Glass Soldier REWRITTEN

Chapter 11

             "You broke a barrier!" he continued to bitch while I yawned leaning back in my chair with loosely crossed legs. James, who was seated beside me, was slumped over exasperated and exhausted- mana completely burned out. Well, he did heal me five whole times today.

             "It's not new information, is it?" I asked raising a brow while he paused. His eyes froze over as the night I had nearly killed him clearly came to mind. The next thing I knew, he was yelling again.

            "You used my name! Mine! You fought with another student in the halls! You used magic after being expressly told not to! You continue to talk back! Just when you were beginning to behave-!" He let out a long sigh, holding his temples while I stared. Despite his unyielding shouting, he hasn't really punished me yet. Which was unlike him. "Lilith, this is not something I will be forgiving, not even with your newest potion,"

            "I behaved," I stated, the vein in his forehead that had been pulsing now looking like it would pop.

           "What part of that would be considered behaving?" He scowled while I kicked my legs and leaned forward on my arms, which I had placed between my knees.

         "Ummm," I drew putting a finger to my chin and looking to the ceiling, "I had quietly been taking the beating so as not to cause any issues but then she started to insult more than just me, your grace no less, in front of so many, beating someone not fighting back while spouting such treacherous words only to use magic? I mean, I was told to only use mine as self-defense and she had to go and use hers! So, I did what I was told. I even defended your honor. I behaved very well!" I smiled tilting my head with a slanted gaze.

        "I'm going to get a stomach ulcer," He stated staring me dead in the eye while he did so.

        "Oh no! That's not good," I gasped excessively, covering my agape mouth. His clenched jaw left me to smile.

         "Do you even understand what you've done?" He hissed while I hummed looking away from him. Not bothering to keep the sugary smile while I did.

           "You sure do care a lot about what children think, huh?" His fist roughly slammed into his desk while James jumped now conscious once more. Matching that stoney gaze once more, the action childish, I waited for his point.

         "Do you think word won't get out? That they won't talk with their parents about the first year perfect that broke a fourth-year's mana barrier? With her hands?" He really was stuck to that one, wasn't he? I figured the real issue was me using his name.

        "Just say I'm a glass mage, they'll lose interest," I rolled my eyes waving him off.

         "This is not a problem so easily brushed aside, your magic is not like that of other glass mages, you will be seen as something far more dangerous," He narrowed his eyes leaving me to pause.

          "... It's common knowledge that a mana barrier can be broken with another mage's magic-"

           "No, it is common knowledge that a mana barrier can be diminished with another mage's magic. It is still mana, it can not be broken, merely lightened enough to allow things through. What you did with Miss Adderson was not diminishing a barrier. You broke through her mana formation. That is not something that has been done before. What you did with me was not diminishing my barrier you disregarded it completely. This is not a one-off thing, this makes it the second time that your actions have gone against the fundamentals of a mana barrier,

          "Combat that with your dragon, a holy beast familiar, and your growing number of potions, you will be considered something beyond what this institution can handle. You are shaking the very foundation of what is known about mana. Your magic will mean nothing to discourage the attention it will bring." Hmm... I suppose I really shouldn't mention the mana potion then. As if thinking of the same incident, James' eyes were vibrated with enough sweat that'd make you think he had already been dragged to blazen. Uh oh.

         "A-actually-" He tried to rat, the bastard, but I had seen it coming and slapped my hand over his mouth. A second too late I suppose. My grip on his face tightened as I stared down at his slouched form. Every horrid thought I had about him and every harmful image I'd imagined coming to mind while I tried to express each and every one of them with my eyes alone.

        "Lilith, release him, James, what is it?" He very quickly ground out, realizing I had kept a little teeny-tiny secret and that James had found out the itsy-bitsy thing. Staring at him for a moment longer, I did as told. Letting him go I wondered just what would happen if Vitreus ate him. Alive.

        "Th-there was an incident," he started, very much so looking away from me and fiddling with his fingers.

          "An incident?" He narrowed his eyes at the fidgeting man. The man that was more afraid of him than me. Oh, I'll be fixing that.

           "W-well, a, uh, a potion incident," the coward mumbled, the weight in the room growing at every stumble he made.

         "Spit it out," He said impatiently while my gaze just burned into him more. Daring him.

          "She h-had, um, well, she had, uh, she increased her internal mana beyond its capacity!" He spat out while I sighed loudly. Looking away from the once more pissed-off gaze that had quickly moved to me I put my hands to my ears just in time.

         "She what?! With a potion?! Why was I not informed?!" He roared, the walls shaking as the books rattled. Honestly, this would be the reason. "When did this happen?!"

         "A- A few moons ago," He whimpered like a damn dog. Fucking mutt.

          "A few?! How many is a few?!" He continued, his mana humming around us as the room continued to tremor, books properly falling off the shelves. The exhausted traitor no longer operating as I crossed my legs and slid down in my seat.

            "Six?" I questioned, not entirely sure myself. "Maybe eight? Somewhere between there," I offered a tight shrug, the tremors growing heavier.

          "Since before you summoned the holy beast?!" Yikes, he brought that up again. He had just started letting it go too.

          "Well... Yeah?" I tried to flutter my lashes with a cute smile but the burning gaze left me looking down. Fiddling with my fingers as the ground stopped shaking and he took many deep breaths I let out a nervous whistle.

          "How long have you known about this James?" He asked slowly, rubbing the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed while James quite literally vibrated next to me at the question. I couldn't help the disgust that seeped into my face at the bastard that bitches and complains every second he's with me but folds too easily around his superiors. A suck-up by nature.

        "He's the one that healed me that day, forged the records. It happened the day I had a burst in the potions room," I crossed my arms leaning back in the chair. He looked at me as if I had sentenced him to death while I huffed and looked away.

          "Forged...? Lilith, step outside, we will be holding our conversation next,"