Tetra & Xer

Victoria took pride in her art. She’d made the paint a little different to better adhere to the fabric, while disappearing after a few uses. This wasn’t a painting designed to keep. This was a favor to make a friend look nice while visiting his parents.

Was Rex a friend? He’d helped her move, he’d kissed her, he’d apologized, and now she was going to meet his parents. Friends seemed like the wrong word for their relationship.

“Tetra,” she heard from the mirror she’d placed on her wall before unpacking anything else. She turned.

“What is this?” Brendan, her mentor asked.

“Painting?” she answered, unsure what he wanted to know.

“You’re supposed to catch that water mage. What are you doing painting?”

“You try casting ‘find Water Mage’ and see if you can find anyone.” she left her irritation and Scottish accent unhidden. “Not to mention, I have a mortal vigilante bothering me during my work.”

And Xer judged her for arresting people. He had some kind of superiority complex that made her want to wring his neck.

“And that’s not your armor,” Brendan said.

“It isn’t,” she admitted, “This is a favor.”

“A favor for whom?”

“My neighbor who helped me move in, and was a perfect gentlemen after he kissed me.”

“He kissed you?” Brendan asked, “And you’re doing him a favor?”

How much should you admit about your personal life to a superior? To make it harder, Brendan had been a force in her life since she was a teenager. Did she want him to know just how much of a disaster she was outside of his tutelage?

“I sort of kissed him back, but then I grew a brain and pushed him away. Honestly, I just want to make him feel less like he has to walk on eggshells around me.”

Whether she wanted to maintain face or not, Brendan was at least less embarrassing to admit this to than her father.

“Does he know who you are?”

“He knows I’m Victoria, my family’s from Scotland, and I’m an artist. He’s only heard my surname once, and he thought I was English until I corrected him.”

“Why would you correct him?”

“Brendan, would you like it if I assumed you were Minerian for being a Water Mage?”

“Evil,” Brendan corrected like his alias as a Master wasn’t ridiculous, “And I grew up in Avalon, you know this.”

She stared at him through the mirror, point made.

“And England has much more to answer for than Mineria,” she said.

He rolled his eyes.

“Unless you’ve found the bastard’s name,” she returned to the topic he’d called her for, “I’ll continue working on this, and keeping an eye out.”

“What are you painting for him by the way?” Brendan asked.

She presented the jacket, which now had designs in green and gold.

“His parents complain about him wearing the same thing to their outings, so I thought I’d spruce it up just this once.”

Brendan stared.

“Are those your usual paints?”

“Closer to the ones I use for armor than the ones I use for canvas. They aren’t intended for reuse, but they’ll make a fun corsage.”

Brendan wrinkled his nose.

“Calm down, I just needed an excuse to make sure he matched my dress.”

“Are you going on a date?” Brendan asked, “Aren’t you—”

“I’m going to the opera with him because his parents insisted on him bringing a date, and I love a good performance. Besides, I could use a social life outside of art events.”

“With a man who kissed you?”

“I haven’t had many conversational options since I got here. Not all of us are happy with a dog and few mediocre books.”

“What is that supposed to—”

She twisted her hand, deactivating the runes on the backside of her mirror. She’d find her water mage, but she wasn’t going to be much use on the ground at this time of day anyways.

She straightened the wrinkles in her dress, watching herself in the mirror. It was a bright green that sparkled alongside gold accents. It was only 3:30, but she had nothing else to do but make sure she looked nice.

Her hair was in a bun, she hadn’t used any magek all day so she’d be ready for emergencies. She checked for any paint smudges. Somehow she always got messy whenever she touched the stuff. If she didn’t like the process so much, she’d be angry about all the effort it required.

A knock on her door made her flinch. She gave herself one final glance, then coughed to activate the posh accent Brendan told her to use to hide who she was from Mortals and Mages alike. Though any Mage who knew her family name wouldn’t believe she was this English.

She opened the door to Rex. She could see various places his shirt had been soaked.

“Are you alright?”

“Perfectly fine, just had some trouble at work, sprinklers went wonky and I did my best to keep my plants from being over-watered. Do you have my suit?”

She looked over him again.

“I do, but I’ll need you to take a shower first.”

“Sure, want to wait in my apartment? You look great, by the way. Mom will love you.”

“Thank you.” she turned away as fast as possible, “I’ll grab the suit and come right over.”

She was thinking about putting on makeup, but now she didn’t want to change anything at all.

She took the suit to Rex’s apartment, which was unlocked. She’d been in there only a few days ago, but now was a chance to look at it.

The layout was a mirror of her own apartment, except with more furniture and less boxes. On the table there was a pile of mail, including several magazines with titles involving the word Xenology that seemed untouched. There were also several gardening journals, which looked slightly burnt on the edges.

The couches had several tears covered in duct tape. There was an empty and broken fish tank. It looked like it had broken years ago, and from the inside. Whatever fish lived there must not have been happy.

She returned to the table only to spot scratches, burns, and major water damage on all of it.

Why didn’t he bother getting less damaged furniture if he was wealthy enough to afford an apartment this large?

“Doesn’t make me look very responsible does it?” Rex asked. Victoria turned to see he was in a towel, with hair still dripping water.

Victoria understood that she was stuttering, but she had no idea what she was even trying to say.

“My parents pay for the apartment, and after the second time I mentioned the couch had been damaged, I was told it was my responsibility to handle the furniture, so I went the lazy route and stayed with the bare minimum.”

She could appreciate that much.

“I only just moved out of my family’s home, but if this is the usual state of things…”

“Don’t get too prideful. I’ve seen the paint supplies that dominate your home,” Rex countered, “And you’re still in boxes.”

“I was merely sympathizing with your parents,” Victoria said, “I suspect I’ll have complaints coming my way soon enough, though with any luck it will be about everyone missing me.”

Some discontented expression stained Rex’s face, but disappeared quickly.

“Is that my suit?” he pointed to where she draped it. She handed it to him in answer. He turned the hanger around to get a good look at it.

“That’s paint.”

“And it’s not the best part, but you’ll have to put it on before I show you.”

Rex gave a curious smile.

“Alright then.”

He draped it over his arm, and Victoria got a good look at his back as he left for his room. She would never admit how hard she bit her lip in that moment.

A few minutes later, Rex returned in his suit. Victoria admired her handiwork. Yellow flowers adorned his lapels, with the green of the stems trailing to the inside of the suit.

“How do I look?” He asked.

“Almost perfect.”

She glided her hands down the lapels of his suit, making the flowers she designed shimmer and pop out a little more. They weren’t as prominent as her canvas work was, but it would look a little bit more real at a glance. Rex’s gaze lingered on her hands, eyes widening as the potions did their work.

“Nice.”

He offered his arm. She took it as he led her out of the apartment and down the stairs.

“It’s only fair to warn you, my parents aren’t for everyone, especially not me.”

“I’ve likely dealt with worse. My family line’s still from Magek even if I’m not, and their politics are a pain.”

“That’s not exactly the issue.”

It was a silent car ride until they parked and walked into the opera house. It was a beautiful building, and she found herself staring until Rex abruptly stopped.

“There should be tickets under Vivian,” Rex said at the booth. The ticket person nodded and gestured for them to continue.

“Vivian?” She hadn’t thought about Rex’s surname before. She thought she’d heard the name Arden thrown around, but maybe she was incorrect.

“That’s the first little snag. I changed my name a few years ago, and my family isn’t completely over that I chose to change the last name as well. I’ve been Rex Arden for awhile though, and I’ve got no regrets, aside from having to hear my parents’ complaints.”

She laughed, and he looked at her expectantly.

“This is usually where people ask what my name was before.”

Victoria shook her head.

“Mages change their names plenty, and the only people rude enough to ask what it used to be are scribes, and they only do it to make sure the records aren’t confusing. Is it different for mortals?”

“Mortals?” Rex asked.

“It’s what we call non-mages. I can find a different term if you dislike it.”

“No, no. I just feel a little small when you say it is all; and you’re right, it’s not polite to ask, it’s just what I’m used to. I would have told you it was none of your business anyways.”

He avoided looking at her.

“I’m used to rude questions too,” Victoria said, thinking through every question asked of her as a Tetra.

“Really? Like what?” Rex asked, thoroughly breaking their no questions agreement, not that Victoria was innocent either.

“Well, my mother was a Tetra, and I inherited the ability.”

“Which is?”

“Tetra are able to change from one self to four, sometimes more if one’s skilled enough, but four is my limit.”

Rex nodded, seemingly processing something.

Someone waved them over, and Victoria found herself in front of a woman who looked a lot like Rex.

“Victoria, this is my sister, Nina. Nina, this is my neighbor, Victoria.”

“Your neighbor?” Nina asked.

“I had this sprung on me two days ago. I wasn’t going to get a girlfriend in that time.”

Victoria extended a hand.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Nina shook her hand back, never removing her attention from her brother.

“Where are the parents?” Rex asked.

“They’ve already picked their seats. Introductions will come after intermission.”

“They told me we’d meet here at 5.”

“And?”

What tension had Victoria volunteered for?

“C’mon,” Nina grabbed her arm, “Rex will need time to prepare, and it will be easier on everyone if I introduce you. What was your name again?”

“Victoria.”

“Pretty. And you’re definitely not dating my brother?”

She thought back to the kiss.

“Definitely not.”

“And what do you do for a living?”

“I’m an artist.”

These were a lot of questions for just a neighbor.

“Family money, got it. What family?”

“The Lochs.”

“Never heard of it.”

Of course not.

“We’re more prominent in Magek.”

Nina paused, grinning like a cheshire cat.

“Oh dad’s going to love this.”

Rex let himself take a moment. Nina would go in with Victoria, take the heat for the awkwardness, then Rex would go up and take the heat for everything else.

He made a small burst of fire in his hand, quickly extinguishing it. That made him feel a little better.

He took the steps up to his family’s box, finding the door locked when he opened it. He checked his ticket again to make sure he found the right one.

“Nina?”

He banged on the door, noiselessly hitting something just in front of it, an oddly wet something.

That wasn’t a normal problem, and it definitely wasn’t his sister’s prank. He wasn't able to manipulate whatever substance it was either.

He pulled his mask from his jacket pocket, searching the area for what could cause this.

Victoria looked at the door as the curtain went up. Where was Rex?

“He takes his time,” Nina said.

“I’ll check, just in case.”

“Suit yourself.”

The door was locked, and when she tried to use the shadows, something stopped her.

She closed her eyes, breathing out, and forming another self on the other side of the door.

“That’s the best I can do to help.”

She returned to her seat with the Vivians, trying to pretend everything was all right.