Elior hated competitions.
He hated the noise, the crowd, the overconfident spell-hurlers flinging sparks like it was show-and-tell for unstable egos. He especially hated how his heart refused to sit still in his chest whenever Kael Draven entered the room.
Unfortunately, today featured all of the above.
"Welcome to the Arcane Trial Series," boomed Headmaster Verin. "Your task: survive the puzzle gauntlet with your partner. You'll be bound together—literally. Matching auras only. Good luck."
Elior groaned inwardly.
Then came the pairings.
"Elior Lys and…"
No.
"Kael Draven."
No.
Kael, already grinning, waved across the courtyard. "Aw, come on, Flower Boy. It's like the stars themselves are shipping us."
"I would rather bind myself to a swamp toad."
Kael winked. "Too late. Our fates are entwined."
---
Within minutes, a glowing ribbon of spell-thread had twined around their wrists, shimmering between them like a faintly humming tether. If either of them moved more than a few steps away, it yanked gently—then harder.
"Personal space is dead," Elior muttered.
"Long live personal space," Kael said solemnly, almost tripping over a root as they entered the first stage.
The gauntlet grounds were massive—part enchanted forest, part illusionary ruin, with floating platforms, talking statues, and a hovering riddle-sphere that blinked when confused.
"Your first test," it chimed, "is harmony. Match the elemental rhythm or be dunked in emotional feedback loops."
Elior blinked. "I beg your pardon?"
The ground lit up beneath them—fire, wind, water, earth, pulsing in a beat.
"Follow me," Elior said quickly. "Step there—then there—"
Kael immediately stepped wrong.
The air shimmered.
And suddenly—
They were inside each other's emotional fields.
Elior gasped as Kael's magic surged through him—warm, heady, sharp-edged with mischief and something deeper. Something scarred.
Kael froze. "Wait. Are you feeling what I—"
"Don't look at me."
"I—wait—is that my guilt or yours?"
"Yours. Definitely yours."
"I feel like I need to apologize to… my childhood."
"I hate this trial."
They stumbled, fumbled, and eventually made it through the rhythm grid, breathless and slightly more aware of each other than anyone wanted to be.
---
The next stage was worse.
They had to channel a spell together.
Kael, naturally, kept trying to make fire.
Elior's power leaned toward growing things—quiet, precise, rooted.
"What if we meet halfway," Kael said, "and summon, I don't know, a burning bush?"
"Kael."
"Or a spicy flower."
"Kael."
Kael rolled his eyes but relented. "Fine. You take the lead."
Elior focused, hands out. Magic flared between them—green vines, delicate and strong, weaving through the air. Kael added a flicker of warmth—just enough.
The result was beautiful.
A floating lattice of glowing ivy, shimmering with golden light.
Kael stared at it for a beat too long.
"You always do this," he said quietly.
"What?"
"Make something soft look powerful."
Elior blinked. "That's… unexpectedly poetic."
"Don't get used to it."
---
They crossed the final challenge in near silence—a bridge of illusion, requiring mutual trust to walk across the void. No steps. No edges. Just belief.
Elior's hand trembled as he stepped into nothingness.
Kael grabbed it. "I've got you."
The bridge formed beneath their feet.
Step by step, they crossed the impossible.
Together.
---
They didn't win.
Some pair with synchronized lightning magic took the top spot.
But when the tether spell faded and the ribbon dissolved from their wrists, Elior found himself oddly reluctant.
Kael didn't say much either.
Just looked at him.
And grinned that lopsided grin that meant trouble.
"Not bad, Flower Boy."
"You followed instructions. Miraculous."
They brushed shoulders as they walked away.