The teacher nodded once everyone's pager was set up. "Alright. Once I dismiss you, you'll be free to roam the school for the rest of the day. In various classrooms, you'll be able to find the electives and their respective teacher, as well as the sign-up sheet. You along with your roommate will be given a dorm room as your name is announced. Usually, it's not this chaotic around here but we had to change our typical first-day schedule recently. You all are dismissed."
Most of the class began to leave, but Lia and Sisha remained sitting until everyone left. The two of them stood up and approached the teacher. Lia spoke before Sisha did. "Are you teaching any electives?"
He looked up and removed his glasses. His short tousled brown hair shook with the movement. The dress shirt, tie, and black pants he wore were very tight-fitting. "I teach the elective on war if you're interested. Most of the students are too busy with forging and whatnot, so it's usually full of noble children who take it to learn large-scale combat."
Lia nodded. "I'll probably be back to sign up. How many electives can we take in total?"
Mr. Carver responded instantly. "Six, but you would have no time to study, so most students take five."
Lia smiled and waited as Sisha instantly signed up. "Awesome. Thank you."
.....
The halls of the academy's second floor were somewhat crowded. Lia had strapped the blood-colored katana to her back (between her two wings), while Hysteria hung on her hip.
All eyes immediately turned to her. A winged woman was sure to catch attention. Fortunately, no one approached to talk with her, and she continued on her way.
'Saro, I can almost..feel Lacey nearby. Check the system for me. I think we have some weird connection.'
Saro performed a mental nod before scanning through the system. 'An ability of Lacey's called: "Succubus' Need" is affecting you. Apparently, it has something to do with the succubus' need (or want) for you to be nearby.'
Lia nodded in response as she continued on her way, with Sisha in tow. Before long, the two of them saw Lacey talking with a few classmates. It looked as though they had just exited the classroom and were standing around chatting.
Lia approached and smirked at her. "Mmm. Making friends without me, I see."
Lacey turned at her words and immediately hugged Lia. After pulling away, she turned to her classmates, two girls. One had short blonde hair and the other had long and straight black hair. "This is Lia Darkova. She's the friend I was telling you about."
The girls looked at each other before turning toward Lia. The blonde girl spoke first. "Hi. I'm Eri."
The black-haired girl spoke next. She seemed a bit shy. "I'm Hanna"
Lia nodded at the two of them before turning to Sisha. "This is Sisha. She's in class S with me."
Sisha nodded and smiled amicably. Lia noticed two large fangs where canines would normally be. Not like her fangs, they were much more snake-like.
Once the awkward initial introductions and small talk were finished, Lia, Lacey, and Sisha went on their way.
"So, Lacey what electives are you interested in?" Lia asked.
Lacey paused as the three of them walked. She was contemplating something or another. "I want to check the Space, Time, and Soul magic class for sure."
Lia and Sisha seemed kind of shocked. Lia spoke first, beating Sisha to the punch. "One, I figured that would be in magical theory. Two, how do you know what the electives are?"
"Oh, the teacher gave us a list, he's an old man with quite a long beard. He also said that most students fail out of that class due to the extremely strict requirements, so it's no longer a required course," Lacey answered almost instantly.
Sisha made a noise that sounded somewhat foreign as the three of them headed straight for the classroom labeled: "Space, Time, and Soul."
.....
There was a large amount of students gathered around the classroom as they approached. It looked as if they had gathered around and were loitering outside.
Lia approached a boy standing nearby. "What are you all doing out here?"
His response sounded half-hearted. "The elven teacher is doing an aptitude test, one student at a time."
Sisha nodded and uttered a "thank you" as Lia began to approach the closed door. She knocked once and began waiting.
As soon as the door opened, Lia stepped in, much to the annoyance of the person who was waiting at the front of the line. She glared at him menacingly, and he let it go.
Lacey looked kind of surprised, and Sisha watched curiously. To Lacey, Lia had never been the one to take shortcuts or use her "royal status".
.....
Silvana stood inside, and she looked at Lia, clearly amused. "What can I do for you, Princess?" She said the last word with emphasis.
Lia shook her head. "If you're doing aptitude tests, can you help me? I need you to keep this a secret though."
Silvana's eyebrow raised. "I'm intrigued. What can I do for you, Lia Darkova?"
Lia inwardly sighed in relief. She had a theory that she wasn't entirely sure about. "Just test my aptitudes like normal once, and I'll ask you to do something after."
Saro spoke up. 'Are you sure we can trust her? I'm not sure this is a good idea.'
Lia nodded at Saro. 'I think we can trust her. If not, I'll take the blame for it. We need to know if our bodies are shared, or if something changes when we switch. It's the first step here.'
Saro nodded in response. 'If you're sure.' Lia held her hand out.
Within moments, bubbles of blood were floating above Lia's hand. They were all the exact same size.
Silvana smiled. "You have an aptitude for all three of the elements. Unlike normal ones, most people can use space, time, and soul magic. It is rare to find one who can't, although it does happen. Hence, I am checking the students."
Lia nodded as she silently let Saro take over. To Silvana, it looked as though Lia disappeared for a very brief moment, and what replaced her felt cold and extremely dark. An abyss from which nothing could escape. Indescribable pain and torment make up whatever being replaced Lia.
Elves are highly attuned to the nature of creatures, and Elven witches are even more so. It is extremely rare, but some elves are born with the ability to see the true nature of people.
Silvana froze for a moment, as the humanoid creature made of boiling blood now standing in front of her spoke. It held the same voice as Lia but spoke in a much colder tone. "Silvana. Test me again."
When it received no reply, it continued. "Silvana? Silvana? Silvana?!"
Silvana snapped back to herself and took a step back. "What are you, and how are you even standing right now?"