler a scathing look. “He’s not worth it.”

“Careful now, Scars,” Zyler said, holding his hands up in mock concern, “we can’t have you losing control and burning the building down.”

Velaya snapped. Instead of reacting with her mana, she leapt from the table and launched herself at Zyler. His eyes widened for a moment in surprise and just before Velaya managed to connect with him, a pair of strong arms grabbed her around the waist, holding her back and pinning her against a hard chest. Her emotions completely overwhelmed her. She was so focused on not reacting to her mana pool’s violent need to be called on, that she was unable to control the rest of her body and fought wildly against the unbreaking grip on her.

Zyler’s shock had been replaced by mocking laughter as he and the others with him howled. She was vaguely aware of being dragged backwards and out of the building while her classmates and others stood in shock, some of them launching insults at Zyler. A few of the Paladins who had been studying at the opposite end of the room, Max Cobb included, had jumped up and joined in the sudden fray.

“Relax Vel,” Athone hissed in her ear. He grunted from the effort of dragging her flailing body down the yard and beyond the residence buildings towards a deserted area near the shore.

“Let go of me!” she screamed out, her throat throbbed in protest.

“Not until you calm down,” Athone strained. “You’re not in control right now and I can’t let you-”

“Shut up and let me go!”

She managed to land a kick against his kneecap, and he swore in pain as his grip slacked for a second. It was all she needed to slip out. Instead of running back up towards the dormitories, she rounded on him.

“I am in control!” she yelled, pushing him in the chest as hard as she could with both hands. He barely moved more than an inch.

“It doesn’t look that way,” Athone said, his green eyes alight with challenge.

“Fuck you, Athone! You don’t know a Gods damn thing about me!” If she had been in control of herself, she would’ve felt terrible at the way she’d made him wince.

“Well go on then. Hit me,” he growled. “Let it out.”

Her breathing was quick and heavy and she tried to gulp down as much sea air as she could. “I’m not going to hit you! That asshole Vance? He has it coming!”

“No one is denying that but he’ll clobber you,” Athone reasoned and she shook her head. She was partially aware of someone approaching her, but Athone had thrown his hand out towards them and they stopped their advance.

“Take it out on me instead,” he said. He had remained calm the entire time, which only fueled her anger.

“No! I’m going back!” she started to turn.

“You’ve been a miserable, spoiled brat,” he said, causing her to turn back around, her blue eyes bright and wide. “Everyone’s been walking on eggshells with you all damn week. All because you can’t handle your own abilities.” He let out a quick barking laugh. “You can’t possibly think you deserve to be here, do you?” Velaya’s lips curled, her teeth barring. “You’re the future of Bellaurose? Ha!” He took a step closer to her, their chests touching. “You’d better hope Doriel doesn’t drown at sea or we’re all fucked.”

She threw a punch straight at his face. Athone grabbed her fist, and held it in midair, bringing his face to within an inch of hers. He could feel her breath on his chin. “That's all you got?”

She went for the element of surprise and tried to kick him, which he dodged with ease, knocking her own feet out from under her. At the same time, he twisted her fist causing her to yelp in pain as she was forced to turn her back to him and he tackled her easily onto the ground. He wrapped his arms around hers, pinning them to her body and straddled over her back.

“You’re far too weak to beat me,” he whispered into her ear. His voice was low, a purr.

“Get off me!”

“Force me off.”

“I can’t! You’re too damn strong”

“You’re a Mage, Velaya.”

“What’s that supposed to mean,” Velaya panted.

“Use your magic.”

“I can’t!” she attempted to throw her head backwards, but Athone easily dodged it.

“Can’t or won't?”

She tried to jerk her body back, but he was far too solid. “I’m not allowed to! You know this! Get off!”

“All of it?” he crooned.

She stiffened. Not only had she been fighting against him, she’d been desperately trying to keep her mana at bay, not wanting to draw on the Elements or risk expelling all the Dark she’d been storing up. But no one said anything about her using the Light.

She reached into her mana pool and within half a second the Light flowed through her. If Dark magic was used on the mind, the Light was used on the body. She let it fill her, instantly providing her with an unnatural strength. She yelled out as she let her newfound strength ripple through her and lurched backwards

Athone careened off of her, knocked backwards onto the grass behind her. She didn’t waste a moment and sprung forward to straddle his chest. She raised her fist and was about to smash it down towards his face when she caught the look in his eyes and froze.

He was smiling. Triumphant.

For a moment neither of them moved, both of them breathing heavily. As she stared down into his face, the pressure and anger that had been working its way to the surface for the past week ebbed away. The Light magic within her expelled and only the silent hum of the Dark magic lingered. The realisation of what she’d done, and how she’d behaved crashing through her like surf against the rocky shores.

“Athone…” she breathed. “Athone I’m so sorry.” She could not fight the tears that began to fall.

Athone sat up so quickly she almost fell backwards but he wrapped his arms around her back and held onto her. She buried her face into his shoulder and let the tears flow. She sat there in his lap for a few minutes, until both of their breathing steadied and her eyes dried. Eventually she pulled her head back so they were face to face. Athone reached up to place a hand on her cheek and used his thumb to wipe away the dampness. Her breathing may have slowed but her heart was now beating furiously. A tense moment, where both of their eyes searched deep within the others, passed.

“Feel better?” he eventually asked, his voice thicker than usual.

“You wound me up on purpose?” she whispered.

His smile was cheeky. “But do you feel better?”

She did. Her mana was satisfied with the release of Light magic and her Dark magic sat content in the corner. Even her Elemental needs felt at ease. The irritation that had been festering all week had vanished. Velaya didn’t trust herself to speak, so she nodded and pushed herself off of him to stand. He pulled himself to his feet quickly and placed his hands on her shoulders.

“I’m not suggesting that fighting will solve your problems,” he said quietly, “but there’s something to be said about combat training. It can help take the edge off. Not to mention it’s important for someone like you. If you ever need to blow off some steam, I’m more than willing to be your punching bag. I may even be able to teach you a thing or two for once and by the time we have our actual magical combat lessons, you’ll be miles ahead of everyone else. Like you usually are.”

His offer was earnest and she’d never felt more appreciative of him. “That sounds like a good idea.”

Athone laughed then, a satisfied release after a tense few minutes. “You did get me pretty good on the knee though, I must admit.”

“Gods Athone, I’m so sorry,” she groaned and knew her face was bright red with embarrassment, shame and something more. Something that settled deep within her stomach that she didn’t want to look at closely.

“Don’t worry about it,” he chuckled. “Besides, if you do manage to hurt me, you can use that fancy Druid magic of yours to heal me up. Two birds as they say.”

Despite herself, Velaya smiled.

“Shall we go see if Max needs escorting to the infirmary again?” Athone tucked her under his shoulder and together they walked back towards the dormitories.

“You two done being idiots then?” Rose hollered. Apparently she’d been sitting in the grass waiting for them. She stood up, dusting her charcoal breeches off when they approached.

“Rose, I’m so sorr-” Velaya started.

“Don’t be.” Rose cut her off. “You earned me three copper.” At the look of confusion on Velaya’s face, Rose laughed. “Otto thought Athone had your number.” Her grey eyes landed on Athone’s arm around her shoulder, and for a moment they seemed to lighten ever so slightly. “He’s a damn fool.” The accompanying smile Rose offered Velaya made her uncomfortable, and she ducked out from under Athone’s arm.

“Who else bet on me?” Athone asked.

“No one,” Rose said as the three of them continued walking.

Athone frowned. “Not even Devon?”

“Heavens no. He and Victor were too busy taking care of Vance.”

“Are they ok?” Velaya asked, startled.

“Oh yes,” Rose said cheerfully. “A bunch of Magi showed up shortly after you left. Carted a bunch of them off to the Headmistress’ office. I’m sure we’ll all be punished with so much homework we won’t be able to talk to one another again.”

Velaya groaned. “I’m so sorry.”

“It was worth it,” Rose said, “You should’ve seen his face when Cerwan shapeshifted into a mountain lion. I’d be willing to write a ten foot long scroll tonight just to see that again.” Rose waved her hand. “Come on, we’re all going to celebrate at dinner. With a little less alcohol this time.” Athone laughed and Velaya smiled, feeling lighter than she had all week.