Noah’s eyes opened to find that Todd wore the same expression that Isabel had when her Mind Meld potion had worn off. He chuckled at the look the two of them exchanged, which only served to pique Emily’s interest even more.

“What in the Damned Plains is going on in there?” Emily demanded. “Okay, I don’t want to wait any longer. It’s already been an hour. Can I go now?”

“Give me a second,” Noah said, rubbing his eyes to try and completely wake himself up. It wasn’t that the Mind Meld potions put him to sleep, but using two twice in a row and then using Sunder so many times on Todd had drawn a decent bit of his energy.

The grimoire felt unusually warm against his palm. Noah studied its open pages, but they were blank, as they usually were. It had definitely done something to the Fire Rune, but it had been beneficial so he couldn’t really complain.

Odd. But not as odd as Azel not making an appearance. I fully expected to have to explain him to at least someone, but he didn’t pop out for either Todd or Isabel. It’s really been a while since I’ve heard form him.

It wasn’t like Azel was gone – Noah could still feel the strand in his soul connecting him to the demon. The temptation to tug at it was strong, but he was pretty certain that Azel had been truthful about not being able to flat out lie to him due to their connection. That meant the demon hadn’t lied about the consequences of unraveling the strand being true death for both of them.

Not like I’m going to complain that he isn’t bothering me, but I’m starting to wonder what the hell he’s getting up to instead of bothering me.

Hey, Azel. You there?

For a while, there was no response. Then the back of Noah’s mind prickled as a faint warmth spread throughout him and Azel’s voice echoed through his mind.

Unfortunately. What do you want, Vines?

I was bored and wondering what you were up to.

Noah nearly burst into laughter at the barrage of incredulous thought that struck him. Evidently, Azel wasn’t much of a fan of people flipping his joke on him.

What do you actually want? Did you really call me purely to bother me? After I helped you with Evergreen?

No. I was wondering if you were doing something bad, if I’m being honest. You’ve been awful quiet recently.

I have been eating well. I don’t need to do anything for you to feed me, so why should I interfere?

That was actually something of a good point, and Noah paused for a moment to think about it. He’d definitely been getting up to some fairly emotional things in recent times, so Azel had more than enough food, but the idea of the demon not only knowing about restraint but showing it to this degree felt… off.

You never struck me as someone who was content with their lot in life, no matter what it was.

Do you want me to be greedy? I can be.

Again, something in Azel’s threat felt wrong. It didn’t have the weight that his words normally did – as if he didn’t want Noah to call his bluff. That wasn’t much of a bet to hedge, as Noah had absolutely no plans of calling in more trouble and Azel was well aware of it.

Do we really have to play games like this all the time?

Yes.

Noah sighed. He ignored the looks that the students sent him.

At least tell me if whatever it is you’re doing is going to put someone I care about in danger. I don’t care if you’re trying to cause me shit, but promise me that everyone else is being left out of it.

Azel was silent for a few seconds. Then a small sigh echoed through Noah’s mind. He was probably searching for the right words that would let him answer the question without actually giving away too much by getting too close to the real truth.

I can’t promise that nobody will be hurt, but I can promise that I’m not trying to hurt anyone – at the moment. My interests lie in other paths. Is that sufficient for you?

Noah copied the demon’s strategy of remaining silent for a bit. He could tell Azel was telling the truth, but his answer hadn’t been particularly reassuring. There were probably a fair number of ways that Azel could accidentally arrange for things to go very poorly. He’d left himself a pretty wide loophole with avoiding the promise.

No. Not quite. I need more. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Insufferable. Do you really think you have more patience than I do? I can sit here and play with you all day should I want to.

Don’t mix my lack of patience up with a lack of ability to wait, Azel. Not wanting to do something doesn’t mean I can’t do it. I think you know better than anyone that I’ve waited for things far longer than you have, and I also know you won’t last nearly as long as I would without entertainment.

I am actively trying to help. How’s that for you?

Noah waited for Azel to add something else, but the demon didn’t elaborate, which only confused him even more. Azel was helping? A thought struck Noah and his brow furrowed.

Help who, Azel?

I’m done here. Call me if you’re doing something interesting. If you want more answers, you’ll have to live up to your threats and come wait me out in your soul. We’ll see how much time you’re really willing to waste.

With that, Azel’s presence pulled back. Noah ground his teeth, but Azel had caught him. He was pretty sure he could wait Azel out, but he had other things to do. Azel didn’t. And, with the promises that Azel had given, it seemed at least somewhat likely that he wasn’t actively trying to hurt someone.

It wasn’t the most reassuring answer he could have gotten, but it had to do for the time being.

“Is everything okay?” Isabel asked. “You’ve been staring at the wall really seriously.”

“Yeah. Just some things I’m working through.” Noah cleared his throat and popped the stopper of the last Mind Meld potion off, holding it out to Emily. “You’re up next.”

Emily snagged the potion and poured it into her mouth without a moment of hesitation. Noah took it back and removed the stopper blocking in the second half, drinking it and setting his hand back onto his grimoire as the potion’s effects took hold and, for the third time that day, he was pulled into someone’s soul.

***

Emily’s soul was cold, but not overly so. A soft blanket of snow covered a beautiful forest of barren, frozen trees. They were all encased in solid blue ice that glittered faintly in the sunlight boring down on them from above.

A shimmering, frosty Rank 2 Rune floated just above the trees in the distance. It felt like it was perfect – at least, as far as he could tell at the moment.

Frost Creation

Across from it was Frozen Forest, a Rank 2 that reminded Noah much more of the typical Runes that the Torrin family had. It put off a bit less energy than the first Rune did, marking it as a slightly weaker combination. Both of them were completely full, and Emily also had a filled Rank 1 Stone and Fire Rune floating in her Mindspace.

“This is about my Runes, isn’t it?”

Noah turned to look at Emily. She stood beneath one of the glistening trees, watching him warily. He didn’t blame her – they’d never really spent all that much time alone. Most of their interactions had been when Moxie was also there, so she really didn’t have nearly as much proof of his character as the others did.

I really should have addressed that earlier. She’s Moxie’s student, but with the way we’re teaching things, she’s mine as well.

“Among other things,” Noah said. “Could you make some chairs or something? The two of us have more to speak about than the others did.”

Emily blinked, then frowned. “What do you mean? If you’re about to–”

Noah raised a hand. “Please don’t finish that. I didn’t word the sentence very aptly. I’m well aware of the reputation I once had, but I think Isabel and Todd’s trust should speak for me enough to justify at least a little bit of patience.”

The snow beneath Noah’s feet bulged. A plain chair made of ice rose up beneath him. Emily formed herself a much more comfortable looking one, complete with leaf padding. Suppressing a laugh, Noah sat down.

Emily was still the heir of a massive noble family, so it didn’t surprise him that she was a bit bratty. And, even though the chair was ice, it wasn’t as cold as it should have been.

“So?” Emily asked. “What is it, then? And if you do anything weird, I’ll tell M–”

“Moxie and I are dating.”

Emily choked. “What?”

“That’s not the thing I actually came here to talk about.” Noah cleared his throat. “But she trusts me, and I trust her. And come on – you know she cares about you. She wouldn’t leave you in the care of someone she didn’t trust.”

“You are not skipping past that first part.” Emily’s eyes narrowed and she leaned forward. “You’re a Linwick. A ratty one. How are you dating Moxie? She’s a valued member of–”

“Is she?”

Emily shot to her feet, clenching her fists at her sides. “What’s that meant to mean? Is she what?”

“Is she really valued by your family?” Noah asked, holding Emily’s gaze without flinching.

“Of course she is! She’s my teacher! Magus Evergreen chose her because of how much she trusted Moxie. This just shows how little you know about her. Why would she ever date someone like you?”

Sounds like she has no idea Evergreen is dead. Not good – not to mention she seems to actually like Evergreen. This might be a bit rough, but it needs to be done. Sorry, Moxie. I won’t spill everything, but you two can’t just keep avoiding this forever. The safest place to tell Emily anything is inside her own mind.

“You know, I asked her the same question.” Noah chuckled and stood up. The chairs would have to wait. “And, to be honest, I don’t know if this is even my place to tell you. Moxie cares more about you than you realize. Far, far more. Really, it should be her talking to you about this.”

“About what?” Emily demanded. Magic swirled at her feet, kicking up the snow. “You better watch what you say.”

“No. I don’t think I will. I’m not going to spill Moxie’s secrets – those are for her to share. But I’m going to give you an opportunity. You’ve got two options here. First, this conversation ends right now and I do exactly what I did for Isabel and Todd. Then you keep on as you were, and we never mention this talk at all.”

“And the other option?”

“I tell you the truth, and then you speak with Moxie and find out just how much she’s done for you.”

Emily matched Noah’s gaze. She forced her hands to unclench. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Then decide if you want to find out or not.”

The chair behind Noah scooted forward, knocking into the back of his knees and catching him as he fell back into it.

“Talk,” Emily said.

The best way to do it is just to rip the band-aid off, right?

“Evergreen was a massive piece of shit – and now she’s dead. Moxie and I killed her.”