A Magical Bond | 8

Finally, it was well and truly spring in Britechester, after a stubbornly lingering winter that, in Cassie's opinion, anyway, had long overstayed its welcome. She could finally race down the sidewalks again without having to worry about dodging slush piles or treacherous slicks of invisible ice. She could dash out to grab an early morning latte without having to put on five layers of clothing, just in case an unforeseen snowstorm kicked up out of nowhere in the time between when she entered the cafe and when she left.

On the warmest afternoons, when the sun was out in full force, she could even shed her clothes altogether and go for a refreshing swim in the pleasantly calm and cool river that twined through campus. She still missed Sulani often, even though it'd been years now since she lived there full-time, and lying on her back letting the lazy current carry her along as the bright sun beat down on her chest was the closest she'd come to the feeling of being there in months. She dreaded the thought of classes starting up again in just a few days. Soon, she would once again be buried under a load of dull, pointless coursework and would have no time or energy left to indulge in moments like these.

For Sione, on the other hand, it was as though there had never been a post-trimester break at all. He was determined to up his engineering game even further and kept his head constantly buried in tutorials and manuals. Of course, this was also a convenient way for him to not have to think about yet another relationship imploding when it had just barely gotten started. If he dwelt too long on it, he would be forced to confront the fact that he might be the problem, his selfishness and stubbornness and unwillingness to fully commit, and he wasn't ready to willingly fling himself into that dark, bottomless hole of self-reckoning quite yet.

But he couldn't deny that the non-stop devotion to his studies was beginning to turn a little... dull. Each day blended into the last, all of them following the same routine. He had decided to join the Brainiacs this trimester to formally prove his academic devotion but quickly discovered that the organization's members were lacking in personality - or, to be more specific, had personalities formulated solely around their intellectual pursuits. They seemed not to possess or even desire a solitary interest that didn't somehow further their academic goals. "Come on!" Sione exclaimed one day, his exasperation over their tedious existences finally boiling over. "You're telling me you guys never party? What the hell do you do then when you need to blow off some steam?" Their only response was to chastise him for speaking too loudly in the library.

They were obsessive about following the library's unstated rules to a T and side-eyed him every time he attempted to multitask by sneaking in a study snack. The library's actual paid employees didn't care half as much about whether he scarfed down a sandwich as these killjoys did! He was beginning to think they were androids doing a very poor job of pretending to be normal human beings. He shuddered at the thought of becoming too much like them, utterly incapable of forming a meaningful connection to anything that fell outside the tightly proscribed scope of their work. Was this how he'd come off to Britta with his single-minded investment in his utili-bot project?

That was it. He'd told himself last trimester he would be a new person, but maybe his goal should really be to become a better person. Maybe he needed to work on himself from the inside out rather than relying on others to bring out the best in him. After all, it wouldn't kill him not to have a girlfriend for five minutes while he sorted his shit out, right?

"Hey," he greeted Cassie as they both arrived home from their respective days at the same time for a change.

"Hey," she responded, though her voice was decidedly guarded.

He couldn't say he blamed her. Out of every person in his life, she was probably the one who'd given him the most chances to redeem himself for the stupid things that came out of his mouth, and he'd fucked it up again every single time. After a certain point, any reasonable person would give up. She might be all out of chances to give, and he'd understand if she was, but if he had any realistic shot at bettering himself, attempting to finally right things with Cassie was a good place to start. "How's your break been?" he tried next.

She looked him up and down, apparently assessing his level of genuineness. Then her face softened ever so slightly. "It's been... great," She let out a little laugh. "Very relaxing, actually. I've been spending most of it down by the river. You should try it sometime. You're looking a little pasty."

Her tone was light enough to buoy him forward. He smiled and raked a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I've definitely wasted most of the last couple weeks staying cooped up indoors. Listen, do you have a minute to talk - like, really talk?"

It wasn't without trepidation, but she nodded and followed him inside, where they sat down together on the couch. Sione took a deep breath, trying to coherently gather his thoughts in only a few short seconds. "First of all, I'm sorry. That was the main thing I wanted to tell you. I'm sorry."

"I feel like I've heard that before," she said.

"I know," he admitted. "I get it if you don't believe me. I'm not sure I would believe me. But I mean it this time, I swear. We used to be best friends, and I miss that. I miss you. I don't know why I keep screwing things up. I guess you just remind me of parts of myself I've wanted to forget. We're both different people now, but I think when it comes to everything between us we've been stuck in the past. At least, I've been. I have an impression of you in my head that doesn't line up with reality, and that's not respectful of who you actually are. I know that's no excuse for how I've treated you, but I'd like to get to know the real you... that is, if you'll let me."

Cassie was silent for a long time, fully absorbing Sione's words. His speech had been impassioned and more mature than she expected. Maybe he was finally actually willing to put in the effort to improve their relationship. Before, he'd never seemed self-aware enough to acknowledge his own shortcomings in a meaningful way. He had even admitted that he missed her! He wanted to get to know the real her! Was she getting her hopes up by reading too much into otherwise innocuous statements, or might he be, after all this time, implying that he, too, felt something deeper than friendship? "I appreciate hearing you say that," she eventually replied, carefully weighing each word. "I can't lie and say there isn't a little seed of doubt still lingering in my head. But if you're serious about this and not just telling me what you think I want to hear, I'm willing to give it another shot."

"Great!" Sione exclaimed, feeling a heavy weight lift off his chest. "Things are going to be so much better from now on, I promise. What do you say we grab a pint at Pepper's Pub to kick off the new trimester?"

"Sure. Just give me a minute to change."

"It's a date!" A shiver jolted through Cassie's spine. Could this really be happening?

"Wow, you look amazing," Sione had told her when she shuffled shyly down the stairs in an outfit that could uncharacteristically be called sexy. Everything about their languorous, silent walk to Pepper's Pub together felt surreal. After all this time, Cassie had nearly given up on the idea of anything real happening between the two of them, but now he had finally asked her out. Sure, he hadn't been particularly romantic about it, but he wouldn't call it a date if he was just inviting her as a friend, would he?

Immediately, she realized how foolish she had been to get her hopes up. It only took one beer for Sione to start very obviously ogling every attractive girl who stepped into his line of vision except her. "I can't believe we don't hang out like this more often," he said, seemingly oblivious to the sinking expression that had surely taken over her face. "We can be each other's wingmen! Or, er, wingwoman in your case. It'll be fun!" She smiled tightly. She wondered what his definition of the word fun entailed because she certainly wouldn't use it to describe the slightly nauseous sensation settling in the pit of her stomach.

Sione couldn't help it that he grew exceptionally flirty with only the barest amount of alcohol in his system. So what if he'd decided he might be better off without a girlfriend for a while? He'd never promised himself or anyone else that he would stop looking at or talking to girls altogether. And now that he and Cassie had talked things out, they were both on the same page about the extent of their relationship, weren't they? At least, he thought they'd come to an understanding that they were better off friends than anything more complicated. He hadn't said anything that could possibly be misinterpreted... right?

Left hanging at the bar by herself, Cassie was coming to terms with the fact that she'd sorely underrated the more positive side effects of getting absolutely smashed on cheap lager. For example, the more one drank, the more one's consciousness grew blissfully numb to the otherwise cripplingly embarrassing turn of events unfolding behind one's back. If Cassie forced down enough of the stuff, like a disgusting but highly curative medicine, maybe she'd wake up in the morning with every memory of the night erased so that she would never again have to think about how stupid she was to believe this might be an actual date.

Whether it was the alcohol talking or her, she wasn't about to make things easy for Sione by letting him canoodle in some corner with a girl who's name he probably didn't even know while she played the part of sulky third wheel, suffering alone in silence. "Let's make this a real competition," she slurred, weaving haphazardly across the room to where the two of them were blushing and giggling on opposite sides of the foosball table. "I want to see you beat two girls at once, tough guy. You talk such a big game. Well, we'll just have to put it to the test!"

Sione laughed awkwardly, cutting his eyes toward the other girl to dissociate himself from Cassie's antics. "I always forget what a lightweight you are," he said dismissively. "I think it might be time for you to go home."

"Oh, somebody's afraid to put his money where his mouth is!"

"Let me call you a cab," he replied through a grimacing smile.

"No need!" She was already bored of toying with him. It was time for her to get back to the things that truly mattered to her now anyway. "I do have someplace else to be, but I'm perfectly capable of getting there myself."

As she turned to leave, Sione noticed a tattoo taking up almost the entirety of her back that certainly hadn't been there until recently. It was mysterious to say the least, an enigmatic arrangement of occult symbols. He knew she'd maintained an interest in magic since their Henry Puffer days, but this definitely wasn't kids' stuff. This was something more. "What's up with the new ink?" he shouted after her.

"You wouldn't get it," she said. "There are some things in the world far too vast and wondrous for even your big brain to comprehend." What the hell is that supposed to mean, he wondered as he watched her walk away. God, she was even drunker than he thought. Hopefully, she would make it home in one piece and stumble straight into bed.

But the walk home cleared Cassie's mind considerably, and by the time she had changed into her cloak and mask and was darting stealthily through the darkened streets toward the Order of Enchantment's midnight meeting place, she felt as sharp as ever. She tried to push all of the bullshit with Sione to the back of her mind. All they ever found themselves doing with each other was going around in circles, and it was getting her nowhere. In fact, it was actively hindering her from following her true path, which she now believed with renewed vigor led her toward a world in which she, Cassiopeia Bautista, possessed real magic.

She'd been attending meetings for weeks now, yet the other members of Order were still reticent to let her in on too many of their secrets too soon. She had learned their real names, at least - Katy, Kari, and Kenzie. "Will you kick me out if I don't start spelling my name with a K?" she joked, though they didn't seem to find it very funny. Really, she'd been underwhelmed by the reveal, expecting names that sounded elusive and timeless - Esmeralda, Gwendolyn, Beatrice, Rowena - not modern and trendy. It undeniably dulled the Order of Enchantment's shine, as did all the boring herb and mushroom gathering they'd assigned to keep her busy while they decided whether or not she could be trusted.

"Come on, guys," she insisted, enough alcohol still running through her system to give her the confidence to put her foot down. "Haven't I done enough grunt work to prove myself by now? I want in on the juicy stuff already!"

"Slow your roll, newbie," Katy snapped before closing her eyes, taking a deep breath in, and starting over in what Cassie had quickly come to recognize as her "cult leader" voice, dripping with mystery and melodrama (as well as a fair amount of sarcasm). "Patience, novice. The full initiation process takes time. Centuries ago, the Sprites were mistreated by their first human friend, the one they most deeply trusted. It hasn't been easy for them to regain their faith in us. The Order of Enchantment's mission is to protect them from harm, intended or not, at the hands of less enlightened mortals. You must be willing to devote yourself to the cause of maintaining balance between our species entirely."

Halfway through Katy's theatrical spiel, Cassie had managed to zone out entirely. She pulled a book out of her cloak's deep pocket and opened it up to start reading,  since it seemed clear they weren't going to give her anything more productive to do tonight either. "Are-are you doing homework right now?" Katy sputtered, glaring at her in disbelief.

Cassie shrugged nonchalantly. "It took me about five minutes to finish the harvesting. What else am I supposed to do?"

"Listen and learn!" Katy practically shrieked, though Cassie couldn't help noticing that even her rage seemed well-rehearsed. "Our purpose is to please the Sprites. Homework is not pleasing to the Sprites, damn it!"

Well, if she couldn't do homework during their meetings, she didn't know when she was supposed to find the time otherwise. It only took a few weeks for her schoolwork to fall by the wayside, as her frequent long nights spent at the ruins often led to her oversleeping her first, second, and third alarms and missing more and more of her classes. Not even Sione and his incessant promise of breakfast sandwiches (he'd been working overtime trying to prove that he deserved to stay in her good graces) could rouse her.

But she couldn't bring herself to care much about skipping out on yet more tedious violin classes, especially when, free of the arbitrary boundaries set by her professors and judgmental feedback from her classmates, she felt like she was finally starting to find herself as a painter. She was creating her best work ever, and the images were flowing so freely onto the canvas it was as though they flowed from a source much more powerful than her own hand. Ever since she'd been awakened to the existence of the Sprites, she caught them out of the corner of her eye often. Were they somehow responsible for her suddenly endless reserve of inspiration? Could it be a reward for her steadfast dedication?

Because no one could say she wasn't devoted to keeping them happy. Who knew the Sprites would have such an insatiable sweet tooth? She could barely whip up enough delectable new recipes to keep pace with them. Although she witnessed the desserts disappear in front of her own eyes the instant they were offered, she couldn't help wondering if the three Ks weren't somehow secreting the treats away to gobble up for themselves later. Maybe the whole Order of Enchantment thing was just an elaborate ruse for them to snatch up free desserts. Conveniently, they never seemed to have the time for any baking themselves.

Despite her doubts, Cassie was determined to learn all the Order's secrets, no matter how long it took, and she was even more determined to finally conduct a ceremony herself instead of being stuck with all the menial preparations. She had been chosen for a reason, after all. Surely, she had at least a few latent drops of magic buried deep inside of her, patiently waiting to burst free and finally be put to good use. She stayed late after every meeting practicing the intricate motions and phrases the others performed effortlessly. Soon, they would have no choice but to step aside and let her give it a try.

One afternoon, Sione received a surprising phone call. It was Cassie's mom, Malia, who sounded worried even before she told him that she hadn't heard from Cassie in weeks and thought her daughter must certainly be hiding some terrible secret from her. "Honestly, I'm kind of worried about her, too," he admitted. "She's been sleeping in late, skipping classes, avoiding conversations... I think she might've joined a cult."

Though he'd meant it mostly as a joke to lighten the mood, he immediately regretted saying it. Malia gasped and demanded, "What on earth do you mean, a cult? Should I be calling the police about this?"

"No, no, no," he said quickly. "I'm just kidding.  But I hear her sneak off in the middle of the night at least a couple times a week, and she'll never tell me anything when I ask about it. I'm sure it's nothing crazy. She's probably just meeting up with some friends at the bar and doesn't want me crashing their party. Don't worry. I'll keep an eye on her for you, and I'll tell her to give you a call." It wasn't until he hung up that he realized just how much of a mystery Cassie's day-to-day life actually was to him. He didn't even know who her friends were or where she hung out. She could be in a cult and he'd never know it.

As compelling as her frequent late night disappearances were, he couldn't let them distract him from his own pursuits. It took a while, but after getting over his bitterness at Martin for swooping in and winning the last utili-bot contest, Sione decided the best course of action would be for the two of them to team up. By putting their heads together, they were certain they would come up with something totally unbeatable.

But producing an invention of such magnitude meant keeping his head as clear as possible, which meant cutting way back on his most detrimental vices: caffeine, alcohol, and girls. Instead, he rekindled his love for what seemed like a safer alternative, video games. When he wasn't in the lab or the classroom, he was most likely to be found feeding endless quarters into the arcade games on the top floor of Foxbury's student hangout, Larry's Lagoon. In fact, he played the games so often that soon only his name populated their leader boards.

"Oh, the Sprites are out in full force tonight," one of the Ks exclaimed blissfully, stretching out her arms as though to scoop up the dazzling trail of motes left in their wake as they dove and fluttered around the Order of Enchantment's heads.

"They must be pleased with our newest member's contributions," Katy said, turning to Cassie with a guarded but genuine smile.

"Does that mean I can finally help conduct the ritual?" Cassie asked eagerly.

"Well," Katy began. She abruptly cut herself off, seemingly distracted by something she saw in front of her. The others swiftly turned to investigate what had stunned her into silence.

To Cassie's horror and surprise, Sione stood at the edge of the clearing, taking in the strange scene before him with a raised eyebrow and faintly amused smirk. Damn it, she internally cursed. He must have been waiting up for her to leave and then stealthily followed her out of the house. She knew he'd been asking too many pointed questions about her goings-on lately.

"Who the fuck are you?" Katy demanded in a brash, angry tone, unable to maintain her deliberately calm, cool, and collected cult leader persona. "Explain yourself, immediately!"

Sione shrugged lazily. "This is public property, isn't it? I'm just out for a late night stroll. I'd say you're the one who's got some explaining to do. I'm no lawyer, but couldn't this be considered, like, desecration of a historical landmark?"

"You have no idea what you're talking about!" she shouted back at him.

He ignored her red-faced fury and turned his attention to Cassie. She instinctively bowed her head, hoping he wouldn't reveal the extent of their relationship in front of the others. Of course, the universe wasn't about to let her get off so easily. "Cass," he said loudly, and every head swiveled in her direction, "tell me what's going on here. Why are you hanging out with these freaks?"

"Wait, you two know each other?" one of the Ks asked incredulously. "You told him about us?"

"I didn't tell him anything!" Cassie insisted, sounding too defensive for her own good. "He's just my roommate." Sione's face fell ever so slightly, and she cringed internally. He'd made a real effort with her lately, and here she was throwing him under the bus without a second thought because she couldn't get over her own stupid hang-ups about their relationship. "I've been careful, I swear. I guess he just doesn't know how to mind his own business."

"This puts the entire Order at risk, newbie," Katy hissed. "We can't just have any old pleb stumble in here, trampling all over sacred ground. He has no idea what he's meddling with!"

"Order? Sacred ground? Cass, I don't know what's going on here, but everything about it seems totally fucked up. Let's stop playing around here. Just come with me now and we can-"

"Go home, Sione!" she shouted. "This has nothing to do with you. God, why can't you just leave me alone? For years, you've acted like you couldn't care less about me, and now you think you can control my life? Do us both a favor and get out of here. It's better for me and you if you forget tonight ever happened."

For several interminable seconds, Sione just stared at her in silence, half a dozen conflicting emotions playing out across his face before finally resolving into hurt and confusion. He'd never been on the receiving end of her rejection, but maybe he finally needed to experience firsthand how it felt to be shut out. Slowly, without saying another word, he turned and sulked away from the ruins, leaving Cassie to the impossible task of begging the other members of the Order, who were all practically smoldering with rage, for forgiveness and then convincing them why they shouldn't just kick her out then and there.