It was difficult, but Allen managed to get out of bed this morning. He was unable to get much sleep last night due to his discussion with William yesterday.
The Triumvirate with Solomon Windblade as its leader, Solomon being William's older brother, the three great elemental families, Thomas being within the Terrastone family, and lastly the upcoming tournament and the issues that could arise from that were all on his mind.
Oh yeah, I should also write that letter to my parents, Allen thought, remembering what William told him before he left yesterday.
Either way, this was Allen's second day at the academy, and he wasn't about to miss it. This academy means too much to him already, and doesn't wish to be kicked out on the second day. He put on his uniform, strapped his sword to his side, and finally got out of his dorm room.
Allen could already feel his hunger rising, as he realized he didn't get much to eat last night. Luckily, the academy served free breakfast for the students and teachers alike. He decided to head over to the academy's cafeteria.
While the cafeteria was a decent size, it was still rather crowded. Many students of each year, element, and rank were all gathered getting food, talking amongst each other, or just eating by themselves for alone time.
Just as Allen was about to get his food, he saw two familiar faces.
"Hey! Over here!," Thomas waved to Allen, from a nearby table. Cecily was also with him, giving him a friendly smile.
Allen quickly decided to head over to them, as they are his first friends after attending the academy.
"Hey, I wasn't expecting to see you both here," Allen admitted as he took a seat across from them.
"What do you mean? Of course you'd see me here! I mean, everyone tends to be hungry in the morning," Thomas said as he was in the middle of eating his food.
"Oh right, I should've thought about that," Allen laughed a little. "So how are you guys this morning?"
"I'm pretty good, just need to eat of course!," Thomas responded while taking a bite in between his words.
"How about you, Lily?," Allen asked, since he didn't get an immediate response from Cecily.
She seemed to be once again wrapped up in her own world, not even touching her food. Just what was she thinking about?
"Lily? Did you hear us?," Thomas asked her, tapping her shoulder.
"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine," she finally responded, giving them a smile.
"I see," Thomas said, giving her a concerned look for a moment. "Oh and by the way, what did the head director want with you yesterday? Didn't you mention something about him being your mentor?"
Oh right, I mentioned that to him yesterday; before I left to see William, Allen remembered. But, what should I say? Should I tell him?
"Yeah, as I said yesterday he was my mentor in the past. That's how I learned how to use my magic and fight. But as for why he called for me, it's a rather long story…"
"Oh, do you mind telling me? I am rather curious, and I think we have some time before class," he asked, his mouth full of food.
"Um, well to be honest it's not something I can really tell you guys, sorry. Also, learn to wait to talk until after you are done chewing," Allen shook his head, but couldn't help but laugh.
"I- sorry, I am just so hungry!", Thomas exclaimed while both Cecily and Allen laughed.
"Also, it's alright if you don't want to tell us," Cecily added.
"Thanks," Allen nodded. He was glad they didn't press him for information.
After sitting for a while, Allen realized he had yet to get food. He was already hungry enough as is, and it didn't help that he had been talking with Thomas and Cecily before getting food of his own.
"By the way, you should get food while you still can," Thomas added while still stuffing bites in his mouth.
Right…, Allen thought.
"Alright, I'll be right back," Allen said, getting up from his chair.
Allen went up to the line so he could order, debating his options. There were only a few students in front of him, so he wouldn't have to wait long. A few students in the line gave him weird looks, which Allen guessed was because they saw his "1F" pin on his uniform.
After finally getting to choose the dish he wanted, he began to walk back towards Thomas and Cecily's table. He saw what looked like a few students talking to them; however as he got closer, that didn't seem to be the case.
"Just get out of here. You two don't belong here!"
"You can't do anything, you failures"
"What are you going to do, cry?"
Three students were harassing both Thomas and Cecily. Thomas had an angry look on his face, but it looked like he was doing his best not to react. Cecily seemed to be scared out of her mind, as she sat there with a terrified look on her face.
"Hey, mind telling me what's going on here?," Allen said as he approached the three students from behind.
As they turned around, Allen noticed two of them were earth mages, and one of them was a water mage. They were all second years with a C ranking, identified by the "2C" pins on their uniforms. Each of them gave Allen a slight glare, as if they were annoyed that Allen interrupted them.
"Ah c'mon, we were just saying hi. After all, we were just being nice to our underclassmen," one of the earth mages said, with a slight smirk on his face.
"Yeah, I wouldn't call that being nice," Allen said, getting a little frustrated. "I would-"
"Allen it's fine, I got this," Thomas interrupted him, raising his voice a little. "Don't worry about it, their problem is with us"
Allen looked over at Thomas to see him with a frustrated face still on him. Cecily remained quiet, with her eyes down at the ground.
The one water mage looked over at Allen with a similar glare to the others but a little different, as if he wasn't as stupid as the others.
"You, you're that one F ranked kid, huh? That one who beat Charles Rivertide in a duel"
"So? What of it?," Allen asked, tensing up his fingers in case he tries anything.
"I've heard quite a bit about you. A lot of people have been talking about you recently. Seems like you're a little famous"
"I don't care what you think about me. Just leave them alone," Allen responded, raising his voice.
"Yeah yeah, whatever," he said, but then leaned in closer to Allen, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I'd watch your back if I were you"
He had said the last part in a sort of whisper so only he would hear.
"C'mon guys, this isn't worth it anyways," he told his buddies as he passed by Allen.
"What?," Allen asked, still a little confused about what the water mage meant. But before he could get an answer, the three left.
"Jerks," Thomas crossed his arms as he sat down, still frustrated.
"Hey what happened? Are you guys alright?," Allen asked, sitting down.
"Giving us crap just because we are F ranked…," Thomas scoffed.
"So what? Just because we are F ranks doesn't mean we can't do as well as everyone else. We just need to train harder so we can rank up, starting with D rank," Allen explained, trying to help.
"It's not just that. It's-," Thomas started to explain, but stopped abruptly.
All three of them sat there for a moment, collecting themselves. Cecily remained looking at the floor, not saying a word since Allen went to go get his breakfast.
I wonder, are they giving Thomas trouble because he's a Terrastone?, he thought, as he remembered his conversation with William yesterday.
"Is it because you are a Terrastone?," Allen finally decided to ask, after everyone was quiet for a few moments.
"I- Wait, how did you find out? I guess you'd find out eventually," Thomas sighed. "So what if I am a Terrastone? So what if I didn't receive the 'gift' my other siblings got. I can be just as powerful as they can! I can surely-"
Thomas was starting to yell, so Allen decided to stop him before it got worse.
"Woah, it's fine! It doesn't matter whether you are a Terrastone, an F rank, or even have different magic. Just prove to everyone that you are strong with your actions, not your words," Allen explained.
For a moment it looked like Cecily had glanced up at him for a moment, but then looked down again.
"I- I'm sorry for yelling at you. It's not your fault my magic is different and I am an F rank. It's just, I didn't like how those jerks were harassing us and it got me really frustrated. Sorry…"
"It's alright. Besides, those three are gone now. Let's finish our breakfast and then head to class, alright?"
"Yeah, sure. Thank you Allen," Thomas grinned. At least he was back in his normal good mood again. "But, do you mind telling me how you found out?"
"Well, I was going to find out eventually. I only didn't know before because I lived outside of London," Allen explained. "I now know what the great elemental families are: Windblade, Terrastone, and Rivertide. So if I may ask, you are a Terrastone. Right?"
"Yeah, I am," Thomas admitted, scratching the back of his head. "I did say my last name when I introduced myself back at the exam. I am a Terrastone, you are right. But, I didn't get the good magic my other siblings got. My magic is different, and the way they assess your magic in the exam didn't help. I was put into F rank, despite my abilities"
"Ah I see. And you did mention you knew Lily since you were kids. So I would presume Lily would be a Rivertide? It would make sense"
"Yes, I am," Cecily spoke up, speaking on her own behalf. She had looked up from the ground, and her face was much more composed than it was before. "Children from the great elemental families tend to know each other at young ages. That's how I met Tom at a young age. But unlike Tom who is considered an exception, I am considered a failure. I don't have as much mana as the rest of my family. That's why I was also put into F rank"
Allen was surprised. After all, that's the most he's ever seen Cecily talk before. She isn't exactly the talkative type, and is more of the quiet and shy type.
"So then, I'm guessing those guys were bothering you because you are in the great elemental families, but you are F ranks?," Allen asked for clarification.
"Yeah, that's right. Stupid jerks bothering us, just because our magic is weaker or different. They must think they are all high and mighty, being able to talk down to a Terrastone and a Rivertide," Thomas explained, shaking his head with his arms crossed again.
"Then, why not prove to them and everyone else you aren't weak. Show them despite your magic, you are more powerful than them, if not more!," Allen tried to encourage him.
"Thanks Al. Lily and I do train the best we can, but we don't seem to be getting better. No matter how much we do, it still isn't enough"
"Then, let's train together! I mean, I did promise both of you I would. I'll try my best to help you guys get better!," Allen said with a smile on his face.
"Really? You'll try to help us?," Thomas asked, both him and Cecily's eyes full of hope.
"Yes of course. We're friends, right?," Allen grinned.
"Yeah, we are," Thomas said while he and Cecily nodded in agreement.
"Great! Then let's finish our breakfast and then head to class. After class, we can go train and get better. Sounds good?"
"Good enough for me! I can already feel my blood pumping!," Thomas exclaimed with excitement, shaking his arms with his fists closed.
"Of course," Cecily added.
"Alright then! Time to finish this breakfast!," Allen declared, putting a mouthful of food into his mouth.
"No way I'm going to let you beat me!," Thomas yelled, already grabbing another bite of his food.
"No fair! You were eating before me!"
"You know what they say; the early bird gets the worm!"
"Oh shut up!"
As both Allen and Thomas began to chow down their food fast, Cecily just laughed at them. Allen was glad he was not only finally enjoying his food, but also he could enjoy this fun moment with his newfound friends.
As Allen was close to finishing his food, he thought he saw someone in the corner of his eye, near the entrance to the Cafeteria. At first he thought he spotted William, but before he could get a better look, he was already gone.
After they hurriedly finished their food, they headed to their classroom for day two. They were once again met with their teacher, Ms. Florence, who remained seated at her desk reading her book and not acknowledging their entrance. The other two F ranked students remained quiet as ever in their desks, the water mage looking out the window again and the hooded earth mage seeming to stare at them again. Allen, Thomas, and Cecily decided to sit down at the same desks they sat in yesterday.
"So, I suppose we should wait for class to start again?," Thomas asked, confused.
"Suppose so," Allen said, stretching. He looked back at the other two students for a moment, curious about them. "Have you ever seen the other two talk before?"
"Dunno, I've never seen them say a word. We must be the only people who are actually alive here," Thomas joked.
Just like yesterday, Ms. Florence had waited until everyone was settled in. She got out of her seat, and went back to the podium in front of the room. Allen guessed she wouldn't be teaching today, as he noticed she still had her book in her hand.
"Alright then you failures, today is a training day. If you don't know what that means, it's because you didn't look at your schedule. I take you lot down to the training grounds of the academy, or also known as the arena. You all can train or do whatever you want until class time is over. Any questions?"
No one raised their hands, except for Thomas. But it seemed like Ms. Florence ignored him, as she continued.
"Alright then, follow me to the training room," she announced, already walking outside of the classroom. The other two students surprisingly got out of their seats quickly, following her as fast as Ms. Florence left the room.
"Wha- she didn't even see I had a question?!," Thomas said, looking down in place.
"No she did, though it seemed like she ignored you," Allen laughed, as he got out of his chair.
"Ah what? Oh whatever," Thomas shook his head as he got out of his own seat.
"We should get going, before they leave us behind," Cecily brought up as she got out of her chair. She quickly grabbed her stuff and already began to leave the room. Allen decided to follow her, as he didn't fully remember how to get to the training grounds.
"Wait for me guys!," Thomas yelled as he quickly ran to catch up to everyone else.
After walking around the academy, they finally arrived at the training grounds outside. It was a fairly large area, as Allen remembered he took his exam here. There were various other students practicing around as well. Some of the students were dueling each other for practice reasons, or using some of the various targets around to practice hitting their magic.
Guess we aren't the only class training here today, Allen thought as some of the other students scoffed at them as they saw the F class arrive.
"Alright train as you wish. You have a few hours until class is over. Unless you need anything important, I will be sitting down over here," she explained while already taking a seat near the back.
"Alright! It's training time!," Thomas exclaimed, while already starting on his stretches. "What should we do first?"
Allen thought for a moment how they could train. Sure, they could just do regular things such as target practice, but he had a different idea in mind.
"Say, how good are you guys in a duel?," Allen asked.
"Hm? What do you mean?," Thomas said as he stopped what he was doing.
"I want to test you guys in a mock duel. Both of you have said your magic is different, right? I want to see for myself," Allen explained.
"Wait, you mean you wish to have a small duel with each other? How are we going to do that, with three of us?,"
"How about both of you can come at me however you want. Don't worry about me, I can handle myself in a duel," Alone explained while pointing to his sheathed sword.
"Hmm, sounds interesting. I like it," Thomas nodded in approval. "But are you sure about this? I mean, it's both of us against you"
"Yeah, I'm sure. I'm only doing this as a small test, so I can see how you guys fight., You don't need to come at me with everything you've got; just attack me how you wish. This will help me determine how we can proceed with our training. How does that sound?"
"Oh, I see," Thomas said, his grin growing larger. "I'll do it. But don't underestimate us. Sure, my magic is different and Lily's is weak, but we can still handle ourselves in a fight. Just don't come crying to me when we beat you!"
"Yeah, we won't go easy on you, even if it is a mock duel," Cecily nodded.
Great, Allen thought. Both of them are excited about this. Even quiet Lily seems to be interested. This will help me test how strong they are.
"Ready?," Allen asked, unsheathing his sword.
"Ready," both of them answered, as they prepared their magic.
"Let's begin!"