Dungeons, Dragons, and Art

Cameron

Cameron held in a sigh as his math professor droned on about some sort of geometric thesis… or something. He continued to doodle on the graph paper that he should probably be using to take notes. He couldn't wait for his art class that afternoon.

He missed an open art studio session the night before to go to the library to research about the mother guardian. There were papers after papers, newspaper articles after newspaper articles, photo after photo, book after book… She had once been like a god. Since the barrier had gone up however, not an ember of power had come from her. The more he researched, the more Gisa's theory about her power could hold water. He was hoping to prove it wrong, but everything pointed to her inability to access her power anymore.

Cameron watched a video clip on the internet in which the mother guardian was tossing soldiers aside like they were pebbles. The slightly chubby, middle-aged women who ran a prep school for royals had fought in the great war. Had been a power player. He read a lot about her strategies in the books too. She was a military genius. It was hard to believe that the Mother Guardian, in her little heels and business suits…

"Earth to Cameron."

Cameron's head snapped up, his attention brought back to the present.

"Now that I have your attention," the professor said, looking down a pair of ancient spectacles at Cameron, "Could you tell me the theorem of equal arcs, equal angles?"

Cameron looked at the blackboard, now erased. "No."

"Then I suggest you pay better attention. Can anyone else tell me?"

But Cameron's attention didn't last for long. The bell that signaled for the end of class didn't come for an eternity. Cameron was the first out the door.

He waved to Jamison across the quad. To graduate on time, Cameron had to take two math classes. It meant that he didn't have math class with Jamison and Gisa anymore. He was kind of sad. Mostly happy though, because those two were always getting in trouble and dragging him down too.

He practically sprinted across the green, which was not green, but covered in white powder long since trampled by the students. Art class had become his favorite thing ever. He'd also found a dungeons and dragons group and even started a quest. He hadn't really made any friends thus far that weren't shared by Jamison so he was excited to have his own little group. One of the boys was in his art class too. His name was Thomas. One of Duchess Naeema's sons.

His father was the defense minister of the kingdom. He knew that it wasn't technically his job assigned by Gisa, but he knew she'd be happy if he could get any information through Thomas.

He was working on a charcoal piece for this section in introduction to mediums. He'd never really used charcoal before, but he was enjoying himself immensely. His few quick pieces so far were very dark, and he used an eraser to make most of the defining features. His professor liked his style however.

"Hey Thomas." Cameron plopped at an easel beside his friend, letting his bag crumple to the ground.

"Hey! Thomas smiled.

Cameron liked him a lot. He was so genuine. And goofy. His braces that hadn't quite fixed his gap tooth yet didn't help make him look any more serious. Thomas hadn't said much about it, but his golden hair indicated that he carried the magic of his mother in his blood. Gisa said he was in the magic classes but hadn't yet produced any magic. He could be a late bloomer. He had asked Gisa if his magic might be helpful in the war, but his mother's powers were better used for health and beauty. Not things that would win a war. It made Cameron feel a little better. He didn't want his friend fighting in a catastrophic war.

It made Cameron think. Would he fight in the war that was coming? He wanted to, but Gisa might give him some task that kept him far from the front lines. Probably. He wasn't much of a fighter as much as he wanted to help.

"Are you excited to move to colored pencils in a couple weeks? I am already ready to be done with black and white." Thomas grinned. "You need to add some color sometimes."

"You never know." Cameron smiled back as the professor began his lecture.