Pretending To Be Gilead's Prince and Master Wizard

Exam results were immediately posted on the board once Mr. Pumpkin was able to give us our test results. I peered through my own paper and was wary for a bit of what score I might see there.

It turns out, all the troubles that I have in the past were all for nothing when I had seen how high my scores were. I was a bit anxious about my written exams since I am really not that good with memorization and stuffs like that than actually executing a spell in front of the jury, but because of my determination to pass and my severe hard work these past few days, I made it possible to get at least a score that only has three mistakes on it.

I wish my mom was here to see it for herself. She would always scold me back then about how bad my test scores usually are. Smiling to myself, I folded my test results and tucked them inside my bag before I ran to my friends again who were also among the crowd who are now viewing the board as we did.

Two days to go before our holiday break officially begins. It was Maggie's idea this time that we should all celebrate this 'glorious victory'-- her words, not mine-- with a cup of hot freshly-brewed coffee and a plate of fresh-from-the-oven pastries at our favorite pastry shop at Central Town.

By the way, it was my hardest decision ever to leave the antique store for the sake of my quest yesterday afternoon after classes. Danny was casual about it since we really didn't get along after all those months that we have worked together at the store. Darn, with all those months I have spent at the store ever since I came here to Citadel, I was hoping that I will still be able to find another job after my quest is done and my mind has already been cleared up.

Once we arrive at the Central Town, tons of other people are also here in different colors of coats draped around their body, scarves spiraled around their necks, beanies on top of their head, and a pair of gloves on both of their hands. As for me, I am currently wearing that sky blue peacoat and the beanie that I have bought at the clothing shop paired with my black pair of gloves and a gray scarf that came straight from my closet. 

We were walking past a group of old women casually striding around the biggest shopping plaza in Citadel and the entire state of Gilead when a random thought suddenly popped into my head. 

"Guys, do you think it would snow today?" I suddenly asked my friends, which surprised them honestly. I could already see my breath frosting as I speak, an indication that winter season is already approaching.

Cailin, our science geek friend, thought about it for a while before answering, "I think so? Well, considering how the temperature dropped drastically according to the newest weather forecast, there might be a possibility that it would snow any day soon." 

Ariella eyes me warily before asking, "Why do you ask anyway?"

"Hmmm…" I hummed. Yeah, why did I ask anyway? As if I loved snow all my life. I used to complain about it back in our home village since it's almost every day is a winter season there considering that our village is placed high on the mountains.

In the end, I settled for a subtle answer. "No reason at all. I just sort of… felt like looking forward to it, that's all."

For me, every snowfall leaves me with a good memory. Since it snowed last October, I bet I had missed a good memory… something that I suddenly forgot on a whim. I just couldn't point my finger at what is this really important memory that I forgot, it's now starting to drive me crazy.

Suddenly, I felt like crying once again if it weren't for Cailin who grabbed my hand straight away and pulled me with her that got me wide-eyed and mouth to gape.

"Come on, you slowpoke. You are starting to be left behind, we might lose you!" Cailin says jokingly and I played along. I let her grab me as I tried my best to shrug these negative thoughts away out of my head.

Just what exactly did I forget? I wish I would know it sooner…

"Ta-da! There it is… our favorite pastry shop!" Ariella says in delight as she finally spots the store that we have been looking for. It had now been impossible to track it down right away because of these huge volumes of people that had suddenly emerged to shop here.

The smell of their freshly-brewed coffee was the first thing that filled my nostrils the moment we entered inside. The store was now packed with customers compared to those days that we first went here, at least that is expected already since holidays are just around the corner, but we still managed to have our own table since Ariella said she was able to send one of her people to reserve a spot for us here earlier before classes for today ended. A quite impressive move, I must say.

A young and good-looking waiter in his slick blonde hair, baby blue almond-shaped eyes, thin, luscious red lips, and has that sexy chiseled jawline that is very hard not to notice immediately approached our table in haste, holds his notepad and pen up as he hands us their menus.

"Well hello there, young ladies." The waiter smiles a toothy grin to us that immediately caught Cailin's interest. I don't know, I just saw it in her eyes that she was starting to be tangled up into his charms, or is it just my imagination.

"What could I get for you?"

Setting my thoughts aside, I immediately peeled my gaze away from this attractive guy for a while and concentrated on my menu. I pretended to check it out for a bit even though I already have an order in mind. 

"I will have one set of your oatmeal muffins and a cup of sweet barley tea, please." I was the first one to convey my order to the gorgeous waiter standing in front of us. My eyes have been oddly watching closely as he writes down what I just said a while ago.

After writing it all down, I immediately avoided meeting his gaze when he was about to look up once more and turned to face my friends. "And as for you, ladies?"

As my friends were already telling this waiter over here what they wanted to eat, I happened to look at my right where the sliding glass window was placed and something immediately caught my attention.

Even though the streets of Central Town have been fully packed with people, there… in the middle of the crowd… is the man that I keep on seeing in my dreams every night. The captain of the magic army is surprisingly tall and his presence can easily stand out in the midst of this crowd. What is a guy like him doing in a public place at times like this anyway?

Is this yet another sign that I should go and speak with him immediately? Well… only one way to find out!

Without having second thoughts, I hurriedly stood up from my seat which, of course, confused my friends. 

"I almost forgot that there is something that I must see. I'll be back soon, I promise!" Before my friends could even bombard me with their questions, I quickly dashed my way out of here and said my apologies for a thousandth time already after continuously bumping into someone's shoulder with all this crowd around us.

I craned my head so that I won't lose sight of him. But the captain might be so fast in walking that I easily lost him just like that. After searching for him in the midst of these people, I practically gave up and kicked some pebbles on my way back to the pastry shop. Why do I keep losing my chances to talk with him like this? It starts to annoy me already.

"Why are you following me?"

Huh?

I was standing in front of this certain liquor store now when I heard that familiar husky voice of that man I was searching for. Even his voice seems to be incorporated in my memories so that I do not have any difficulties recognizing it immediately… it's so weird.

Instinctively, I whipped my head around to know where he is. Once I did that, it's like time around me slowed down and the people passing to and fro between us were just a temporary blur, making it possible for me to focus my eyes on this man wearing a hooded robe with the symbol of a shield and a cross in the middle embroidered on his chest paired with his black boots to complete his knight look...

Captain Alex must have assumed that I had gone deaf and so he repeated his question earlier, only more sternly this time…

"Why are you following me?"