A blindfolded wolf sat atop a small box and mused that she wanted to tell another story. Her audience agreed that they wished to hear it, with one exception.
I object, remarked Audience Member #1, a blindfolded girl with long, white hair and a purple turtleneck.
But then, she added, I always object. No-one cares, though.
The wolf hesitated, unsure of the polite thing to do.
Neither should you, assured the blindfolded girl with a motion that might've been a wink.
"Noted," replied the wolf aloud, confusing the other audience members.
It was one of the library's quieter days, since no examinations were pending. Only a handful of students wandered among the shelves, and only a handful more were seated at tables or on floor cushions, focused on their studies (or studiously asleep).
Audience Member #2, an unseen being from beyond space and time, interrupted the story to ask where they kept the snacks.
The wolf indicated a chest on the ground, and an ethereal tentacle emerged from the shadows to paw at the chest until it found its way inside. This was followed by the sounds of quiet, extraplanar munching.
A colorfully caped lad rounded one of the bookshelves and passed by one such student: a skinny, dark-skinned girl with long blonde hair and a purple dress. She rose quickly and called out as the boy passed, but he didn't slow down.
Half-turning, Arec Russell Zane offered her a quick wink and remarked, "Sorry, in a hurry! I'm supposed to meet Kallistar!"
The girl sighed and resumed her seat.
A moment later, Arec came running from the same direction he'd come from the first time—not the direction he'd gone. This time, he hesitated, clearly unsure.
The girl looked up again, trying to catch his eye. "Arec, you said we'd talk today!"
"We will, we will," he assured her with a slightly forced grin. "But seriously, I've got to run. Bye!"
He took off in a different direction. Several seconds later, he emerged from behind the same bookshelf.
This time, he paused and looked around very carefully. When he spotted the girl staring at him expectantly, he caught on.
"You're turning me around, aren't you?" he asked with a wry smile.
"You're avoiding me," she accused.
"Yeah, sorry," he admitted, "but you know how it is. I'll get back to you later, after I meet up with Kallistar."
She frowned. Picking up a notebook she'd been studying, she stood and walked toward him. "You said you owed me one. That you'd give me what I wanted if I helped out."
"Yeah, of course!" Arec replied easily, weaving a spell as he did. "But I did that earlier! I dropped it off at your room—your roommate must still have it."
She started to nod—then she suddenly seemed angry. "No, you didn't," she insisted. "You still owe me."
Arec blinked and tried again. "Oh—yes, but we agreed I'd give it to you tomorrow, remember?"
The girl again began to nod in assent, but as soon as her eyes drifted down, she snapped out of it: "No, we didn't! Stop messing with me, Arec. You owe me one, and you said you'd pay me back today. We can talk now. There's no reason to put it off."
What the... Arec started to wonder, then realized that she was still holding open the notebook she'd picked up off the table. Is that it? "I don't think so—didn't you write it down in your notebook? Can I see?"
She started to comply automatically, but after a quick glance at its contents, she jerked her hand back and scowled. "No, and quit changing the subject! I helped you out big time last night at the store, and you promised you'd pay me back!"
That confirms it, thought Arec, eyeing the notebook. "Come on, let me just have a quick glance," he coaxed, putting a little more work into the enchantment this time around.
She visibly swayed, but rather than handing it over, she simply pursed her lips and glared.
This isn't working, Arec thought. Whatever she did to that book, I need to get my hands on it.
"Are you going to—" she started to ask, but she stopped out of sheer surprise as Arec moved forward and placed a finger over her lips. She felt him brush her arm, and she began blushing furiously.
"Shh," Arec said softly. He gently placed his hand around hers. "I've got it covered." He carefully closed her hand, and the book with it. Then, carefully laying another spell around the words: "Mind if I borrow this?"
"It's fine," she murmured, dazed more by his proximity than his sorcery.
"Thanks," he whispered, sliding the book out of her hand and stepping back. "So we're settled up, right?"
She nodded mutely, still blushing.
"Right! Have a good one, then!" he said cheerily, stepping back and turning away to make for the exit yet again.
He barely made it five steps before he was too curious to wait any longer: he opened the notebook and skimmed her notes until he found the spot she'd had open. The left page was adorned with various minor protective wards, and the right side... Well, the right side was a list:
1. He promised we'd talk today.
2. He promised he'd give me what I want in return for my help.
3. I helped, so he has to make good on those promises.
4. No, he hasn't already given me anything.
5. No, he didn't drop it off somewhere or give it to anyone else.
6. No matter what he says, I never agreed to postpone anything!
7. No matter what happens, I must not let him near this book!
"Guess she saw it coming," Arec muttered, flipping the page only to find additional reminders. "Wait, what? '17: I'm not already seeing anyone; don't let him convince me otherwise!' Why in the world would I do that?"
"Who is she?" came a familiar voice from directly in front of him.
Arec tried not to let his surprise show as he swiftly shut the notebook and tucked it away. "Oh, hey! Kallistar! I was just on my way to meet you. Someone was taking a tangled path spell for a spin—turned me around a few times."
Kallistar Flarechild wore an unreadable expression, which didn't bode well. "Sure, I get that. But who is she?"
"Oh, just a concubine," Arec teased. "I'm building a harem as an official school club. I'm hoping it—"
"Don't lie to me, Arec," Kallistar replied flatly. "Not even with a joke. You're at your best when you're looking someone in the eye. She mentioned helping you at the store last night."
"Can I get a drink?" Audience Member #2 interrupted again.
"Yes, of course," the wolf sighed. "Just grab one."
"I'm getting a drink," the being announced loudly. "Does anyone else want anything?"
"No, thanks, we're all good," the wolf replied irritably. "Moving on."
One of the other audience members started to pipe up, but the wolf shot them a blindfolded glare. They settled down, and the story continued.
Arec resisted every instinctive response: to flinch at the mention of last night; to make excuses to explain away the situation; to manipulate Kallistar's mind with magic to make his problems go away. The last urge was the strongest, but also the most lethal. He fought it, beat it, and was left with few remaining options.
After a moment, he sighed and explained, "I had her help me pull off a caper."
"I see. What sort of caper would that be?" Kallistar's expression hadn't changed. Arec was starting to get worried.
"Just a bunch of pranks," the lad replied. "Nothing too big... Well, except for what we left in storage... But that's just because I would've felt silly leaving it alone after all the trouble it took to get in there," he added hastily.
"Is that where you were all afternoon?"
"Yeah. Well, that, or setting things up beforehand."
She was quiet for a few moments. Then she asked, "When did you decide to do the caper?"
Arec was puzzled. Kallistar was rarely this calm or this inscrutable. Both together made her downright disturbing. "Yesterday after lunch. I saw a flyer saying a new toy had been shipped, so I wanted to see if they had it in."
"I see," she said again. "I appreciate the honesty. Arec, do you remember the conversation we had at lunch?"
"Sure. You were saying how... you needed..." His eyes widened, and panic rose as he remembered what he'd promised to do. "Oh, shoot! I completely forgot! You asked me to pick up that gear from the place across town, but I got distracted and spent the whole day on—shoot, Kallistar, I'm so sorry! I can go grab it right now!"
She shook her head. "I needed that equipment this morning for the Dueling Club novice class, but it's all right. We got it in time."
He slowed his stream of apologetic excuses long enough to look at her with a befuddled expression. "You did? How? I didn't get it, so..."
"I sent someone else for it, Arec. Because I knew you'd forget."
He flinched, this time unable to suppress the motion. "Shoot... Kallistar, I'm sorry, I—"
"Who is she?" the redhead cut in. This time, there was an edge to her voice and a spark in her eyes.
"What...? Oh, her?" Arec jerked his thumb at the dark-skinned blonde who had resumed her seat at the table behind him. "She's a planar witch. I needed someone to do some creative spatial rearrangement."
"You promised her something in return, didn't you?"
"Well, yeah..."
"Are you going to keep your promise?"
Kallistar's gaze had intensified, and the temperature had risen noticeably. Arec avoided her eyes and shuffled his feet. "I mean..."
Honesty, Arec, he thought to himself.
No, Arec, came a different thought. Tact. Influence. Power. Control. That's why you have magic, isn't it? You never liked consequences, so why suffer them?
He growled inwardly at the second voice. It was his own voice, but it sounded too much like his father's.
"I wasn't planning on it," he admitted, hating the taste of the words.
"This is getting intense," remarked Audience Member #3, eyes wide behind her thick glasses.
"I thought so," Kallistar answered. "I've come to expect that from you." She turned away.
"Babe, please—" Arec tried, reaching out. He pulled back sharply as a spark leapt toward him from her hair.
"HEY!" yelled someone from beyond many shelves. "NO SPARKS! THIS IS A LIBRARY!"
The spark died in the air, and Kallistar shot Arec a glare that made him momentarily wish he'd died with it. He did not protest again as she left.
"Sorry, Mr. Cantz!" Arec yelled over the shelves.
Arec turned and caught a glimpse of his reflection in one of the handful of decorative mirrors that adorned the library's shelves. He was surprised to note that he looked upset. He made a few quick adjustments and corrections to restore his carefree appearance, then started to walk away with the usual spring in his step.
"Why her?" demanded the dark-skinned girl. She had never quite taken her eyes off him, and she had risen to approach as soon as Kallistar had left.
Arec halted so abruptly he almost got whiplash. Pasting on a smile, he turned and winked at the girl. "Because she's the hottest thing around!"
"That's not what I mean!" she exclaimed. "Not 'why are you dating her.' That's obvious. Why is it you won't mess with her mind? You're breaking your promise to me, and you stole my notebook, and I don't even know what else you might've done, because you always make sure nobody notices or cares! Why won't you do that to her when you'll do it to anyone else? When you'll do it to me?" Her eyes were starting to moisten with tears of frustration.
Everything was going wrong, and Arec's own frustration was mounting. He let an honest answer slip: "Because I care about her, and I don't care about you!"
She straightened as if stung, and Arec mentally kicked himself.
"Y-you..." she began, but she stopped as Arec caught her eyes and held them.
"Not what I meant," he said smoothly. "In fact, forget I ever said it. It's obviously not true, so it isn't real, and it didn't happen. You and me are settled up, and you like me just as much as ever. Maybe more."
Am I leading her on? he wondered. No, of course not. I'm just trying to spare her feelings.
He released her to wander back to her seat in a daze, her impressions corrected. The memories themselves were still there, but she'd probably never give the matter enough thought to dig them out. After all, she trusted Arec.
He looked at his reflection again.
It's not that I don't care. It's just that I don't care about her as much as I care about Kallistar, he told himself.
Or yourself, came a thought in reply.
That's not fair! he insisted. I'm trying to spare her feelings. That proves I care.
His reflection raised an eyebrow. Kallistar asked you who she was three times, and you never said her name. You never bothered to learn it, did you?
Arec blinked. Well, no. Why would I?
His reflection stuck its tongue out at him. He scowled and cast a spell to cloud the mirror, then resumed his usual grin and left the library with the same jaunty demeanor as always.
"So who was she?" growled Audience Member #4, a well-armed fellow with a striking headband.
"Mindra Dirac," the wolf replied. "She's an exchange student, and she finds Arec quite exotic. She's also not quite as overawed by his family name as the locals tend to be."
"I like her," grunted Audience Member #4 through his goatee.
The rest of the group agreed.
The wolf shrugged, somehow. "She doesn't mean much to me."
Well, the girl in the turtleneck commented, your priorities tend to be different from everyone else's.
The storyteller groaned at the unheard joke, prompting further confusion among her audience.