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Chapter 52

It was fortunate that absolute shock was an appropriate response to Ironwood's offer or Ruby would have been in trouble. He didn't seem upset be her surprise and leaned back in his seat with a satisfied smile tugging at the edge of his chapped lips. His white ornate leather mantle trimmed with red creaked as he laid back, the straps crossing over the chest of his white robes pulling tight. He picked a crystal glass off the desk and brought it to his lips, sipping of the amber liquid within and watching her all the while.

His Specialists remained silent, as did Goodwitch, putting Ruby even further on the spot. Only Marrow looked even marginally supportive, and that was with a proud little smile that suggested she should not only accept the offer but see it as a great honour. How often did Arcanist Ironwood of Atlas and Lady Goodwitch herself come to personally invite an Initiate to the White? Who could refuse such an offer? The question was a genuine one. Who could refuse - because Ruby desperately wanted to emulate that person! They were waiting and expecting a response and she dithered one out.

"I don't know what to say…"

"That's understandable," Ironwood said with a gravelly yet warm laugh. "This isn't normally how we would do things, but your situation is unique. Somewhat."

"How so?" she asked, eager for time to think.

"You're not the first Arcanist to come from hard times, nor are you the only survivor of Menagerie. We have one or two in Atlas and I'm sure many more escaped in their own ways. What makes you unique is your focus on discovering the truth of what happened there. It was your reason for joining the Azure, was it not?"

"I…" No. "Yes. It was."

"There aren't many who would so soon after a disaster like Menagerie dive back into it," Goodwitch said. "Most would rather forget and move on with their lives. It takes a certain kind of person to so boldly face that which cost them everything."

"Fortitude, courage, discipline and strength." Ironwood said slowly. "All qualities we look for in the White."

"B-But I barely know any spells," Ruby lied. "I'm in my first year. I'm not that special."

Glynda waved a perfectly manicured hand in the air to silence her. Even after the nightmarish battle in the Archives of which she'd been on the front lines she was a clean and meticulous figure. Her white and golden robes were pristine, the golden necklace and chains that hung down and over her chest shimmering in the light. Ruby's fingers itched to hold them, possess them, and it was a challenge to pull her eyes away.

"No one begins their tenure here being any more or less special than anyone else," she said. It was a fine concept, but she knew Martyn and his cronies would disagree. "We can teach you spells. We can mould you into something incredible. We cannot, however, force a frightened child to become strong. There are qualities we cannot teach, and it is those we look for in an aspirant."

"I'm of the Azure."

"You wear the Azure mantle. That does not lock you into place."

"I passed their tests and entered the Archives," she argued. "I'm sworn to secrecy."

"The Azure Archives are a known quantity now. I imagine they'll need to change their initiation policy – or much of their organisational structure entirely."

"It might be the end of the Azure," Ironwood said faintly. "Or at the very least a decline. Much of their allure was in the Archives and with that no longer available to them…"

"It's only temporary," Ruby said weakly.

"Yes. Of course." Ironwood smiled quickly. "You're right. Forgive me."

It wasn't temporary. Ruby looked down at the table, wide eyes tracing patterns of grain across its varnished surface. Her fingers dug into her blue robes, bunching up the soft and thin material until it rode up her shins. Their recovery might have been swift, but they'd acted for a moment as though the Azure wouldn't be getting the Archives back, and they knew best. Bile rose up her throat, threatening to spill out.

"It's not without principle that people change Arcana, Initiate," Glynda said. "It's not even that rare an occurrence and we wouldn't be making some grand exception for you. The Crimson allows those who find combat troubling emotionally to leave. The Emerald would rather a healer not dedicated to the cause have the freedom to leave – in their mind that is far better than forcing a reluctant or disinterested person to shoulder the weight of such a task. The Amber and the Black contain no grand secrets and freely allow their own to pick and choose, so long as they surrender any material taken from them. The White is more complicated," she admitted, "But we have our means if an Initiate is truly unhappy here."

"It's not so different to an Arcanist entering their second Arcana," Ironwood said. "Issues such as secrecy would have come up eventually when you chose your second gemstone. There's no reason that can't still be the Azure. White-Azure is just as common a combination as White-Crimson. Our tasks benefit just as much from a knowledgeable mind as they do a powerful combatant. In fact I'd say there's a surplus of the latter."

"Shouldn't I do Azure-White, then?" she asked. "Since I'm studying under Merlot."

"We would be content to allow you to continue that arrangement so long as you do so outside your time with us. The Arcana aren't segregated, and it has always been allowed for an Arcanist to take an apprentice from wherever he pleases. It just isn't common because certain Arcana, the Emerald for instance, are so specialised that you wouldn't take a student from outside. It's something that has been abused in the past as well – often with family members favouring their younger siblings with apprenticeships. Neither is the case here and Arcanist Merlot's research is of interest to the White. He is funded by the Grand Arcanist himself, but also by us."

He hadn't said that. Why hadn't he said that? Ruby nodded quickly, eyes on the wooden table and fingers playing with themselves. Merlot must not have thought it necessary for her to know but she was fast running out of believable and reasonable options to refuse them. Desperately, she played her final card.

"Why should I?" When Glynda's green eyes narrowed, she amended, "I mean, why should I want to? I joined the Azure for a reason. Why change?"

"You're asking what benefit there would be for you?" Ironwood chuckled again, setting the crystal glass down and tugging at his sleeve. His calm confidence frightened her, not because he made any threatening gesture but because he didn't seem to think for a second she could refuse. "That's simple. You joined the Azure to discover the truth about Menagerie. What if I told you the answers you seek aren't within the Azure, but that you would find them in the White?"

Then I wouldn't care, Ruby thought angrily. Menagerie could burn – had burned. It was Blake's home and while she owed her a little, it wasn't enough to throw herself into the hornet's nest, and yet this was the reason she'd given for joining the Azure. Ruby Rose, lost scion of the Rose family of Menagerie, was dedicated to learning the truth of what befell her city.

It was her cover. It was her reason for making the perilous journey to Vale. It was the only thing that could repeatedly get her out of trouble and those little mistakes she inevitably made. It even explained her quick rise within the Azure because grief and loss and determination to find the truth fuelled her on, or so they thought. Without it, she was just a suspiciously focused and strangely capable young woman.

Ruby said the only thing she could say. "I'd be interested…"

"Then your punishment," Ironwood said softly. "Is not so much a punishment at all. Attend Lady Goodwitch in the White Cathedral tomorrow and the day after. Experience what we have to offer and make your choice after. I trust you will make the correct one. The White has much to offer, far more than the Azure can."

More than they could now if the Archives were being taken away from them.

Ruby nodded weakly. She hoped they thought it nerves or shock over so generous an offer.

"Thank you, Lord Ironwood."

/-/

Ruby had never seen Merlot's home before. They'd always met in the Archives in his testing chamber, but with that closed thanks to the White, she'd been forced to find him at his residence within the Collegium. Many of the Arcanists who were free to come and go as they pleased continued to live within the Collegium, either used to its amenities, the convenience of being surrounded by likeminded Arcanists or just because after so long here, the city held no real appeal to them.

While the Initiates lived in dorms, the Arcanists had their own little section of the Collegium to themselves and dwelled in what appeared to be small cottages. Merlot's was typical from the outside but surprisingly spartan on the inside, little more than a corridor into two spacious rooms with a staircase leading up to where she assumed he slept. It was made of white brick that wasn't quite marble, with dark wood furniture and rich blue tapestries featuring silver thread depicting patterns and stylistic images of deer and birds.

Unsurprisingly, he had an office in his home as well as at the Archives, and it was just as busy and cluttered as it had been there. He had two desks and two chairs, with both desks looking like they were overflowing with books and parchment. The stench of ink was thick on the air, as was the dust that swirled around her head in musty clouds. Ruby had the feeling Merlot only cleaned when he could physically no longer work in the space – and he probably paid someone else to clean it up, too.

It's like he takes the same attitude with his hair as well, she thought. It was so wild and random that Yang would have had a fit. He waved her in and gestured for her to take a seat, which was literally impossible for the pots of ink balanced on the second. Ruby stood instead, regaling her tale while the man sat and played with his bushy white moustache.

"By the Azure, girl. You don't do things by half, do you?"

"Is it true then?" she asked. "Initiates can move between Arcana?"

"Course it is. You're children and prone to making rash decisions. Some go with what sounds exciting at the time while others feel obligated because of family or friends. No one wants a pacifist in the Crimson or an egotist in the Emerald. The White don't want those whose will falters, and we don't care for those without a sense of curiosity. Better to let them all leave than try and force them into compliance. It's more final once you take your gem – that's for life – but it's because of that finality that we let people skip around as they want."

"What about the big secrets?"

"What big secrets do you really think we'd teach someone before they prove themselves capable? The Archives is an exception to us - and we all know the knowledge isn't as hidden as we'd like. Every Azure who takes a second gem has split loyalties. It's something we're used to dealing with."

"Then it's allowed," she whined. "But the fayre made it sound like our choice was permanent."

"Course it did," he said with a scoff. "We don't want people changing their Arcana as often as they do their underclothes. We impress upon you the importance of making a serious choice so that you don't waste our time. The option to switch is there, but we'd be fools to advertise it."

Ruby sighed. "I was hoping it was so rare I could say I didn't want to be singled out as special."

"Hm. No luck there. This happens a few times every year, sometimes ten or more times across all the Arcana. To be poached by Lady Goodwitch and Lord Ironwood personally, now that's a different matter, though not one someone in your situation should be passing up on. For all that your noble heritage is intact-" He said it with sarcasm dripping from every word. "-your family is defunct and your fortune lost. You're cut adrift, no better than a commoner other than for your blood and breeding. A noble in your situation would be a fool not to grasp any opportunity offered to them. And believe me, they know that."

Like a Dredger jumping at the chance to apprentice under a craftsmen out in the farmlands, desperate enough to give up everything – even their own family – for the chance of a better life. Both her and Yang had stood out in the fayres hoping someone would take them. She could remember how they'd smoothed their hair out with spit, put on their best smiles and bulked their clothing to look strong and ready for hard work. So had everyone else, and girls weren't in high demand for hard labour. That hadn't stopped them coming back year after year.

"I doubt anyone would blame you leaving either," Merlot said. "The timing works out for you. After all that effort you put into the Rubricator, the Archives are lost to us. I dare say plenty of Azure will be changing colours in the coming weeks. You going to White won't surprise anyone; people will think you're trying to keep access to the Archives, and it's them who has it now."

"You think I was right then?" she asked. "They're going to seal off the Archives?"

Merlot scoffed and knocked a pot of ink off his desk. The shattering glass made her flinch but perfectly matched the wild look in his eyes. He took advantage of the space created to slam his fist down. His bushy eyebrows drew down and it was the first time she'd seen him bare his teeth. He looked like a wild animal, like a rabid snow hare.

"I think the White have been looking for a reason for decades! This isn't a crisis to them, it's a golden opportunity. I wouldn't be surprised if the news spreads and every Collegium has its Azure Arcana stepped down on. Look at it," he snapped, "An Arcana dedicated to rooting out secrets existing in the same space as one dedicated to suppressing them. Relations were never good between us and I dare say this'll make things worse."

"As for sealing it." He hummed, wiped a hand over his mouth and leaned down on one elbow. It was the most out of sorts she'd ever seen him, and she had the suspicion he'd been drinking or raging before her arrival. "They can't seal us out forever – that'd never stand. They claimed it was temporary and they won't want to be seen going back on their word. I expect they'll come to some unhappy compromise, though not after making us work for it. Easiest way to make someone accept a poor deal is to make them think they earned it themselves. Something where we can go in but only stay within a designated safe area, or where we need an escort to go further."

"And they'll sanitise the books within that area," Ruby complained.

"Of course they will. The Rubricator will make that nice and easy for them. Oh, they'll talk of expanding the area slowly as they deal with Grimm, but you and I both know that'll only be once they've made sure every tome within is to their standards. Disgusting," he spat. "A repository of untold and unknown knowledge and their first instinct is to bury it all. On what? The off chance it might be dangerous. Pah! Cowards, all of them. So afraid of the possibility of a darker future that they remove any hope of a bright one."

Ruby brushed her toes against the back of her other foot. She was used to dealing with angry people back in the slums, but only because she had the agency there to ignore, confront or even spit on them and run away. It was a whole new experience here, especially from someone normally so calm.

"What should I do?"

"Join the White." He waved his hand at her almost dismissively. "What else can you do? The Azure is a shell of its former self and we'll be fighting to scrape back even half of what we once had. It'd be more suspicious for you to not accept, and you'll never find anything on Wildmages with us now. The White are taking control. Either get on their side or get out the way." He looked up suddenly, eyes narrowed and lips drawn. "Though, why worry about being special? If they want you, make them work for it. Demand something. Haggle."

Ruby wasn't sure if he was suggesting that because he thought it was a good idea or because he wanted to upset the White. "Like what?" she asked. "Access to the Archives?"

"No, they'll never allow that for an Initiate, and you'd get it if you joined them anyway, assuming you rose far enough. It's the White Archives now, isn't it? No, you'll want to ask for something they might give. Not the Sanctum, that's out of bounds. How about outside?"

Ruby's body stiffened. "You mean outside the walls!?"

"They'll never let you go alone," he said, "But there have been exceptions when escorted. Deaths of family, important events, arranged marriages, someone dying to disease and wanting to be with family – Initiates are sealed to the Collegium as standard, but there are obvious exceptions. When those occur, you're sent with an Arcanist of standing to ensure you remain compliant. It's already known I want to go hunt some Grimm for research and you're my apprentice – something they're ostensibly willing to let continue. Make that contingent on your joining them. As long as you're careful, I don't much care if you sneak off to do your own business in the city."

"Will they accept?" Ruby asked excitedly, thinking of Yang and being able to meet her whenever she wanted – without the risk of being caught outside the walls and subjected to the Sanctum. "That seems like something they'd be even less likely to agree to than the Archives."

"You're not thinking as a White. They're afraid of people discovering knowledge, or Wildmages and powerful Rogue Arcanists. Of losing control. One Initiate outside the walls? Who would care? The worst that could happen is you go Rogue, and they have ways to deal with that. It's a loss if you die to a Grimm, but you're only a promising Initiate, not some crown princess of an allied Kingdom. If it keeps you from digging into the Archives or the Sanctum, I dare say they'd agree to anything."

"Do you know anything about the Huntsmen?" Ruby asked suddenly. It was a random question from his point of view, and she had a feeling she already knew the answer, and that she'd hate it.

"I know of them but little on how they operate. That is also something you would find more about within the White Arcana. I'm afraid the Azure has little to offer you anymore, little Wildmage. If you want answers, there's only one place you'll find them."

/-/

"I can't believe this is happening!"

Weiss could hardly contain her excitement, throwing aside her usual decorum to almost bounce on her heels as she walked alongside Ruby toward the White Cathedral. The towering building with its glistening spires and arched windows was by far the most beautiful building in the Collegium, even if the Grand Arcanist's tower eclipsed it in height. The marble walls and white-gold pennants that hung down the sides of the rounded towers fluttered in the breeze, rippling like water. Flowerbeds laid outside and around it were dotted with pink, red and white roses, and gardeners – normal employees of the Collegium with no magical ability – worked tirelessly to maintain them.

Ruby picked at the white sleeve of a borrowed robe delivered to their dorm. It didn't feel right, the colour too bright and obvious for her, and making her pale skin appear washed out. In terms of quality and weave it was no different than her Azure one at all, but it felt difference all the same. Itchy and unfamiliar. Initiates who had yet to pass the first trials were supposed to wear coloured mantles over grey robes, and the fact they'd sent her pure white sent all kinds of messages.

"You'll love it here," Weiss gushed, her earlier trepidation of Goodwitch's attitude towards Ruby apparently forgotten. There couldn't be any issue if Ruby was here, she must have thought. "Everything is so bright and clean, the lectures are interesting and no one cares about name, lineage or glory. Did I tell you about the girl I met here, Pyrrha? She's the youngest person to ever earn a gemstone and she doesn't care. No one treats her any different. Can you imagine if it were Martyn? He'd be lording it over people's heads until the day he died."

"He would," Ruby said quietly. Her attention was less on what Weiss said and more on the tall and imposing figure waiting atop the marble steps leading up to a giant pair of wooden double doors some ten feet tall with golden handles. Goodwitch looked like a religious leader welcoming acolytes, with everyone who passed by her bowing their heads respectfully.

"Lady Goodwitch," Weiss said, dipping into a graceful curtsey. Ruby didn't follow suit, and probably would have mucked it up if she tried. "I didn't expect you to meet us…"

"Extenuating circumstances, Initiate," she said warmly. "You may continue on to your lessons while I look to Miss Rose. Worry not, she's in no trouble. You have already seen and heard what I'd show her, and should she accept to join us then she will be attending lessons with you normally in the future."

"Oh. I see." Weiss spared her a quick look and then nodded. It was obvious she wanted to come offer some moral support, but she couldn't well deny an order from her superior. "Would you like me to collect Ruby for lunch or after my lessons?"

"If you wish it, child. I will endeavour to spare her time for food and socialising. Go now. I believe Initiate Nikos is already waiting inside and you shouldn't keep her long."

"Ah. Yes." Weiss curtsied again. "Thank you and good day, Lady Goodwitch. I'll see you later, Ruby."

Goodwitch waited for Weiss to enter and hurry up to a tall redhead and leave before she spoke again. "Loyal allies are treasures few find in a lifetime. You should consider yourself fortunate she cares as much as she does."

"Weiss is my friend," Ruby said simply.

"Friends come and go. Many don't survive joining different Arcana. As the years pass and duties and interests differ, people drift apart. Many find solace in others of their Arcana, spending time with them to forge new bonds. It's common for married Arcanists to share a gemstone."

Ruby frowned. "I'm not interested in that."

"No? Good. I find myself of the same mind. While I would not begrudge a partnership if it came along, I don't see the point in wasting time looking for one – not when there are far greater things in my mind. You are the same, I expect. Married to your own goal. We respect focus like that here. Come. Let me show you around."

The woman placed a hand on Ruby's shoulder, guiding her in through the towering doors. Beyond lay an entrance hall as ostentatious as the one in the Academy building itself, if not more so. Huge white pillars inlaid with gold and silver, a giant chandelier made of crystal and casting dazzling light out in every direction, long wooden benches like pews that people sat on to talk or mull over books, and two marble staircases reaching up either side to open doorways that led deeper into the Cathedral.

The name itself was a little out of place before while there was golden iconography among the walls and reaching up toward glass windows with other symbols and images artistically depicted on them, there was nothing that stood out as religious. It seemed more that the name had been used to evoke awe, to make it sound important when it was for all intents and purposes just a castle.

Just a castle, she thought sarcastically. Just. The Azure never cared for appearances.

"The Cathedral can be labyrinthine to those unused to it," Goodwitch said, leading her down the centre of the pews and to a doorway at the back. It opened out into a circular room with four more corridors leading off from it, one right, one left and two ahead splitting off either way. What appeared to be white tiles radiating light were attached to the ceiling of each, undoubtedly items crafted from the Black Arcana to light the way. Ruby wondered for a moment why it wasn't used more commonly across the Collegium, then realised it was probably meant to impress her. "Until you better know the way, I would advise staying with me," she continued. "Your punishment isn't much of one as you know, but we must keep up appearances."

It was more a punishment than Goodwitch thought. Ruby bit down on the retort and nodded her head, silver eyes scanning each corridor and committing them to memory in case she had to leave in a hurry.

"What will we be doing?" Ruby asked. "Is this a tour?"

"No. You can have that if you choose to join us. This is more an… I suppose you could call it a temporary apprenticeship. Not to learn anything, but to experience the work the White does so you can better understand and appreciate why we act as we do." A low chuckle slipped from her. "I expect it's also to help mend the rift between you and I. James does like to meddle. That's Lord Ironwood to you," she said.

"I know. Um. Lady Goodwitch," she added quickly. "The rift-"

"Is a misunderstanding, I know." The woman opened a door and gestured her onward. The new corridor led to a staircase at the end guarded by two suits of armour. It took her a second to realise they were just that and not armoured guards. Glynda ascended slowly with Ruby behind. "Still, it isn't one without good reason on your part and I can understand why my actions might appear callous to you. You, Miss Rose, have had the misfortune to be involved in something truly harrowing, now just the fall of Menagerie but the attack on the Archives. Few would blame you holding some paranoia, and my actions can't have made it any better."

Paranoia? That suggested she was wrong to think that way, that she was jumping at shadows that didn't exist. This wasn't paranoia but justified caution. It was better to be thought of as a scarred child, though, so she swallowed her anger and bowed her head, hiding her clenched fists under too-long white sleeves.

"This is my office," she said at the top of the stairs. The door opened into a small and orderly room with several bookcases along the left and right walls, a large table in the centre and a set of three tall windows behind that looked out over the Collegium, and beyond that, the wilderness outside. The city couldn't be seen from her office, likely because the city didn't exist to her, or wasn't important.

As Glynda stepped into the room, she touched her finger to a pair of candlestands, causing the white stones on top – quartz, Ruby thought – to light up. Two more on either side of her desk received the same treatment. Unlike Merlot's quarters, there wasn't a quill out of line. There were three books on her desk, each orderly stacked upon the other. The two chairs before it were positioned perfectly straight and the room had a symmetry so conceptually ideal that Ruby felt awkward not walking down the exact central line of it.

"I've had a small desk made up for you," she said, indicating the one anomaly to the rule. A wooden table some six feet by three with a chair behind it. It was set to the side of hers, which meant Ruby would be facing Glynda's left as she sat at it. "You may feel free to personalise it as you wish, though given you'll only be here for a few days, I expect you won't feel the need."

Ruby drew out the chair and sat, feeling the red leather cushion flex under her weight. There was nothing on the desk to suggest work, no papers or books to read. There was a single pot of black ink with a quill laid out beside it, the pot stoppered by a small amount of white cloth.

"What will I be doing?" she asked for what felt like the third time.

"You shall be paying attention to the work I do and learning from it. If there is something I believe you capable of achieving on your own I shall let you know, though I will naturally be going through it afterwards. That is no slight on you; the work I do is of a magnitude of importance above what many Arcanists would be allowed to handle, let alone an Initiate."

"Should I be here at all then?"

"Worry not. I've made it clear you're not to be presented with anything you shouldn't be allowed to see. There won't be any undue promises forced on you from this. Nothing you don't already know. Instead, it's more to show you the wider range surrounding those things, so you better understand why the White does what it does." Glynda paused to open a drawer on her desk and retrieve an ornate wooden box, which she opened to reveal a stack of opened letters. "Here. These are communiques from some of the noble houses impacted by the recent disaster that befell the wall. You were there with the other Initiates when the River Vale diverted, so you no doubt saw it flood out into the Upper District."

Ruby had to hide her satisfied smile. "I did. Is it a big deal, though? The city floods every year."

"The damage done to the lower districts is relatively easy to contain, however, and inexpensive in the grand scheme of things."

"Not to those that die, it isn't!" Ruby swore silently and wished she could take it back. The words had burst out the very second Glynda finished speaking. The older woman appeared surprised, though she sighed and shook her head, correcting herself.

"I'm sorry. That must have sounded callous of me again. I sometimes forget myself. I didn't mean inexpensive in terms of the impact of lives – it's quite the opposite as you well say. I mean in terms of renumeration and the financial cost of repairing the districts. Since the damage was caused by magic, the fault is essentially ours."

Or hers, though she wasn't going to admit that. "Why, though?" she asked instead. "If it was caused by Adam then it's not the Collegium's fault."

"The balance between those with magic and those without is tenuous," Glynda explained, setting the letters down before Ruby. They were each sealed with the crest of a noble family, though the seals were by now broken. "In order to maintain that and not cause those without to feel threatened by us, we must allow them some measure of control over us – no matter how tenuous that might seem. That is why laws exist and why we follow them, even when some may seem unfair to us. One such is that we are responsible for any and all mishaps of an arcane nature. This counts."

"Hardly seems fair."

"It's not but imagine for a second if Arcanists tossed their heads and refused to assist. Imagine if we exercised the true power we had and refused to be held accountable for what, whether it's our fault or not, originated within our walls. We would be seen as tyrants lording it over the common folk, with some of them not so common at all. The nobles would be furious, our intake of students would decrease, some would seek to send theirs to other Collegiums – which is acceptable – but some might try to keep their talent secret or foster it outside the walls, where the consequences could well be catastrophic."

"Imagine it a hundred years from now where nobles, guards and even criminals display amateur and unpredictable control over magic and wield it against the common folk. Assassinations, muggings, mercantile deals and more, all committed by magic and causing the people, quite understandably, to feel anger toward those who have it. It would fester, and in time might bring about the worst, riots and hunts in the streets for those with talent, and who could expect Arcanists not to try and defend themselves against such? It would be bloodshed, Initiate. It would be a massacre. That is why we bow our heads here," she said, tapping the letters. "It is why we swallow the bitter medicine at this point, to prevent a worse illness later."

"Right." Ruby grimaced but picked up the letters. "What am I doing, then?"

"You will sort these into two piles. One wherein you believe the complaints truly warrant compensation from the Collegium, and those you believe to be exaggerating their issues to cheat us. Worry not, I've already gone through them myself, but it helps to garner a second opinion. In doing so you might also learn just how widespread the damage caused by a Wildmage can be – even if it was an accident and the Wildmage involved had no idea of what he wrought."

Ruby flinched but she had to mean Adam. If Goodwitch really did know, she wouldn't have gotten this far. She said `he`. I'm still safe. Keeping her eyes down, she picked up the first of the letters and unfolded it, drawing out the parchment within and laying it out flat. Glynda moved to her own work, pulling out a quill and dipping it against the page of an open book.

They worked in silence.

Like most writers I'm constantly trying to find little ways to improve and one that I'm trying to implement in this chapter, and that you may have noticed, is more creative description in terms of people's clothes, faces and also Ruby's surroundings. There's a tendency in fanfiction to gloss over descriptions since the content is based on a show or other book which already did it, and most readers know what people look like. In an original AU like this however, that doesn't hold true and everything has changed, so I'm trying to get back into the habit of properly describing stuff. Not over the top detail – find that annoying in some books like Game of Thrones where the food at a feast is described in far too much detail – but enough to evoke a bit more imagery.

Next Chapter: 16th August

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