The Apprentice's Apprentice

Part 18

Cora dropped her backpack beside her bed before she threw herself face down into. All she could see was the blue expanse of her comforter with a tiny sliver of white that was her sheets. She sighed and rolled over, forcing herself to keep her eyes open, staring up at her ceiling. If she didn't, she knew she'd pass out.

She was just exhausted. It had been a struggle to walk home from Selena's when Warren had finally let her go, only after she'd made the stupid bowl float a dozen more times. Warren had said that using magic was like working out, but with the mind, and it used as much energy as if she'd been running or lifting weights the whole time. Cora hadn't believed him before. She certainly did now.

If her lessons were all going to leave her this tired, Cora thought she might have to limit them to every other day or even just once a week. She knew the half hour wait until dinner was going to be bad enough and she had no idea how she was going to get homework done. Luckily she didn't have much today, but that was going to change soon enough.

Cora wondered if she'd get less tired the more she exercised her magic. Maybe it was like her muscles and her body would get used to it eventually. That's what she hoped at least. She couldn't imagine how Warren managed it otherwise, doing magic and homework and hanging out with his friends...

She frowned at that thought. Did Warren have friends? She'd never really seen him hang out with anyone in particular, more like he hung out with everyone. But that didn't look like anything more than superficial friendliness. Well, he had done the spell to make everyone know who he was, but he really hadn't had time to meet people she guessed. In reality she was the only one he really talked to and hung out with outside of school.

Had he had friends when he'd lived with his other master? Also what had happened to his other master? The way Warren talked made her think that he was dead or something. He was clearly upset about the situation, whatever the situation was. Warren didn't really talk about himself much, just focused everything on magic. And making fun of her.

Cora made a face. He certainly hadn't been impressed when she'd told him what she'd told Zoe they were doing, not that he'd been able to come up with a better solution. Warren had zero interest in manga and she doubted he was actually going to read any of the ones she'd suggested he check out. Which really wasn't new. No one else she knew like manga and most people looked at her weird when she talked about it.

She sighed. That was the trouble with living in a small town. If you liked anything out of the mainstream you were generally alone. Cora could only hope that university would be different, that she'd be able to find other people who liked the same nerdy stuff she did. It'd be nice to be able to talk to someone about that kind of stuff and have the other person actually understand. Without her even realizing it, Cora's eyes slowly closed and she drifted off to sleep.