Vesper glanced at me, concern in her eyes as she whispered, "What is it?"

  I didn't respond, keeping my eyes focused on the man descending the stairs. He didn't look hostile, but then again, looks could be deceiving.

  Simon had grown taller since I last saw him, and his frame had filled out noticeably. No one would call him a giant, but he was larger than me by a notable margin. His clothes resembled the standard Academy uniform, but cleaned up and embellished with a longer tail, additional bronze decorations here and there, and three stylized bars on each arm.

  His hair was shorter than I expected, pushed back from a face that had thinned out and now bore the first wispy signs of stubble. It wasn't a beard, really, but I had the feeling he'd be capable of growing one within the next few years.

  I reached out, feeling his mana signature, and found myself intrigued. Simon had grown stronger to the point where he was a respectably powerful Fog, but it was the sensation his magic gave off that had me interested.

  His mana felt calm and level, like a placid lake on a moonless night. I couldn't sense so much as the faintest ripple, which suggested exceptional stability beyond even Flynn's magic. Clearly, Simon must have made it a priority in his training.

  But none of that changed the look I saw in his eyes. Simon's gaze still held the same faint nervousness, and when he smiled at me, it was hesitant and unsure, as though he worried about what I might say or do.

  I returned his smile even as I walked over to meet him at the foot of the steps.

  "Good evening, Simon," I said, nodding to him once.

  "Hi, Vayne," Simon replied. "I thought that was you, and I heard the announcement, but I was sure it was a different Vayne, so—"

  I saw Simon catch himself, his words coming up short. He took a deep breath before straightening, and when he spoke again, there was steel in his voice.

  "Apologies for such an overly familiar tone, my lord."

  I winced. "I'll accept the formalities from strangers, but I think we can make an exception this time, don't you? We know each other well enough, Simon."

  Technically, it could be perceived as improper, but I didn't care. Simon and I weren't really friends anymore, but I would rather break some social norms than waste time on 'my lords' and so on.

  Simon's almost nervous smile returned. "If you insist."

  "I do," I replied instantly, before half-turning. "Allow me to introduce my companion. This is Vesper Ollais. Vesper, this is Simon Helton, a student at the Academy and one of the best alchemists I've had the pleasure of meeting."

  Vesper glided forward, a hand already extended. At my words, her gaze shifted from polite to genuine interest. "Alchemist? What is your speciality?"

  "Catalysts and reactions have been my recent focus," Simon answered, his anxious energy vanishing as he leaned closer, taking her hand in his own. "But I've spent years bouncing between medicinal alchemy and transmutative effects."

  "Really?" Vesper's eyes widened even further. "Whatever for, if you'll excuse the curiosity?"

  Simon coughed. "No big secret. I'm hoping to discover ways to use catalytic reactions between base materials to achieve improved efficacy in final alchemic compounds."

  I followed along with his words distantly, but Vesper nodded as though he'd spoken plain Ferren. "Really? I would've assumed such discoveries would have been made decades ago."

  Smile shook his head. "Not at all! I uncovered hundreds of experiments with flawed methodologies and missing results, and we discover new materials every year. Just this week, I spent several days trying to narrow down one reaction between the roots of the white-gold rose and the petals of a silver peony."

  Vesper tilted her head. "I'd love to hear more."

  I knew she was being honest, but Simon looked almost embarrassed. "Honestly, it's more boring than it sounds. Usually, I end up wasting hours trying out different variables until I find an interesting reaction."

  It sounded like hell to my ears, but Vesper looked as though she'd gladly spend hours discussing it with him. She seemed a healer through and through, and Simon's line of research slotted perfectly into her interests. Still, I saw another opportunity I wanted to pounce on if possible.

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  "Simon," I said. "Would it be possible to speak in private?"

  My old friend glanced at me, then back to Vesper. His nervous demeanor returned, but I saw him visibly gather himself as he nodded. "Of course, my lord."

  I held back a sigh at the returned formalities, turning to Vesper and smiling. "Pardon us for a moment, please."

  Simon and I walked along the back wall of the ballroom, ducking around a corner and into an alcove. I had intended for it to provide us some cover, but clearly the designers of the space had thought the same, as the music seemed to vanish entirely.

  I looked around for any runes or marks of a sound-suppressing enchantment, muttering, "Clever."

  After a few seconds of searching, I turned my focus back to Simon, who looked as though he'd rather be anywhere else. He was doing a good job at hiding it, but I could tell he was unsettled. Why was he so nervous?

  Finally, he took a deep breath and bowed as he said, "Please accept my deepest apologies, my lord. I did not intend to speak to your date in such a way."

  Ah.

  "Simon," I said, interrupting his apology. "I couldn't possibly care less about that. Vesper and I don't have that kind of relationship, and even if we did, I know you'd never do something like that. Truthfully, I would rather the two of you speak about alchemy more. I suspect you'd both get something out of it, beyond the satisfaction of a shared interest."

  Simon relaxed. "Oh, thank the Founders. Then why—"

  "Because I wanted to catch up with an old friend that I haven't seen in years," I said with a smile.

  Simon's smile was a bit more hesitant. "Okay."

  Seconds passed as neither of us took the initiative. I folded my arms over my chest, and Simon rubbed his chin, but still we both remained silent. Finally, I decided to break the ice as it were.

  "So, Fog? Impressive. Your training has gone well, I take it."

  Simon nodded. "Yeah, it has. Since you left the Esttons—I mean, since we last saw you, we've kept busy. Extra training sessions. Private tutoring. Plus Sig's personal attention."

  "Sig?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

  "Yeah, Amelia—" again, Simon winced.

  I rolled my eyes. "Simon, it's fine. Please stop dancing around it. I know what I did, and I'm not going to break down weeping out of regret. Speak plainly."

  "Sorry," Simon apologized, rubbing his chin and laughing. "Old habits, you know?"

  I nodded, and after a second, Simon continued, "Anyways, Amelia kept training with him. I started tagging along not long after. I...wanted to get better at fighting. Felt like a good idea after what happened with that drake."

  "Not unreasonable. What's your weapon of choice?"

  "Magic, still. I learned how to throw a punch and swing a staff, but mostly I just wanted to get used to fighting in general. That, and I wanted to get a closer look at Sig. I heard from Amelia that he lost his ability to use magic."

  Something clicked into place, and I grinned. "So, you're why his mana signature feels stronger. I thought I noticed a change."

  "Yeah," Simon admitted with an almost proud smile. "Took me months to get that far. I'm hoping I can get him casting spells again in a few more years. Sig doesn't think I'll manage it, though."

  "Sig's a cynic," I replied, waving a hand. "Magic can work plenty of miracles."

  "Exactly!" Simon laughed. After a few seconds, he coughed. "What about you? The last time I saw you, you were..."

  "Setting off on a fool's errand to try and avert a horrible fate," I filled in with a smile.

  "I wouldn't put it like that," Simon protested.

  "Nothing wrong with honesty. But regardless, it was instructive. I spent most of the last few years traveling. A few months in the north, a few more in Colkirk, and the rest here and there." I waved a hand. "Most of it was uneventful."

  Simon looked doubtful. "Vayne, the last time I saw you, you'd been exiled from a Duke's home. Now you show up the son of another Duke, arm-in-arm with Arenius Ollais' sister? I don't know that uneventful is the word I'd use."

  I simply smiled. "Things change. Speaking of, how are the others?"

  At that, Simon looked uncomfortable. "They're...fine. I don't talk much with Sophia. She joins us for dinner and practice, but you know her. She keeps to herself. Leon and Amelia are friendlier, but between extra studying and training sessions, we don't have much spare time. I see them less and less lately."

  "You've mentioned that twice now. The 'extra training'. Has something changed?"

  Simon shifted in place, and I saw him consider something before shaking his head and forcing a smile onto his face. "Not really, no. We're just keeping busy, you know? After...after your warning, we all realized we had to work harder. Even if you were wrong, at least we'd make for better mages."

  I debated pushing him, but after a few seconds, I smiled and replied, "Well, it's paying off. If the others have made anywhere near as much progress and if you can keep up this pace, you'll all be juggling Archmagi within a decade."

  Before Simon could respond, I made a show of appearing surprised. "Ah, I really should get back to Vesper. Leaving her alone this long is already quite rude. Please, excuse me."

  Simon nodded, and we said our goodbyes before wading back into the crowd. He turned right, and I kept walking left, back towards where I had last seen Vesper.

  My old friend was hiding something. For starters, he'd grown too strong too fast. Simon had been a Vapor, and now he was a Fog? I had needed to leverage additional resources and take massive risks to make similar progress, and he'd done it here? Implausible at best.

  But beyond that, there was the way his words had caught, and his demeanor shifted. At first, I attributed it to nerves. We'd parted on awkward terms, and he might still feel some of that now. As we kept talking, however, his behavior struck me more and more as guilt.

  The likeliest explanation was that Simon, and possibly the others, had received additional training or resources above and beyond what might be normal. Maybe his family had leveraged their wealth, which might explain his reticence.

  Or maybe the others had far less warm feelings towards me, and he worried that our reunions would prove less friendly. I couldn't say that would surprise me, considering none of them had replied to my letters.

  I found Vesper standing where I had left her, a glass in hand and a faint smile on her face as she swayed to the music. Again, I found myself briefly struck by her beauty. I pushed past it with another, stronger pull on my Aether to center myself, then kept walking.

  Vesper turned to me as I approached. Her expression shifted into something unreadable, and she leaned in closer, speaking just loud enough to be heard over the music."

  "Back from your private conversation?"

  "Yes. Please accept my apologies. It wasn't my intention."

  She examined me again. "Just so long as you don't make a habit of leaving me like that."

  I stared at her in the sparkling lights, my heart hammering in my chest, and said, "Never."

  A second later, my mind caught up to what I had said. I felt the heat rise in my cheeks, and I nearly apologized, but two things stopped me.

  First, Flynn's advice. He would have told me to be confident, to accept what I said when I said it earnestly. For all of his faults, Flynn wasn't the type to run from what he meant.

  Second, Vesper's face had a matching blush.

  So, I squared my shoulders and smiled as I held out a hand. "As repayment, how about a dance?"

  Vesper glanced at my hand, then drained the rest of her glass before placing it on a passing servant's tray. She took my invitation, and together we walked towards the dance floor.

  "Do you know how to dance?" Vesper asked as we walked.

  I couldn't help the sarcastic smile that came across my face as I replied, "You have no idea."

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