I spent my early life being judged.

  Judged for my looks, for my height.

  Judged for being the new kid when they sent me to school to learn about the Shallows.

  Judged for being different.

  And for the first time I was talking to someone who was Awakened and who didn't immediately judge me.

  ~ * ~

  The coffee shop was emptier than Seb had expected, until he realized it was still early in the afternoon. Grabbing a couple mugs he nodded to the barista at the far end of the counter and left a $10 on the counter before filling them from the urns. She nodded back to him before tilting her head in a silent question when she saw the second mug in his hands. He was in there nearly every day, even if usually first thing in the morning or right before they closed, at this point they just let him grab his coffee and rang it in when they next had the chance. Catching the look the barista gave him as he joined Lisa in a booth and sighed, it was too much to hope she'd ignore the second mug. Hopefully there wouldn't be too much gossip, or awkward questions, at the fact he was actually talking to someone and not either losing himself behind the screen of his laptop or heading right back out the door.

  "So where do you want to start?" Setting the second mug in front of Lisa before taking a sip from his own. She took a moment before answering to stir in some cream.

  "Maybe with why the two employees are staring at us and have huge smiles on their faces?" she answered. It was obvious she'd seen how easily he grabbed the mugs without waiting for a cashier and the apparent lack of concern at the time. But now a second employee had come out from the back room and they'd become the center of attention.

  Seb glanced over at the counter, his eyes starting to widen before he looked back at her and groaned. "I come here once or twice a day. I've talked a bit with them when it isn't busy and admitted I'm single. This is probably the first time they've seen me sitting with anyone so two guesses what they think is going on."

  Lisa paused with her cup midway to her mouth. "A date? They think we might be-"

  He cut her off before she could get going. "I hope they think this is just a first date or first meeting. They're probably guessing I was being lazy and suggested a place around the corner rather than anywhere fancy."

  "Around the corner?"

  "I live about a block away, it's how I knew no one would look twice at your outfit," he answered. "I thought of it because the coffee is good and you usually have a moderate amount of privacy." He put extra stress on how it was usual, his eyes flicking towards the counter with a glare. "But enough about them, they'll get distracted soon enough. Who goes first?"

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  "I'd rather hear how you Awakened before telling my tale. Most, if not all, of the Court would rather I didn't exist." She paused for a moment while sipping her coffee before continuing. "I came to an agreement with Her Majesty that I would return once every three months to present myself and show I was still alive. In return, I'm allowed to live my life and be conveniently forgotten."

  "That can't be easy," he replied after a moment. "I think I can make a few guesses as to why you were in a hurry to leave." Taking a deep swallow of his drink he paused then set the mug down.

  "Just about three months ago I stopped for coffee after a work meeting. Not here, it was almost halfway across town. While I was double-checking my email I saw something weird from the corner of my eye. When I looked up there was nothing there, except it felt like there was."

  Pausing he looked at her, considering his words. "I'm sure you know how Her Majesty's guards are able to hide in plain sight when they go out in public, or be visible but everyone seems to forget they're there the moment they lose sight."

  "Cloaks and Glamours," she said with a nod. "Some manage to do it on their own, but most of the guards use special equipment. My keepers did that when I was in High School and forced me to use Glamours while in transit."

  "High school..?" Shaking his head he continued before she could say anything. "No, don't tell me, I can wait until it's your turn."

  "So there was nothing there, but when I focused I suddenly saw Her Majesty and the Junior Princess heading to the door with their own coffees." He held up his hand the moment she started to interrupt. "Which immediately led to me feeling as though I was about to get hurt. Trying to understand that feeling made their guards appear and my head feel like it was about to explode."

  "I should have died in that moment. Her Majesty's guards do not take kindly to a random Unawakened catching sight of them. Somehow Her Majesty recognized that I was Awakening. I heard her telling them to hold right as I passed out. Next thing I knew I was waking up in the Holding."

  Lisa sat there in silence, her coffee momentarily forgotten as she tried to process his words. "They were getting coffee? They were outside the Holding?"

  "Yes and yes, I was never given the opportunity to ask about that day.. I had it explained to me how lucky I was to have Awakened and the very basics of what that meant. Then I was shown how to go between the Records room and the exit we met at, told I was expected to learn the rules, customs and expectations of an Awakened and if I applied myself I'd be allowed to serve as a Seneschal's aide."

  Picking his coffee back up he took another sip and waited to see if she had any questions.

  "I've never heard of someone seeing through a Glamour or a Cloak without their being higher level," she paused for a sip of her own. "Did they tell you what your Awakening Gifts were, or do anything to help you figure out what you were good at?"

  He shook his head.

  "Awakening Gifts? I saw references to that but nothing explaining what they were. They did have me repeat my seeing through Cloaks a few times with various Guards and see what else I could see when I focused." He chuckled slightly before continuing. "I can tell when the weaker Guards are cloaked nearby, stronger ones I need to pay attention for but once I get a feeling on where to look I can usually see them. They really don't like that."

  She grinned in response. "I'm sure they don't. Most of them think my doing better when sparring is purely luck, the fact that those ones never come close to winning should tell them otherwise." She flashed a slightly more predatory grin. "It's not my fault they're too slow to hit me."

  "As for the rest of the testing we did, they can't tell me what I'm good at because they keep trying to figure out how I do what I do."

  "I can tell you about some of what I've discovered with their help, but first I need another cup and maybe find out what you meant by High School?"

  With that he got up and refilled his mug, coming back moments later to sit down and smile encouragingly.