"Do not take your eyes off your target!" Lady Luna's shout echoed across the courtyard, startling most students.
It had been about ten minutes since everyone arrived for the next class: Spellcasting practice.
Lady Luna had declared two things within the first few minutes. The first: She was going to remain at the Academy for a while. Second, she was going to teach this class.
She taught the spell 'Dart' to the class, and now was making them shoot it at distant targets – large bales of hay on the other side of the courtyard.
"Dart." Aether said in a low voice as he pointed at the hay bale about thirty meters away from him. A pen sized dart of magic appeared at the tip of his finger, and then flew towards the hay bale, hitting it slightly off centre.
His lips formed a thin line. Clearly, this class was teaching him that his marksmanship needed some work.
"Fuck!" Erika exclaimed as her dart flew past the hay bales and hit the wall behind them. "How the hell are you so accurate?" She asked with a look of frustration on her face.
Aether shrugged. "It's not too different than normal darts." He lied, then stretched his arm and spoke. "Dart." Again, a faint blue dart of magic flew towards the hay bale and hit it slightly off centre.
"Dart!" Erika shouted, and once again hit the wall behind the hay bales. "Ugh, I can't!" She exclaimed in frustration. "It doesn't go where I point at!"
"Try thinking of your target instead." A gentle, yet sharp voice sounded. Aether flinched, he hadn't noticed Lady Luna come so close. When had she approached them? How had he not noticed her?
He clenched his fist – he was losing his edge.
"This is magic – your magic. You must force it to bend to your will. You must command the spell to hit your target." Lady Luna's words were filled with power as always. "Dart!" She declared with a confidant voice, and a dart made of golden holy magic formed at the tip of her finger. It flew towards the hay bale and hit it dead in the centre.
"Dart!" Erika tried to copy Lady Luna's tone of voice, though her spell once again missed the hay bale. "It didn't work!" She protested.
"It will take time and practice, you cannot expect to master a spell in such a short amount of time." Lady Luna gently squeezed Erika's shoulder. "Keep working." Her gaze then lingered on Aether. "How about you?" She asked.
Aether pointed at the hay bale and spoke. "Dart." His low voice was enough to activate the spell. A pale blue dart of magic appeared at the tip of his finger and flew towards its target.
"Slightly off centre, but better than almost anyone else." Lady Luna commented. Her lips formed a gentle smile. "Good job, but you have room for improvement still." She left their side with those words and headed to the next pair of students: Seth and Iris.
Aether sighed. "You should stop staring at her and keep practicing," He reminded Erika. The young woman shook her head. "But look at your sister! She's like a machine – not one of the darts hit off centre!" Her voice rose slightly. It was clear that she felt annoyed, and maybe some other things as well.
"She's not-" He shook his head. "Iris tends to be rather good with things like this. Why are you so hung up on her anyways?" He asked, slightly furrowing his brows. He hadn't seen Erika so insecure before.
The young woman clenched her fists. "Nothing, no reason. I'm not!" She sighed and pointed at the hay bale. "Dart!" She shouted, letting her frustration out. The dart brushed past the hay bale, hitting the wall behind it.
Aether shook his head and decided to let her be. Sometimes, women were way too difficult to understand.
"First of all, good job everyone." Lady Luna clapped twice. The bell had just sounded, and the class was over. "Before I let you go, I want to introduce someone. He is my mentor, and he is here to aid in the rebuilding of the library." She glanced towards the entrance of the courtyard as a middle-aged man stepped out of the shadows.
He was tall, though quite skinny. His dark blue veins were almost visible under his pale skin. He was wearing his long, black hair in a braid, and his clothes were just as black. His bright blue eyes reminded Aether of the bright sky.
Aether felt his whole body tense up as his slit pupils narrowed even more. "What in the name of the chaos realms does this mean?" He whispered. He glanced at Iris. Seeing her wide-eyed expression was more than enough proof that he was not wrong to be worried.
He placed his hand on the stat bracelet, ready to remove it at a moment's notice.
"Hello, class!" The man's cheerful voice was quite a contrast to his solemn looks. "I'm Soren Ladran, you can just call me sir Ladran. I'm a scholar of magic, and all things arcane." He chuckled. "Though Lady Luna is very kind to call me her mentor, I fear I do not deserve such a title." His lips formed a grin. "I'm here to aid her in tomorrow's class, but feel free to come to me if you need any help on other – magical, of course – subjects." He chuckled. "Though as magical as love may be, I can not help you with matters of the heart. Do keep that in mind."
His words got more than a few laughs from the class, and Sir Ladran seemed rather proud of himself.
"Do not crowd him too much though," Lady Luna added. "He is being kind by offering his help, even though it is not his job to do so." She smiled. "Class dismissed!"
As the students scattered, Aether felt the gentle touch of a warm hand on his arm. "We need to talk." Iris spoke with a low voice.