Once outside, the soldiers gave him a final shove. Aaron tripped and fell to the dirt road. He cowered near the ground for a moment as the soldiers climbed into their Quillitary vehicle and painstakingly brought it to life, screeching and groaning. When it finally put-putted down the road at a snail’s pace, Aaron shakily rose to his feet. He dusted off his pants, picked up his book bag, and dusted that off too. And all the while he was thinking over and over, Where am I to go now?
When he had dusted off everything that could be dusted, he glanced over his shoulder at the people watching him from the university, and notched his chin just slightly higher in an attempt at regaining some dignity. He looked to his right toward the amphitheater and the Necessary housing quadrants where his parents lived, and then to the left, toward the Quillitary Sector and the palace.
Finally, summoning up a bit of courage, he turned to the right and started walking.
Alex the Ponderer
Alex watched the blackboard anxiously as bits of Aaron’s ousting appeared before him. From Aaron’s dormitory room to the lobby to the exterior of the building, Alwex caught much of the story. And while Alex had known for a while that his twin could never be trusted again, he couldn’t help feeling a twinge in his chest when he imagined how Aaron must feel.
When there was nothing more to see, and since Mr. Today didn’t return, Alex eventually peeled his eyes away from the screens and went back to his regular class schedule, troubled though he was. Later that night Clive, Alex’s interactive blackboard, announced that a message had arrived from Mr. Today.
“Well, what is it?” Alex asked.
“All is well,” Clive read.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Clive just stared at Alex. “Well, Alex, I think it means everything has gone completely haywire.”
“You know,” Alex said, “I could do without the sarcasm once in a while.”
“I do indeed know that.” Clive smiled saucily and disappeared.
» » « «
Still puzzled over the pithy report, yet feeling a tiny bit better about things, Alex fell asleep pondering the unusual discussion he’d had with Mr. Today.
He didn’t tell his friends or anyone else about Mr. Today’s sudden insistence that Alex would one day become Artimé’s leader. But over the next days Alex began to notice something strange: an occasional toothy smile from Ms. Octavia; an encouraging glance from Mr. Appleblossom; a rare nod from Simber as Alex walked with his friends to the dining room one day.
“What was that about?” Lani asked Alex. Simber rarely acknowledged students when he was sitting at his post by the front door, for he was often quite occupied with sampling the air for anything unusual, listening for things that might indicate an attack was imminent. He took his job as Mr. Today’s primary mansion guard very seriously.
Alex shrugged. “Maybe he has an itch. Could be fleas.” He glanced back fearfully at Simber after he said it, remembering too late the statue’s incredible sense of hearing. Simber narrowed his eyes at Alex. “Sorry,” he mouthed at the giant beast. And he was sorry. He just didn’t know how to handle Lani’s question, or how to explain.
He also didn’t know how to explain to Mr. Today that he would be happy to help in whatever way he could, but that Mr. Today had definitely made a grave mistake, and Alex would not be taking over any magely leadership roles now or in the future.
Later Alex and Lani headed to the somewhat accidentally hidden third floor of the library, which both Alex and Samheed had discovered last year. Lani and Meghan now knew about it as well, and the four often did their homework together there quite undisturbed but for the occasionally yawning tiki statue that had once saved Alex, and the blackboard with a rare announcement.
While Lani worked on history and literature, Alex created a list of reasons why he’d be absolutely, positively no good as the next leader of Artimé.
1. Just not great in all the various branches of the arts. Strong in painting/drawing/writing but weak in singing and only so-so in acting and performance.
2. Kind of a pathetic weakling. No muscles.
3. Almost ruined the world when the governors came last year. Would probably accidentally destroy it all single-handedly.
4. Not really into the lifelong family fight thing. Would rather ignore problems like Aaron because they will probably go away.
5. Not exactly fond of having to deal with any other problems, either.
6. Lack of confidence . . . after what happened last time.
Alex stared at the last one, remembering the pain of Aaron sending that deadly scatterclip at him. He rubbed the tiny scar on his chest, near his heart. It was still pink, and his skin was sensitive there. He’d been confident back then, almost cocky about his abilities. To be injured so badly by someone who did magic accidentally’it was a blow all right. And, actually, still a little bit too hard to talk about. He turned his pencil around to erase number six.
Lani looked up from her work and watched Alex wiping tiny bits of eraser off his notebook page. She reached across the table and tapped his hand. “What are you working on?”
He lifted his head and couldn’t help but smile at the earnest look on her face. “Wow. Did you know that in the light from this table, your eyes are seriously bright blue?” he asked. “I wish paint came in that color.”
Lani blushed. She pulled her hand back self-consciously. “Well, if anybody can make that color, it’s you,” she said. “Maybe you should work on that.”