“Hey guys, this is Francis.” Theo introduced the clearly-uncomfortable Natureborn to everyone at Sayday lunch. Francis waved slowly at everyone, with a slight smile hiding gritted teeth. “Francis, this is Jenny, Bruce, Simo, Finn, Rowena, Drew, and I presume you know Duncan already.”

One by one, Theo pointed at each friend, as they waved back at Francis. Duncan simply nodded, and Francis nodded back, some of the tension draining from his face. It looks like they did indeed know each other.

Theo had explained to Francis how Libera’s letter had mentioned bringing everyone together to strengthen Union City, and their role as people who could lead that. Did he use that in order to get Francis to be more sociable, and even get him to change his mind about Rowena’s Ball?

“Francis is going to be coming to Rowena’s Ball.” Potentially, but that’s beside the point. As Francis looked like he was about to die (and much less like the wise monk he usually is), Rowena elbowed Theo in the side. “Sorry, the House of Flake Noble Ball.”

She gave an apologetic smile to Francis. “I know you weren’t that interested at first, but I promise it will be a lovely evening.”

Francis smiled back, managing to school his face into a polite smile (and Theo almost couldn’t tell that it was mostly forced). “Thank you. I’m sure it will be.” The smile slipped a little bit. “And as long as I am not obligated to socialise, I’ll manage.”

With that blunt admission, everyone laughed, and tension bled from the group.

Finn draped an arm around Francis, in a deep squat. “Trust me, I wouldn’t go if I had to hang with hoity toity nobles.” He paused as he looked at Rowena (and while his mouth didn’t move, Theo could see a twinkle of mischief in his eye). “Present company included.”

Rowena didn’t respond (verbally, at least). Instead, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and calmed down.

And then she sang an aria, and a localised hailstorm started to pelt Finn, chasing him around as he got up and tried to run away. “I meant it!” Theo could hear the grin in Finn’s voice, as they became the centre of attention in the park (and Jenny took advantage of the chaos to sidle next to Theo).

Theo looked over at Francis (after freezing for a moment once he realised that Jenny had moved closer), and slung an arm around his shoulders like Finn had done moments earlier. “See, I told you they’d love you.”

---

“Good afternoon everyone. I was going to cover mathematics today, but as I always say, general knowledge must be useful. So, let us discuss the history between Etol and Union City, and how it is currently escalating. I have the unfortunate feeling that this will become incredibly relevant information soon, so that will be our topic of discussion today.” Thelonious began their lesson, pacing the room as always.

Theo engaged Tome of Memories, as he had begun doing during most classes. The clarity of his recall made reviewing and remembering the content much easier. And while it wasn’t a substitute for paying attention and practicing, it did make practicing footwork and other things easier when he could play back the exact instructions and motions of his teachers.

Thelonious paused, as he muttered to himself. “Let us hope that I am paranoid, and not prescient.” He cleared his throat, continuing. “Some of you may remember that I mentioned Etol briefly in our first lesson. Does anyone remember what I said?” Theo stayed quiet, feeling like Libera’s letter was cheating, in a sense (he tried not to think about whether or not Tome of Memories would count as cheating).

The room stayed quiet for a moment, but Rowena shyly raised her hand, answering as Thelonious nodded at her to speak. “Etol dislikes Union City because one of our founders was their…priest? And they excommunicated her for it.” She stumbled, but continued on to finish her answer.

Thelonious smiled. “Very good! Libera the Kind was previously the high priest of Etol. She indeed ran away, and was excommunicated for it. That set the tone for all relations since.” He clasped his hands in front of himself.

“As you can imagine, it has been a fraught relationship, and one that resulted in Etol not recognising Union City as a sovereign state for centuries. They repeatedly tried to invade Etol, declaring crusades to recover the remains and belongings of their previous high priest. It didn’t matter that they excommunicated her, or declared her a heretic. They used her as an excuse to continue their assault.” A wry smile graced his face.

Thelonious started to puff out his chest, which was an odd look contrasted with his general demeanour. It was like one of those cute little birds trying to look aggressive and accomplishing nothing of the sort. He marched slower, hands behind his back, like a general with a hernia.

“Of course, they didn’t manage to succeed as the four Colleges all contributed to the defence of Union City, but they kept invading regularly. This was a period of history where the Colleges were incredibly strong, not only due to the legacies left by their founders, but as they were integral to the safety of Union City, the training inherent in defending the city from serious attacks led to generations of mages who built upon their forebears.”

Thelonious breathed out, returning to his normal posture and gait, deflating comfortably. He ran a hand through his hair.

“Or at least, that is what some may wish to convince you of. That the history of the Colleges is one of heroes bravely defending their home and defying odds to survive and grow to become champions. What they often fail to mention, is how this was a period where the nobles invested a significant amount into the Colleges, as they understood how integral we were to the defence of the city. There have been geniuses and heroes throughout the entirety of the Colleges’ history. Some just didn’t have wars to fight.”

A ripple spread through the class, as the importance of time and place as a concept sunk into Theo’s head. Thelonious took a moment to appreciate the murmurs his statement incited. He once made a comment after one such ripple about how knowledge is meant to be discussed and shared instead of learned (the irony of him lecturing not lost).

“And the person we have to thank for that is a Dean of the College of Spells that I have also previously mentioned. They are the reason that the investment from nobles decreased, which is why they are also cursed. Anyone remember who this was?” He threw another question to the class, and once more Rowena claimed the bone, raising her hand before anyone else.

She was more confident this time, hand shooting up straight into the air with the unyielding certainty of sunrise. “It was Rond, the 7th Dean.” She beamed as Thelonious smiled and nodded at her.

“Yes, that is correct! Rond the Gardener, the 7th Dean of the College of Spells created The Woods while experimenting with infusing ambient mana into the woods around Union City. This created not only a layer of easily defensible and flexible territory, but also an early warning and detection system. Which is why the nobles felt safe enough to stop pouring resources into defense.”

A look of discomfort passed the faces on a few in the class, and Theo realised that the ripple before might have also been nobles grappling with their historical relationship to the Colleges.

“The Woods have only grown in strength as time has gone by. Their defensive capabilities and centuries of failing to capture Union City made Etol reconsider their position towards Union City. However, even though they have recognised Union City, they still dislike us immensely, and it is no exaggeration to say that low level incidents have been a consistent theme since.”

Thelonious clenched their jaw, acting like someone who just bit into a sour lemon in polite company.

“They will take any excuse to act aggressively in our direction. A few centuries ago, the 19th Dean of the College of Prayers found some notes from Libera the Kind, and that resulted in a terse set of negotiations with Etol.” Even the pretense of politeness was dropped, and his lips were pursed in a thin line (like a country’s border, but more well-defined).

“That was the last time Union City were able to successfully negotiate with Etol, and every time since tensions have only lessened due to a lack of resources or political will to commit to a war. If our history had more trust, there could be a chance for successful negotiations. Unfortunately, given the state of things a lack of outright war is the best stalemate we can realistically achieve.”

Theo thought of Sparrow, who’d gone to do what Thelonious was making out to be impossible.

Thelonious coughed. “Incidentally The Dancing Wind will be absent for the next few weeks on a diplomatic mission to… Etol.”

Eyes turned in Theo’s direction.