I split from Shadowboon.
He was most likely going back to the dorms - maybe to talk with his girls.
I was going to do the same thing, but somewhere further away so that I wouldn't be spotted with them.
I waited until all of the noise thinned out, until the academy's outdoor spaces felt emptied of all crowds.
Then I headed for some benches on the west side of the academy.
They were half-hidden behind trimmed hedges but close enough to campus to be convenient, far enough that no one lingered there without reason.
The academy was quieter here. The sun was already beginning to set, and so close to the start of the year, people still had to adjust. I guessed that most were in their dorms or out somewhere. That meant that there weren't many people out, so it was sparse enough to have a conversation with the girls.
There was also a statue of someone. The base was a big white block, and the statue was made of bronze metal - maybe just bronze itself. There was a plaque, but I didn't read it, so I didn't know who it was.
I knew I wouldn't have to wait long.
"Alright," I said calmly, not raising my voice. "You can come out now."
For half a second, nothing happened.
Then-
Catherine stepped out from behind the hedge to my left.
Juliet appeared from behind the statue like she'd always been leaning there.
Elizabeth dropped down from a low tree branch with a soft thump.
Really now.
What were they? Ninjas?
"You know," I said, "one of these days someone else is going to notice that."
"We were careful," Catherine said.
"No one saw," Elizabeth added, with a smile that meant absolutely nothing.
That… did not reassure me.
"You picked a secluded spot," Juliet noted.
"That was the idea," I said. "Sit. We need to talk."
They did - after a brief shuffle where Catherine and Elizabeth both tried to take the spot closest to me, Juliet grumbled, and I had to physically point to where I wanted them.
Once they were settled, I folded my hands.
Catherine seemed calm, and she crossed her legs with precise care.
Juliet sat composed enough, but there was a subtle shifting of her eyes - like she was plotting something, which made me wonder.
Elizabeth sat casually, and she drummed her fingers on the edge of the bench. She had no worries.
I noted their behavior and kept my face blank. After sparring with Shadowboon for the fencing club, I didn't think I had the energy to imagine what they were thinking.
I kept it simple.
I explained the situation to them - about the clubs and schedule and so on.
Juliet smiled. "I want literature."
Catherine spoke at the exact same time. "Literature."
Elizabeth snorted. "That's predictable. Before you opened your mouth, I knew what you two were going to say."
Juliet's eyes. "I enjoy reading." The words were colder than usual.
"So do I," Catherine said, also coolly. "And analysis. And discussion."
Elizabeth leaned back. "You both just want an excuse to sit near him indoors."
"That is not…"
"…the only reason," Juliet amended shyly.
I raised a hand. "Stop."
They quieted. Mostly.
"No literature," I said flatly.
Three heads turned toward me.
"And no fencing," I added, before they could regroup.
"That's unfair," Catherine said immediately.
"I have already decided," I said.
Though they grumbled, they didn't argue anymore.
Juliet studied my face for a long moment, then sighed. "Okay. Archery, then." She nodded, satisfied with her decision and herself. "Precision. Control. Distance. It's beautiful."
She wasn't wrong.
Elizabeth shrugged. "Music club."
"Music?" I asked.
"Yes," she said, offended by my surprise. "Composition. Instruments. Theory. Dwarves appreciate rhythm?"
I kind of forgot that.
Elizabeth was a dwarf. She didn't look like what I usually expected when I heard the word or thought of the race. To be quite honest, Elizabeth just looked like a loli. She was shorter than other girls, especially compared to the rest of the women of this world. She also looked kind of underdeveloped for her age, which was around twenty, if she, like the others, was about ten when put into a trunk and split into parts.
But she was rough and strong. I looked at her like she was a little human girl, but that wasn't at all the case.
"Music it is."
She nodded once. Satisfied.
Catherine crossed her arms, clearly recalculating. "Then I'll take the Physical Cultivation Club."
Physical Cultivation? I had to think about that for a second.
…Fitness club?
I looked at the three of them in turn. "It's done then."
There was a pause after that.
"Who signed you up for Acomet?"
I looked into their eyes. They exchanged glances and were clearly a bit nervous about me asking. Maybe they thought that I thought it wasn't a big deal.
I tried to have a knowing look on my face, like I already knew who and what and why, but I wanted them to tell me the truth about it.
"Miss Sweet did," Catherine said finally.
"Maybelle?" I asked.
They nodded in unison.
Juliet nodded. "It took time. And persuasion."
"Did you force her?" I asked. "Pressure her? Threaten something?"
"No," all three said at once.
Maybelle. I could imagine the girls asking her very nicely, each in their own way, for her to play their mother or guardian. Elizabeth would be on her knees pleading and crying, though I think it would just be a ruse.
And she would fall for it. It wasn't just that she owed them her life, but she liked them very much. She was like an aunt and an honest woman, if a bit weak-willed in the end.
I guess she was the closest person, next to me and each other, that the girls had.
"Whose idea was this? To join the academy?" I asked.
"It was our idea," Elizabeth said. "All of ours."
"We thought of it at the same time," Catherine admitted. "Independently. Then talked."
I looked up slowly. "Why?"
Juliet met my eyes, looking all innocently. "Because we wanted to be closer to you."
I paused for a moment. An answer like that did melt my heart.
I looked at all three of them, and they looked at me with doe-eyes. I couldn't be mad.
"And the paperwork?"
"…We altered the registry entries."
"That could get you expelled. Or worse," I said.
Maybe it was even illegal to do that. It definitely felt like it was.
"We accounted for that," Catherine said. "The records are clean."
"And we studied, really hard! We passed the exams and requirements needed to get into the academy!"
"And the fees?" I asked, already knowing I wouldn't like the answer.
Elizabeth looked away. "The village."
I went very still.
"All of it?" I asked, barely able to mask the rising disbelief.
"Yes," Catherine said.
Endil wasn't rich. Not even close. Most families eked out a living from farming, crafting, or trade. And yet, somehow, the villagers had pooled together enough money to cover every fee, every expense the academy demanded.
I didn't think they involved the lower nobility that lived there, or else the Lightbane family, meaning me, would have heard about this.
I felt guilt. This wasn't generosity - okay, it was, but to an extreme amount. A whole community pulling together to give them enough money.
I wondered how exactly it was done. Did they ask them for a fund or something like that?
I stared at them for a while.
"You let an entire village pay for this?" I asked.
"We didn't let them," Catherine said firmly. "They insisted. After we told them we wanted to get into Acomet, everyone contributed a little. Everyone wanted us to succeed."
They were proud of that fact. They carried the hopes of an entire village on their shoulders, and they did it cheerfully, without complaint.
I stood up and stood in front of them.
"You could've told me."
"We wanted to stand beside you," Catherine added, standing tall, and Juliet and Elizabeth stood with her, "not behind. Not waiting. We wanted to earn this."
Elizabeth nodded. "So we chose this."
Juliet added, softly, "Together."
Catherine put her hand to her heart. "Years ago, when Astar teetered on the brink and the poison of Entropy spread, you worked tirelessly without rest, day and night, without hesitation, creating an antidote when no one else could. We want to be like that too. We want to be there for you, to be useful, and to fight against evil. But if we aren't there to help you, then who else can? The people don't know about the hidden dangers of Entropy and his prophet. We know, and we trained to fight against them."
I closed my eyes for a moment.
Girls will be girls, I suppose.
I'd also have to find a way to repay the villagers of Endil for their help. And I'd have to have a talk with Maybelle. Honestly, I may have to tell her everything in a gas-lighting kind of way to get her on my side in all of this. She knew some, but not all.
This all kind of came back to bite me in the ass.