Page 19 of Elemental Affections

Aside from her choice of mask, Dae was glad she’d dressed to the theme, for everyone else was similarly attired. The indigo silk of her mask matched the dress she wore, though the full skirt was a touch too long for her height. She’d lacked the time and funds—or care—to have it hemmed. A problem for later, the mythical future when she’d have both time and energy for such leisure. Gods all—no, she was a water mage, damn it, she could invoke the god of water now.Jin,the Everflow, She of the Golden Waters,knew it didn’t feel like Dae would have time or energy to spare anytime soon. Not when it was taking her hours to get through her readings. The load would only get heavier now that she’d signed herself up for the seminar. And assisting Ezzyn. Although, that last requirement would help with the lack of funds issue, in theory.

Dae stopped by a window that faced toward Sylvan in the distance. Her fingers brushed against the glass. She wished Eunny could’ve been here. Dae had chatted a bit with some of her new classmates, said hello to a few of the other residents of Vanas House, but names and faces still required context. Putting everyone in masks for the social made the event a sea of strangers. A bitter irony, she mused, that she’d have been able to glide through a social function back in Central with relative ease, yet here, she was a wallflower. What should’ve been a transferable skill languished instead.

She sighed, turning back to face the crowd of people, her peers, who all seemed to know one another. Except for her. The urge to go back to her room was strong … but she was supposed to be sociable. Starting fresh and all that. The easy flow of chatter called to her, dredging up a desire for camaraderie she hadn’t realized she’d missed.

A few fellow water elementalists were identifiable as they showed off, altering the flow of the punch fountain. It had begun the night with one gentle stream cascading from an elevated pillar of ice, resembling a shrine to Jin. After suffering the attentions of increasingly inebriated students, the ice had taken on a lewd shape, made more crass by the way the punch trailed from certain orifices.

Dae wandered over, keeping to the edge of the group gathered to watch. She stopped next to a short woman with the pearl white hair and light brown skin of a native of Deiju Island, a small island off Dae’s ancestral Hanyeok. She wore a violet mask with delicate botanical embellishments, and a dress of similar design—an outfit that included pockets, something Dae wished her own had, and which she only noticed when the woman snuck a handful of errant grapes from a picked-over tray at the end of the table. She lifted onto her tiptoes, which didn’t do much for her lack of height, trying to see around a tall man in silver-edged black standing in front of the table’s refreshments.

Dae sidled closer and gave the woman’s arm a light tap. “Would you like some more?” she murmured, holding out what remained of her cluster.

The Deiju woman breathed a quiet, “Oooh!” of delight as she accepted Dae’s offering. Then she blushed a deep red. “Thanks.”

Dae bit back a laugh. “You’re welcome. If you want, I can make a distraction so you can grab something else.”

The other woman hesitated, shifting from foot to foot. “I really shouldn’t,” she mumbled, eyes glued to one of the name cards set on the table. The man with the silver and black mask blocked the way as he lounged against the table’s edge, listening halfheartedly to the conversation around him.

Dae flashed the Deiju woman a quick, mischievous smile before stepping toward the man. “Excuse me,” she said. “Could you hand me that glass?”

His head whipped toward her, long, dark hair falling into his face. He brushed it back, blue eyes stark against the black silk of his mask. “An— Sorry.” He scanned the table, plucking up the closest glass. “This?”

Dae accepted it, moving around him so that he had to turn and take a step away to keep facing her. “Thank you.”

She took a sip of the punch, making a face as the sourness hit her tongue. “Wow. What did they do to this?” She put the tip of her pinky inside the glass and gave the contents a quick swirl, lighting up the inside of the glass as if it was a candleholder as she called for just a touch of her power. She neutralized the remnants of magic-laced alcohol, all fragmented from the students’ variety of spells.

The dark-haired man watched her, then held his hand out in silent question. Dae gave him the glass, which he raised for a quick sniff. He chuckled softly as he handed it back. “A neat trick.”

“Thank you.” Dae took another sip. In the background, the Deiju woman leaned in, snagging a name card with fancy lettering under the guise of grabbing a glass of punch. She gave Dae a quick nod before disappearing into the crowd. “Pity it only does so much for the taste,” Dae said, keeping the man’s attention.

She may not know exactly how tinkering with the punch affected its natural order and makeup, but denaturing alcohol was one of the few more advanced spells she’d retained over the years. Yes, something of a party trick, but it had come to her naturally and stayed despite her lapses in study. Fortunate, given how many social events she’d attended in the capital.

“So, you’re a water mage,” the man said. “What’s your focus?” He spoke softly yet with an odd depth to his tone, the words forming at the back of his throat.

“Environmental restoration, I think.” She laughed. “Not entirely sure how yet. You?”

Before he could respond, a trio of men walked into the room. All wore masks to fit the theme, yet the man in the middle would’ve been known to Dae anywhere.

Brint. Here. Cutting an elegant figure in blue and white, and several people in the crowd closest to him took immediate notice. And recognition.

As Brint melded into the crowd with his typical ease, whispers spread like wildfire.

“Transferred from Grae U. Some kind of exchange program.”

“I heard his fiancée is here and he followed her up.”

“I thought that was called off? My brother consults for the Lower Council. This is politics.”

“Syvrine’s blessed tits, don’t start on that.”

Dae set her glass down and stumbled toward the window, her mind churning as rumors flew around her. Why would Brint come here? It couldn’t be for her. There’d been no word from any of her family so far, let alone him. Since arriving in the Valley, Dae had luxuriated in its isolation; nary a copy of the Grae Port News in sight. She hadn’t looked for it, either, but back in the capital, it was ubiquitous. Here, people were seen with either a journal from their field in hand or maybe the school’s small periodical.

And yet, gossip from Central was already here if people had heard about Dae’s enrollment, or the fiction that Brint was chasing his wayward fiancée.

Talk swirled around her, excitement of this variety not being the usual fare for the Valley, especially outside of the summer season. Opinions and theories, and in all of it, Brint was at the center. The bastard was here with two friends in tow, and Dae wouldn’t put it past him for one of them to have a line back to the Grae Port News.

“…they’re here to take Sylveren knowledge and sell it in Central? Figures.”

“It’s a school. People leave the Valley for work all the time.”

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