Part 1: Charlie
Balder punched me square in the face. I took a step back right as he did, though, so it didn't hurt all that bad. On some instinct I didn't know I had, I lowered my frame and hit him with a powerful right jab, directly in his sternum. He fell to the ground, winded.
"Oh shoot, I'm so sorry." I extended my hand to him. I felt bad about knocking him down because I knew he would be upset. And reasonably so, from his point of view.
He took a moment to catch his breath, and when he did, he slapped my hand away. At that, Quinn pulled me back.
"Why are you trying to start something, Balder? Didn't I tell you not to?" She seemed really mad.
"This miscreant got you out of my line of sight. That's something that I can't let happen." He squared his chest and pointed at me.
"He got me out of your line of sight? You say it like he dragged me away against my will."
"I feel like that's something he would try." His simple retort cut deep. I hadn't even done anything, so why did he dislike me so much? At least, I didn't think I did.
"It was my idea. I'm the one who didn't want you to come with, exactly because I thought something like this would happen." She told him. I said nothing in defense of myself.
"Whatever." was all he said as he stormed away. Quinn turned to me next.
"Are you okay?"
I felt my cheek where he punched me. "Yeah, I pulled back when he swung, so he only brushed it."
She punched me in my arm and made a pouty face. "Then why did you hit him back?!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, my body moved on its own. Before I fully processed it, he was on the ground." I threw my hands up in surrender.
"Well don't do it again." She turned away from me and towards the dorm.
"I'll wait until he gets a good hit in first."
"That joke is unappreciated right now." she started walking.
"Sorry." Confused where the instincts even came from, seeing as I'd never been in a fight, I followed her in.
Part 2: Quinn
Boys can be so brutish. I don't get why they go to fighting before talking it out. I went to my room to calm down. Charlie followed me in without saying anything else but 'sorry'. At least he regretted it, unlike my dumb brother. God, he didn't even say anything, and he acts like we're in the wrong.
Whatever, they'd better just think about it.
In my own room, I was thinking about the good parts of the day, trying to calm down. I remembered a weird detail, though, and that was how Charlie was following us just fine with his eyes closed the entire time. I tapped my fingers on the desk as I sat down to think.
The only thing I could think it could be is magic. It made me interested in how he did it. Seeing with your eyes closed had so many practical uses, after all.
To start, I closed my eyes. I wasn't really sure how he did it, but I did remember how to focus magic, kind of. I tried to push some magic power into my eyes, but I only managed to feel it. I tried to imagine that I was pulling it up my body. That did a little bit. I tried to think of what might work.
Maybe the secret was how it acted? I took a second to just observe what the magic did. It seemed to work its way around my body slowly, with a slow flow. 'Oh yeah, I just got an amulet that is supposed to increase flow. I should try that on.'
I grabbed the amulet out of the bag I had quickly forgotten about. It was simple to put on, and it fit pretty well. I paid close attention.
. . .
Nothing. No difference was made.
'How was it so natural for Charlie? Does he have some secret technique from his world?' I decided to go ask him how to control my magic. It was a simple walk down the hall and only a moment's hesitation before I knocked.
"Come in," he replied almost immediately.
I opened the door and said "Hey."
"What brings you here so late?" he was sitting on his chair with his thin coat in his hand.
"I was wondering why you were ignoring me and Koby earlier. Seemed kind of rude to follow us and just keep your eyes closed like that."
"You would ignore you too if you could see what I did."
"Quite a strong statement you've made, I almost feel insulted. I assume you can back it up?"
"I would readily, but I know not how to link our minds."
"Or you could just teach me how you did it?"
"That would be much simpler, yes," he stroked his chin wisely.
"So, what did you do?" I dropped myself onto his bed.
"Well, what I do is push my mana out steadily, and thinly. You remember how to move mana, right?" he started off his pseudo lesson without pause.
I sat up to answer. "Yeah. But I can't really get it to do what I want."
"Hmm." he hummed. "Something that worked for me was breathing differently."
"How does that work?" I was puzzled as to how breathing helped with magic.
"Well, I assume it works by moving around energy, and that gets it to move better all throughout your body. It also gets more oxygen and things to your muscles. It might spread it like that. Could be both."
"I'm not sure I got all of that, but it did remind me of a breathing technique my dad taught me to make me less sore."
"That probably works off the same principles that I know, so I'm still right."
"I never said you weren't right."
"Maybe so. I am still right though."
"I can't argue with that." I shrugged.
With his explanation, I had an idea of what to do. I slowly began breathing methodically and calmly.
"Remember to be paying attention to your mana at the same time." He reminded me. I was grateful he did because I would have forgotten to do both. "Oh, and do you mind if I pay close attention to your aura?"
"I don't see why I would mind, so go ahead."
"Figured it would be more polite to ask. And thanks."
I started to multitask the two things. It wasn't easy at first, but I got the hang of it pretty quickly. And he was right, breathing did make it more active.
"Good job. Try touching this pencil with it now." I opened my eyes to see a pencil fly off his desk and into his hand.
"What! I thought you couldn't do cool spells yet?" How had he learned that much already?
"I've been practicing basically non-stop in my downtime. Which is like all my time. Now, try it."
Determined to make that look lame, I got back into the zone. Once I felt it was energetic enough, I tried reaching out with it.
After a moment he said, "Um, maybe try to reach out with your hand too? That worked for me." He could tell I wasn't doing anything major.
I did as he said and reached out my hand. I could push a lot into my hand, but I couldn't get anything even near the pencil. Yet harder still I tried until I could feel my veins bulge.
"O-Okay, I think that's enough. It looks like you're about have a brain aneurism, you're so tense." With a sigh, I gave up.
"That's a damn shame." I sighed again, disappointed.
"Well, at least you can move it around?" he said it like it was a question.
"True, there is that."
"Have you seen what you can do with it? You wouldn't be admitted here if you could do nothing."
"I suppose not. But what am I supposed to do? Magic is all about throwing around fireballs or stopping time to fight, or something cool like that." I was despondent.
"Ignoring how far apart those things are in scale, I would say you're pretty much right about that. I think." He took a pause to think. "I don't know, try putting it into your hand and grabbing the pencil."
He scooted his chair within an arms-length of the bed without getting up and held the pencil up for me to grab. I refocused the energy into my hand and reached out to grab it with just two fingers. I felt it, but when I closed my hands there was no pencil.
"Hey, I'm being serious here." I opened my eyes, thinking he had pulled a prank on me. "It's not nice to trick me like that just because I won't be able to tell." he had a surprised face, and I didn't know why. "What?"
He just pointed to the wall to my left. The pencil was wedged about 3 inches deep.
"What?" was all I could really think to ask.
"You, uh, threw it." he paused for just an instant. "Hard."
"I did?" it was hard to believe that I could have done that.
"Maybe not, I guess, but I sure didn't."
After only a moment, he looked outside his window right behind me and said, "Sheesh, the lighting in here is too good."
I turned around to see a pitch-black sky, the only light coming from the city lamposts a short distance from the front of the building. "One, why sheesh, and two, jeez, it got late fast."
He stood up and started picking up his floor using magic. I looked down to see a dozen or so pencils on the carpet.
"How long were you practicing?" I asked when I stood up.
"Since we got back. It helps me take my mind off things." A pencil flew into his hand, and he tossed it onto his desk.
"Huh. I might try that." I crossed to the door.
"It works." He was facing away, reaching under his bed for one that had rolled underneath it. He got it, then walked it to his desk. "I just remembered it, did you try and charge that amulet you got?"
I held the jewel with the chain still around my neck. "No, not yet."
"Mind if I try?" he sat down and asked.
I took it off as I crossed back to him, and put it in his now outstretched hand. "Sure, don't see why not."
"Cool." He took it and put both of his hands around it, closing both of his eyes as he focused in on it. At first, it seemed to me like nothing was happening. He was just holding the thing in his hands. not saying anything.
But then, I felt this weird pulling sensation. It felt like when you stare down a wild animal, and you can just tell it's about to pounce. The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and I tensed up a little.
There was all of a sudden an aggressive air about him. It was a little similar to what happened earlier with Koby, and how he got then. This wasn't as bad as that time, though, thankfully.
Suddenly, the air around his hands started to shake, presumably with magical energy. Knowing this probably shouldn't be happening, I stepped to him and shook his shoulder. Upon touching him, I could read his magic.
It was terrifying how aggressive it was becoming. And even more than that, it didn't flow like mine did. His seemed to be coming from all around him, through him, and back out to the surroundings. My voice got caught in my throat for a second, but I managed to keep hold.
I shook him harder, but it was to no avail. I looked around to see what I could do and saw that smaller things, like his pencils and magical box, were rolling towards him.
I tried to think quickly about what to do. It was a quick second extra of thought to think 'Maybe if I take the problem away, he won't need to hear me.' I wasted no time in taking it out of his hands. As soon as I did, he let out a quick sigh and deep inhale, like he had been holding his breath for longer than it had been comfortable.
"Jesus, thank you." he tried to shake away the feeling.
"What just happened?" I looked at the formerly red, now very purple crystal.
"That is an excellent question." He took a second more to catch his breath. "Well, when I started, it was nothing. But the more I pushed into it, the faster it went, and the more I wanted to do it. That was weird as hell." He looked disturbed.
"I'll keep this, then. Goodnight." I turned to make my exit. It seemed like he was ready to sleep.
"Yeah. See you tomorrow." he got up and switched off his light right as I left through the door.
I also went right to bed, putting the deep violet amulet down on my own desk. That really reminded me how different a life with magic would be.
'Mom, is it always going to be that intense?' I asked as I gently drifted into sleep.
Part 3: Charlie
It wasn't very eventful for the next couple of weeks. Quinn and I practiced magic together most of the time, which is still a surreal thing to think about. Balder gave me pissed glances most of the time, but it didn't seem like he was going to start anything again.
Our tailored uniforms were really nice. For me and Balder, it consisted of a blue overcoat with white accents, a white undershirt shirt, a blue tie, and matching blue pants. They didn't give us dress shoes, though, they gave us what looked like tennis shoes. These were a nice shade of deep blue, kind of like my sweatshirt. Quinn had mostly the same, but instead of pants, she had a skirt instead of pants. They also had a flow of magic through them, which, although I didn't understand why, I thought was pretty cool.
I sense farther out when I'm sleeping, basically every time I improve my skill with magic. At this point, I'm aware of the entire building all night. It's not nearly as precise as when I use the sense when I'm awake, but it's still weird how that works. It's also weird that I remember it almost completely when I wake up, but I can't really think at all while it's happening. I'm not too concerned about it, but I do wonder about the cause behind it.
I also started getting tutored on how to write this world's language. Most mornings, one of the teachers would come in and instruct me. Luckily it was fairly easy to get a handle of. I wasn't a genius of languages in particular, but this one was still phonetic like the English alphabet is. It also has the same spoken language as English, so it wasn't hard to start picking up on. It wasn't a one-to-one translation, though. For instance, they didn't have a direct conversion for the letter c, they just used an S, or a K, or a new letter that by itself made the "ch" sound. The changes made sense for the most part, though, so all I had to do was memorize the new letters.
There has also been a discussion between me and the headmaster about what I wanted to learn in school. There were a few broad categories a student could choose to specialize in, these being artisanry, academics, and battle. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do yet, so for the time being I would be in a few academic courses and a few battle courses. That's not to say I didn't want to take any artisanry courses, but I just didn't have the time. Plus, the headmaster suggested taking battle over that, so it wasn't a hard choice. Quinn and Balder took some similar courses, but I didn't share all of my classes with them. Every student was required to take a few classes in those subjects anyway, so it wasn't too far out of the norm.
After those quick few weeks, I've been feeling better about being here, more comfortable. The first day we actually go to school is tomorrow, and I'm feeling fairly confident in myself. I am still playing catch up, but I know what I need to. After so much free time, I've practiced quite a bit with my magic. At this point, I basically have telekinesis, which I cannot understate the usefulness of. The headmaster hasn't shown up much that much, but when he does, he brings new foods. Mostly grain based, but he kept them from getting boring. He doesn't have the time to come over tonight, he said, so I'm making my own food.
I was searing a steak on the magic stove in the kitchen. It didn't quite smell like beef, but it tasted close enough to enjoy. As I was flipping it with magic, Quinn walked in.
"Smelled something good out here. What are you cooking?" I could tell that's the only reason she came out here.
"This." Was all I said, gesturing to it like it was a piece of art.
"Oh, neat. Mind if I have some?" she asked, already grabbing a plate for herself.
I looked at the steak, thinking it was small enough as is, then looked back at her with a glare. "Hmmmm..."
"Please?" she made puppy dog eyes as she asked.
"Well... Fine." Though somewhat unwilling, I said she could have some.
Dinner went fast with light banter and long pauses to eat abound. I asked her where Balder was. He doesn't usually come back until later in the day, but I was still curious. Turns out he was training, again. I can guess why.
As we were wrapping up dinner, there was a knock on the door. We were both confused, Balder wouldn't knock and we weren't expecting guests. I volunteered to get it, but she was already at the door before I could say anything else.
"Hello?" she said.
"Hello indeed. Might I come in?" said a masculine sounding voice. He sounded our age to me, but he could be older.
"Um, sure?" She stepped aside to let him in, despite how confused she sounded.
He was about as tall as me, dressed more formally than me or Quinn were. His dark hair was short and neatly brushed to one side and was contrasted against how pale he was. He looked like he had a face that was perpetually angry, which I could relate to.
"So you must be Charlie." He spoke right to me.
"Yes, last time I checked." I was trying to think of any reason he would be here.
"The Headmaster assigned me to stay in this building until further notice. Is your magic truly gravity?" He was stiff the entire time.
"Yeah, pretty sure. Oh, right! I remember the headmaster saying there was another guy with gravity around here." I stuck out my hand to shake his. He seemed quite hesitant at that. After a moment he grabbed my hand firmly. The second our hands made contact, my entire arm felt fuzzy. Like, somewhere between being shocked and it just falling asleep. It didn't hurt though, and it didn't last more than a short moment. I pulled my hand back because he seemed to have had a similar feeling.
"Sorry, I totally forgot about that, I'm new here." I gave a dry, awkward laugh, feeling bad about that.
"Think nothing of it." He said shaking his arm.
An awkward moment passed, none of us moving.
"So, what's your name? I'm Quinn." Quinn took the initiative, wisely choosing not to shake his hand.
"I am Duke Fennic. Pleased to make your acquaintance." He gave his head a little bow.
"And I'm Charlie." I nodded my head back.
"I... know." His pause, though short, was deafening.
We all stood silent for another moment. I wish I was better at being social like this. Quinn, again, took initiative.
"I'll show you the way to an open room. They're just over here." she walked away and gestured to follow, which he did swiftly. I fell into a chair and sighed, tired from the interaction. Most of the time, I can tell if I'm going to like a person, and this guy didn't really seem like that. He seemed standoffish to me, but then again, I'm not exactly a social savant.
Part 4: Austen
Rarely do I meet someone so brazen as to creep over me with his magic, then act like he's some foolish nobody. After what's happened to me, I can hardly believe such poor treatment. Hell, I'm a duke!
But, well, I suppose I must believe it. Starting now, I must co-habitate with these kids, apparently about my age. What a shame, such a major step down from where I was.
But nevertheless, I will persevere. I must persevere! I must! For those who now wander the stars I will leave some impact! I swear. I must.
The girl, Quinn, led me to a room down the hall. It was not as large as I might hope, but it was large enough to be of service. I didn't have many things, as of recently, so I didn't worry about arranging the space for myself quite yet. Rather, the weeks exhaustion pulled me towards the already made bed. Sleep did not evade me for long.
Usually, I'm not one to dream. There is a specific technique that has been passed down in my family that is best used by a gravity mage. Legend says we learned it from an old god, but I'm not certain on the truthfulness of that. Essentially, you let your magic slowly flow from yourself, into your surroundings, the back into yourself. It lets you monitor your surroundings subconsciously, awake or not. It's also great at preventing nightmares, but that is typically a side effect of the intended one.
My point is, tonight I had nightmares. I fell asleep in the proper way to not dream, but not long into sleep it seemed like I was being stuffed in a box, suffocated and claustrophobic. It felt like I was being watched constantly, and in an overpowering way. Like I can't see, can't move, and someone doesn't want me to. When my mind breaks from its own crafted discomforts, I am still trapped. I can view the room wholly, but I remain stuck motionless to my bed.
And something is watching me.
I can tell. I can't see it, but I know it can see me.
But I did eventually manage to escape. I hardly feel rested, but getting up seems easier than fighting against something I can't see. I wake up early, evident from the lack of sunlight spilling in through the window. It's unfortunate, but I suppose I won't get much sleep for the first day.
I got up from the bed, tired and restless at the same time, and decided to familiarize myself with the building. It's not what I want to do, but it should keep my mind busy.
I started to probe my new room with my magic, similar to what I usually do in my sleep. I have been practicing for years with a tutor my family hired. He wasn't the first one they hired, but I liked how he would teach, so he was the one I ended up convincing to stay. I wonder if he's ok.
Back on subject, I could hardly finish the spell before I could tell Something was watching me. It was the same as when I was sleeping. This thing wasn't just in my head. I couldn't maintain the spell longer than a moment because I couldn't help but stiffen in fear and lose concentration.
I don't know what it is, but it was familiar in the worst way possible.
After a moment to catch my breath, I proceeded in my exploration. The room I was in was simple, but it had everything a student might need. A desk, wardrobe, etcetera. The hallway was decorated just as simply. I was around the corner from the kitchen, further in than Charlie and Quinn. There were more rooms on each side leading to a door at the end. Beyond was a small room with a door to outside and stairs going up. I doubted there was anything interesting upstairs, so I rounded back to the kitchen. While I was familiarizing myself with the cupboard's layout, someone let themselves in. They did it quietly, but not so much that it was hard to hear from the same room. I stepped into the living area to see who it was.
He looked about my age, and strikingly like Quinn, albeit with much shorter hair. He was slumped down onto the couch, already so relaxed he didn't notice me. I considered sneaking back to my room to avoid socializing, but the notion was quickly dismissed.
"Pardon me, but I'm not sure I recognize you." I called out after only a moment.
He seemed startled, like he hadn't noticed me. "Sorry," I said, "I'm tired too. I just moved in today.
He gave a tired sigh. "Clearly." He seemed almost more exhausted than annoyed. I grew up around people being that kind of tired, so I could tell it was from training all day.
"Training for school, I'm guessing?" I didn't want to alienate everyone living here.
"That's part of it."
"How have you been training, to get you so beat up?"
"Endurance, strength, stamina, stuff in that vein."
That narrowed down what his magic might be, and it seemed like something I knew about. "What kind of magic do you have to be training stuff like that?"
"Enhancement, I was told. I'm told it's useful, but it's super annoying to train." he seemed dejected.
"I know someone with that. Or, well, knew..." I quietly trailed off. I didn't see him notice, but I'm sure he had. "But, I uh, know how much it can get to you." I felt choked up all of a sudden.
"Yeah, I'm sure." He sat up, looking a little more serious. "So, um. What can you do?"
"Gravity. I'm from Androlin."
"Oh, so you're nobility then?"
"Yes, I am. I was here on official business, but it looks like I'm going to be here for a while." a couldn't help but let out a resigned sigh.
"What's got you stuck here? You can just go back anytime you want, right?" He seemed confused. I suppose most people don't know what happened yet, at least here. I was told because it directly relates to me.
"That's a bit tough right now. You'll probably be told soon, so there's not much I can tell you." I really didn't want to talk about it. Suddenly, I really didn't want to be here. I stood up faster than I would have wanted to, to a noticeable reaction, and said "Sorry, I wish I could tell you more. I will let you get to sleep." I went for the door out.
"That's fine. Good night, I suppose." he said. I wasn't looking at his face, but I didn't want him to see mine. I left the building set on finding something to occupy my mind.