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"Well, it's certainly..." young Olruggio struggled to come up with a positive descriptor for Qifrey's room, before finally settling, "...cozy?"
The room was certainly small, that much was true, yet hardly warm or inviting. Every surface felt stark and bare, with no personal touches to speak of. Still, with privacy at a premium within the Great Hall, beggars couldn't be choosers. Even with its vast size, the underwater community was positively swarming with witches, from the dining hall to the library, and all corridors in-between. Olruggio himself was forced to share a dorm with several other apprentices, and it seemed like he and Qifrey never had a moment alone.
ΔΔΔ
"Why can't we hang out in your room?" asked Olruggio, for perhaps the hundredth time. Casting a furtive glance at the black-haired apprentice that was sitting nearby, he leaned in toward Qifrey to whisper, "Wouldn't it be easier to plot our little 'adventures' if we didn't have others practically breathing down our necks?!"
"I-I don't know," sputtered Qifrey, "We just can't!"
But after a several more weeks of interuptions, Olruggio finally received his invite.
ΔΔΔ
Upon entering, Olly claimed the room's only real seat: a hard, straight-backed wooden chair paired with an equally dull wooden desk. Qifrey sat stiffly on the nearby bed, tracking Olruggio's every move, mouth pinched like a Molewyrm ready to strike. Olly didn't want to risk being kicked out within the first five minutes, so he had to approach this delicately. "So," he began, feigning a relaxed posture in hope Qifrey would follow his lead, "have you put any thought into decorating the place?"
"What do you mean?" Qifrey crossed his arms, hunching his shoulders. No luck on relaxing, then.
"I don't know," said Olly. "A little pop of color. A throw pillow here or there?" In truth, the boxy bareness of the small room reminded him a bit too much of a coffin—and some of the most worst rumors he'd heard swirling around about his friend.
"Isn't it fine the way it is?" asked Qifrey. "All I need is a place to sleep and study."
"We can study together in the library," said Olruggio, eyeing the bed, but electing not to comment on shared sleeping arrangements. "This is the only place in the Great Hall we can just relax and hang out." Shifting on the painfully hard seat, he continued, "But it's hard to relax if we can't get comfortable!"
Qifrey said nothing, so Olruggio barrelled ahead. Jumping from the back-breaking chair he said, "Wait here. I'm gonna run back to my dorm real quick, but I'll be right back!"
ΔΔΔ
Olruggio returned, arms full with a fluffy white fur and a small dark teal cushion from which several strings were dangling. He dropped both on the bed next to where Qifrey still sat, and then picked up the cushion and set it on the desk chair.
"What's that?" Qifrey asked.
"What does it look like?" replied Olly. He fed the cushion's ties through the chair back, tying bows to secure it, and then plopped back down with a satisfied sigh. "It's a seat cushion. Nabbed it from my own chair back at the dorm. I usually end up studying with you in the library, so it won't be missed."
"And this?" Qifrey ran his fingers through the soft pelt beside him.
"Oh, that? It's a fur I brought from Ghodrey." Olly kicked off his shoes and propped his legs on top of the desk. "Haven't gotten much use out of it here myself, so you can have it."
After an hour spent plotting their next excursion to the surface, and another spent in idle chat, Olruggio reluctantly said his goodbyes and returned to his own shared dorm.
ΔΔΔ
Olruggio was set to take the Third Test in a little over a month. Once he passed, he could (with his master's approval) take on a few solo jobs in exchange for more stipend, but until then, he was stuck with only his meager allowance. He would have to save up. And get creative. "What about moving the furniture around? I bet it would feel cozier if the bed wasn't right next to door."
By the time the boys finished dragging the heavy bed across the room and the desk below the window, the two were more than ready to collapse in a sweaty heap on the cool floor. "That Floatgloat Lamp is too bright," said Olly, using his hand as a visor to shield his eyes from its harsh light.
Qifrey too, was squinting. "What if there were more of them?"
"More?!"
"Yes. But small, and dim. Like stars."
"Hmm..." Olruggio sat up and pulled a piece of paper down from the desk. He began sketching out concepts, asking Qifrey for more input. They eventually settled on a switch mechanism. The seals would drawn be directly on the ceiling, and triggered with a rod affixed to the wall. Slide the rod up, and its ink-coated tip would complete the circle on the ceiling, lighting the 'stars'. Slide the rod down, and it would break the circle, extinguishing the lights. "I'm guessing we'll have to use a Woodcruor Wand to draw on the ceiling. If we tried to use pens, the ink would drip down all over us." Olruggio got up up to retrieve a couple of the hardened charcoal-like rods they would need from his bag. "At least it shouldn't get rubbed away as easily, since it's on the ceiling, but we'll still have to touch it up from time-to-time. I kind of wish I could sear the seals into the stone somehow," he said, "I bet that would last a lot longer..."
The two young witches spent the rest of the afternoon taking turns gingerly balanced on the room's only chair as they worked on inscribing the ceiling. Just as they finished, Beldaruit knocked on the door to remind them of dinner. Entering the room, he took one look at the two of them and said, "Why, you're both filthy! However did you wind up covered in so much woodcruor dust?" Olruggio and Qifrey each pointed to the ceiling at the same time, prompting Beldaruit to look up. "Oh! I see!" After taking a moment to inspect their work, he glanced at the wall next to the doorway where the switch was affixed and asked, "May I activate it?"
"Not yet!" said Qifrey. He quickly extinguished the main Floatglow Lamp, plunging the room in darkness, "Okay, now."
Beldaruit flipped up the switch, and the ceiling alit in gentle twinkling lights. "How marvelous!" exclaimed Beldaruit, clapping his hands. He then gave the two a pointed look, "But be sure to wash up before dinner."
ΔΔΔ
The Olruggio who knocked on Qifrey's door had dark bags under his eyes, and a basket of dried flowers dangling from his arm.
"Magical dyes," he explained, dropping the basket near the bed. "Thought I might need to know more about 'em for the test." He shucked his cloak and flopped on Qifrey's bed, now piled high with pillows of all shapes and sizes. Hugging a crescent-shaped one embroidered with stars to his chest, he admitted, "I'm not sure I'm ready."
"Of course you're ready!" Qifrey climbed onto the bed next to Olruggio, bumping shoulders with him. With a teasing smile he said, "After all, you are the 'Star of Ghodrey', are you not?"
Olruggio groaned into his pillow, for indeed, all the pillows were technically his—for the past several weeks, he had purchased one with a portion of each allowance and brought them all to Qifrey's room. Shopping for them had served as a welcome break from all the studying keeping him up most nights. "That's exactly the problem. It's too much pressure! I'll never live it down if I don't pass on my first try."
"You'll be fine," assured Qifrey, patting him on the back. Then, in an attempt at changing the subject, he reached out to grab a couple of the dried flowers and sniffing them said, "These smell nice."
"Yeah," agreed Olly, lifting his head, "I figured we could use 'em to brighten up the room." He got up and grabbed the basket, and then began stuffing the dried flowers into a spare watcher pitcher and cup in artfully random arrangements. Once done, he flopped back on Qifrey's bed, covering himself with the fur. "Wake me in half a mark so I can get back to studying."
ΔΔΔ
"How could you be so reckless?!" shouted Qifrey.
Sinocia, apprentice to the Medical Spire's head doctor, quietly excused herself from the treatment room.
"I wasn't tryin' to be!" insisted Olruggio, "The spell just got away from me." Reaching to scratch the back of his head with his bandaged left hand, he caught himself, following through with his right instead. "Sinocia says the burn isn't that deep. I just gotta keep it dressed for a week or two until it fully heals." Then grinning, he said, "'Suppose I'll have to get used to casting with my right, in the meantime."
Qifrey sat down heavily, clenching his fists.
"Still passed," said Olly.
Qifrey scoffed.
Olruggio scanned the treatment room. There was a woven rug on the floor, quite flat to avoid any chance of tripping, but enough to dampen some of the noise of a bustling clinic. From the windows hung long, heavy drapes, partially drawn to allow patients a chance to rest, even during the watery daylight. With no apparent preamble Olly said, "I can't wait to get out of here and take you shopping."
That seemed to break Qifrey from his brooding. "What?"
"A rug," said Olly. "And some curtains, maybe a tapestry or two," When Qifrey only looked at him confused, he added, "You know, for the room."
Qifrey rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't I be the one treating you?"
"Consider it a shared treat. Besides, I've been saving up."
"Fine, fine. After you've been discharged."
ΔΔΔ
"Those ones." Qifrey pointed to a set of flowing smoke-gray curtains which practically matched his hair and robes.
"Those?" Olly cast a glance at the many other—more colorful—options. "What about those Blaze Bean red ones?" he asked, gesturing to another option hung on the shop's wall, "Or these Fairy Grass blue ones, here?"
Qifrey shook his head, set on his choice. "The gray ones."
"An excellent choice!" assured the shopkeeper. "These won't distract from other design elements in the room, they're sheer enough to still allow in some light, and their length will make the room feel bigger!"
Seemingly outvoted, Olruggio drew his coin purse. "Alright, but I get to pick the the rug..."
ΔΔΔ
With the curtains hung, the teal patterned rug unfurled, and some art chosen by Olruggio added to the walls, Qifrey's room was feeling quite cozy indeed. Still, Olruggio felt a bit bad that so many of the design choices were made by him. Even the change in lightning was only initiated through his own prodding. So it was quite the surprise when he walked in to Qifrey's room and spotted a leather desk pad and two small, identical dragon statues atop the desk which he had no hand in picking out.
"Qifrey!" said Olruggio, walking over to inspect the desk pad. "What's this?"
"I was getting tired of writing on the hard desk. I thought it would feel nicer to write on a leather pad."
"And the dragons?" Olly picked up one of the small statues. They were cast in shiny copper which, over time, would likely to shift toward a dull green patina, not unlike the real dragons they resembled.
"I just think they're neat," said Qifrey, with a slight blush.
"Why two?"
Qifrey's face practically burst into flames as he answered, "Well, I know you spend a lot of time here, but I thought I'd give one to you. You know, to decorate your dorm room?"
Olruggio smiled and set the dragon down. "That's okay, I think I'll keep mine here with you."