Chapter Text
The Hall of the Wise was quieter than Easthies remembered. Not that he had been here often. Not even an apprentice yet, there was no reason for him to come to this important place. What place did a child have among those adults who made the most important decisions of their world? Still though the few times he did have reason to be here there were always small groups gathered about, ready to bring some proposition or concern before the Three.
Perhaps it was because there were so few people present. Perhaps it was because every sound seemed insignificant beneath the gaze of the Three Wise Ones. Whatever the reason, the room felt vast as he crossed its polished floor.
He kept his hands folded neatly behind his back. A proper posture reflected a proper state of mind. That was what his instructors always said. He always followed the advice of his instructors and it had yet to steer him wrong.
The Three Wise Ones sat before him upon their raised seats. Their expressions were as inscrutable as ever.
"Greetings, Wise Ones," Easthies bowed, voice measured and professional as any adult
"No need for that formality," said one, kindly. Easthies very narrowly avoided narrowing his eyes at what he suspected with the beginnings of a grin on their face.
Still, he straightened up from his bow, though he did not relax, his back remained ramrod strait, his stern little face a sharp contrast to the baby fat that still clung infuriatingly to his cheeks
A week had passed since the first examination. A week since he had successfully demonstrated his aptitude and earned the right to pursue an apprenticeship.
Most children would have spent that week celebrating the start of the next stage of their lives. This was what they all wanted, to pass the test and become the apprentice of a witch and start that path themselves. They all learned some basics beforehand. The fundamentals of magic and hours of penmanship practice to stave off shaky hands. Now they would get to learn REAL magic. Study and apply new things… it was exciting. It was an adventure. A real reason for celebration.
Easthies had spent the week since pouring over records and observation notes he’d been taking the past few months. None of them necessarily magic related.
"You have done exceptionally well for your age. We haven’t seen a completion time that quick for quite some time," one of the other Wise complimented.
"Thank you," the boy replied, feeling some heat rise in his cheeks, completely unbidden. This was not the dignified front he wished to show before the Wise! They would think him some silly child now. The Wise One continued speaking to him and he couldn’t dwell long on his internal struggle.
"You understand why you have been summoned?"
"To discuss my apprenticeship," he nodded, composed once again. His ears were certainly not still a touch red and dwelling on the fact was unseemly.
"Just so."
The eldest of the Three folded their hands.
"You have had time to consider your options?"
"I have."
He had been thinking about it for a considerable amount of time. What child his age didn’t? Several names had immediately come to mind. Masters with sterling reputations. Masters known for producing talented apprentices. Masters any sensible child would be honored to study under. There was also the option of going directly to apprentice with the Knights, an option that he’d carefully considered as well.
Instead Easthies said;
"I wish to study under Master Coco."
Silence followed. Nothing dramatic or concerning really. Merely a pause that lasted half a second longer than expected. It was enough to be noticeable. And Easthies always noticed such little things.
One Wise One's fingers stilled. Another tilted their head slightly. Reactions all filed away in the youth’s mind. He didn’t yet know if they were of any importance yet but... Anything that come from one of the Wise was worth paying attention to. No matter how insignificant it seemed at the time.
"Master Coco?" one repeated.
"Yes."
"That is an unusual choice."
"I do not believe so," he replied with all the gravitas that a twelve year old, even a particularly stern one, could muster.
"No?" the Wise One chuckled.
"No," Easthies kept his voice level, "Master Coco's work is innovative. Her methods differ significantly from those of her contemporaries. I believe studying under her would broaden my understanding of magical theory and practice."
He had expected this, and had carefully prepared his explanation beforehand. All of his feathers remained unruffled. It was also entirely true. Mostly. He had his other reasons of course. But those were reasons he would be keeping close to his chest until the time he had the proper information to back them up.
The Three Wise Ones exchanged glances. A shared look. A secret. Once more, Easthies resisted the urge to narrow his eyes.
"Why Master Coco specifically?" one asked. The Knight Captain. They had remained silent until now, allowing the other two to steer the conversation.
"Because her atelier produces unusual results," the instant the words left his mouth, Easthies realized they sounded worse than intended.
One of the Wise Ones bit their lip in a poor attempt to hide a chuckle, another covered their mouth politely. Easthies frowned. And expression mirrored by the Captain apparently.
"I would never try and dissuade a promising young witch from any path they wished to take," the Captain spoke evenly though their eyes were steely. It was all Easthies could do to not squirm under it, "But I had heard you were interested in a position with the Knight Moralis. I expected you would request an apprenticeship to one of our number.”
"I-I am interested in the Knighthood. I have given it considerable thought and I believe pursuing a traditional apprenticeship under Master Coco, at least until I take the second test, would be beneficial," he floundered a bit. This was his plan of course. He’d hoped to get what he needed by then or sooner. But he hadn’t expected this line of questioning and wasn’t quite as prepared, "Historically, her apprentices seem particularly capable of adapting to unexpected circumstances, which I think would benefit me greatly in a future career with the Knights."
That was true as well. About her apprentices. Master Coco's current apprentice was proof enough of that.
Qifrey.
Easthies had only met him twice. Twice had been sufficient. The boy was talented, almost suspiciously so. He was also suspicious in general. Not so much that he necessarily believed him to be dangerous… Suspicious in the sense that things happened around him that did not make sense. Easthies had not quite yet put everything together but he believed he'd managed to shake a fair few puzzles pieces out. Not quite enough yet to understand what the full picture looked like, but enough to make him pay attention.
Questions regarding his background rarely received direct answers. Certain instructors became oddly evasive whenever he was mentioned. And on more than one occasion Easthies had observed Master Coco abruptly ending conversations the moment Qifrey was mentioned.
There was clearly some piece of information that certain parties possessed. Or perhaps some piece of information everyone else was avoiding. Either way, Easthies intended to discover it. If something… forbidden was happening under the nose of the entire witch world then people would need to know. Something would have to be done. Unfortunately Easthies was twelve. And while he was a brilliant student, no one would take his claims into consideration without some serious proof. Serious proof he was determined to uncover.
The eldest Wise One regarded him for several moments.
"Master Coco's atelier can be... unconventional."
"I am prepared for that," Easthies vowed solemnly, a hand pressed over his heart. He willed every ounce of determination he had to be clearly visible, This was his one chance to get to the bottom of things. To find out what Master Coco and her apprentice Qifrey were up to. If his request was denied… that was it. Of course Master Coco still needed to accept him, but she was known to be a bleeding heart for students looking to learn from her. He had no worries about that. This was his hurdle. The one thing in the way of him and his investigation.
"Are you?"
"Yes."
"I see…" the Wise One's eyes seemed to twinkle.
The Three Wise Ones exchanged another glance. Those looks again. Easthies hands balled up a bit hidden in the sleeves of his robes. He disliked being excluded from conversations that occurred entirely through eye contact. It was MOST unfair.
Finally the eldest spoke again
"We will convey your request."
A small pulse of satisfaction stirred in Easthies' chest. Success. He let out a breath of air he had no idea he was holding. How childish of him.
"Thank you."
"Should Master Coco accept, your apprenticeship will begin shortly thereafter," one of the other Wise explained.
"I understand."
He bowed once more. The meeting was clearly over. Yet as he turned to leave, he heard one of the Wise Ones speak behind him.
"Young Easthies."
He paused and looked back, heart skipping a beat. Was the hurdle not jumped already? Aside from the one small fumble he explained his choice very well. It was ironclad. There was no possible way they would reject his request now, not without at least presenting it to Master Coco.
"Yes?"
The Wise One's slight smile was faint, hard to decipher. Easthies could feel his heart thudding in his chest. He dared not look down but he was certain it must be visible under his robes. They were going to say they had changed their minds. They would not approve they-
"Try not to investigate your future master too thoroughly."
Every muscle in Easthies' body locked and for one terrible moment he wondered if they somehow knew about the notebook. The one he had collected all his observations and theories about the nature of Master Coco and her apprentice. That was impossible though. The notebook was hidden extremely well.
"...I don't know what you mean," he replied after a long moment, feeling equal parts relief and delirium.
"Of course not," the Wise One laughed.
Easthies departed with as much dignity as he could manage.
The doors closed behind him.
—-
It was a picturesque morning in Master Coco’s atelier. Qifrey liked mornings like these. The sunlight filtered through the windows, filling the room with soft light and he could hear birdsong outside. Olruggio sat opposite him, the kitchen table completely hidden beneath diagrams and notebooks and half finished circles. The other boy was excitedly explaining to him something about light up pathways and how it would make night travel so much safer and he’s tried this and that but he’s still no where near success but he’s CERTAIN he just-
"Was that before or after you blew up the cobblestones again?"
Olruggio fell silent and leaned back, arms crossed. He really didn’t need to reply to that because his expression alone was worth a thousand words. Qifrey snorted just as his teacher bustled into the room.
"Good morning boys. Qifrey you should have told your friend to come over earlier. He could have had breakfast with us," Coco spoke as she gathered a few things up. She frowned looking into a cabinet, "Where is my…"
"In the entranceway where it usually is," Qifrey replied automatically, Coco hurried past him ruffling his hair on the way.
"Thank you Master Coco, but I uh, wouldn’t want to impose," Olruggio winced once she was out of sight.
"You needn’t have worried," the other boy lowered his voice, "It was my turn to cook this morning-"
"I can still hear you dear apprentice!"
Olruggio laughed while Qifrey flushed, a hand slapped over his mouth.
"Are you heading out somewhere, Master?" Qifrey cleared his throat and attempted to move the conversation on.
"Oh yes, I’m heading to the Great Hall. You’re free to join me, but I know you don’t care to go there if you can help it," she walked back into the kitchen, a leather satchel hanging off her shoulder as she adjusted her hat, the little bell at the end of her tassel chiming cheerfully, "Apparently someone has asked for an apprenticeship with me. I’m heading there to review the request. I should be back by tomorrow. I trust you can see to the Atelier in my absence?"
Qifrey flashed her a thumbs up.
After leaving a few basic lesson plans for her apprentice, though she trusted him well to manage on his own for a day, Master Coco was off and the boys tried to get to their conversation from before but they did have this brand new distraction.
"Another apprentice, huh?" Olruggio rested his chin in his hands, "Wonder who it’s gonna be?"
"Don’t know… but knowing Master Coco I don’t think she’d say no to whoever it is. She had three apprentices at once before me, so she has no problem teaching more than one student," he rubbed his chin in thought. He didn’t want to say he was jealous of the idea… but he did like having a teacher all to himself. But the idea of helping his master teach a new student felt appealing as well.
"Alaira maybe? I think she recently passed her test," Olruggio leaned back, his pen balanced precariously on his nose.
"Maybe. She’s so loud though I won’t be able to concentrate."
Though the stress might be a good thing come to think about it.
"Hmm… Utowin passed recently too but I think he wants to apprentice to one of the Knights Moralis."
"Utowin?"
"Friend of mine," Olruggio shrugged.
"...You have friends?" Qifrey stared at him owlishly, a bit of a mischievous smirk playing on his lips.
"YOU’RE my friend too, idiot!"
Qifrey could only laugh as his friend kicked him under the table.