Thirty-two minutes later, I stumbled into the kitchen wearing pants that weren't mine and a satisfaction that was entirely mine.
Cheon looked up from her tablet. Her eyes tracked from my face to my neck to the marks that Mera had definitely left on purpose. Her expression didn't change, but something shifted behind her grey eyes.
"You're late."
"By three minutes."
"Thirteen." She slid a bowl across the counter. It was, indeed, concrete-colored. "Eat. Your reserves are still depleted and Usagi's training sessions tend toward the aggressive."
"You know Usagi?"
"I know everyone." Cheon returned her attention to the tablet. "She's fast. Faster than most students in our year. Her Essentia enhances her speed and reflexes, but the trade-off is stamina. She burns hot and burns out quickly."
"So I just have to outlast her."
