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I nodded, grateful for the suggestions, although I wasn’t sure what the point of poetry would be for someone who wanted to study medicinal alchemy.

“Thank you, Greggori.” I lifted my bag onto my shoulder, turning to the door before I noticed the goofy half smile spreading on his face.

“What?” I asked, unsure of what was so funny.

“I like the way you say my name. Like it’s two words. Gray-gory.”

“Are you making fun of my accent?”

“Not at all!” he protested. He started to lead me to the door. “I like it.”

I bit back a grin as I followed him across the quad to the infirmary to clean and bandage my hand. We walked together to the humanities lecture, which was located in a tall brick building overlooking the quad. Its large glass windows twinkled in the sunlight.

I quickly realized just how in over my head I was. While none of the other students took notes, my pen flew across my paper. The following lecture, history, was even worse. As soon as it was over, I picked up my notebook, now riddled with a list of everything I hadn’tunderstood from the professors. “I think I’ll go to the library,” I said, tension rising within me.

“Independent study.” Greggori nodded as if this was a good idea. “Master Ostrum would probably appreciate that.”

I adjusted my bag over my shoulder, grateful he didn’t follow me. I didn’t want him to know how behind I was.

“Hey!” a voice called from the quad. I turned to see a girl about my age but far taller than me heading in my direction. “You’re the new girl, yeah?” she said.

I nodded. I vaguely recognized her from Master Ostrum’s opening lecture. “I’m Nedra,” I said as I held the library door open for her.

“My name’s Salis Omella,” she said.

I followed her inside, breathing in the smell of old books.Home.

Salis dumped her books on a table and held her arm out, offering me a seat with her. “Sorry about Tomus this morning,” she said, gesturing to my notebook that now had a prominent shoeprint across the front. “He’s an ass.”

I was surprised at her kindness, but grateful for it.

“What lectures did you go to this morning?” she asked, dropping her voice after the librarian glared at her.

“Humanities and history,” I said. My notebook felt heavy in my hand, a guilty confessional of all I didn’t know.

Salis pulled a face. “You had Newmas for history, yeah?” she asked. When I stared blankly at her, she dropped her chin to her chest and muttered, “Talks like this?”

“Yeah, him,” I said.

Salis rolled her eyes. “He’s brilliant, and heknowsit. Such a show-off. None of us needs to know what Merry Twindle the Third thought of the eighth regiment of the Who Cares Battalion in the War of Unimportance.” Her voice was rising with her passion, and the librarian shushed her again.

Suddenly, my feelings of inadequacy felt foolish. I pulled out my notebook, showing Salis the list of names and books I’d felt the need to look up after the lectures. Salis snorted. “Yeah, that’s classic Newmas,” she said. “None of that is important. But, look, if you like history, you should come to the focused study hall my friends and I do. It can count toward your report to Ostrum.”

That sounded perfect—there was no way I’d be able to create a reasonable report from the scattered, disconnected, and jumbled notes I’d taken so far.

“A study hall sounds brilliant. More like school back home.”

“You’re from the north, right?” Salis asked. When I nodded, she smiled. “Your accent gives you away. Well, you’re welcome to join us. First meeting’s tomorrow at six chimes. We’re studying Wellebourne now.”

My eyes went involuntarily to the library door and, beyond that, the ruined statue of Bennum Wellebourne in the courtyard.

“We like to focus onrelevanthistory,” Salis continued.

I wasn’t sure how relevant Wellebourne would be; his rebellion was almost two centuries old. But he would certainly be a more exciting subject than whatever Professor Newmas had planned. Wellebourne was reviled—and with good cause—but his use of dark, forbidden alchemy in his battles would make him an infinitely more interesting subject.

•••

The library closed at seven chimes—lucky for me, as I’d forgotten about my nightly meeting with my master. The bell behind the massive clock in the administration building started tolling minutes after the librarian kicked me out of the stacks. I took off at a run and threw myself into Master Ostrum’s office just as the last bell silenced.