Birgit
Birgit could not believe she was having lunch with both the prince and princess in a luxurious private dining room that she had not even known existed on campus. The prince had even given her permission to address him without his title, and of course, the princess already had. They were treating her as a peer. She had always known how handsome the prince was, but she had never expected him to be so nice as well.
“I think the solar elves made the most compelling case for including them on our team,” the prince said. “And having the only solar elves in our class on our team could give us a distinct advantage in the ruins of one of their former cities.”
They had already gone through the merits of each of the classmates who had asked to join their team once, eliminating more than half of them, and it felt like they were close to arriving at a decision.
“But can we trust them?” Vedika asked. “You know elves always have plans of their own.”
“What would they have to gain by not helping us, though?” Advick countered. “Should any harm come to us, it would be a stain on their honor, while being part of the winning team would earn them accolades. Not to mention one of their rivals already dishonored himself, so this is a chance to further strengthen their diplomatic advantage over the lunar elves. I see no advantage to them in not giving their all to help us succeed, and both of them are quite formidable. What do you think, Birgit?”
This was not the first time the prince had asked for her opinion, so Birgit was ready and responded promptly. “I have had no actual contact with Jabari, but Sinja provided some very useful insight on Yarl before our match with him, though admittedly, it was in her interest to have us beat the lunar elf.”
Vedika sighed and reluctantly agreed. “It would also be a good diplomatic move, a show of trust and cooperation with the solar elves, and an incentive for the lunar elves to try harder to win our favor. It could also be useful to have a bond with the pair in the future. We will have to be cautious, but I agree they are probably our best option. We can let them know today and officially present our team in class tomorrow.”
“Excellent,” Advick proclaimed. “Now, let us enjoy the rest of our lunch without talking about business.”
“One more thing before we relax,” Vedika countered. “We need to talk about our preparations. I think we should spend each of our long weekends, before the field study begins, hunting crystals. I have already researched some suitable locations and have sites picked out. Will you and Niles be available to join us, Birgit? I do not mean to pry into the details of your contract, but is there any way you can arrange for Niles to stay in this plane for the full duration of our practice hunts and more importantly for the complete two weeks of the field study.”
“I believe I can,” Birgit answered. “Niles has been quite accommodating with his time. Will you agree to that, Niles?”
“I’m sure we can work something out,” Niles answered with a smirk that Birgit hoped the twins did not notice. “This whole field study thing sounds like it’ll be fun.”
“Ha, that is the spirit,” Advick laughed.
Vedika nodded approvingly. “Good, but I would like to keep our first practice hunt to just us. We can include the elves once we have gotten used to working with each other, but I do not want to overcomplicate things all at once. We could leave this Fifthday first thing in the morning.”
“Could we leave right after classes on Thurs… I mean Fourthday?” Niles asked. “That would give us almost an extra half-day of hunting.”
“I like your spirit, Niles,” Advick commended. “But alas, my sister and I have to attend a boring state dinner that evening.”
“We should invite Birgit and Niles to join us,” Vedika suggested, smiling at them. “They could be our escorts.”
“Yay, a boring state dinner, how fun,” Niles said with mock enthusiasm.
Vedika bumped Niles’ shoulder with hers almost playfully. “It will not be that bad, especially if you two are there. And it will be a good chance for Birgit to meet some important people.”
“Was Baron Ganud not trying to arrange for his son to be your escort?” Advick asked his sister.
Vedika rolled her eyes. “All the more reason for me to go with Niles. I swear, if I have to be escorted by that pompous oaf one more time, I will go into exile in the wilderness.”
Advick turned to Birgit. “Well, as long as you are willing, I think that would be a splendid idea. It will give us a chance to introduce a part of our field study team.”
Birgit was almost too stunned to realize everyone was waiting for her to respond. “I would be honored to accompany you, Advick.”
She was going to a state dinner with Prince Advick. Never would she have believed such a thing was even possible. If the rumors were true, and he was to be the next king. He would need a kappa consort. Did she dare even dream of being a royal consort? But wait, what of Niles? Just this morning, she had been ready to take drastic steps to convince him to be her familiar-husband. If her mother knew being a royal consort was a possibility, would she still have pushed Birgit to pursue Niles? Were either of those things even possible? Which should she pursue? What did she want?
“Birgit?”
She suddenly realized Vedika had been talking to her, and she had completely missed what she had said. “I am sorry, I missed that. My mind wandered for a moment. I have never been to a state dinner before. What should I wear?” Birgit hoped that would explain her rudeness, because she certainly could not voice what she had really been thinking.
Vedika laughed. “I was just asking if you minded if I borrowed Niles after classes today to have him fitted for a suit to match the dress I will wear. It seems perhaps my brother should take you to be fitted for something that will match him as well.”
“It would be my pleasure,” Advick asserted.
Birgit was just about to accept when Niles spoke up. “As much as I love clothes shopping, we already agreed to meet with Sinja after classes today. She has some secret thing she brought back from her country to show us.”
“But we would be happy to go with you right after that,” Birgit insisted.
Vedika raised an eyebrow. “How curious, but we can wait until you finish with her to go. In fact, we could all go into town and have dinner as well. Once you are done with Sinja, come find us at our dorms.”
Birgit had a hard time staying focused on the lecture in her next class. Once again, she sat between Niles and Advick. Following that, she had Combat Casting, so she forced herself to concentrate there. Advick moved off to work with some of his other friends from the class, but Vedika stayed with Birgit and Niles. It would not do to miscast spells in front of the princess, or she might rethink inviting her to join their team.
“Do you mind if I try casting using Niles’ magic?” Vedika asked. “I very much appreciate you letting me share his magic today, but I would really love to see what it is like to cast using it.”
“Of course, that would be fine,” Birgit agreed.
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It was strange seeing Niles rest his hand on the back of the princess’ neck while she cast spells. Brigit felt a slight twinge of jealousy. She had let Niles share magic with others before, but no one but her had ever actually cast with it.
“That was just amazing,” Vedika reported excitedly, after casting several spells at her target. “I felt so powerful. I can see why you keep Niles so close. This must be what it is like to have magic potential, like my brother. Come, let us both try casting using Niles’ magic simultaneously. There may come a time in our field study when that is needed.”
Vedika took Birgit’s hand and pulled her out to the firing line. Niles put his hands on the back of both their necks, and they began casting. The combined power they were able to direct at their target was impressive. Birgit had no reason to be jealous. Vedika was just helping them prepare for the field study, was she not?
“How did that feel, Niles?” Vedika asked after they had both cast a half-dozen powerful spells back-to-back.
“Holding the two prettiest girls in class at once? Great,” Niles said with a smirk before continuing more seriously. “I could definitely feel my magic going out a lot faster than it was coming in. I would have probably started running out of the elements you were using more heavily pretty soon. But I can feel it filling back up already.”
“You all look like you are having fun today,” Sinja said, coming over to join them as the class came to an end. “Are you ready to come see my surprise, Niles?”
Niles looked over at Birgit, who answered for them. “We are, but we cannot stay long. But we have some good news for you. Prince Advick and Princess Vedika have agreed that you and Jabari will be the best additions to our field study team.”
“That is excellent news, thank you,” Sinja said with a smile that included the princess as well.
Just before they departed, Vedika took Niles’ hand and stopped him. “Thank you so much for sharing your magic with me today. I can almost feel my magic potential growing already. I will see you this evening.”
Sinja looked at Birgit and raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.
They followed Sinja to her suite in the high noblewomen’s dorm. This was where Uma stayed as well, so the increased size and luxury of the elf’s suite compared to Birgit’s own came as no surprise.
“I know you have another engagement this evening, so I will not draw out the suspense,” Sinja said, leading them to a couch. “Have a seat while I go get your surprise.”
Birgit sat at one end, and Niles sat next to her. Sinja disappeared into another room, only to return a moment later with a small sheaf of folded papers, which she handed to Niles before taking the seat next to him. Unfolding the papers, Niles held the first page so that they could all see. Revealed on the page was writing in a neat and flowery script.
Niles chuckled. “It’s still weird that I can read this stuff even though I know this isn’t any language I ever saw before I got here.”
“This is not the original, of course,” Sinja explained as they began reading. “It is a copy I made of part of a record I found in the archives back in the capital. It is over a thousand years old, so the wording may be a little hard to understand, but I am sure you can get at least the broader picture of what it is. There was more to it, but this seemed to be the most important part. There could well be other records like this, but this was the only one I could find in the limited time I had. The capital archive is larger than this entire campus.”
The document was brief, only four pages, but it was the account of a mage who summoned a human familiar named John. It listed some of the unusual abilities of the human, including being able to see magic, perceive a glow from magic crystals, and store magic that the mage could draw on to cast spells. He was a fierce warrior of great strength and speed, able to heal quickly from any wound, according to the document. However, it did not include any of the information Birgit would need to contact the human plane, or the ultimate fate of the human. The phrasing was very archaic, with some words that Birgit did not immediately recognize and other common words used in uncommon contexts.
“Wow,” Niles said when he got to the end. “So, I’m not the first.”
Worried that Niles would begin asking questions that might reveal too much of his current situation, Birgit spoke up quickly. “Thank you for this. May we keep it? I would like to study it at length, but I fear we really must be going.”
“It is yours,” Sinja answered.
“Well, thanks. I appreciate it,” Niles said, but taking Birgit’s cue, he said no more.
They went to Prince Advick’s dorm first before going to pick up the princess. Birgit was still wearing the rather plain dress she’d been wearing to classes all day, but Princess Vedika came down to meet them wearing a new and lovely red and black dress. She had also taken the time to fix her hair into a fancy braid interwoven with red ribbon.
“Should I change as well?” Birgit asked, half to herself.
“You are fine,” Advick answered. “My sister just likes to dress up.”
Vedika stuck her tongue out at her brother, but then twirled for Niles. “How do you like it?”
The dress had a rather daring neckline and bared her shoulders.
“Very nice,” Nile answered with an appreciative smile. “And if you need to cast with my magic, it’ll be easier for me to make contact.”
Vedika raised an eyebrow. “Well, I shall have to make certain I wear clothes that make it easy for you to touch me more often, then.”
“So, shall we eat first, or shop first?” the prince asked once his sister finished showing off.
“It is still a bit early to eat. Let us shop first,” Vedika answered.
They made their way to the nearby town on foot, talking about the upcoming state dinner on the way. According to the twins, once a month the king hosted such a function for any of the nobility who cared to attend. Officially, it was just a social function, but unofficially, quite a few deals were usually discussed by various nobles, ranging from trade agreements to marriage arrangements.
“It is very important for my brother to be there,” Vedika confided in them. “Our father is due to pass on his crown in no more than five years. So, it is imperative that my brother become known to the dukes who will choose which of our father’s sons will be the next king. This will be the perfect function to boast of his victory in the academy tournament. That is also why it is so important that we win the field study competition. If my brother adds the title of Protector of the Realm to his list of achievements, that will be a big step toward securing the dukes’ nomination.”
“Is it always a son that’s chosen?” Niles asked. “There’s no chance they’ll pick you, Vedika?”
“It is always a son,” Vedika confirmed. “Though I hope that when my brother is king, he will keep me on as an advisor.”
“Perhaps I shall,” Advick said in an exaggeratedly haughty tone. “Or perhaps I will just marry you off to Baron Ganud’s son in exchange for a nice horse or something.”
“Do not even say that in jest,” Vedika replied in mock horror.
They were all laughing by the time they reached the tailor’s shop.
“Here we are,” Advick announced.
They were at the most expensive shop in town. And there were some very expensive shops here, since they catered primarily to the academy students, many of whom came from very wealthy families.
“I think I would like to try out the new shop over on Silk Street,” Vedika announced. “It will go quicker if we use two shops, anyway. Niles can escort me… If that is alright with you, Birgit. We can meet at the Wandering Vine for dinner.”
Birgit paused to decide. Aside from the occasional weapons training session when Niles had been with Uma’s sister, Mona, there had been very few times when Niles had not been at her side since he had arrived in this plane. Though he had contracted for a day off a week, but had yet to actually take one. Still, there was little chance of danger right here in town, and she had Prince Advick with her. Getting to spend some time alone with him was both exciting and terrifying. In the end, Birgit agreed, and Niles left, hand in hand with the princess.
Prince Advick proved to know considerably more about fashion than Niles and not only gave the tailor detailed instructions for the type of suit he wanted, but also helped guide Birgit to a much more daring dress than she would have ever picked for herself. He also insisted on paying for the dress and was very complimentary throughout the process, praising Birgit’s appearance several times. Clothes shopping with the princes was a completely different experience from shopping with Niles. The prince cared not for the price of anything, and his compliments were flowery and gentile, but Birgit missed Niles’ plain-spoken comments. She never had a doubt that he was giving his actual opinion, so she never doubted the sincerity of his compliments. Birgit couldn’t help but wonder what he was saying to Vedika right now.
The process did not take long, but even so, the sun was setting by the time they left the shop and made their way to the Wandering Vine. Like the tailor’s shop, the Vine was the most expensive venue of its kind in the town. Niles and Vedika had not arrived yet, so they picked out a table and sat down to wait.
As musicians played soft music, Birgit drank in the surroundings. The restaurant was far fancier than what she was used to, with tables spaced well apart and screened from each other by hanging tapestries and flower arrangements. An intricately embroidered tablecloth covered their table, with fine porcelain and silver making up their tableware, and intricate crystal fixtures hanging from the ceiling, providing a soft, warm light. It was actually a quite romantic setting, and Advick ordered them some bread and wine while they waited… and waited… and waited.
Birgit was enjoying her time with the prince, but what could possibly be taking Niles so long? Birgit was about to suggest they go to the other tailor shop to check on them when they finally arrived, hand in hand and laughing. The two had apparently had an excellent time.
