It seemed to take a moment before she stopped healing the guy in front of her and processed what Jade had said. “Wait, you’re Jade?” When Jade nodded, she frowned and stated, “You’re late.”
“Yes, I was supposed to be here earlier, but the guards at the gate didn’t like the fact that I didn’t go to the fitness training, so I had a little trouble getting past them.” The healer looked a little disgruntled at her explanation, then nodded and waved her around the desk.
“Very well. I’m Baroness Scylla Tremont, by the way. Have a seat and let’s see what you can do.” Jade smiled and rounded the table, and she could hear the whispers relaying what had just happened rushing down the line. A few of the disgruntled faces lightened when they realized she was a healer and not someone cutting in line.
“Next,” her clear voice called the next student forward, and a scrawnier boy stepped up, moving aside his mop of brown hair to reveal a nice goose egg on his forehead that accompanied a swollen, bloody lip. Scylla motioned for Jade to touch him as she reached forward as well. She explained to the boy, “I’m going to let Jade heal you, but I’ll be monitoring to make sure nothing goes wrong.” He looked more relieved that he wasn’t being completely left to the newbie, and Jade softly touched his goose egg.
In her mind’s eye, she noted his injuries, seeing that several of his teeth had been loosened as well. She smiled comfortingly at him as she hastily reassured, “Don’t worry, your smile will be good as new in a moment.” He seemed confused, and then she infused him with her magic. That moment of confusion made him stay still long enough that she erased all traces of his injury, and a few seconds later she let go, ignoring her new blinking dots from both him and Scylla.
He looked surprised, then asked, “Is that it?”
Scylla nodded, looking mildly impressed. “Yes, that was one of the fastest healings I’ve seen, and it was very clean. She did a very good job.” Jade grinned and Scylla shooed the boy away. Looking at Jade, she asked solemnly, “How long did you say you’ve been using healing magic?”
Shrugging, she replied so softly that Scylla had to lean in to hear her, “About five days now. But I grew up around doctors most of my life, and we had much more advanced science. So I’m very familiar with how the body works and the different things that can ail someone.”
Nodding, Scylla looked thoughtful, then gestured to the next two students in line. “Both of you, come forward. Jade will help one of you, so we’ll get through this line twice as fast.” Grinning, Jade nodded, and Scylla added in an aside to her. “If you happen to need help, just let me know.”
“Will do.” She smiled at the student in front of her, then asked happily, “So, what happened to you?”
Most of the students were skeptical about being healed by her at first, but after the next few went away quickly and fully healed, even that stopped. After around half an hour, all the students had been healed and they were left alone in the infirmary. Scylla smiled at Jade as she commented, “Thank you for the help. That was much faster than usual.”
Jade nodded before she asked, “You’re welcome, but where are the first years?”
Scylla looked surprised, then laughed. “Ah right, your friends?” Jade nodded and Scylla smiled. “They’re probably fine. They usually take it easier on the first years the first few days. They were probably mostly running rather than doing the more strenuous combat exercises or the obstacle course.” Well, that made sense.
Jade glanced around, looking at the various rooms that they hadn’t even touched. They’d literally helped everyone at the front desk. “What do you use the rooms for?”
Scylla followed the direction of her gaze, then answered plainly, “Oh, that’s in case they come while I’m not here. I usually only stay until lunch, when I do a second round of healing for anyone who injured themselves in weapon training. After that, I leave the school and head around the wall, so anyone who comes in after that has to wait until either I can be called or Mike can come in.” She looked thoughtful. “Although now they can probably be sent to you as well. If I remember right, you’re going to be on campus?”
Jade nodded. “Yes, I’ve got room 2A in the Magnus Crafting Center as my workroom. I’ll be in classes, but if they wait for me outside there, I’ll be able to help them between hours, or they can find me in whichever classroom I’m in there if it’s serious.” Jade smiled happily, then seemed to remember something. “Oh! I should probably go there now. I need to pick up my weapons before I go to class.”
“Get going with you then! I’ll pass the word on.” Jade smiled and nodded, about to run out when she thought of something, then turned back.
“By the way, maybe this is petty of me, but if a guard called Aaron comes in and complains about his hand, it’s because I shocked him for bruising me. Please tell him that if he wants it healed, he owes me an apology first.” She hadn’t shocked him too hard, but she had made sure it would be numb and somewhat unresponsive for at least two days or until he got it healed. Sure, she wanted him to reflect, but she wasn’t about to let him off easily either.
Scylla’s eyes narrowed. “You said he bruised you?”
Jade shrugged and nodded. “He grabbed my arm really hard to stop me from walking away. He was trying to bully me into going to the fitness classes for some reason. He seemed angry that I’d been excused from them.”
Scylla looked thoughtful, then shooed her out. “Very well. Off with you! I’ll see you Wednesday, if not sooner.” Jade grinned and nodded, then paused, considering hugging the kind older lady, then deciding against it for the moment. There was time to get to know her better before that became a thing.
She smiled, and considering who the woman reminded her of, she said softly, “Until we meet again, fair fortune be yours.” Grinning, she opened the door and stepped out into the sunshine, pulling her sunglasses off of her hair and back onto her nose. Humming Hedwig’s theme, she took light steps towards the crafting center to grab her shiny pointy things. It was time to see if she could avoid stabbing herself…
Chapter Three – Collection
The Magnus Crafting Center felt pretty empty compared to the rest of campus. Perhaps it was because none of the crafting classes started until after lunch, but not even the student stores were open. The professors were in their offices, and once she reached the second story, not a soul was in sight. Feeling the eerie emptiness, she quickly unlocked her workshop and slipped inside, feeling almost like a thief in the night.
Walking over to the shelves where she’d had Camille put her new shinies, she was surprised to find way more weapons than she’d picked out. First, there was the original beginner bow she’d chosen, but next to it was the beautiful jade inlay she’d been coveting. Apparently, it hadn’t gone unnoticed or unbought. Next to that were the six daggers she’d picked out, plus what looked like the rest of the jade collection from the store. Instead of one sword, there were three: the original sword she’d picked out and two more in different styles, but again, with the jade inlay. Grinning, she ran her finger over the hilts of each weapon, just admiring them.