Chapter 249
Empty. Just a couple racks of clothes and the fairit scent of mothballs
Dominic stood there for a moment, staring into the empty space. I could only see the partial outline of his jaw from this angle, but I could see it tense. His hand fell to his side, and I could nearly scent the moment he realized what he’d just done.
Slowly, he turned.
“Well,” he said, “I guess you went to him, then.”
He didn’t apologize for searching my room, of course. Not that I expected him to.
“Class starts at eight,” I said pleasantly, turning on my heel. “Try not to spiral too much while I’m gone.
I left before he could say anything else.
The drive to the academy did nothing to settle the irritation still sitting square in the middle of my chest, so eventually I stopped trying to make it and just let it sit there. It was fine. It was familiar at this point. Dominic’s distrust was not new, and it was not going to be the thing that derailed my morning.
Besides, I had far more important things to think about than petty jealousy.
The academy was already busy by the time I arrived. I headed to the library first and perused a few sections that seemed relevant, but found no titles mentioning reincarnation. Eventually, the bell rang and I slipped into my first class with a few minutes to spare and shoved aside all other thoughts, focusing instead on the
material.
One class was out, I waited until most of the other students had filed out before I approached the front of the room. The professor was packing up her materials, sliding folders into the worn leather bag she carried
everywhere. She looked up when she heard me coming.
“Ellie,” she said. “Something I can help you with?”
“I had a question,” I said. “Not about today’s lecture.”
“Go ahead.”
す
“I was wondering if you knew of any information on the topic of… reincarnation.”
The professor blinked. “Reincarnation,” she repeated.
r
I nodded. “Specifically, whether there are any documented cases throughout history of someone claiming to have been reincarnated.”
The professor’s brows arched. “That’s an oddly specific area of interest,” she said.
“It’s just something I’ve been curious about,” I replied quickly. “Just personally. I came across a mention of it and wanted to know more.”
She seemed to accept that without pushing it further, which I appreciated more than I could say. “Well, it’s not something covered in the standard curriculum at this academy,” she murmured, furrowing her brow.” And it’s not really in my wheelhouse. But perhaps there are some books in the library…”
+30 Bonus
I felt my hopes sink a little. “I checked the library,” I said. “I didn’t find anything.”
The professor nodded. “Bid you check the restricted section?”
“I don’t have a pass,” I replied. The restricted section was for official academic research only, as it contained many of the school’s oldest and most-fragile books. Only students with express permission were allowed to enter.
“I’ll write you one,” the professor said, smiling.
“Really?” I straightened a little. “Over a whim like this?”
“Whims just so happen to be my favorite academic driver,” she said, opening the drawer in her desk. She pulled out a pad of slips and jotted something down, then signed her initials at the bottom and tore it off.
She handed the slip to me. I took it. “Thank you, professor,” I said. “You have no idea how much this might help me.”
She nodded. “You’re welcome. And if you find anything interesting, maybe you can tell me all about it.”
I smiled. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
22
