No one attempts to take it from him.

Good! They're learning!

Several of them are still horrible to him in other ways, largely in terms of rudeness, occasional minor 'accidents', and general disrespect, but the general consensus is that it's not worth it to try to take his dessert.

Damn right it's not worth it.

He doesn't take well to being generally disrespected, but mostly doesn't start shit over it. Minor 'accidents'... well, that depends on the accident in question, and on how easily he can tell whose fault it is.

Sometimes it's obvious whose fault it is; sometimes it's impossible to tell. Some accidents are simple things like ink spilled on the paper he was writing on; some are plausibly-actually-accidental bumps in halls, some are less-plausibly-accidental harder versions of same; some are actual injuries inflicted when he "gets in the way" of some kind of magic practice or other.

He can learn not to get in the way. And study magic even harder, to shorten the time until he is the one they all have to worry about getting in the way of.

Study is good for the soul, and for not getting hit with metal rods. At least until your teacher accelerates the curriculum to keep up.

The next time he goes in for a lesson Savaross is looking at him appraisingly.

He notices, but can't immediately guess why.

The lesson proceeds mostly as normal.

Near the end, he says, "I understand you've been having problems with some of the other apprentices."

He shrugs. "Nobody tries to steal my dessert anymore," he says, with some satisfaction.

"That's very good," he agrees. "But dessert isn't the end-all and be-all."

Tassairen blinks up at him dubiously. Is he sure. Does he understand dessert.

He sighs. "Just because you've solved the dessert problem doesn't mean the others don't exist," he clarifies.

He shrugs again.

"I'm doing okay."

He sighs. "I know perfectly well that the other apprentices have been...hazing...you, and you have been responding with...avoidance."

"I'm going to be the best and then nobody will mess with me," he says reasonably.

"They are getting into bad habits now."

"I'll teach 'em later."

"Procrastination is not a virtue."

"'M not procrastinating."

He raises an eyebrow.

"I'm not!" he insists. "I'm gonna be the best and then nobody will mess with me."

"And in the meantime?"

"In the meantime I learn magic and if I don't want people to set me on fire I don't give them the chance."

Savaross considers him for a moment.

"I strongly recommend taking a more proactive approach," he says, and then he assigns Tassairen twice as much practice as usual and sends him off.