Seraphina had been holding the cup long enough for the water to become warm.
She hadn't drunk it.
A student sat opposite her with two fingers resting on a folded towel. The swelling had gone down. He kept bending them to check whether it had gone down enough.
"Once more," he said. "It still pulls here."
She set the cup aside and looked at the joint.
"The injured tissue has been treated. It needs time without the grip."
"My instructor will think I'm avoiding practice."
"Take the restriction note."
"Would you write that I asked to continue?"
Seraphina reached for the record. She could understand the request. A poor mark might cost him the room he used, and he had spent most of the appointment trying to make the fingers look less painful than they were. She added that he had attended for treatment and received a temporary restriction. She didn't write permission he hadn't been given.
He read the note, looked at the hand, and finally stopped bending it.
