Magical (A Quest of Vacations, or Starsigns, or Something Else)

At this moment, probably the best thing for you to do would be to not talk about the frog.

Actually, you think that the best thing for you to do would be to get as far away from the subject of the frog as possible. At least, if you want to stay relatively sane.

"Anyway, do you know a lot of the other students?" Paprika asks, clearly grasping for a change of subject that doesn't involve her pet. And you're fine with it, because this is a subject you can go along with. "I haven't gotten much chance to meet them yet."

You nod. "Would you like me to introduce you?"

"That would be great. Thanks!" She grins brightly, and brings up her paw to stop Zulian from making another daring escape attempt, never mind that he's already trapped inside a drawstring pouch.

You take this moment to examine your other neighbors. Caramel appears to be using his magical abilities to hold a conversation with somebody on the other side of the room. You don't think you want to interrupt that.

Raspberry, meanwhile, is doodling again. She doesn't seem to be drawing anything in particular, just... she's without anything else to do, you guess. For now. Not for much longer, though, if you have anything to say about it.

"Raspberry?" You consider tapping her on the shoulder, but don't need to, as she perks up as soon as she hears you say her name.

"What is it, Rye?" She doesn't turn around. You guess it would be difficult, with all the books she's sitting on. She does, however, start folding the piece of paper in front of her.

"Have you gotten any references on the Beast Spirits yet?" You still aren't sure what kind of powers the Beast Spirits can grant, it's something that's never been discussed where you come from, but they are still a kind of spirit that can be harnessed, and thus are something that she could be looking for.

She shakes her head. "Why? Have you found one?" There is tangible excitement in her voice.

"Well, I've found someone who can talk to them..." What follows is several seconds of desperate struggle, during which all of the books that Raspberry was using for support fall from the chair and scatter along the ground with a mighty clatter, along with Raspberry herself.

One of the heavier-looking books lands on her braid. You suppose you're lucky she hasn't been squished by any falling objects yet.

Paprika is quick to move, quickly being on the floor next to her. "Are you all right? Here, hold still." Raspberry holds still. Paprika removes the book, and starts struggling to return it to its rightful place. Raspberry sighs.

"Just leave it... I can fix it myself." Given that this whole thing happened because of how small she is, you have your doubts about this. Still, Paprika doesn't seem to be doing all that well at getting the books to stay on the seat, either.

In a pouch in Paprika's desk, Zulian starts squirming for another escape attempt.


[ ] ...Do they need any help with that?

[ ] ...Maybe stop the frog from running away.

[ ] ...Right! Proper introductions!

...You're not sure, but you think Paprika and Raspberry can probably handle the book issue by themselves. However, you're pretty sure that, if that frog gets out, he's just going to hop away and you'll never see him again.

Honestly, you sort of have doubts about Paprika's qualifications for pet ownership, but maybe being a friend of the Beast Spirits means she can talk to animals and actually take requests or something. Even if that's not going to matter if Zulian gets away.

The drawstring pouch itself attempts to take a flying leap out of the desk. It makes it as far as the chair.

Shaking your head, you reach over and pick up the pouch by the strings. The pouch tries to wriggle away, but doesn't make it very far on account of being suspended in midair. You glance at the others, to see them precariously balancing a new tower of about four books. They are having more difficulty with it than they have any right to.

Sighing, you try to get Paprika's attention. "He tried making another run for it," You sigh, wondering exactly how you ended up in this situation.

Raspberry blinks. "...What's in the pouch?"

"Nothing! There is nothing in the pouch!" Paprika hisses, snatching it away from you. She mutters something at Zulian under her breath, and he stops moving. She places the pouch back in her desk. Raspberry mutely nods along with her words, as if frightened into silence.

You don't even get a thank you in return. Still, it sort of begs the question of why anyone would bring their pet frog to class. Rabbitfolk tend to be impoverished, but she still has to have someplace to put him, right? Otherwise, why have a pet at all?

People your age are confusing.

---

A few minutes later, Sir Mustard makes an attempt at regaining the attention of his class. By this, you mean that he plays a few notes on a kazoo so loudly you wonder if he has spiritual assistance. You're mostly unsure because it's hard to imagine a self-respecting spirit of any kind choosing to inhabit a kazoo. You've seen small children run around with them before, and it's an absolute terror.

This also triggers another round of Zulian trying to escape. Fortunately, by this point Paprika is firmly situated right back at her desk, so she can easily grab him before he gets away.

"So, now that I have managed to sort out some things that I can arrange into a curriculum..." He takes in the class before him. You don't think he's really looking your way, though. In terms of your position in the class, you're about as out-of-the-way as it's possible to get. "I suppose it's time to see where everyone is at, magically."

A test? Is he giving you a test? Nearby, a student you don't know groans, face buried in their hands. "I hate this part..." SIr Mustard does not seem to hear that comment.

"Now, for the sake of not destroying the classroom my sister helped put back together after the mess that was the most recent graduation party, we are going to do this outside. Everyone, please remember to stay in sight of the rest of the class. We don't want anyone getting lost." You can't tell if he's trying to be funny or not. His word choice implies that he is, but... you don't know. It's just odd, that's all.

"Now, follow me." Sir Mustard turns and walks out the door. Slowly, the class that he's trying to teach trails out after him.

---

The class gathers on a section of the school lawn near the classroom, if near meant that you can see your own desk by looking in the nearest windows. From afar, the grass looks to be pristine and untouched, but when you get a bit closer, it's clear that only wood magic is keeping the lawn intact. You all line up in front of the windows, smaller students like Raspberry struggling to reach the front of the crowd.

Looking around reveals a few small inanimate pots of water nearby, as though left there for those who have not yet learned to conjure their own water. There are also cages with the more common varieties of insect and rodent kept inside, as well as differently-colored candles, and these are only the aids that you can see. This is sort of explained by a nearby wooden door that you think would lead to the same room that's attached to the classroom, or one quite near it. The door is securely locked.

"What I am going to ask of you is very simple. You just have to listen when I call your name, come up here, and demonstrate one piece of magic that you are capable of performing. If you don't have any proper spells yet, then you must simply display proof of your magical talent. For the sake of things not becoming underwhelming, you will all be called up in reverse order of when you signed up to join my class."

That puts you close to the beginning, you think. There weren't many spots left when you joined. And you don't really have any proper magic yet, just basic control of the element that responds to you.

The question, therefore, becomes how you plan to display that control.



[ ] You could just... empty one of the pots. It'd be simple, but effective.

[ ] You might be able to exchange water between multiple pots. Give them a bit more of a show.

[ ] Try and make up something impressive. It'd be difficult, but if you succeed...

While the planet's rotation was generally good to it, there were some sections of Kovomaka where it was almost always night, even outside of the Realm of Darkness.

As a child, PIstachio hated those places. He'd been a timid child, and the shadows that moved every time a leaf would rustle were unnerving even when he didn't realize it was meant to be the middle of the day. He'd grown braver, over time, more adventurous, but it was still rare that he would step into a place that had been so consigned to darkness.

And yet, that was what he was doing now. Walking through a thick forest that hadn't seen an active sun in months, but was still as lively as those who got to see sunlight almost daily. Or, at least, that's how it seemed from all of the leaves and vines in the area. Pistachio had yet to see a single Wood Spirit, and he considered himself to be very good at spotting them.

Something wasn't right. "Isolde," He whispered, his magic powering the summons just as much as the spirit's name did, and the spirit of Mimolette Forest appeared over his shoulder. Despite being such a powerful spirit, Isolde was a small one, having originally been the spirit of a pinecone before growing into something more in a rare transmutation. She was still yellow, still covered in a bristly green fuzz in places, but had moved from a larval form to something more vulpine in shape, about the size of her vox friend's head.

"Is something the matter?" She asked, landing gracefully by his heel. "This isn't the Realm of Darkness, is it? You know how much I hate it there!"

Pistachio shook his head. "Something doesn't seem right, here, and I can't see any spirits to ask about it. I'd try to draw them out, but I ran out of pinecones yesterday." In hindsight, he should have kept at least one on hand, but magically-conjured seeds tended to suffice for anything short of convincing a spirit to appear when they didn't want to.

The spirit's ears twitched, and she made a big show of sniffing the air. "Well, there's definitely spirits here," She declared. "Though, that much was obvious. You can't have a forest without Wood Spirits, whether or not the forest has a spirit of its own, and definitely not one this overgrown. It's just that..."

"Is something wrong?" He glanced around the dark forest, searching for any signs of yellow or green in the tree branches. Isolde nodded, padding up to a particularly thick bramble.

"They're all scared." Her voice was low, quiet, as if she were letting Pistachio in on the world's biggest secret. "Because of the fear of a child hiding here. A child who bears the blessings of Gren. And I cannot make them tell me more. The power of the planet Gren is holding these vines and their spirits in place- even your telekinetic abilities would be hard-pressed to break through."

Well, yes, but it wasn't like PIstachio made his living as a psychic, now, was it? There wasn't even anyone out there who could teach such abilities. For all he knew, he was the only person to have that power since the fall of the Espresso civilization.

"And if I augmented them with magic?" He suggested.

"...Call a few more of us. Your powers lend themselves to new growth, and it's near-impossible to work against your talent without having other abilities to augment it." Which he had, of course, his telekinetic prowess being mistaken for magic the only reason Biscotti had invited him to attend Will-o-Wisp in the first place, at least as far as anyone could see. He had no idea whether the immortal man had ever encountered other psychics or not. Biscotti certainly wasn't telling.

Still he nodded, and reached out with his magic to call more spirits who would augment his powers.

---

After a powerful display of abilities both mental and spiritual, Pistachio's spirits faded back to their homes, and he stepped into a clearing containing a young pale green salamander dressed in the male fashion. The boy glanced up at him, shaking but defiant.

"Who are you?" What was left of the brambles began to move, as though the wizard from a magicless race was planning to eternally trap himself in a briar patch of his own creation.

"I am Pistachio Maplewood, professor of magical sciences and history. What's your name?" He had to be gentle. Children with thorns as their magical talent tended to take on their barbs for a reason, and he wouldn't want to accidentally stab himself through.

"Leafgreen. No given name." The boy did not back down. "What are you doing here? Did the den send you?" Honestly, given the circumstances he was inclined to never let this child near a salamander den again.

"I was just taking a walk, and the spirits told me something was wrong. I have never been permitted to enter a salamander den." He'd heard that the dens on Gren tended to be more open to those with the potential for magic, but that wasn't necessarily saying much, and he'd never left Kovomaka to begin with. "You know how they are?" Was saying that a bad idea? Saying that was probably a bad idea.

The boy nodded. "Wizards do not belong among the salamanders." The line sounded rehearsed, as if he'd been made to repeat it until it stuck in his brain. "And so, the salamanders will never turn to wizards."

And, of course, the wizards didn't need the salamanders, allowing for two circles of beings that would never, ever overlap. Until, of course, they did.

Pistachio may have favored advanced classes and concepts, but at heart, he was still a teacher. He was sure he could figure out what to do with a teenager.

---

If there was one thing the Realm of Light held that Pistachio enjoyed, it was the fact that it was covered in forest. Leafgreen seemingly preferred the fact that it was always sunny and that there was nobody around who would force him not to bask. Spending just a day in the sunlight was enough for his scales to darken to a healthier-looking color, though at least he had the excuse of hiding out in a place where it was almost always night.

Still, there were things that needed to be done as soon as possible. Such as finding something else to call him. "People are supposed to have given names." Pistachio didn't think he should have needed to explain it, but then, he was used to having to give explanations. Not only did he have to tell people that only half of the things he could do were actually magic, but he had gone into teaching roughly the instant he graduated.

The boy took a look at the menu for the cafe they were eating at. "How about this?" He asked, pointing at a word seemingly at random.

"...Chai? Do you like the way that sounds?" Pistachio had his misgivings about picking a child's name based off of a menu of all things, but it did actually sound like a name.

"...Sounds pretty cool." He still wouldn't make eye contact, but he seemed happy enough.

Pistachio was beginning to get the suspicion that Chai couldn't read. He supposed he'd have to take the time to fix that.

---

Almost a year later, Madeleine showed up with Biscotti's bicentennial job offer. Pistachio had been avoiding Will-o-Wisp for a while, only partially out of bitterness for the war he was orchestrated into being a soldier in, but he could see certain benefits in taking the position now.

"I'll do it," He declared, glancing over to where a salamander was curled up in a briar patch. If his old teacher was surprised by him actually accepting, she didn't show it. "On one condition."

All right. You have some sort of idea of what you plan to do. You've figured it out near immediately, and now you can pay attention to whatever happens until your name is called.

The first name out of Sir Mustard's mouth is, "Paprika Kismet."

Paprika bounces up, her feet skimming across the grass, seemingly uncaring about the way that her ears flop around. For all her excitement, her display isn't all that impressive- she identifies a shrew hiding in the grass, convinces it to climb up onto her shoulder, and manages to have a sort of conversation with it. You suppose that it shouldn't surprise you that friends of the Beast Spirits can talk to animals.

The next handful of displays are a fair bit less interesting than that- some lit candles, a hand dripping with icicles... And, eventually, you finally hear it.

"Rye Seabreeze." All right. Time to get started.

Having the entire class staring at you is... a new experience, and one you're not sure you like. You're scrawny for an otter, but even you can't shrink away into nothing. You think a few users of dark magic might be able to do that, but water isn't that kind.

Like the ones before you, you aren't going to do anything too complicated. Instead, you glance at the pots.

There are five small pots of water, all painted in shades of dark blue n the outside. You aren't sure if this is to differentiate them from any animate pots that Sir Mustard might one day have as students or not- it is very rare that a pot develops a magical talent, though not unheard of. From this collection of pots, you select two- one with a light green inside, and one with deep red. You place those pots on opposite sides of the table.

This water has no attached spirits. There is nothing here that would assist you, but also nothing to fight. You reach out to those two pots, apart from all the rest, and you lift.

The water becomes detached, first from the pot with the red insides, and then from the green. Two small balls of water float in the air. For a moment, you consider actually making them float past each other, before realizing just how badly that would go. It's tiring to keep them in place as it is, this isn't the time to try and make them move.

But you can hold them in place, and you still want to try and impress people. So you go back to the table, still holding the water in place, pick up the pots, and switch them around, before gently lowering the water into the opposite pot from the one it came from.

You aren't sure that anyone fully appreciates this, but it's the best you can do.

Once you've finished, you shuffle yourself back into the pressed crowd of students, ending up, once again, next to Paprika. You suppose you could talk to her, if you think she's more interesting than what the other students can do.


[ ] Watch what the other students do.

[ ] Talk to Paprika.
-[ ] About your powers.
-[ ] About Zulian.
-[ ] ...So, she was the last one to join the class?