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[color=white]"Alphonse, let me help ya with that, love. We're kin, after all."[/color]

Bulma's smile was warm like sunlight. Alphonse always admired her kindness and the attention she gave to the circus family. She was akin to a mother or big sister for many. He was also a bit envious of her strength since he saw it as the genuine article, whereas his displays of physical prowess relied upon the trickery of his ability. Overall, he looked up to her as an example. So the current situation was a bit bittersweet, as he clearly was the one receiving help.

[color=BF00FF]"Ah, thank you. My head gives me a bit of a bad time. Oh, but my body is fine."[/color]

Alphonse flexed his arms, as for to confirm his good health. He was wearing a "tiger fur" jacket. In truth, it was cheap fur dyed to look the part, which was good enough considering most people had never seen an actual tiger. It was sleeveless and was only attached with a loose string, so that it couldn't fully close. It was his show costume, showing off his body and helping him to create the persona he presented to the public.

[color=white]"Are ya excited for the show today? Seems like a real good'un. I tell ya, lovey, as much as I feel exhausted afterwards, there's something about this that moves ya, eh?"[/color]

[color=BF00FF]"Of course! We sell dreams, here. Got to give people something to remember, right? Ah, I never got to see a circus show as a kid, but I bet it would have changed my life."[/color]

Alphonse looked to his weights resting on the ground. Two 180 pounds balls of cast iron with handles to grab them. Lifting both of them at once would be a serious struggle even for someone as strong as Alphonse if it wasn't for his ability. Once their weight was halved, they were still heavy but it became much more manageable. He would also double their size to make them appear much heavier, so in practice they only had a quarter of the weight they appeared to have during his show. Alphonse was also holding the steel bar he used in combination to the weights. It had hooks on each end to attach to the balls. Finally, he had a crate of cannonballs. Their weight weren't as impressive but juggling those was very popular with the public.

[color=BF00FF]"Well, I can't really say no if you offer to help me. I'd like to use my [i]trick [/i]as little as possible until the show starts proper. I might drop the cannonball juggling for this evening if I can't keep my focus straight."[/color]

Alphonse put the bar under his arm and carried one of the large balls in his arms. While he was just about capable of lifting it in with a single hand without his ability, carrying it around was a different matter.


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[color=00aeef]"Aaaah, which one, which one..."[/color]

Back in his room, Edmund was slouched over books and scattered papers. It was notes for various classes.
So far, he had mostly assisted the teenagers' classes. He didn't mind it as he did believe their education was of the utmost importance. But those new students interested him and the least suspicious way to approach them was simply to do his job. Or rather, that was the strategy he was most confident in since he lacked the subtility needed for a different approach.

But, of course, the curriculum for adults was a completely different beast from the kids'. He was well aware since he still occasionally took some of these classes. It was a lot more freeform, the basics were assumed to be acquired and the classes were typically chosen with specifics goals in mind.

They most likely were here to attune their enlightenment, so this training was a given. But there were quite a few talented teachers he had to compete with. Well, if his hunch that the noble youth also had a frost ability was right, Edmund had good odds to be assigned to him. But that left the other two. 

The young man was most likely not nobility but he was well clothed, so most likely bourgeoisie. Those typically tried to figure how to climb the social ladder through their newly acquired powers. If he was any smart, he'd try classes on politics, law and economics. Maybe also history, medecine or mathematics. Edmund only hoped for any other than the last one, as it was his greatest academical weakness.

The lady was the troublesome one. He had [i]nothing[/i] on her. Not only that, but it was pretty likely she'd prefer being taught by a woman if given the choice. It was common. And perfectly reasonable.

He lounged into his chair. This was looking to be tough. But it was a good test. If he could surpass this self-imposed trial, then he would grow further. After all, he did desire mastery of many academic fields. And he did also want to be able to help any student. This was becoming less about satisfying his curiosity and more about establishing new goals for himself.

[color=00aeef]"Well, I'll just learn as many as I can, then."[/color]

And so, Edmund started reorganising his notes. As long as you have a clear goal, you can plan a course. And with a proper course, what seemed like an impossible task can be executed through efforts and dedication. It was a philosophy he inherited from his father and it had served him well so far.