Anything for You IV / Sleepless Nights

“Mmmrrgh,” I moaned, struggling to keep my eyes open.

Jeez, what happened to me? I used to be able to tank an all-nighter or two like it was nothing.

I gently laid down what I was holding and reached for the cup situated on the other side of my desk, pouring its now cold contents down my throat.

For the millionth time today, I broke out into a coughing fit as that foul liquid splashed across my taste buds. According to Professor Seris, this was the strongest tea they sold in Fordin, and praying that meant it was also loaded with the most caffeine, I had been downing cups all day.

“This shit is vile…” I complained to myself, knowing full well I’d ask the professor to brew me another pot at some point tonight.

I sighed as I set the cup back down and gazed at my handiwork. It was my best attempt so far, but I still didn’t think it was good enough yet. My braiding skills had improved, but the density looked off, and the final shape was more elliptical than it should be. It might be suitable if I gave this one to Mara or Fleur, but…

“I need to try again. Shina deserves better than this.”

If someone had told me a week ago that I’d be spending an entire evening weaving flower crowns, I would’ve thought they were insane, yet that was the position I found myself in today.

I reached into the basket on my desk and pulled out a fresh handful of flowers. These white-petalled perennials were the symbol of the Trivune Festival, and braiding them into crowns was, as I had come to learn, an important tradition associated with the holiday. Luckily, after a half hour of coaching from Mara, I managed to grasp the basic concept, though being good at it was another matter altogether.

The flowers I was using were designed for this very ritual, having been treated with magic to make them unnaturally tough and wilt resistant. That meant they were easier to use, but the notable price markup made me feel like a sucker falling for an obvious scam, even though I easily had the spare change to afford it.

Since we were prohibited from leaving campus, I’d needed to ask others to pick up supplies like this on my behalf. A few months ago, I never would’ve felt comfortable requesting a favor like that, but the time pressure I was currently under forced me to cave. I’d already thanked them dozens of times, but I couldn’t express how grateful I was to Professor Seris and Anita for their willingness to help.

That went for my fellow Inheritors, too. When I proposed the idea of creating a makeshift Trivune Festival on campus grounds, I’d hoped Akio, Mara, and Kerne would be receptive to the idea, but I didn’t expect all three of them to bring in their own friends to help out too.

I smiled to myself as I began to braid stems together once more.

They’re all good people. I’m so lucky to have them.

Lost in concentration, I wasn’t sure how long I’d been weaving by the time a sudden sound pulled me back to reality.

A series of clinks emerged from my doorknob as it was rotated back and forth several times. The futile effort continued for a number of seconds before the person on the other side gave up.

“Everett?” a familiar voice called out from the hall. “Did you really lock your door? Or are you not there?”

I sighed, loud enough she could probably hear. Thank god I locked it.

“Give me a sec, I’ll get it,” I said, tucking the basket and my prototypes away in a desk drawer before making my way in that direction.

Although I’d solicited the help of many friends and acquaintances to enact my plan, there was one person I was keeping it from, and I couldn’t afford to slip up and expose everything now.

Checking a second time to ensure my things were hidden, I unlocked the door and opened it to see an impatient mage standing on the other end.

“Why’d you lock the door?”

“I seem to recall someone warning me to keep it locked at all times.”

“I changed my mind. It’s annoying, so don’t do it again.”

I couldn’t tell if she was giving me a suggestion or a command as she invited herself inside. As usual, she had a stack of papers and a book pressed between her arm and torso to hold them steady, and she deposited the bundle onto my bed before sitting down herself. Without skipping a beat, she began looking through her various papers, jumping straight into work.

I’d normally drop a sarcastic line or two to complain that she had no reason to be here instead of her own room, but I refrained from engaging in that usual back-and-forth.

To be honest, I was glad she showed up. Ever since our meeting with the headmaster, she’d doubled down on her efforts to decipher Raplin’s summoning sigil, drowning her grief in endless research. I knew she’d refuse to take breaks even if I urged her, so keeping her company was the least I could do. Plus, I’d gotten so used to this daily routine by now that it threw me off whenever she was too busy to bother me.

As I sat down once more, she looked up from the paper she’d been reading. “You look really tired, Everett. Have you been exerting yourself recently? What were you doing when I got here?”

As my mind raced to think of a convincing lie, I was caught off-guard when she suddenly dropped her papers. Her cheeks flushed, and a mortified look hijacked her expression.

“W-wait a second. Did I intrude on you doing something, um, private…?”

“What? No! Don’t make weird assumptions just because the door was locked!” I sighed to mask my embarrassment at her insane question. “I just didn’t sleep much last night. Or the night before, honestly.”

“Why? Are you doing alright?” Her previous emotion evaporated instantly as she grew concerned at my comment.

“Huh? I mean, yeah, I’m fine. Just been busy. My, uhhhhh… magic class has been rough. I needed to pull a couple of late-night work sessions to make it through.”

“I’ll have to talk to Professor Seris about that. He must be overworking you if that’s the case.”

“Ah, no, it’s my fault. I fell behind.”

Just buy my excuse already!

“That’s not true; I know you’re too studious for that. You never look out for yourself, so I will. I’ll have a word with him tomorrow.”

“Ngh…”

Sorry, Professor. You’ll have to take one for the team.

“If you’re still not done with it, I can help,” she offered.

“Nah, I’m finished with the magic stuff. I only have my other classes to deal with.”

Finally accepting my story and setting me free, Shina begrudgingly returned to her own studies, much to my relief.

I might not be able to work on the flower crowns with her in the room, but I could at least continue organizing the rest of the event plans. I pulled out my notes—written entirely in English to ensure she couldn’t read anything over my shoulder—and gave them another look-over.

Over the past several days, I’d dedicated countless hours to researching the Trivune Festival to figure out what we could replicate with the meager time and resources available. In the end, I determined we couldn’t do much more than prepare the holiday’s signature foods, create some simple props, and set up a handful of basic activities, like the flower weaving. Just arranging those things, however, was a far bigger task than I’d anticipated.

Between gathering and distributing supplies, getting authorizations from the academy, finding capable chefs amongst my helpers for each dish, and more, I’d barely slept a wink in the last 48 hours.

I know it won’t compare to the real thing, but I hope I can at least make her smile.

That thought alone was enough to keep my body moving despite the exhaustion threatening to smother me.

“Hey, Everett.” Reversing our typical roles, Shina was the one to derail us with conversation.

“Yeah?”

“What would you be doing right now if you weren’t an Inheritor?”

It was a strange question, and I had no idea where it was coming from. I hadn’t thought about my old day-to-day life in a long time.

“I’m not sure,” I answered honestly. “I’d probably be doing something to distract myself, I guess. But it doesn’t really matter. I’m glad I became an Inheritor. Even if I were to die tomorrow, the regrets wouldn’t outweigh my gratitude.”

“Don’t say stuff like that, even if it’s just to make a point,” she complained. “But… I feel the same way. I’m glad I became an Inheritor.”

She smiled for what felt like the first time in forever, then went straight back to her documents without another word.

What an odd girl. I smiled too, likewise returning to the papers in front of me.

Before I realized it, the weariness had caught up, and though I tried to beat it back, it quickly overtook me.

Unsurprisingly, Shina chose not to wake me from my peaceful slumber.