Way of The Wand

Chapter 15

Chidi dusted himself off as he approached Jira. “This was fun, and I would like to stay, but I’ve got to get going. Maybe we can see each other again tonight?”

Jira put her arms akimbo.

“The old place we used to sneak to. Come on, for old time’s sake?” He pressed.

Jira let out a breath of air. “Fine. But only as thanks for coming today.”

Chidi punched himself in the chest. “Yes!”

“We’re going as friends,” Jira tried to say to him, but he’d taken off before she got it out.

After Chidi left, Jira returned her attention to Timi.

“How’d I do?” The sixteen-year-old witch asked.

“For your first time against a wizard? Excellent. We keep practising this way and Daila won’t know what hit her.”

Jira excluded Tomi from classes for the rest of the day, encouraging her to spend all that extra time reading and preparing for the task for smarts.

After her pupils departed that evening, Jira got ready for her outing with Chidi, putting on a slim red dress she hadn’t worn in a long time.

As the bar wasn’t too far away from her house, Jira chose to walk the distance. She was surprised to find out the name of the bar had changed. It used to be “Laide’s Bar”, now a sign that said “The Moongirl” hung over the door.

She would have known of this update if she hadn’t avoided the place like a plague after she broke up with Chidi. Too many memories, she thought, and now here she was walking in again.

The Moongirl sat in one of the busiest districts in the city. Benin citizens called this area the Centre, because this was where everyone from all sides of the city came to blow off steam during the weekends. It had bars, kids’ playgrounds, canteens, beauty shops, even a play theatre.

Jira smiled as she pushed open the door. This tournament was making her visit places she hadn’t come to in a long time.

The name change wasn’t the only different thing about The Moongirl. The bartender wore a new face, a girl of about Jira’s age.

The old furniture was gone too, replaced by tables wrought from metal and chairs woven from raffia.

It had been barely an hour since the sun came down and the place was already filled with people.

Jira caught a few gawks as she strode to the counter. Chidi wasn’t here yet, but she didn’t want to sit and wait without making any orders.

She decided to place an order for herself and Chidi.

She nudged her head to the bartender as a greeting, leaning an arm on the counter and making sure to avoid knocking over the oil lamp at the edge.

“White, please. Two cups.”

The bartender’s eyes narrowed at Jira. “I feel like I know you from somewhere.”

“Really? That’s a shocker. I haven’t been here in years.”

The bartender’s head bopped backwards. “That so?” She replied as she fetched Jira a tall wooden cup and filled it with frothing white wine from a gourd.

As she was about to slide the cup over to Jira, she paused, pointing at Jira. “I remember now. You’re that witch. That little girl’s teacher.”

Several heads swivelled to Jira’s position.

Jira shrunk under the weight of the attention. She opened her mouth to deny, but the bartender spoke over her.

“On the house!”

“What?” The surprise slipped out from Jira.

“Order as many drinks as you want, it’s on the house,” the bartender replied. “You’re making a statement for us witches.”

Some people banged their tables to agree, others yelled, others still, clapped.

Jira’s lips settled into a comfortable smile. “Why thank you.”

She picked her two cups of wine of the palm and walked to an empty seat, nodding to acknowledge those who raised their cups to her.

She plopped down onto her seat feeling good. She hadn’t realised the tournament was having such a profound effect on people.

That feeling soon sank when it dawned on her just how many lives would be affected by this tournament. This might have started out as a family squabble, but now, it had spiralled into something far greater. This realisation put her under pressure, a pressure she hadn’t known to feel.

If she let all these people down, it would only worsen the way society regarded witches, and strengthen the notion that their form of magic was weaker.

Her thoughts went silent the moment Chidi stepped into the bar. Even with a black hood over his head, she recognised him.

She used to sneak out of Airad in hoods back then too. Anyone caught outside school grounds without permission faced disciplinary action, and disciplinary action in Airad was no small business.

Chidi scanned the room and spotted her, breaking into a smile. He occupied the seat opposite Jira and started the night off with a compliment. “You’re glowing.”

It wasn’t just the words that made Jira blush, it was the way he said, taking it slow and stressing each word in the sentence.

He readjusted his chair and smiling, said, “I’m afraid I’ll get burned if I stay too close.”

Jira’s cheeks warmed up and her blushing intensified despite herself.

This wasn’t why she’d come here, to continue from where they ended things and so decided to stop him before he went into full flirting mode and made her fall for him again.

“If you so much as look at me the wrong way, I’ll turn you into a pig.”

Chidi dropped one eyebrow and raised the other. How he developed such an unholy control over his eyebrows was a mystery to everyone, but he knew how to put them to good use.

“Jira, I’m a man. That’s my true form.”

Jira didn’t know when her throat exploded with laughter.

When she finally brought herself to order again, she pushed one of the two mugs on the table to him. “You still like palm wine, don’t you?”

Chidi took a sip of his drink. “Who in this city doesn’t?”

He added a “thank you” as he settled the wooden vessel back on the table.

He looked around scanning the faces of the people in the bar. Believing no one here would recognize him as an Airad student, he pulled off his hood.

Jira gestured to his braids. “I’m surprised they let you keep that in Airad.”

“They don’t,” Chidi responded, “I wear a wig over it in school.”

For the second time that night, Jira released another long bout of laughter.

“I miss this,” Chidi said, his voice growing serious. “I miss making you laugh like this.”

Jira took a mouthful of her wine to avoid replying. He ought to stop looking at her with those clear brown eyes.

Chidi read the room and decided to step back, shifting to a slightly different subject.

“Had any relationships in those three —four— years we didn’t talk to each other?”

Jira set her cup back down. “Only relationship I’ve had since you is with my students.”

Chidi spat out his drink. “What?”

“Not like that!” Jira’s voice came out high pitched.

She gathered herself, chuckling. “Come on, you know what I meant.”

She reached over and punched Chidi playfully on his chest.

Chidi pressed his hand against where Jira hit him, pretending to be hurt. “Ow, that hurt; you’re stronger than you know.”

Jira leaned forward on her chair. “What about you? Did you have anyone? Do you have anyone?”

“There was this girl, but, didn’t last,” Chidi answered.

“What happened?”

Chidi crossed his arms on the table. “I guess we were in different places then.”

What he really meant was, he hadn’t gotten over Jira when his new relationship began, and he knew he couldn’t let it continue.

Raising his head, Chidi switched gears again. “What do you say we get out of here?”

“And go where?”

“If I tell you it’ll ruin the surprise.”

He rose to his feet and held out his hand for Jira to take.

Jira didn’t hesitate, and together they left the bar.