28th of Sifdras - 4th Ivora

  Professor Greenborrow starts off with a lecture on healing potions. They go over the various components of the recipe and the ideal process for brewing for maximum efficacy. After a short Q&A session from the class, we get into our groups from last week with the instructions to work together to make a successful healing potion.

  Before Cira can volunteer me for anything, I ask her to lead the group this time as Munsa and Natsumi join us at the lab table. Cira fidgets with the amulet around her neck, a blue stone set in a metal casing, and agrees uneasily.

  Cira instructs us three to get all the things we will need and setup all the tools. She and Munsa handle the measuring, weighing, and grinding powders while Natsumi and I ignite the small fire pit in the middle of the table and setup the tools: cauldron, vials, stir sticks, etc. Once the bulk of the work is completed, Cira instructs us on what to add, when to add it, and how long and in what direction it should be stirred to quicken correctly.

  In the lull of any actions to take Munsa speaks up addressing Cira and I, “Oh, hey, I’ve been meaning to find you guys over the weekend, but I wasn’t able to catch you guys. But Vesa wanted me to tell you that Fara told her, that Sonya told her, that Greyson told her, to be careful of a second-year guy in our Coven.” I glance up at her with interest from stirring the cauldron in an anticlockwise direction.

  “Apparently, he is super bad news,” she goes on when she can see that she has both our attention and as well as Natsumi’s even though she is from Unio Luminae. “She heard that he turned into a bear and mauled a student to death last year!”

  The lines around Cira’s eyes crease with doubt, “That can’t be true, Munsa. If a scribe murdered another scribe, I highly doubt they would still be enrolled here.”

  “Sure, okay,” Munsa gives a bit of ground, “maybe not to death, but it totally happened! Vesa said that Fara knows Marcus, one of the staff for Professor Peacock, and he told her that he was one of the scribes to help the victim afterwards. He told her there were deep gashes all over his body! Like claws marks!”

  I suppress a shiver at the mental image of what the gory scene might have looked like. While it is shocking, I’ll admit, I am leaning toward Cira’s opinion that this rumor seems a bit too far fetched to be true. The elven girl looks at me then, telling me to start rotating the potion clockwise instead. I do as she instructs as Natsumi pipes up with a harsh whisper in Munsa’s direction.

  “Who was the one who did it?”

  We all look to Munsa, whose expression falters for a moment as she mutters to herself. “Oh, well, uh, Grass—something. No, Ward—no that’s not right. Wood. Darkwood? Yeah, Darkwood, I think, is what she told me?”

  I give her a flat look, trying not to scowl too deeply at her. “Duskwood?” I suggest and Munsa’s face lights up.

  “Yeah! That’s it! Do you know him?”

  Cira and I exchange glances and I know neither one of us are particularly keen on talking about our run-ins with Calas Duskwood.

  “Yeah, we’ve met him.” She says stoically.

  Both Munsa and Natumi’s eyes practically bulge. “Is he really that dangerous in person?” Munsa asks in a hushed whisper to Cira.

  She scoffs in response, “He’s an ass for sure, but I don’t know about dangerous.” Cira then looks to me while I am trying very hard to focus on stirring our potion at the correct speed; not wanting to talk about that golden eyed menace. “Serea, might be able to tell you more. She has seen his magic in action.”

  The two other girls focus on me expectantly. I can feel their eager stares on me even as I try to ignore them and this entire conversation. Inwardly I pout, wondering why Cira would put me in the spot light this way. Natsumi stares at me with both concern and excitement, saying “He’s used magic on you?”

  I mentally groan for having to explain, “Yeah, but it’s not what you think. He’s my combat partner. So it’s not like we are trying to hurt each other.” Once I say it, I instantly feel like its a lie. I had actually hurt him, but no sane person would have reacted to it the way he had.

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  In my hesitation, Munsa bombards me with a question of her own. “But did he change shapes at all?”

  “No,” I shake my head, still finding that part hard to believe. “He uses shadow magic and some kind of illusion magic. He does have a lot of animal tattoos, though. Maybe that is where the bear thing comes from…” I’m grasping at smoke, trying to come up with a logical reason for the clearly exaggerated rumor.

  Munsa looks disappointed by this news. Disappointed!

  Natsumi chimes in quickly, “Speaking of shadows, Serea, I heard from some of my Coven-mates a strange rumor going around about you.” Her voice trails off as if she is thinking better of saying anything.

  All thoughts of Calas flee from my mind as all three of us stare at Natsumi intently. “Oh?” Is all I can manage to encourage her to say what I likely already know she will, feeling sure this is related to my mishaps again. It was just a matter of time after all.

  Her voice becomes even smaller as she leans into us to discourage eavesdroppers. “They say that you went into the Void of Reflection and came out with an unlucky aura of shadow around you. Like you’d been cursed for going in there. They say you can spread that unlucky aura now just by touching someone. Is it true?”

  Stunned for a moment, I hesitate. What in the sundered World Tree is she talking about? “No!” I bark, perhaps a bit too vehemently. I clasp my mouth shut with my hands, embarrassed at my own outburst. “I mean,” I start more quietly, “I did go into the Void of Reflection, but I’m not cursed. Unlucky aura? Who even told you that?”

  Natsumi puts her hands up reflexively, “I’m sorry! I don’t know who started it! It’s just been going around for a couple of weeks now.”

  “Weeks!?” Cira interjects, a mixture of disdain and shock in her tone.

  Munsa nods at Cira and I as if she has known this all along and I cover my face with both hands, trying to hide from the world. Kishi had told me that Calas said that I was cursed, but I never thought it would spread like a wild fire into something like this!

  “Serea!” Cira calls out to me with urgency, “The potion!”

  I whip my head over to the potion I stopped stirring, only to find it overflowing, a caustic smelling gas being released from the pot still on the heat. I reach out for the stir stick, but recoil quickly from the bubbling, boiling heat of the overflow.

  Cira reacts quickly, though, dousing the fire under it and putting a halt to the reaction. This and Cira’s exclamation brings the attention of Professor Greenborrow, who uses an advanced form of water spell, the likes of which I have never seen before. It uses strands of water to gather and envelop the mess and neutralizes the caustic nature of the brew with something earth related. It is all handled in a matter of moments, but it is a relief all the same.

  I sheepishly take a mild chiding from the professor about the dangers of being inattentive in their laboratory. As they move on to another group’s table, I sigh, my cheeks flush with a flustered frustration that threatens to drag my heart into a deep abyss of self-loathing. The only thing that keeps me from this is some encouraging words from Cira and the business of remaking our potion.

  Afternoon

  I sulk at my desk in Magic Studies after lunch, trying very hard to ignore the noises coming from the other side of the long desk. I have placed myself as far away from the couple on the other side as humanly possible. Even with the distance and angling myself away, a shielding hand placed to block my peripherals, it is still hard to ignore the very public displays of affection they are giving one another in the minutes before class. Isn’t there a rule against this kind of behavior?

  After our potion making was successful, Natsumi mentioned this particular couple who has become rather infamous in Unio Luminae, as well. It eases my mind to know that I an not the only subject of interest in her Coven’s gossip. Apparently, their names are Zhenya and Mazron and they have a bad habit of displaying their deep relationship for all the world to see.

  According to Natsumi, they were given detention from Professor Blackclaw for being “too physical” in their Combat Basics class, which thankfully is not the same class that Cira and I are in. I’m not sure that I could handle witnessing anything more physical than what they are doing currently. It is almost too much too know that Zhenya, the human girl with long, straight black hair is sitting on the lap of her infernai boyfriend, Mazron, their faces locked together by their lips and hands clutching one another possessively.

  I am actually relieved when Mistress Moonshadow enters the room to start class and Zhenya finds her own seat. That is about where my relief ends as the lecture starts up about incantation phrases. As if the singular words were not bad enough, oh no! All the examples given are a string of nonsensical syllables smashed together with unnatural stresses and inflections. I am already flustered by the time the lecture ends.

  There is nothing for it but to try one of these confounding things. I brace myself mentally for the two-word phrase I am about to try. It is supposed to light a candle, which is provided inside the long desk. I think of how easy it would be to just snap my fingers, willing a small piece of a fire thread to combust on the exposed wick and sigh with frustration.

  Staring at the candle dully, I mutter blandly, “Filum igni.” To my great astonishment, the nearest thread reacts, just as if I had snapped my fingers. Stunned, I stare at the lit flame, mouth agape like a confused fish out of water. In a rush with the unexpected success, I dig out another candle and try again.

  “Filum igni.” I say with a bit more enthusiasm than the first.

  Nothing happens.

  I try for several more minutes, but the second candle does not light.

  I hate this class.