The baths were radically different than any Gregory had seen before. Most of the room was dominated by a large steaming pool. In another part of the room, there was a long stone bench. A stack of buckets waited at the end of it. Next to those was a hand pump.
Unsure of what to do, he did what he had been doing: copying everyone around him. Stripping down, he set his clothes in an empty basket near the door. He pumped a bucket of lightly steaming water and found a spot on the bench that had soap on the shelf across from it. Using a wooden ladle, he poured water over himself before scrubbing up. As he rinsed the water off with the rest of the bucket, he was surprised that the others kept glancing at a wall.
“You’re so pale,” Michelle’s voice drifted faintly to Gregory’s ears. “Your hair is what I’m jealous over, though. That color—”
“The women?” Gregory asked Fureno.
“Shh,” Fureno whispered, elbowing him. “They don’t know we can overhear them.”
Nick shook his head as he headed for the pool. “It’s a small guilty pleasure,” he told Gregory as he went past. “Come on, scrawny. The pool will feel great for your muscles.” He paused and stared at Gregory’s left arm. “What happened to you?”
“I was attacked,” Gregory said, not wanting to expand on it.
“Sorry,” Nick said, feeling like he had touched a nerve. “Come on, the pool is amazing.”
The others grumbled when the conversation on the other side got softer and they could not hear it anymore. They followed Nick, with Gregory trailing all of them. The water was on the edge of being too hot, but as he sank into it up to his neck the warmth soaked into his tired muscles.
“Aether, that’s wonderful,” Gregory sighed. “Isn’t this place too big for just us?” he asked after a moment.
“This is where we can train outside of class,” Nick replied. “Everyone can use it, though some of the equipment is for more advanced tiers.”
“I don’t know if I could go back to a hip bath after this,” Jason chuckled from off to the side. “Then again, we’ll be magi, so we won’t have to.”
“Unless you end up a proctor on the fringe,” Fureno said. “No offense, but the lack of comforts out there…” Trailing off, he shook his head.
“None taken,” Gregory said.
“Aren’t the people doing proctor duty on the fringe posted to those positions because they fucked up majorly?” Jason asked.
“Most of them,” Fureno replied. “One of them asked for the post and has been doing it for years.”
“Bishop,” Gregory said. “She’s been at the village every year since I was a kid.”
“Yeah, that’s her,” Fureno nodded. “Rumor is she’s a nut, that she enjoys being out there by herself.”
Gregory frowned. Bishop had always been kind and respectful to everyone in all the years she had come to the village. “She’s not a nut. She’s always been respectful to us,” Gregory said with a bit of bite to his tone.
“Easy, easy, Gregory,” Nick laughed. “Fureno didn’t mean it like that, did you, Fureno?”
Fureno shrugged, “Wrong word, sorry. I meant she’s driven.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t have snapped. Sorry,” Gregory said, though he meant it as much as Fureno did.
“See? We can all be friends,” Nick laughed. “Now let’s just relax and let the water soak in.”
Gregory did as suggested. He closed his eyes and let the warmth of the pool seep into his aching muscles. Feeling his aether, he found it simmering at its usual intensity, no longer burning brightly like it had been two hours ago.
~*~*~
“You need to get out or you’re going to become a prune,” Nick laughed, snapping Gregory from his relaxed state of mind.
“Uh, yeah, sure,” Gregory said, getting out of the pool. Catching the towel tossed to him, he dried off and got back into his uniform. “Umm, the uniforms... where do we wash them?”
“You don’t,” Nick replied as he finished getting dressed. “There is a white bag inside your closet. Put the uniform inside and set it outside your door. The staff takes them after sixth bell and returns them after midday. They’ll put the clean bag inside your door.”
“Does that include other clothing?” Greg asked.
“Yeah, anything you leave for them gets cleaned and returned.”
“That will make things easier. I was going to ask for a larger basin tonight.”
“Now I’m sorry I told you,” Nick laughed.
Gregory was about to reply when the women came out of their bathing room. Yukiko was combing her hair out when she saw him, and gave Gregory a smile.
“I’ve been asked to join them again tomorrow,” Yukiko told him, putting her comb away in her pouch.
“You, too,” Nick chuckled, nudging Gregory. “You’re invited back to train with us, too.”
“Learning how to fall,” Gregory rolled his eyes. “Great.”
“Just tomorrow. After that, we’ll teach you something different,” Nick said with a grin.
“I don’t trust that smile,” Gregory muttered.
“He’s smart enough to know when you’re playing at something,” Michelle said as she walked past them. Looking back, she gave Yukiko a smile, “See you tomorrow.”
“Yes, I’m looking forward to it. Thank you.”
“Anyway, see you tomorrow,” Nick said quickly, following Michelle.
Gregory and Yukiko stayed where they were as the others left. “They seem like nice people,” Yukiko said.
“Yeah,” Gregory said, not so sure he agreed with her. “No one gave you any problems?”
“No, it was refreshing,” Yukiko smiled. “I’m far from the worst in the group. Nick and Jason might be the only ones more skilled than me. That is Gin’s fault... he always wanted me to be able to defend myself. I’m glad Father didn’t stop him after he found out.”
“While I’m learning to fall,” Gregory sighed. “Let’s head on back, shall we?”
“Learning to fall will help when you do fight. It’ll help you get injured less.”
“I know, Nick said the same thing. Makes me think the first year is going to be even harder than I thought.”
“We will learn together,” Yukiko smiled. “Friends make things easier.”
Thinking of Gunnar and the twins, Gregory had a sad smile on his face. “Yeah... yeah they do.”
Chapter Eighteen
The next week flew by for Gregory; he would have breakfast with Yukiko, go to the archive and study, stop for a snack, then meet with Nick and his friends for sparring, before finishing his night having dinner with Yukiko. Having dinner after everything else always made him feel better.
Waking to the third bell, Gregory got out of bed and dressed. He gathered the paper, ink, and pen that had been in the room, double checking that he had everything he needed. Slipping into the hall, he gently tapped at Yukiko’s door.
“I’ll meet you downstairs,” Yukiko called to him.
As he went down the quiet hall, Gregory wondered why the others were not already up. Maybe they’re just not as excited? he shrugged mentally. Heading toward the front door, he was surprised when Dia stepped out of her room and into his way.
“Keeper?” Gregory questioned politely.
“Excited for today, Gregory?”
He gave her a broad smile, “Yes. I’ve been waiting for this day all my life.”
“Very few wake this early,” Dia replied, stepping out the front door. “I wish you the best day.”
“Thank you, Keeper.”
“Has everything been taken care of by my staff?” Dia asked as she pulled out a long, thin, pipe from her obi.
“I have had no complaints, Keeper.”
“Very good.” She placed a single finger over the now filled bowl of the pipe and a flame sparked from it. Sucking in, Dia exhaled a cloud of light purple smoke. “If you have any problems, please let me know.”
“I will, Keeper.”
“Greg, I’m
sorry for the delay,” Yukiko apologized when she came out of her room.
“It’s fine, Yuki,” Greg said. “Ready to go?”
“Good day to you both,” Dia said as she stood there, smoking her pipe.
“Thank you, Keeper,” the pair said together before heading toward the mess hall.
When they stepped into the mess hall, they saw four people already having breakfast. One was a magus, wearing a cyan kimono and reading a book as he ate. There was a bland looking man in an emerald kimono, who was staring at nothing and eating mechanically. Gregory and Yukiko met the sharp eyes of an older gray-haired woman in cyan, who glanced their way before she went back to her food, dismissing them as unimportant. The last one, another man in emerald, watched them with a curious expression until they left his line of sight.
“Early, novices. Never being late is good,” the weasel eurtik behind the counter said as he gave them the first part of their breakfast.
“Wise to come before the crowd,” the scaled eurtik agreed, dishing up the next portion.
“Best wishes on your first day,” the rat grinned and plated them some fish, handing the plates to the mink beside him.
“May this meal sustain you during your classes,” the mink gave them a bright smile, scooping rice onto the plates beside the fish. Her hand extended to hover over Gregory’s medallion for a moment.
“Thank you,” Gregory said, bowing his head to them, then going to get cutlery and a drink.
“A good day to you, too,” Yukiko smiled as she followed Gregory.
With green tea to complement the meal, they took a table close to the cleaning area, putting them away from the adepts and magus. Gregory had gotten used to the breakfast meals, but wondered why it was nearly identical every day. Yukiko had told him that the soup was miso, and that, along with the fish and rice— white or brown— had been breakfast every day. The only change had been in the one side dish. The pickled plums were tasty, especially with the rice. The nori was odd, but okay. The one he did not care for was natto; the slimy texture put him off.
Gregory ate at the same slow pace he had gotten used to. The fish always made his aether flare up, while the other parts of the meal were there to help give him time for his body to accept the aether he was ingesting. I wonder if it’ll be covered in class today? Gregory idly thought.
Gregory and Yukiko finished eating within a few seconds of each other, sharing a smile as the fourth bell started to ring. They had two hours before class started, giving them the time they wanted.
When they dropped off their empty trays, Gregory noticed the four magi who had been there before them were gone. The mess hall was busier now as magi of different tiers started to show up. As he made his way to the exit, Gregory did not see the man in the sunflower yellow kimono stick his foot out into the walkway to trip him. Gregory started to fall, but because he had spent the last week drilling how to fall, he managed to roll and come back to his feet.
“Watch where you’re walking, Novice,” the apprentice snorted.
Not sure what had happened, Gregory bowed to the apprentice, “Apologies.”
Glaring at Gregory, the man’s lips puckered, but he nodded and turned back to his meal. “Just watch your feet.”
Yukiko frowned. She had seen the deliberate act, but had not been able to warn Gregory in time. Following Gregory out of the mess hall, she debated telling him.
When they were approaching the archive, Yukiko finally spoke up, “Greg, the apprentice in the mess… he tripped you intentionally.”
“Huh? Why would he do that?” Gregory asked, confused.
“I don’t know, but it was deliberate.”
Gregory stopped walking and felt his aether burn brighter. Why the fuck would an apprentice do that? It doesn’t make any sense. Maybe he had me confused with someone else? Sighing, he rubbed his face and let the anger go. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll just keep an eye out for him in the future.”
“I will make sure to keep an eye out for him, as well,” Yukiko said.
“Thanks, Yuki. Let’s do what we came to do,” Gregory said.
Entering the archive, they were greeted by a man with wolf ears on his head. “Back again, even with classes today?”
“We’re going to read until fifth bell,” Yukiko told him.
“Using as much time as you can,” the man smiled as his ears twitched. “The books you used yesterday are on the table you normally sit at.”
“Thank you,” Gregory replied, bowing his head to the archivist.
“You’re welcome, but it is Rafiq who deserves your thanks, not me. I merely did as he requested.”
“I’ll thank him later,” Gregory said, “but you still have my thanks.”
“You’re welcome, Novice.”
Going to the table they had used since the first day, the pair took their seats and dove into reading. Gregory was reading over a book detailing how vela became the standard currency of the empire, while Yukiko was working her way through the history book that was identical to Gregory’s.
When the fifth bell rang, they put their books aside and rose to their feet. The black panther eurtik was coming their way when they stood up. “Should I have these books ready for your next visit?”
“That would be very nice,” Gregory replied. “Thank you, Archivist.”
“We appreciate it,” Yukiko added.
“We don’t get many novices who spend their time before classes studying as you have. Most of them focus on fighting only, so it is refreshing to see something different. Whatever book you were reading last shall be waiting for you every morning. Now, don’t let me keep you. You have classes to get to.”
Gregory and Yukiko bowed their heads to her. Gregory felt mounting excitement as they walked, though he was able to match the easy pace Yukiko set.
They were still half an hour early when they reached the classroom, but the door was open, so they walked in. Gregory was puzzled by the black wall at the front of the room, but chose not to comment. He followed Yukiko to one of the small tables that were spaced through the room, noticing that the cushions were only on two sides, so that every person seated would have a clear view of the black wall.
“Thanks for making the last week enjoyable,” Gregory said.
“I should say the same to you,” Yukiko replied. “That first day, I felt so alone until I saw you. You didn’t make any comment about my appearance, then you caught me when I fell. Thank you.”
Gregory was about to reply when the click of metal on stone got his attention. Looking back, he saw the gray-haired magus from breakfast. The old woman glanced their way, again dismissing them as she advanced to the front of the room. When she reached the front, she pulled a number of items from her pouch and set up the podium at the front of the room. She turned to the odd wall, holding a small white stick. Gregory’s jaw dropped when she started writing.
“It’s a blackboard,” Yukiko whispered, seeing his shock. “She is using chalk to write on it. You’ve never seen one?”
Shaking his head, Gregory shut his mouth, glad no one else had seen his shock. “No. We didn’t have anything like that.”
“The best part is that with a cloth, the words can be erased so you can write on it again,” Yukiko told him. “Dad sold a number of them to outlying villages.”
“When class starts, you will not continue to prattle on, I trust?” the magus asked in a nasally voice.
“No, Magus,” Yukiko said, bowing in her seat.
“No, Magus,” Gregory added a moment behind her.
“You spoke of your father selling things. He is a trader?” the magus asked Yukiko.
“Yes, Magus. Hao Warlin of Warlin Mercantile is my father.”
“He trades along the Buldoun border,” the magus said after a moment of thought. “He is two decades removed from working with the Han Merchant Exchange.”
“Yes, Magus.”
A small smile touched the magus’ lips. “He was very shrewd in his moves when he
left the Exchange. You won’t gain much from this class, but I will be calling on you often.”
“As you require, Magus,” Yukiko bowed again.
“And you, Novice?”
“I come from a village to the northwest, Magus. Alturis. No one in my family does any trading.”
“Alturis? Aethite is mined there, along with high grade iron and a few other ores. Interesting... we don’t get many fringers in the academy.”
Aether's Blessing (Aether's Revival Book 1) Page 14