Stupid stupid stupid! That's all the girl thought as she rushed her way towards the library she spent the majority of her time every day. She had just embarrassed herself by crashing into some boy she'd never seen before, and instead of apologizing like a polite person would for not paying attention, she rolled her eyes at him? She could not have been so inconsiderate as to think that was okay, could she? Oh, the great Godking and the old gods must be so disappointed in how she acted earlier. What's worse is that she did it in front of one of her mother's golem knights. Her mother was going to tease him for what happened! She was sure he'd hate her for it. Oh, gosh, what if it was the Rocksalt boy?
She slammed her books onto her usual table and covered her face to scream into her hands, causing a poor butler to jump and run away from the scene. None of his business if the Akashia princess was going crazy! Nope, not one bit! The scream helped her calm herself a little. It didn't matter anymore. If it was the Rocksalt boy, he'd just ask for a different instructor, and after all the begging and promises she had made to her mother, if she just let her teach him?
It wasn't fair! She'd ruined her chances to meet the first boy to become a noble since her great ancestor and her chances to study what may be the largest fonts of magic power to ever exist. It also meant that she couldn't teach him what he could do with it if he learned to control it. He could cure more illnesses than most medicines, modern or future, she was sure. Perhaps even use his magic to neutralize poisons, or charge the light stones in such a way that they can never go out! Oh, it would have been amazing! They could accomplish so much together…
She releases a sigh as the thoughts left her mind. It mattered little now, she'd already made an ass of herself, now she'd have to live with it. Besides, it was highly unlikely that it was the Rocksalt boy, right? After all, why would such an esteemed guest just have been walking down a corridor, alone at that. No, it was probably just a new servant boy, maybe someone from down in the kitchens where she rarely ventured, or a waif from out in the streets seeking her mothers benevolence. And as for herself, maybe she'd go spend some nights with the stableman's donkeys. She acted like enough of an ass to be considered one after all. That would be quite the way to make up for it. Placing herself in with her own kind. No, now she was being unreasonable. The thoughts went through her head as her hand grasps the shelf she needed to climb.
She had a preference for climbing the shelves rather than attempting to search for one of the heavy ladders to lift over to them. It was also not in her to bug the staff working within the library if she could avoid it. Not one damn bit. She felt like it wasn't worth bothering them if she could do something herself. In fact, it was a pretty good workout! She was staying decently fit for someone who spent most of her time studying and sitting around all day. Right, right, the book! A journal about medicinal magics, on the top shelf. She was almost there. It would only take a few seconds, then she'd be right down.
"Look out!" A familiar voice yells as she feels herself begin tilting backwards, falling with the heavy shelf and a cascade of books following after her. Oh, gods, she was gonna feel this in the morning… If she survived, she guessed. Well, she knew better than to climb the shelves now at least.
Fwoosh, thud, crash, thwomp!
Her eyes were closed now. She was thinking about what they'd say about her. "Claudia Solborn Akashia, the twenty-third of her name, crushed to death by a bookshelf. Dying as she lived." Gods, she was morbid for a ten year old. She also expected being crushed to hurt more. Her head didn't hurt either, she could have sworn she was gonna hit it on the table on her way down. What was happening? Should she open her eyes? No, too scary, she wasn't ready to confirm if she was dead yet. Then again, the anticipation can't be good for her. Plus, she feels hands on the back of her head and her middle back. Is she being held by someone? Probably, her feet can feel the ground. Wait, did someone catch her? Oh, gods, did they get crushed by the shelf!? Her eyes snap open and meet the prettiest shade of green eyes she'd ever seen. Maybe she was dead and this was some sort of psychopomp come to take her to the afterlife? Wait, no, that was something that only the peasant folk get.
"Are you ok?!" The boy shouts at her, it was then she'd realize that it was the boy she'd crashed into earlier in the day. Oh, great, and he's holding up the bookshelf with his back while was just… bent over backwards… in a boy's arms… oh…
"I'm fine!" She yells with a flush to her face as the realization that a boy her age is holding her in a manner she'd only read about in fairy tales. Then the realization that he had a bookshelf fallen onto his back hit her. "Oh, gods!" Cain blinks for a moment before realizing what the problem was. Right, he still had the bookshelf on his back. He pulls the girl closer to him so that he may more easily hold her with one arm. Then, he places his other hand on the bookshelf, and pushes.
The shelf took a moment to cooperate with Cain's unnatural strength, but when it did, it moved with an ease that most wouldn't expect. Especially with the awkward position combined with the average strength of a recently aged eleven year old. Up, over, and back, the shelf was pushed back and crashes into another one. A much sturdier one that didn't fall over when hit. Cain gives off a small sigh as he lets go of the girl, who spends a second clinging to his chest.
Oh, gods, what do I do? Is all the genius could think at that moment. She never thought she of all people would ever meet a proverbial knight in shining armor. She hated that her dragon was a bookshelf though. Godking, what kind of princess gets saved from an evil piece of furniture. And where was his grand adventure! This wasn't at all like how it happened in the many tales and fables of old that she so loved to read. Wait, no, those stories were just that, stories. She couldn't actually want to be part of some heroic tale of dragonslaying, could she? If so, there's no way she'd want her role to be that of the princess… right? Oh, no, she's clinging for too long, what should she-
"Were you scared?" He asks her, not pushing her away, against his better judgement. He understood that if he were anyone else, he would have been hurt much worse than he currently was. He was lucky that his body was a bit sturdier than most people. Especially children his age. His father's hand slipped once while he was hammering away at a piece of metal. Cain's head moved a bit when the mallet smacked him in the skull, but other than that, and his fainting mother, he barely felt a thing. There wasn't even any bruising, if he were to be honest. "You're safe now." She clings to him for a bit longer before having a realization and pulling away.
"Your back!" she yells, "Are you ok!?" He attempted to reassure her that he barely felt it, but she refused and demanded to see his back until he relented and took off his shirt. Like he said, he was fine. Not a mark or bruise to be seen. And her eyes didn't see any indication that he used magic anytime around the moment of impact. She groans as she recognizes the face of the boy from earlier. Of course her supposed knight had to be the boy she was so rude to earlier. Ack! Stop thinking like that!
"See?" The boy says after a moment of being shirtless for the girl. Replacing the clothing soon after and turning to look at her. She looks up at him and nods a little. Quite shyly, still regaining her nerves after the ordeal. She'd never had an issue speaking with people before, and her thoughts keep running wild. Her heart was racing, her mind was all over the place. He'd done what anyone would have done, it was just because she was a noble woman. He wouldn't have helped her if he'd thought she wasn't right? Gods, her thoughts are spiraling in a different direction now. She was hopeless.
"You're Claudia right? I'm Cain. I was told that you were going to train me in magic?" the boy said, pulling her thoughts back to the present. The words echoed, taking a few moments to bounce around in her head before suddenly sinking in completely. Eventually, she stopped looking away from him.
"Wait, YOU'RE Cain Rocksalt?" She asked him, still processing the information. Her heart could have stopped at that moment and she wouldn't have noticed. Joy was filling her for the first time in… a long long while. The second part of his statement echoed in her mind as she remembered her previous worries. Did he really just say she was to be his teacher? "So you don't mind me being your tutor? I would have guessed that you wouldn't have wanted to after how I acted earlier."
"I mean, sure, but I just assumed it was my fault anyway." He says to her, Claudia was quite a bit different from the hyperactive Alyssa. He'd have a much easier time keeping up with her than the golden haired girl. Not that he'd miss her any less. No, this was for the best, if he can learn to control his magic, then he can go back and beg her to forgive him. Maybe. Probably not, but it was a nice thought.
"No, I was just being rude. I'm sorry." She reaches for his face and looks into his eyes. His face flushes for a moment and he attempts to look away. "No, look into my eyes. I'm trying to see how much magic you have inside you." He hesitates and looks back into her eyes. They stare for a moment. It feels like hours to Cain, primarily because of the awkwardness. It was really only a few seconds.
Claudia stares into his eyes, then past them, then through to his very spirit, then beyond that and into a well most people don't realize they had. She nearly gasped at what she saw. A sea of white that flowed in every direction. Flowing without obstruction, without any kind of dam to hold it back or rivers to guide it. As she gazed, the sea became an ocean, which became more, and more and more. An unfathomable expanse of magical energy that would have been maddening to her if it weren't for the purifying white that she was wrapped in. If she could describe it, she would describe it as a warm sensation that made her feel safe, somehow. Like if the world went to strike her down, she'd be protected from even the most vile horrors it could send against her. What a feeling she had inside her in that moment. She couldn't help but speak, something she'd never done while doing this before.
"Such beauty…"
Cain looked away, causing Claudia to yelp as she was pulled out of the experience abruptly. She stepped back and sighs softly before taking his hand. "Come on. We're going outside. It'll be safer to have you practice out there."
"What?" Cain says, allowing the girl to pull him outside without much fuss at all. He wasn't sure if he should pull away, but, he liked the feeling of the smaller, softer hand in his own. It was nice to be taken places by another's hand again. He thought he'd never experience this after he'd left Agria, but he was wrong it seemed, and what's more, Cain was happy to be so. The thoughts of the potential power he was using not even crossing his mind as they left the castle for his first magic lesson.