She smiled and shrugged as well. “I sat at his table at breakfast, then learned that travelers were supposed to meet the king, so he brought me to do that. He seemed to have fun not warning his parents before he brought me.” She pulled out the platinum card. “By the way, I stole this from him. Change it to my name, please.” He sighed, taking the card from her. Unlike what she expected though, he didn’t change it, but pocketed it instead. “Hey, mine!”
He shook his head and poked her in the forehead. “Platinum is for royalty and dukes only. Neither one of us qualifies, unless you’re declaring yourself his fiancé.” She frowned, then pouted.
“That’s a stupid rule.”
He sighed, gently pushing her towards a chair. “It’s just above your privilege level, sorry.”
She paused, observing his office. She hadn’t really paid attention when he led her to the second floor of the building. His office was huge and had a giant window on one wall. She stared at it enviously. “Something going on outside?” He asked curiously, seeing her staring at the window.
“I want a window in my box!” He raised an eyebrow, and she continued. “The study room you gave me is like a dark, creepy cage. I want to see the sun! I want to be able to tell what the passage of time is without having to check my watch all the time, because I know I’ll forget. It’s easier to tell if the light changes. Did I mention it was dark and creepy before I got there?”
He was full on laughing at her. Walking behind his desk, he pulled out a small, familiar metal box. She stared at him quizzically, and he mentioned with a grin, “I can’t authorize a staff office for you to use without asking my superior, but maybe this will help with the dark and creepy factor. I saw it in the window this morning, and it made me think of you.” She accepted the box, opening it to see a cloth. Smiling, she put the box down and then gingerly pulled out the lighted glass sculpture. This had been one of the ones she liked best after the phoenix. It was a few wild daisies in pretty colors popping out of a grassy hill. She’d made it so most of the light was coming from the petals, making them appear as if they were reflecting sunlight.
Smiling gently, she wrapped it up and put it back in the box, then walked over and hugged Eric. He looked shocked, and she hummed, “Thank you. I love it.” Letting go, she giggled and continued, “Though I am curious as to how much you paid for it.”
Eric shrugged. “Does that really matter?” She grinned and nodded. “Fine. Eleven laurels.”
She laughed darkly and then muttered, “That rat!” Now Eric looked baffled, and she explained. “I’m the one who put light magic on it. Damian told me he was going to sell them for a crown, but he obviously got an extra laurel out of you!”
Eric stared blankly, then shook his head ruefully. “He’s got them listed at fifteen laurels. I bargained him down.” She laughed, patting him on the shoulder.
“Well then, congratulations for not getting TOTALLY ripped off. Next time, if you want one, buy it unlit and bring it to me. I’ll light it up without his extra markup.” She grinned and he sighed, settling behind his desk.
“I’ll think about it. But for now, why don’t you have a seat? We’ve got to figure out which classes to put you in.” He pulled out several incredibly full sheets of paper, and her eyes widened as he spread them across the table. He had also pulled out two fresh sheets of lined paper. They had Monday through Saturday columns and every hour written down the side starting at 8-9AM.
Pointing at the 8-9AM, she declared, “Not happening. I am not a morning person. Nine is the earliest I’m willing to go. If you make me go any earlier, I swear I will magic things as inconveniently as I can for whatever instructor you give me.” Her expression was deadpan, and he sighed.
“The morning classes are the fitness classes because it’s best to train before it gets too hot. It isn’t something you should want to slack on, now is it?”
She pondered his statement, and nodded, replying. “You’re right. But I’ll be fine without it due to my ability. Besides, you arrange it according to stats, right?” He nodded. “Then it’s fine. I’d be switching classes way too often anyway.” When he appeared puzzled, she sighed. “Several of my stats have gone up by a point again today.”
“Seriously?” He looked incredulous when she nodded, and he rummaged around, pulling out a copy of her record from yesterday. “What’s changed?”
Contemplating her profile, she stated, “Strength is now 9, Dexterity is 10, Constitution is 9, Magic is 12, and Charisma is 10.” He stared down at the sheet in awe after marking what she said.
“This is insane,” he muttered, still staring at the stats she’d told him. It really was. He sighed, then gave in, “Fine. You can come in at 9, but just think about it. It’s probably going to cause resentment in the other students that you don’t have to do it.”
She shrugged. “I won’t be bullied. What’s from 9-10?”
He glanced back at the papers and grimaced. “Personal study. It’s mainly meant to give those who need to shower or heal time to do so.”
She grinned. “That’s perfect!”
Quizzically, he asked, “It is?”
She nodded. “Yes, it is! Put me down for helping the healer. I need to raise my level somehow, and the only way I can do so is if people are hurt. I’m not enough of a masochist to hurt myself so that I can heal.” Other than that first time, of course. She’d learned her lesson; no more hurting herself. It was much better to let other people be the ones hurting.
He paused, then wrote healing in the clinic next to her 9AM slot. He muttered softly, “It’s perfect…” She grinned when she heard him, but he quickly moved on. “Ten o’clock is weapons practice. Do you have a weapon in mind?”
She grimaced, thinking about what she’d seen earlier, but she knew that no matter if she found it distasteful to kill things or not, she needed to be able to defend herself. So she nodded. “Archery and daggers would suit me best. If I have to fight, I’d prefer to do it from a distance, but I also need to be able to protect myself if someone gets close.”
He nodded approvingly, writing beginner archery at 10 and beginner small blades at 11. Apparently there were two hours of weapons practice, which he hadn’t mentioned. Would he have put her in archery twice if that’s all she said? Whatever. Eric nodded pensively, “All right, that should be fine. 12-1 is a free period for lunch, which is provided on campus if you desire.” She nodded. “The afternoon is a bit different. Most of the afternoon classes are only held once a week for two hours each. They include everything from various magic classes to etiquette and crafting. There are also a few classes such as riding, alchemy, drawing, music, tracking, reading, or the obstacle course run.”
“May I look at the schedule of what’s offered when?” He nodded, and she joined him on his side of the desk to study the schedule. There were around five classes offered for every two-hour block until six. She asked curiously, “Do the students normally have a completely full schedule?”
He shook his head. “No, they just sign up for the classes they’re interested in. For instance, they’re not allowed to enroll in the magic classes unless they’ve been tested and shown an aptitude for it.” She nodded, because that made sense. She could imagine the teacher getting frustrated trying to explain something when the student just couldn’t produce.