Alwyn was dancing and spinning around in a circle, hands linked with the girl's. They were all smiles and laughter, celebrating the newly found talent. The girl really had no idea what was even going on, but was cheerful nonetheless.
"Hahaha! Wow, life's really great, huh!?" Alwyn cheered, throwing his head back in sweet laughter. "I'm the luckiest wizard in the world! The gods must favor me—oh wait, they don't! They hate me! Bahahaha! Screw you, gods!"
Aliza sat beside Linnie on the ground, patting him on the back. She, unlike Alwyn, noticed his dreary mood.
"Cheer up. What're you upset for, anyway?"
"He's gonna replace me. I'm not gonna be his favorite anymore."
It seemed that, this entire time, Linnie was under the impression (perhaps not entirely false) that the only reason Alwyn was keeping him around—despite having two other apprentices—was because of his exceptional talent.
He felt that, now since there was another child—with the potential to be even more talented, he would be kicked to the curb and replaced, left for dead.
Even if he wasn't abandoned, the attention-seeking trait of youth burned within Linnie, probably even hotter than an average kid. He didn't want to be suddenly demoted to second place!
'Right, I forgot. He's still a kid. And an orphan, too. It's a given that he'd be upset about this kind of thing. Alwyn's no good with kids, so that makes it my job, huh? Well I'm no good with kids either, dammit!'
"Dude, if it makes you feel any better, I don't think you were ever his favorite. That'd be himself, obviously."
"Meow-meow," the cat agreed, placing a paw on Linnie's back.
A single tear dripped down Linnie's solemn face. His expression was serious and pensive, and he could've fooled someone into thinking he was some sort of stoic general watching his battalion being decimated.
"Wait, that's not what I meant! I just—Alwyn likes you plenty enough, alright? Didn't he make you take his hand? That's a serious oath among wizards and apprentices! No matter what, you'll always be his first apprentice. That means you're his one and only successor!"
Hearing that, Linnie looked at her with hope. "Really? Even if his other apprentices become more powerful?"
"Yeah, no matter what, the first apprentice is the most important. And, listen—even if that girl is more special than you are—which, let's be honest, just because she's a Siaryn and has a mana capacity that's comparable to, or even surpassing, Alwyn's, doesn't mean... wait! Don't cry, man! I phrased that badly!"
"I'm not crying! There's just a lot of pollen in the air. You think I'm lying? It's springtime!" he said, sniffling and wiping his watery eyes.
"...No, I totally believe you. My eyes are pretty itchy, too," she said, looking down at her lap to hide her expression.
She was afraid he'd really try and kill her if he saw how amused she was.
"Hey, why's he crying over there?" the girl asked aloud.
"Pfft, I don't know. Hey, Lin, why're you crying?" Alwyn called out.
"I'm not crying, dumbasses! It's the pollen! I'm allergic to the pollen! Look, even that cat's getting teary-eyed!"
The cat looked around, confused as to which cat he could be talking about. There were absolutely no tears in its eyes.
"Really? I was worried about that, since this forest has a lot of pollinating trees, so I cast a pollen barrier on your poncho. I guess it didn't work," Alwyn said, scratching his temple.
"You—that's a lie!"
"Yeah, obviously. Why would I cast a pollen barrier—are you dumb!?" he burst out laughing. "I thought you were grown, but you're still crying? It turns out Aliza was right, you really are a little kid!"
"Hey, I never said that...?" she defended. "And, uh, it's pretty polleny over here, so. Yeah. Ahem."
The girl broke from her and Alwyn's dancing circle and walked up to Linnie. She knelt down, waiting for him to look up from the ground and at her.
"Why're you in my face?" he asked.
"Haha, he's totally crying!"
"...I'll kill you!" he barked, tackling her.
The girl laughed maniacally as they wrestled. It looked like a pair of dogs fighting with each other, especially when it was one of those small ones that got all heated up attacking a bigger dog who couldn't be having more fun.
Until the little one won.
She might've been more talented in terms of her mana capacity, and her nails might've been as long and sharp as talons, and maybe she was a little bigger than Linnie—but none of that meant anything when it came to the thing he'd been doing his entire life.
"Should I stop them?" Aliza asked, sighing.
"No, let them sort it out. It'll be good for them."
She looked at Alwyn, and saw a sense of maturity she thought would never exist within him. She smiled softly, shaking her head.
'Maybe he's better with kids than I thought?'
"I give up—ow! You're really good at this! What are you, a pro wrestler!?" she laughed, tapping the ground.
Linnie was dumbfounded, because even though he was squeezing the headlock as hard as he could, she was barely affected.
He let go, reluctantly accepting her forfeit as a win. She stayed on the ground, lying flat on her back and breathing heavily, while he stood up.
"I wasn't crying. It's allergies."
"Don't worry, I don't even know what allergies are! Like, I've never had them. They must suck bad if they make you cry!"
"...Yeah, kind of. Hmph." Linnie turned to Alwyn. "So, you're taking her in as an apprentice?"
Alwyn placed his hand on Linnie's shoulder.
"Lin, obviously. But that doesn't mean you're any less my apprentice," he said. "And it's like Aliza said, you're my first, so I've gotta make you look good or else it'll be bad for my reputation."
'So that was it. Your reputation, of course.'
Linnie sighed, a little relieved. Honestly, he was surprised he had gotten that emotional in the first place. It was uncharacteristic of him. He wondered if perhaps he had been growing soft. Or maybe it was attachment?
He turned back to the girl, who was still lying on the ground, and extended his hand.
"Get up from there, before you get dirty. It isn't a good look for a wizard's apprentice to be filthy," he said while bashfully looking away, rubbing his nose.
'Does he realize he's just as filthy?' Aliza wondered, laughing quietly to herself.
She grabbed his hand, smiling, and pulled herself up.
"Thanks, crybaby."
"Didn't you hear them? My name's Linnie. Don't call me crybaby again unless you want me to cut your tongue out," he said. After a short pause, he asked, "And your name?"
"Oh, I don't have one," she said, frowning.