Cinder - school of magic

Truth and a liar

Rest of the day went on quite normally. Lyn pulled out a handheld console from her bag and showed me the games she likes to play. I've never thought she'd be such a gamer. She even showed me her abilities. In school, she was always able to create weapons out of digital images and I thought that was all there is to it, but as it turned out, it's much more than just that. She can enter any digital device, travel across the network and leave wherever she wants. Not only that, but she can also pull things out of the digital realm into the real one. An ability like that would be extremely useful. We've spent the day playing video games and I have to say, I quite liked it. I've never played video games all that much so it was nice to try something new. In the evening, she went back home. It was right then, just as she was leaving when I noticed her attitude. She changed completely. Before, she seemed way too shy and reserved, but now she felt much more relaxed and confident. Did the time she spent with me change her? That was a question I wasn't able to answer at the moment.

When she left I quickly slipped into my pajamas. I wanted to watch something on the TV before I go to bed, but just as I was about to turn it on, somebody knocked on the door. I instinctively looked around the apartment. Did Lyn forget something? I went to get the door. To my surprise, it wasn't Lyn who was standing on the other side; it was Vivian. My mind reacted instinctively. I took a step back, prepared for an incoming attack and quickly looked 10 seconds into the future to prepare a counterattack. To my surprise, Vivian didn't want to fight in any of the timelines. She came here to talk.

Vivian: "Oi... Tabi... Do you have a moment?"

I was being a little bit suspicious but her expression made me feel like she was going through something emotionally difficult and out of my kindness mixed with a great dose of stupidity, I've let her in.

Tabitha: "Sure... come in."

Vivian: "Thank you."

She entered the room with a slight hesitation in her steps. I could see that something was bothering her. She turned a towards me. Her hands were slightly shaking.

Tabitha: "Is something wrong?"

It didn't take her long to form an answer.

Vivian: "What is your relationship with Bezuphior?"

Her words took me by quite a surprise. It's been a long time since I heard that name. The man whose abilities I inherited. Old headmaster Bezuphior.

Tabitha: "Well... he was a headmaster, that's all. We aren't really related?"

I decided not to tell her about my abilities just yet. Perhaps Vir-Vir would've had a better solution if he was here. Vivian's sharp tone disrupted my string of thoughts.

Vivian: "Lier! I've seen that fighting style before. There's no mistaking it."

For a second I panicked. Did she know something more than the rest of the students? I decided to keep playing it safe.

Tabitha: "S-Slow down! What are you talking about?"

Vivian: "Like you don't know. I'm not so stupid you know. Once, in my arrogance, I challenged the headmaster to a duel right in the middle of his office. Nobody ever saw him use magic before; so I thought doesn't have any, and that in reality, he's extremely week old man. But that fight... it was... like he knew exactly what I'd do before I even knew it myself. He defeated me single-handedly. When I saw you fight against Mandy and Jessica, it was like looking into the past. I finally got the pieces together. How you became suddenly so popular when Bezuphior died. You inherited his magic, didn't you? The magic that can see the future."

A massive weight dropped from my heart. Vivian only knew very little. With clever lies, I could keep her at bay.

Tabitha: "Yeah, you're right. My powers allow me to see up to a minute into the future. And yes, it is inherited from old man Bezu."

That was a big lie. I didn't know how she'd react if I told her everything. For now, it's best to keep my abilities hidden. Vivian however, had a devious plan in mind.

Vivian: "Fine! Now that I know your little secret, you probably wouldn't want it to get out right? Let's make a deal. If you won't tell anyone about the fight and instead say that I've defeated you, I won't tell anyone about your powers. And I won't have to serve you for the next week. Deal?"

I let out a tiny giggle. At that point, it felt like I held all the cards without even looking into the future. I had Vivian right where I wanted her. For a second I was wondering: "Is this how Vir-Vir feels like?"

Tabitha: "You don't get it. I don't want to keep it a secret. It's just that nobody asked. I don't care if you let everyone know about it, but fine, let's make a deal. How does this sound? Instead of being my servant for a week, you'll join me, Lyn and Agna, in a video game tournament next week. I'll even be willing to tell everyone how much you kicked my butt in the duel. So? How about that?"

I was hoping she'd agree. Bezu disappeared and nobody knows how he died. If he was taken down by the uprising, I had to keep everything a secret. Luckily, Vivian found my deal quite fair.

Vivian: "Wait? That's all? Joining some nerd tournament? Ugh... Fine! But you better make sure nobody will see me there."

I assured her that could be arranged. After that, we wished a good night to each other and went our ways. I went to bed, looking forward to the tournament.