Chapter Text
“Just a bit longer…”
My voice barely carried throughout the room, a dribble of sweat rolling down the side of my face as I concentrated on the flames in front of me. I could sense my magic wasn’t as strong as it had been earlier, but the attempts to condense it and focus into the different methods I was accomplishing right then and there was necessary.
A hand reached out, wiping the sweat away with a kerchief, but I didn’t budge from my concentration. This was already a repeated motion that I had become less aware of. “Heavens to hexes, you are going to push yourself into a coma if you keep this up,” said the voice of the hand’s owner.
I couldn’t shake my head to protest her comment, instead skirting around it with a prompt response. “I need to finish this tonight, Sherry, or I will not be able to forgive myself for not trying.”
“Master Guy will appreciate your gift no matter what you give him, I am certain of that.”
Guy. Guy Avari, prince of the Avari Kingdom, and my paramour. I had fallen so head over heels for him that I wanted to give him a special gift after his valet, Jasper, had informed me his birthday would be coming up in a month’s time. But here on Sagilia, my resources were limited, and so was my allowance to be able to purchase anything. Guy was able to afford such extravagances and I wasn’t, so I sought out a more daunting task that required more effort.
I wanted to create him a gift.
But being in the state I was at the time, and the C rank I held weren’t going to be enough to allow me to push forward. So between my classes and times I would come to see Guy, I started crafting my project and practicing consistently to make rough drafts of it, until none of them could satisfy the desire to create the perfect gift for the man I love.
Our meetings became more sparse as of late, as I pushed myself forward to improve, and silently I had enlisted Sherry as my accomplice and alibi to indicate I was merely training and trying to achieve her level.
The excuse alone was enough to peeve Guy slightly, but Sherry had insisted that there were times in our schedule that we could practice together while the S ranks were in their lessons.
I was running out of time, and Guy’s birthday was going to be happening in two days. By my estimation, finishing this tonight would easily put me in bed for a whole day tomorrow before I could see Guy for the actual day.
“Your magical stores will be depleted if you keep going.”
I shake my head, the heat of the flames surrounding my gift growing brighter and hotter. My breathing was starting to get heavy, and my chest was already getting tight. My mouth was dry as a result of staving off my thirst in exchange for my project. Soon, I couldn’t breathe and my vision started to blur.
Whoosh!
The flames went out in an instant, and I had to grip the desk as best as I could before I collapsed.
I barely heard Sherry’s call of my name, her arms encircling me to help me remain upright in my seat.
“Are you all right?”
“I-I… I think so…” My voice was but a hoarse whisper, lifting my eyes as best as I could to look at the two objects on the table. “Sh-Sherry… look…”
Her pink locks shifted and grazed my cheeks as she shifted her line of sight to the objects, both of them floating in mid-air and rotating in every direction for us to inspect.
“Not a single scratch…” Sherry whispers. “You did it!”
I smiled weakly, but part of me felt upset inside. When our class was taught to float stones, it had been a breeze. But something like this felt so complicated, like I shouldn’t have been so exhausted from trying to do something like this that seemed so… simple. The only justification out of this was the fact that I had been repeating the process, where previous attempts were now incinerated to ashes. How could I stand to be with Guy if something like this was going to drain me to my very core?
My kerchief floated out to unravel on the desk, cushioning the objects as they stacked neatly before the cloth wrapped itself neatly. The chair scraped gently across the floor as I stood, carefully taking the gift into my arms.
“Are you going to be okay walking back to your room?” Sherry asked.
I could only offer a sheepish smile. “I’m sure I’ll manage.” My legs were threatening to shake and give out to me, but I couldn’t worry Guy if I were to come across him on the way home.