Page 41 of An Arcane Education
“It does suck, but there are some perks, at least,” she says. “Although, if you dealt with your own emotions, it would probably make things easier for both of us—you with your magic and me with being your roommate.”
I laugh. “Yeah, so I’ve heard. I just got out of a tutoring session where I was told in no uncertain terms that I need to deal with my shit, so that’ll be a work in progress going forward.”
“Who’s tutoring you?”
“Dr. Vale.”
Max’s eyes widen. “You get alone time withtheDr. Vale? Is he as intimidating as everyone says? Because I’ve seen him on campus, so I know that at leastsomeof the rumors about him are true.”
“Like what?”
“Like how he’s the hottest professor on campus.”
I bite back a smile. “He’s a little less intimidating one-on-one, shockingly enough. Since he’s teaching me already and we share the same Affinity, it just made sense that he’d be the one to tutor me.”
“Wow. Lucky you.” The corner of her mouth lifts in a smile, and I laugh awkwardly. “I heard he’s a bit of an enigma, even with the other professors, so let me know if you find out anything interesting in your private time.” She winks.
Laughing, I wave off her comment. “Anyway, enough about me. How are your classes going this semester? Is it a lot like your other school you transferred from?”
Darkness crosses her expression, but it’s gone as quickly as it came. “My old school was a lot more difficult in certain aspects, so I’m happy to be here. My classes are going pretty well, though. Since most of my classmates are also Mentalists, they’re aware of my abilities, which helps them to be more cognizant of managing their emotions, if only because they don’t want the freaky vampire girl to know more about them.” She rolls her eyes, as if it’s an annoying side effect of being who she is, but I can tell that it bothers her more than she lets on.
“Do a lot of other Mentalists have your ability? I guess I wasn’t aware there were many different subcategories for Affinities.”
She shakes her head. “No. There are three others on campus, one of whom is a professor and another who’s a freshman. The only other girl, who’s also a grad student, is terrified of me.”
“I guess it makes sense why you choose to spend so much time by yourself, then.”
“Yeah. People are generally terrible anyway, so I rarely enjoy their company,” she adds, but it sounds more like an excuse than a genuine statement. “Most of them don’t care to look past the stereotypes about vampires, so it’s easier to just label me as dangerous and stay away.”
This is the first time she's directly referenced being a vampire, and it makes me curious once again about what that actually means. But it seems like a bad choice to pushtoo hard with asking questions when she's actually being open.
“What kind of stereotypes are there?” I ask, because that seems like the safest question to continue the conversation without prying into her personal life.
“Most people think vampires shouldn’t be allowed at Arcadia because we’re inherently dark creatures who corrupt everything around us. Which, to be fair, most vampiresaretoo dangerous to attend school here because they use blood magic. I don’t, though, and the admin tested me thoroughly before they accepted me here.”
“That’s actually really interesting. I don’t know anything about vampires besides the human mythology and the rumors spread by the students here. It’s sad to see that even in magical environments people are still so prejudiced.”
“It’d be nice for people to give me a chance, but yeah. Vampires as a whole tend to isolate themselves from other communities, so there are still a lot of misunderstandings about us. Maybe one day that’ll change, but my hopes aren’t high.”
“Well, all you need to worry about right now is yourself and your time here. What’s your degree in, again?”
“Psychology.”
“I should have guessed,” I laugh.
We talk for a while longer, mostly about our classes and the more interesting professors—though I conveniently don’t mention my prior interactions with Alaric—until it’s late and we’re both yawning. I change into my pajamas and get ready for bed, grateful for the comfortable silence as opposed to the tense one that’s stretchedbetween us for so long. Max keeps her lamp on after asking me if it’s okay while I snuggle into my blankets.
“Thank you for opening up to me,” I murmur, staring at the ceiling and feeling calmer than I have in weeks.
“Don’t get all sappy on me,” she warns with a hint of playfulness in her tone. “I have a reputation to maintain.”
CHAPTER 16
The following Tuesday’s botany lab is almost miraculous compared to last week’s disaster.
Dr. Vale has set out potted plants again, though this time there are dozens of different types. They’re not labeled, but he instructs us to choose one, identify it, write down its current stage of growth, and identify what it needs. From there, we’re required to make the necessary changes to fix the plant or its environment, whatever that may be, either magically or manually, then document the changes.
It’s an exercise in connecting through magic rather than imposing and directing it.
