Page 23 of An Arcane Education
AJ is already seated at the back of the small classroom, and he flashes me a bright smile and waves me over when he sees me.
I happily oblige, grateful for a familiar face, and take the seat to his left. The one to his right is already occupied by another student who’s laughing at something he just said.
“Hey Viv!” AJ greets me as if we’ve known each other forever. “This is Joanna. She’s in the same program as me.”
“Nice to meet you.” I smile at her, and she returns the expression. Where my hair is a gentle shade of red toned down by brown, hers is a natural gingery orange that frames her face in tight ringlet curls.
“You too! What degree program are you in?”
We chat for a while, talking about our classes and professors as students trickle in and fill the seats.
“I heard this professor is kind of a hard-ass,” AJ says.
“Shit. Really?” Joanna asks.
The guy directly in front of AJ turns to chime in. “Yeah, he’s super strict and takes absolutely no shit. My sister had him last year and said he was kind of an asshole.”
I groan. “Great. Just what I need, another asshole professor.”
I don’t realize the classroom has gone quiet until someone clears their throat from the front of the room.My head snaps up, and it takes a moment for my brain to catch up with what I’m seeing.
“And on that note, let’s begin,” Alaric says from the front of the room, holding my gaze for a couple long seconds before looking away to toss his leather messenger bag onto the desk.
“My name is Dr. Alaric Vale, and I’ll be your instructor this semester.”
My stomach drops. This can’t be happening. The man I spoke to, the man I approached so confidently yesterday, the man Iflirtedwith is my professor?
I think back on the two interactions we’ve had and start to piece together the clues. How evasive he was when answering my questions, how he shared just enough details to make me suspect he was a student but not enough to indicate he was a professor. There’s no way he didn’t do that on purpose.
But why? He easily could’ve informed me of that fact, but he deliberately kept it a secret.
He leans against the desk, half-sitting on the edge, with his hands in the pockets of his black slacks.
“It seems that some of you may already know of me—” he makes pointed eye contact with me, and I slump down in my chair “—but for those of you who don’t, I’m one of the newer professors here at Arcadia. I previously taught at one of the other magical academies in the same subject area, but now I’m here working on expanding my research.”
His top-secret research, I think,but maybe he was being vague about that just for fun, too.
“Despite whatever rumors you may hear about me, Iconsider myself tough but fair. This course will be rigorous, but you will pass as long as you put in the effort to learn the material. If you’re struggling in class, I will be available during our lab sessions for assistance as well as during my designated office hours, which you can find on the front page of your syllabus.”
He pulls the stack of papers from his bag and distributes them to each row.
“Over the course of the semester, you’ll participate in critical analysis of primary literature, experimental design, and work on the integration of plant physiology with molecular biology, genetics, and biochemistry. Your grade will be determined by participation, weekly lab work, two examinations, and a few written assignments. Since you are all graduate students, you should be considering your thesis topics throughout this semester, as you’ll begin working on them next semester.”
The room is filled with the sound of students flipping through the syllabus.
Alaric—Dr. Vale—continues, “I expect you to arrive prepared, having completed the assigned readings. I expect active engagement during discussions. And I expect you to treat the specimens we'll be working with appropriate respect and caution. Furthermore, I don’t tolerate lateness, incomplete work, or excuses. You’re all graduate students who chose to be here. Act accordingly.”
A woman closer to the front of the room raises her hand, and he points at her. “Question?”
“For the labs, do we have a different dress code?”
“Yes, during your labs you should wear closed-toed shoes and clothing that you can easily move in that youwon’t mind getting dirty. Just remember that you still have to be in normal dress code for your other courses, so it may be a good idea to pack a change of clothes in your bag if you have classes directly before or after this one.”
He then launches into an overview of the semester's content. While many of my professors have gone over the syllabus and given long-winded course overviews, Dr. Vale jumps right into an introductory lecture. His teaching style is confident, demanding, and intellectually rigorous. He asks questions that assume significant prior knowledge, nodding approvingly when students provide correct answers and offering concise corrections when they don't.
Sixty minutes into the ninety-minute class, he transitions from lecture to a demonstration. From somewhere beneath his desk, he produces a potted plant I recognize immediately with its distinctive purple hood-shaped flowers.
“Who can tell me what this plant is and why this plant is particularly dangerous?” he asks, setting it on the desk.
