Aida felt her face flush as her brain caught up with what her body was feeling.

  His arms wrapped firmly around her shoulders, his chin resting in the crook of her neck, his taller frame folding over to compensate for her significantly shorter stature.

  "Good luck with everything."

  Aida laughed awkwardly as she pulled away from him, hoping her cheeks weren't as flushed as she felt. "Good luck to you, too."

  Glancing away from him, she made eye contact with Pritchard, who had just turned away from shaking hands with Caleb and luckily hadn't noticed anything.

  Perhaps she was trying to dilute the significance of what had just happened, or trying to convince herself what she noticed in that embrace meant just as little to her as what it surely meant to Dev—because who would hug someone else like that in public—but Aida held out her arms to Pritchard. Pritchard gawked at her, before grinning as he opened his own arms wide.

  "I knew I'd win you over one day, Loreh!"

  "Not a chance," Aida retorted as she patted his back politely. "But we went through a lot, so...you'd better stay alive."

  "Same to you." Pritchard gave her a quick salute as he stepped aside, unable to stop grinning.

  Aida gave everyone else in Dev's squad a quick hug, wishing everyone the best.

  Finally, their group dwindled to half its original size, as Edward confessed he had to run for the same golem as the other boys; his family was expecting him.

  "It seems so silly to still be at school when everyone else has gone," Lily said forlornly. "But getting on that golem now after all those farewells seem even sillier."

  "The next golem is in an hour," Sue said reasonably. "We can just...walk the grounds. Take in the last of the view."

  "Sunset is soon," Caleb said softly. "Maybe we can say goodbye to the school together."

  "Daww, Caleb is so sentimental!" Lily teased, punching Caleb's forearm. An evil smile spread across her face. "One last game of water fighting?"

  ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

  Aida bounced on her seat as the golem trundled down the road to Buddington Town.

  The route was significantly different from how she remembered it: the ride between towns had always been a bit bumpy, but now the dirt path was pitted with holes and some gashes that were large enough to be considered trenches. Signs of combat were everywhere.

  "Is it worth it to use some mana to straighten the path out?" Lily asked Vanita queasily from across the aisle.

  "I'll do it," Caleb muttered, lifting his chin to the darkened tree boughs as he closed his eyes. Soon enough, the ride smoothed out, letting Aida release the tension she didn't even notice she was holding in her body just to avoid having her tailbone banged about.

  "So when are we all getting together?" Lily asked as soon as everyone had relaxed. "I know my family is going to force me to stay at home tomorrow so we can catch up, but I should be free to come hang out either Spark Day or Mist Day!"

  "That will be true for all of us, I believe," Vanita said thoughtfully. "Shall we meet on Mist Day, then?"

  "Yeah! I'll use Spark Day to go to the Gullbeaks HQ," Sue said brightly. She glanced over at Caleb, who still had his eyes closed as he continued cleaning the road up. Despite not answering, he nodded in agreement.

  "That works for me," Levi yawned. The group made plans to meet at Caleb's home, for a celebratory homecoming hot spring soak at noon, and then head to Sue's family restaurant for dinner.

  Soon enough, the gates of Buddington Town finally emerged through the trees, and the golem slowed to a stop as the guard held out his hand to speak with the driver. Eventually, the wagon trundled through the gate, its occupants slowly rousing themselves as they took stock of where they were.

  "Here we are!" Sue said brightly as the golem stopped at an intersection. She grabbed Aida's hand and they stood up together, giving everyone quick hugs and promising to see each other soon.

  Levi held onto Aida a second longer than everyone else, whispering softly in her ear. "Remember, when in doubt, just act bland."

  "Got it," Aida murmured back. She patted his shoulder gratefully as he let go, and she stepped off the golem with Sue. They waved off their friends as the golem continued on its route, before the other girl linked her arm through Aida's, smiling eagerly.

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  "Let's go home!"

  Instead of following the main road, Sue steered her down a tight alley, weaving through a maze of several different buildings so efficiently that Aida gave up hope of tracking where they were.

  Finally, they stopped in front of a four-story building with a brightly lit restaurant on the ground floor. Aida could hear laughter and music float out through the windows and door as it periodically opened to admit or disgorge customers.

  Sue skipped up to the door, holding it open to allow a raucous party through and gesturing for Aida to enter. "Welcome home!"

  Aida took a deep breath. Be bland.

  Striding through the door with a confidence she didn't earn, Aida stopped just beside the door, allowing Sue to enter beside her.

  As soon as Sue stepped through, hands on her hips with a massive grin on her face, the restaurant fell silent, struck by her glowing beauty. "We're home!"

  "Girls!" A shriek emitted from a tall, slim woman with golden hair and blue eyes, who was wearing a long dress with a serving apron. She set down her water pitcher with a thunk before rushing over to them, with a lightness in her step that made Aida think she had done ballet all her life.

  She wrapped an arm around each of them, hugging them tightly as all the customers began shouting, welcoming them back.

  Sue's mother pulled them to the bar, where customers had gladly vacated two stools to allow the girls to sit together. Several patrons even began yelling into the back of the kitchen, alerting the head cook his daughter was home.

  Sue's father was a broad man, bald with lilac eyes. He wiped his hands on his full-length apron as he handed his ladle to an assistant, squeezing his way out of the kitchen with an equally broad smile.

  "Soots! Aida! It's so good to have you two home!" He quickly swiped two wooden plates off of a stack and loaded them with potatoes, eggs, and a meat stir fry, setting the homey meal in front of the two girls. "Eat up! You’re both so thin. I'll send Joe to let Aida's parents know you're back while you eat."

  "Thanks, Pa!" Sue leaned across the bartop to give her father a kiss on the cheek, and Aida echoed her thanks with a shy smile, waiting for Sue to begin eating before she started on her own plate.

  "So, tell us! Did you get any job offers? Which one did you go with?" Pa Heslia asked as he leaned on the bar with one elbow, looking between Sue and Aida.

  "Let them eat first before you start interrogating them!" Ma Heslia hollered from the restaurant floor.

  "I don't mind!" Sue said, her cheek bulging yet still somehow managing to look cute while she talked with her mouth full. She whipped her offer letter out from her satchel, brandishing it in the air. "I'm working with the Gullbeaks! I'll be in town!"

  All of the restaurant patrons clapped and hooted at the news, throwing congratulations and questions at Sue. They were all clearly regulars, and very familiar with the Heslia family.

  Fortunately, because everyone clearly knew friendship dynamic between Sue and Aida already, no one thought to ask Aida to talk about herself. She was able to peacefully finish her plate, which was slightly greasy, but had the wonderful comfort of being a homecooked meal.

  As soon as Aida finished her last bite, the restaurant door opened again to reveal two timid, dark-haired characters. Their tight expressions relaxed into smiles as they caught sight of Aida in the corner, hidden behind Sue, who was laughing with her whole body, pecking at her half-empty plate. Here we go.

  "Meg and Ray! Welcome! Gotchu a plate," Pa Heslia boomed as he saw them.

  "No thanks, Kenny, we have food at home," Ray, Aida's father, said humbly. "Hello, Suelina, welcome home."

  "We insist!" Ma Heslia swept up from behind Aida's parents, scooping them towards the bar. Sue quickly moved her plate over, forcing the bar stool seating to shift down two spaces so that the Lorehs could sit with their daughter. "There you go, I'll get you all some napkins..."

  "It's so good to see you," Meg said, drinking in the sight of Aida. "You've...grown. You seem like a different person now."

  "I have grown! I got a job offer," Aida said, eagerly grasping the opportunity to establish the fact that she had changed from when they remembered her. She carefully pulled her own offer out from her rucksack, which she had stacked between notebooks to prevent it from getting needlessly wrinkled. "I'll be heading to Burston City to work as a Healer and Poison Specialist on Sun Day.”

  Meg and Ray's faces fell as they looked at the offer, before they hitched their smiles back on their faces. "Congratulations, Aida. I'm so proud of you," Ray said, handing the offer carefully back to Aida. "But...are you sure you want to do this?"

  "Of course I do," Aida said decisively. "I really like Healer Bokar, and he promised to teach me everything I needed to know!" She prattled at them for the next quarter hour, recounting how she had successfully established a positive working relationship with Healer Bokar during the sun cycle, forcing her parents to eat the plates Pa Heslia had set in front of them ("Don't worry about the cost! Today's a celebration!").

  "And that's not all," Sue chimed in from behind the Lorehs' dumbstruck expressions, making them turn around to face her. "Aida ranked third for the Water graduates!"

  They stared at Sue, as if they didn't believe what they were hearing.

  "Third? How many Water students are there?" Ray asked faintly.

  "Six!" Ray's eyes bulged as he looked back at Aida, as if seeing her for the first time. Sue nodded in satisfaction at everybody's shock. Even the patrons at the tables next to the bar were silent, staring at Aida with surprise. "Yup, Aida worked so hard this year!"

  "Another congratulations to you, Aida!" Ma Heslia said, coming up to ruffle Aida's hair affectionately. "We all knew you had it in you!"

  "Thank you." Aida looked at Ray and Meg with concern. They were still in disbelief, but now confusion was starting to filter through the shock. "Are you two okay? Say something," she urged, reminding herself to make her voice small, like how Aida presumably used to be.

  That did the trick. They both began smiling, before Meg reached forward for a hug. "We're very proud of you, Aida."