Sain Clare Academy (gxg, 18+)

Chapter Twenty-eight

Three days. There were three days until my meeting with the principal. I had decided not to tell him about the assassinations, to wait to give him my decision until the full amount of time allowed. It was a gamble, but a gamble I was willing to take to stay with Grace as long as I could.

There were three days until Olivia no longer existed; the sand in the hourglass was slipping through my hands at a rapid pace.

"Want to hang out after this?" I had asked Elizabeth and Grace in class earlier today, as we sweated through whatever rigorous workout Thurman had planned that day. Their eyes lighted up in delight, and Elizabeth fist-pumped.

"Hell yeah, we finally got her, May-May," she had grinned, breaking her posture to beam at me in delight.

Though I had never allowed myself to spend time with them outside of class because of the ticking time-bomb my transformation magic was, I figured it would be okay for a couple of hours. I just wouldn't go to any other classes, after this. I felt a little guilty, as a professor, for condoning them to ditch their classes, but I had no choice.

Just this once, let me be with them, before Olivia disappears forever.

It was selfish, but seeing May's bright smile as she spun around the plaza of the shopping district was worth it.

The shopping district near the school was divided into two sides: the poorer side, which Grace, Hamilton, Amanda and I walked through to reach their favorite cafe, and the more affluent side. Because many of the students at the academy were nobles, it was rare to find them on the common side, which was probably why Grace and her friends liked that cafe so much: they didn't have to be under the public eye.

This time, I was on the affluent side of the district because May wanted to look at new dresses.

We entered a particularly expensive shop and May gasped when she noticed a dress she liked.

"My family would have a heart attack if they saw the price of these clothes," Elizabeth mused, considering the silky material in May's hands.

"I know," May pouted, "my family can't afford this kind of thing, either. Still, it's fun to look."

"Did you go shopping a lot in your hometowns?" I asked them. Elizabeth shook her head.

"May did," she stuck her thumb out at her, and May grinned innocently, "but I hadn't ever even seen a place like this until I entered the academy." I was surprised.

"Are you not a noble, Elizabeth?" I had figured they both were, what with their demeanor. Besides, a commoner enrolling at the academy was rare. I had an inkling that May belonged to a lower noble house, but Elizabeth didn't talk about herself much.

"My village gathered all of their funds to sent me here," she said wistfully, but her eyes let me know she loved her village greatly, "I'm trying to do them right by becoming a knight."

"That's a noble dream," I replied, smiling. She sighed, fiddling with her hands.

"I know how hard it is for commoners to rise to the top. It's why I wanted to go here, to Sain Clare; I heard that there was a professor here who used to be a commoner." I froze.

"Professor Eclaire," May joined in, dreamily. "She's so cool-- everyone knows that she's the most powerful mage at the academy. Some people say she isn't fit to be there because she's a commoner, but there's no way that's true." My smile turned strained at the mention of my name, though it was cute to see them admiring me like that.

"What about you, May? What do you want to be?"

May's demeanor stiffened, her eyes dropping. I lifted my eyebrows in shock-- she was acting completely different.

"I'm not... very good at anything at all," she admitted, quietly. "When I was little I wanted to be a mage, but when I enrolled here I found out I didn't have any magic at all. I'm not very smart, so I decided to enroll in the fighter's sector, but, I'm not as good as you or Elizabeth." It was true, she did struggle with swordsmanship, but anyone could tell how much effort she put into it.

My mind flashed back the first time I met her, when she enthusiastically declared that she would be the first to spar against me.

"Olivia, how do you do it?" Elizabeth questioned, placing a comforting hand on May's shoulder.

"Do what?" It was odd to see this side of my usually enthusiastic friends.

"You're always so... optimistic, e-even though everyone says such horrible things about you. For me--" May's voice trailed off, "for me it's really hard to hear those words. Weak, useless. Stuff like that." I opened my mouth to reply, but found I had nothing to say.

In fact, I had ended up enjoying everyone's underestimation of me, perceiving me as weak, because it meant that the spotlight wasn't constantly on me. Now I realized how selfish and privileged that view was.

Right in front of me were two girls struggling, trying their best to excel past those like me with natural talent, facing their own stresses and the pain of failure. I, who knew I was powerful and didn't have to worry about that kind of feeling, could never understand what they went through every day.

"It's not about what you can or can't do, whether you have talent or not, and what other people think of you. It's about your goals and how hard you reach to achieve them," I said, finally. May's smile was wobbly, and she giggled.

"You sounded like a professor just now, Olivia," she pointed out. I bit my lip, realizing that I had slipped.

"It's true," I defended, self-conscious. Elizabeth chuckled.

"We know, thank you," she said. A pause, then: "May and I are really glad that we met you, Olivia." I blinked, happiness blooming in my chest at their words. If I had never met them, would I still be the same person? There was no doubt that they played a huge role in my world, even after only a couple of months, and that I cherished them both deeply.

"I'm really glad I met you guys, too," I smiled. Yes, I needed to treasure moments like these, with people I cared about.

There was no time to think about the ticking of the clock and the little time I had left.