Page 6 of Growing Memories (Valley of Sylveren #2)

He waved, his grin suspiciously large as he tried to convey something to Ollas, only Ollas was too dazed at the sudden turn of events to understand. A swooping sensation looped through him. Made his knees go weak, had him gripping his cane with renewed strength.

Eunny noticed. “Steady on, there. You sure you’re up for our greenhouse thing?”

“I was—” He could drop the papers off later. “Yea. I think I just need to sit for a second.”

They made their way outside. Ollas followed her to the university’s large courtyard, pausing where the road diverged.

Several paths split off to the different magic regions while one carried on straight to the main gate and back down to Sylvan.

Ollas lowered himself onto one of the benches scattered around the courtyard, stretching out his aching leg.

People filtered past all around them, students and university staff alike.

The campus had the charged atmosphere that always preceded the start of fall term, an excitement and sense of freshness unique to this time of year.

Spring term had its own energy, but it didn’t quite match the anticipation that came from a summer off.

A young woman, who Ollas recognized from the Initiate One Crop Planning Basics course he’d taught a few years ago, twirled around one of the decorative statuaries, singing out, “Home!” A few more of his previous students followed, waving and murmuring greetings of “Hi, Professor Nevin.”

Ollas waved. The ball of tension that had been building in him lessened some, a soft smile spreading across his face. He’d enjoyed his Adept Two research up in the mountains, but had missed being able to teach with regularity.

“Feeling’s mutual, isn’t it?” Eunny murmured.

He glanced at her. She wasn’t looking at him, her face upturned to the gray sky as clouds sped across the Valley.

It was easier to regard her this way. In profile, her sharp gaze aimed at something else.

It gave him a quiet moment to simply look at her.

Note a flicker of concern on her face. Eunny nibbled at her lower lip, a sense of weariness creeping in that she’d hidden before.

In that unguarded moment, Eunny looked vulnerable.

It drove his lingering doubts and insecurities aside as he was overwhelmed by a desire to fix whatever troubled her.

To save her, however he was able. It was a compulsion, sudden and hot in his chest, a need to see her laugh again, carefree and happy.

The Eunny Song he’d always known, until one moment of stupid, selfish weakness had taken a part of her away.

She tilted her head to the side, caught him looking. The seriousness vanished, replaced by a casually raised eyebrow. “What?”

The rush of courage ebbed, leaving a sense of bitter regret in its wake. Eunny didn’t need protecting, least of all from him.

“Nothing.”

She sighed. “Tell Gransen thanks, but I’m fine. It should only take you a few weeks to be mended enough. I can walk up?—”

“You should take it. The room,” Ollas said softly.

“Oh?” A smile played at the edges of her mouth. “Convince me.”

Butterflies tickled his belly. Ollas forced himself to look toward the Grove’s giant tree lest he read into her smile. “It’s the Grove. The room Gransen mentioned was supposed to be a single, but something happened during construction. It’s connected to our unit now.”

“What’s it like living there?” she asked. “The Grove. Aside from when I stormed your place, I’ve never been in the residential areas.”

“Pretty quiet. Doesn’t have any dedicated prospective student housing, and only Initiate Fours get room options.

Everyone else is Adept levels or higher.

” Her interest was piqued, expression thoughtful.

He pressed on, grasping for what he loved most about the Grove.

“There’s always something going on in the Heartwood.

People are cooking or baking with stuff they’re growing for class or a project, and they always have extra. ”

“That does sound nice,” Eunny admitted. “A lot better than my aunt’s floor.”

“Think about it, please,” he said, eyes cast downward. “You’re offering to do this because of me?—”

“Eunny! Ollas!”

They turned in unison to see Zhenya hurrying toward them. “Professor Saren—I mean, Professor Rai—wants to meet about the elective. Word just came in from the Restorers’ rep about an amendment.”

“Take a breath, Zhen,” Eunny said as the younger woman came to a stop in front of them and doubled over, hands on her knees. “The Restorers, eh?”

The Restorers of the Alliance was a new organization, formed back at the end of spring, bringing together people from all the Alliance of Empyrean Territories to pool resources in the name of environmental restoration.

Though their purview would extend to ecological damage in any region, the bulk of the organization’s focus centered in the kingdom of Rhell.

Curing the cursed poison that had been relentlessly making its way toward the kingdom’s magical wellspring had proven impossible so far, but hope remained.

Research projects carried out by Eunny’s best friend Anadae Helm and her partner Ezzyn Sor’vahl had made the first breakthrough in halting the blight’s spread.

Containment, not a cure, but it was the first real stride made in the six years since the unofficial Eyllic War had been declared over.

Unsurprising, then, that the Restorers would make forays into Sylveren University itself; the school had been instrumental in Anadae and Ezzyn’s success.

Ollas knew he was biased, but Sylveren had the best professors this side of the Great Sea.

It lured the brightest minds in the world, both nonmagical and arcane-born, to carry out their research.

If they were going to make claims about being at the forefront of environmental restoration, there was no better institution for the Restorers to partner with than the school.

So, a last-minute changeup in curriculum? Ollas didn’t know if that boded well or ill.

“He said urgent,” Zhenya said with an emphatic gesture.

Ollas glanced at Eunny, a question in his eyes.

“I’m nosy.” She wrapped the edges of her cloak around her as the wind picked up. “I want to hear what the Restorers have to say.”