As Aurelia Oxide once said, I am a bit of an enigma at Elemental University.11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7r2L2eKtH1
She also once said during a particularly caffeinated study session that francium was invented in Hogwarts... to which I say... put down the coffee.
While the second one makes no sense, the first one does. With my ability to manipulate time, my toxic touch, and my recent mastery over oxygen, I’ve kept to myself, wary of the dangers my powers could pose to others. But Cadence Mercurial, she’s different. She’s one of the few who doesn’t shy away, who sees beyond the elements that define us.
From the moment she arrived, Cadence was a melody in human form. Her connection to mercury was unlike anything I’d ever seen—she didn’t just control it; she understood it, heard it sing. And when she played her guitar, it was as if the world stood still, every note drawing you into the music more and more like a siren song.
We’re not what you’d call friends. Our interactions are more like collisions of elements, each meeting sparking reactions neither of us fully understand. Yet, there’s a harmony in our chaos, a sense of balance that comes from our mutual respect for the power we wield.
We first met when I was supposed to be her tour guide around the school on her first day for an SUPW assignment. It’s a little something Selena likes to call, ‘Super Useless Pointless Work’. An opposite to its real full form, ‘Socially Useful Productive Work’. Though Cadence says it helps, and I did meet someone new.
As we walked through the campus, I showed her the grand library with its endless shelves of elemental knowledge, the laboratories where accidents were as common as breakthroughs, and the music hall that seemed to wait in silent anticipation of her notes. All the while, I kept a careful distance, a constant reminder of the danger that lurked beneath my skin.
Cadence didn’t seem to mind. She asked questions, her curiosity as boundless as the sky, and listened to my stories with genuine interest. She laughed when I told her about the time I accidentally aged a batch of cheese to perfection with a misdirected thought, and her eyes widened in wonder when I explained how I could slow down the rusting of metal with a concentrated breath.
It wasn’t long before I realized that Cadence saw the world differently. Where others saw risk, she saw beauty; where they saw fear, she saw potential. Her presence was disarming, and for the first time in a long while, I found myself sharing more than just superficial anecdotes. I talked about my dreams, the ones where I could use my powers for something more than just parlor tricks and party gags.
The tour ended outside the music room, where students clutching guitars, violins and other instruments roamed about. “This is where you’ll shine,” I said, gesturing towards the instrument.
Cadence and I had just finished our impromptu jam session in the music hall when Selena, with her platinum eyes that seemed to reflect every facet of life, walked in, followed by Gallus, whose presence was as solid and dependable as the element he was named after. They found us laughing over a shared joke about the periodic table—art and science students alike found humor in the quirks of our studies.
Selena raised an eyebrow, her lips curving into a knowing smile. “Looks like you two are having fun. What’s the joke?”
I glanced at Cadence, who was still holding her guitar like a cherished companion. “Just some nerdy humor about transition metals,” I said, trying to sound nonchalant.
Gallus chuckled, his deep voice resonating in the quiet hall. “Well, as long as it’s not about noble gases. They don’t react well to jokes.”
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