AJI

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPITRE 3
AJI

On Monday, Aji only had one class. In the morning during two hours. Therefore, he could use the rest of the day to rest.

If Sunday was a day of rest, he hardly ever rested on this day. Yesterday was ever worse that habitually. After spending an entire afternoon with Smyrna, he had to attend a wedding until late at night.

Now that Monday afternoon had come, and his class had ended, he intended to rest all he could. His idea of resting was sleeping, studying secluded in his room until diner time, and training with Abira before sleep.

Aji arrived to his room. He threw his uniform on the little couch in a corner of his room, with the idea of folding it later. Seconds later, as he was choosing a book to study in the library near his couch, he suddenly became annoyed seeing the creases forming on his clothes. He folded it before lying down in his bed.

As he was beginning to study and annotate his new book, he felt the presence of someone in the corridor near his quarters. He sat in his bed trying to guess who was approaching his door. Since his quarters were located on the higher floor of an unused part of the Academy, anyone walking in this corridor could only be there to see him.

The presence was unusually weak, so he guessed that it was Abira. He was even sure of it. He lyed back in his bed. As much as he liked being with Abira, it wasn't the time for them to meet to spare in the late evening. So he decided to go back to his occupations.
   
"Aji. I know you're in there." Abira's voice was not loud, yet Aji could hear it clear. Her deep voice had a bite to it, as if she was annoyed or angry.

The prince didn't move. He didn't have the energy to deal with someone, he was too tired. When tired his words were often sharp and few. He would then need extra energy to explain that he was not angry, just tired. He didn't want the woman to think she was annoyed with her, so he chose to ignore her. He was also too lazy to walk though his quarters to open the door.

He closed his eyes, relaxing in the black sheets of his bed.

Abira quickly understood that the prince had no intention of opening his door. She sighed silently before going back on her path, leaving the corridor to let Aji to his leisure time. Yet, she was welcomed by an unexpected presence at the end of the corridor.

"Tiger." Her voice was a weak whisper. Aji couldn't grasp what the woman with dark hair was saying. He focused more. He wasn't usually the one to be curious but something in Abira's behavior was strange. He wanted to know what.

"What are you doing here Abira? Didn't we already have this discussion?" Contrary to Abira, Tiger's voice was powerful. Full of authority.

It was a new side of Tiger. Aji had known the shy and quiet one, not this man. His words were sharp in the same manner a General would address his army.

He shivered at the sudden memory of a battlefield. A child running in the midst of chaos, desperately avoiding the bodies on his path. A General's voice yelling to keep going forward, to keep attacking, to keep killing, despite the obvious loss of men. 

'Now is not the time to dwell on these memories.'

His memories were cut short by Abira's voice.

"A discussion? When did I agree to what you told me ? When did you even let me the room to argue ? That was not a discussion, Tiger." Abira almost spat his name. Her deep voice growing louder in her anger. Aji could feel the magic begging to leave her body. She was suddenly a mass of anger and power, defying the commoner with brown hair in front of her.

"You know why I-"

"Shut up. I don't want to hear your petty excuses anymore. You're are just a coward, and you know it. You're disappointing me Tiger. A lot." Tiger's voice was now quieter. He had sounded pained before Abira cut him off. Aji could only imagine him to be even more pained by these harsh words.