#garrett's biggest secret is that he isn't cool

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Ashes Chapter 1 Part 10

The thing about making friends was that it couldn’t be forced. No one responded to desperation, even less to insincerity. No one had approached him with any real interest, which meant that he was forced to make the first move. This was always the worst position to be in, especially since he was both desperate and insincere, but it wasn’t his first time. Friends were necessary for survival, and since he tended to be the weird kid, the poor kid or the foster kid (or all of the above), fitting in had been a repeat challenge. He had a system: Observe, find common ground, construct an encounter.

So, he observed his classmates. He had already dismissed the Legacies on principle because he had deemed them too hard to charm, but he watched them anyway. A Legacy would get him where he wanted faster than a non-Legacy, so he couldn’t afford to leave them out entirely.

Each year was divided into classes of 20-25 students, and his class had an obvious 4-way divide within it.

Group one: Legacies. These were the richest and most influential. Council connections, famous Agents in the family, that sort of thing. In other words, the untouchables. At least as long as he was unwilling to put his family name into play.

Group two: Also Legacies, but these were the less remarkable ones. Their parents weren’t special, they were just both Mages. Some had the potential to rise to the first group, either through wealth or looks, if they played their cards right.

Group three: Non-Legacies, but ones who had been quick to find their footing. Maybe their one Mage parent had prepared them. Maybe they were just fast learners.

Group four: Less of a group, and more just what remained. The outsiders. The loners. The ones who were either too arrogant or too weird to fit in with the rest. Garrett didn’t like to admit that he was currently in group four, but at least he planned to rectify that. Surprisingly, his first opening came when he heard the second group expressing their interest in getting a Fighter on their team. The group currently consisted of two Summoners and three Forgers, which was an unfortunate coincidence. All of them were typically long-range types. Forgers had to be prepared for close combat, but the better tactic would often be for them to stay back, while the Fighters of the group charged. Without Fighters, you had to either force your Forgers into close combat, or get creative with your Summoners. It would definitely increase the difficulty for the group, once they started having battle training. Which was years away still, but building trust with your team was key. Doing it early would make them stronger in the long run.

At lunch, he sat down at their table, and received a number of looks. It didn’t bother him, yet. Being bold was part of it.

“Who are you?”

He tried not to be offended. They probably knew who he was, but the initial suspicion was part of it too.

“Garrett,” he said.

“What are you doing, Garrett?”

“Are you even a Legacy?”

It was a group-effort, this casual hostility, as the questions bounced between them. They were three girls and two guys. Garrett knew all of their names, but they were inconsequential at this juncture.

“Yes,” he said. “I am.”

“Prove it.“

“How do you expect me to do that?” He could, of course, if he had been ready to become Garrett Warren Bailey, but he wasn’t. It was too soon. He needed to find himself first, before he became someone everyone would have an opinion on.

They sent each other knowing glances. “Who are your parents?” Garrett sighed. “Look. I heard you talking about wanting a Fighter on your team.”

“Sure, but no one wants a half-breed.”

“Right.” Garrett slid his chair back from the table. “Clearly I’m wasting all of our time here.”

The one who sat closest to him grabbed his arm. “Stay in your lane, half-breed.”

Garrett pulled his arm back, his magic flaring bright green. “Don’t touch me.”

“Oooh,” the ensemble sang.

“You gonna fight all of us?”

Garrett quelled his magic. “No. Not today.”

He backed off, counting on the witnesses to protect him from a five on one fight in the middle of the cafeteria. It felt like everyone’s eyes were on him as he walked across the hall. He didn’t know where he was going, as he headed outside, but stopped on the stairs and sat down. He couldn’t go back inside now, which meant he had relinquished lunch for today.

Worse still, he had failed.