24

I half hoped Gilbert would’ve forgotten about our tutoring session after the horrendous thing that just happened in Kaz’s office. Considering what I’ve just witnessed, I’m in no shape nor mood for any learning or pretending that I’m fine.

My potions have never failed before. In fact, they were more sought after than the expensive vials and concoctions Magians would buy from certified healers. The point is, I’ve never had a potion fail before, and for the first time in my life, I’m experiencing doubt in myself.

Emily practically died in my arms when that potential remedy sped up the blight’s effects rather than slowing them down. And looking back now from within the solitude of Gilbert’s secret tower, I think I know why it failed. The blight wasn’t meant to be cured by the means of simple potions and healing magic. Whoever created it was smart enough to alter its structure so that there were no loopholes to slip past.

In other words, only the person who created it, can cure it. What once was an undercover mission to find a cure for Zari, has now become a mystery to find the one responsible for this chaos.

Siri winds herself around my upper arm and flicks her tongue over my cheek.

“I know.” I sigh and wipe the tear streaks from my cheeks with my sleeves. “It wasn’t my fault. But still, I was so determined to find a way to save Zari, that I didn’t even consider other consequences.”

She blinks.

I shrug. “The blight is…complicated. So far, there are two elements to it: henbane and wild magic. But there’s a third element, I’m sure of it. A kill switch of some sort.” Siri tilts her head sideways, waiting for me to explain. “You know, like a third ingredient. One that only the creator possesses. If we can find who’s behind all of this, we find the third ingredient that we need to cure this blight.”

Siri flicks her tongue determinedly and a huff a dry laugh.

“Easier said than done, my reptilian friend. You haven’t seen how many Magians are at this school. It could be anyone. But…” I trail off as a thought crosses my mind. “…every Magian has their own signature. An essence count, I believe it’s called. If I can somehow learn how to read it, I could potentially track it to the culprit.”

Again, easier said than done. I’d need to be perfectly clairvoyant to read someone’s essence. That, or I need a spell that could reveal it to me. And let’s be honest, the latter option will never work, seeing as it will require me to publicly cast spells around the Academy as I move about. I’ll draw attention, and that’s the last thing I want.

“I’ll sleep on it,” I tell Siri, sniffling as the last of my tears over Emily’s death vanish. “It’s a good plan, surely there’s a simple way to go about it.”

“What’s a good plan?”

My heart spikes when Gilbert’s voice sounds from the door. The moment he steps into the tower, Siri ducks back into my blazer and I’m left to face him alone.

Not that I mind that much. So far, he’s been nothing but nice towards me. But that doesn't mean I should tell him about my mission and the blight, or how I spend my afterhours with our professor in his office to find a cure…and how a fellow Acolyte just died in my arms half an hour ago. The less Gilbert and anyone know, the safer it is for me.

“I, uh…” I scramble for words, searching for a reasonable answer to his question. “I…signed up for the Acolympics.” Yes, that’s a good one. I’ll roll with that. “But I think I might have been in over my head considering I’m new and not as skilled yet.”

“But you said it’s a good plan, right?” He smiles as he stops in front of me. For the first time, I notice how tall he is, towering two heads over me.

“It was at the moment. Now…I think I should stick to the books and simple spells until I’ve caught up to the rest of the class.”

Gilbert is swiftly on his way to say something to that, only to pause. Before I can predict his next move, he’s tilting my head up with his index finger, gently twisting it side to side and frowning at what he sees.

“Have you been crying?”

My heart drops when I realize how I must look – mascara smudged, concealer creased, and damp streaks travelling down my face. Had I known he was on his way, I would’ve quickly fixed my makeup.

“Just a little,” I mutter. For some reason, I feel comfortable enough around him to confess half of the truth. “It’s just been a rough day, you know. I needed to let it all out.”

My heart misses a beat when Gilbert holds my face with both hands, brushing his thumbs over the damp trail my tears left behind. His touch is warm and gentle, but his palms and fingertips calloused and hard from years of spellcasting and maybe playing sports. He does give off athlete vibes.

“Was it just the day that was rough?” He asks after a moment, his jaw clenching. “Because, if some Acolyte did or said anything else to you, I will find them and make it look like an accident.”

I manage to smile. He said it so macho-like, but it’s hard to take his threat seriously when his eyes reflect the light in the room so perfectly. Puppy eyes, that’s what they are. It’s impossible to imagine anger blazing within them, or any form of vengeance and spitefulness for that matter.

Unlike Kaz, who can set fire to a mountain with a single glare through his shades.

“I’m fine, really,” I tell him sincerely. “But thank you for worrying about me. You’re way too nice to be a jock.”

Gilbert breathes a laugh. “Even better, an Acolympian, which, in my opinion, is way more badass than being a jock.”

His subtle bragging makes me freeze and replay his words. “An Acolympian? As in, you competed in the Acolympics before?”

“Three years in a row. I’m actually running for captain this year, seeing as the former had graduated. It’s about time Dinah learns what it feels like to come second.” He rolls his eyes.

Little does he know; he had just made my day. Not only does he share my sentiments towards the Academy’s Regina George, but he – who so kindly agreed to tutor me – will be competing in the Acolympics. He, no doubt, knows the game inside-out.

Gilbert narrows his eyes suspiciously at me when he notices my awe-struck expression. He tried desperately to contain his smile when he casually says, “You know, I could help you prepare for try outs if you’re still up for joining –”

“You would?” I exclaim gleefully before he could finish his sentence.

“— on one condition.”

My smile falters. “What condition?”

My stomach twists anxiously and I want to scold myself. Seriously, how bad can Gilbert’s condition be? It’s not he’s going to ask me to do him a favour by breaking into a professor’s office and change his test scores or something. Or pull a prank as some form of rite of passage.

Gilbert’s hands gently glide down and stop at the crook of my neck. My skin tingles when his thumb follows the faint blue line of my artery before pausing at my pulse point, no doubt feeling how fast my heart is beating. I can’t help but to shiver and subtly standing closer to him, as though he had placed me under his spell.

“After the try outs, there’s going to be a party in the woods. The faculty doesn’t know about it, so it’s completely unsupervised.” He slowly tucks a strand of hair behind my ear and tilts my head up at him. “If you’ll do me the honour of being my date, I’ll make sure you’ll be ready for try outs by the end of the week. That’s my condition.”

*Date*?

The word nearly buffers my brain. I’ve never been on a date before, even less be *someone’s* date. It’s enough to fill me with both panic and excitement at once, and I almost blurt out an aggressive ‘YES’. No, I should act cool. He means date as in ‘escort’, right? Now, if this was a fancy dinner date, I would’ve completely lost my shit and probably set off multiple ruptures at once.

Still, it’s a date, no matter the location or event. With Gilbert. And Dinah is also going to be there. And…oh dear Magnus, what should I wear? What are Alcove’s parties like? What if I don’t fit in properly? What if…

“So?” Gilbert’s voice snaps me from my spiralling thoughts. “Is that a yes?”

Inhaling deeply, I slowly look up to meet his eyes, feeling my throat run dry by just opening my mouth to give him an answer. “…yes.”

That’s it. There’s no turning back now.

And the brilliant smile he gives me makes it truly worth it. “Great! It’s a date.”