Chapter Three

The moment that Eckoak dismissed them, Imara retreated down the hall. Kitty walked in the same staggering steps that Imara figured she was using.

When they got to the entry vestibule, Imara collected Mr. E from the top of her backpack. He had slept the whole morning through.

“What are you doing next?” Kitty waited while Imara grabbed her stuff.

“I think lunch is in order. How about you?”

“The same. Did you want to go together?”

Imara blinked in surprise. “Sure. There is a nice diner a few blocks from here if you like.”

Kitty beamed. “Great. I’ll head up first and wait for you.”

Imara chuckled and nodded, settling her familiar in the crook of her arm and her pack on her back.

Kitty headed up on the circular flagstone, and it returned to take Imara up in moments.

Out in the sudden warmth of the summer day, Imara swayed. Mr. E woke up with a yawn and a stretch.

You smell of sweat. It appears you got quite the workout.

“I did. Now, shush and get back on the pack.”

He stretched and climbed her arm, settling in his little spot and curling up tight.

“You have a familiar?” Kitty was staring.

“I do. Apparently, he is an inherited familiar. Bloodlines and all that.” She shrugged. “I honestly have no idea. I needed a familiar for one of my classes, and he is what I ended up with. His name is Mr. E.”

Kitty laughed. “Such a formal name for a kitten. Why is he glaring at me?”

“He takes offense easily, but he is working on developing hobbies, so I have hope for his personal growth.” Imara could feel his indignation in their connection. She reached over her shoulder and scratched his chin. The small, rumbling purr started immediately.

“I have a bunch of questions for you.”

Imara nodded. “I have one or two for you as well, but we can talk over lunch. I am starving.”

They started the walk to the diner, and Kitty chuckled. “If it is about the balls, they are a family magic.”

“How does that work?”

“It is a little embarrassing, but I can see through time but only as long as the orb will let me. Once I use one, it is burned out until I can reset or replace it.”

“So, you are covered with them...”

“So, if I need to, I can check my future five seconds at a time.”

“Is that handy?”

Kitty wrinkled her nose. “Not particularly.”

They laughed at complicated family magic and made their way to the diner.

As she looked at the menu, Imara asked, Mr. E, did you want anything?

He was seated next to her, still on the top of the backpack. He looked over her shoulder, and his tail started lashing. I would like a banana cream pie.

Slice?

No, the pie.

This I have got to see.

You are going to. Order me some napkins as well. This is going to get messy.

Imara wasn’t sure, but she thought that Mr. E was rubbing his paws together.

She exhaled and looked at her own selection. Cheeseburger with bacon and fries. Yup. She was playing to the old standards, but as a back-to-school food, it couldn’t be beaten.

Kitty was biting her lip and glancing at Imara. “Do you know what you are ordering?”

“I do. You?”

“I can’t decide. You go first.”

When the server arrived, she cooed over Mr. E, who preened himself and let out a small mew.

Imara rolled her eyes and ordered. “Cheeseburger with bacon, fries, side salad, and a banana cream pie.”

The server blinked. “A slice?”

“No, the whole pie, please. My familiar is a glutton.”

Mr. E washed his little paw daintily in preparation for his food orgy.

Kitty cleared her throat and ordered a hamburger with a side of potato salad.

When the server was gone, Kitty gave Imara a thankful look. “I was terrified you would be a vegetarian.”

Imara was flabbergasted. “Why?”

“I don’t know. A lot of the women I have met here have been vegetarians, and I thought you might be one of them.”

“I like how you describe them as a different species.”

Kitty grinned, “They feel like that sometimes. My sister went veggie for a while. She was intolerable. My mom almost strangled her when she tried to liberate the livestock.”

“Livestock?”

Her new companion blushed. “Yeah, I am from a farming family.”

“What kind of animals?”

“You are genuinely interested?”

That was surprising. “Of course. I am new to this entire setting. I have been working to get through school my whole life, and it leaves very little exposure to other family styles or environments.”

“Dairy and wool. Cows and sheep. Normally, they don’t get along, but Mom’s family were dairy farmers, and Dad’s were shepherds. They consolidated, and now, we have a few hundred acres of useful animals.”

“Which part of your family uses the orbs?”

Kitty leaned back as the server brought their drinks. “My dad’s. He is also a glassmaker, and he makes the spheres for me.”

“Not for himself?”

She rolled her eyes. “No. Since I was going away to school, he wanted me prepared to see my future at any interval. With the stuff I am wearing, I could probably get through a few months if I had to.”

“Why so many?” Imara sipped at her water.

“Dads.” Kitty shrugged as if Imara should understand.

She should understand, but there was no way she ever would. It was her father that had rejected her as a member of his brood, and it wasn’t something that she could just give to the universe. Forgive and forget was difficult when she hadn’t even been able to meet most of her relatives.

“Before you ask, I don’t use them to cheat on exams.”

Imara laughed. “I never thought you would. The instructors know about it, and most of the exams are practical. There is no advantage to knowing the future when you are just going to have to go through with it anyway.”

Kitty looked at her with a stunned smile on her lips. “Exactly.”

The food arrived, and when the pie was set on the table, Mr. E jumped right in. The cute noises he was making did not deter from the orgy of consumption he was engaged in.

Imara put some more ketchup on her burger and on her fries, picked up her food, and dug in. She had seen his cute feeding frenzy before.

Kitty grabbed her burger and dug in. They ate in silence as the tiny cat stomped and munched his way through the pie.

A few people stopped by their table and took recordings of Mr. E wearing the pie before he ate it, but when Imara was done, Mr. E finished and worked at cleaning himself completely.

Kitty was halfway through her potato salad when Imara began to help Mr. E clean himself up.

“He ate all of it?”

“He did, but he hates getting wet, so I am going to dry towel him, and he can finish his grooming after that.”

“How could it fit?” Kitty seemed genuinely astonished.

“Um, he isn’t an actual kitten. He is an energy being in a kitten shell. He can eat as much as he wants.” Imara finished wiping the cream off his paws, and he settled back against the sugar dispenser to suck his toes clean.

“But... he looks like a kitten.”

“Yes, and he is supposed to, but he isn’t. He is much more intelligent and devious than your average kitten. Also, slightly more homicidal.”

Mr. E yawned and blinked at Kitty with wide green eyes. He was really putting on the cute.

“I don’t think he is dangerous.”

Imara remembered the sight of him transforming and attacking her enemy. “Yeah, you can think that, but wait until you have a snack that he wants.”

Kitty chuckled and continued to eat.

Sitting back, Imara asked, “Why are you taking the weather magic course?”

“Farming folk. If I can create a separate weather system over the fields for just a day or even a few hours, it would make all the difference. You?”

“It is three credits toward my graduation and one of the only courses running over the summer term that I qualify for. I also thought it would look good toward guild membership.”

Kitty nodded. “Makes sense. Have you tried to add a few community factors? I mean, if you are going for rapid guild membership, volunteering is an excellent way to get a leg up.”

“Volunteering? Where?”

“The student office should have some information for you, but I volunteer to take the Mage Guides around the farm and introduce them to the animals.”

“Are you a Guide?” In her circles, the thought of having a childhood organization that would assist with magical development was nearly mythical.

“I was. Now, I just volunteer. You never joined?”

Imara wrinkled her nose. “I was in a non-magical city. No Guides. We knew about them, but we didn’t have them.”

“Do you have a skill that you could teach eager little girls? If you do, I can help you get in touch with a local chapter.”

Imara’s growing hope fell. “Nope, nothing special.”

Mr. E loudly rattled the sugar container. Death Keeping is not common. I think they would enjoy meeting spectres.

Did you have the Mage Guides and Scouts when you were young?

No, but we did have schools that scouted for children with magical skills. They were brought in whether their families were in favour of it or not. He was being a very grim kitten.

Kitty pushed her empty plate aside. “You are talking to him?”

“I was. He reminded me that I am an apprentice Death Keeper. I could take the girls on a tour of the mage repositories if there are any around here.”

“A Death Keeper? Seriously? Oh, man. None of the ones in this area have been willing to talk to the Guides. They say that young girls don’t respect the seriousness of the situation.”

Imara snorted. “Of course, they don’t, but once they meet one of their ancestors, they usually smarten up.”

Kitty was stunned. “You can do that?”

A blush started on her cheeks. “Oh, yeah. I have an affinity for death. I can have a conversation with most mages after they have passed. I mean, if they were properly laid to rest and their spectre released.”

Kitty rubbed her hands together and grinned. “You are going to be very popular.”

“I believe I am regretting mentioning it.” Her palms were sweating.

“Don’t worry. If you can get access, I can get you a volunteering credit.” There was complete confidence in her tone.

“I will believe it when I see it. Now, how did you manage to make that tornado today?” Her change of topic wasn’t subtle, but it was effective. They delved into the different techniques that they had used, and each learned a little something from the other. If it weren’t for Mr. E snoring like a lumberjack, it would have been a really good study session. Laughter tended to break the flow of thought.