"I think now is a good time to break," Adelaide closed her itinerary, her tilted smirk the same shape as the checkmark she penned in. The only thing to make Carmine smile was the word 'break.' For a moment she thought a draft whispered through their dorm before she realized it was the collective sighs of her circle. Even after five years living with each other as equals, Adelaide still acted toward her noble standard, and expected everyone else to rise to it.

"About time," Almyra groaned, first to rise, knees cracking.

"Have somewhere else to be?" Adelaide raised a brow, her lips tightening. Carmine groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. Really? The first thing they do after a long day is argue?.

"I do, actually," Almyra turned, pointing towards the door. "Outside, in direct sunlight. Bit of a foreign concept to a library gremlin like you, I know, but it does wonders for a little thing called sanity. Seriously, this is the…I've lost count, Kay?"

Kay held up nine fingers.

"-Ninth time this month you've trapped us all afternoon. Some of us have lives outside school, you know."

“Trapped? A bit drastic don't you think? Sorcerer trials are right around the corner,” Adelaide tapped a calendar in her inkstained notebook. “Circle’s that don’t progress stagnate. Circles that stagnate, get expelled.”

“As if that’s going to happen to us.” Almyra scoffed. “As circle’s go, we’re already pretty well off. We're Brim ranks all. Not saying we don't study, but at this rate we'll all be recognized as full sorcerers before any of us are even twenty. We can take it a little easy.”

“A little easy?” Adelaide crossed her arms. “You really think you can be the imperial master of elements by taking it a little easy?”

“Oh, take that silver spoon out of your mouth before you rant about hard-”

“Stop.” Carmine cut Almyra off before the argument really started. She shot them both a tired stare, but one that commanded their attention. “We’ve been cooped up all day. Adelaide, you know we’ve all been working hard, and Almyra, you know why it's important. We're all just a bit stressed out. Let’s just…go out tonight, and just relax for an evening. We can keep at it tomorrow.”

Kay raised a thumb in agreement. At least someone was on board.

"Thanks, Kay."

"I agree,’ Xander added his support. “We'll burn out if we keep pushing ourselves like this."

"You know," Emmet said, a thumb to his chin, glancing between Adelaide and Almyra. "That one fishing boat you both like so much is moored in the harbor today. I saw it when I was out with my dad."

"The Chipper?" Almyra slammed her hands onto the table, her fatigue replaced by dumb urgency. "You're sure?" She leaned over Emmet as he nodded with mild concern. Almyra turned back to Adelaide, her animosity replaced by hungry purpose. "Truce, Addy. We missed it last month, we gotta go."

"But…" Adaide frowned, her face curling as an inner conflict raged in her eyes. "We need…"

"Fish 'n' chips, Addy, it's been too long since we had it last." Almyra pressed and the crevices on Adelaide's face carved deeper. "Not just any, the best, crispy fish around."

"Stop it, we're really quite busy-."

"Fresh from the sea."

"We-,” Adelaide blinked, “we need to study…"

"Battered and fried-"

"Alright, fine!" Adelaide snapped. "Just this once, damn you!"

"Excellent." Almyra's cheshire grin played across her face as she threw her robe on one shoulder after the other. She looked to the circle as she trotted to their dorm door. "Get a move on," she urged the others. "I'm not missing this twice in one season."

"If only you were this motivated to study," Adelaide whispered as she donned her coat.

"Addy…" Carmine hushed back.

"Fine, fine. You hear bloody everything, don't you?"

"Only when you don't want me to," Carmine replied with a shrug as she wiggled her pointed ears.

Within minutes, the circle found their way down and out of Leval tower. Brisk fresh air wrapped them in a soothing embrace, revitalizing their overworked minds. Adelaide and Almyra walked ahead of the group, their arguments forgotten as they discussed what to do with the evening after supper. Carmine used to think they'd never find common ground, but after discovering their shared love for seafood, more similarities came to light between them. Both sought positions of authority, though Adelaide had more experience. In addition to Almyra's classes, Addy taught her courtly etiquette on the side. It wasn't easy, and watching Almyra talk in Adelaide’s roundabout noble speak was downright weird, but she could manage anything if she found the right motivation. In return, Almyra could get Addy to do something Carmine thought impossible: relax. She could find the chip in Addy's armor to remind her she wasn't just a noble, but a person too. The two shared a friendly rivalry that fluctuated by the day.

Xander and Kay walked closely behind and close to each other. For a moment, Carmine thought the size difference amusing. Xander had only grown larger over the years as he trained both his magic and his physique for his future in the Arknights. Kay remained the shortest of all the circle as she refined her control over sorcery. With her manipulation of light and stone, Kay could craft the most amazing sculptures Carmine had ever seen. Kay even gifted her a small collection of figurines once she knew of Carmine's interest. Whenever Xander and Kay were together, their corner of the room radiated quiet contentment. Carmine wished them the best.

Emmet lagged at the rear of their group, his eyes glued to his feet as he followed. Carmine saw his brow furrowed deep in thought, or worry. She slowed her pace to walk beside him.

"A penny for your thoughts?" She asked, leaning into his view.

Emmet gasped in surprise, flinching as he saw Carmine staring at him.

"What?" He looked up, his eyes unfocused. "Sorry, I was distracted. What's wrong?"

"That's what I’m asking you," Carmine replied. "You looked deep in your head there, and not in a good way, honestly."

"Ah," Emmet raised his head, straightening his hunched back. "I guess I was…just brainstorming.."

"Right, but was it the productive brainstorm, or the anxious brainstorm?"

"Damn." Emmet clicked his tongue.

"Yeah, I'm not your parents. That story won't work on me. Talk to me, what's in your head?"

Emmet let out a sigh, slowing his pace further. "I'd like this to stay between us, okay?"

"It will if you want," Carmine lowered her voice, "none of them would judge, would know."

"I know but, I just…don't want to hold anyone back."

Carmine furrowed her brow, confused how he even could. "I don't follow."

"I can't stop thinking about what will happen at our Sorcerer trials, after rather. I know we all have the skills to pass. We'll be made full sorcerers but…" Emmet trailed off. The lines on his forehead deepened as his lips pursed together, holding in the words. "I'm worried what happens when we all split up, you know? We've lived together for a while now, grown up together, but eventually you're all going to find new mentors or go off on your own paths…and I'm still going to be here."

"Oh, Emmet," Carmine hooked her arm through his. "We might be farther apart, but our bonds won't change. We're all a portal away after all, and you can send me a message any time."

"I know that, but I also know we'll all have new tasks and duties. They'll be less time-"

"We'll make time." Carmine assured him. Emmet smiled, his frown easing.

"You know, sometimes I think someone like you should be the next headmaster, not me."

"What?" Carmine flinched, a disbelieving smirk on her face. "You can't be serious, it's what you've trained for. I've trained to be a sketchy hedge mage in comparison. I doubt anyone could do the job as well as you."

"Tell that to my mother." Emmet sighed. "She's been…disappointed with my recent progress."

"Why? You've passed every written and practical test with good scores."

"But not the highest. Mom doesn't like that you and Addy are beating me." Anxiety flashed in his eyes. "Don't repeat that, ok?"

"Sorry if this is out of line, Emmet, but your mom has a stick up her ass." Carmine grumbled in displeasure, just as she had every time that joyless hag stuck her nose into their business. "People like her are never satisfied. If you want to be headmaster, do it for you. If not, you can always change course."

"It may seem that easy from the outside but…" Emmet lifted his head and looked at Carmine. "I do want it, and I do want to do better…I just don't think that my mother realizes that she's giving me more pressure than motivation."

"If that's the case, then let me know if you ever need help." Carmine smiled. "You can always count on me, Emmet."

"That's good to hear-"

"Ya'll done flirting?" Almyra teased from up front.

"Shut up." Carmine grumbled, untangling her arm from Emmet's as she stared at the ground. She hadn't noticed they'd arrived at the harbor.

“Cute. Don't stop on my account, you can continue onboard.” Almyra smirked and pointed to one particular vessel. A small sloop compared to the larger galleons moored in port further down the line. A single sail rose out from its center, surrounded by a small cabin at its base. Wooden shutters lifted to show a kitchen on the other side of the counter, and a half-dozen people sat on stools eating their dinners as the chef inside regaled them with sea tales in his booming voice.

While Addy and Almyra came for the food, Carmime went for the chef's tall tales. Captain Fisher everyone called him, though Carmine doubted that was his real name. A bright smile crested his deep umber face as the circle walked aboard. He removed his cap and placed it to his chest, the dusk sun shining off his bald head.

“If it isn’t my favorite witches and wizards from the tower,” Fisher welcomed, his voice loud but light. He waved to a line of polished stools along the cabin and urged them forward with his other hand. “Come, sit. Just the usuals?”

“Please,” Xander answered for the circle. “It's been too long for all of us.”

“I noticed I didn’t see you last month.” Fisher plucked a knife from a block and sliced through fish with ease. His hands moved with practiced precision, even as he kept his gaze on the sorcerers. “How are things at the tower?”

“Busy,” Almyra answered. “Things are getting serious for exams, promotion trials, you know the drill, tight asses all around.” She waved her hand with a dismissive scoff. “We're going to be fine, but it's been taking all our time.”

“A familiar story to me,” Fisher replied. “Everywhere I sail, there are always tired students in need of a proper meal.”

“And a good story,” Carmine added as she leaned on the counter. She’d never been on the ocean, nothing out of sight of the coast at least. To her it seemed a land, or rather, a sea of mystery, and Fisher always had the best stories to share. “Anything interesting happen out there?”

Kay tapped her hands on the counter and leaned closer beside Carmine. She'd based more than one sculpture on Fisher's storied creatures.

“Always, my friends, always.” For a moment his hands stopped moving, and he shot the circle a curious side-eyed glance. “Though I do have a peculiar one this time.”

“Oh?” Carmine listened in.

“Perhaps the six of you could make sense of it.“ Fisher tilted his head up, reminiscing, though his hands continued their work unpaused. “I suppose this would be….two, two-and-a-half weeks ago now. My crew and I were sailing north-west of here, in the sea between Vembris and Creed. Big catches out that way; tall as you Ms. Kay. We were hitting it big. Never have we had so much good fortune as we did those days, did we lads?” He looked behind him to the scattered “Ayes” in response, a glint of pride in his eyes. “Entire schools swam under us from the east. We didn't even need to bait our hooks; they almost leapt aboard. I should have noticed something strange at the time, but a bounty like that…” He grunted, raising his hands in surprise.

“Makes sense,” Adelaide commented. “It's your livelihood after all. Of course it would take your focus.”

“Not wrong, Lady Winters, but a sailor that gets too focused on bounty misses the sea’s warnings. And miss them, we did. A mild storm caught us off guard. A small one, more wind than rain, but it pushed us eastward.”

‘Where all the fish came from,’ Kay hurriedly signed, and Almyra relayed to Fisher.

“Exactly,” He nodded back. “We found ourselves on the edge of the Black Maw. Any of you familiar?”

“I am,” Emmet spoke up. He turned on his chair towards Carmine and the others. “From what I’ve heard it's a deadzone. The water turns black as you enter and all the wind dies down. Ships get stranded out there, with no food to catch so they just drift. Sometimes forever. The previous headmaster, my grandma, tried to send a team to study it and only half of them came back. Something messed with their portals out there.”

“That place is cursed,” Fisher explained, sending a shiver down Carmine’s spine. “When I knew where we were I ordered us rowed out, but my first mate shouts at me. ‘Man overboard,’ she says, and sure enough, there’s someone out there clutching to driftwood.”

“Were they alive?” Xander asked, fist to his chin.

“Barely. We pulled this lass out, chilled to the bone and starving, she was. Sketchy lass, but grateful. I'd guess a smuggler, not that she’d tell us. Anyway, after filling her stomach she tells us her captain wanted to take a shortcut to Creed. They tried to go through the Maw rather than around it.”

“Bad move,” Emmet added.

“Bad move,” Fisher agreed, “but more than I’ve had thought. This Lass, she’s shaken, you know, but she swears the ship stopped dead in the water, like they hit a reef. Their rowing gets them nowhere. Now this is where I start to get lost: next, she says, the water starts speaking.”

“Oh, fuck that.” Almyra pushed back from the counter.

“What’d it say?” Carmine asked, enthralled.

“I don’t know, neither did our survivor. She didn’t have much time to listen either. She says some half-finned monster folk start climbing out the water, pulling people under and shredding the ship’s hull.”

“Mermaids!” Adelaide gasped.

“Mer-monsters,” Almyra shook her head.

“Both, I would wager,” Fisher shrugged. “But as the survivor says, they dragged damn near everyone to an early grave.”

“So how’d she escape?” Carmine asked, eager to hear the conclusion.

“She says a gunnery officer moved a cannon back from the hull and blew a hole in their own ship to drive them off. They scuttled their vessel, but the gun must have scared the monsters off.”

“Or they misfired and destroyed their own vessel,” Xander said, his face now disinterested with skepticism. “She probably made up this story to cover her own crew’s incompetence.”

Fisher made no retort, but his smirk said enough. He put his knife down and reached for something else behind the counter. He lifted a weathered wooden plank, and placed it in Xander’s hands. Xander’s brow furrowed deeper as his doubt gave way to confusion.

“Hey, hey, share with the circle,” Almyra grumbled, trying to lean over his shoulder. At her goading, Xander turned the plank to reveal a strange claw mark with five jagged streaks; one shorter than the rest in the shape of a hand.

“That’s what’s left of the ship,” Fisher said.

“Woah,” Emmet ran his fingers over the claw marks.

“Perhaps…there is something to this tale,” Adelaide mused.

“Yeah, it means never go on the fucking ocean,” Almyra grumbled, looking back at Fisher. “Food’s almost ready, yeah? Mind if we get to it soon?”

‘Scared?’ Kay signed with a smirk.

“Do these look like fins to you?” Almyra tapped her hooves on the deck. “I eat stuff from the ocean, I don't go into it!”

“Very well, Ms. Almyra,” Fisher raised his hands with an amused grin. “Wouldn’t want you losing your appetite.”

“Hey!” She stood. “A little story ain’t gonna make me lose anything-” Before her voice raised too much, Captain Fisher dropped a plate of the most appetizing, crispy fish’n’chips in Almyra’s hands. All her protestation faded quickly after that. “T-Thanks, chief.”

Left to their own meals, the circle ate in contemplative silence, each eyeing the clawed board left behind. Were there really monsters in the maw? Did something curse the sea out there? It was a terrible idea after what Emmet said happened to the last team that went out there, but curiosity ever pushed Carmine towards bad ideas. Part of her wanted to sail out and discover the answer for herself.

On the way back home, Carmine’s thoughts completely occupied her attention. For the first time in a while, she thought back to the Sanctuary back near Dwerra, and the monster she saw within. It oozed black ichor from its wounds, and from the portal whence it came. What if there was another portal somewhere beneath the ocean and it was spawning monsters down there? Who could even deal with something like that? Kathir was capable, but she didn’t have gills…at least Carmine thought she didn’t. Maybe this was worth looking into-

Carmine felt herself yanked to the side without warning. She nearly fell off balance as Xander held her steady, looking over her shoulder.

“Sorry for that,” He said, nodding behind Carmine. “That horse tried to bite your ear off.”

“Thanks,” Carmine turned around to see her equine attacker. “I wasn’t paying atten…tion…” Her voice choked in her throat as she saw the horse staring back at her. It pulled as much as it could in its wagon harness, nudging Carmine’s hair as her hands moved up on their own to pet its black fur. She knew him. “Bandit?” Carmine tilted her head, her eyes wide and her mind in discord. “What…are you doing here?”

“Hey, sorry,” a young man with dark hair and green eyes rounded the wagon and tried to push Bandit away, but the big horse refused to budge. He looked around Carmine’s age. “He’s pretty temperamental…as you can probably see.”

Carmine stared, frozen. She recognized him too.

“Carmine,” Almyra walked up next to her, worry in her voice. "You okay?"

“Carmi-” The young man whipped his head from Bandit to stare. A frown furrowed his brow as he looked at Carmine’s face. It shifted from curiosity, to recognition, to astonishment, eventually curling into a repulsive smile. “Carmine!?" Filbert raised his voice in disbelief. "You’re alive?!”