Chapter 9: Goodbyes and See You Laters

  The semester passed by relatively uneventfully. Sevagoth now had a new hobby to study during his breaks and free time, and he would frequently dig through the library shelves to find anything and everything available about runes. He would practice the ‘heat’ rune on paper several dozen times per evening, trying to improve his speed and accuracy. Lilli was busier this semester than usual and would sometimes have to skip her and Sev’s evening study sessions. Sev simply used this time to practice up and work towards her surprise gift that he and Orsen were working on. He would spend each break throughout the semester in Orsen’s workshop, slowly becoming more and more familiar with both goldsmithing and runescribing. Orsen had given him some more runes to practice tracing, including the infallible ‘unbreakable’ rune and the slightly more complicated ‘self-repairing’ rune. Sev would spend hours on end tracing the runes over and over again on paper, making sure that he captured as much of Orsen’s instructions as possible.

  Orsen had Sev try several more times to replicate the heat rune. After his first attempt, Sev had a much harder time getting the rune to take hold into the stones, causing many to shatter and crumble in his hands. As the semester ended and Sev began his month-long vacation, he had only scribed ‘heat’ one more time since the first. I wonder what the difference is between now and the first instance. Perhaps nerves? Orsen thought to himself as he watched yet another stone crumble in Sev’s hands. Sev hung his head and sighed deeply before grabbing a paper and going back to tracing the rune over and over again. I suppose he at least hasn’t given up. He is quite resilient, though I suppose that should come as no surprise. Orsen mused as he left the workshop to get some water for him and the boy.

  As he entered the workshop again, he saw Sev slowly carving a rune into another stone. This time, however, it was not ‘heat’. It was ‘unbreakable’. ‘Unbreakable’, much like ‘heat’, was a very versatile rune and could be scribed into any inorganic material. Sev was completely lost in his work and had yet to realize that Orsen had returned. If I can just get this damned thing to work, maybe it’ll help me with ‘heat’ again. I don’t have much time left to get this to work, I’ve gotta hurry. Sev thought to himself as he put the final 2 lines into the surface of the stone. He set down the burin and waited to see if this would be yet another failure. The rune started to glow before quickly flickering and extinguishing as the rock exploded in Sev’s hand, sending shrapnel into his face.

  “AHH! Damnit!” Sev yelled as he wiped the stone shards off his cheeks and away from his eyes. Several small cuts started to lightly bleed, sending a few beads of blood trailing down to his shirt collar. “Shit, I can’t get this to work. I feel like it's one step forward and two steps back right now.” He muttered as he reached for another stone and began to carve the runes once again.

  Rather than just continue to watch, Orsen stepped in before things continued. “Sev, we should really take a break for a bit. You’ve been at this for hours. Maybe we should take a step back, and you can try it again tomorrow.” He said while putting his hand on Sev’s shoulder.

  Sev sighed once again before nodding and setting the tools and stone back onto the table. “Okay, you’re right, Orsen. I’ll give it a rest. All I’m doing is frustrating myself at this point.”

  Orsen and Sevagoth cleaned up the workshop and headed inside the house. It was eerily quiet compared to usual, as Lilli was outside practising her magical channeling. She had been appraised to have a talent for both ice and fire magic, making her quite rare. Typically, those affinities clashed and were difficult to master in tandem. However, Lilli was one of the rare few and had been recently invited to the magic academy in Kelgrim to study as an apprentice mage there. If she attended and performed well, she would have the choice to either teach others at one of the academies across the continent or work as a mage for a temple such as the Oracle’s. Temples such as these would often work alongside the soldiers and paladins to protect the kingdom if the need arose. It was a very exciting prospect for Lilli, as the future possibilities were endless. However, she was more anxious than excited. She had never been that far away from home and was worried as to what would happen in her absence. She would be allowed only 1 visit home at the end of the year, as compared to the capital’s academy, which gave them ample time with their families.

  Another week of their vacation passed, and Sev had yet to make meaningful progress in his runescribing. Orsen tried to teach him other methods of scribing the runes, and even tried to show him different runes, such as ‘chilling’. This, however, was to no avail, as Sev could not get any other runes to take hold. Maybe that first time was a fluke, just a lucky break. Maybe I put too much hope into him being a savant, and that pressure is making him crack. Orsen thought as he and Sev wrapped up yet another disappointing day in the workshop.

  “Is there anything I should be doing differently, Orsen? I feel like I’m doing it the same as that first time and yet I can’t get anything to actually work…” Sev asked while they cleaned up the workbench yet again.

  Orsen thought carefully for a moment before responding. “Honestly, kid, you are doing everything correctly. Sometimes the runes just refuse to work. If I had a gold piece for every time a rune failed when it should have worked, I would already be retired. I wasn’t born with the ‘Runescribing’ talent, and it took me many, many years to get even remotely comfortable with the art. It just takes time.”

  Sev knew that what he said made sense. He wasn’t a Runescribe, that much was obvious. “Well, I don’t really have a bunch of time left. I have to get this figured out before she leaves for Kelgrim.” Sev said as he scraped the last of the shards and scraps off the floor and into the waste bin.

  Another week passed, and no more progress was being made. Sev continued to fail over and over again. Yet still he tried, over and over. Even if it took him every minute he had left this year, he would find a way to finish the project and give it to Lilli. He was even prepared to ask Orsen to do the scribing if it came down to it. And yet, he couldn’t swallow his pride just yet.

  “I still have about 2 weeks left of this break, and 5 weekends after that. After that, I’ll have just about 1 more month before she heads out to start at the academy. It's plenty of time, I just have to get my act together.” He muttered as he lay in bed one night. He started to wake up even earlier, adding in extra time to practice the runes before going over to the workshop with Orsen. His hands and face were scratched and scabbed from the constant shrapnel from failed attempts, yet he continued in earnest. Finally, after another week, he had another breakthrough. He let out a satisfied and relieved “YEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!!!” as he finally got a stone to accept the ‘unbreakable’ rune. It had taken almost 60 failed attempts, but he had finally scribed a more complicated rune than ‘heat’.

  Orsen sighed in relief as he watched Sev celebrate his success. I was worried he was pushing himself too hard. I’m just glad he didn’t snap from the pressure he took on. Orsen proudly patted Sev on the back and gently picked the small stone up off the bench. He then threw it as hard as he could against his anvil, causing a loud metallic thunk to fill the workshop. The stone simply bounced off of the anvil without so much as a chip, while the anvil had a small new dent in the surface of the iron. “Well, well, you really did i,t kid. I’m impressed as always; it sometimes takes apprentices years to get ‘unbreakable’ to work. You really are something.” Orsen said, beaming with pride.

  Sev simply smiled and said, “I couldn’t have done it without you, Orsen. The only reason I got this far is that you were my teacher. Thanks again for all the help!!” Orsen and Sev threw the stone a few more times, enjoying their hard-earned success for a while. They decided to call it a day and cleaned up the workshop before heading inside. It was still only early afternoon, a striking difference compared to the constant late nights that Sev had been dragging Orsen into.

  “So this is what it's like to see the sun again…” Orsen said, making sure to emphasize the drama and fake longing in his voice. Sev just rolled his eyes as the two of them started to laugh.

  Lilli had been struggling the last 2 weeks, more so than usual. Sure, she knew she had to practice her magic to make sure she would be officially accepted into the Kelgrim Academy. But usually, she and Sev would be training together. But every single break throughout the semester and every day for the last 2 weeks, Sev had been held up in her father’s workshop. Whenever she asked about it, she was met with things such as “Don’t worry about it. Just focus on your magic.”, or even “We are working on something really important. We’ll spend more time together once it’s done.”

  Lilliana huffed and whipped a large burst of flame at the boulder she had chosen as her victim today. “It's not fair! Whose friend is he anyway, mine or my dad's?!?!” She all but yelled as she followed up the fire with a massive shard of ice, shattering onto and crawling up the face of the rock.

  “Well, if you need an answer right now, I guess I’d have to say you are still stuck with me. For no,w at least.” Sev said as he walked towards her. Lilli yelped and almost fell over, only being stopped as Sev grabbed her arm and helped her stand.

  “DON’T DO THAT!” Lilli screamed as she smacked Sev on the back of the head. “You could have killed me!” She continued to rant as Sev simply stood there smiling, letting her shake him by the shoulders.

  “Are you done?” Sev asked teasingly.

  “Fine. But I don’t forgive you. You know I hate when you sneak up on me like that.” Lilli said as she turned around to pout.

  “Sneak? Me? I tried to call out for you right after I left the house, but you were too busy yelling at and trying to kill Dwayne over there.” As he gestured towards the stone, ice slowly melting off.

  “Oh. Yeah.” Lilli conceded as she tried to hide her embarrassment.

  “Come on, let's go.” Sev said as he gestured for Lilli to follow him.

  “Go? What do you mean, go where?” She asked, obviously confused.

  “I dunno, somewhere. It seems like you could use a break, and Orsen kicked me out of the workshop for the day. Something about needing to see the sun, or something like that.” Sev said, reflecting on the pitiful display Orsen had tried to put on earlier.

  “Really?” Lilli asked, excited at the idea of doing something other than channeling and studying magic all day.

  “Of course, I wouldn’t offer if I wasn’t serious. Come on, let's go before it gets too late. Unless, of course, you don’t want to.” Sev said as he turned and started to walk away.

  “NO! I do want to, just let me get cleaned up first. I’ve been out here all day.” Lilli said, hurriedly cleaning up her books and rushing off towards the house. “Wait just a few minutes, please!” She yelled back to Sev as she entered the house. Sev simply sighed and smiled, walking towards the house to wait for her to be ready.

  About 10 minutes later, Lilli came running down the stairs. She had quickly washed up and changed into a fresh set of clothes. Sev was sitting on the sofa, talking to Orsen about the paladin’s workshop as a potential place to practice runes, as it was more fully supplied than Orsen’s humble home workshop. Sev saw Lilli and waved, “Ya finally ready to go?”

  “YES!” She yelled excitedly.

  Orsen handed Lilli a small amount of spending money. “Be safe, you two. Be home by dark, understood?” He asked with a smile. Sev and Lilli both nodded before Lilli grabbed Sev by the hand and pulled him out the door. Orsen simply laughed at the sight. Poor Sev, hopefully she goes easy on him today.

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  Sev and Lilli quickly made their way out of the hidden quarter and into the outskirts of the city proper. “So, where to first?” Sev asked.

  “Hmmm. I want a treat, something sweet and refreshing.” Lilli said, trying to decide where to go. Sev nodded before heading towards the ‘Old Town’ area. Lilli held his hand and allowed him to lead the way, just happy to be spending time away from studying and training. She blabbed the whole time, feeling like it had been an eternity since she and Sev had been able to spend any quality time together. Sev simply let her talk, a smile on his face as he led her through the twisting streets. The city was busier than usual, due to the academy being on break. However, ‘Old Town’ was never as packed as areas like the market quarter, making it Sev’s favorite area in the city to go. After walking for about 15 minutes, they arrived at a small pastry and sweets shop that he and Arthur frequented near Dottie’s tavern. They went inside, where Sev was warmly greeted by the shop owner, Wesley.

  “Sev, how are we today?? No Arthur? Oh, and who is this young lady?” Wesley said as the two of them entered the shop.

  “Hey, Wes! Arthur is at the garrison today. And this is Lilli, my friend from the academy. Got anything fresh and refreshing for us??” Sev asked as he waved.

  Wesley simply laughed and smiled, happy to see Sev in a good mood. “Well, for you, Sev, I just might.” Wesley ducked into the kitchen and returned shortly with 2 slices of cheesecake, one caramel (Sev’s favorite) and one raspberry. “Fresh-made just this morning, straight out of the chiller. Would you like some lemonade too?” Wesley asked as he led the two kids to a table and gave them their plates.

  “Yes, please! Your lemonade is even better than Dottie's. But, don’t tell her I said that, okay? If she hears that, I’ll never get her bread recipe.” Sev said, dramatically hanging his head.

  Wesley laughed as he poured them glasses of lemonade. “Don’t worry, kiddo, your secret is safe with me. What happens at Wesley’s stays at Wesley’s.” Wes said with a smile. Sev slowly dug into the cheesecake, rich and delicious as always. The lemonade was ice cold as well, helping to cut through the dessert. Lilli was far less composed, as was to be expected. She quickly ate up most of her cheesecake, and had to rinse it down as she started to choke from too big of a bite.

  “Hey, it's not going anywhere. Take your time, we aren’t in any rush.” Sev said, failing to hide his laughter. Lilli feigned offense, but was genuinely touched by the sentiment.

  “OOOH, yours looks really good too! Can I try some??” Lilli asked as she saw Sev’s caramel slice.

  “Fine, but just one bite. And a small one at tha—-” He stopped talking as Lilli quickly reached over and took a large section of his slice, about 2 bites worth. “Or help yourself, that works too.” He mumbled as he pulled his plate closer to protect it from further assaults.

  Lilli smiled as she ate the bites she had stolen, “It’s pretty good! I think the raspberry is better though, here try some!” As she cut a bite off and offered it to Sev.

  “I’m good with mine, thank you, though.” He said politely.

  Lilli just stared at him, fork held out with cheesecake ready. “Come on, Sev, just try some. Pleeeeeease.” She begged as she tried to pull a pouty face.

  “Ugh, fine. Just stop pouting, will you?” Sev groaned as he conceded, Lilli smiling proudly as she fed him the bite.

  After finishing up their snacks and drinks, Sev and Lilli went up to pay. Wesley simply shook his head. “Today is on the house. Think of it as a thank you for bringing in a new customer. I do expect you to come back at some point, though.” He said with a laugh. Sev and Lilli thanked Wes and left to find something else to kill time. They wandered around and stopped into many of the smaller shops on that side of the city. Finally, they decided to head back so they would make it home on time.

  “Thank you for this, Sev.” Lilli said as she grabbed his hand again. “It’s been a while since we actually spent time together. It was nice.”

  Sev just smiled and nodded. “I’m glad to be of service. But I don’t want to hear anymore whining about me spending more time with Orsen than you. I promise, the sooner we get this project done, the sooner you’ll see why it's so important. And, the sooner things will go back to normal.”

  Lilli sighed dramatically. “Fine, fine. You win. I’ll wait for my turn.”

  The final 2 weeks of their vacation seemed to fly by, and both of them seemed to have hit a second wind after their trip into town. Lilli was more invested and energetic in her magic training, and she even learned how to cast a new fire spell. It was nothing fancy, but it was progress that she hadn’t made in months. Similarly, Sev started to have more instances of success with the runes. Orsen started to notice that Sev was getting the more complicated runes to work more often than the simpler runes. In only a week, Sev had been able to get 4 more ‘unbreakable’ inscriptions, as compared to not being able to get any more ‘heat’ runes to work.

  As the last week of the break came to an end, Orsen decided to have Sev try the ‘recitation’ rune. “It may be more intricate and complex, but the framework is the same as the other runes you have been working with. Just give it a shot.” He said, eagerly handing Sev a blank stone and the burin once again. Sev took several deep breaths and began to outline the rune onto the stone. His hand was a bit shaky at first, but he was able to calm himself before starting the actual carving of the rune. Orsen watched with bated breath. Was it beginner's luck, or a sign of something greater? I suppose we will find out today. Orsen thought as he watched Sev work. Sev had gotten far more confident with the equipment, and his movements were smoother and more natural than when they had first started working on it.

  Sev finished the rune, both he and Orsen leaning in to see if the stone would reject the magic. The familiar blue light started to fill the shape of the rune before flashing brightly and fading into the steady blue glow of a finished rune.

  “YOU DID IT. SEV, YOU BEAUTIFUL BASTARD, YOU ACTUALLY DID IT!!!!” Orsen yelled, startling Sev and making him almost drop the rune stone.

  “Did it actually work???” Sev asked, dumbfounded.

  “There is only one way to know for sure.” Orsen said with a wide smile.

  “Eurika!” Orsen said loudly, as he held a now pulsing runestone. The pulsing stopped, and Orsen handed the stone back to Sevagoth. Sev took a deep breath before saying “Speak” to the stone. The stone’s rune started to glow brighter, and Orsen's voice was heard. “Eurika!” Orsen and Sev all but jumped for joy; the fruit of months of work and training had finally paid off.

  “WE DID IT, ORSEN!!!” Sev yelled excitedly, holding the stone above his head in triumph. I can’t believe it, I actually did it!!!! Sev thought to himself, staring intently at the stone in his hand.

  “Well, don’t get too cocky, kid, we still have to make the real deal.” Orsen said, holding the ring he and Sevagoth had made months earlier.

  Sev nodded eagerly, looking out as the sun started to set. “We still have time, let's do it!!!” He said excitedly as he grabbed the ring from Orsen.

  As Sev sat down to start carving the rune onto the thin band of the ring, he took several deep breaths to calm himself. He thought back to the feeling and pacing he had used just minutes ago, and tried to mimic those same feelings. Orsen watched intently, eyes locked onto the burin as Sev slowly started to trace the outline of the rune once more. It’ll have to be even smaller this time, which means it’ll be easier to mess up. Let’s see if our little prodigy can go 2 for 2. A few minutes later, Sev let out the last of his breath and connected the final lines of the rune. He set the ring down and stepped away, not wanting to see whether he had failed. Orsen leaned in close, staring intently at the small rune on the inside of the imperfect ring. Suddenly, the familiar blue light began to fill the rune, and a moment later it pulsed once more, leaving the soft glow of a successful inscription.

  “HOLY SHIT SEV 2 FOR 2, LETS GOOO!!” Orsen yelled as he scooped up Sev and placed him on his broad shoulders. Orsen ran out of the workshop with Sev and ran straight into the kitchen of the house, startling Camilla and Lilli. “THE STUDENT HAS BECOME THE MASTER!!! THE KID ACTUALLY DID IT!!!” Orsen bellowed in pride, hoisting Sev once more into the air. Sev was in shock. IT WORKED???? HOLY SHIT IT WORKED?!?!? Was all he could think of, even as Orsen was hollering so close to him. Finally, he snapped out of it and started to cheer alongside Orsen, Camilla, and Lill,i staring at the two of them as if they were deranged lunatics.

  Arthur, Byron, and Amalee arrived a short while later to celebrate the end of the vacation and send off the children with well wishes. As they arrived, Sev all but tackled Arthur in a massive bear hug. “I did it!! I actually got the rune to work!!!!”

  Arthur was startled by the sudden 7-year-old outburst Sev had. He embraced Sev all the same, however. “Is that so? I’m damned proud of you! If anyone could do it, of course, it would have to be you.” He added with a laugh, shooting a confused look over to Orsen. Byron and Amalee had yet to be informed of Sev’s newest hobby, and they just looked at each other, confused as well. As they sat down to eat, Sev and Orsen took turns oversharing about all of the rune work they had been putting in over the last month and the weekends prior.

  “So, what is this accomplishment that has you so riled up?” Amalee asked, sharing in Sev’s excitement.

  Orsen excitedly took his turn to answer. “This fine young man was able to produce not one, but TWO working runes of ‘recitation’. At 7 years old, no less.” Amalee didn’t know what that entailed exactly, but she refused to deflate Sev’s pride.

  Before she could respond, however, Byron yelled out, “YOU’VE GOTTA BE SHITTIN ME?!?!?!?!”

  After things had calmed down and the meal was closer to being over, Sev answered the question everyone else had on their minds. “I can’t show you guys it just yet, it’s a surprise. But when the time is right, I hope you will be as impressed as you are tonight.” The others simply laughed and smiled, enjoying the bright energy that seemed to fill every corner of the home. This party went slightly later than the others, as everyone was lost in conversation, laughs, and excellent food. Before they left, Orsen took Sev back out to the workshop and gave him his prize. “But I thought you and Camilla were going to be the ones leaving the message?” Sev asked, clearly confused.

  Orsen knelt down and put his hand on Sev’s shoulder. “Kid, we are her parents, we will have plenty of opportunities to go visit her and help her adjust. But you, you will be lucky if you see her once or twice before you go off to your own apprenticeship. I know it’ll mean more to her if it's completely from you.”

  Sev stared blankly at the ring. “But what should I say?” He asked softly.

  Orsen smiled and put his hand on Sev’s head. “Well, you’ll have about 5 seconds to say whatever it is you decide on. Don’t waste it.”

  Sev and Arthur returned home, and Sev was even quieter than usual. What do I say? He kept asking himself. Arthur somehow knew what to say, even though he didn’t know what was on Sev’s mind. “Just trust yourself, kiddo. I know you’ll make it work.”

  Sev and Lilli went off to school the next day, with family there to see them off. They quickly fell back into their normal routine, but both of them made extra effort to get little moments of simple time together. Sev knew he would have to say goodbye to his first and only friend. Lilli knew she would have to leave Sev and her family. But in the meantime, they would spend every second possible together. Lilliana’s final semester seemed to fly by. She turned 10 early on in the new semester, and her classes seemed to give her more and more work. Days and weeks blurred together as the end approached, until finally the closing ceremony of the academy was held. The king gave his usual speech, congratulating those who had graduated. He wished them well as they began the next chapter of their lives, and hoped that the other students would work hard to follow their examples. Arthur held a party at his house, congratulating Lilli on her accomplishments. She had graduated in the top 10 of her class, a great feat. The night stretched on, and many laughs were shared. And yet, Lilli could not get the anxiety to pass.

  Lilli was given 3 days to get ready to leave for Kilgrim’s academy. She was frantic and stressed, the reality of the situation setting in quickly and heavily. Her parents were trying their best to do damage control, but they were just as stressed as Lilli was. Camilla, especially, was barely holding herself together. As the day arrived, Arthur, Sev, Byron, and Amalee all met her at the house to say their goodbyes. Byron and Arthur shook her hand and wished her well, “If you ever need anything, just ask. We’ll come running with swords in hand.”

  Amalee pulled Lilli in for a long hug. “Be safe, dear. Take care of yourself, and don’t forget to write me, okay? I’m always here for you.” She said, tears running down her face. And then it was Sev’s turn. What do I say? I’m not used to stuff like this. His mind raced as she looked at him expectantly.

  He quickly said, “I’ll see you later, Lilli. Next time I see you, we’ll go to Wesley’s again.” He then handed her a small wrapped box. “Open that on your way, it’s what your dad and I made during break. It’s a gift I wanted to make for you. I hope you li—” He was cut off as Lilli suddenly bear hugged him, squeezing him tightly as she shed a few tears on his shoulder.

  She whispered tearfully, “I’ll be waiting for you, then.” She quickly pulled away and climbed into the carriage, trying and failing to hide her tears.

  Everyone waved their goodbyes as Lilli and her family headed off to the gates of the capital. Lilli opened the small gift box and found a small note. It read: I hope you like it. I didn’t really know what to get you, so I decided to make it instead. Just think ‘Speak’ and it’ll play a short message. Take care of yourself, Lilli. I’ll see you soon! Love, Sev. As Lilli moved the small cloth, the flawed and imperfect gold ring caught the light. She slid it onto her finger and thought the command word ‘speak’, playing the message. “Thanks for taking such great care of me, Lilli. I’ll always be there for you, just you wait and see.”