The Shadowseeker - Victor Kloss Page 0,51

been gone. Most of that time I was led to believe they were dead. You were with me when we found out they weren't. That's why we came to the Institute in the first place, to find out what happened to them.”

“A lot has changed since then,” Charlie said, keeping his voice soft.

Ben slammed a fist into his palm. “Nothing has changed,” he said, his voice rising. “Nothing is more important than finding my parents.”

“Nothing?” Charlie's patience was starting to fray and he gripped his seat, his voice gaining some steel. “What about your parents single-handedly trying to stop a dark elf king from taking over the world?”

“Nothing!” Ben shouted, stabbing a finger towards Charlie. He stepped forwards. Charlie sprang from his chair to meet him.

“That's enough!”

Natalie's voice reverberated round the room with such force it made Ben's ears ring. In one purposeful stride she had placed herself between Charlie and Ben. Her green eyes were blazing and there was an intensity about her that cut through Ben's anger.

“Ben, you are thinking with your heart. Charlie, you are thinking with your head. It's not surprising you've come to different conclusions. It's certainly not worth fighting over. There is no right answer. Now both of you, calm down.”

Ben felt like he had been splashed with icy water. He ran a hand through his hair. The red mist began to clear and that part of his mind responsible for analytical thought clicked back into gear.

“Look, I know it might not make complete sense,” Ben said, with a resigned shrug. “But you only get one set of parents. I'd like to see mine again.”

Charlie smiled. “As Natalie said, sometimes it's better thinking with the heart, not the head. I'm just kind of rubbish at that.”

“Good!” Natalie said, clapping her hands together. “Now, can the two of you kiss and make up? I want to get out of here.”

— Chapter Nineteen —

Training and Trouble

Ben's hopes of visiting SpellWorks Inc. anytime soon were dashed the very next day.

“Two weeks?” Ben asked. “We can't get in any sooner?”

They were talking quietly in the corner of the common room, sipping on tea and hot chocolate to wake themselves up.

“One does not simply walk into SpellWorks,” Natalie said, with a little smile. “I know someone who works there, but that's how long he thinks it will take before he can get us in. It took me all weekend just to convince him to help us.”

“And we can't just wing it ourselves?”

“Not if we value our lives,” Natalie said.

Charlie cleared his throat. “Two weeks it is, then.”

Ben swallowed his disappointment. For the first time, they were hot on the trail of his parents, and possibly Elizabeth's Boots. He stared at his cup of tea disconsolately.

But if he thought the two-week waiting time would pass slowly, he was very wrong, as he found out the following morning at muster.

“A word, please, Mr. Greenwood and Mr. Hornberger,” Dagmar said, as they were filing out with the rest of the apprentices.

Dagmar, Ben noticed, was not looking her usual imperious self. She had small bags under her eyes and they were slightly red. Even her hair, which was normally pulled back in a perfect ponytail, had a few strands out of place.

Even more astonishing than her looks was the nod of approval Dagmar gave them. “Congratulations on managing to stick to your targets. You are now on day thirty of your apprenticeship. As you know, the first grade of the apprenticeship can only last a maximum of fifty days, and the earlier you complete it, the better it reflects on you. Factoring in your current progress, I have scheduled in your first grade exam for day forty-four.”

Ben and Charlie exchanged looks of alarm that Dagmar either didn't see or didn't care for.

“That gives you two weeks to finish your studies and revise, in preparation,” Dagmar said. “Needless to say, failure to pass means expulsion from the apprenticeship program.”

Ben and Charlie hurried over to the kitchens to begin their chores – washing dishes today; both wore worried frowns.

“I wish someone had given us more warning about this exam,” Charlie said, grabbing a brush and scrubbing absently at a plate. “I don't feel like I'm ready. Do you think Dagmar will let us reschedule? Technically we could push it back five days and still be within the fifty-day requirement.”

“No,” Ben said firmly. “You heard what she said, the longer we take, the worse it reflects on us. We'll be ready on day forty-four.”

Thoughts of SpellWorks,