Thanx for the reviews peoples! And for answering my question about Jeile's kid. I had a feeling they were both boys, but you can never be sure...
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Chapter Three
"You really did all of that? And I thought my entrance to Astale was rocky!" Airi smiled bashfully as Mysti commented on her previous escapades. They'd met shortly after Mysti had woken up that morning. Lei had cancelled her lesson for the day, but it had been a steward who'd told her, not Lei himself. It must have been something mondo important then...I can't really blame him if he uses that as an excuse not to see me again. I might accidentally kill him if I try that spell again, or any spell. She'd woken up in her bed that morning, still in her dirty nightclothes, so she knew that she'd fixed what she'd broken. But she did not remember how she'd found her way back to her room. Plus, there was that crazy dream that had Lei carrying her bridal-style up the castle steps and laying her tenderly in her bed as if she were made of porcelain...
"Well, I have to say at first I was totally out of my element here," Airi remarked, "but I'm thankful I had Aram with me, even if that still didn't prevent a few...mishaps."
Mysti grinned, "At least you didn't cast any potentially deadly spells and aim them at his head. I never did apologize to Lei for that."
Airi laughed maliciously, "Heh, I would have given anything to see the look on his face when that fireball came flying at him. Good job, I say, and don't you dare feel bad about it. By now you must have discovered what a jerk he can be. He deserves to be unsettled every once in a while."
Mysti swallowed nervously, "I'm afraid my parents drilled etiquitte into my skull too deeply for that, in spite of the fact that I agree with you. The next time I see him I'm going to apologize, even if he doesn't accept it, or I'll be miserable."
Airi placed a comforting hand on Mysti's shoulder and smiled warmly at her, "He'll accept it. Lei's not as much of a monster as he would have others think. There have been times when he was unusually kind and caring, he just won't admit it."
Mysti smiled sadly, "I'm sure that's true. He'll just never be that way toward me."
"Oh, I'm sure-"
"LOOK OUT!!"
Mysti looked up in time to see a stack of thick books heading straight for them. She pushed Airi out of the way in time to save her from the shower of aged leatherbound volumes that buried Mysti and the person who'd been carrying them. She looked up and rubbed her head where a particularly heavy one had slammed into her and groaned.
"I am so sorry!" said a frantic looking young woman who popped up from underneath the mountain of books. Mysti took in her rumpled appearance as she began to panic. She was about the same age as Mysti, maybe a little older, with long black hair in braids and pale white skin. Her watery brown eyes were framed by wire-rimmed glasses, and she was currently stacking the scattered books with caution. "I should have taken the Eastern corridor instead!"
"Um, Yuino-san," Airi said with a smile, "this is the Eastern corridor."
Yuino looked positively horrified with herself and then looked over at Mysti, who was smiling warmly at her. "I do apologize mistress! I had no idea there were guests staying in this part of the castle! Especially royal ones! I will report this incident and await my punishment. I do hope I did not cause you any harm!"
Mysti held up her hands and grinned, "Don't worry about all that! You don't have to report anything to anyone, and I won't let anyone punish you for having an accident. I should have been watching too, so it's both our faults. I'm just happy I finally got to meet you!"
Yuino appeared dumbfounded, "You...are?"
Mysti sat up and began making a separate stack of books, "Of course! Everyone's told me about you. You're Yuino-san, assistant prime minister under Lei. I've been wanting to meet you ever since I got here. I wanted to ask how you've put up with it for so long."
"With...what?" Yuino continued to gather up books cautiously, not completely understanding what Mysti was saying.
Suddenly Mysti was angrily slamming books into a stack, "With Lei's stupid I'm-better-than-everyone attitude! He's such a jerk that I can't imagine how someone as sweet as I've been told you are manages to stay sane! You have to tell me your secret, otherwise I won't be able to survive until graduation."
Blown away by Mysti's sudden temper, and confused as to exactly why she would need to know how to survive Lei, Yuino could only stare at her, flabbergasted.
Airi smiled sheepishly and interjected before Yuino gave herself a headache in her confusion, "Yuino-san, this is Mysti Deanoia, Lei's new charge. He's going to be tutoring her in magic until she graduates."
Finally, the puzzle pieces lined up and a light of realization went off in Yuino's head, "Oh my! You're the girl Lei-sama described to me the other day after he came into the office covered in soot!"
Mysti blushed and looked away sheepishly, "Uh...heh...yeah, that's me. He was probably furious with me, so he might have embellished a few details."
Yuino smiled shyly, "He was rather upset with you. He described you as a 'brainless peasant with no talent for magic who couldn't keep her mouth shut if her life depended on it' I believe. I had a feeling he wasn't in his right mind when he said that. I do apologize for him. I've never before seen him like that."
Mysti gritted her teeth behind a smile, "Oh, that's quite alright. I had a feeling he'd say something like that. By the way, where exactly were you going with these books? It looks like you could use a little help."
Yuino blushed, "I was taking them up to the prime minister's office. He's out right now with his majesty, king Jeile, discussing important matters on a particularly dangerous person. These books are all the prison records for Astale, and he needs them for review."
Mysti swallowed nervously, "Wow. There sure are a lot of them. So this person is in prison?"
Yuino nodded as she stood up and picked up a much smaller stack of books than she'd orginally had, "Lei-sama isn't entirely sure which one it is though."
"Hmm," Mysti stood up holding the rest of the books and smiled at Yuino," I guess I'll have to help you get these to him then. Wouldn't want his royal-jerkiness to fall behind on his work."
"What?" Yuino looked shocked, "B-but...Mysti-sama! I can't possibly ask that you..."
"It's alright, Yuino-san," Mysti smiled brilliantly, "because you didn't ask. I offered. I don't want you to get in trouble because I made you late. Let's go! Heh, now I get to see where Lei works. I was so flustered the first time I was there that I forgot to memorize how to get to it."
"I'll walk ahead of you two to make sure no one bumps into you," Airi volunteered, and they began to follow her. Yuino was blushing scarlet.
"Y-your majesty...I definitely can't ask that you be bothered with this. Especially in your current condition..."
Airi was all smiles, "Oh don't worry Yuino. I'm only walking ahead of you. I know better than to do anything more stressful than that while I'm pregnant."
"You're pregnant!" Mysti looked suddenly horrified, "And I pushed you? I could have knocked you down and hurt the baby! Ohmigod, I am so sorry!"
Airi chuckled and caressed her two-month-pregnant belly that nobody could even tell was housing a future prince or princess of Astale, "Oh, don't get all flustered over that. It would have done us more harm if you hadn't saved us from that waterfall of heavy books. I'm fine, and so's the baby. Neither of you have anything to worry about."
I still could have seriously hurt you. Mysti chewed on her lip, irritated with herself. I didn't even consider the notion that she might be pregnant. I'm so glad her Aram wasn't around to see me do that. He probably would have zapped me on the spot. I don't even want to think about what Lei would have done to me... She shuddered inwardly as they continued through the lengthy corridors.
"Why do you hate Lei-sama, Mysti-sama?" Yuino asked as they climbed a small stairwell.
Mysti smiled sheepishly, "I don't hate him, per se. I just want to pop him in his arrogant mouth is all."
Yuino blushed, "But Lei-sama has always been kind to me. He's never lost his temper with me when I made a mistake, and he always helped me overcome the obstacles I faced when becoming his apprentice. What did he do to you that was so terrible?"
Mysti frowned and focused on not tripping up the stairs, not entirely happy with herself. "He doesn't respect me," she said softly, without malice, "then again, I haven't given him anything to respect me for. I hurl insults at him every time I see him, and I haven't really given him a chance to be nice to me." Then she scowled and her pace quickened with anger, "Of course, he could try not insulting my intelligence or calling me a peasant. That might help, not that he cares!"
Airi snickered and stood aside, indicating with a wave that they should enter a door being held open by a palace guard, "Lei doesn't know who he's messing with, does he Yuino-san? You don't know it because he sees you as a well behaved young woman of status, but anyone who annoys him usually gets to see his nasty side. He's got a huge monster hiding underneath that beautiful face of his, right Mysti?"
Mysti sighed and rolled her eyes heavenward, "Tell me about it." They all filed into the room and Mysti plunked the books down on the familiar desk she recognized as Lei's. The blue-green bruise she had on her butt was a constant reminder that Nei was right about Astale Oak being the hardest wood around. Yuino set the rest of the books down gently and rearranged the stack of papers that Mysti had purposely disturbed.
"Thank you so much for all your help," Yuino said timidly, "I truly appreciate it. I hate to admit it, but I probably would have had several more accidents if you hadn't offered to help me."
Mysti smiled, "It was no trouble at all. I promise I'll help you out with things like that whenever I can."
"I hope you're not planning on skipping lessons to do that, Mysti," Lei said as he walked into his office, followed by a young man who looked a lot like Jeile. Mysti scowled at him, getting used to having him walk in on her unexpectedly.
"Aram," Airi smiled lovingly and walked over to the young man to give him a small peck on the lips. Aram grinned and gave her a slightly deeper kiss that had everyone except for Lei blushing. "It's good to see you so soon," Airi said after regaining her composure, "I'd like you to meet Mysti Deanoia, your brother's distant cousin."
Mysti met Aram's determined gaze and smiled warmly, bowing slightly as she said, "It's good to finally meet you, your majesty. Airi-sama has told me all about you."
Aram smiled brilliantly, and Mysti could easily see why Airi had fallen so hard for him. Did all of the men she met here have to be so utterly gorgeous? "Jeile was just telling me about you. Lei was explaining where you came from and showed me the mirror you came through. By the way, Lei, you should really give it to her. It belongs to her family, after all."
Lei met her gaze and walked over to her, handing her the small, ornate mirror she'd come through, "That is correct, Aram-sama. Thank you for reminding me. And thank you as well, Mysti."
Mysti tried to keep from touching Lei's fingers while reaching for the mirror, but when she realized what he'd said she fumbled and ended up clutching his hand. Going from pink to scarlet in a snap, she practically jumped back while clutching the mirror to her throbbing heart. Calm down! I must have heard him wrong! "H...huh?" she muttered.
Lei's face was blank as he replied, "For helping Yuino-san with her workload. She doesn't like to admit it, but she's often overwhelmed. Aram-sama and I saw you collide."
Mysti glared at him, "Then why didn't you help too, Lei?"
Lei's smile was strange as he replied, "I wanted to see how you would react. Anyone else of your social class would have just left Yuino-san to recover by herself, but you surprised me when you offered to take on part of her burden. I don't often admit this, but I was impressed. Perhaps I was wrong in judging you to be ungrateful." Mysti finally realized why Lei's smile was strange. He was smiling to be nice.
She could have melted on the spot from the warmth it spread through her heart.
Mysti smiled her first genuine smile around him and said, "Thank you. A...and I have something to say as well."
Lei looked mildly interested, but said nothing. Mysti had to swallow back the lump in her throat and began to wish that everyone else weren't present for what she was about to do.
"I wanted to apologize...for wrecking the training area and almost blasting you. I got ahead of myself, and I'm sorry that I made you suffer for that." There! I said it! Now I just need an excuse to get out of here so I can crawl under a rock and stay there for the next hundred years!
Lei nodded, and Mysti had the feeling that he was about to throw her apology right back in her face. "I didn't suffer at all," he said, his voice going back to its normal, cool cadence, "but you did damage the royal family's property. It was only right that you fixed what you broke. I saw what you did in there this morning when I went to prepare for today's lesson. Lucky for you, Aram-sama arrived and saved you from an entire day of picking up rocks, if you hadn't already repaired everything that is." Okay, so she admitted that she would have deserved that. "I now see that overconfidence is your bane," Lei continued, "keep throwing around your powers like that and you'll get someone killed. I thought you were a bit smarter than that, but I suppose I was wrong and you really are as brainless as I had originally observed. As it is, I can already tell that all those formulas will be useless. You'll never learn any of them properly..."
Mysti would have slapped him then if the others hadn't been present. Instead, she let her temper loose and nearly shouted, "I knew you were going to ruin my attempt at being nice to you! Well let me tell you something Mr. High-and-Mighty! You can take your hoity-toity formulas and lessons and shove them straight up your ass! I'm going to find someone who will tell me how to work the mirrors and then I'm going home and smashing this one with a hammer! Goodbye!" Mysti practically ran from the room, she was so embarrassed. She'd gone and done it again. She'd lost her temper, and in front of people she would liked to have thought of as friends too. Plus, she should have been expecting Lei to say something cold like that. She had no reason to believe otherwise. She heard Airi's voice calling out her name, but she just sped up until she couldn't hear her anymore.
Airi turned and glared at Lei, who appeared slightly surprised, and said, "How could you say something like that to her! After she apologized to you and everything! Do you know how hard it was for her to say all of that? I knew you were mean, Lei, but I didn't know you could be so blatantly cruel to a girl who obviously worships you."
Lei looked taken aback, "What makes you say that she worships me? She hasn't shown any signs that she likes me at all." He knew it was a lie when he said it, but Airi seemed to know something he didn't, and in order to find out what that was he had to say something.
Airi scowled, "You can't be that blind. She told me all about how you two met this morning when I ran into her. She's embarrassed by it, but she thinks you're a truly amazing person for all that you've done for her so far. She thinks you would rather feed her to the dogs than teach her, but appreciates the fact that you haven't rejected her outright like her parents did. And then you have the nerve to tell her that she's never going to be smart enough to learn how to use her magic..."
"I didn't mean for it to sound that way," Lei said, irritated, "I was going to tell her that she's the kind of sorceress that draws her powers from feelings, not formulas, and that I was going to alter her training regiment so that she would have less trouble learning. I was upset because, as she admitted, she let herself become overconfident. That's a terrible mistake to make, even for those who have full control over their powers, and she could be severely hurt." Lei ran a hand through his hair, mussing it up, and sighed. "I suppose I should go find her and explain," he said solemnly, "I didn't know her feelings were that easily bruised."
Airi's frown lost some of its menace, "Perhaps you should leave that to one of us. I have a feeling that you're the last person she wants to see at the moment. But hold on to that thought, because you're going to apologize to her later when we've calmed her down a little." Airi squeezed Aram's hand and began to walk after Mysti. Before she left the room she turned and said over her shoulder, "And you didn't bruise her feelings. You tore them to shreds."
--
After everyone left his office, Lei sat back in his chair and massaged the ache that was beginning in his temples. Yuino was staring at him, looking worried. He didn't look up when he asked, "What is it you have to say Yuino-san? I can tell something is worrying you."
Yuino stood in front of her desk and stared down at her feet. "Lei-sama," she said softly, "perhaps you should not teach Mysti-sama any longer. I'm sure there are others who would be able to teach her as well as you, not that you aren't the best there is for such a job. I hate to say anything against her, but she is making your job as prime minister extremely difficult, and you've only had her as a student for two days now. There must be some way..."
"No, Yuino-san," he said quietly, stopping her in mid-sentence. "I was ordered to teach her by none other than the king himself. I will not disobey simply because she is somewhat stubborn, though I thank you for your concern on my part." Lei sighed and sat up, looking more upset than Yuino had ever seen him. His smile was mirthless as he met her concerned gaze and said, "She's my responsibility, and I seem to have handled it poorly indeed. Will it be too much to ask that you take over again today, even though you weren't scheduled to? I know Airi may be right, but I feel that other people apologizing for me will not solve the current problem at hand. I...feel I owe it to Mysti to show her that what she thinks of me is wrong. That I am not the cold-hearted bastard I've been acting like for the last three days."
Yuino smiled understandingly, "I have no problem, Lei-sama. I wish you luck."
Lei nodded and left the room, "Thank you, Yuino-san."
Some time after he was gone, Yuino sat in his desk chair and stared at the volumes she and Mysti had left there earlier. She picked up one of his pens and ran her fingertips along its length, savoring the fact that Lei's fingers had once been where hers were.
"Stupid little witch," Yuino hissed under her breath as she pressed her fingertip into the sharpened end of the quill pen, "insinuating your way into Lei-sama's life as if it is your right." She felt a sharp pain and stared at the tip of her finger. She'd pressed on the pen tip so hard that she'd drawn blood. Setting the pen exactly where she'd picked it up from, Yuino licked the tiny puncture wound, delighting in the sting and the metallic taste of her own blood.
This "Mysti" character had not sat well with her from the first moment she'd heard Lei speak of her. She was taking Lei's time and making him waste it on teaching her magic, something that Yuino was sure had to be impossible to accomplish. Yuino did not mind taking over for Lei. She was overjoyed that he trusted her enough to let her handle his workload. It was the fact that Mysti was hoarding all of Lei's time and attention like a greedy little monster.
No matter, she thought to herself, smiling cruelly, soon the little whore will be gone, and then Lei will return to his normal routine. There would be no more days spent alone in his office because he had to teach an impudent wretch how to cast spells. Lei would be completely focused on getting his work done, and Yuino would be able to soak in the warmth of his presence once again. Then her happiness would return full circle.
--
Mysti was very good at hiding when she wanted to be. Because she'd gone and lost her head, she'd given herself adequate motivation to sink into the shadows where no one would find her all day. Mortification was always good for things like that.
She stared at her dim reflection in the small pond in the gardens and sniffled. She'd come close to crying several times now, and had considered actually following through with her childish plans to just run away and never come back. I can't believe what an idiot I am. I overreacted to the whole situation, and now I'm sure he hates me. He hasn't even left his office to look for me I bet, not that I blame him.
Mysti flinched when she heard the bushes rustling near the small cave she'd huddled in for the last three hours. Her legs were sore, her back was hunched, and her shoulders were cramped. She was so misereable that she probably wouldn't have minded being discovered, as long as it was by someone she didn't know. She didn't have it in her to face Airi and the others, not after such an immature display.
The bushes rustled even more, and she could hear the sound of wings beating against the air. She peered out of her hiding place and spotted a breathtakingly beautiful bird, one like she'd never seen before in her entire life. It was huge, with a wing span of at least three feet. It was elegantly formed, with a long, slender neck and straight beak. It's ice-blue eyes shone like jewels against its feathers that were like spun gold. Feathers that reminded her of Lei's hair. Eyes that reminded her of Lei's eyes.
"You know," she said to the bird in a hushed tone, not wanting to scare it away, "if I didn't know any better, I'd have to say that I'm falling in love with Lei. But that's absurd. I've known him for all of three days, and it's obvious he doesn't think of me that way."
The bird tilted its wedge-shaped head and landed on a stone that was protruding from the pond in front of her. It was less than two feet away from her, and it appeared as if it were actually listening. Mysti laughed softly at her own stupidity and stared at it, basking in its strangely comforting beauty.
"You remind me of him," she said, practically cooing the words, "so regal. You're as amazingly beautiful as he is, and yet...I think he's hiding something underneath all of that cool composure." The bird bobbed its head once, as if urging her to go on, and Mysti couldn't help but smile at it. "I don't know exactly what that 'something' could be though. It seems to have made him sad and bitter, whatever it is."
She reached out slowly, unable to resist the urge to touch the beautiful creature. "I know it's not my business, and I have no idea why I feel the way I do, but it seems like my heart is drawn to him. Even if I can't call it love yet, I know that I kind of like him...a lot. Silly, huh?"
The bird moved and brushed the side of its head against her open palm. It was warm, and its feathers felt finer and more delicate than silk. It stood, allowing her to caress its long neck, and was giving her a look of comfort. Finally, Mysti could no longer hold back her tears, and she began to sob in earnest, trying her best not to scare the bird away with her sniffling.
"I...just w-want to...be useful," she cried softly, wiping the tears from her cheeks with her free hand, "I've never b-been useful a day in my life. My parents always told me that I would never amount to...anything. Maybe...they were right..."
The bird nipped at her arm, causing her to jump. She stared at it in shock. Had it just reprimanded her? She was silent for a moment as the bird straightened up and spread its wings, preparing to fly.
"Just what kind of bird are you?" she asked it softly.
There was no answer in any language she could speak. But she knew, as she met its gaze before it flew toward the heavens and out of sight, that it had felt her pain and understood her confusion. She sat there for several more minutes before she noticed the single golden feather that had floated toward her on the surface of the pond. She gently picked it up, gazing reverently at it as the water rolled off of it. It glinted in the dimming light like the sun itself.
"Mysti?" asked a familiar voice. Mysti cringed, but ended up smiling anyway. She wiped away her tears and stood, careful not to fall into the water. Airi stood there on the path, looking worried.
"Hello, Airi-sama," Mysti said, her voice only quavering a little, "I'm sorry if I worried anyone. And I also apologize for being such an impetuous child."
Airi smiled warmly and offered her a hand. Mysti took it gratefully. "It's alright, Mysti. I understand why you acted the way you did. I probably wouldn't have done much different myself. Lei had no right to speak to you that way, and he admits that he didn't mean to make you so upset. He's really sorry..."
"I know," Mysti smiled brilliantly, "and I'm going to try and understand why he treats me this way. No guarantees that this won't happen again though. I've been somewhat off-balance lately, so I probably have several more huddles in the cave of mortification to look forward to. You won't tell anyone about where I was, will you?"
Airi winked and placed a finger against her lips, "Not a word. I swear. Now, let's go back inside and get ready for dinner. I believe they're serving roast pheasant and salads."
Mysti thought of the bird and had to smile to keep from grimacing, "I think I'll skip on the pheasant tonight, but that salad sounds wonderful." So she followed Airi out of the gardens, feeling new determination beginning to bloom within her heart. She was going to show Lei and everyone else that she could be of some use. She was not going to let her feelings, no matter how strange or powerful they might be, get in the way of her becoming as good a sorcerer as Lei.
--
Lei watched the two of them leave the gardens from one of the balconies above the gardens. He couldn't believe what an utter fool he was. He should have transformed before she'd begun talking.
"This is...terrible," he whispered to himself as he ran a hand through his hair. He'd done his very best to prevent any potential feelings from springing up in Mysti toward him, but it looked as if he'd failed miserably. She wasn't supposed to be falling in love with him. And the way he'd acted just now, when he'd tried to comfort her...
He was beginning to doubt his own control. This didn't make any sense. He shouldn't have wanted to comfort her as if he actually cared for her on a personal level.
Lei tried to gather his thoughts. He tried to look deep within his heart to see if the one he'd loved for so long was still there...and she was. In all her glory, she had his heart in her hands as always, and it gave him comfort to know that he really hadn't changed. Breathing a sigh of relief, Lei straightened himself out and walked calmly back indoors. He had paperwork to catch up on.
And for the next month, they all put this incident out of their minds in favor of moving forward. And Mysti kept her word. She learned all she could in that time, until eventually, even Lei had to admit (never out loud though) that she was more than useful...she was needed.
--
Lei is such a cool cucumber! It's so hard to write him falling in love with somebody without making him seem totally out of character, so I apologize if I stepped outside of the lines in this chapter. More reviews are totally welcome! They really help me out with the whole "inspiration" problem I sometimes have.
