Time for a Change

"Oh hey, Theo! I like the hair!" Sam shouted the instant Theo entered the sitting room.

Blushing, Theo ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah...I thought it was time for a change."

The day before, he'd gotten his hair cut a little shorter – though it still covered one eye – and dyed black with a single pink streak. Time for a change, he'd said. Not just in looks, but inside too.

He was going to leave the old Theo behind. The weak little boy with the stupid crush on Zenith. He would bury his feelings and do his best as Zenith's wizard. His new hair was just the first step, the smallest sign of his resolve.

Ryan's loud voice interrupted his thoughts. "Wow, now you actually look Asian."

Hissing like a teapot, Sam tugged on his ears. "Don't be so offensive, jerk!"

"Ow! Cut it out!"

Theo sighed. "Ryan, what exactly are you doing here anyway? Don't you have your own friends to spend summer break with?"

Ryan briefly stopped wrestling with Sam to blink at Theo. Then a familiar scowl twisted his face. "I can go wherever I want, okay?"

'So dishonest….' But no use expecting any better from him.

Though he didn't want to, Theo turned his attention from the two tussling wizards to the other people in the sitting room. Ryllis lounged by the window, while Jin sat next to Sam with a book in his lap. Lodo and Avia were busy in the kitchen; Meg and Darian were downstairs watching the shop.

That left Zenith, standing in the corner with his arms folded. He looked up, meeting Theo's gaze, and Theo hated how his heart skipped a beat. For a moment, he couldn't help but see Zenith as he had looked right after the kiss – cheeks flushed, lips glistening.

Swallowing hard, Theo clenched his hands into fists. Great job making a clean break so far.

Thankfully, that was when Lodo poked his head through the door. "I would like to announce that lunch is ready. Could somebody please fetch Lady Meg and the prince?"

"Me, me!" Jin yelped, jumping to his feet.

Theo breathed out, grateful for the distraction. He followed the others into the dining room, where Avia was setting down plates.

Once everyone had gathered, they tucked into a lunch of Moroccan tagine stew. Apparently, Avia had helped Lodo prepare it. Which Theo had to admit warmed his heart a little; not much time had passed and she was already coming into her own.

Just like Zenith had. But still not far enough….

Theo mercilessly clamped down on this train of thought. Just how stupid could he get? But it was hard when Zenith was sitting right next to him, obliviously eating away. Well, at least it seemed he didn't notice anything wrong with Theo.

All the better. Theo didn't want Zenith to worry about him for no reason ever again. If he kept pretending everything was fine, maybe someday it really would be.

He barely tasted the food, but had enough of an appetite to finish the bowl. As lunch wound down, Meg tapped her fingers atop the table and looked directly at him.

"So, to business. Do you have it, Theo?"

Right. He hadn't come here just for lunch. Reaching in his pocket, Theo pulled out the crystal. Its warm Levia pulsed against his palm, comforting him a little. He almost didn't want to let go of it, but he forced himself to set it down in the middle of the table, where Meg reached for it.

"Hm." She held it up to the light, turning it back and forth. The tiny stars swirled across its surface. "It really did get bigger. So you're saying it fused with the one your mom had?"

"Yeah...I can't really describe it. It just sorta happened. Sorry, maybe I should've taken a picture of that one before it, um, you know."

"No need to apologize. It isn't like you expected them to fuse, now did you?" Meg winked.

"Yeah, I guess not…." Theo rubbed the back of his head. "So any ideas?"

When Meg shook her head, he didn't feel disappointed – much. It'd been a long shot in the first place. And confusing as this whole thing might be, it at least kept him from thinking about his feelings too hard.

Next to him, he felt Zenith's Levia brighten with interest. All around the table, everyone was leaning toward the crystal, staring at it as if they hoped to divine its secrets. Ryan was practically squirming in his seat, like it took all the self-control he possessed to keep himself from snatching it out of Meg's hands.

"Oh man, this is wild." He grinned at Theo, eyes shining. "Does this mean you've, what, turned into some kinda super mega wizard or something? Feel like you're ready to command a shit ton of familiars?"

Theo groaned. "No, okay? I feel pretty much the same. And I'm pretty sure you would too."

"Aww." Ryan scrunched his face up. "Then how'd the Ensons do all that shit?"

"That's what we need to find out, I suppose," Meg said, setting the crystal down.

"Oh, yeah! Speaking about the Ensons, you heard anything about them?" Sam piped up. "Oliver's parents should be back by now, right?"

As she spoke, Ryllis' face darkened and she rested a protective hand on Jin's shoulder. Theo gulped, feeling a little guilty. He'd gotten so caught up in his own petty problems that he'd let the danger the Ensons posed completely slip his mind.

"Yes...they should be." Meg breathed out, then shook her head. "I've kept my ear out on the usual wizard gossip networks, but I haven't heard so much as a peep."

"Yeah, me neither," Ryan said, cracking his knuckles. "You ask me, they're lying low and licking their wounds. They know they ain't shit without that crystal."

He smirked, but it slipped off his face when Meg shot him a withering glare. "Let's not get too confident now. For all we know, they might be setting up a trap."

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it at the moment," Darian said. "We'll just have to be vigilant."

Zenith nodded. "Of course, my liege."

The soft devotion in his voice twisted a knife through Theo's heart. Furious with himself, he gripped the chair arms tight and stared down at his empty bowl. Focus on what really mattered.

"So, um, what should we do now?" he made himself ask, facing Meg. "Just go ahead like usual?"

It didn't seem right, though, to put the crystal aside and forget about it. After everything they'd gone through to obtain it, shouldn't they try to unlock its secrets?

"Hm." Meg turned her eyes up to the ceiling, resting her chin on her hands. "Actually, I may know somebody who can help."

"You do?" Theo blurted, though maybe he shouldn't have been so surprised. Meg seemed to have connections everywhere.

"Of course." Meg smiled wryly. "I'm acquainted with a geologist at the natural history museum, took some classes from him in college."

"Okay...but how's he gonna help with a magic rock?" Sam asked the same question on Theo's mind.

"Well, he also happens to be a wizard." Winking, Meg raised her finger. "One whose specialty is studying Tielan crystals. I'm sure if we had him examine our crystal here, he might be able to tell us more about it."

"Oh." Theo's heart pounded harder. That definitely sounded like a promising lead. "So should I leave it with you? And you can give it to him?"

That was probably the best course of action, but something in Theo's chest – maybe his Levia – wrenched at the thought of putting the crystal in the hands of a stranger. 'Don't be stupid,' he told himself. Wasn't like it belonged to him in the first place.

"Actually," Meg said, "I was thinking we could pay him a visit on Monday. At the very least I'd like you to be there, since you're the one who saw the two crystals fuse. Sounds good?"

Theo nodded quickly, more relieved than he'd like to admit.

"Yay!" Sam pumped her fist. "Museum trip!"