-Victoria-
I'm not sure I've ever been as nervous as I am today. Not when I first got to Pelmora or being announced as heir or even facing off with those people at the ball. The mere thought of this dinner was making my insides squirm.
"You could always cancel." Anna said at lunch, "Tell her you're not feeling well."
"Absolutely not," I said, "I won't back out. Not when she's finally giving me a chance."
"At least let one of us go with you." Ani argued, Anna shaking her head vigorously is agreement, "Or let us stand guard outside the door."
"If I see either one of you hanging around, I won't talk to you for the rest of the year." I snapped with a pointed look.
"You have to understand our concern," Ani continued to argue, ever the sensible one, "She's never been your friend. She down right hated you since you got here and now, she wants to leave it all behind."
"Maybe, Zekora could join you guys?" Anna suggested, "That way someone will be around to keep their eye on you."
"The only person I'm eating dinner with tonight is Ustrea," I said as firmly as I could manage, "I want to give her the benefit of the doubt. To show her I trust her."
"But you shouldn't trust her." Anna pointed out, "She bullied you and she lied about you not being Varezian."
"I know and I'm going to get to the bottom of that tonight," I assured them, "But it's a conversation I have to have with her, not anyone else."
"At least ask Zekora to teach you a poison detection spell." Ani pleaded.
"Really? Poison?" I rolled my eyes.
"You never know," Ani pointed out, "Plus, as a princess, it's a good habit to check your food just in case someone wants to do away with you."
"And we know for a fact that there are." Anna added.
They did have a point. I learn shields and offensive spells all the time, but enemies can attack in many ways. I don't even have to use the spell tonight if I don't want to. I sighed.
"Fine," I conceded, "I'll learn how to detect poison."
"All three of us will," Anna declared, "Just to make sure you actually learn."
I shrugged in acceptance. It wouldn't hurt them to learn as well. We headed to Zekora's office to ask her to show us before class. Most of the class was now practice, so her teaching us something new before wouldn't hurt.
It was pretty straight forward. There are two ways to poison someone. With magic or with plants. Magic is easy. The intent to harm is imbued into the object along with the magic. Some can hide it well, but it can be detected by pushing your own magic into the item.
Plants to poison is complicated. The process to detect poisonous plants is a mastery of its own. It takes a deep understanding of the plant itself along with whatever was poisoned in order to even know it is there. To remove a plant-based poison with magic is near impossible. You need the antidote.
"Unless they are already adept at poisonous plants, most will not bother with it," Zekora explained to us, "It is far more likely someone will poison your favorite blanket or your shoe. Something you'd use every day."
"That's so different than the human realm," I told them, "They use poisonous plants and harmful chemicals all the time."
"The plants of the human realm have no effect on us," Zekora informed me, "You even notice a change. The plants here, in Evania, are themselves imbued with magic. You must take great care to remember that."
All class we worked on detecting magical intent. Zekora hid the intent more and more as the class went on. She did make a comment halfway through.
"You three look as if you're using your magic to find something," She pointed out, "You stare at the object until you find what you know is there. It needs to be more natural. No one should know you're wary of the object just handed to you."
The rest of the class, she would summon multiple objects. If she could tell, while she was helping other students, which item we were investigating, she'd make the "poisoned" item exploded, making us start again.
By the end, we'd gotten a feel for it but nowhere near good enough to do it in front of someone. Zekora recommended starting a bit of a prank war between us.
"Playful and harmful intent can be felt in the same way," She told us, "Choose things from your friends' daily lives and, playfully, imbue them to cause some sort of amusement."
Ani was the first victim of the pranks, when he picked up his bag to leave and the straps dissolved into goo. I saw Zekora trying to hold back her smile, so I poked at my bag with my magic. I felt the intent buried rather deep and dismantled the spell before picking up my bag.
I gave Zekora a pleased, confident smile, beginning to walk away. I barely made it two steps when my feet stopped, shoes seemingly glued to the floor. Zekora burst out laughing as I looked over my shoulder. Anna was just standing there frozen, bag in hand but now to scared to move.
"That's not fair, professor," I said sighing, "We're new to this."
"I know," She wiped a tear from her eye, "It was too good of an opportunity to miss. I did tell you to check your shoes."
"Will you let us go now?" Ani said shyly, hands still dripping with goo.
"Alright, alright." She snapped her fingers.
Ani's bag reassembled itself and I could move my feet again. We all just stood there staring at her, wary to move. She sighed.
"There's no more traps and I won't interfere again unless invited." She said.
"Promise?" I asked.
"On my magic." She assured.
We hurried out after that. An agreement made that we'd start testing each other tomorrow. The last few classes went by in a blur, until it was time for us to go our separate ways.
"Do you want us to swing by before bed?" Anna asked, "Make sure everything went well?"
"No, I'm sure we'll be up late," I told them, "I'll meet you guys in the dining hall for breakfast."
"Well, if you're up late, what if you don't come to breakfast?" Ani asked.
"Then come make sure I'm alive for my first class." I joked, though they didn't find it funny, "Guys it's just dinner. Nothing is going to happen."
"I've just got this bad feeling." Anna said.
"Everything will be just fine," I assured her.
Neither of them looked convinced but they trusted me. I had to have faith that Ustrea wasn't up to something. That she really was ready to move on.
I paced the living room relentlessly. I just wanted everything to go well. A knock at the door halted my steps. Opening it I saw Ustrea waiting, a neutral expression on her face and a basket of food on her arm.
"Hi," I said, awkwardly, "Please come in. Did you find the room ok? I know Anna and Ani used to always get turned around."
"Of course, I found it," She said, voice not betraying anything, "This was my room for the beginning of the year."
"Oh right," I half-heartedly joked, "I forgot."
She scanned the room, setting the basket on the table.
"It's very different from when I was living here." She stated.
"Really?" I looked around with her, "It was like this when I got here. I didn't know it had been changed."
"Probably did it as soon as I was out the door." She half-whispered.
"Ustrea…" I tried to open up the communication but was cut off quickly.
"Let's eat," She interrupted, "Can't study on an empty stomach."
"Of course," I gave her a disarming smile, "And after we study we can…talk."
She froze for a second staring at me. I could see the wheels turning in her head. She finally gave me a small smile of her own.
"Sure." She said.
She unpacked the food. Shooing me away when I tried to help. I just sat while she set everything up. Once finished, she began plating herself some food and motioned for me to do the same. I hesitated causing her to sigh.
"Do you want to check if it's poisoned?" She asked.
"Wha-what?" I stuttered, "No! I-"
"I saw you guys working in Professor Zekora's class." She informed me, "I learned the same at a young age. It's alright. I understand you don't completely trust me."
"But I do-" I tried to argue, only to be cut off again.
"No you don't," She said, "And neither do your friends. It's ok. I've given you every reason not to trust me so please, check the food."
I didn't bother to argue. I just looked for the intent in the food. I couldn't feel anything and she was eating from the same plate so it was unlikely to be poisonous plants. Satisfied, I began eating. We sat in silence while we ate, neither knowing where to start. Ustrea broke the silence with a cough.
"Maybe you should get your notes from Zekora's lessons," She suggested, "Give us something to talk about."
Thankful for the suggestion, I quickly put down my food and went into my room where I'd thrown my bag. I gathered all the notes barely looking up as I headed back out. My body hit something solid, stopping me dead. I looked up meeting a masked face.
"Who-" I barely got the word out before I felt a hand on the back of my neck.
All strength left my body, eyes drooping, as I pitched forward into the masked man. Through bleary eyes, I saw Ustrea standing there, a look of excitement and guilt on her face. I was tossed over the man's shoulder like a sack of potatoes. As I watched a second man take Ustrea's hand, just as the world faded to black, I had a thought.
I should have listened.