"How's it going?" the female wizard apprentice asked with a smile. "The Lingua Weaving Society needs fresh blood. Join us, and you'll avoid a lot of unwanted trouble. We'll also support your continued training."
"..." Heidi opened her mouth, struggling to respond.
She was just a Basic-level Wizard Apprentice, and not highly talented, perhaps never even hopeful of becoming an Intermediate Wizard Apprentice in her lifetime. Now she had lost her tutor, her brother.
"I…"
"We do not agree!"
A loud, crisp voice rang out.
The crowd parted.
Hibell, holding a Magic Wand and dressed in a wizard's robe, strode forward, grabbed Heidi's wrist, and repeated sternly, "We do not agree!"
"Hibell!" Heidi exclaimed, her face flushed with emotion.
"It's okay." Hibell softened her voice. "With me here, nothing will happen."
"Hibell!" The female wizard apprentice's face darkened. "Do you intend to meddle in the affairs of the Lingua Weaving Society?"
