"Alright, pack up and hit the bath," Noma said with a certain finality to her voice.
"But we normally go until dinner?"
"And if you're not careful we'll go till breakfast. Oh, and after your bath, go to the living room, we have something to discuss."
After a short bath filled with thoughts of everything he could have done wrong to get called in for a "conversation;" Jack, ignoring his sore legs, jogged to the living room for fear of keeping Noma waiting, but paused in the doorway shocked to see both of his parents sitting there with her.
Suddenly feeling a much more serious sense of dread, he made his way to the middle of the room slowly, as if to avoid startling a predator. Upon realizing that their gazes were not focused on him, but instead on a small item sitting on the coffee table, his curiosity got the better of him and he let his eyes drift to better observe it.
It was an envelope, its main body a pristine white with golden embroidery along its edges so clean it appeared to meld into the paper. Holding the work of art closed was a beautiful crimson wax seal imprinted with the royal family's crest, the same one the Academy uses.
"It came in shortly after lunchtime, but we decided it was best for you to open it," his mother said in an almost inaudible whisper.
Hearing her whisper made his head buzz as his blood rushed in excitement, though the feeling was quickly drowned out by the solemn atmosphere.
He made his way over to the envelope looking to his parents to see if he was allowed to pick it up. Receiving a slight nod from his mother, he picked it up, and with all the care in the world he slid his finger underneath the paper edge and pulled the flap open, making sure not to damage it.
He pulled out of the envelope a thin piece of white paper with golden embroidery, apparently standard for the royal family, he tried to look at what it said; only to once again be startled, this time by the lettering. He couldn't tell whether he was more surprised by the pure gold ink used or the penmanship, "The hell, did they get a runemaster to write this or something?" he silently thought to himself.
Among the contents on the paper was a personal invitation to the Academy, worded more like a demand, a reminder that everything on the letter was confidential, and the exact date, time, and location he would be boarding the vehicle to the academy.
"Looks like I'll have to get up pretty early on the, uhhhh, thirteenth of August. It says I'm to be expected at the drop off point by five in the morning." As he finished his sentence both Noma's and Martha's eyes shot open.
Noma jumped up and snatched the letter from Jack's hands, using so much force it was a wonder it didn't rip, and held it up so Martha could read it with her.
Checking both the date listed and the date sent, multiple times, Martha sat back down, looked up, and let out one long resounding,
"FFFFFUUUUUUCCCCKKKKKK."
Startling everyone except Noma who seemed to be feeling quite a similar emotion. Before Jack could figure out what was going on, his mother continued,
"Those bastards seriously sent out the 'invitation' letter the DAY BEFORE he had to leave. Whatever happened to common decency and respect? I'd understand doing this over something that doesn't matter, but this is our child! Why would they be willing to do something so stupid and risk building unnecessary animosity between us? I just don't get it! Auugghh, If I had known they would pull this sort of bullshit I would have moved onto the next lesson by now and just had him do physical training in the evening..."
As she continued her rant Jack finally realized why she was so mad, looking at the piece of paper that was still completely unblemished, leading Jack to believe his guess about the penmanship to be correct, he saw the date it was sent, the twelfth of August, today.
"…They couldn't give proper pre-notice about when to leave, and yet they were able to send a message from the capital all the way here in a single day. If this isn't the…"
"Calm down! We need to get everything ready. I'll help him pack, you need to create a lesson plan and grab the necessary reading materials, and Gerard, I need you to play errand boy for a bit. Sounds good?"
Luckily they were able to get everything done half past seven, ate a fast meal, and went to bed at eight. Giving them just under the recommended amount of sleep.
…
Noma got up at three in the morning and started her daily routine. She went to the bathroom and turned on the water heater, a device created through one of the Rune Pathway subsets known as Artificing, washed her face, and swished mouthwash, the oral cleaner of choice amongst Fiedra's wealthy.
Her next destination was the kitchen, where she made a hearty breakfast for everyone and ate one of the eggs whose yoke she accidentally broke. "Hhmmm, I'll have to start taking tranquilizers again if the shaking doesn't stop." It had been a while since she needed any, but Jack's upcoming departure was harder on her than she let on.
After eating only a single failed egg she decided that it was enough food for now. Deciding to forgo some of the normal routines she "haphazardly" plated their meals and called the others down to eat. While they ate she started pulling together all of Jack's packed belongings, basically just clothes and his practice partner, and the bag Martha put all his lesson plans and study materials in.
By the time everyone was done eating, the bathwater was ready. The first to go was Jack, then his parents, then Noma. She always asks to go last because she "doesn't really feel the cold," and doesn't want the others to be inconvenienced when the hot water runs out.
It was already four twenty by the time everyone was clean and fed so they grabbed Jack's bags and funneled into the carriage. Noma road coach and kept watch for potential dangers even though they were in the middle of a populated city, a habit she had developed through the loss of far too many friends.
Arriving at the specified location at ten till five, they saw three other carriages lined up with a single person standing outside of each of them. The only stand-out being a young teenager standing by himself off to the side.
As they approached they pulled into one of the designated "parking spots." Feeling the carriage come to a complete stop and getting the two knock go ahead signal from Noma, Jack opened the door and, with some subtle help from his father, lifted down his bags to stand alone outside the door of the carriage.
His parents had explained to him on the way there that this was an important ritual for those accepted into the Academy to express their newly formed "independence." After getting his bags situated Jack decided to scan through the other "invitees."
Standing outside of one of the carriages was what looked like a young man. Despite his age actually being within a couple of months of Jackson's, he was a massive tower of muscle. He stood at a sturdy 6ft 2in and would only keep growing from there if the giant of a man squeezed inside the carriage behind him was of any indication.
He had short black hair and bright green eyes. His clothes were very plain and simple, more like a worker's outfit than what you would expect of someone who could get their talents tested in the capital. He held a simple woolen bag in his hand and stood staring straight ahead, trying a bit too hard to look scary, the result drawing away from some of his natural intimidation factor. It was almost cute if you just focused on his actual age and ignored his physical appearance.
Standing in front of the carriage one farther over was a girl who, unlike the tiny Jack or the massive muscle mountain, actually looked her age. She was of average height and build, at most a little too skinny, had sleek black hair that she wore in a ponytail, and light gray eyes that looked almost as if to be swirling, similar to how clouds form overhead.
She too had on "simple" clothes. The only difference is that anyone with a discerning eye could tell she was wearing expensive fabrics tailored to look less flashy. "Perhaps a personal fashion choice?" thought Jack.
The Farthest from where he stood, and also the last carriage in the line-up stood an absolutely miserable looking teenager. His clothes were puffy and showed a deep shade of purple with highlights of yellow. Practically screaming, "I am rich and want you to know it!"
Aside from his peculiar choice of clothes, assuming it was even his choice, he had blonde hair and light blue eyes, a surprising combination to see from someone this far south. Unfortunately, his fitness level was hard to determine through his bard-like attire, but from the thin sword he held on his hip and the fact he was worthy of an "invitation," he was likely practicing a unique Physical pathway subset.
The last person he noticed was funnily enough the one standing closest. Directly to his right only a single space over was an unusually inconspicuous teenager. Not in the sense that it was mystical, but more like they radiated the pure unadulterated aura of "Please, don't perceive me."
Taking a second to ponder this effect he gave a cursory glance over them and became shocked to find almost no details about them. Their dull, black hair covered their eyes, their slightly slouched posture made it hard to guess their height, and their long baggy clothes, aside from their potential financial situation, hid their features incredibly well. "A spy or rogue pathway?" was all he could even think to guess.
Not a second after it became five A.M. a middle aged man suddenly appeared. Despite the "younger generations'' startled reaction, none of the adults present seemed all that surprised. Even Noma, on her wrecked nerves, didn't so much as flinch at his arrival.
"Good to see everyone made it. I was getting worried there for a second." He replied in a leisurely manner before gesturing for Jack and the others to follow him.
"Hurry up. Oh, and don't forget to tell your parents goodbye. After all, this may be the last time you see them in years."