[14] Discussing The Esteemed

There was a knock at the front door. I stepped off the balcony where I'd been gazing over the land for the past who-knows-how-long and walked inside to open it.

Ethan stood beside a face I hadn't seen before. He was tall and had greying stubble. His eyes were almost curved and gleamed in beautiful Amber. There were dark lines underneath them; the only sign of his age. They lit up when he saw me; a faint, genuine smile crept over his face.

“Hello, Faye,” he greeted. His voice glided like vanilla icing. It was gentle and smooth.

“Hi, um...” I turned to Ethan, who was holding my suitcase in his right hand.

“Faye, this is Berry. Berry, Faye. He's going to be one of your tutors.”

Berry smiled and I couldn't help but return it. He came across as this bubbly guy who wanted to spread happiness around to everyone in his path.

“Oh, c’mon on in,” I ushered them, “Welcome to my un-designed, unfulfilled, blank canvas board.”

Berry looked around for a moment and chuckled. “You're going to have fun with this,” he said, his hands reaching back and folding neatly into each other at the bottom of his spine.

Ethan rested the suitcase near my unused bed and we all took a seat on the sofa.

“So,” Berry began, “I think it's only fair that I start at the beginning. Ethan told me you don't know much about anything at all, and as your first tutor, it's my honour to be the one to inform you. Also, I know how this guy is. He’s not very good at explaining things, so I'm sure there's a lot he left out and you're probably very annoyed and confused.”

Ethan looked at him in mock-hurt, “Ouch.”

“There are six other academies in our city –besides this one,” Berry said, blatantly ignoring him. “In total, there are seven. This academy is called Academy One, because it's been around longer than the others here. It's also the biggest in this city. The others are quite huge, but still. We're the biggest. The official title for all the schools are ‘Academy -whatever the number of the school is- , School of Guardianship.’ It's pretty lame if you ask me. The city is called Valendale. It's quite lovely. Maybe when we get a bunch of people together we'll show you around. You might feel more comfortable going out there with a group of people you're familiar with. There are a lot more of us than you'd expect out there. It's pretty easy to get lost.”

I blew my bangs out of my face, “I bet.”

“Right, so the academy has all the different levels of classes for different age groups. For the wielder kids who grow up in this place, it's both a home and a school. There are the ones who grow up and continue their studies because they want to become one of the Esteemed, I hope you know what that is,” he said, pausing, I nodded, “...Or they just go through the basic first few years of training and then use their skill as a normal Guardian,” he said. “You know like the normal human system? In the real world, schools give the students all the subjects, and they choose which ones they want to further. They choose whether they're going to spend more years studying fields, or they choose their field after the average school period and then go off on their own with their skill. It's the same thing here. That's how they narrow it down overtime. For the humans who show up, it’s easy if they're already active in their field, or it may be quite hard, as in your case, there's still a lot of figuring out to do. We have to narrow down the creative field. I'm sure you've already been told that you don't have to do just one thing for the rest of your life. It's what you're most emotionally tethered to. The rest could very well just be side jobs and hobbies.”

“So where do I fit in with all of this?” I wondered, suddenly overwhelmed by low self esteem. “If I can't go to the academy because I missed years of training, there has to be a system in place for people like me. Tutoring, I presume?”

“Yes,” he replied. “Usually when wielders become one of the Esteemed, they don't really teach, per say. They're more frequently the guys who are actively on the scene anywhere and everywhere to protect humans. As for me, I love working with people. I'm in the field of psychology. My job gets way too easy sometimes. My last student recently graduated as a Sea Wielder. He wasn't so serious about his studies, so he just graduated and decided to stick to that one field. When I heard about you I didn't hesitate to volunteer to be your tutor. It's my thing.”

“Is it possible for a human who hasn't been around since the beginning to become an Esteemed though? Because it sounds like it’s only the Wielders who grow up in this place that get that title in the end. It sounds like that takes an awful lot of training,” I said.

Berry explained to me that there were in fact many humans who have become Esteemed Guardians. He said they were extra dedicated to their studies. His opinion was that it doesn’t take much to become an Esteemed Wielder once you’re determined. He said that he never really understood why the Esteemed were so highly thought of. He said that everyone thought they needed to master more than one field to be considered one but he explained that that was completely false –the only field people had to master was their own. Once they’ve done that, then they could find ways to reduce their mistakes and eventually eradicate their flaws, finding ways to be efficient in their skills. Then they would truly be professional.

“If you truly love what you do, and in this world that's pretty easy to do, you can make it there,” he said.

He complained saying that the whole reason there was this big myth of the Esteemed being high and mighty is because once they were known for their ‘outstanding excellence’ by probably literally everyone. They figure that they're in the spotlight, this bad-ass fighter, and sometimes they get so prideful believing they're smarter than everyone else because they've mastered more fields than everyone else.

“I think they get pretty bored with their field, so they just move on to others.” Berry laughed. “They don’t really master anything that way, most of them.”

For a brief moment I’d considered working towards being an Esteemed, but I quickly moved against it.

“As for the system put in place for people like you,” Berry said, changing the topic, “There are so many tutors around who have new students. You'll meet a few when I start the training with you. It's too bad Ethan won't be there to help.”

Ethan looked up at Berry after seeming unaware of anything that was going on in the conversation. I didn't expect him to sit and listen to everything. He knew it all anyway. I was the one who needed the information. He looked so bored, though.

“When do we start training?” I asked.

“Do you have anything important to do this week?” Berry asked me.

“I... might have a funeral to go to,” I said, reluctantly. Ethan turned to me and I tried not to look into his eyes. I failed. They filled with regret as their youthful colour poured out of their containment and fell into me.

“Ah,” Berry said. “How’s next week, then? You can use the rest of this week to get settled in, get accustomed to the place and the people. Do what you need to do. Next week, I'll come up here to get you. We'll start with the tests of the creative arts that you enjoy most and what you’re better at than others.”

Berry asked Ethan if he had anything to add.

“Na, you were right,” he replied. “I'm really not good at explaining anything anyway. I'm bummed that I won't be around for your training though, Faye... but when you're back from it I'll come steal you away.” He smirked at me and folded his arms, leaning further back into the sofa.

I laughed, “Of course you will. You can't do without me.”

Berry sighed with a grin, “You two remind me of my wife and I.”

I almost gagged at the thought of Ethan and I being a married couple. I looked at him. He tore up in laughter at my uncomfortable reaction.