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A winded adolescent male stood bent over panting at the top of a hill. Their short blonde hair was plastered to their face with sweat, their emerald green eyes currently shut as they struggled to catch their breath. They had been chasing a certain sorcerer for some time now, and the steep upward slope had been all the blonde could manage without a rest. He knew he couldn't rest long, however, as that meant the sorcerer would be free to evade him once more. Forcing his eyes open and his body into an upright position, he called to the one he had been seeking.
"Corrun! Can't you at least talk to me, dammit! What the hell is going on with you?"
Corrun, the magnus, turned to regard the blonde knight in training. It was unusual for him to swear. Although given the circumstances, he supposed he shouldn't find it surprising. He had abandoned his friend in order to venture down the dark path of the sorcerer's arts. Sorcery was a forbidden dark magic; a highly punishable crime at the knight school where the two of them had been training. He'd had no choice but to leave. He'd hoped to spare Erran the knowledge of exactly why, but despite his efforts his friend had found out soon enough.
Sorcerers were to be shunned. Killed on sight. Associating with one was high treason. But unfortunately, Erran didn't seem to grasp that…
"Answer me, dammit!" Erran demanded of his longtime childhood friend. So much had changed since he'd left. Corrun now wore sorcerer regalia, flowing robes of black and purple. His auburn hair still hung just past his shoulders, his glasses the same as always. But his face, his eyes…they were cold. It was hard to find any trace of warmth belonging to the Corrun he remembered. But surely, he couldn't have lost his friend completely in only one short year. If he could just find a way to reach through to him; to make him understand…
Corrun scoffed. "I've heard this speech a thousand times. Nothing is going to change, no matter what you have to say. Now leave me be and go back to your little knight club." It was a low blow and he knew it. But Erran needed to leave. Every second they remained here put both of them in danger. He couldn't afford to be delayed. He couldn't afford to drag Erran into this. But Erran was having none of it.
"Little!...Corrun!…Corrun…what happened to you?" Erran's face tilted downwards, desperately trying to hide his tears behind his bangs. "I thought…I thought this was what you wanted. To graduate from the knight academy together. And then…" The young knight trailed off, his gaze remaining downcast.
Corrun knew well how the story was supposed to go. Ever since they were little, Erran had dreamed of nothing more than becoming a paladin. A hero of legend, able to defend and protect, ensuring liberty and justice for all. Honestly, it was absurd. Corrun had never cared for such things, but Erran was determined, and he wouldn't leave his friend by himself. Erran had always been frail, prone to seemingly random bouts of dizziness and nausea. Like hell he'd simply turn him loose in a knight academy full of bigger and stronger boys. He wouldn't survive the first year.
Erran had struggled at the academy, grades always barely passing. Corrun, on the other hand, had found it a bore. He'd easily passed every test with flying colors. His teacher's had been adamant about putting him with the older students. He had a gift, they insisted; he could graduate in half the time, make a name for himself, and eventually end up in the royal guard if he so desired.
He refused. He wouldn't leave Erran. He'd held back on the exams, attempting to pass as only slightly above average. Anything to get his instructors off his case. But even with as much tutelage as he gave Erran, the blonde was nowhere close to the track he needed to be on if he wanted to graduate. He was going to fail, and the failure would break Erran's heart.
He'd tried to talk Erran out of it. To start with the school of healing instead, for surely that would be less taxing on his friend. Erran wouldn't hear of it. He knew Corrun was utterly inept at even the simplest of healing spells, and didn't have a chance in hell of passing. And he didn't want to separate himself from Corrun; he wanted the two of them to graduate together.