Chapter 31: 30. Choosing Wisely

I looked back and forth at the two doors to either side of me. Door number two would start me over from scratch in another afterlife, something totally new and different. I might not even still be a girl if I went through that door, I could wind up being a guy again.

Door number one would send me right back into the headmistress's office where she was about to pass judgement on me and my future.

If I went back to sorcery school, I might only be there for as long as it took for Siusaidh to boot me out. Or worse, maybe I'd wind up in a dungeon. Or dead. Or maybe there were fates even worse than death, she was a level fifty-three sorceress after all.

Door number one also led back to Candice, but if I was about to be killed or expelled or dungeonized then I might never get the chance to see her again anyways.

I finally looked at Natasha and asked, "Can I ask you some questions, before I make up my mind?"

"You may ask," she replied with that catlike grin, "But I'm not promising any answers."

"Ok," I couldn't really argue with that. "First question. If that's my afterlife at the sorcery school, what are the other people there? Are they real? Is it the afterlife for them too? Or is it more like a dream and they're all just parts of my subconscious imagination?"

"And second question. Why's my system interface so broken, why didn't you give me any instructions? Or at least tell me what the heck was going on when you dumped me there?"

Natasha was still grinning as she replied, "I gave you a broken interface because I thought it would be funny? And it was. Ditto the lack of instructions. It was really entertaining watching you flail around figuring stuff out without any guidance."

The look on my face told her just how funny I didn't think that was.

"Ha. Ha. Ha." I stated sarcastically. "I'm glad I kept you entertained."

"Oh you did," she smiled widely.

I rolled my eyes then asked, "What about my first question?"

Natasha shook her head, "I'm not going to answer that yet. If you go back through door number one, I'll answer it after you're there. If you pick door number two then the answer won't matter anyways, you'll never see that world or those people again."

I sighed as I thought it over again, while Natasha's statement sort of echoed in my mind. She said 'that world, those people'. Was that a clue, or a hint? And did it matter?

My future was uncertain if I went through door number one, but everything was unknown if I picked the second option. Door number two had the advantage of another second chance, if I didn't like it I'd get to pick again. The first door held an advantage in that I already established myself there, and I was doing pretty good up until today.

In the end it really all came down to just two things. Candi was behind the first door. And through that door I got to be a cute girl named Abby. And I didn't want to give either of those things up.

"I'm going back to sorcery school," I stated as I got to my feet and moved to door number one. As my hand touched the doorknob, Natasha spoke up again.

"Tell me the truth," she said with a grin. "Are you just picking that door because you've had more sex in ninety days there than you had in twenty-five years as a human man?"

I rolled my eyes but I told her the truth, "No. I'm picking this door because it leads to my girlfriend. And because in that world I get to be a cute girl named Abby. Everything I've ever wanted is through this door."

Natasha's grin faded and her expression became much more serious.

"Remember Absinthe," she stated in a warning tone, "If you go through that door you'll get the answers to your question, but you'll never have the chance to come back out. This is a one-way ticket, so I hope you're prepared for what awaits you on the other side."

"I understand," I replied.

I already knew what was waiting. Candi lived in that world and I was happy there, so that's where I was going. I'd face whatever the headmistress had in store for me, and I'd figure out a way to make it all work.

I turned the knob and pulled the door open, and everything flickered as reality went all melty again.

"..expected your time here at this school to be short and unpleasant," the headmistress stated. "Instead you've become one of the rising stars of year one. You've even bested four of my second-year students. While I don't like being proved wrong Absinthe, I am able to recognize talent when I see it."

I fought off the dizziness and nausea as I found myself once again seated in the hard straight-backed wooden chair in the headmistress's office.

She continued, "So I'm giving you the option of moving up a year. When the mid-year break is over, you may join the second-year students in their second semester studies, if you wish."

I was still getting over the nausea as her words hit me. She wasn't going to expel me or kill me or send me to the catacombs, she was offering to skip me ahead a year!

I blinked and gulped then finally found my voice, "I don't know what to say, headmistress..."

Siusaidh responded, "You need not decide right this instant. I have another student to speak with next. Why don't you wait in the hall, consider my offer, and we'll talk again in ten or fifteen minutes?"

"Yes headmistress, thank you!" I smiled, but then my expression suddenly fell. I looked at her and asked, "Um, headmistress? What you were saying earlier... What will Evelynn and Becky and the others tell their families?"

She gave me a satisfied smile and replied, "They will say nothing. What happens in this school stays in this school. When students pass through the gates and leave school grounds, any active spells cast on them here are dispelled. And they are free of any influence or effects from magic used against them while they are here. But they are also bound by our rules to keep our secrets."

That caught me by surprise but also made a lot of sense, like the school could encourage students to use magic on each other and form little cliques or harems, but everything we did to each other was dispelled when we left. I figured it also explained that whole 'no permanent magic' thing.

Before I had a chance to ask any more questions, the headmistress glanced at the door and stated "Enter."

A moment later it swung open and Lady Grace strode in, with a very nervous-looking Candice in tow. There was a look of relief in her eyes as she realized I was ok, then she went back to being nervous again while I was dismissed to go wait in the hall while Candi took my place in the hard wooden seat. Grace was also dismissed, and she stalked away without another word.

Alone out in the hall there was nothing for me to do but wait and think and pace.

I was about ninety percent certain Candi was being given the same offer as me. She and I were both miles ahead of the other year-one students. She was almost as good at sorcery as me. It only made sense to bump her up a year as well. If she agreed to it, then I would too. If she didn't want to move ahead, then I wouldn't either.

After some ten or twelve minutes I heard the headmistress's voice as clearly as if she'd been standing next to me. "Enter, Absinthe."

I hurried to the door and let myself in. Candi was still seated in the uncomfortable wooden chair, and my eyes sought hers before I even looked at the headmistress.

Candi looked shocked but excited, and she gave me the slightest little nodd.

"Absinthe," Headmistress Siusaidh addressed me, "Have you made up your mind?"

"Yes headmistress," I replied. "I'd like to pick the same option as Candice. She's my friend and I'd like for the two of us to stick together."

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Siusaidh's eyes flicked from me to Candice then back to me again. I couldn't guess what she was thinking, her expression was inscrutable. After a few long seconds she finally stated, "Very good. Report to Elizabeth downstairs, she will make the administrative arrangements. Dismissed."

Me and Candi both bowed slightly then hurried from the office. My heart was racing again but the halls of the administrative mansion felt like the wrong place to make a scene, so both of us walked quickly and quietly to the staircase, then down, and finally we made our way to that office supply room.

The same forty-ish year old blonde was there. She'd apparently already been informed of Candi's and my new status, but her expression was just as dour as ever though.

We went through the same boring routines as the first time I was there. Me and Candi received new bundles of books and bundles of clothes, and we signed lots of columns in various registry books.

When it was over and done with Elizabeth informed us, "You're both reassigned to room twenty-eight. Absinthe in bed A, Candice in bed B. Your old room assignments will expire at midnight tonight, so I advise you to remove all your belongings before that happens. Your year-one uniforms must be returned to me here by noon tomorrow, clean and in perfect condition. You may keep your year-one textbooks until the end of next semester."

She added, "Mid-year break is twenty-eight days. I suggest you both take that time to read the year-one volume two textbook, and the year-two volume one textbook."

With that, she glared at the pair of us till we got the message and left her office.

My heart was pounding and it was hard to keep the smile off my face. Me and Candi were roommates! We both got advanced a year, and we were roommates! An hour ago I thought I was going to be thrown to the wolves, instead it was like dreams were coming true.

Candi grinned at me and we almost ran back to the dorms to check out our new room. I say almost, because I was still a seventy-pound weakling loaded down with a bundle of heavy books. So I trudged slowly across the campus while an excited impatient Candice walked circles around me until she tripped and ended up in a heap with her new books and uniform.

After that we both walked slowly the rest of the way, while we exchanged excited grins and giggles.

The campus was busy all around us as several other students were already in their civvies, carrying packs and bags as they hurried to the main gates. Me and my girlfriend ignored them all as we only had eyes for each other.

When we finally got there our new room was perfect. It was identical to my old room, except it was ours. Hers and mine. We both dumped our new uniforms and books on our new desks, then she came with me to my old room to help me get my stuff.

It took under two minutes for me to cram all my clothes and things back into my canvas bag then round up my first-year books. Candi helped me carry it all back to our new room and that was all dumped on my new bed.

Then the pair of us hurried up to the third floor to do the same for her. She had a big leather bag in her locker which she stuffed full of all her clothes and other things. It was a lot heavier than my canvas bag so I carried a couple books while she carried everything else, and we carefully went back down the stairs. All her stuff ended up ontop of her bed for now too.

Finally we both just stood there staring at each other for a few moments, with wide giddy smiles on our faces.

"I can hardly believe it," Candi said, finally breaking the silence between us. "I honestly never thought something like this could happen."

"Me neither," I said as I shook my head slightly. "When Lady Grace took me up to see the headmistress, I thought I was going to be expelled or banished to the salt mines or killed or something? I never imagined it might actually be good news!"

Candi pouted, "Same! I thought something horrible was going to happen and I'd never see you again. Then Grace came for me too and I thought at least whatever was going to happen we'd go together."

Before I could respond to that she exclaimed, "Oh! I wonder if we get any kind of updates or bonuses for this?"

Her eyes got that distant look as she checked her status, and I did the same.

It all looked the same as before, except there was a new icon blinking in the top-right corner. I focused on that and a notification popped up.

'You have 13 unread messages. Read now?'

My eyes widened as I acknowledged the alert. It was like an instant-messaging app or something, there were thirteen messages waiting for me. The first twelve were all from Candice, and they were all dated three months ago. They were all just one-line texts like 'Hello' and 'Are you in the system?' and 'Are you receiving my messages?'

It was obvious she'd been trying over and over to communicate with me back during those first few days, and of course she got nothing back because of my broken interface. Thanks Natasha, I really appreciate that.

Then I looked at the thirteenth message and my heart skipped a beat. It was from Natasha, dated thirty minutes ago, and the first line just read 'Answers'

I must have stared at that for over a minute as I debated whether or not I wanted to look at it.

My questions echoed in my mind. Were the people here real? Or was this like a dream and the people were all just part of my subconscious imagination?

Now I was here, I'd made my choice and I could never go back. Did I really want to know the truth? There was a delete option, I could just get rid of the message without looking... Except no, I couldn't.

I braced myself, then opened that last message.

'Congratulations Absinthe, for you have chosen wisely! This world is real. All the people in it are real. Candice is real. In fact this isn't so much an afterlife as it is just... Life. What I mean is, you're alive, living in a world of magic and fantasy. You have an exciting future ahead of you, and a hot sexy girlfriend to share it with. Enjoy! xoxoxo Natasha'

"Hey Abby?"

My girlfriend sounded worried, and I blinked away some tears as I looked up at her.

"Yeah Candi, what's up?"

She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around me. "Are you ok? You just started crying."

I smiled and wiped my eyes. "I'm good. Happy tears. I'm just really really happy."

Candice leaned in and gave me a kiss, "Me too. So how about we put all our stuff away, then we can decide who's bed we want to break in first? And I seem to recall winning a bet earlier today. Somebody owes me six hours of Control."

"Ok Candi," I smiled as I kissed her back, "Let's do that."

~ The End (of Book One?) ~

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