My eyes blink open and I roll over, momentarily having no clue where I am. My eyes dart around the room before I realize that I'm in Hieronymous' room. Well, my room, now. Our room. We've been married for a little over a year and we are finally sharing a room together. Is that progress? I can't even be sure.

I roll over in bed and grab at my watch from the nightstand. I overslept. I way overslept. Not that it really mattered too much anyway, it wasn't like I was planning on going to class with all of the rumors that were running around. No, instead I would stay safely out of sight until Spring Break was over and people had hopefully forgotten about me. As I look about the room, my eyes land on my green cape that bears the horse insignia. I wasn't really living in Horse Hall anymore, so did that mean I was still a horse? It hardly seemed appropriate, but I had nothing else to really change it to. If Hieronymous was really nobility, he probably had a family crest, but that would be beside the point.

I sit up and think about the conversation we had last night, about the conversation we had the night of the May Day ball, when Hieronymous told me that he suspected Potsdam of trying to arrange the marriage so he could take up his father's seat. For some reason, I always assumed that it was merely my long-winded speeches and sheer force of will that he liked me and still wanted to be married to me, but maybe it was the other way around? If he really did need to suddenly go back to England, I would, as his wife, have to go with him. So was it actually in his best interests to stay married to me?

I think this over for a while, wondering if that train of thought had led him to cancel the severance. Did this have nothing to do with love? Was it all about political gain? I think about it for a moment, but that doesn't make any sense either. He said clearly last night that that wasn't what he wanted. He said last night that he didn't even want to go back to England, that he vowed never to go back to England…

…but he had also said that he might have to. Surely he wouldn't go back if it meant breaking a vow and losing his magic and memories? How would he be expected to hold up the seat or whatever he had to do if he couldn't remember anything about who he was? Was there a special vow-breaking exception that I didn't know about? Maybe if you made a vow, there was a special way to be released from it without losing your magic?

I flop backwards onto the bed into the pillows. There was so much about the magical world that I didn't know about. Heck, there was so much about the world I didn't know about. I didn't know anything about British monarchy. He said his father was a viscount, but what was that compared to a duke? An earl? A baron? Did he live in tons of fancy houses and have carriage rides to Derbyshire? I roll over onto my stomach. All of my information was coming from old novels that I had read years ago. I could always ask him, but I wasn't sure he would really be open to talking about it, and I didn't want to push him. I could already picture it: me living in a large mansion and having to wear fancy dresses and host parties and entertain high society. I'd have to learn a soup spoon from a regular spoon and a salad fork from another kind of fork…it was nothing I ever aspired to.

But as his wife, would I have to? Maybe not now, but in five years, ten years, twenty years, would I have to be groomed for a role I didn't want to play? Would I eventually want to play it? I close my eyes. I can see why Hieronymous wasn't as stressed about the future as I was: I wasn't going anywhere. And that should have been good. That should have comforted me. I don't know why it didn't. Maybe it was because I had assumed that I would always need him; I didn't realize that he was the one who may need me. But if we were together, wasn't that good enough?

I groan and shake my head, sitting up again. Too much alone time, too many thoughts. And, just as he had said, these thoughts were only a distraction from my everyday problems, like what I was going to do to get me through the end of the year. Fortunately we only had a month left after Spring Break, and then there were finals to worry about, so it wouldn't be that bad. Hieronymous had mentioned that I probably wouldn't need to take the final, but I wanted to. As long as it didn't involve me working with my former roommates, that is. Then I would probably just fail on principle.

Suddenly there is a knock on the door and I quickly slip out of bed. I consider throwing on my robes first, but a second knock pulls me towards the door. I'm in a tank top and shorts; I'm decent enough for Professor Potsdam. Because, honestly, who else would it be? Who else knows I'm here?

And that's when I open the door to see Jason standing in front of me. "Hello Tori," he says. I haven't actually seen him since he gave me detention. It wasn't like I was avoiding him, although maybe I kind of was.

"Hello," I say, thinking about it for a moment. "Professor Coleman."

"Jason," he laughs. "Don't you remember me?"

"I remember you," I say curtly. If it was an attempt at a joke, after everything that's happened, it wasn't a very good one. There's a pause of awkward silence.

"May I come in?"

"Professor Grabiner is not here at the moment, unfortunately."

"That's okay, I came by to see you."

"Okay," I say quickly. "Um, excuse me, one second." I close the door gently before rushing back into the room, throwing on my robes. I quickly grab the stone around my neck and try to send out a message, having no idea if it will reach him. Hieronymous. Jason is here and he wants to talk to me. I don't know what he wants. Just thought you should know. I break the connection and head back outside, smiling sweetly, as I shut the door behind me.

"Sorry about that. I don't think Professor Grabiner would appreciate having guests in his private quarters unannounced. You understand."

"It's your room too now, from what I hear," Jason says, and a list of suspects goes through my mind. Potsdam wouldn't just volunteer that information to the teachers unless it came up, and it was pretty obvious Hieronymous would never tell anyone you were living with him. Virginia.

"I'm a guest," I say graciously. In the back of my mind, I am trying out the role as the gracious, supportive wife of a noble, seeing if it fits me. "Professor Grabiner is simply being charitable."

"Charitable?" Jason raises an eyebrow and grins, looking down on the floor. "Now that's not a word that many would use to describe him." I merely purse my lips and shrug my shoulders. "He is also your husband, isn't he?"

"He is, sir," I reply simply.

He frowns and puts his hands on his hips. "You know, Tori, I'm going to be straight with you. You've changed. You're not the happy, hopeful student that entered my office before Thanksgiving. You seem upset all the time, and Virginia told me all about how you lock yourself indoors, how you cry at night, and she's concerned about you. Everybody is. But spending more time with Grabby? You're locking yourself in, just like he does, and isolating yourself from everyone around you. It's not healthy."

Can you be expelled for punching a teacher? I consider it for a moment, before I remember that I'm trying to play the gracious wife role. What would she do if her husband and her status were being attacked? She wouldn't hit with her fists, she would hit back with her words.

"It seems, sir, that you have me at a disadvantage," I say quietly. "If you may recall, back during the end of November, I seemed to be struggling with an apparent memory lapse, one that I'm sure you were all too aware of. And you listened to me air my grievances without taking the time to consider whether it was appropriate for you to do so. Considering that I was and am his wife, you should have taken the opportunity to encourage me to speak to him directly." I pause for a moment, feigning the look that a realization was suddenly striking me. "It strikes me as most curious then that, knowing he was my husband, you encouraged me disregard his opinion and-"

"Tori, as your teacher, I was simply making an observation," Jason interrupts. "You're my student, and I am in the nature of protecting students from making mistakes that they'll regret later. I know you can't see it now, but he is not a good influence on you."

"Do you know that it is considered impolite in many societies to stand on someone's doorstep and insult their marriage?" I ask him testily.

"Tori, it's not a real marriage-"

"Isn't it?" I let out a little laugh. "Unfortunately, sir, I don't believe you were there, but I can inform you that it was a lovely little ceremony. Professor Potsdam was in attendance, as was a member of my class. It was lit by candlelight; the whole thing was very romantic."

"Okay, fine, the marriage was real, but he's using you, Tori."

"And I dare say, considering the way rumors circulate around this school, I must inquire as to just how he is using me." Jason looks me up and down and then raises his eyebrows. I raise my chin and brush the hair out of my face, swallowing hard. "Again I must assert that you have no business to comment on my marriage."

"No business?" Jason shakes his head. "Look, Tori, I know you want to do well in school, and I know you want to get ahead, but you need to do so on your own merits and-"

I snap my head back to look at him. "If you are implying that I am seeking favors or special privileges through my relationship with Professor Grabiner than I suggest you look for clarification on the subject. Professor Potsdam, I can assure you, would be very interested to hear the 'special privileges' that I am apparently being awarded. I wonder if you count almost being killed by a student that you were specially training amongst them."

"Petunia and I already discussed-"

"I just find it curious," I say loudly. "That when Thomas first enrolled here, he took a special liking to you. As the months went by and his attitude began to change, that was obvious to his closest friends, excluding myself due to my state at the time. I wonder then, sir, how it is that you took no notice of it?" He hesitates. "Notice aside, Tommy informed me of the kind of spells you were teaching him. Much above the skill level of a freshman, wouldn't you agree?"

He narrows his eyes at me. "What are you trying to say? I didn't know Damien, or whoever he was. I didn't teach here last year. Tommy came to me and seemed to have a natural affinity to red magic. He was my student and I taught him what he wanted to know. My job is to foster growth and learning." He shakes his head. "But I can see that Professor Grabiner is trying to turn you against me. He is trying to turn you against everyone, your friends, your classmates. The more he isolates you, the more control he has over you."

"That would be quite alarming if such an allegation be true," I say quietly, my voice thick with venom.

He reaches out and picks up a few strands of hair from my shoulder, much like he did that day in his office. I don't even flinch. "Tori, I know this is very hard to hear. You are a very pretty girl and I don't want to see your life go to waste-"

"Oh, I am so much more than just pretty." My voice is dangerously low now, as I grab his wrist and remove it from my shoulder.

He sighs. "Tori-"

"When I am a student in your classroom, you may refer to me as Tori," I tell him. "But seeing as right now classes are over for the week and you are not my teacher, I think it might be more appropriate for you to address me as Mrs. Grabiner outside the academic setting."

He shakes his head. "Whatever he is promising you, it isn't worth it."

"Good thing I haven't promised her anything." Professor Grabiner uncloaks himself behind Jason and I shoot a tight-lipped triumphant smile in his direction. "As you said yourself, it would be highly inappropriate of me to do so." Jason makes a face as soon as he hears Hieronymous' voice, but does not respond. "Mrs. Grabiner, would you please wait for me inside? I believe I have some matters of civility to discuss with my colleague here."

"Of course." I bow my head and do a small curtsy in his direction before I turn back to Jason. "Good day, Professor Coleman." With that I disappear inside, taking my time to do so. I close the door behind me, but don't go anywhere, listening to the conversation through the door.

"Interesting to find you here, Jason," he says. "After all, my office is just down the hall from yours."

"I came here to see what you were doing to that poor girl," Jason says. "Her roommates were extremely concerned-"

"Oh, yes," he replies. "They were so concerned her with her well-being that Potsdam decided to place Tori here indefinitely. So thoughtful of them, to want to give Tori her own space, wouldn't you say?"

"If I find out that you are hurting that girl, Grabby-"

"Hurt her?" Hieronymous asks. "Please don't insult me. She is my wife, and I have sworn to protect her. Hurting her would seemingly be against my own self-interests." There's quiet for a moment. "But I can see you're not convinced. Tori?"

At first I think I'm in trouble for eavesdropping and almost smash my face against the door. Instead I stand up slowly and put my game face on, opening the door and stepping partially outside. "Yes sir?"

"Professor Coleman here seems to be under the impression that I am harming you." I shift my eyes in his direction. "Am I harming you in any way?"

"No sir."

"Am I hurting you in any way?"

"No sir."

"And are you here of your own free will?"

"Yes sir."

"Do you have any questions for her?" Grabiner turns to Jason, who again says nothing. "Tori, would you like me to dismiss Professor Coleman?"

"I do believe we've been insulted enough for one day," I say levelly.

"There. It seems Mrs. Grabiner would like you to leave," Grabiner says.

Instead, Jason just turns to me. "If you ever need to talk, you know where my office is." Instead I just smile and wiggle my fingers at him in a quick wave as he turns to go. As soon as his back is turned, I slip inside and wait for Hieronymous to follow. He stays out there a few moments more, making sure Jason is gone before he comes back inside. I pull off my robes and cast them aside on the floor.

"Are you all right?" Hieronymous asks me as I shake out my hair.

"All right?" I ask, jumping into his arms. "That was….awesome!" I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him square on the mouth. He kisses me back, holding me to him for a moment before letting me go. "How much of that were you there for?"

"Pretty much all of it," he responds. "I was about to tell you not to engage him when you disconnected. I came as fast as I could." He smiles down at me. "But you did extremely well. I'm impressed." I bite my lip. Ironic that the last time I was in Jason's office was because I thought I would never get Grabiner's approval. And now, here it was. I could just tell by the look on his face that he was proud of me. Hieronymous Grabiner is proud of me.

I let out a squeal of happiness and wrap my arms around him again, smiling contently into his robes. "I did well."

"Yes." He pushes me away slightly and holds me out by his arms so he can get a good look at me. "But I have never heard you speak like that before. Where did you learn to talk like that?"

There's no good way to tell him I was pretending to be his wife in a faraway castle in England in twenty years, so I tell him the next best thing. "I was trying to channel you."

"Ah," he says, raising his eyebrows. "Well it seems as though I can be a positive influence on you after all."

I huff and cross my arms over my chest. "So I guess that's the new rumor going around now? That you're keeping me in here like a princess in a tower?"

He only shrugs half-heartedly. "I have no desire to keep up with whatever drivel that the students have decided to pass around this time." He turns to me. "But that does not mean I'm not concerned with how you're handling it."

"Me?" I ask, suddenly thinking back to yesterday. "I am fine. I am very fine." I lean in to kiss him again, but when I pull away, he still looks concerned. I drop my voice. "Everything Jason said was a steaming load of horse shit."

I snicker as he rolls his eyes and releases me. "Well at least I can be sure that you haven't changed a bit."

I smile at him, and that's probably the first time I realize how close attention he has been paying to me. The comment he made last night about people only liking me because they don't know my flaws was not just a sudden slip. He's been watching me. He knows me, better than anyone else at this school. He really knows me. He has seen my anger and my sadness and my happiness and-

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he asks, tilting his head to one side.

"I just think we make a good team, that's all," I say quietly. A look passes between us and I can feel my heart skip a beat.

He strides over to me with sudden purpose, consuming me, possessing me. Slowly we make our way over to the bed, never breaking the kiss. I lie back against the blankets and can feel his full weight on top of me as he explores my mouth, his hand reaching underneath my shirt. I gasp with longing, running my hand through his hair, over his robes. He angles his head to get better reach and I think he's about to keep going when he stills suddenly. "I should get back to work."

I make a face and make no attempt to try to conceal my disappointment. "But you just got here," I say. My legs are twisted around his and I make no move to let them go.

"I'll be back tonight," he says, kissing my jaw softly. "And then we have the whole week to ourselves."

I pout. "You promise?"

He raises an eyebrow and says nothing, but he winks at me as he's heading out the door. I want to call for him to come back, but I feel like that may seem too childish and so I let him leave. I cross my arms over my chest and sigh. Jason. How well did he really know me anyway? He was my teacher in class, sure, but aside from that one incident at Thanksgiving, I hadn't really talked to him about Hieronymous. I chew on the edge of my thumb as I think. He obviously thought he knew me to say that I had changed. What had Virginia been telling him, or better yet, what had Tommy been telling him?

I sigh and lie back on the bed and close my eyes. It didn't matter what the other teachers thought, not really. Professor Potsdam was the ultimate authority, and she was obviously more than okay with our relationship as long as it didn't filter into the classroom. Slowly I push myself off the bed and drag my feet over to the bookshelf, looking for something to read. I just had to entertain myself for a few hours and then Hieronymous would be back, and then we had the rest of the week to ourselves.

And then we had the rest of the month to put up with whatever rumors people wanted to throw our way. Hadn't we already been through enough? I grab a book on white magic and trudge back to bed.