SA - Lies 2

Sorcerer's Apprentice FanFic - Lies 2


Shae held his gaze for only a few seconds before she dropped her own, feeling almost as if she were temporarily as transparent as glass.

It was Kort who spoke up first. "Hey, Shae- don't feel bad if you're bad at this stuff. No one was great when they first started. Dave took a plasma bolt to the-"

"Hey!" Dave's outcry made Shae look up at them as Dave used his elbow to shove Kort. "At least I didn't loose half a head of hair when I first started!"

She stared in surprise. Kort leaned over and flipped through the pages of Dave's textbook, to which Dave resorted to  reaching up and messing up Kort's hair- getting it to somehow spike AND fall in his eyes.

"HEY! NOT FAIR!" Kort waved his arms, trying to fend Dave off- and Shae covered the slowly growing smile with one hand. Dave merely sat back down and started looking for the page he'd had the book turned towards.

Balthazar sighed and rolled his eyes as if saying "See? This is what I have to deal with." Then he twisted in his seat to look behind him as Kort smoothed his hair back into place. "Have you gone there yet?"

Kort sobered. "Yep. I didn't get to look around much, though. Nothing up close at all. Landlord came along asking if I was looking to rent, and it was between classes."

Balthazar nodded slightly, then rolled the papers all up together. "I doubt they did much there. They'd be looking for a safer place..."

Shae  looked down at at her hands as she again fiddled with her ring- only to  once again forget to listen. Stretching out around her, carved into the stone she stood on, was the oh-so-familiar circle. She shifted slightly, settling both feet firmly on the stone. There was an odd tickle in her mind- the memory surfacing of her grandmother's admonishments when she'd first stepped into the circle.

She wondered if she could even still do it. Was it like riding a bicycle- you never really forgot? Or was it more like... weight lifitng? You had to work back up to it?

"How long has it been, Shae?"

Shae very literally jumped, shying to the side and away from Balthazar's voice from beside her. She lifted her head and spoke without thinking- she'd kept track without ever meaning to. "Five years."

As Balthazar opened his mouth to speak, Kort- moving at a quick trot, attempted to stop next to him. Instead of stopping though, his feet shot out from under him- and he hit the ground. Balthazar stopped and lookd down at him, as did Shae.

"That was purely your fault, Kort." Dave commented, chuckling as he leaned over to write notes on the white board behind himself.

Balthazar looked back up at Shae. "I hope you're better at staying on your feet."

Shae leaned over and offered Kort a hand up, even as she flashed Balthazar a slight smile. "I am, I swear. I had to be growing up- Grandma's house was full of stuff. Old stuff. Beautiful and dusty and strange... and valuable."

"Sounds like Balthazar's shop."

Shae glanced at Dave after he muttered, then let go of Kort's hand once he was fully on his feet.

"It was a very nice shop, thank you." Balthazar smiled, then gestured at the circle. "Want to try it again?"

She did, but not in front of them. She was afraid of being laughed at- and for some reason, of looking like a fool in front of Balthazar. She glanced at her feet, then felt walk around her to the other side.

"Do we need blast-proof shields?" His voice was light, laughter lacing it.

She shook her head, twisting the ring. "No..."

Silence settled for a moment, and then came Dave's voice- strong, clear. "You have to do it sometime. Unless you're just giving it up."

She felt Kort stand a little straighter. She was fairly certain he glanced her way, too, before he calmly walked back to the chairs Balthazar had been using and took a seat.

"If you're giving it up, you should give Balthazar your ring..."

Dave's words were like a slap, and she remembered so clearly the feeling that came with having the ring again- and the feeling of having lost it.

Balthazar's hand landed on her shoulder then, giving it a slight squeeze. "You can wait a little bit if you need." He spoke very quietly, then let go and strode off to sit with Kort.

Shae lifted her head just enough to look around the circle, inhaling deeply before she reached for the magic- and used it.