I’m in love with Katherine. And although there’s clearly a taboo against a teacher being romantically interested in his apprentice, I think it’s okay given our unusual circumstance. For one, I was already interested in her before I became her official teacher, which I only did as a matter of convenience, and two, we’re only separated in age by four years.

It’s currently December. Seven months have passed since I returned to Winterspring for the first time in six years. Katherine has been my official apprentice for the last three of those seven months. She turned 18 in August, and I turned 22 in September. At the moment, she’s in class at Winterspring Academy. She was able to enroll in a limited number of courses, in part, thanks to my tutelage and, in greater part, thanks to the superabundant generosity of Arch Lord Aerolyso Aeon. Being able to formally study magic makes Katherine as happy as can be. She’s advancing rapidly in her study of Life and Plant Magic. Which is wonderful for her, but a little less so for me because I get to spend less time with her now. Which brings me to the cause of my paranoia. Now that she means so much to me, I’m scared to death of losing her. Yet fortunately for me, I’m a jeweler’s son.

I stroll into my father’s jewelry store at 10 in the morning. It’s a cozy shop filled with mahogany wood furniture and glass display cases. The instant I enter I see the sparkle of the polished wooden floor, smell the fresh pine of his favorite floor polish, and catch the little glimmer of gems in the third display case on the right side. That display case is turned inwards at a precise angle to reflect beams of light into the eyes of customers as they walk through the door. Said beams of light originate from the sun shining through the window on the opposite side of the room, which might sound insignificant, but what’s remarkable about it is that my father mathematically calculated the angles necessary to reflect the light exactly where he wants it at peak business hours. The reflected light not only pulls customers deeper into the store so that he can address them more easily from his counter, but it also leads any women who enter straight to the most desirable and expensive items. From there, rich lovers will either buy the expensive jewelry to please their women or find the rest of the items in the store more reasonably priced. Either way, my father usually gets the sale. That’s why the third display case on the right is sacred ground. He gets mad whenever a customer carelessly bumps it and alters its angle. Not that he expresses that anger to the customer. My father is a true professional. He takes great pride in his business and he’s exceptionally good at what he does. In fact, Alphonse Rosengarden is known far and wide as the premier jeweler in the northwestern continent.

I move through the store, passing all of the earrings, bracelets, necklaces, pocket watches, and rings locked in the display cases. When I reach the back wall, I turn left and push in the waist-high swing door that lets my father move behind the counter. His private workshop is at the end of a small hall positioned in the center of the back wall directly behind the counter. I walk slowly down this hall so as not to scare my father. As usual, I find him at his workstation neck deep in concentration. He’s sitting on a small stool, hunched over his latest masterpiece.

“Dad,? I call to get his attention.

Without turning, he motions me over to him. I step to his side to look over his shoulder. In the fingers of his right hand, he grasps a single golden ring. This golden ring has an identical twin that rests on the worktable before him. Slowly, as if with reverence, my father turns silently and holds up the ring to me. “They’re both done,? he says.

I take the ring, pinching it by its base and lean over so that I can see it by the light of the kerosene lamp that hangs over his workstation. The ring is breathtaking. It and its identical twin feature 14 karat gold bands with a collection of symbolic jewels at their heads. The first jewel is a green emerald on the left side. Green is Katherine’s favorite color. It’s also the color that represents nature and Nature Magic in the mage world. Opposite of the emerald is a purple amethyst. The purple of the amethyst represents me, the school colors of Winterspring Academy, and the aura that surrounds me when I use Soul Magic. In the center of the ring, embedded on each side of the main fixture are four small rubies representing our love for one another. On top of the center fixture is a radiant 3.5 carat diamond. The diamond represents holy matrimony. Or at least it would in a perfect world.

I pat my father on the back. “Thanks dad. You’ve really outdone yourself this time.?

My father smiles and reaches his hand out for the ring. I gently place it in his palm. In turn, he packs it and its twin in a red velvet jewelry box and then hands the box to me. I sink it into my coat pocket. At the same time, it feels like a weight sinks into my heart.

“So...? my father begins, “Do you feel more confident now that you have a beautiful ring to offer her??

“Goodness no,? I answer. “I swear I just became even more nervous.?

My father grins, appreciating the irony. He then shakes his head and purses his lips. He does that whenever he’s thinking of something important to say. It takes him a moment to fumble through his words, but it’s generally worth the wait. He eventually comes around to figuring out what he wants to say. “You know, son, it’s perfectly normal to be afraid of rejection. However, I don’t think relying on a ring as a crutch is the right policy. I think you should stop beating around the bush and just tell her how you feel about her already.?

“Noooo,? I grumble, feeling frustrated by the obvious truth. “That’s too hard.?

My father chuckles pleasantly at my words. He both nods and slightly tilts his head at the same time. “Yes, I suppose being emotionally honest can be difficult for a man – even a man who’s fought giant immortal beasts. But all the same son, women operate in the world of feelings. You’ll have to figure out a way to communicate how you feel to Katherine if you really want her to understand you.?

“Ahh man,? I whine. “Can’t I just kill a dragon or something??

“Nope, not this time son. Although I guess you could confess your feelings in a poem or song since you like writing.?

I smile widely, seeing a ray of light. “That’s not a bad idea. Technically I tried that before, but this time I could be less ambiguous.?

“Souladonis!? I hear a female voice shout from within the store. I wasn’t expecting anyone at this time. I place my hand over the velvet box tucked inside my coat pocket. “Thanks for the rings and the advice dad.?

He smiles proudly and nods his head. “You’re welcome son.?

I turn to leave his workshop, yet when I reach the small hallway, he calls out to me again.

“Souladonis.?

I twist to look at him. “Yeah dad??

“Your mother is expecting to have grandchildren very soon.?

Oh great. Way to put even more pressure on me! I rake my hands in my hair and pretend to scream. I can’t actually scream since there’s somebody in the store. Nonetheless, my father gets the joke and laughs. “Good luck son.?

I strut out of my father’s workshop with two rings and one mission. I have to tell Katherine how I really feel about her even if it kills me. Of course, if it turns out that she doesn’t feel the same way and rejects me, then that will also kill me. I guess when push comes to shove, there’s a good chance that I’m a dead man. Unless, that is, she does love me in which case I instantly become the happiest man in the world. What a crazy high stakes situation this is. It was literally less scary for me to face physical death at the hands of Cornelius than it is to risk a broken heart at the hands of Katherine. However, if that’s the courage that it takes to have a chance to make her mine, then so be it. I’ll do what I have to do.

I continue about my way. When I arrive at the shop’s counter, I find Silvia Butterfly waiting for me. She’s a blonde vixen bombshell who’s the teacher-fantasy of every male student at Winterspring Academy. Incidentally, she’s also my fellow pupil under the direct tutelage of Arch Lord Aerolyso. She’s also Sidney Butterfly’s older sister.

“What’s up Silvia?” I ask her when I come into range.

While staring at an item in the third display case, she answers, “The Arch Lord wanted me to come get you for training.?

I pivot to the side and gaze at the mahogany grandfather clock that sits at the counter’s right side. It’s only 10:16. We normally train at noon. “You’re almost two hours early,” I say.

Silvia looks at me and brushes her right hand through her flawless blonde hair. “Yeah I know, but Master is putting us through some sort of test today.”

I step to the counter just in front of Silvia and lean on it to rest my weight on my forearms. “He’s been testing us a lot lately. If he’s trying to choose a successor, then he could save a lot of time and just pick you already.”

Silvia switches her hips and smirks, satisfied with my acknowledgment. Nonetheless, she turns to modest words to mask the confidence brimming on her face. “Don’t be a sourpuss Soulbanana. You’re still in the running.”

Let’s be clear. I was never in the running. Silvia’s the Golden Girl of Winterspring and I’m the, and I quote, “greatest disappointment of all time.” Even I wouldn’t pick me over Silvia, and I’m biased!

“Whatever,” I say, leaping over the counter. “Let’s just go.”

We exit my father’s shop and travel northbound towards the academy. Needless to say, it’s absolutely frigid in Winterspring in December. Nonetheless, Silvia still wears her cutesy getup with her purple plaid skirt, light purple vertically striped dress shirt that’s cut deep to show off her cleavage, red pumps, and purple beret. It’s an odd, albeit attractive, outfit to wear in our tundra climate. Although to Silvia’s credit, she does at least have enough sense to wear a wool coat over her arms. However, what particularly interests me most about her skimpy outfit isn’t that it somehow protects her from hypothermia, but rather the fact that she’s able to walk over snow and ice in heels. “How are you doing that?” I ask her.

“Doing what?”

“Walking over snow in heels.”

She pauses to look me in the eyes. “Souladonis. I’m just that good.”

And there you have it. She’s just that good. We reach the gates of Winterspring Academy in another 10 minutes. Silvia doesn’t slip once.

To kill time as much as to be polite, Arch Lord Aerolyso bows his head towards students as they move in and out the school grounds. He also exchanges a few brief words with anyone who speaks to him. He doesn’t know each student personally since Winterspring has a student body of approximately 25,000, but that’s the sort of person that he is. He’s the kindly, old, grandfatherly type.

When he sees me and Silvia approaching, the ends of his lips curl to his cheeks and he waves us over. Most of that reaction is for Silvia and less of it for me. She’s his favorite person after his wife Martha, who passed eight years ago. But I don’t blame him. Everybody loves Silvia, including me. After all, she’s the only friend from my childhood who’s still my friend today. Everyone else has written me off. Especially–

At the precise moment that I think of my former girlfriend, Nadine, I see her entering through Winterspring’s front gate. I immediately drop what I’m doing, leave Silvia and Arch Lord Aerolyso behind, and rush in front of her. Nadine’s reaction is to continue walking forward as if nothing changed. I have to walk backwards to stay in front of her.

“Nadine forgive me!” I beg.

She shows no sympathy for my pleading purple eyes. She curves around me and continues on her path. My words fall on deaf ears. However, I won’t give up that easily. I rush ahead of her again, kneel in the snow, and lower my head to the ground. “Forgive me Nadine!”

My actions create a scene. With my head in the snow, I can’t see around me, but I can sense the other students watching me, whispering gossip to one another. Yet I care nothing for my public reputation. All I care about is Nadine and obtaining her mercy. Once again, as she walks around me, I cry desperately, “I’m sorry Nadine! I’m sorry!”

Nothing. Her mercy is not to be had this day. She passes by without acknowledging my existence. It’s the same way that she’s treated me every time that I’ve seen her since freeing her from the petrification curse. No matter what I say or do she won’t acknowledge my existence much less forgive me.

Gradually, I swallow this bitter reality yet again and pluck my head out of the snow. My heart dies a little every time I encounter Nadine, yet I won’t give up or despair. Nor will I allow myself to sink into a depression. Previously, I might have done so, but not anymore. For three months now, I’ve been Katherine’s magic teacher. Yet all the while, she’s been my teacher too. I’ve taught her magic, but she’s taught me about facing life’s challenges with dignity and courage no matter what happens. If Katherine were in my position, she wouldn’t give up or become depressed. She’d continue to be her positive, cheerful self and keep trying until she succeeded. Thinking in such a way doesn’t come naturally to me, but I’ve been trying really hard for the past few months to be more like her. After all, she’s my hero. It’s only right that I should strive to be more like the person I admire most.

Holding my chin up with self-respect and optimism, I return to Silvia and Arch Lord Aerolyso. Silvia briefly looks at me with pitying eyes before throwing her arms around me. Master Aerolyso swipes some of the snow out of my hair. I know they feel bad for me, but I don’t feel bad for myself. I’m proud of the progress that I’ve made as a person. I’ve come a long way from the days of trying to drown my problems with alcohol. In fact, I’ve been sober ever since the day I promised Katherine that I would stop drinking seven months ago. Sure, it sucks that Nadine hasn’t forgiven me, but I’ve forgiven myself. Today I’m the best man that I’ve ever been. That’s enough for me right now.

I hold Silvia at arm’s length. “I’m sorry about making a scene. I got a little distracted, but I’m alright now. What did you call us here for Master?”

Arch Lord Aerolyso pats me on the shoulder approvingly. He knew me for years before I met Katherine, and he’s been around me enough since my return to Winterspring to recognize the change in me. He understands what I haven’t spoken in words.

To answer my question, he says, “I’ve called you two here for a series of tests, but we can postpone if you like Souladonis.”

I watch my Master’s eyes observe me discerningly. His offer to postpone was entirely sincere and not the least bit critical. Likewise, it’s not the least bit necessary. “No Master. I’m ready for anything.”

He pokes the center piece of his glasses to readjust the frames on his ears. “No Souladonis, I don’t think you are. But you’re more than welcome to prove me wrong.”