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A searing beam of heat vaporized the dragon mid-air, turning it into a shimmering mist that caught the sunlight in a rainbow arc.
"I'm sorry!" Wanda apologized in a panic. "I got distracted for a second!"
"Distracted?" Jiro turned to face her, water dripping down his sharply defined chest.
Wanda's eyes couldn't help but follow the trail of droplets. "I mean... yeah... I lost focus..."
Jiro suddenly stepped closer, a teasing smile on his face. "Wanda, do you know what happens to apprentices in Kamar-Taj when they lose focus?"
Wanda swallowed hard. "W-what happens?"
"Three extra hours of training," Jiro said with a small smirk.
"But considering the... unique environment," he snapped his fingers. A portal opened, and two beach chairs with a sunshade popped into existence right on the sand.
"Let's rest first. Then we continue."
Wanda let out a long breath and collapsed into the chair.
A soft sea breeze brushed past, carrying a hint of salt in the air.
She stole a glance at Jiro beside her, noticing his eyes were already closed. The sunlight danced on his lashes, casting delicate golden shadows.
"Jiro?" she whispered.
"Hm?"
"Thanks for bringing me here."
A wisp of scarlet energy flickered from her fingertips, turning into a little flower that floated gently onto his chest.
"This beats Hydra's training rooms by a mile."
Jiro caught the flower and twirled it between his fingers. "Tomorrow, we'll go to Tahiti. The coral reefs there are better for practicing energy control."
Wanda perked up instantly. "Really?"
"If your performance this afternoon impresses me," he added, tucking the flower behind his ear as Wanda laughed.
"Now, focus on the rhythm of the waves. This is where the real lesson starts."
Gentle waves lapped against the shore, and the sun-warmed sand felt cozy underfoot.
Wanda sat cross-legged beneath the umbrella, letting scarlet energy swirl through her palms like a thin, glowing veil.
Following Jiro's instructions, she tried tuning her magic to the rhythm of the ocean.
"Wrong," Jiro suddenly said, eyes still closed.
"You're trying too hard."
Wanda pouted. "I am relaxed."
"Heart rate: 92 beats per minute. Pupils dilated 0.3 millimeters. Light sweat on your temples,"Jiro replied lazily.
"That's what you call relaxed?"
Wanda's eyes widened. "Wait—how do you even know that?!"
"Super senses." Jiro finally opened his eyes, golden irises locking onto hers.
"Now, deep breaths. Imagine you're a piece of seaweed."
"Seaweed?" Wanda said, half laughing, half confused.
"The kind that goes with the flow." Jiro sat up and gently tapped the center of her forehead.
A wave of warmth rushed through her, and Wanda felt her consciousness expand—as if she'd become one with the beach.
She could feel every grain of sand shift beneath her, every drop of ocean sway with the tide.
"What... is this?"
"Empathic magic," Jiro said, pulling his hand back. "Hold it for three seconds."
Wanda held her breath, doing her best to stay in that surreal state.
Her scarlet energy was no longer forced or directed—it danced naturally with the wind, tracing patterns on the waves in perfect sync with the ocean.
"Good."
Jiro's voice seemed to echo from far away. "Remember how this feels."
When the connection broke, Wanda blinked in a daze. She was still sitting cross-legged, but her entire body was drenched in sweat.
"That was... incredible," she panted, red hair sticking to her cheeks.
Jiro handed her a water bottle. "Everyone reacts like that the first time. Take ten minutes. Then we move on to elemental shaping."
Wanda sipped her water in small gulps, stealing glances at the man beside her.
The sunlight outlined his sharp profile in a golden glow, and her heart skipped a beat.
"What are you looking at?" Jiro suddenly turned to her.
Wanda choked on her water. "I—I was studying light refraction!"
"Oh?" he raised a brow knowingly. "And what did you discover?"
"Um... I noticed your combat suit has a really weird reflectivity!" she blurted out, scrambling for an excuse.
Jiro chuckled and snapped his fingers.
The watch on his wrist morphed, and streams of black liquid metal rippled across his body.
In an instant, his beachwear transformed into his iconic black battle suit, golden patterns glinting under the sun.
"Uru metal alloy blend. Reflectivity: 0.0001%," he said with a completely straight face.
"Well?"
Wanda blushed furiously and quickly changed the topic. "So... is elemental shaping like this?"
She waved her hand and summoned a ball of scarlet energy, clumsily molding it into the shape of a dolphin.
Jiro shook his head. "Too stiff."
He reached over and placed his hand over hers, guiding the flow of energy. "Think of it as alive."
For a brief moment, their magic intertwined—scarlet mingling with gold. The dolphin suddenly came to life, flipping playfully in the air, sending a spray of energy droplets flying.
"Whoa!"
Wanda gasped in delight—then realized Jiro's hand was still over hers.
He seemed to notice too, but didn't move away.
Leaning in slightly, his breath tickled her ear. "Control your breathing. Your energy follows your rhythm."
Wanda's heart pounded. She could smell his scent, clean and warm.
In that moment, she forgot about training. Forgot about chaos magic. Forgot everything...
Her scarlet magic suddenly surged out of control—blowing the dolphin into a burst of shimmering fireworks.
"Sorry!" she backed away quickly, flustered.
Jiro's eyes gleamed with amusement. "Emotional fluctuations are the fuel of chaos magic... but also its biggest risk."
He stood up, his battle suit shifting back to casual beachwear. "Keep practicing. By sunset, I want to see a dolphin swim a full lap around the island."
"That's impossible!" Wanda stared at him.
But Jiro was already walking toward the shore, waving casually without turning around. "In Kamar-Taj, talking back gets you five extra hours of training."
Wanda sighed in defeat—but obediently went back to practice.
This time, she wised up: she calmed her emotions first before summoning her power.
As the hours passed, her dolphins became more and more lifelike—some even leaping out of the "water" made of pure energy.
By the time the seventh dolphin completed a full loop around the little island, the setting sun had turned the ocean golden.
"I did it!" Wanda jumped up in excitement and turned around to look for Jiro.
She spotted him standing on a distant reef, back to the sun, taking a holographic call.
Tony Stark's unmistakably dramatic voice drifted over on the breeze—
"Jiro, so you two are really dating? I don't buy that you went to Hawaii and did nothing! Oho, Mr. Superman and Miss Lois, huh?"
Jiro immediately shut off the comms and turned around—only to meet Wanda's gaze.
"Uh… I just happened to be walking by," Wanda explained awkwardly.
"Tony's always like that, you know. I'm heading back," Jiro said as he raised a hand and opened a portal.
"Oh."
Wanda nodded in understanding and followed him.
Just as she was about to step through the portal, Jiro suddenly spoke up:
"8 a.m. tomorrow. Tahiti. Bring a swimsuit."
Wanda's eyes lit up. "Wait, seriously?"
"If you finish Fundamentals of Magical Theory tonight," Jiro replied with a smirk. He had specifically borrowed that book from Kamar-Taj for her.
"That book's like five hundred pages!" Wanda protested.
"Four hundred seventy-two," Jiro corrected her. "Kamar-Taj apprentices—"
"Okay, okay! Got it!" Wanda cut him off, exasperated.
"Three extra hours of training, right?"
Jiro chuckled and gave her a gentle push through the portal. "Smart little witch."
"....."