Arcane Dropout 5

by Edmund Hughes

  CHAPTER 30

  Lee checked his phone when he woke up, only to find he’d missed a text. It was short, a singular, cryptic word that contained enough horrible implication to ruin his entire day.

  ZOE: TOMORROW

  She’d sent it shortly before midnight, so her ‘tomorrow’ was now his today.

  He swore under his breath and briefly debated tapping out an equally cryptic no or maybe hell no in reply before resigning himself to the fact it would change nothing.

  Harold’s soft mewling pulled his attention away from his sister just long enough for him to notice the sickly kitten and Tess’s worried form crouched over him. Her hair was messy, and her face was tired, though Lee had always found it strange how she still suffered from the same symptoms of skipping sleep as a ghost in full control of her appearance.

  “Lee,” she whispered. “I’m really worried about him. He’s only gotten worse since yesterday.”

  He crouched down near the kitten, feeling a bit callous as he tried to view it as more than just another problem on his plate.

  “I doubt there’s a vet within a hundred miles of Primhaven,” he muttered. “But… there is a druid, isn’t there? How about I ask Willow to take a look at him?”

  Tess nodded enthusiastically. Lee pulled her into his mystic stream and brushed a few stray strands of hair back from her cheek.

  “I’m going to watch over him today,” she said. “You’re okay with that?”

  “You have the biggest heart of anyone I know, Tess. Of course, I’m okay with it.”

  She flashed a dimpled grin. “You sweet-talker. Make sure you keep it up for Eliza. And be mindful of your interactions with other women while you’re supposed to be her boyfriend!”

  “Save your motherly doting for the kitten.”

  The college was abuzz with activity. Students ran around in groups of all sizes, happy to be skipping out on their regularly scheduled classes. Head Wizard Odarin was recruiting volunteers to pass out pamphlets, the very same ones Lee and Willow had been drafted into folding the previous day.

  The bottom dueling chamber had been converted into a dueling arena for the exhibition. Every other panel in the outer wall had been removed, and raised rows of seating had been set up, opening the space to the outside air in the fashion of an amphitheater.

  Lee wondered if Harper was already in the process of preparing for her opponent. The exhibition wasn’t until noon, giving him some time to address the other responsibilities he’d taken on. He scanned over the surging crowd, searching for familiar faces.

  The parents and family members of current students had come to the college through the Arcane Way for the occasion, along with potential future enrollees. It was a normal enough scene, but somehow strange to him.

  He’d only ever had his sister, and there’d been significant gaps in their relationship over the years. Seeing the families of his fellow classmates in every direction made him realize just how much he was missing out on. It was hard to ignore for once.

  He was in the process of heading toward Eliza’s dorm when he realized someone was following him. He slowed his footsteps, trying to sneak a peek over his shoulder. His pursuer closed the distance before he could.

  “Pssst,” came a familiar, feminine voice. “Eldon.”

  “No fucking way.”

  He’d resigned himself to the fact that Zoe wouldn’t be stopped from showing up at Primhaven, stubborn as she was. Seeing her arrive in a disguise no more than a baseball cap and a cheap pair of aviators almost made him want to stomp his foot and make a scene. The concerned brother infuriated by his sister’s choice of outfit. Maybe he wasn’t missing out on all that much.

  “I told you I’d come pick the book up myself,” she said with a smile.

  “This is insane.” He massaged his temples, trying to get ahead of his headache. “There are so many ways you could have gone about this that would have been more convenient and less dangerous. Zoe… you’re basically a wanted woman.”

  “Hence the disguise.”

  “Why didn’t you just find another copy? You had the book’s title. Libraries exist elsewhere in the world.”

  “I tried. Brigmund’s Enchantment Analysis is apparently one of the rarest books in existence.”

  “I could have mailed it to you.”

  “Think about what the postage would have been like from here to Lestaron Island.”

  “Postage? Zoe, are you trying to fucking—”

  “Look, I’m here.” She stepped forward and set a hand on his shoulder. “What’s done is done. It might just happen to be the case that this isn’t just about the book. Maybe I know what it feels like to be at Primhaven for the open house without any family. Maybe I didn’t want you to have to experience that.”

  “Maybe I would have managed fine, anyway.”

  “Maybe, maybe not. Look around, Eldon. With all this chaos, there’s almost no chance I’ll be spotted. Setting aside Harper, nobody would even be able to place my face.”

  “Why are we setting aside Harper?”

  “Oh, I’m sure she’ll have other business to attend to.”

  Lee sighed. He flicked his finger against the side of her sunglasses. “Couldn’t you have at least splurged on some Ray-Bans?”

  “I think these go with my cheekbones better.”

  He started walking with her back toward his dorm, hoping if he gave her the book quickly, he would have one less ball to juggle for the day.

  “How did you get here, anyway?” he asked. “I somehow doubt it was through the Arcane Way, and Primhaven’s front gate has been watched a lot more closely since the tension with the Independent Coalition picked up.”

  “Ryoko set up an anchor point through the college’s steam baths.”

  Lee furrowed his brow at that. “You could have mentioned that back when Harper and I were attempting to return to the school during the incident with the Melting Pack.”

  “We aren’t exactly interested in advertising the fact. She would have done something to lock it down if she’d… Oh, I think you have someone waiting for you!”

  Zoe grinned and rubbed Lee’s shoulder affectionately. Eliza was waiting outside his dorm, family in tow. Lee was a bit taken aback by how anxious he suddenly felt as he watched the eyes of Eliza’s mother, father, and two sisters settle on him. Especially her father, a man he’d had the displeasure of meeting once before.

  Eliza was dressed in a floral-printed sundress, with amber earrings and a pendant that nestled just above the alluring crease of her cleavage. She’d done her makeup and straightened her hair, making it clear to him that the casual nature of the open house didn’t extend to her expectations for the day.

  “Lee!” Her smile was a touch nervous as she approached him. “I was looking for you.”

  He took her hands into his and kissed her. Zoe let out an exaggerated gasp, which only served to make him that much more aware and thrown off balance by her presence.

  “Eliza, hey,” he said. “This is my sister, Zoe.”

  “You finally got yourself a living, breathing girlfriend!” Zoe grinned and hurried to pull Eliza into a hug. “Eldon, I am beyond proud of you.”

  “Um…” Eliza looked confused. “Your sister’s here?”

  “Complicated,” he whispered.

  “Well, uh, this is my family,” she said, clearing her throat. “You’ve met my dad, Martin, before.”

  “Lee.” Eliza’s dad glowered at him openly. “I see you and my daughter have become serious with one another.”

  “We have,” lied Lee.

  “This is my mom, Allison,” said Eliza. “And my older sisters, Sam and Molly.”

  “It’s so nice to meet you, Lee,” said Allison.

  “Likewise,” he said.

  The two sisters grinned at each other, and then at Eliza. All three women looked remarkably similar, with varying shades of red hair, various levels of freckles, and green eyes that seemed to be actively sizing Lee up.

/>   “So, you’re an initiate, like Eliza?” asked Molly.

  “Yeah, still a first year,” he said.

  “Where did you live before you came to Primhaven?” asked Sam.

  “Montana. It was nice there. I miss it sometimes.”

  “So, Lee,” said Molly in a casual tone. “Did you take Eliza’s virginity?”

  He was glad he hadn’t been drinking something because he would have sprayed it out.

  “Uh…”

  “Molly, that’s a rather forward question,” said Allison. “But you can answer it if you want, Lee, since she did ask. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious, too. Eliza used to be so shy when it came to talking to boys.”

  “Mother!” hissed Eliza.

  “It’s true!” Allison let out a good-natured chuckle. “She used to do this mumbling thing where she’d stutter and repeat herself. But now she’s finally bloomed!”

  Eliza let out an annoyed groan and covered her face. Lee set his hand on her shoulder.

  “If you can believe it, Eldon’s story is almost the very same,” said Zoe, grinning. “Eliza is his first real, live girlfriend. I’m so happy he’s in a relationship rather than perpetuating his old, unhealthy outlets for his needs.”

  Lee felt his face heat up as Allison and her daughters nodded sagely in agreement.

  “Your real name is Eldon, then?” asked Allison.

  “It is,” Zoe answered for him. “He insists on Lee. A hangover from his rebellious phase. I continue to pine for the day he grows out of it.”

  “I love your glasses, by the way,” said Molly.

  “I love your shoes!” said Zoe.

  “Can we talk about Eliza’s dress?” said Sam.

  Lee felt himself tuning the conversation out as Eliza, her mother, and the various sisters all began the girl talk in earnest. Martin scowled at him, making his disinterest in any sort of exchange plain to see.

  He stood there, out of place and out of depth, and waited. And waited.

  Eventually, Allison said something about bringing Molly and Sam to visit Instructor Escher who’d been their favorite teacher, and he came back to reality.

  “I’m going to go with them,” said Zoe. She grinned, making it clear she wasn’t asking for permission, almost daring him to make a scene. Eliza’s family departed with Lee’s sister clumped onto their group, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Sorry,” said Eliza. “I should have prepared you for that. My family is so dysfunctional.”

  “At least it’s spread out among multiple family members. My sister and I alternate between loving each other and trying to murder each other.”

  “I’m surprised she came here, given what you’ve told me about her. I like her, though. She’s really confident.”

  “She likes you too, which is kind of a big deal. She despises Tess.”

  The awkwardness birthed from his offhand comment made him wonder why he’d said it in the first place. They stood there not looking at each other for a few seconds of silent torture before Lee found a convenient diversion.

  “Look! There’s Toma.”

  He pointed across the green toward the Seruna Center, where Toma was standing with a gray-haired man in a business suit who could have only been his father. Lee and Eliza were out of earshot, but it was clear from the posture of the two men—along with Toma’s frustrated hand movements—that they were in the middle of a heated argument.

  “Oh no,” whispered Eliza.

  “Yeah. Toma told me his dad wants him to leave Primhaven, regardless of what he wants.”

  Eliza’s face twisted with concern. Toma shouted the final word at his father and stomped off into the orchard.

  “You should go talk to him,” said Eliza.

  “You don’t want to come along?”

  “I think it’s better if you go alone. I’ll go find my family and your sister.”

  “Alright. I’ll catch up with you later.”

  Eliza nodded. Lee was about to split off from her when he remembered that, at least for the day, she was still his girlfriend. He stepped in close, smiling a sheepish smile as he gave her a long kiss.

  “I can’t believe your sister asked if I took your virginity,” he muttered.

  Eliza blushed. “I’m so sorry.”

  “It’s kind of hilarious, actually. You can tell her that yes, I did.”

  “You sound proud.”

  “I am.”

  Eliza rolled her eyes. “You’re such a boy.”

  “I’m just saying… I’m glad I got to be your first. It’s the meaning that matters to me, not the conquest.”

  “Well, when you put it like that, it sounds kind of sweet,” she said. “But I’m still not telling them.”

  CHAPTER 31

  Lee split off from Eliza and hurried after where he’d seen Toma disappear into the trees. It wasn’t hard for him to find his friend, as he’d settled into one of their usual spots. Toma held a lit joint in one hand, cannabis smoke snaking up in a twisting line from the burning tip.

  “Want some?” asked Toma, holding it out.

  “Maybe another time. I saw you arguing with your dad.”

  “Yup.” Toma took a long hit, coughed, and shook his head. “Family sucks sometimes. I just don’t want to deal with my life today, so I figured… drugs.”

  “Seems a logical and healthy progression.”

  “Yup.”

  Lee took a seat across from him, leaning back against the trunk of a tree. “What’s the verdict? Is your father calling you home?”

  “Yup.”

  “You don’t sound like you’re in much of a mood to talk about it.”

  Toma sighed. “I’m just in a mood to feel sorry for myself, I guess.”

  “You’re allowed to, sometimes.”

  Toma nursed the joint for a minute before saying anything else. “I don’t want to leave. I really don’t. Primhaven feels like my home now, you know?”

  “I do. I really do.”

  “I thought when I first came to Primhaven that it was my first step toward being an independent adult. The beginning of my ‘real life,’ you could say. Now, I feel more like a child than ever. Arguing with my father in public. I’m fucking cracked.”

  He took a long hit and blew the smoke upward and into the sunbeams sneaking through the gaps in the shadows of the trees.

  “When are you leaving?” asked Lee.

  “Today. After the open house.”

  “Seriously? Your dad isn’t even letting you finish the semester?”

  “Nope. He’s not happy with the way Odarin handled the situation with Kei, and the homicidal drama with Mattis and Gen. I suppose it makes sense from his perspective.”

  Lee didn’t say anything. He gestured to the joint, and Toma passed it to him.

  “Guess there might not be another time,” he said.

  “There had better be,” said Toma. “I’ll send you my address. I’m expecting you to come visit.”

  “Of course.” Lee took what he thought was a small hit, coughing as he exhaled. “You might not be at Primhaven, but you’ll still be my friend.”

  “Always.”

  A squirrel climbed up the tree next to Lee. He stared at it, watching it lick its hands or fingers. Paws? Claws?

  “Are they fingers or paws, you think?”

  “What?”

  “The squirrel.”

  Toma snorted. “You are baked, Lee. I should have warned you about how strong that weed was. I hope you don’t have anything else to take care of today.”

  ***

  Lee was painfully aware of how dazed he must have looked as he made his way to where the viewing stands had been set up around the open dueling chamber. The sun was out, and it felt bright and harsh against his suddenly much more sensitive eyes.

  Zoe was waiting for him at the bottom of the stair aisle that led to the upper seating areas. He’d spent more time talking with Toma than he’d realized, and the duel was no more than a few minutes
away from beginning. Much of the crowd had already filed in, and a measure of expectant tension bubbled through the conversation of the people in the stands.

  Zoe waved him over, her smile turning to a deep frown as he drew within smelling distance. “Seriously, little brother? You smell like you took a tour through a grow-op.”

  “I promise I didn’t inhale,” he said in a mocking tone. “Come on, I’ll take you to get the book now, so you can get out of here.”

  He grabbed his sister’s hand and started pulling, but she stayed where she was.

  “I’m already here. I might as well enjoy the show. I saved us both seats up by Eliza and her family.”

  “Zoe, you can only push your luck so far. Harper might look for me in the stands, and if she sees you sitting next to me…”

  “She won’t. My disguise is foolproof.”

  She adjusted her aviators as though to punctuate her point and started walking. Lee’s reaction time wasn’t at its best, and in the end, he could do little more than follow after her.

  The seats she’d secured them were just across the aisle from Eliza’s family, which was no small blessing. The last thing he needed was another intensive probing about his and Eliza’s sex life in his current head state. She smiled and waved to him when she saw him arriving with his sister and he blew her back a kiss.

  Zoe had one of the open house informational pamphlets in her hand and seemed to be giving its inner contents a serious reading. A realization clicked into place in Lee’s head as he considered what Harper had told him about her upcoming opponent.

  “You’re invested in this, aren’t you?” he asked. “This is a duel between Harper, who you once loved, and the boy you were dating when the two of you first developed feelings for each other.”

  “Judging from this photo, he’s now a man. Quite the man, in fact. Carter Depree. One of the Order of Chaldea’s other rising stars.”

  Zoe let her finger caress the face of the blond-haired man’s image within the pamphlet. She looked pensive rather than heartbroken or jilted, and she’d certainly had the time to do plenty of thinking already over the years.