An Agreement of Benefits

Friday came quickly. As usual, Joe was up early and began and concluded his training with John. Several other members of his squad had begun to join them following the trial. Even with the new additions, Joe still found himself standing at the entrance to the training field. In the same spot as he always stood, he gazed across the field at a classmate that had been training herself alone for several weeks now.

Unlike usual, Joe decided to enter the courtyard earlier than usual. Just as she was finishing her sword training, Joe came into her view. Feeling slightly embarrassed at the realization she had been seen, Clara concluded her training while refusing to meet the eyes of the intruder.

For weeks, this had been an almost sacred time for her. A time when no prying eyes interfered with her training. A time when she could shut her mind off to the world around her. Perhaps that was why she never noticed that she had had an audience of one the entire time.

"You know, I'm not very good at sword play. So, watching you brings an odd sense of serenity to my mind. Every motion is calculated yet elegant. It's almost like you were lost in a dance of passion when you pick up that sword."

Contrary to her expectations, Joe's words held no tone of mockery. They came through as honest and slightly envious.

"If you were watching then you had time to practice swordsmanship yourself."

Her words were emotionless and firm. For as long as she could remember, she had been almost forced to train with masters of swordsmanship. When a point came that she had grown close or attached to a particular person, her father would assign someone new. He told her it was to remove all chances of distraction to her progress.

This was true for every aspect of her life. Whenever she grew comfortable with someone meant to instruct her, the person was replaced the next day. This created a sense of loneliness that imprinted itself deep in her mind. Eventually she accepted the fact that she would always be alone and that there was nobody good enough in the world for her to be allowed to grow close to.

Joe's next words pulled her back to reality. "You're right, I could. But even with the guidance of the instructors on campus, I don't think I would ever be able to have the level of control as you do. If I had to learn from anyone, I'd certainly chose you over all of them. The passion in your eyes whenever you're training alone can never be compared to the void within the instructors."

For a moment, Clara was at a loss for words. Just how closely had he been watching her to have even remembered the look in her eyes to this extent. Wanting to understand why he chose now to come out, she concluded.

"If you think you can offer something that would actually benefit me as well then I can train you as well."

Although her words came off cold, she was in fact nervous. She didn't interact with many others unless she was expected to. Perhaps that was why her squad had lost so quickly to him during the trial. She only told them what to do and then left them to fend for themselves. Time and again she thought of herself as unworthy to lead. If he could offer to teach her how to guide them better, she would accept without hesitation.

Joe had a different idea. He had long been observing the others in his class outside his squad. He soon learned most of their strengths and weaknesses. Although the idea of teaching her how to lead came to his mind at first, it wouldn't be as effective as what he had planned.

"How about starting tomorrow, you join me for my morning training? I can teach you to fully utilize your own potential and you can teach me swordsmanship after."

Clara was taken back by this suggestion. Once the words registered in her mind, she felt slightly offended.

"Are you looking down on me just because you won the trail?"

"Not in the least. I've been observing everyone in class. I've seen how you attempt to lead your squad which is ineffective. Simply giving commands is not a way to bring out the hidden strengths of others. Even if I was to teach you how to guide your squad better, it would still be lacking because you yourself aren't using your full potential."

"What would you know of my potential? We don't even associate outside of training."

"Simple, with your swordsmanship capabilities, you should have easily overpowered me and the rest of my squad during the trial. Even if we eliminated every other member, the outcome should have been very different."

"So, you're mocking me and saying I'm unfit to lead?"

With a scoff, Clara turned to return the rapier she had been training with to its place among the other training weapons. Before she could even take a single step away, she found herself frozen from his voice.

"Mocking you? What is there to mock exactly? I know you came just short of me in the written exam. Your readings during the physical evaluation shunned every other student who had applied. With your swordplay alone, you could easily overpower most if not all the instructors here. What I noticed after watching you these last few weeks and after personally butting heads with you during the trial is that you magic is chaotic and that is holding you back."