(T/W (trigger warning) for some gore and blood but not too much)

POV: Xelqua

Location: Watcher Academy

The new nurse frowned as she fixed my fresh wounds. I had managed to get badly injured during a training session. Verix wasn't in my class this year so he was in his own class, unaware that I had gotten hurt.

I grimaced in pain as she wrapped a bandage around a bleeding cut on my left shoulder.

Nurse Leriella had left after 4th year to go to a server that needed a new Watcher. This new nurse had taken her place. I didn't know her name but she didn't seem friendly enough for me to want to ask for it.

She finished fixing up the rest of my wounds and allowed me to return to class.

I got up and put my Initiate cloak back on before heading for the door, pulling up my hood as I had been doing for a while now. I didn't glance back as I returned to class.

I sighed as I thought of my 5th year so far. It was about halfway through the entire year and I had already gone to the infirmary 7 times.

I quietly entered my classroom and sat down. I realized I was a bit late but the Instructor knew why so I didn't get a punishment.

I did the work required for class silently. Everyone knew who I was thanks to the golden magic incident during 3rd year but that didn't mean I was popular.

I felt gazes settle on me every so often but I didn't allow them to know that I noticed it.

I made it through the class and headed to my next one, which was the last one of the day.

I passed Verix in the halls and greeted him with a small smile. He waved back, a small smile forming on his face as he saw me. He headed to his own class while I went to mine.

I sat down inside the classroom and waited for class to start.

The Instructor came in and began. Today's class involved a lot of experimenting with magic and potions. Sometimes, I suspected we were the test subjects for the Watchers' experiments. However, I never mentioned my suspicions to anyone.

I winced as my potion erupted slightly and a small blob of purple goo landed on my hand, leaving a small burn mark.

I sighed and raised my other hand, swirling my fingers a bit as I moved the blob back into its flask and healing my hand.

The burn mark remained a bit but it didn't hurt anymore as I continued with the experiment.

A yell sounded across the room as someone's flask exploded, releasing purple smoke into the room.

I coughed and stood, waving some of the smoke away with my hand.

I heard a small voom and watched in horror as a purple fire sparked up within the smoke.

The Instructor yelled for the students to get out of the classroom and ran forward, hands glowing purple as he tried to put out the fire.

The other students ran out of the classroom, eyes wide in terror.

I counted the students as they left, realizing in horror that someone was missing.

I turned back to the fire and raised my hands with the palms facing it, my eyebrows furrowing in concentration.

The Instructor's magic wasn't enough and we both knew it.

My hands glowed gold and a thin line of gold magic streamed from the outer corners of my eyes as I forced the fire to calm down.

The smoke began to clear and the fire was tamed. I held it in its place long enough for the Instructor to run forward and grab the student whose flask had exploded.

I already knew nurses would be arriving but I felt as if they would not be able to put out the fire.

I took a few steps forward, forcing the fire to reduce in size while the Instructor ran out of the classroom with the unconscious student.

I took a shaky breath and as I exhaled, the fire slowly calmed.

The purple color of the fire was replaced with a golden color and it stopped burning the room.

I lowered my hands and all of the gold energy in the room vanished, including the fire.

A male nurse rushed inside to see my shoulders slump a little bit in exhaustion. However, I did not pass out.

My gaze ran over the slightly ruined classroom. Black burn marks covered the surfaces where the fire had touched it and there was even some purple mixed in with the black to show that it was a magical fire.

Purple goo covered a few surfaces but most of it was destroyed by the fire.

I turned to look at the nurse, unaware of the gold magic streaming from my eyes.

"Xelqua, are you alright?" he asked, coming forward cautiously.

I nodded, the remaining magic dissipating.

He seemed to be a little less wary as he led me out of the room.

I was a bit surprised that my hood was still on after all of that but didn't question it.

"Well done, Xelqua," the Instructor said from where he stood by the unconscious student. "Had you not acted so quickly, the entire school might've gone up in flames." Pride shone in his eyes, an emotion I hadn't seen from an Instructor in a while.

"I'm sure anyone else would've done the same, had they been able to," I replied modestly.

The Instructor didn't reply and looked back at the student while the nurses carried him away.

The nurse that had brought me out of the room remained and glanced at me.

"Xelqua, once classes are completely over, I suggest you get a lot of rest," he suggested, his emotions hidden behind his mask. However, I could hear the concern for me in his voice rather than seeing it in his gaze.

I looked at him and nodded. "I will," I replied before looking back at the Instructor.

"Back inside the classroom," he commanded, looking at the shaken students surrounding us. "Get your stuff. I just have a few things to explain before letting you return to your dorms."

He led the students back into the classroom, myself being one of the last ones to enter. The nurse left to go to the infirmary as he was no longer needed.

The Instructor stood at the front of the classroom where the fire hadn't quite reached totally.

I noticed a bit of purple smoke still in the room but knew it wouldn't bother us.

"That is what happens when one mixes the wrong ingredient into the potion. A magic fire can occur and create massive destruction," he explained with his hands behind his back. His tone quieted down as he continued, "As you can see, only those with powers greater than the power of the fire can put out the fire. Without Xelqua, we may all be dead right now." I felt his praising gaze on me as well as the gazes of everyone else in the room.

I lowered my head, my hood still up as I tried to show I didn't want the attention.

"Never put Dragon's Breath in a potion of Teleportation. It causes an explosion that can burn a structure down within an hour depending on how big it is. As you know, Dragon's Breath is used to make lingering potions. Potions of Teleportation cannot be turned into lingering potions because if they were able to, you would theoretically be able to teleport someone to the same place until the lingering effect faded, thus making them stuck in the same place for a while. However, it would also cause magical damage to the person trapped in the magic." He paused for a moment to sweep his gaze over the classroom. "That is why you must never mix Dragon's Breath into a potion of Teleportation. That is all for now. You're allowed to leave early because of the incident. Remember this," he said before stepping back.

I grabbed my stuff and headed for the door once most of the other students had already left.

"Well done, Xelqua," I heard the Instructor praise.

I glanced back at him to see a small smile on his face. I smiled slightly back and left.

I made it back to the dorm before Verix got out of class and waited until he got there.

"Hey man," I greeted as he entered.

He grunted in reply and headed over to his bed before noticing the burn mark on my hand.

"What happened?" he asked, walking over to look at my hand.

I pulled my hand away and sat up fully.

"Someone put Dragon's Breath in a potion of Teleportation and it exploded. I got this a bit before when my own potion exploded a little bit," I explained.

"Was anyone hurt?" Verix asked, looking bored but intrigued

"Only the student that made the mistake. I managed to contain the fire and put it out once everyone was out of the classroom," I said, looking away.

Verix nodded. "Well done," he praised.

"Thanks," I mumbled, feeling self-conscious.

He said down beside me and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Get some rest, you look like you're about to fall over," he said, a look of concern emerging on his face.

I glanced at him and nodded.

"Don't let me sleep all night. I have schoolwork to do," I told him as he headed to his bed.

He chuckled and looked at me as I laid down. "Sleep well," was all he said before tending to his own business.

I thought I wouldn't be able to sleep but I soon drifted off to sleep.

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I woke up during the night, my eyes already adjusted to the darkness. The lanterns in the room were not lit, the room cast in a dark shadow. The only light came from dim purple torches in the hallway outside.

I sat up and looked around, feeling as if I wouldn't be able to fall back to sleep.

I glanced over at Verix, who seemed to be fast asleep. At least he's sleeping, I thought in relief. Verix had been having trouble sleeping for a while and sometimes pulled all-nighters for some reason.

I quietly stood and headed over to the door. I was still in my cloak so if anyone caught me, I wouldn't get in trouble for wearing the wrong clothes.

I exited, my blue gaze flying around to make sure no one was nearby.

It seemed everyone was asleep.

I began to wander through the halls to pass the time, my mind wandering to another place as I walked.

I began to think of Evo and my old friends there. I again wondered why I had gone there in the first place. Sure, it ended up being really fun. But I didn't know why. Perhaps I wanted to get away from my duties?  I thought before dismissing that idea. Why would I have duties?

I sighed quietly and suddenly realized how far I was from the dorms. A light suddenly appeared in the corner of my eye. However, when I turned to look at it, there was nothing there.

Narrowing my eyes, I tried to see what I had noticed before but there was nothing there.

I sighed and went down the halls that would lead me back to my dorm. I came across a courtyard that I hadn't seen before and began to look around.

The ground had grass scattered in large patches surrounded by endstone. There were a few trees around the large courtyard, mainly surrounding a little pond across the courtyard from me. A stone pathway led the way across the courtyard, around the pond, and to the rest of the buildings.

I smiled and looked at the drooping trees, happy that I had found the place. It gave me a sense of peace that I hadn't felt in a long time.

I thought of the coming year, my final year. I suddenly realized that soon, I was finally going to be free from all of the classes and training I had been forced to do.

I calmly walked along the pathway and looked into the pond as I passed it. I was surprised I hadn't found this courtyard before but was glad I found it when I did. It gave me a sense of hope that I would be able to get out of this place and get to a world where everything was like this courtyard.

I sat down beside the pond, pulling my knees in against my chest.

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I opened my eyes, suddenly realizing that I had dozed off.

I stood and hurried back to my dorm, glad that it was still nighttime.

When I made it back inside my dorm, I noticed Verix sitting up and staring at the ground, bags evident under his eyes.

As I entered, he looked up at me with tired eyes.

"Couldn't sleep?" he asked, his voice quiet and monotone.

"I should be asking you the same thing," I replied after closing the door.

He sighed and looked away.

"I had a nightmare about... The incident at school," he said, hesitating as he tried to figure out what to say.

I sighed and nodded, knowing what he meant.

I walked over to sit beside him, concern in my mildly tired eyes.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked, hoping my quiet voice would be a bit comforting to him.

He sighed and closed his eyes.

"There's not much to talk about," he sighed, rubbing his eyes.

I glanced away. "I guess. You should try to get some more sleep," I suggested.

He lowered his hands and nodded.

"I'll try," he said.

I left him and headed over to my own bed as he laid down, facing away from me. I grabbed some schoolwork I had to do and finished it before attempting to go back to sleep. However, I wasn't sure either of us had really gotten any more sleep. We just lied in our beds and waited for classes to start.

Time passed slowly in that instance, allowing me a lot of time to think about my coming year.

I finally was almost free.

(2300 or so words)

(A/N this is extra-long cuz I am determined to have Grian/Xelqua get to Hermitcraft in Chapter 16 so I needed to fit my ideas in one chapter to leave Chapter 15 for the lead up to his departure XD)

(It's 12:50 AM so I'm not publishing as late as I have in the past)