3.Dousing the Flames

3. Dousing the Flames

“Hey, there he is! Argyle, over here!”

When I spot my friends sitting around a table in the dark nightclub, they all wear big smiles on their faces. Liam lifts his wine glass in my direction, saluting me. His nephew Toby sports a festive party hat on his head.

"Happy branding day, Argyle!"

"Thanks, Toby." I slide into the seat they've saved for me, feeling undeserving about being the guest of honor tonight. “But it’s not a big deal.”

"Branding is a significant milestone for us wizards," Liam insists. "And you’re a wizard now.”

We’re just missing one person, and as we wait, Toby orders me a drink and Liam orders champagne for the table.

Liam and I have known each other for years. His nephew Toby has the same sandy blonde hair and blue eyes, and Toby and I have been getting to know each other since we’re both taking classes at the university. Oliver is Liam's boyfriend. They make a nice couple, and the ruggedly handsome professor has his arm around the dark-haired, pale skinned waif plastered against him.

"Congrats," Oliver mouths to me, lifting his glass as my friend whispers something in his ear. I fully approve of Liam's boyfriend, and he's perfectly lovely one-on-one, but he lets the rest of us louder, more sociable types dominate the conversations in group settings.

… 'dominate' is either a perfect or terrible way to phrase it, I'm not sure which one.

"Hey, is that the sexy guy from my fire mastery class?" Toby wonders.

How would we know? None of us are in that class with him. I'm the only one here right now who's also a student, but we all look anyway. And it turns out I might know the answer.

"If Samson is in your fire mastery class, then maybe. It looked like him."

"Samson, yeah, that's his name! And he’s a firebrand in training."

I scan the crowd, trying to get another glimpse of him. There are too many bodies between us to see the tell-tale tattoos on his arms, and it's hard to find him again.

The dimly lit club called Fusions has a lively energy. People are already gathering in front of a stage area for a performance.

Does Liam know Samson too? As a professor, Liam has insights we students aren’t privy to.

“Hey Liam. Do you know Samson's first name?"

"I know who you're talking about," he says.

"Great. That doesn't answer my question."

"I know." Liam arches an eyebrow as he sips his drink. "If I saw his full name listed somewhere through my position as a professor, what are the chances I tell you that information?"

"Um, good?" I try hopefully.

The professor smirks. "Guess again."

"Damn." It was worth a shot.

“There you guys are! I was gonna give it five more minutes and then adopt a new group of friends."

Oh, the final guest arrives.

Perry Edison was my first friend on land. He introduced me to the human world, and we’ve been best friends for 20 years.

"Sorry I’m late!" Perry throws his arms around me in a quick hug. He’s always been a whirlwind of energy and colorful scarves. Today it's a fuchsia scarf that clashes with the bouquet of celebratory balloons he brought me from the party supply store where he works part-time. "Come on, make room, I need to sit next to Argyle."

"Oh god, what did you do? You didn’t have to get me balloons."

“You’re right. I didn’t have to. I wanted to.” His smile envelops his whole face. “Good to see you.”

"We live together,” I remind him at the warm welcome. “You see me all the time."

"Not like this. This is the first time I’m meeting you, Argyle the wizard."

“Stop it.” I pull myself out of his grasp, self-conscious. "Look, about me becoming a wizard… I feel bad for how easy it came to me.”

When we met, he was trying to become a wizard.Twenty years later, he's still trying.

Perry watches me with a warm smile. "My time will come, but let’s enjoy yours while it's here. This might not feel like much, but a win is a win. Might as well enjoy it and let it give you the strength to conquer the next challenge. Plus, free champagne."

Here I am, studying to become a medical assistant, and there is so much I need to accomplish. What’s the harm in celebrating milestones, even the ones that come easily?

"You’re right," I tell my best friend.

He grins. "Always am."

Then the lights dim, the crowd hushes, and all eyes turn towards the stage.

A petite woman with an asymmetrical haircut emerges onstage. She magically creates a snowball in her palm and tosses it into the air. As the ball bursts, a light snowfall starts up on the stage.

A witch dressed in black takes the stage next, her long hair trailing behind her. She aims a jet of water towards the middle of the snowfall, and the snow seamlessly turns into rain from the middle of the stage down, like it's natural for snow to just become water halfway through its descent.

"Cool," Toby murmurs. "No pun intended."

The women calm the showers they created and meet in the middle of the stage. Cupped in the water witch's palms, a shimmering sphere of azure energy grows. Across from her, the icebrand conjures a pulsing white orb.

The music underscoring their performance swells. As they bring their elements together, I hold my breath. Will the magics meld or repel each other?

The orbs meet, energies vibrating, threatening to repel each other like opposing poles of a magnet. But then they merge, neon white and blue energy coil around one another, part of one whole while each still keeps its distinctive color. The audience erupts in applause.

"Did I just see what I think I saw?" I wonder.

"If you think you just saw two witches fuse their magical energy together, then yes," Toby says.

"Look who's been paying attention in school," Professor Liam notes with amusement.

"We just studied this. It takes trust and connection, not just skill. The goal is to combine the two elements in a balance that connects them without losing or changing each other."

The two unique energies look beautiful when coming together in harmony. And it feels fitting, like the right entertainment to welcome me into my new life as a nymph and a wizard.

The champagne arrives, and Liam pours us all a glass. He raises his own in a toast, smiling at me. "To Argyle."

Toby hoists his glass towards me. "To Argyle and the fastest branding in history."

Perry joins in. "May his luck rub off on the rest of us."

Everybody clinks their glasses together. The bubbles fizz in my mouth when I take a sip, making me smile. This feels good. Strange to think that a formality would make me so happy.

Today was a great day, and it could get even better.

It seems like a sign when I spot Samson again in the crowd. This could be my chance. If I were just a bit braver, I could find out whether there's something between us.

At the moment, I'm feeling pretty brave.

~

Winding my way through the crowd, it takes longer than I expect to track Samson down. I think another performance is about to begin. Just when I think I’m not going to be able to find him before the next show, a group of people mingling heads towards the bar and I see Samson heading towards the exit.

"Hey, thought I saw you here."

Samson freezes, then turns partway to look at me for a second. "Oh, hey. Nice to see you."

Like that’s all there is to say, he turns to leave again.

"Wait!"

His demeanor is uncharacteristically tight and closed off, nothing like usual. "I have to go."

This isn’t the reaction I expected. I keep talking, trying to keep the conversation going. "Oh, too bad. I was hoping we could grab a drink."

"Not interested."

The rejection stings. Why has his behavior changed so dramatically in such a short time? "Is everything okay? I was actually thinking about asking you out tonight."

Now he looks pained. "It's not a good time.”

"Did I do something wrong? Did I read things wrong?”

"No, nothing like that." For a second, he almost looks normal, and I swear his hard expression softens, but then he shakes his head and the moment passes. "It's just not a good idea."

Before I can say anything else, Samson bolts towards the exit. My feet scramble to catch up with him before he disappears out of sight.

"Samson, wait."

"Stay away from me!" he yells.

I let him go. What the hell just happened?

Who knows? The man with the answers just ran away like his ass was on fire. And even that wouldn't be enough to make him run away, since fire casters can safely handle flames without being burned.

All I know is that Samson rejected me. Was he not into me after all? Why not just say so instead of lashing out?

Just when things were heating up between us, Samson doused our growing attraction with cold water. Since when does he put out fires instead of starting them?