Circles Within Circles
Chapter 6 By Of Quirky Excellence aka LyriumGhost 18
A/N:In this chapter Caroline is eighteen, Jowan is seventeen and Anders, who has escaped again but will be mentioned much later in the story is 23.
Thanks for reading, enjoy! (I split this chapter due to Microsoft Word Freezing and me losing half the chapter. Will re-type the other half as the next chapter)
"So when do you think they'll call you for your Harrowings?" Karl asked Caroline and Jowan as he led them into the training quarters of the library for a spellcasting lesson. Anders was on one of his escapes, although due to previous incidents, the apprentices had been told he had been transferred to Kirkwall's Circle in the Free Marches, but Jowan and Caroline now bore resemblance to mature adults. Jowan's raven-black hair now fell just above his shoulders and Caroline's dark brown locks swayed when she walked, just past her shoulders. She wore it down, rather than in pigtails like she once had, and they each now wore the blue, violet and yellow senior apprentice robes.
"I don't know, but the way Irving treats me you'd think I'd have been Harrowed the moment I'd turned sixteen!" Caroline said with a bubbly laugh that reflected her mood.
Jowan's eyes narrowed at her well-meant boast. "I can only wish to say the same."
Karl patted the younger apprentice's shoulder. "Everybody learns at their own pace, Jowan. Mages are rarely Harrowed before they're eighteen, but often much later. Caroline, let's warm up with some of your ice spells." Karl walked over to a table, and retrieved the mug of water that had been there.
"I'm going to throw the water from this mug towards you and you will use Winter's Grasp to freeze it before it hits you or the ground."
"Right." Caroline inched forward confidently, ready to cast her spell. Jowan stepped back. Karl tossed the water out of the cup and into the air. Before it was halfway to the ground it was a shard of ice. Caroline grinned with pride as the ice hit the ground and shattered.
"Very good, Caroline!" Karl remarked, nodding. "Now, Jowan, I'm going to set a small fire and you are going to use Cone of Cold to put it out. Remember, that the key to this spell is control. Use your will."
Jowan nervously protested."Cone of Cold? Are you sure, Karl? You know what happened last time-"
"You must master ice as well as fire if you are to become a well-rounded mage, yes?" Karl said.
Jowan bowed his head as Karl walked back to the table and cast a fire spell to a small pit in the floor used to train mages without much hazard.
Caroline took a step back as Jowan stepped up nervously.
"You've got this, Jowan!" She encouraged him. He lifted his hands level with his chest and the icey breeze formed, his fingers tingling. He smiled proudly, but the spell wouldn't reach the fire. Instead, it spiraled out of control and it pulled Jowan to the ground in utter and humiliating defeat. Karl quickly dispelled the breeze before it caused any damage, but not before a group of apprentices about Caroline's age who were walking by happened to see the result of Jowan's failed ice spell. Caroline ignored their chuckles and unspoken threats to her popularity as she rushed to help her friend up. She took Jowan's hand and pulled him to his feet, and she looked from the sneering apprentices to his blue-grey eyes sympathetically. "Are you alright?" She asked over the sneering and obnoxious laughter.
He nodded. Then a voice called over the laughter, "You can't cast Cone of Cold? That's such an easy spell!" jeered Jonathan, an outspoken troublemaker who was, like Anders, very proud, but not as well meaning.
Jowan frowned. "Don't listen to him, Jowan." Caroline warned. "He's nothing but trouble."
"You can't hide behind your prodigy friend there forever!" Jonathan said, chuckling.
The other apprentices got quiet when Jowan walked towards Jonathan, his intentions clear to this crowd led by their eldest, who often made fun of him.
Caroline stood still; debating whether helping a friend was worth the lash, and the shame.
"You sure ache for trouble, don't you? Leave us alone, or else." Jowan said softly. Karl stood in shock, not sure what would become of this encounter.
"Lads, surely there's no need for trouble?" he asked.
Ignoring Karl, Jonathan stepped a few inches closer to Jowan, now they were three feet away from each other. "What are you gonna do, set my hair on fire?"
"Why bother? You're just mad I beat you at arm wrestling." The apprentices gasped now. Caroline now stood behind Jowan, and the rest of Jonathan's group stood behind him. "I'm more than happy to best you again. I'll admit that when magic's involved, you're stronger, but we all know which mage can throw a better punch."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Caroline interrupted, trying to get between Jowan and his long-time rival, but failing, as they ignored her attempts to break the confrontation up. "No need for this, gentlemen!"
"You're on. I accept your challenge." Jonathan said with a smug grin. Jowan readied himself.
"Whoa, you two need to calm down." Karl said authoratively. He pushed past Caroline and put a hand on his student's shoulder and said, "Think about what you're doing Jowan."
"I am." Jowan said as Jonathan postured for a fight. Jowan shook Karl off. "And this…"
He threw a punch, and it hit its mark, Jonathan's jaw.
"Proves my point!"
The apprentices, minus Caroline, stepped back. Caroline tried to hold Jowan back but he threw her from his arm and she fell to the ground. Karl helped her up and shouted for the Templars. Jowan threw another punch that hit the other apprentice in the eye, and Jonathan dodged a kick below the belt. Jowan went for the face again, but then he saw it. The ice spell Jonathan had been preparing was let loose, and an icicle landed square in his shoulder.
"Coward!" Jowan called out in a desperate attempt to hide how painful the impact had been. The shard of ice, similar to the water Caroline had frozen moments ago pierced his robes and his flesh.
"Who's the real man now, dim-wit?" Jonathan, who now had a black eye and a badly bruised cheek and jaw, pinned Jowan to the ground and punched him several times before Caroline sprang into action, shoving her self through the growing crowd of apprentices and throwing all of her weight onto Jonathan's back and pulling him off her friend, who was dazed and bleeding, but conscious.
She shoved Jonathan to the ground and punched him three times until he stopped struggling. A Templar stood in the doorway, looking rather flabbergasted. He had blond, curly hair and a bit of stubble. Caroline had seen him around. A new recruit, she assumed.
He grinned sheepishly as she looked up at him, and lifted his hand to waist-level. His thumb was up, gesturing a job well done. Caroline's pride didn't save her from being whisked away by what seemed like a horde of Templars, along with Jowan, who was clutching his wound. Jonathan was kept further back, restrained by two older Templars. Caroline and Jowan willingly followed the Templars into the First Enchanter's office. The door was shut behind them and an older Templar explained what had happened to the First Enchanter and the Knight Commander.
"This one's the one who started it, sers." Said the templar, motioning towards Jowan. "The other lad wasn't threatenin' him or anything, but he must've said somethin' to upset this one an' the girl."
"Jonathan, as the eldest, what say you on the matter of these…shenanigans? " said the Knight Commander, looking coldly between the three apprentices.
"Well, for one thing, he ought to volunteer to be made Tranquil. Wouldn't use magic, not even to defend himself, ser."
Jowan frowned, but found himself blushing at the same time. "Not true!" Caroline jumped in again to defend her friend's honor. "Jonathan started the whole thing, and he used magic!"
"We are mages, are we not?" Jonathan sneered under his breath.
"Oh?" Irving tilted his head curiously. "You speak out of turn, dear. But go on. Tell your side of the story, as Jonathan is not known for his honesty, and you are quite the contrary."
Caroline nodded, fighting back tears. "He was making fun of Jowan's spellcasting. He ought to be taught a lesson. Jowan made a point that ice spells are not his strong point, but he can beat Jonathan in almost anything that involves muscle. Then Jonathan took it as a challenge and they started punching each other, but then Jonathan cast an ice spell. "
"Foul play, wouldn't you say so?" Jowan added. Jonathan shot him a look, and the two young men stared at each other for a moment, then they looked to Greagoir.
"That's enough. Caroline, who threw the first punch?" said the Knight Commander.
Caroline looked from Jowan to Jonathan. She dared not lie. "It was…Jowan. But he was only defending his honor, ser."
"I see." Greagoir said. "Jowan didn't cast a spell, I understand?"
"Correct, ser." Caroline said.
"Very well. That lessens his punishment a great deal." Irving said calmly.