Ruairi | Water | Floki, Henriik, Freyja

A scowl began etching itself into Ruairi’s features. The blond's expression only deepened as Freyja’s smugness seeped out from only her words, but nearly every orifice in her being as she spoke. The things he would give right now to see that smug smile be wiped clean from her face. Ru stood his ground as the female further decided it was necessary to invade his space- going so far as to straighten his posture as much as his body currently allowed.

“I actually came here to sleep with you, Ru. I’m so fucking in love with you I just couldn’t contain it anymore, you know? I wanted to be your six hundred and fifty-seventh body at this goddamned institution, it felt like a good number to hold out for.”

As her tone began to alter and unravel before him, Ru’s expression from that of vexed to one of darkly entertained. “You’re not the first body in my count to come crawling, hoping I can fill the space their boyfriends can’t. Really, I’m flattered.” Ruairi decided that speaking and behaving in a way that appeared as controlled as possible would best bring insult to the woman that was genuinely making him boil from the inside out. Though the lack of composure she was expressing more than likely came from his seemingly lack of concern for their friend- but even having that thrown back into his face as Freyja stood over him wasn’t enough to get him to show her any fraction of care.

“In the decade I was here waiting I even asked him to be our third, you know?”

Ru’s blue gaze swiveled to the side, connecting with the jade stare of amusement coming from his roommate. “I was honored.” Floki feigned genuine compassion by raising a hand to place over his heart, a wink that communicated something mildly malicious followed before a befitting quiet cackle escaped the green-eyed boy. That was enough for a flicker of rage to spark in the blue of Ruairi’s eyes, his gaze snapping back to Freyja as she muttered her disappointment. “Fuck you, Ru. If something happens to her, it’s your fault. Enjoy sitting in your guilt.” In a snap of silent anger, Ru only made a ‘fuck you’ gesture back to Freyja.

Floki silently heeded to the fiery woman’s demands- though not from a place of obedience, simply because he knew it would foster a resentment within Ruairi. The young man wasn’t pining for his roommate’s displeasure, but Floki was beginning to learn just how easy it was to light the fuse between the water and fire elements. Freyja seemed far from interested in actually interacting with him as they walked, though that hardly stopped Floki from making his own noise through various clicks and snaps. He also was aware of how vexed his persistent pursuit of noise made Freyja, he had gathered that much from their time alone in the dorm room. It was an annoyance he was fully willing to exploit with her if need be, for his health, you know.

Floki only hovered by the door to the girls’ room as Freyja entered, muttering something before asking him if it smelled. “The one who smelt it dealt it, as I’ve been taught.” Floki replied with a surreal level of childish seriousness, though the ghostly smirk that had found its way to his features demonstrated that he knew full well his ridiculous answer was a ploy to annoy. Although, the smirk fell away with the curious raising of his brow accompanied by a head tilt as he watched Freyja seemingly get burned. “Not exactly.” He replied to her question, though the matter of sound being an element was apparently up for debate. If one were to ask Floki though- he’d say it was the greatest. Freyja didn’t really seem like she had put much faith into him answering in a way that was useful to her anyway though. Which seemed to incite the fiery woman to begin her walk back- Floki in tow.

Ruairi had managed to consume copious amounts of sugar infused water to help break the seal and further flush out the alcohol that had previously swamped his entire being; though he was more or less desiring to avoid a completely killer hangover in the morning. Just as he had settled back on his bed, laying stretched out atop of his covers with his arms folded under his head, Freyja had seemingly decided she wasn’t done tormenting him yet. “Back to start the threeway?” Ruairi asked condescendingly with a smirk, though Freyja hardly paid it much mind, but rather threw a statement at him. “There’s something there.”

Ruairi cocked an impatient brow in wait for her to continue before she lost his interest. The blond was about to further dish degrading comments to Freyja, but the effort of her hand extending to show off the burn on her was enough to get the water element to sit up more attentively. Being courteous to let her speak as she further went on to explain, it took Ruairi a second to process the last statement she had made. Easiest ways to murder water elements? Well that disappointed him- it would be far more flattering for him to think Freyja would put an unnecessary amount of work into his murder.

The water element glared in response to her suggesting he didn’t put effort into retaining information from his classes at the academy. Because he did. It was just for him to know solely how much he knew… and to pick and choose what to retain. “I would never tell you I need you–because I don’t–but it would be useful to see if you can interact with the spell.”

Ruairi allowed a silence to hang over them before he responded to Freyja. The blond wasn’t about to tell her that his capability to interact with the spell would most likely be a bit iffy. “Fine.” He gritted begrudgingly, rising from his bed. His blue eyes did downcast to the burn that marked Freyja though, and he couldn’t help but find some satisfaction in that. It wasn’t enough to make him feel as if a years old score had been settled yet though, and as if on cue, a faint throb found its way to the burn on his back that he could never quite get to heal.

At this point, Ruairi wasn’t too sure why Floki was bothering with following both him and Freyja back to the dorm. Unless of course the music man was only in it for free entertainment; biding his time to sit back and watch another verbal spar between the rivals. Ru decided that was his roommate’s angle, but he didn’t exactly care enough to put in the effort to tell Floki off. In fact, Ru was already mentally bracing himself to interact with a spell he wasn’t abundantly confident he could work with- the events of the night having done his necessary calmer vibes no justice. When they made it back, Ru didn’t even bother speaking to Freyja further, but more so as a precautionary to not disrupt his attempts to find his internal zen. Freyja was not exactly a calming figure for him to be around, but he was willing to put in the effort for Arah’s sake.

It’s not as if Ruairi needed much direction as to where the spell was, having been at least focusing on his intuition enough to detect it -and as if in a trance, Ruairi approached the wall between the beds and knelt down. Mumbling a few things quietly enough for it to be impossible to decipher as to whether it was to interact with the magic or to hype himself up, Ru closed his eyes and drew out a steadying breath as his fingers delicately traced various places on the wall. It was certainly a powerful magic; the kind Ruairi felt vibrate through his body, as if it was trying to entangle itself with the energy of his soul. But perhaps that was the purpose of the magic. To entangle itself into the reader’s psyche so the message could be received through the sheer power of intuitive focus. And though Ruairi’s eyes were closed, he could see the faint light beyond his eyelids that were illuminating carious markings on the wall in front of him, them glowing lightly as his fingers traced over them.

It took more strain than he was comfortable with to get close to allowing the message to really reach him, but he knew he was close- he could feel it… but he could also feel how close Freyja was behind him. Did she take a step closer? Was he imagining feeling her breathing down his neck? The thought of Freyja being so close with his back turned and his eyes closed began to anger him, but he was fighting to retain control over his focus. And then thoughts he couldn’t ward off, glimpses of memory from just a few hours ago of Freyja burning his neck when he had given her the opportunity to see him in a vulnerable moment, and the burn on his back… a tsunami of rage washed over him. The illuminated marks on the wall began to flicker in a chaotic, pattern-less way. Ru could see his grasp fading from him- he was failing. And Freyja? Not helping.

“If the person known for fucking me over when my guard is down could give me some goddamn space, that would be great.” Ruairi growled through his clenched jaw, the water element’s forehead faintly beading with enough sweat to slick the stray blond strands of his hair to it as he put more energy into focusing on the spell. But this was a battle he was destined to lose. Ru tried thinking about Arah; his worry for her, filling the images in his head of the better times they had shared… and yet, Freyja overshadowed them all by a large margin. And unable to control himself, his own magic, and the existing magic already in the room, the lights began to illuminate with an unbearable brightness as they still fiercely flickered. Until it all faded within the blink of an eye. Ruairi opened his eyes in anger and defeat, staring at the wall that now only showed a faintly charred space through his breathy heaves.

Freyja | Fire | Arah, Floki, Henriik, Ruairi

“You’re not the first body in my count to come crawling, hoping I can fill the space their boyfriends can’t. Really, I’m flattered.”

His perfect little smirk on his perfect little face was so infuriating. Still, like Ru, Freyja felt as though she would have more power and control if she maintained her composure. Crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes as she looked into the depths of his soul, Freyja replied, “Oh, another joke about my relationship? Jealousy isn’t a good look on you, darling.”

She touched his arm gently, tracing the veins that his muscles exposed from his wrist to his forearm, stopping at his rolled-up sleeves. The satisfaction she received from watching his gaze trace her fingers was immense and only tripled by the confusion she saw in his eyes. Whether it was because of her willingness to initiate physical contact in her current state of inebriation or because of something more, she could have sworn she felt him shudder at her touch. He had always been sensitive, but she had rarely correlated it to anything she did. The tension she was creating between them made her feel more powerful than she had felt in a long time, even if it was because they were tired and emotions were high and the events that had happened earlier were making confusion well up inside. Blowing Ruairi a kiss as she left with Floki, Freyja called over her shoulder, “thanks for reminding me I’m in a relationship with a hot, intelligent, sensitive guy and you couldn’t keep a woman for more than one night if your life depended on it. A word to the wise: find some new content or quit trying to best me, love.”

…

“If the person known for fucking me over when my guard is down could give me some goddamn space, that would be great.”

Instead of making mention of the charred walls before her, Freyja placed her hands on her forehead and sank to her bed in defeat. For once in her life, she wasn’t blaming Ru. She wasn’t even thinking of him. She was only considering Arah and the fact that an integral part of locating her had disappeared before her eyes.

“Well,” she mumbled softly, even if it wasn’t particularly in response to his statement. “What’s next? How the hell are we going to find her now?”

Gesturing to the collection of jars and containers above Arah’s bed, Freyja added, “it might not all be lost. You should take a sample to whoever your mentor is and see if you can recreate the spell that was here. Do you know any other students here who know how to practice elemental magic? This is a pretty high level, isn’t it? Higher than what you can do, clearly, and I thought we were the only four students who practiced this kind of magic as our concentration.”

Stopping to take a small breath, Freyja added, “can any of the professors or mentors do anything like this? This stuff seems pretty ancient. Like, back when this stuff was commonly practiced ancient.”

Though she was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to send Ru back to his dorm so she could get some much-needed rest before the day ahead, Freyja felt a sense of urgency at finding and protecting Arah. She knew that if something had happened to her, Arah only had a certain number of hours until being saved was no longer an option. Besides that, Freyja couldn’t shake the feeling that danger was lurking right around the corner from her dorm. Even if she was with the most annoying person in the world, she knew she was safe and that leaving his presence meant risking her safety for nothing.

Despite Freyja’s urgency to escape the room, it wasn’t more than an hour later that Arah came stumbling in the door, eyes bright and wide with fear. Hearing the commotion in an otherwise silent room, Freyja’s head shot up and she immediately rushed to the woman’s side, barraging her with questions.

“Pen, paper,” she mumbled, her skin pale. She had been drained of her color other than her veins, which glowed a ghastly greenish color that seemed the farthest thing from normal. When Ru scrambled to provide her with the materials she had asked for, Arah began scribbling away feverishly.

“Danger’s…on…the…move.”

“What? That doesn’t make any sense,” Freyja glanced down at the paper, where her roommate had tried to draw part of an emblem of some kind. Before she could properly interrogate the woman, Arah went limp in the chair she’d been seated in and slowly dropped to the ground.

Helping her to lay flat on the floor, Freyja nervously examined the earth element to ensure she was breathing and had a pulse. “If she fucking dies-”

The pale expression on her face was enough to demonstrate the woman’s feelings towards the situation, if not the obsessive way that she was trying to wake her roommate up and check for signs of life. After frantically trying to wake the woman up to no avail, Freyja glanced up toward Ru, unconcealed terror written all over her face and in her eyes.

“Ru,” she whispered, no emotion withheld for the first time in years. “What now?”

Ruairi | Water | Arah, Floki, Freyja, Henriik

“Oh, another joke about my relationship? Jealousy isn’t a good look on you, darling.”

A chill frosted over the water element’s eyes, those blue pools sharpening into a bladed glare. He’d have half a mind to quip with a remark pertaining to just how not jealous he was of her relationship, though he presumed taking any stance of defense would only solidify her point. Her sorely invalid point.

To make matters worse, Freyja dared to reach out and touch him; his entire being going rigid as the gentle touch that was her slender fingers worked their way up his arm. If he recoiled from the touch and spat venom at her, he was inclined to believe she would simply derive pleasure from receiving such a volatile reaction. However- he just couldn’t remove his gaze from her hand, watching every inch it ascended along its path. Was the stare he tethered to her touch based out of curiosity? Fear? No. But just maybe… the thought of her grip suddenly tightening and the burning that would follow was enough to render the blond motionless. Ruairi had nothing but mementos of evidence that provided him every reason to move, swat her hand away, insult her, something. And yet all he had to show for was the confused state of confliction that had settled into his eyes. Perhaps even his tongue was relenting from spewing in Freyja’s direction in concern of fiery repercussions. Ru had been burned once tonight, he was not fond of the idea of letting it happen again. And even remotely feeling like he was at Freyja’s mercy invoked a rage he wasn’t sure he could bottle for long.

“Thanks for reminding me I’m in a relationship with a hot, intelligent, sensitive guy and you couldn’t keep a woman for more than one night if your life depended on it. A word to the wise: find some new content or quit trying to best me, love.”

I’m- Ruairi could feel the protest of defense bubbling in his throat, and yet to avoid playing into anything, he bit his tongue. It was decided just as quickly as Freyja had spoken- he would prove her wrong, make her choke on her own words. Ruairi could have whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted them, and that was a lesson he was more than ready to teach. He was certain it wasn’t his pride talking either. Sure he’s burned a few bridges and scorned just a couple hearts -too many to count- but he had a new goal in mind regardless.

<///////////////////>

If exhaustion had merely been an acquaintance to Ru prior to him toying with his magic capabilities, it was certainly a very near and dear friend to him now. It clung to him, threatened to smother him, and yet Ruairi was entirely focused on the feeling he despised more than even Freyja; failure. Lifting from his place, inwardly the blond was trembling with rage, frustration, and defeat. On the surface though he remained steadfastly indifferent, only raking a hand through his hair as if that simple action completely composed his entire self. His eyes couldn’t untether from the scorch marks on the wall, and he silently ignored Freyja’s questions- ones he didn't know how to answer.

“It might not all be lost. You should take a sample to whoever your mentor is and see if you can recreate the spell that was here. Do you know any other students here who know how to practice elemental magic? This is a pretty high level, isn’t it? Higher than what you can do, clearly, and I thought we were the only four students who practiced this kind of magic as our concentration.”

Something of a growl of mild vexation resonated from Ru as he turned his head to glance at Freyja. He could have done without her pointing out his blatant unmastery of this particular magic, but she did have a point. Would his mentor find it odd that he would inquire about a spell of this nature out of the blue? Let alone provide a sample- appearing to be interested in anything past besting Freyja was a bit uncharacteristic of him. Or maybe his tired mind was turning its gears a thousand miles per minute and was fixating on minor details that were trivial in nature to the scenario he currently found himself in. As Freyja further inquired about whether he knew of a mentor or professor that would be of any use for this, Ru pinched the bridge of his nose and tightly shut his eyes in brief thought before verbally responding. “I think I know who I can talk to.” Ruairi wanted instant solutions, but the only ones springing to his already frazzled mind required time. Time he wasn’t sure Arah even had.

“Should I play the violin for you two? This seems like a troubling time.” Floki’s voice was met with Ru throwing a book in his direction- though Ru figured getting Floki to leave in that manner was far less violent than letting Freyja barbecue him. The cackle that rang down the hall coinciding with the green-eyed male’s steps that were moving out of earshot was enough for Ru’s jaw to clench in irritation. He had completely forgotten his roommate’s presence, probably because Floki has never been silent for longer than two minutes in the time Ruairi has known him… not even in his sleep.

Though the next thing Ru’s gaze had moved to fixate on robbed his mind of any prior thoughts it had been storing. Arah? A glint of horror seeped into his features as he observed the sickly looking girl. Ru was frozen in place, even a few seconds after the words Arah had mumbled registered to him, and only then did he begin frantically looking around in the unfamiliar space for where the materials Arah requested were. Upon delivering them to Arah, Ru couldn’t help but lean up onto his toes in anticipation of what she was scribbling down. But it made no sense whatsoever to him. Going so far as to glance at Freyja to see if she made any sense of the writing, he was both pleased and concerned that between the two of them, neither had any more idea than the other about what Arah was trying to communicate.

As Arah went limp, Ruairi moved a fraction back to allow Freyja room to lay Arah down- the water element’s foot thrumming in an uneasy beat against the floor. The only sound filling the room being Freyja’s mutters and moving as she checked Arah over, though Ru welcomed the projection of noise to diffuse the sound of the heart that was seconds away from hammering its way out of his chest. Ruairi was feeling too many intense emotions to appropriately convey one over the other; though if he had to guess at the contortion his expression was in, it reflected something of both visceral fear and despair. Ru knew he wasn’t as close to Arah as he had once been, and never had he regretted that diluted relationship until now. He still cared, deeply- enough to never wish to see her in the state she was in now. And enough to know he didn’t want to fail her more then he already had.

“Ru, what now?”

No sound followed the lips of his that had parted slightly. He wanted to have the answer that Freyja didn’t, and yet he saw the reflection of his own fear in her. It ensnared him for just a moment before he unfixed his gaze from Freyja and turned his orbs back to their down friend. “I’m going to move her to her bed.” It had to be better than being on a floor, right? It was the only thing Ruairi could collectively come up with in terms of contributing to helping Arah. Picking up the earth element to Ru was like scooping up a frail, injured bird into his grasp. He was as gentle as possible with her though, both in moving her and laying her down as gently as humanly possible. Once the girl was fully out of Ruairi’s arms, the blond stayed loomed over her with worry etched deeply into every inch of his face. “Arah, if-” Whatever Ru had planned to say was interrupted by the jolt from Arah that was enough to send the water element jumping and muttering a curse in response.

Ruairi didn’t mask the relief that flooded his features at seeing Arah awake, and yet it didn’t change the fact that she looked close to croaking. “Arah are you okay? Talk to me.” There was a gentle firmness in his tone, something that was sourced from fear and the need to do right by a friend. It only layered onto everything Ru was feeling as he watched Arah’s expression; there was confusion, a lack of coherence? No, she looked more as if she was thinking intensely and coming up short of an answer. Ru’s gaze swiveled to Freyja. He wasn’t sure what exactly he was looking for from her, just that she was quite literally the only other person he could share this concern with. The blond turned away as Arah began mumbling again, his ears straining to decode it. “You were drunk?” Ruairi repeated, the puzzlement in his tone overshadowing any other present emotion. He of all people knew drunk behavior, side effects, and so on and so forth… and this? This was not the aftermath of Arah simply being drunk. Ruairi wanted to look back at Freyja, but he doubted any expression she would give him would provide him with any level of clarity about the situation. If anything, Freyja was just as lost as he was in navigating what was wrong, and what had happened, with Arah.

When she asked him what the next steps were and his only response was to change her physical location, Freyja knew that they were screwed. There was something about this that was so familiar to her, but it shouldn’t have been. As far as she knew, she’d barely even witnessed someone get injured at the academy, let alone ill or ailing. They were in a protected bubble here; not even elements of weather and temperature could affect them outside of whatever was created by the individuals with elemental magic. Still, there was a lot she didn’t know.

Without moving, Freyja watched the water element interact with her roommate. He was so gentle with her, so caring and so soft. She knew that side of him existed, but she liked to pretend it didn’t. It was easier that way. It was easier to regularly disrupt his peace and any good thing in his life when she could paint him to be a monster and eliminate all of his good qualities from her mind. She liked to remember him as the thunderstorm and the raging sea aspect of water, the one they discussed in their classes about identifying danger and threats. She, more than anyone, had always been told to be weary of these things. She was told that they went much deeper than the surface, and that curiosity would be the death of her. Dying didn’t seem so bad when she saw him there, still half-drunk and sleepy. A few of his bouncy curls fell in his face when he leaned forward, and his expression was softer and more caring than she’d ever seen it. She hated herself for noticing the way his lips were parted ever-so-slightly, and she hated herself for the way that the only part of what had happened prior in the evening that she regretted was the way it had gone down.

Lowering her gaze back to her roommate in a forceful and not at all genuine way, Freyja forced herself to think about what was really happening here. She was probably feeling the effects of her intoxication now more than Ru had the entire night, and her need for sleep was greatly altering her personality and actions. Still, when she saw the way Arah’s head rolled loosely into his warm chest, she felt a twinge of something she didn’t like. Even if it was only for a few moments, she couldn’t help herself. She didn’t have to like the things she was feeling as long as she could feel them and still shove them down deeply enough to never have to say or show them. Even if there was some kind of tension that lingered between them forever, she’d maintain her dignity and her image for forever and a day. She didn’t have to like Henriik either, as long as dating him meant she was safe and protected from the dangers of a world she did not know and could not remember.

As his face displayed subtle signs of fear and trepidation, Freyja felt the need to impulsively touch his arm. She wanted to make him feel okay. Even if it wasn’t going to be, that was her job, right? Yet, his body language was rigid. She’d already been gambling with her dignity earlier in the evening when she’d touched him–any of the times–and she couldn’t risk it. If she showed him she cared, if she showed him she didn’t despise him, if she showed him any of the things she was feeling, he’d surely end her. He’d squash her like a bug, like an ant under the shoe of a giant. She couldn’t risk that. Instead, she directed her attention towards Arah, slipping her hand into the young woman’s. She didn’t deny herself the satisfaction of searching Ru’s face for any indication that he thought of her differently too. Was he watching her intertwine her fingers with someone other than him? Was the tension between them suffocating him the way it was suffocating her? Her gaze dropped once again as she willed herself to remain unreadable. Whatever this was that had been unearthed as a result of that stupid party game had to remain a secret of hers. And maybe Arah’s if she ever woke up.

As if on cue, the young woman jumped awake. It was as if her system had briefly rebooted, then turned back on as if nothing had happened. This was strange, but not as strange as the young woman using the excuse of being drunk to cover up her behavior. She was the anxious type, someone who didn’t judge her friends for drinking but certainly wouldn’t do it herself, let alone admit to it. She was too nervous to relinquish control of her own body like that. Whatever she was lying about, she was doing a godawful job of it. Freyja didn’t believe any of it. Judging by the gaze that was burning a hole in the side of her face, Ru didn’t either.

Several minutes passed where Arah tried to convince Freyja and Ru that she was alright. Though both parties were skeptical, Freyja was tired and growing increasingly anxious about the amount of time Ru had spent in her room. As time passed, her desire to fall in love with him was replaced completely with the desire to get as far away from him as possible. Surely she would wake up in the morning, cringe at her drunken thoughts, then move on with her life. Nothing had happened. It was just a kiss. Arah had done something, but she seemed fine. Her strength seemed to return, so Freyja could interrogate her after getting a bit of sleep and returning to her normal state of rationality.

“I’ve got it from here,” she said abruptly, standing and brushing some dust off of her clothing from when Ru had made the wall explode. She gestured to it in the dim light to avoid studying his face or being asked questions she didn’t know how to answer.

“Thanks again for that. If you find anything out, I’m convinced you won’t let me know, but I will drag it out of you at one point or another.” She smiled uncomfortably. Could he see the way she squirmed under his gaze? Did he know that if he tried, he could easily pull all of the words she couldn’t say out of her body? Did he see how hard she was trying?

Ushering him out of the door, she briefly glanced into his eyes. She was almost convinced she saw her own vulnerability and insecurity staring back at her, but it looked a lot like his. With her lack of sleep and lack of sobriety, she couldn’t tell right from wrong or up from down anymore. “Goodnight,” she said gently, leaning against the doorframe. She didn’t know why she couldn’t just shut the door on him like she used to. She didn’t know why she’d walked him all the way here, or why she’d walk him all the way back to his dorm if he asked. But, he wouldn’t.

“Thanks for fucking up my wall. And,” she hesitated, withdrawing a breath, “for caring. About Arah, I mean. I can tell she matters to you. Even after everything that’s happened.” The last few phrases slipped out awkwardly in an attempt to cover up any interpretation of her words that wasn’t in her control. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Ruairi | Water | Arah, Floki, Freyja

Had there not existed a body in the bed Ru loomed over, his energy depletion could have easily allowed for a buckle in his pride. Some not-so-distant version of himself surely would have done more than simply contemplate the idea of asking to crash on a bed that wasn’t his. Even if that vacant bed so happened to be in Freyja’s room. He should be grateful, though, for the fact that Arah was here, and that he had placed her in the bed. It would save him a walk of shame in the morning he supposed - if he had managed to secure a resting place here anyway.

His concerned gaze strayed from studying Arah long enough to survey Freyja intertwining her fingers with the earth elements. Was it an act of rubbing in his face just how close she was to Arah? Was it a gesture to further display who's really been there for Arah this whole time? If his insecurity following his failure with the spell hadn’t been rocked tonight he probably wouldn’t have had put too much thought in the simple action. Some surge of jealousy had been ignited by the notion as well - though as to where that jealousy was sourced from evaded Ru currently. A subtle hesitation ushered in his own act of moving his cerulean gaze up to meet Freyja’s. Something tightened in his chest as he was met with the unreadable kaleidoscope that was her eyes, though just as quickly she broke what tethered their stare by looking back to Arah. Whether it was a lack of anything in her eyes that made them unreadable, or if it was so many things compressed into her gaze that it would have been impossible to sift through it all… Ru wasn’t sure. Ruairi wasn’t sure he was in any place to divulge into every thought that revolved around her tonight, either.

The blond had politely bit his tongue as Arah -despite the blatant unmoved expression the water element bore- further played her lie on repeat. Like a broken record. Perhaps Ruairi found it in better taste to refrain from hammering the girl with an onslaught of challenging words in regards to what she was telling both him and Freyja, or more likely, he was too tired to debate. She was alive, not so relatively well, but well enough for Ru to relinquish whatever wave of guilt he had experienced upon first seeing her. Funny how the threat of tragedy strips a man of his walls constructed of pride, leaving only the sincerity of his more fragile emotions vulnerable. Ruairi considered whatever barriers he had in place within his psyche as an emotional levee; barring unwanted emotions to travel beyond their hold. Tonight, he could say some of his levee’s failed him.

“I’ve got it from here.”

The sudden ring of her statement trickled into his ears as he straightened in stance and threw a look in Freyja’s direction, allowing it then to flicker to the wall. Was it even the matter of not being able to properly deal with the spell that bothered him so deeply? Ruairi wasn’t adoring the answer to that question that was embedded somewhere in his tired mind. If the thought of Freyja alone hadn’t been wreaking havoc on his concentration… no. It would be far easier to pass the blame onto her, and he greatly desired to do just that. But Freyja had long since wormed her way into his head - it came with their rivalry. She lived in some part of his mind, always. Like an unwanted tenant.

“Thanks again for that. If you find anything out, I’m convinced you won’t let me know, but I will drag it out of you at one point or another.”

Sweeping his gaze back to Freyja, the phantom of his usual smirk found its way to his lips as his hands uncomfortably sheathed themselves in his pockets. “Or you could simply ask me nicely to share whatever information I may, or may not, acquire.” Ruairi threw in a wink to soften the blow of his sweetly spoken demand, though he could only imagine the prospect of Freyja -willingly- curtly providing him with a ‘please’. Even if done begrudgingly though, he’d be lying if he said it wouldn’t stroke his ego just enough to satisfy him and coax him into a more friction-less cooperation with her. As his ocean eyes observed her, he could have sworn he was witnessing her internally shift. Perhaps at the mere prospect of his words. Or maybe due to something more that he wasn’t allowing himself to address.

Whatever was there was followed by Freyja practically escorting him to the door, with Ru unable to restrain his gaze from sneaking glances in her direction as the moment drew on. It reminded him that he truly had no desire to walk all the way back to his dorm. It felt a million miles away compared to the perfectly good, cleanly looking floor of her room. The inclination to once more set his pride aside and just say the words that might just grant him a place to sleep that wasn’t so far, far away was growing. But so was a feeling tugging at his thoughts, strongly encouraging him to ignore whatever he was wanting to give into and rise above this moment of weakness. As he exited the threshold of her room, Ru had honestly expected the door to be closing behind him but his eyes once more found themselves resting on Freyja as she leaned against the doorframe.

“Goodnight.”

It was so simple, so softly spoken compared to anything he could have dreamed of her saying to him. A foot of his shifted in the direction he was intending to walk, but he wondered just how betraying his eyes were to him right now - could she see that a part of him wasn’t looking forward to leaving? Ruairi would blame his hesitancy on the trial of walking back, being tired and half-drunk and all.

“Thanks for fucking up my wall. And-”

A more familiar choice of back-handed words were dished to him from Freyja - the familiarity coaxing a small smile from the blond, but one real enough to reflect in his eyes as he faintly tipped his head to the side. Watching as she seemed to be picking through the right words to further leave him with. “For caring. About Arah, I mean. I can tell she matters to you. Even after everything that’s happened.”

Ru was aware he expressed being a bit taken back by what she said, his brows crinkling as he tried to decipher some hidden, condescending meaning beneath it. By all means though, it seemed sincere to Ruairi though. His stance faltered as he took in the awkward ode of thanks; his gaze flicking to the ground as he shifted on his feet.

“I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Ru looked back up to her, his eyes thoughtfully rather than sensually trailing her figure for just a second before they reattached to her gaze. His blue hues simply graced her with the glimpse into his internal turmoil of pondering whether or not to say more than he actually responded to her with. “Goodnight, Freyja.” He replied quietly, either unable or unwilling to say anything past that before he carried himself down the hall. If she hadn’t been standing there, he more than likely would have stood outside her door for a moment, letting a thing or two from tonight sink in. But the walk back provided him ample time to sift through most of the events of the night; some of which he found himself harboring a more negative association with, and others… Ru allowed to replay more times than one in his mind. Every touch of Freyja’s amid the night left an impression on the water element, whether they were visible or not. But it also reminded him that she was not only capable, but more than willing, to leave her mark on him. One spot in particular found itself outcrying that detail.

<//////>

If it weren’t for the toll of all the events prior in the night and his own thoughts had taken on Ru, he surely would have at least been mildly perplexed by the wholly silence that blanketed the corridor he walked down. Particularly the lack thereof coming from his own dorm room. Then again it was vastly late, and maybe an influx of alcohol in Floki’s system was enough to silence him in his slumber - if only for a few hours. Having slipped inside though, harboring the exhaustion of an individual returning from a devastatingly long journey, what remained of Ru’s collective conscience directed him to his bed after having shut the door behind him.

“I was willing to bet you weren’t returning tonight.” Floki’s voice lifted with a chirp, Ru’s gaze only briefly finding itself moving to his roommate’s direction as he sat on his bed to lazily kick his shoes off. His brows furrowed in both confusion and a lack of understanding at the sight of the male though - Ru wasn’t crazy. Floki was half-heartedly plucking the strings of some kind of instrument, yet no sound resonated from the act. Or maybe Floki’s angle was toying a bit with Ru in this position. Making him think he’s so out of it he can’t hear it, or something equally mischievous. How did he still have the energy to be awake? Ruairi was too tired to contemplate the matter, only finding himself laying back and sinking into the embrace of his bed. For all he knew Floki was fully capable of muting sound at will, Ru hadn't exactly bothered to pick his roommate’s brain to gauge how far along he was with his own focus in magic.

“Did she throw you out?” Floki pushed, faux care seeping into his tone, outshining his attempt to pull any entertaining information from his roommate.

“No.” Ru grumbled -in a manner bordering offense-, half-asleep already as he curled up onto his side. It was a position to provide him some kind of self-soothing measures as the lull of sleep hit him like a freight train. Maybe he was hoping to ward off being haunted by the night's events in the realm of sleep - a dreamless sleep if he found himself to be lucky enough.

Freyja | Water | M: Arah, Henriik, Heris, Ru

“Thanks again for that. If you find anything out, I’m convinced you won’t let me know, but I will drag it out of you at one point or another.”

“Or you could simply ask me nicely to share whatever information I may, or may not, acquire.”

If she hadn’t been so out of her mind with every emotion she’d never felt, she might have believed her eyes when they saw him wink at her. He was such a dick. It wasn’t like asking him would do anything other than feed his fragile little ego enough to get him through another day at this godforsaken academy. Yet, the thought had never once occurred to her regarding what life would be like without him here. She took his annoying antics and perturbances for granted every time they occurred.

“I could also get down on my knees and beg you. Or I could cut out the middle man, you, and go straight for seducing one of our professors.” She crossed her arms, revealing a smirk that almost exactly matched the one he was wearing. “That doesn’t mean it would do anything.” When his expression faltered for a split-second, she wondered which image had been the one to do him in. He was always like this when he was tired, and seeing him tired was a novelty for her. Normally he was very alive and annoyingly hard to crack. Yet, for as long as she could remember, sleepy Ru could not lie, he did not like to argue, and he could not keep his face from saying what he thought. She couldn’t decide if that made him more or less fun to toy with.

As the rest of their exchange occurred, she could have sworn she saw a side of him she’d never expected to see. Hours prior, he was wiping his mouth in disgust after barely kissing her. Now, he was allowing his eyes to study every inch of her figure in a way that was oddly respectful, and did not speak to their status as lifelong enemies. When his eyes came back up to meet hers, it was hesitant, almost as if he was asking for permission to look more deeply into her thoughts. She couldn’t decide quickly enough whether or not “no” was the answer she wanted to give, so she got stuck in the limbo of his bright blue eyes for longer than she would have liked. When he left, he hesitated, and when he said goodnight, he used her name. Every guy she knew only used a woman’s first name when there were feelings involved. Having known him for as long as she had, of course there were feelings, but not that kind.

“What a weird night,” she muttered, forcing herself to enter back into her room before she did anything humiliating that could be witnessed by anyone other than Arah. Immediately after shutting and locking their door, she continued to watch him leave through the peephole, only stopping when he glanced back at their room as if he could see her.

“What was that?” Arah studied Freyja’s odd behavior with the slightest smile of amusement on her face. She was the only other person who was frequently involved in this drama from both sides, if only because they both continued to drag her through it. Something was off between them, and it didn’t take an expert like her to notice.

“We kissed.” The red-haired girl avoided Arah’s expression for fear of her reaction. She pretended to fix the sheets before avoiding them entirely, sitting up cross-legged on the bed with her back against the wall. She had far too much energy to go to sleep immediately.

“You what?!”

“Yeah,” she mumbled sheepishly, a reddish hue coming to take the place of the pale skin on her cheeks. It wasn’t as much a result of the kiss, but of the attention she was getting from the only person she truly trusted. “Well, listen. Not for real, obviously-”

“What do you mean, obviously? This is unexpected, even for you two, who are legitimately the strangest pair I have ever met. Tell me everything, sparing no details.”

“Are you sure? You still seem-”

“Yes, I’m sure. I’m fine! I was drunk. Now I’m not.”

“That’s not how that works.”

“Proceeding.”

“Well, there was this stupid game of Edward’s, and he told us to kiss, and I may or may not have started it by seducing him and then burning him. Which, like, I understand was not ideal, but at the same time, he came back and kissed me for real. But, like, not really. He crossed a line, didn’t he? Can’t he respect that I have a boyfriend?”

Choosing to ignore the obvious and often utilized arguments in Ru’s defense, Arah merely asked questions she knew Freyja wanted to answer, realizing that pushback at this point was futile. “Well, was it good?”

“What? The kiss? No! Which, like, not for nothing, but everyone is always like ‘oh my god, he’s such a good kisser’ and ‘i’m so jealous of his current girl of the milisecond,’ but it was the. worst. The worst, Arah! Like, if it was going to happen, it might as well have been good, right? You’ll never believe what he did after. He wiped his mouth. Can you believe that? Like he hated it?”

“Doesn’t he hate you?”

“Yes, but, like, no. But, yeah. But it’s fake, you know? It’s our thing. Oh my god, I’m gonna kill him tomorrow. Tomorrow is going to be the day. I’m sorry I’m killing your only other friend.”

“I have other friends, Freyja,” Arah chuckled softly, “I know that might be hard to believe, but it’s not as hard as you think to actually get along with people. You should try it sometime.”

“You should try getting drunk sometime so you can do a better job of lying about it.”

…

The next morning, the school was buzzing with rumors about Henriik, Freyja, and Ru as it usually did after any sort of event occurred that was more outrageous than normal for them. This was only elevated by someone saying she had seen Ru leaving Freyja’s dorm in the middle of the night, which Freyja neither confirmed nor denied. She wasn’t entirely sure if Ru had started or somehow fueled the rumor, mainly because he hadn’t bothered to show up to the only class he was obviously besting Freyja in. She hadn’t even bothered to try to submit the extra credit math that he’d seemingly done with ease, so much so that he had decided he simply wasn’t going to show up. She was almost concerned about him until she reached her next class, in which she had to give a presentation while trying not to notice that he had seemingly purposefully slipped in with a girl she didn’t recognize. The girl was tall and pretty, though she appeared nearly the exact polar opposite of Freyja in every way other than their lithe frames. Where Freyja was pale with hair the color of flame, this young woman had deeply tanned skin and dark hair. Still, she had bright blue eyes like his which were in contrast to her darker appearance.

Though she seemed pretty normal, the strange thing was that they entered holding hands. Another of his infuriating ploys, Freyja was convinced, considering that he seemed to despise physical touch when it came to most women. She hadn’t missed the way he’d dragged the annoyingly friendly blonde onto his lap, then immediately threw her back off when he was done with her the day prior. Clearly, he was sending a message, but she didn’t want to consider any of the answers as to why. In fact, she barely held it together during the presentation, and had half a mind to burn Henriik alive when he told her to smile and shake it off during her presentation. Yet, taking her rage out on him was entirely unsatisfactory when she could bring it right back to the cause.

After an annoyingly peaceful lunch without Arah, who had gone off to who knows where as she sometimes did during their breaks, Freyja met back up with the young woman who tagged along beside the fire and air elements as they made their way outdoors to the auditorium for their ethics class. This particular professor was known for being rather irresponsible with his teaching which made it all the more ironic that they were allowing him to teach ethics. So far, he’d maintained his ability to teach it solely by providing examples of what not to do.

“It’s just insane, isn’t it?” Freyja turned to Arah, looking through Henriik who was quietly listening. “He always does stuff like this, I’m seriously going to kill him. Like, why? For what reason?”

“Did you ever stop to consider that it might not have anything to do with you, and he might have genuinely found someone he’s interested in?”

“Hell no,” she replied emphatically, “have you met him? God, I can’t even imagine him in a relationship. Can you? Gross, I’m feeling nauseated at the thought of it.”

“There’s someone out there for him, we all have someone we have the capability to be paired with.”

Freyja had half a mind to mock her friend, but decided against it because she was already out of breath from ranting so much. “That’s definitely a myth, but even if it’s not, his is definitely, one hundred percent dead. They just tell us stories about the pairing ceremony to scare us into committed relationships.”

Henriik cleared his throat, smiling down at Freyja in a humorously false way.

“Not you, just… people.”

Before he had a chance to respond, their professor began to speak about the importance of conducting spells ethically, especially those that require multiple individuals to perform. “Be careful who you choose to ask to sit in on a spell with you, things can get very dangerous very quickly if passion is involved. And, by passion, I don’t always mean the romantic kind. To demonstrate this, I’m going to have two students who I hope will be good–but also bad–sports about this. Freyja and Ru?”

Typically she would have rejected his request, but given the way that she wanted to destroy him and everything he cared about, as well as any traces of life that showed he had ever existed, Freyja conceded. “Only if I get to burn him alive today.”

“If my memory serves, you already took your shot at that a few years back and you blew it, huh? Moving on, I’d like the two of you to work on this basic steam spell. Let’s see you work together on this.”

As he turned his back, Freyja was certain the professor had made some sort of comical expression regarding the idea of the pair of them working together. She was only partially focused on that, given that the blond was standing in front of her with full permission to use his powers, and she was one Freyja-sized puddle away from a very miserable death. Yet, there was something about the lingering threat that made him appeasing, mainly because he demanded her respect. No one else here did other than the Administration, and that wasn’t so different in terms of basic fear-mongering.

Studying his unreadable expression for signs of any sort of emotion that would give him away, Freyja swallowed her pride and spoke first. “New side piece? Should I be hurt she looks nothing like me?”

Smiling devilishly, Freyja crossed her arms before uncrossing them, gesturing for him to begin the spell. “Losers first, as always.”

Ruairi | Water | Arah, Floki, Freyja, Henriik, Heris

“What are you doing?” Ru’s voice was layered with inquisition, his brow raising to communicate his curiosity.

“I could ask you the same.” Floki replied, something equally curious yet devastatingly malicious sheathed under the veil of the friendlier tone he spoke in. The darker haired male’s gaze visibly worked to unravel everything about the man before him - how difficult Ruairi was to unwind and break down when his head was clearer, and his eyes were impassable seas of arrogance and mysterious thoughts. What, the musician wondered feverishly, are you working at? Ruairi’s ocean orbs provided no satisfactory answer.

“You could,” Ruairi replied with a tame entertainment, “but you won’t, because you won’t get the answers you’re clearly looking for.” The water element’s eyes had shifted to the distant sight of the female he decided would be suitable enough for him to make his girlfriend. She was a gorgeous figure with an alluring appeal - to most men, Ru presumed. Yet she was merely an object he settled for in a game he wasn’t even sure Freyja cared to play. “You couldn’t keep a woman for more than one night if your life depended on it. A word to the wise: find some new content or quit trying to best me, love.” The fire element’s words gripped the mind of sobriety that Ru woke with. It bothered him. More than it should have. It was perhaps the one thing Ruairi had never been able to prove - a mutual romantic steadiness with another living being. Until now.

It was only lunchtime though and already he felt as if he needed a brief interlude of the time he had already spent with the girl -Heris, if he remembered her name correctly- he had vowed to make his out of a burning spite.

“You’re too prideful to be so stoic, you know. But you’re not stoic - I can tell. You’re a complicated and contradictory critter, but I think you-”

“I think that silly little head of yours is too obsessed with trying to understand me. I’m flattered, really, my friend. But I have a girlfriend now to obsess and fawn over me, and I chose her because I hope her personality is as beautiful and tolerable as her face - it is that simple. If you need any more closure than that to settle your thoughts I’m afraid you’ll find nothing but sore disappointment.” Ruairi replied coolly, yet was discerned to see the wicked grin blossoming upon Floki’s features in response.

“If it was so simple, as you declare so surely, you wouldn’t be so defensive.” The green-eyed boy replied as he rose confidently from his seated position. To his dismay, however, rather than bear witness to a crack in Ruairi’s facade - the blond’s lips curved into a knowing smirk. It made so much sense to Floki in that second why someone like Freyja hated those smirks; there was so much they were communicating, and yet it was in a language no one but Ru himself could fluently understand. “We’ll carry on with our platonic banter later, yes? Lovely, see you soon Ru.” The music man excused himself following the one-sided conversation of departure.

Ruairi said nothing, only offering a half-hearted wave in response to Floki. Their conversations were certainly entertaining to Ru - two less than friends carefully trying to extract the other's motive from the words and expressions each other gave away. It was fun. Yet not as fun as seeing Freyja amid her presentation earlier in the day with Heris’ hand in his when he made his entrance.

It humored Ru that the least ethical class he believed to be offered by the academy was the ethics class. Perhaps that’s why his attendance for this one in particular was so frequent. Of course, he had to fetch his new female accessory to accompany him to the class - if only to solidify the image of a budding relationship. The blond had stayed more or less attentive until the professor volunteered both him and Freyja to partake in a demonstration, and with his own refusal rising to the back of his throat, it was Freyja’s response that dictated Ru’s participation. As Ruairi silently made his way to the front though, he did not refrain from the snicker he made at Freyja’s expense - he would love to see her attempt to crisp him during their spell.

Etched into his features was pure hubris as his sight settled solely on Freyja as she approached. His hand casually combed through his curlier tufts before it fell to his side, just before Ru’s eyes turned into rivers of sheer delight being flooded with waves of amusement as Freyja’s lips moved.

“New side piece? Should I be hurt she looks nothing like me?”

“You should be flattered,” Ru countered, “I couldn’t find anyone else as appalling as you, it’s quite the accomplishment on your part.” It was intended to be taken as degrading, and yet Ru’s tone paired with that haughty smile of his communicated it as if it were truly a compliment. His posture remained lax, his weight shifting primarily onto one leg as his hand drew to rest on his hip as he observed Freyja cross her arms with her own devilish smirk.

“Losers first, as always.”

Ruairi smiled. One that vibrated with a dangerous amount of smugness. “Following my lead then, as always.” His eyes insinuated he believed her to be too cowardice to take charge in a spell he could so easily use against her. Whatever fear or hesitance that gripped his being just the night before of what she was capable of doing to him dissipated. Ruairi opened his palm as casual as ever, reaching out with an unseen force of magic to collectively gather every drop of moisture in the air that was being expelled through their own very breaths - every exhale fueled the water that began to collect in a hover just above his hand. “It won’t be passion that corrupts the spell, it’ll be your incompetence - I’ve done this spell successfully a thousand times without you, so the only thing I’m passionate about is that you’ll fuck it up somehow.” It was almost insulting how calm, and how poised he spoke to Freyja as he gathered enough moisture for her to begin to work with.

“Before you come crying I should apologize ahead of time,” he uttered through a smile, albeit his evident concentration. “I’m afraid I’ve found someone else worthy of devoting my time and attention to - no, she’s nothing like you… precisely why she’ll be my sole fixation. But with my inattention to you, and our outdated feud, think of all the time you’ll finally have to do whatever it is you and Henriik do for fun with one another.” He wasn’t sure which words of his exactly would begin to poke at her, but he was looking for an explosive result between them. And not particularly for the spell, but Ru wanted to shove his own content and mirage of a fulfilling relationship in her face the same way he’s had her own relationship rubbed into his face for years.

Ruairi would not acknowledge or dwell on anything that happened the night before though - he simply wasn’t his usual self. That was all. Any emotions amid his moments of weakness, any actions he took… well, he was drunk. Arah? Ru still wasn’t convinced she had been. It didn't stop Freyja’s words from still circulating in the water element’s head though - thus why he had Heris now. She was an impulsive pick, but she would do. Maybe Ru just ultimately wanted to inflict words that would circulate in Freyja’s head the same way hers had nestled into his own. Ruairi was prone to settling scores, this surely was no different.

freyja <3 | fire | basically the whole gang

“Damn, you know just what to say to make a woman feel special,” Freyja replied, her eyes bright with mischief and her expression matching his perfectly. As she glanced over his shoulder, she swore she could see Arah having a nervous breakdown internally. She always seemed calm and at peace on the outside, but Freyja had been roommates with her since they were children, and she could tell when the earth element was breaking down. Briefly, the competitive side of her questioned whether or not Ru could tell also, but she disregarded this concept at his next string of musings.

“Following my lead then, as always.”

“Please,” she scoffed, “you’re not a leader, you’re a cautionary tale.”

Smiling in a falsely sweet manner, she batted her eyes at him and gestured for him to begin the spell. “Shall we?”

“It won’t be passion that corrupts the spell, it’ll be your incompetence - I’ve done this spell successfully a thousand times without you, so the only thing I’m passionate about is that you’ll fuck it up somehow.”

Though his demeanor was annoyingly calm, she was well aware of the fact that she was standing behind him the way she had the evening prior. Though his words were calm and measured, they seemed purposefully placed to replace any type of awkward silence or musings that might have existed between them. As long as he talked, he seemed to find safety in his ability. The second he had gone quiet the night prior, he bombed the water spell.

Despite this, she was relentless with her comebacks. It wasn’t like she had anything better to do with her time while she waited for him to create enough water for the spell.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you had done this spell a thousand times considering how little else you have going for you, but the only thing you’ve proven a thousand times is your ability to disappoint.”

She looked up at him, arms crossed. He was so hard to read sometimes, even for her. His concentration had created a steady barrier of ice behind his bright irises, but there was something more to his expression that she couldn’t place. Though she wanted to study it further to create some kind of deeper meaning for her own amusement, she quickly realized it was her turn to manipulate the matter he had accumulated. As she began to concentrate–which she did better by not concentrating intentionally at all–he seemed to take his own focus off the spell and continued to provoke her.

“Before you come crying I should apologize ahead of time, I’m afraid I’ve found someone else worthy of devoting my time and attention to - no, she’s nothing like you… precisely why she’ll be my sole fixation. But with my inattention to you, and our outdated feud, think of all the time you’ll finally have to do whatever it is you and Henriik do for fun with one another.”

“How cute, I didn’t realize you needed my permission to disappoint yet another woman with your self-centeredness and lack of personality. When she inevitably leaves you for someone else, maybe we can start a new feud where I win… again.”

Though she smirked, it faltered. The idea of him truly being in love made her stomach burn. She was sure her skin was slightly paler than it had been a moment ago, and if anyone asked about it, she would surely blame it on the spell.

“Maybe if you put as much effort into your relationships as you did into our feud, you wouldn't be single. Do you even know anything about her other than maybe her name?”

Now they were both sweating, and Freyja could feel the effects of the moisture on her skin. Arah’s potion was wearing off much earlier than usual, a sign that she was much weaker today than she was every other day. This certainly caused her some concern, but not as much as the idea that she was an indefinite period of time away from killing herself as a result of her stubbornness. Yet, they still needed more time to get this spell right, especially with how slowly Ru’s magic worked. She had always found it ironic, especially considering the fact that water was associated with things like thunderstorms and waterfalls–things that were very fluid and not slow in the slightest. She wasn’t sure how it was going to end, other than the fact that it would probably end in some type of failure.

In some miraculous turn of events, one of the members of the administration who seemed to lack both name and purpose approached the outdoor classroom in the middle of their feud. He said something in an inaudible tone to the professor, who spoke loudly and without any sort of coherence in his response. When he had concluded his half of the conversation and the man had walked away, he spoke again.

“Well, as much as I would like to see these two continue this saga, I’ve been told that I’ve already used up all my warnings from the administration and I’m obligated to use this class for things other than allowing my students to publicly watch their peers argue. I’m sure this was just a preview of what we’ll be able to see, publicly and not on class time, during the opening ceremony of the festival this week. Let me just say, I’m so looking forward to your speech.”

“Speech?” Freyja’s fiery gaze shot upward, only to find that Ru was looking back down at her. “We’re giving the speech? Together?!”

“You didn’t know? I wasn’t really paying attention during the meeting-”

“If I heard correctly,” Henriik started in a neutral tone from his front row seat beside Arah, “the administration didn’t want them to argue, so they were supposed to find out the day of.”

This was certainly enough for the fire element to have her own meltdown, which seemed perfectly valid considering the fact that her boyfriend had withheld crucial information from her. So had she, in a sense, considering the fact that she hadn’t ever addressed the fact that she’d kissed someone other than him before it spread like wildfire around the school, but that was surely different. Before she knew it, the spell erupted in smoke, causing both of them to cough and wheeze, stepping out of the cloud they had created. Unsure of how to react without causing even more of a scene, Freyja stood frozen in her tracks, waiting for someone else to do something–anything–to address or remedy the crisis she hadn’t even been aware of minutes prior.

Ruairi | Water | Just About Everyone

“Damn, you know just what to say to make a woman feel special.”

“So I’ve been told.” Ru replied haughtily. It was just as flattering as it was mildly infuriating for the blond to be met with Freyja’s reciprocation of his own expressions. Whether that reflective imitation was an ode of mockery, or just to level the playing field of smugness - Ruairi had yet to discern. His eyes had moved to where Freyja had glanced, curious as to what was more worthy of her attention than he was at the moment, only to see a version of Arah he was far from accustomed to viewing. Plagued by anxiety, it was a mildly unsettling sight… but proving a point held a more dominant hold of his own attention.

“Please, you’re not a leader, you’re a cautionary tale.”

Ru’s brows creased in brief thought, his smirk deepening into one reflecting both arrogance and satisfaction. “I identify as both, actually - my kind of talent comes in a variety pack.” He retorted in a matter-of-fact kind of tone. A cautionary tale… was it his egoism finding that more complimentary coming from Freyja versus being insulted by such words? Perhaps.

Freyja’s sweetness was dripping in a lack of authenticity, though Ru took pleasure in returning a preppy grin and beginning the spell - not because she insisted he go first though, of course. Finding a balance amid his focus and concentration was a struggle with his magic that he has yet to fully conquer - it was the only thing, really, holding him back from advancing well beyond what he was capable of now. Even a steam spell, so surface-levelly simple, something he could do alone with less effort than he was exerting now, proved to be difficult. Ru was always more likely to allow his emotions to bleed into his concentration and stain his focus beyond repair - which always ended in the corruption of a spell. It was infuriating to bear let alone admit he struggled.

Freyja’s persistent quips following his own was a strain of motivation though, albeit Ru wasn’t entirely sure who he was trying to prove his capabilities to - the professor who believed passion would be the downfall of their spell, Freyja who would surely feast off of the glory of his failure, or himself. Or perhaps all three.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you had done this spell a thousand times considering how little else you have going for you, but the only thing you’ve proven a thousand times is your ability to disappoint.”

If Ruairi hadn’t already faintly clenched his jaw in combination with his grueling concentration, it would have certainly tightened at the statement. But the blond briefly shifted in order to tether his gaze to Freyja with a taut smirk. “I’d rather be a disappointment than the failure you are.” He had half a mind to wink, or stick his tongue out at her just to be childish, though he retained an essence of calm neutrality. Blue eyes fell away from the red-head, knowing full well that if he put effort into a stare of any kind it wouldn’t communicate any of the despise he held for her - his loathing was controllable though, it would not hinder the effectiveness of the effort he was putting into this spell. He was quite internally adamant about that.

“How cute, I didn’t realize you needed my permission to disappoint yet another woman with your self-centeredness and lack of personality. When she inevitably leaves you for someone else, maybe we can start a new feud where I win… again.”

Ruairi absolutely refused to let that get to him, and he denied himself the vantage of laying witness to whatever smug look Freyja surely had on her face. He chose to bite his tongue. Ru had not yet fully entertained the thought that it was even remotely possible for someone to leave him first - he had made many women his brief accessory and disposed of them just as quickly. That wouldn’t happen to him, though, he assured himself. It just meant he would actually have to work a little harder with Heris to keep her satisfied enough to stay with him, which shouldn’t be too difficult of a feat.

“Maybe if you put as much effort into your relationships as you did into our feud, you wouldn't be single. Do you even know anything about her other than maybe her name?”

“I was single,” he quipped with a chirp, “I know enough for me to be willing to commit to a relationship with Heris, it’s that simple.” He added, putting a purposeful amount of emphasis on the name. Ru is many things, but not a complete sleeze - he had to at least keep track of names and faces so he didn’t mistakenly dine on the same wine twice.

It was becoming painfully aware to Ru that he was taking a bit too long to manipulate his magic in combination with Freyja’s - and while rare for him to do, Ruairi does exert some caution every now and then. Especially with failure on the line. It just made the thought of his fuck up the night prior even more insulting, then again, he’ll blame the alcohol through and through. Sparing a glance in Freyja’s direction, she appeared mildly uncomfortable. He assumed it was because of the dew building up on her skin, though he was quite sure Arah’s potions would be strong enough to ward off Freyja feeling the negative effects from something like sweat.

Thoughts of Ru’s were interrupted as he began to pay mild attention to the conversation that was going underway between the professor and an individual belonging to the administration. It dismayed him to be unable to pick up on the exchange of words - in moments like this he was almost envious of what Floki was able to do with the amplification of sound, yet not enough to ever outwardly express that to the green-eyed gremlin. The last words spoken from the professor though were enough to completely break Ru’s mask of a coolly unbothered individual, his eyes snapping to Freyja with a tsunami of various emotions crashing into his blue hues. Above all though, disdain and bewilderment cemented into his features. “Fan-fucking-tastic.” Ru gritted in response to Freyja, though he was still more than hellbent on upkeeping the stability of the spell, and keeping his emotions behind his mental levee of control. While he was still listening to everything happening around him, Ruairi could feel Freyja’s magic slipping - and he couldn’t even take the spell completely over as a last ditch effort without potentially seriously injuring Freyja, or worse. Both of which were quite tempting alternatives though.

Ultimately, the spell went up in smoke. The only thing more suffocating than the smoke of what was left of their spell was the gaining of yet another defeat with his magic. Stepping out of the cloud and waving his hand in front of him in an attempt to fan some of the cloud away, Ru’s eyes swiveled in Freyja’s direction with a genuine anger. “I told you that you’d fuck it up.” He spit coldly at her with a mild shake of his head before he abruptly turned away to begin walking off. “And I’m the disappoint… how fucking rich.” He muttered as he stormed on, though he was fully aware most of his rage was a part of a strain he harbored more against himself than anyone. But it’s not like Freyja needed to know that.

</////>

“Such magnificent penmanship, such poorly crafted words.” Floki tsked from Ru’s side, the blond muttering a string of curses before crumpling yet another piece of innocent paper and tossing it aside.

“Don’t you have drinks to spike? Gossip to spread? Something?” Ruairi uttered with a lace of vexation to his tone, his figure leaning against a wall, beginning to once again scribble words down onto a piece of paper against said wall. Already he had maneuvered room through room, searching for the “perfect vibe” to write at least a decent portion of his speech in. Writing, though, has never exactly been his strong suit. Ruairi was more of a ‘fly by the seat of his pants’ kind of guy when it came to things like this, prepping so furiously would be the death of him. No - his piece of the speech looking inferior to Freyja’s would kill him, that was his motivation to persevere.

“I’ve already done both of those, and still have managed to squeeze in precious time to burden you. This is what friends are for - to let you know when your speech writing is total rubbish.” Floki replied, giving a friendly pat to the water element’s shoulder. The shorter male had to lean up onto his toes to gauge the written words of Ruairi, and truth be told, some of the things he had jotted down weren’t half bad for someone who had already downed a few drinks. But it wasn’t exactly entertaining to watch Ruairi’s successes.

In a fit of exasperation, Ru dropped everything in his hands and let them hang at his sides as he rested his head against the wall. And proceeded to lightly hit it against the wall once. Twice. Thrice! Much to Floki’s amusement.

“This is so hard.” Ru whined with a hint of a slur, extending his hand out to the side, as Floki obediently slid a cup into Ruairi’s grasp. Only to down another cup did Ru remove himself mostly from the wall, only to finish the cup contents off, drop it, and place his head back against the wall in a frustrated manner

“That’s what she said,” Floki quietly mumbled to humor himself. “Why don’t you bounce some ideas off of more than a wall? The only thing a wall can do is stare back silently - most people do more than that. Your new gal, maybe?” Floki’s gaze began to flick around wildly in the space that surrounded them, there were less people crowded in this space than there were in others. “People are going to think I’m subjecting you to time out or something, you know. Now pick up your things and stop being a little girl over this. Drink and be merry! It’s a party after all.” Floki tip-toed away from implying Ru was being a total buzzkill for him, a royal party-pooper at its finest in fact. Though it was best not to upset someone so stressed and teetering on the border of sobriety and drunkenness as well. The musician was quite a pot-stirrer, but he was intelligent enough to not actually place himself in sticky situations without a perfectly crafted out.

“I hate this. I hate her. So much. Like- what do you hate the most?” Ruairi asked, shifting to only be pressing his shoulder into the wall as he stared down at the smaller male who raised a quizzical brow.

“Stupid questions.” Floki grinned innocently, getting an eye roll from Ru in return.

“Well times that by a thousand and that’s how much I hate her, and this. But her more, obviously.” Ruairi paused, just to glance down at his feet. “And she totally fucked up that spell.” Ruairi mumbled.

“Here we go again.” Floki sighed dramatically, running a hand over his face, because this rant was getting old to him. And he had heard the first tangent a few hours ago. “Actually, I’m going to get us another round of drinks, yeah? Pout some more, write some more, be a little more interesting… anyway, I’ll come back around shortly.” It was all Floki needed to say to excuse himself abruptly just in time, though it’d be a lie to say he was just innocently weaseling his way through the scene of rambunctious party-goers for drinks. Surely there was something to stir up among his peers - whether his intervention was seen or not. That’s just how he operated.

And with Floki abandoning Ru, the blond decided to bend down to retrieve his things. He had already glimpsed Freyja more times than one, although even once was enough to irritate him to his core. It was more infuriating to contemplate that his attempts with this god awful speech would prove to be fruitless. It was just downright depressing that he was having such a miserable time in a setting he would usually find blissful content in. Was his spite worth the agony of not being able to properly enjoy himself though? The answer was obvious - yes. Yes it was.

Miss Freyja Eloquijm | Fire | Arah, Floki, Ru

In true Freyja fashion, the young woman arrived twice to the party. The first time, she’d gone down to the underground chamber to determine whether anyone or anything was occupying the space and to set up for the party. The hall, formally known as the Obsidian Sanctum, was a breeding ground for rumors. Unsurprisingly so, considering the fact that none of the members of the administration could stick to a story about what it was used for, and that the students discovered it on their own, seemingly against the wishes of the staff. Some of the most popular and perhaps believable rumors included the space being the laboratory of an ancient alchemist who disappeared from the grounds, a portal to the other realms, and the meeting place of a secret and malevolent society. Despite its eerie nature, Freyja also identified it as one of the better places to throw a rager, especially when so many staff members were monitoring the main buildings so closely for signs of rule violation because of the trials. Besides that, there always seemed to be potions and other forms of liquid spells stored in this area, mostly discarded by professors who were conducting research. Some of the braver students dared each other to try them from time to time, which hadn’t always but often led to catastrophic results.

The second time Freyja arrived to the party was after all of the others, mainly so she could make an appropriate entrance. She only had Arah by her side because Henriik had mysteriously vague tasks to attend to, but she didn’t mind as much as she really should have. He tended to be a buzzkill and his loyalty to Freyja depended on the weight of his responsibility to the administration, which wavered from day to day in accordance with his father’s volatile relationship with the young man. Because of Ascension Week, Freyja had already anticipated that she wouldn’t see much of him, and that was probably for the better. She wasn’t really in the mood to compete with Ru over who had the more stable relationship when she needed to compete with him more earnestly over who could write a better speech. “Together” was not a word that existed within the confines of their relationship, and she knew how poor his writing skills could be when it came to writing style rather than content. He always did really well in the left-brained subjects but relied on his charm in their more arts-focused classes. She was the opposite, always fighting against the word count in both types of classes, primarily utilizing her strong writing to make up for any inability to properly explain a spell or another type of procedure that she wasn’t fantastic at performing. That gave her the upper-hand in this particular scenario.

“I swear to god, if he isn’t here…” Freyja trailed off, bright green eyes flickering to a warmer shade for a brief moment as she scanned the crowd for the tall blond figure.

“He probably is, don’t you think he’ll be here with his new girlfriend?”

“With her? Not likely. Maybe if he sees me before I see him. He skipped every class after ethics that we had together today, I’m guessing he’s been trying to best me in this stupid speech.”

“Haven’t you been doing the same?”

“Well, yeah, but at least I had the self-respect to sit in my classes and ignore the professor instead of simply not attending.”

“I don’t know why you would, it was just introductions and basic stuff today considering that we’re not gonna have classes for the next week. The only class I went to was ethics with you guys, considering he’s the only professor who might have prepared us in any way for the trials.”

“What’d you do all day?”

“Spent time with my plants and cleaned up whatever the hell that mess you made on the wall was from.”

“That was Ru, actually. We got in a fight,” she lied.

“You two are insane.”

The young woman hardly had a comeback to this, seeing as she spotted Floki in the massive crowd around them. Abruptly excusing herself from her conversation with Arah, Freyja walked steadily towards Floki before she even had an opportunity to get whatever type of intoxication elixir the other students had made.

“Hey, where’s your roommate?” Her voice was direct and without fear of being questioned about her intentions. She felt fairly confident that the young man knew why she was asking, and, though she thought she’d seen glimpses of Ru prior, she had only chased her leads down to dead ends. Asking Floki seemed like the natural next step, considering the fact that, for once, she actually did need to conspire with him against the Administration, instead of the other way around. If they could get their act together and get a speech written before the celebration rehearsal that was early the next morning, they might have a shot at crashing the “practice feast” and having an opportunity to properly rehearse the speech instead of embarrassing themselves at the real thing.