[X] Do you say anything before she goes?
-[X] "I'm glad you're staying."
-[X] Give her a hug.
[X] [1] Dimensional Science
[X] [2] Spiritual
[X] [3] Enchanting
[X] [1] The TA
[X] [2] Ruby
[X] [3] Sammy
[X] Figure out your reputation in the college
There's only one thing you can really say to all that.
"I'm glad you're staying."
As she turns around, you step up to her and very firmly put your arms around her and give her a hug. She just stands there stiffly, like she doesn't know quite what to do. You step back after a moment, not wanting to make her too uncomfortable. You and Ruby look at each other for a second, before she just nods at you and leaves with a "See you tomorrow," that at least sounds more confident than her words before, even if she still says them quietly. You close your door and exhale heavily, then shake your head.
Regardless of anything else, you have the whole week ahead of you right now. Before you go to bed though, you definitely want to spend a few hours looking through your Dimensional Science books to see if you can figure out more of the diagram the TA had on her ceiling.
---
Morning comes to you suddenly, as you jerk awake at your desk. You must have fallen asleep reading... You glance out your window. Dawn, again. Normally you would be complaining, but it's like a fire's been set in your brain ever since you started investigating that diagram. You recognized most of the symbols, and you can guess at the meanings of a few of the others from the context, but whole swathes of it remain out of the reach of your understanding. You stand up, stretch, and get right back to work leafing through textbook after textbook, referencing and cross referencing, trying to figure it out.
---
Days go by slowly, filled as they are by your relentless studying, and, in the breaks where you are too frustrated by it or are making absolutely no headway, talking to Ruby. You don't have any deep emotional conversations, and honestly no real follow up at all to what you talked about on Sunday, but despite that you think she's happy to just have a friend she can rely on and spend time with. And despite the drive to study you've had this week, you make sure to always coordinate meal schedules with her. You need the break away from the books, and you can tell she enjoys having someone to talk to, even if it's mostly about inconsequential things.
You do however have one meaningful conversation during the week, even if it's more about you than it is about Ruby- that is, your reputation in the college. You had mentioned it in passing Monday and meant to follow up on it over the course of the week, but that diagram had been distracting you so much. It turns out, Ruby had followed up on it for you. Which had led to a rather surprising revelation...
"What do you mean everyone is intimidated by me?!" You hiss, trying to keep your voice down in the middle of the dining hall. You and Ruby have a table near one of the windows on the right wall to yourselves.
"I'm just saying what I overheard from various people," she replies, before continuing "Is it really that surprising? The people you spend the most time around are me, that creepy TA, and the librarian. Not to mention the fact that you apparently effortlessly defeated your opponent Saturday and you shoved that guy into a portal and dropped him on someone..." She ticks off the reasons on her fingers.
"Well, sure, but-"
Ruby raises an eyebrow at you. You sigh, a grin creeping up on you. Well, surprising though the development might be you think as your grin transforms into a full on smirk, you certainly aren't going to complain about it.
Meanwhile, Ruby's eyebrow raising has continued and increased in intensity at your facial expressions. You choose to ignore it, but withhold the cackle that's building up inside you. Ruby's expression becomes serious after a moment though.
"Still, I would be careful. You might be intimidating to a lot of people, but there are a few who will probably hold some kind of grudge against you. You need to be ready in case someone tries anything."
That sobers you up again. It was certainly a worrisome thought. The conversation ends on that note, Ruby needing to leave to get to her class.
---
You also spend a lot of time in the library this week. You need to in order to follow up on ideas you have about that diagram. Luckily, the TA's granted you almost unrestricted access to the books on dimensional science, but you're still running into the issue that all the highest level books that you're pretty sure contain answers are so filled with gibberish symbols and equations that you have no hope of understanding them if you skip all of the the low and medium level books. So you've been steadily working your way through.
Thankfully, while Sammy isn't particularly knowledgeable about high level magic theory, she does have a very good idea of what books get checked out when. You're not sure if it's cheating to ask her for a list of the books the TA checked out in the days before you saw that diagram, but it's certainly been helpful. Regardless though, there are missing pieces. Not only have you not had the time to go all the way through the massive stack of books the TA checked out, but she still has a lot of them, and you're uncertain of exactly which books are relevant. Plus, as you go through more and more books, you're getting the sneaking suspicion that the diagram and many of the equations therein are entirely original work on the part of the TA.
It's on Wednesday that you finally make a break through thanks to Sammy. You had been complaining to her about your studying woes when she suggested that if the diagram was something the TA had come up with, it might be helpful to look at other spells she had designed or written about heavily. It turned out that, perhaps unsurprisingly, the college did not just throw away any of the treatises and research that were required to graduate in the final year of a student's studying. There were copies of all of them on file in the library. Which led to you learning that when the TA was a student, she hadn't been focused on Dimensional Science at all. Almost all of her treatises and spells were focused on spirits. Examinations of common bindings and experimentation on new ones, analysis of the many varieties of spirits commonly summoned and their abilities, and a few related to enchanting and the principles of binding spirits to objects and places. It's a lot to work through, but you feel like you're on the right track.
Sammy just waves away your thanks, saying it was no real effort on her part to help out.
---
Finally, at the end of the day on Friday you find yourself knocking on the TA's door for the first time that week. She answers immediately, opening the door for you without a word. You take her unspoken invitation and step in, glancing up at the ceiling. The diagram is still there. You notice that the TA's room had been rearranged so that her bed now occupies the center of the room, her fluffy pink pillows arranged so that if she were lying down she would be able to easily examine the diagram in comfort. After a moment, the TA speaks up.
"I hear you've been doing a lot of studying this week."
You just nod, walking around the edge of the room, carefully skirting piles of books and loose sheets of paper to see it from a few different angles. You had been pretty sure before, and looking at it now you knew you were right.
"So. What do you think?"
"It's the proof for a better way to make and ward pocket dimensions." You say confidently before continuing on excitedly. "Did you really come up with this yourself? It's fantastic how much more efficient it is!"
Something flashes across what little of the TA's face you can see under her hood for a moment, and she seems to hesitate before replying.
"...It is that, yes."
Suddenly you're not so confident. You feel like you've missed something important. The TA must notice your expression, because she makes a noise in the back of her throat as you turn your gaze back up to scan the diagram again. That is what it is, isn't it? What have you missed?
Suddenly, the TA makes a noise of understanding. A little 'A Hah' as if she's realized something. You look at her in bewilderment as she chuckles to herself for a moment.
"Hah. No, of course you wouldn't notice, would you. I've been the one teaching you this entire time after all."
You stare at her blankly, waiting for her to continue.
"It's- no, I think it would be better if you realized it yourself. Go through some of the basic textbooks again, not thinking about the proof at all. Just read what they're saying, especially the bits on pocket dimensions and then come back and tell me what I'm sure you'll have figured out."
"What did I miss?" You ask, almost demanding in your need to figure this out after spending a whole week on it.
"Nothing. You got what the diagram is in one." The TA smiles at you, the expression at odds with her normal facial neutrality. "You're just such a genius at this you never spent enough time on the basics to realize-" She catches herself before she explains whatever it is you missed.
"Anyways. Like I said, I want you to get this on your own. Trust me, you'll appreciate why when you get it."
She looks up at her diagram, her smile growing even wider.
"That moment of perfect understanding and clarity... That instant of infinite certainty as all the pieces slide together, I would never take that from someone like you."
+10 points to Dimensional Science
+5 points to Spirit
+3 points to Enchanting
What do you buy?
Generic:
[] Multicasting (2X): Can maintain X extra spells at the same time.
[] Response 1 (3) You may wait for your opponent to make the first move and match their pace so that your spells complete at the same time. Requires Speed Casting 1.
Dimensional Science:
[] Planar Portal Size 2 (5): Opens a portal to nowhere about the size of a double doorway, requires Planar Portal Size 1.
-[] Planar Portal Size 3 (10): Opens a portal to nowhere 10 meters square, requires Planar Portal Size 2.
[] Planar Creation 2 (3): You can now open portals to as many Somewheres as you can remember, and reopen those portals at a later date. The inside of these portals is still airless and lightless, requires Planar Creation 1.
-[] Planar Creation 3 (10): You can now open portals to a Somewhere that is identical to a location with which you are familiar and spend a great deal of time. Details which you do not know or cannot recall perfectly such as the inside of books cannot be copied. Requires Planar Creation 2.
[] Planar Teleport 2 (15) The range of Planar Teleport increases to sight range.
[] Elemental Planar Portal 2 (25): You may create a portal deeper in an elemental plane, unleashing effects equal to the Expert rank of Elemental Control. When Speed Cast, becomes incredibly unstable and dangerous to yourself. Even when cast normally, the effects are so extreme that without precautions it is likely to be fatal.
Elemental:
[] Apprentice Elemental Control (5): Can create potentially deadly manifestations of elements, and exert minor and slow control over the elements around you, requires Novice Elemental Control.
-[] Adept Elemental Control (10): Small Buildings could be endangered by your attacks, and you could, with a great deal of effort, use you control over the elements to create something on the level of a small building, requires Novice Elemental Control.
--[] Expert Elemental Control (50): Potentially the effects from magic of this level could be dangerous even to a small castle (Or create things on that scale). Without an equivalent rank in Elemental protection, magic of this level is very dangerous even to the wielder, requires Adept Elemental Control.
[] Elemental Protection (X): Can defend yourself against Elemental Spells of Equal or Lesser rank to the number of points spent on Elemental Protection.
[] Elemental Pledge (N/A): Pledge yourself to an element (Earth, Air, Water, Fire). You cannot cast spells of other elements or directly protect yourself from other elements. Up to Apprentice Elemental Control is free. Treat Elemental Protection from your Element and Elemental Control as though they were 3 times the rank they actually are.
Countermagic:
[] Minor Disruption (1): Your opponent's spells become slightly unpredictable, or very much so if they would be already. Precise aim becomes impossible and catastrophic failure a real possibility.
-[] Disruption (5): Your opponent's spells become unpredictable. Aim beyond 'somewhere within 180 degrees of where I'm pointing' becomes impossible and catastrophic failure a real possibility, or almost guaranteed in the event of already unstable spells.
[] Dismissal (X): Spells up to your rank in Dismissal not hardened against countermagic may be counterspelled completely.
[] Dissipation Field (10): Create a 20 meter radius wherein spells are only considered their own rank for the purposes of Dismissal, rather than benefiting from the total point investment in the field of magic.
Spiritual:
[] Call Basic Elemental (5) Call up a spirit to act on your behalf. At this rank, the spirit is of one of the four basic elements and is considered to have Apprentice Elemental control and an equivalent rank in Elemental protection in the relevant element as well as an elemental pledge to it's relevant element. Will act according to it's nature. Fine control of it is impossible and it may turn on it's summoner if they get in it's way.
[] Eyes and Ears (15) You may share a spirit's senses and give it general commands at a distance.
[] Rapport 1 (25) Spirits you summon are unlikely to take actions that would directly cause you harm, and will potentially act slightly against their nature if ordered.
Enchanting:
[] Minor Enchantment (3) You may enchantment an object well suited to enchantment (such as a gem) to cast a spell you know once at a lower rank. (I.E. Apprentice Elemental Control -> Novice Elemental Control.) You may not enchant objects with spells you only have the first rank of.
The weekend has arrived as well:
Do you let the TA match you with another weak opponent?
[] Yes
[] No
What do you do with your weekend?
[] Join a Club
-[] Writein Club
[] Make a new friend
[] Find time to go into the city.
-[] The Markets
-[] Visit Home
[] Figure out what you missed about the Diagram <-- If I know SV, you'll pick this the instant it pops up. To avoid a no brainer 'What Do?' question, this will be done automatically. Saphira would definitely miss some sleep to figure it out, so it has no real effect on the rest of your day to day.
Who do you primarily spend your weekend with?
[] Ruby
[] Henry
[] The TA
[] Sammy
[] Adam
