Book 4 Chapter 44: The Second Generation

++Many a magical genius has come to one of the great Institutes only to find themselves struck by the crushing realization that they are, in the grand scheme of things, not that special. They tend to deal with it in different ways.++

- Professor Ludvar Bogern.

Victoria had dreamed of going to the Winzorth Institute for years, and that dream had held when she heard the announcement about Isabel’s own new Institute.

She did feel bad about that. The Vornholt Institute was not just the talk of the town, but it was the talk of essentially every town in Garamon. It was not, however, the Winzorth Institute. Nothing was the Winzorth Institute.

But it wasn’t just the desire for the best education possible that was keeping her from going there. Victoria wasn’t even sure if she would learn more at Winzorth, from what she’d heard Isabel was already running things with far more care for academia and far less for politics.

No, she’d wanted to head to the Winzorth Institute just to avoid being trapped under her sister’s shadow.

Isabel had resisted, which surprised Victoria. She’d always gotten the feeling her sister was more practically-minded than that. The protests Isabel had raised were certainly practical, in the aesthetic level at least. She didn’t want it to reflect badly on their family that her own sister would choose the Winzorth Institute over the Vornholt. Victoria had to admit, she had a point.

But she didn’t relent.

It had turned into one of their clash of wills, with neither side relenting and both certain the other would crumble at any moment. With anyone else Victoria usually enjoyed the certainty of victory in this area, but Isabel was as intractable as set cement and every bit as patient as she herself was. Their arguing had gone on for the better part of four hours before anything like a concession was finally reached.

“Half a year,” Isabel agreed at last. “You will attend the Winzorth Institute for half a year, then transfer to the Vornholt. That will give the impression of you having tried the Winzorth Institute out and found it wanting, and reflect favourably upon my own as a result.”

Victoria hadn’t agreed, and she’d gone to father, but Isabel was quick enough in persuading him there was money to be made in the idea, and he’d picked up the annoying habit of deferring to Isabel in all things magical. After that, Victoria never really had a chance.

So here she was in the Winzorth Institute now, knowing that her days were numbered, and that the number was about one hundred and eighty.

Victoria had heard a few accounts from Agrian about the Institute, and she’d been expecting to find it pretty damned hostile. She’d heard far fewer from Isabel, but the occasional tidbit her sister gave out made it sound like everyone in the building would be out to get her. Magic wasn’t the place of women, right? They ought to stop bothering all the boys and go and do something more proper.

Except, she wasn’t getting as much of that here. Nobody was calling things out while she walked through the grand halls, there were no insults hurled her way as she sat in the sprawling classrooms, and her accommodations, comfortable as they were, were placed right next to everyone else with no issue.

Victoria didn’t exactly feel a warm welcome of course, there was a distance between her and every other student that felt impossible to bridge. It was clear she stood out, clear, in this sea of testosterone, that she was floating nearly alone. The handful of other girls in the whole Institute were all far older than her and didn’t seem any more eager to interact than the boys.

No, this wasn’t deliberate cruelty or targeted harassment or anything of the sort—it was fear. Maybe a Vornholt had to worry about being subjected to open malice in the Winzorth Institute once, but that had been long before Isabel Vornholt became one of Garamon’s most powerful people.

However much the people here thought she didn’t belong, they were most certainly not going to say it to her face. Not with a giant, Isabel-shaped shadow looming over them all.

Victoria had often wondered what her sister did to inspire so much fear. After her attempted kidnapping, she’d seen it first-hand. Now she just wondered how many other stories were circulating about the wrath of Garamon’s greatest prodigy.

It was a shame she couldn’t really ask anyone.

The Professors were all interested in her, but that was no surprise. It was actually quite affirming to be here and see first-hand how her talent measured up to the more normal geniuses of Garamon. Victoria was rather annoyed to hear that there were two boys in the Institute at this very moment who were her rough equals in natural ability, with both being somewhat superior to her in skill thanks to having had an earlier, more comprehensive upbringing, but minus those two, she stood supreme even in this school of geniuses.

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And the Winzorth Institute made a policy of letting its prodigies know exactly where they stood in the pecking order. Victoria’s life became one luxury after another, and if the distance between herself and her classmates never quite stopped bothering her, it became rather difficult to let it ruin her enjoyment with all the luxuries being pressed her way. She began having to quite carefully watch herself to avoid leaving the Institute fifty pounds heavier than she’d been upon first entering it.

Despite everything, it was the classes Victoria loved the most. The classes were where she got to take part in her two favourite pastimes: improving her own abilities, and, just as important, demonstrating to everyone else just how extraordinary they were.

Fortunately for her she didn’t share anything but the Illusion studies with either of the other two biggest prodigies, which meant she got to essentially guarantee awe and amazement with everything she did. Victoria noted that there were far more girls there than Isabel or Agrian had described, though she was disappointed to find that most of them fell far short of the talent she’d expected. Indeed, they were just as awed by her as anyone. Fawning idiots, Victoria decided. They would probably never even have been considered for membership were it not for Isabel’s example.

Then again, Victoria had to admit she was lacking in a few areas herself early on.

At first her technical skill had been rather middling by the Winzorth Institute’s standards, but within a week she found that she’d overtaken two of the other median apprentices in her classes. After her first month, she’d become one of the most skilled in any class. Victoria imagined she’d be among the most technically sound in the Institute by the time she left.

Still, it was a lonely place. And making it clear with every lesson just how much better she was than everyone else did little to earn the other students’ affection. Victoria had just about resigned herself to being an outcast among the school when she was approached one day by a rather unexpected pair.

Both boys, and one of which she recognised easily. He was Hiltak Voret, one of only two current students who matched her for raw talent.

He had the family look without a doubt. Somewhat tall, somewhat lean, with that bright blonde hair that was only a shade farther from gold than Victoria’s own. Add a few years and he would’ve been a dead-ringer for Ilgryn Voret. Given that man’s role in rescuing her, Victoria found this fact working quite quickly to endear her to the boy.

“Vornholt, right?” Hiltak Voret asked her with a grin. “I won’t bother introducing myself, you probably know who I am already.”

“I do,” she nodded. Then her eyes flicked furtively to his companion. “Him, though…”

“Oh, that’s Aravon Voret,” Hiltak explained. He frowned at Aravon. “Uh, are you Aravon the fourteenth or Aravon the fifteenth?”

“Seventeenth,” replied Aravon. Hiltak rolled his eyes.

“Bloody hell,” he sighed. “Honestly don’t bother tracking that part, he’ll be the eighteenth by next week at the rate my family’s making new ones.”

Victoria giggled, then quickly caught the sound and smoothed it away. Isabel would’ve given her an earful if she’d seen that. Giggling around men made you look cute, and cute women weren’t taken seriously.

“Anyway,” Hiltak continued, “I came over because uh…well, I’ve noticed you don’t seem to be terribly social. Or, rather, that others aren’t especially social with you.”

“That’s been noticeable for a month now,” Victoria pointed out. “So why are you coming over just at this moment?”

He smiled, though it was a shade forced. The smile people gave when you caught them pulling a fast one and they wanted to pass it off as something light-hearted and insignificant.

“Ah, I assumed you knew already. Our families are going to be joining together soon enough. Your sister’s marrying my…uh…” he looked to Aravon.

“Second cousin,” the other boy chimed in helpfully.

“Right. That. Ilgryn,” Hiltak finished.

“It’s a done deal?” she asked.

“Yes, the contracts are signed, now everyone’s just waiting on the ceremony.”

Victoria tried not to show her surprise, but she probably failed. She’d known Isabel was talking about engagement, but she had no clue it was this…final.

Her next thought was irritation that she was finding out from a pair of Vorets rather than her own bloody sister.

“Uh, I’m not meant to have told anyone that to be clear,” Hiltak added, apparently picking up on her mood. “So I’d rather you not let it slip that I did. It’s privileged information, I only mentioned it because I figured your sister would tell you when you next saw each other anyway.”

He was trying to make her feel better, and achieving the opposite.

“I have to go,” Victoria said abruptly. “It was nice to meet you.” She turned, then paused as Voret reached out to take her arm quite gently. He let go the very instant she stopped.

“Sorry,” he said. “Obviously you can head off if you want, but I really would like to get to know you more at some point, now that we’re family.”

“Distant family,” Aravon added. “Actually she’d be our—”

“Yes, thank you Aravon,” Hiltak snapped. He turned back to Victoria apologetically. “Look, I’m not very good at this, sorry. I’ll go now but uh…you know, we’re around, if you want some company that isn’t scared of your sister and isn’t especially unbalanced by meeting one of the biggest prodigies in the world.” He flashed a grin at that last part. “I am your magical equal, you know.”

Victoria managed not to smile this time, not fully. She made the corners of her lips twitch a bit, just to let the Vorets know she was mildly pleased, and nodded shortly. “Perhaps,” she said, then turned and continued heading off. Had she managed to be all mysterious and fascinating, like Isabel always was? Victoria didn’t know.