Lucas was still staring at her like she was an alien. Eric caught it and rapped him lightly on the head. “She’s smarter than you. Her intelligence is already at sixteen and probably only going to get higher. Now come help me find this stuff for her.” He glanced over at the other two and ordered them smoothly, “Jarom, watch the front desk for me until Lucas has finished helping me find what she wants. Stephen, why don’t you lead her to study room…” He paused, thinking about it. “Make it fifteen. That way she can leave the books there and come back to them.”
She thought it was interesting that Eric was ordering the others around, but they nodded like it was perfectly normal. Jarom just did a vertical jump and hopped over the desk like it was nothing. She gawked wide-eyed at the action, asking softly, “Am I going to be able to do that?”
Stephen laughed and ruffled her hair. “Maybe one day we’ll get you there.” She nodded, still staring in awe at Jarom as Stephen started to lead her away. Eric and Lucas had already disappeared into the shelves. Jarom was grinning boyishly at her, soaking in her attention. With a wink, he flexed at her and she giggled. Stephen glanced back, but Jarom had gone back to normal in the blink of an eye, smiling innocently. Stephen gave a little huff and then pulled her away while she was still giggling softly.
When they were further away and passing a series of doors, she finally asked, “Why are you following Eric’s orders? Is he your boss?”
Snickering, he shook his head. “This is his domain. He’s the assistant head of the library, so when we’re here, he’s in charge.”
This spiked her curiosity. “What are you and Jarom in charge of, then?”
He smiled enigmatically and replied, “Jarom is one of the battle instructors.” He paused in front of one of the doors and opened it, saying simply, “This is your room. Do you think you’ll be able to find it on your own?”
She stared at him. “Don’t think you can fool me by changing the subject. What’s your area of expertise?”
He grinned cryptically. “I’ll give you extra points if you figure it out for yourself.” She frowned at him, but he poked her in the forehead and laughed. “Now look around and make sure you can find the room again.”
She groaned softly. “The rooms are in numerical order. It’s not hard to find. That’s what happens when things are done logically.” She stepped into the room and sat down, and he stepped in as well, keeping her company for the moment. So of course, she decided to continue her line of questioning. “So, why were the three of you chosen to do the examinations?”
He snorted. “That’s an easy one. We’re the youngest staff members in our positions, so we were told it was our turn. They decreed that three years ago...and it probably won’t change until someone newer takes our places.”
She laughed, and the door opened at that moment. Eric came in with three books, placing them on the table in front of her. “Lucas will bring the rest over when he finds them, but I figured you could start with these three.” Stephen stood up, straightening his clothes as he prepared to leave with Eric. It looked like they were just going to leave her here, but then again, how much fun would it be to watch someone read?
She smiled and stood up to see them out, saying quickly, “Thanks for bringing me here! I have just one more question.” Eric tilted his head, raising his brow as if encouraging her to go on. She blushed a little and said quietly, “Uhmm… Can I bring food in here?” She was really, really hungry. He was giving her a strange look, so she continued nervously, “It’s kinda the downside of my gift. I’m growing extremely fast, but the energy has to come from somewhere. In order to have enough proteins to break down to support my changing biology, I need to consume quite a lot.”
Stephen looked curious at this, and ignoring the jargon he didn’t understand, cut straight to the point, “Wait, what have you been eating? You just got here yesterday, so you shouldn’t have any money…”
She blushed a little bit. “Uhm, well, the mom of the little girl I healed yesterday gave me a little bit, and the rest…” she stared at the ground, “I uhm...have basically been eating Raphael out of house and home. He caught me raiding the kitchen last night...”
Eric asked curiously, “Exactly how much is a lot?”
She scuffed her foot against the floor, muttering softly, “Raph said last night I ate about half a pig, two apples, and six cups of wine…”
“Seriously?” Stephen and Eric were both staring at her in amazement. “How did you eat that much in one sitting?”
She shrugged. “I was hungry.” They laughed, and she relaxed a little.
Stephen came over, a pretty platinum crown just somehow appearing in his hand. “Here, this should take care of what you need until we figure out what to do.”
She beamed up at him. Somehow, she felt more like he was the caring older brother she’d never had. “Thanks, for everything.” She smiled sweetly at the two of them, just happy that in the course of an hour, she’d gained two people who seemed to want to be on Team Jade. Well, okay, it was more like three or maybe four. She figured Jarom was on her team too; he just wasn’t here, so she wasn’t sure. And Lucas…maybe. She’d have to wait and see on that one. She’d convert him to her side completely...eventually.
Eric smiled back at her, saying softly, “You’re welcome. And for the record, food isn’t allowed in the library. Since you have special circumstances, I’ll allow it though. Just nothing greasy, and don’t get it on the books. Don’t tell anyone either, okay?” She grinned and nodded. She could be sneaky with her food, so long as she could have it. He laughed and explained, “We’ve got to get back now. A messenger came to tell us that someone else showed up to be tested, but if you run into any problems, you can come find us. I’ll come visit you after the examinations are done so we can figure out what classes to put you in.”
She nodded and smiled shyly at them until Stephen ruffled her hair again and gruffly implored, “Be good.” They then turned and left, her seeing them off silently until they were out of sight.
She’d considered following them out. She was still half dying of hunger, after all. However, the appeal of books was stronger, and she decided she’d at least wait until Lucas brought her the rest of them. Moving to the table, she studied the three titles she’d been given.
Magic: A Compendium. The Noble History of Dracona Academy. Basic Etiquette for Beginners.
She grinned. They were perfect! Getting comfortable, she grabbed Magic: A Compendium and opened it to the first page, starting to read.
Magic as we know it has been classified into twenty known types of increasing rarity and difficulty. The list from easiest to hardest is as follows: Water, Earth, Fire, Wind, Contractual, Light, Dark, Lightning, Metal, Life, Death, Illusion, Nature, Spiritual, Summoning, Blood, Healing, Compulsion, Spatial, and Special (untyped)...
Lost in the new world of information, she forgot her hunger.
Chapter Thirteen – Monsters
She wasn’t sure how long it took for Lucas to bring her the rest of the books. Mentally, she allocated some of the platinum coin that Stephen gave her to getting a pocket watch if Raphael hadn’t procured one for her like she had asked him to this morning. It was probably outside of his job description, but what his job description actually entailed, she didn’t know. Other than keeping the students in line, of course. And overseeing Jessica and Kaylee, obviously.