Metabuntur vestri magicae consumat animis vestris, et corda vestra consumat tua magicae
It's A Brand New World
"I don't know how many times I have to tell you, I'm not going!"
Tori Vega had no say in her so far seventeen-year life span. Growing up in a world full of roles to take on, the brunette thought of herself more as a space holder, someone who would just be there for whatever or whoever needed her, someone that comfortably took a seat in the background, or someone who was just there. Growing up in a world like this, the teen was rather reluctant to push herself more than she needed to, making sure she always did just enough. But as the daughter of a magic wielder, the world's 'enough' was a little too much for her standards.
"Well I don't think a young lady already halfway to the school has much of a choice."
Woody forests soon merged into large grassy hills as the car charged onward, tires clawing the pavement. The scenery fell within the backdrop of the rearview mirror as brown orbs peered up into the piece of glass from the backseat, the young girl glaring daggers at her father behind the steering wheel.
"Yeah, we'll see about that." The girl snapped back, her teeth grazing her bottom lip in annoyance. Tori never considered herself rude or quick to feign an attitude, but today she couldn't help it. Her parents just weren't being fair.
"Honey," her mother turned from the passenger seat next, watching as her daughter fell back onto the cushioned backrest and stared out the window, absentmindedly tapping her fingers in her lap. "I don't know why you're so against going to this school? It's just as prestigious and scholarly as that other place you wanted to g-"
"Mom." The teen whipped her head towards her. "What don't you and dad get? I won't fit in there."
"Tori, Trina fit in… okay last year, and you know how she usually is with everything she does–"
"Oh my god…," the girl ran slender fingers through her ebony mane. "Why can't you guys understand? I'm not cut out to be a little magic freak!"
"Come on Tor," her father started once more, "me, your grandfather, your great grandmother – we all went to Schweirtz School of Sorcery. And now Trina–"
"I don't want to be a freaking magician!"
A dark chuckle erupted in the front seat, the girl's father mockingly shaking his head. "Wizard, Tor. They aren't teaching tricks."
"Whatever!" She crossed her arms in defiance. "I'M NOT GOING!"
"Hello incoming students! And welcome to Schweirtz School of Sorcery!"
Well so much for trying.
Tori's teeth pulled on her bottom lip again as she watched the older woman doting a tall, pointed hat become familiar with her position behind the podium. The woman eyed the vast audience of new students before her. Tori couldn't believe she was actually part of that audience right now. Even after spending her life so far making good grades and learning the ropes in all types of domestic practices to aid the community of her small town, the brunette was still being stirred down the magic route. Tori looked amongst the other girls sitting in the folding chairs spread across the field in rows, the school's 'orientation' taking place about a mile from the actual building, the peaks of the school's grandeur towers looming upwards in the distance.
"Here at the academy, we offer a large variety of magical studies, ranging from those in the medicinal department to engaging in combat drills in order to aid our country's and allies' skilled forces…"
At the word 'combat', Tori couldn't help but gulp. She tried to suppress her growing anxiety, but the fact that she was already overhearing the school's induction made the realization of her enrollment become even clearer. Tori looked past her parents who were sitting on her right and paying full attention to the speaker. Peering down her row, all she could see was a bunch of other girls. If she wasn't aware of what they were at the school for, Tori could have sworn that none of them looked like wizards-in-training. Some were clad in short-shorts and tanks, others nodding off with their arms fully tucked in their hoodies, basketball shorts riding up on their thighs. The brunette caught sight of a wide range of girls, from freckled redheads to blondes, from short to tall, from races of every land and…
Wait.
"…There aren't any male students." The brunette muttered under breath, her change in pitch morphing the statement into more of a question. She turned in her seat to check the few rows behind her and came to the same exact realization.
"Tori, shhhh," her mother beckoned softly, trying to reduce the attention Tori attracted by constantly moving in her seat. The teen complied, though her mind was becoming more and more scrambled with each passing second.
But… but dad went here, and grandpa, right? So… so what the heck's going on…
"Parents, your child's enrollment here will become their first step on a very strenuous and complicated, though unique journey. Schweirtz's other headmaster and I are very pleased to have you all here, and we ensure that no matter what background your child holds, this will be the experience of a lifetime for them."
"Dad...! Dad–"
"Hey, shut up will ya?" Hazel eyes under furrowed eyebrows met Tori's own chocolate orbs from the row in front of her. Too stunned to respond, Tori shyly scooted back in her chair, the cool metal on the back of her arms and shoulders doing little to chill her heated body. In front of her, Tori could hear the girl turn around in her seat, the zippers on her jacket around her waist clacking against the folding chair's frame as she did so.
"And students, I wish you the best for your upcoming years here. Shall your magic consume your minds, and your hearts consume your magic."
Clapping sounded in the first couple of rows, the action coming over the rest of the audience like a wave, the sound echoing over the grassy lands. Once it settled down, no one left their seats like an audience would normally do after a speech; however, everyone sat still and resumed their attention towards the older woman.
"May the audience please rise."
Clinks and clacks dully sounded as everyone rose to their feet.
"Dad, when can we–"
Before the brunette could get out her question, the single raise of the woman's hand slapped the folding chairs upwards, the clasp of everyone's chairs very brief and resounding. Tori turned in almost fear to check her own seat, and low and behold, there it was floating midair behind her.
She could hear sounds of amazement surround her, the other girls looking impressed by the magical sight, but Tori Vega was anything but. The brunette jumped when the woman raised the chairs higher, her own chair grazing her head slightly.
With a swipe of a withered hand across the woman's chest and an incoherent mutter from her mouth, the chairs came together overhead at a single point in the sky, all disappearing into each other as if they were sucked in by a mini black hole. Tori couldn't believe her eyes. Sure, her dad was a 'certified wizard' with his degree from the school and performed small tasks like levitating the television remote to himself or starting the car with the touch of a finger, but she had never seen anything quite that powerful – hundreds of chairs cluttering the sky, turning the day to night and in an instant, and then vanishing before her eyes.
She was not wowed, however, by the woman's action.
She did not want to see it again.
I don't want to be here…
"Victoria Vega!"
"Y-Yes! Uh, hi!"
Before the girl knew it, the elderly woman speaking moments ago, it seemed, appeared in front of her. The girl just then noticed the swarm of girls around her hugging their parents goodbye. The older woman's hand was outstretched towards the teen, a knowing smile smeared on her face as if the greeting wasn't necessary. Tori shakily met the woman's hand, and within a second, found her body being pulled towards the woman.
"Oh, my dear. You'll have to strengthen that shake of yours."
"What? B-But you just pulled me on purp–"
"David, my boy!" The woman cut off Tori, her body literally gliding past the girl. The brunette followed the woman's feather-like movements, watching as she went to happily embrace her father, her mother moving out the way to allow the two more space.
"How good it is to see you," the woman said after pulling back from the hug, her hands still firmly resting upon the man's shoulders. "To think it's only been a year." Her aged skin crinkled at the creases of her eyes as she smiled, her eyes dancing from Mr. Vega's face to his wife's. "And Holly," she nodded, acknowledging the woman.
"Hi," the darker brunette shot a small wave. Never had she been that comfortable with the people in her husband's magic background, though she always tried to put her best foot forward. As a girl raised in the country, magic wasn't really the most popular route to aspire for, so she wasn't very accustomed to that realm of the world other than her husband and the few times she visited the school. Her background didn't keep her from trying though.
The three adults began to catch up, though Tori found herself losing interest in watching her parents and their greeter familiarize amongst themselves as the backdrop of the school caught her gaze. Two large towers resembling castle peaks loomed over grassy plains, the two towers adjoined by a central building and two large, bridge-like corridors from both towers connecting to the apparent main building. The gothic architecture was complimented by the surrounding scenery with large, green mountain ranges falling behind the flat land. Tori could care less though about the impressiveness of the school's appearance; she became more concerned and anxious to leave by the second as she caught sight of cloaked figures grazing amongst the school grounds, or air, per se, as students glided from different floors of the towers.
"Tor?"
"H-Huh?" The girl brought down her chin, hoping her parents didn't mistake her growing nervousness and near anxiety attack as any interest in the school.
"See, I knew you'd like it." The girl rolled her eyes at her father's smirk.
"Victoria, I trust that you'll love it here and make your own mark within this institute's walls, as did your grandfather and father here." The old woman smiled lopsidedly while fingering the brim of her hat, the suede fabric catching the light from the sun overhead, shimmering.
"What about Trina? I haven't heard much of what she's done." The teen stated, directing the comment more towards her parents than the other woman, though the elder responded anyhow.
"Well, your sister, Trina… she took the statement more literally than most. But hopefully with you here there'll be less of that and more of… well," aged eyes glanced between the adult Vegas, "anything else, I suppose." Tori smiled, imagining what kind of havoc her ditsy sister could have caused her freshman year at said magician school. Trina could barely figure out a car when she first got one. Give her a wand? Go figure.
"I hope so too, Miss… uh–"
"Oh, I'm sorry dear! I guess your father didn't tell you as much as I thought he would."
"Why no," Tori looked back towards her father, "he didn't."
"I can see, and I thought he would definitely cue you in about me, being his favorite teacher and all back in his days. Shame on you, David," the cloaked woman took the man's cheek between her index and thumb, giving it a good pull.
"Ow, ow, s-sorry! Okay! Tori, t-this is Ms. Blackwell."
"Headmaster of the Mistras."
"M-Mistras…?" A confused look chiseled its way on the girl's face. Tori clasped her hands in front of her waist, already feeling them perspire.
"It seems your father really didn't give you any worthwhile advice or information," the woman turned towards David, the man appearing to shrink on the spot. "That's unfortunate, though can't be helped either." Wise eyes focused in on the girl's hands, her senses keying in on the nervous tapping by the girl's index finger on her palm. "Though maybe…," the withered eyes traced back to the girl's face, resting on chocolate orbs, "maybe it was for the best."
"M-Ms. Blackwell?" The girl questioned when the woman turned away from her and her parents, her own black cloak with gold and navy blue trim dragging across the grass as she strode away.
"Bid farewell to your parents and follow me. It's about time we go."
"Okay…"
She couldn't believe it.
B-Bid farwell?
Tori turned towards her parents, the both of them standing with conflicting emotions surfing their faces, her mother trying hard to smile though her obvious grief was becoming more apparent with the passing of each second. Her father on the other hand looked more proud than concerned.
"Tor," David Vega handed over the luggage he had carried with him all the way from the car which they had to park at a train station before venturing to the school. Tori placed her hand on the handle. "I just want to let you know that I'm very proud of you for going here, even if you aren't sure this is for you."
Not like you gave me much of a choice, Tori had wanted to say, though she didn't feel like ruining the moment.
"Tori," the girl's mother managed to say her name while containing a sob, her arms wrapping around her daughter's shoulders to pull her in for a warm embrace.
"You guys… you're already making me home sick," the brunette managed a small laugh, but she couldn't help but worry about how true her joke would be after she left all that she was used to. How homesick would she be in a few hours? Days? Weeks? Four more years…
Wait.
"Dad," the girl turned her head to face the man, her mother still draped over her. "I can come home for summers right?" Trina hadn't, so the brunette wasn't sure.
"Every student has the option to, so of course."
"What about during holiday breaks? I can come home then, too?"
"Tor, whether you like it or not, this place is going to end up becoming your home…"
No. It won't.
Tori's mind painted the image of the average sized, cottage-like house her family made home. Her bedroom, where each wall was lavished in a comforting shade of pink, music posters decorating the walls and some sort of musical instrument in each corner. Tori thought about the small tasks she did like delivering mail in the morning, how the soothing breeze wove through every strand of her hair as she biked house to house, lightly licking her forehead and scalp, the nape of her neck and her arms and legs, easing the coursing heat caused by the exercise. Even the walks she went on with her neighbor's dogs and the dinner she'd have over their house afterwards replayed in Tori's mind. Everything insignificant she did; everyday things she took for granted, all in that moment of separation did the brunette come to realize the value in those common activities, those tasks that defined her life up until the current day. Coming in from delivering newspapers and seeing her mom cooking breakfast, her father's eyes glued to the morning news on television. Hanging out with the select group of friends she had at school. Meeting up with dates at a local parlor for dinner. When could she do those things again?
"I'm not sure if that could ever happen," Tori said, her head tilting towards the ground.
"Well," her mother sighed, coming out of the hug but still with her hands relaxed around Tori's forearms, her gaze locked on her child's face. "Either way, home won't really be the same either without you and Trina. All of us will have some adjusting to do."
"Yeah…" The brunette trailed, unsure what she should do or say.
"Coming, Victoria?" The girl took a glance over her shoulder to see what the headmaster was doing, catching sight of all the other girls that were now heading in the direction of the school after bidding their goodbyes.
Tori couldn't help but think things were moving all too quickly for her liking.
"Y-Yes Ms. Blackwell, in a sec."
She refaced her parents, catching her mother in the act of wiping away a stray tear before she could hide it from her daughter, her father's arm hanging lankily over her shoulder for emotional support, the teen guessed.
"Oh, mom," Tori went up to the woman once more, though settled her arms around the waists of both her parents. "You guys put me up to this; now you make it seem as if you don't want me to go."
"No, no, that's not it, honey," ebony eyes locked onto Tori before their owner placed a brief kiss on the top of the girl's head. "I'm just realizing that I'll feel a little lonely without you," Holly's cheek was next to her daughter's, her breath easing the girl's nerves a little. Her motherly scent – the distinct aroma that only Holly Vega ever had, further relaxed her daughter, though reminded her vaguely that she'd come to miss it. "You've been with me for all of your life, and seventeen, almost eighteen years of time is a hard thing to let go of at once. But as your father said, everything isn't over just yet – it's just four years, and breaks in between that, right?"
"Y-yeah," Tori let go of a breath she didn't realize she held captive once her mother's calm breathing left her, her parents' arms falling to their sides.
Seconds seemingly lasted longer than their value before Tori was pulled from this moment. And forcefully at that.
"Come on Ms. Vega," nimble, wrinkled fingers were surprisingly strong. Tori only realized the woman had a hold of her when she felt the collar of her shirt tighten around the front of her neck, Ms. Blackwell dragging her away from her parents by her shirt.
"Your parents certainly love you," the woman began after Tori's parents were far behind them. She no longer drug the girl, the both of them walking at a steady pace towards the larger, now socializing group of girls. "They up and left as soon as they could last year."
Usually Tori would have said some snide comment about Trina, but after being separated from her parents, from her home, she didn't feel like talking. She felt numb.
"It looks like the carriages have arrived, my dear," she turned to face a less than lively Tori, gazing at her worriedly before facing the other new students as they approached them. "I'll be seeing you shortly."
Tori didn't take notice when the woman had vanished from her side, reappearing a few feet ahead of the freshmen girls. The brunette really didn't seem to hear the woman's directions either, which were to board the carriages in groups of ten with your luggage. Her attention was only reclaimed when these carriages the headmaster spoke of suddenly appeared, bringing on a new wave of gasps and astonishment by the new students. Grand, maple wood carriages with rod iron siding and shuttered windows suddenly appeared in the middle of the grassy field the students were all waiting in, two reined horses connected to each of them. To say Tori was shocked would be an understatement, though when she saw one of the horses standing directly in front of her sprout wings, flapping them carelessly as if relieving itself of a muscle ache, she felt something drop in the pit of her stomach. She felt sick.
"Are ya just gonna stand there, or are ya gonna get movin'?" Tori turned around quickly at the words, and for a second she was glad to remove her eyes away from the unnatural beasts, though familiar, burning hazel eyes didn't settle her either.
"Y-You, from earlier– Oh! I-I'm sorry," the brunette stuttered as the freckled girl harshly brushed passed her, stepping up into the carriage with her bags. Tori followed behind her, passing a booth of four girls who were already starting up small talk before someone called out behind her.
"Hey, would you like to sit here? One more person can fit on the end!" Tori looked over her shoulder at the short-haired brunette that spoke, her hair styled in a bob and a blazer tugging at her feminine curves. She wore a dark, navy skirt that fell slightly above her knees. She seems nice enough, but… Tori turned to face ahead of her at the hazel-eyed girl who was currently stuffing her bags into storage closets lining the top of the carriage, her fiery gaze catching small glimpses of Tori before returning to her bags.
"Um," Tori glanced back to the group of girls, "it's okay, I'll sit back here. Thanks though," the brunette couldn't help but think the teen looked a little put-off by her decline, though she brushed off the rejected feeling quickly enough to throw in an "it's fine" as Tori walked further into the carriage, strolling her luggage to the edge of the booth and taking a seat across from the freckled girl. Already seated were two other girls, one with black hair and bangs that stretched across her forehead, the girl's eyes hid within the pages of a book she was reading. Tori thought maybe she would recognize the title since she was an avid reader herself, though it was in a completely different language. The brunette leaned back in her seat before breathing in deeply, holding in the breath for a couple of seconds and then breathing out steadily. It was a method her mom taught her to settle her nerves. It had always worked too.
Until now…
Tori's eyes studied the rings on the wooden table before being drawn to ebony fingers lightly tapping its surface. Chocolate orbs traced those fingers up to the girl's face, and Tori immediately took note of the girl's deep cheek bones, her face almost like a sculpture – beautiful and exotic, Tori thought. Not many people of this girl's ethnicity lived in Tori's own town, and so she couldn't help but stare. It only dawned upon her minutes later that the girl was smiling back.
"Never been to Lindsdale?"
"N-No." Tori's eyes went back to the girl's hand, which was now extended across the table towards her.
"I'm Tassia Reed," Tori met the girl halfway, their hands locking in a shake, "it's nice to meet you. All of you," Tassia tried acknowledging the rest of the girls at the table, though the black-haired one on her right seemed oblivious to life beyond those pages in front of her, and the hazel-eyed girl Tori remembered from orientation had her eyes shut, arms folded and guarding her chest. She obviously didn't want to be bothered.
Feeling kind of awkward, Tori just returned Tassia's polite gesture. "Same. And I'm Tori… Vega," the girl added, forgetting to say her last name until she caught sight of Tassia's raised eyebrows. She wasn't used to adding her surname back at home – her father being the only retired wizard in town, everyone knew the girl's family.
"Tori… Vega?" The curly haired girl leaned forward in her seat, her arm brushing the freckled teen and causing her to stir from her relaxed position. Tori watched as she sat up again, snuggling against the booth's cushioned backrest.
"Uh… yes?" The teen replied after a bit of watching amusedly as the hazel-eyed girl tried to sleep, her head nodding off to the side before completely falling from the small ledge that was running behind the full length of the booth. She'd quickly pick herself back up and try sleeping again, only to have the same thing happen three times. The fourth time, she muttered a swear, jamming her hands into her jacket's pockets and leaning her head towards Tassia instead.
"You're Tori Vega… Vega, as in–"
"S-S-SHIT!"
"W-What?!" The three girls in the booth turned to look in the freckled girl's direction, her sudden curse startling all four of them.
"S-Somethin' brushed by my legs!"
"What?" Tori chimed in after regaining control of her already havocked nerves. "Are you sure someone's luggage didn't fall over?"
"No, no one's stuff's out but yours. And your stuff is–"
"…Right next to me," Tori whispered, fingering the handle of her suitcase.
"You sure you weren't dreaming it?" Tassia added, backing up slightly when hazel daggers shot her way.
"I don't have dreams. And I can barely sleep in this damned thing. It ain't like my cot at home." At least someone else feels the same… Tori thought instantly upon hearing the girl's remark. The only thing that pulled her out of her mind was the feeling of hair against her exposed calf, the action rendering another frightful scream that everyone in the booth could've done without.
"You gonna ask if she was dreamin' too? I told ya somethin' was in here!"
Tori could briefly hear the closing of a book before a colossal rat scurried from behind her feet, the hazel-eyed girl nearly jumping into Tassia's arms as the mammal dashed across the floors all the way to the crease between the end of the floor and the beginning of the wall.
"What the heck's going on in here–"
"SOMEBODY GET IT!" The hazel-eyed girl shrieked again.
Tori looked at the girl in the doorway, noticing it was the same one who called out to her earlier. The brunette watched as the girl's eyes widened at the baby-sized rodent, the blazer-doting girl stumbling back a bit into the corridor that separated the two booths as horror seeped into her features.
More girls ran to the corridor from the other room, gasps erupting as each saw the impending scare.
Tori thought the vanishing chairs and winged-horses were enough for her slipping sanity. But she couldn't have been more wrong.
Rounded, furrowed ears morphed into a more defined shape, the rat's elongated face contorting into rounder features. Tense cracking echoed within the carriage as the creature's spine began to alter, growing longer and rising higher with its body. Lumps sprouted from the rat's underbody. Chipped, unkempt nails grew back into almost hairless, peachy flesh as the being stood taller and taller. Bristles of hair atop the rodent's head outgrew it's more defined neck, falling in between shoulder blades. The girls couldn't believe it. Tori couldn't believe. The rat, the humongous rodent, it was actually a…
"…A-A girl?"
Shocked, the girls all remained speechless even after the words of realization graced their ears. All they focused on was what they were currently seeing, which was a completely nude teenage girl.
"I-I'm not late, am I?"
"Late… for what?" Everyone was afraid to speak, so Tori found herself taking the liberty to become their spokesperson. She had decided that was probably one of the only things she could do at this school anyway besides eat and sleep.
"For school…," the nude girl trailed off, as if what she was saying was obvious.
"N-No… the carriages haven't left the grounds where orientation was held quite yet."
"Oh, that's mighty grand then! Thought I wouldn't make it," in a frenzy, the girl began clawing open at the cabinets, resting upon one of the bags stored in them and pulling it down to the floor where she began to tear through its contents. She pulled out a set of clothes and, still being watched by everyone, began to change.
Feeling a little indecent and ill, the girl with the bob muttered numbly "I guess it was nothing…" before turning away and brushing past the other girls in the corridor to return to the booth. One by one did the rest of them follow, and Tori found that she was not the only one at her table to turn a blind eye at the rodent-girl standing a few feet from them. Tassia settled on playing with her fingers, And the other two resumed what they were doing before there was any interruption. Tori seemed stuck with looking out the window behind the black haired girl and watching everyone else at the table. Or rushing outside the booth to throw up. If that wasn't the most horrendous, most putrid process she'd ever lay eyes on, she didn't want to find out what would be.
I want to go home, I want to go home, I want to go home.
A moment later was there a small tap on Tori's shoulder, and the brunette couldn't help but jump involuntarily. She sighed embarrassingly at her own impulse, and turned to find that the ra–girl was done getting dressed, fashioning a crop top and capris, a light jacket hanging around her shoulders.
"You mind if I sit here?"
Yes. "U-Um, no. You can if you want," Tori looked up at the rather tall girl. There was no sign of her at all formerly being a rodent, and Tori couldn't say she wasn't disturbed at the thought, or even the realization that this girl was fairly pretty despite her… other self.
"Thank you," she smiled as she scooted rather briskly into the booth and next to Tori. "The name's Danielle Ruffley. Danny for short."
"M-My name's Tori Vega. A-And I guess Tori's short for–"
"Victoria?"
"Yeah…"
The ride past this point remained fairly mute, save for Tassia's own greeting with Danny and Ms. Blackwell sweeping through the carriages, making sure there were at least five people in each booth per carriage. After deciding everything was in order, Tori guessed the headmaster gave the go-ahead for their departure, and the brunette watched from the window as those shimmering, white wings steadily raised the carriage from the ground. Seconds barely passed before Tori found the carriage cutting through the air, the horses generating speeds far greater than she thought. But then again, they weren't just regular horses, right? Right?
Though just before they breached the campus grounds, the silence was broken.
"So, who all's looking forward to the new school year?" Danny piped up again.
The hazel-eyed girl remained unresponsive and the raven-haired girl had already immersed herself in another book, this one longer than the last. Tassia, on the other hand, seemed to have words crashing into each other behind her teeth.
"I sure am. I can't wait for competition week! That really ought to be an experience."
"I agree! I already know the new Caputs will make it to the finals though! And possibly even join each other to spear off with Brion students. But I also heard that they're looking very chipper this year too!"
"Yes– I'm guessing things may come down to the talents of the freshmen this year. Since no one knows much about us anyways unless," Tassia broke her speech just to peer at Tori, "unless we have a name behind us." Tori couldn't help her urge to ask questions upon hearing this new information, especially not after the way Tassia just glanced at her.
"Competition week? Caps-something? Bry-one? What are you guys talking about?" At the admission, Tassia almost seemed anxious to come across the table and grab Tori by the ear.
"You don't know about competition week? Or the Caputs? Okay – maybe I can understand you not knowing competition week, but the Caputs? They're practically famous!" Tori looked to her right where Danny nodded her head feverishly in agreement with the bronzed girl.
"Well I don't know," Tori couldn't help the slightly annoyed tone. It wasn't her fault she didn't particularly care for this side of life growing up! After all, most people avoided topics regarding the magic world since no one seemed to understand the terminology of it where she lived anyway. Anyone who did were either reporters or marketers who traded in black markets where magic was the topic of choice. In her small town, farmers were the most respected and a notch below them were patrolmen. Tori would be lying if she said she was more proud of her dad for his magic background than him being an officer. She'd rather hear about his latest arrest rather than stories of mystical creatures. So even asking about the terminology was a feat for the brunette.
"Well, I have no trouble explaini–"
An unforeseen rumbling jolted the girls back and forth in the carriage, the doors of the storage cabinets slamming open and shut as the carriage tossed repeatedly.
"What the hell's goin' on now?" The freckled teen slurred drowsily as she stirred from her sleep. "You brought some friends with ya? Should I be checkin' under the table?" She asked pointedly at Danny, who whispered a 'no' and settled her gaze on the table.
"Ladies, don't worry." A voice Tori recognized as Ms. Blackwell's loomed throughout the carriage. "We are breaching the barrier around school grounds – in a couple months' time, you won't even feel a bump."
Just when Tori thought she couldn't take another minute of being hurled around, the chaos stopped, and a peaceful stillness engulfed the carriage. The main doors swung open, and Tori could hear the girls in the booth in the other room begin to stand. I've had more scares in the past hour or so than I've had my entire life. Thinking of time, Tori just realized how long it actually took them to arrive on the school's grounds despite the school appearing awfully close. She didn't have time to question it though as Ms. Blackwell went from carriage to carriage, finally coming to her own.
"Let's get going, girls! The day is not nearly over!"
The girls muttered responses nonchalantly, most of them having been almost scared and tossed to death in one sitting. They really weren't in any mood to continue the day with.
Tori tugged on her suitcase's handle when she saw the other girls from her booth begin clearing out too. She pulled it behind her as she entered the corridor between the two areas before hearing items clutter to the ground. Oh no…
Just as she thought, her bag was broken. Tori went back into the back booth area, crouching down and gathering together the fallen items from her bag. As she expected, the small damage on the lower corner of her bag couldn't take the rough trip well, and that small tear at the bottom of the bag stretched its way down the length of the suitcase.
"Tori?" The brunette looked up, only to see the top of Danny's head peering in from the carriage's main doors. "Tori, is everything okay?"
Even though Tori knew the answer was 'no', she couldn't help the nervous ache echoing in her stomach, pumping through her veins. She remembered what Danny did – what Danny was. Even though the human Danny seemed relatively nice and social, Tori couldn't help the selfish feeling of not wanting to associate with her. That feeling in the pit of her stomach, the brunette knew what it was – fear, aversion. People like Danny were the reason Tori didn't want to come to this school. They were part of the reason Tori didn't believe – no, why she knew that she wouldn't fit in.
Danny reminded Tori of the work 'freak'.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine!"
"Are you sure…?"
"Yes, Danny, I'm great! Some things just fell out of my bag, I'll catch up with the group in a sec."
"Okay then…," the chestnut-haired girl retreated slowly, "I… I guess I'll see you later then. You may want to hurry though."
Hearing the click of the doors finally closing, Tori began to gather her things together, pushing down on her suitcase to zip it back up again and struggling to lift it in a certain way to keep it from reopening. After about five unsuccessful trips to the carriage's door, Tori managed to step off the carriage's platform, and in the process, more things stumbled from her bag.
Shoot.
Tori put everything back again, but couldn't help to notice the growth of the gash. Not to mention the absence of over a hundred girls.
Double shoot.
The brunette stood from her carriage and looked all around; the only people she noticed were the few who came out to unrein the horses, all of their wings now non-existent. Was that magic too? Tori wondered. The teen began walking briskly around the campus grounds clutches her bag to her chest, though when she still couldn't find her new classmates and her faulty bag kept slowing her down, she left the suitcase on the floor of one of the outdoor corridors underneath a large tower, finding her feet speeding towards the main building in between the two towers she spotted during orientation. There had to be someone there. Someone had got to be able to help her, to guide her in the right direction–
Books flew, papers scattered, and hot liquids spilled.
Tori found herself lying flat on her back, blinking the blackness out of her eyesight.
"Uhh… what happened–"
"What the hell were you thinking?!" Startled by the harsh words, Tori forced half her body up, only for it to be slammed back down into the pavement, the tip of a wand looming over her.
"Jade, calm down, I'm fine."
"Beck, I'm not just worried about you – all of my research is ruined!" The girl shouted again, referring to the brown spotted paper with dissolved writing scattered all around them on the stone walkway. "It's her fault."
"Jade, it's not. We–"
"Yes, it is. She was running on campus. Regula quindecim."
During the exchange, Tori could barely focus on anything the two were saying. Her mind was instead focused on this overbearing insensitivity coursing through her body. She was trying to get up, to help fix whatever it was she did, to apologize. She wanted to do those things but she couldn't. It was like she lost control over her own body. It belonged to whoever wielded that wand.
It belonged to…
"Jade, look at her! She's new! She hasn't got a clue of what she did!"
… Jade.
"…Fine."
A spark surged through Tori's body, and that frightening state of paralysis was gone in an instant. She coughed involuntarily while her body regained a sense of itself. But when she finally regained the strength and composure to look at whoever stood over her, Tori wasn't sure if her body fought off the numbness yet or not.
Long, black curls fell over the girls shoulder, resting on the light fabric of her cloak, a few strands of blue lost within the midnight hair. Her pink lips were held tightly in a frown, and oceanic orbs were locked onto the brown ones below them. She looked dangerous, fierce, and beautiful.
A string of emotions passed through Tori's mind, the first being a brief admiration, and the next was actually envy. Then, after realizing that the girl's angry glare was directed towards her, her skin prickled as a wave of desperation and anxiety overcame her.
She could visibly see that scowl turning into a smirk.
"Your name?"
I-Is she talking to me?
"Mine?"
"No, of course not. The person behind you."
Tori turned and looked to see no one there, until a deep, raspy laugh drew back her attention.
"You know what, never mind. I've got somewhere to be." Tori's breath was caught in her throat as she watched the girl pick up her ruined belongings and books before stepping over the half-Latina's laid out body, almost strutting in the opposite direction.
"You can breathe now, you know." Tori reluctantly turned away from Jade's retreating figure to find a hand directly in front of her face.
"What?"
"I said," the boy wrapped his hand around Tori's once she finally raised it from the ground. "Breathe." The brunette was pulled onto her feet, face to face with yet another beautiful being. Her eyes roamed the boy's face, taking in his defined jawline and facial structure and perfectly-in-place hair. Tori was unaware that she just came up with a joke of sorts. She remembered how women and men in her hometown constantly questioned where all the more appealing people in life hid. It looked like now she could tell them.
"I am breathing," Tori mumbled, stepping away from Beck and just noticing the large, dark stain on his clothing. "Oh-oh my gosh! I did this, right? I-I'm so sorry!" The girl began searching for something to wipe off his clothing, not noticing when the boy brought out his wand.
"Don't worry about it, really. Look," Tori raised her head just in time to see him scan his wand over his body, a small light emitting from it. Slowly, she could see the edges of the dark rings decreased, the liquid content unweaving out of his clothing and evaporating concurrently. Tori gasped.
It's all gone.
She caught the boy smiling familiarly at her before he continued on with "it's too bad Jade can't do the same."
"Why not?" It seems like people can do anything here.
"Well… you can take the coffee out of the paper, but you can't bring the words back."
An unsettling silence fell between them, and the idea that Tori found herself almost alone with some boy she didn't know was unsettling even more.
"Uh–"
"Uh–" The awkward silence was finally broken by their laughter, the both of them feeling slightly ridiculous.
"Sorry, you go first," Beck offered.
"Well… I was just going to ask you if you knew the whereabouts of the rest of the freshmen girls? Did you run into them or anything?"
"I was just about to ask you what you were doing out here… well, you're definitely in the wrong place. I wouldn't exactly know about the Mistra tower being a Magi – the only times we meet are in the dining hall in Vallen," he pointed behind himself at the 'main building' Tori had been heading to beforehand, "and in co-ed classes. Which are usually on the training fields… but," he stepped forward enough to rest his lips directly in front of Tori's ears. "Between you and me, I'm one of the only Magi to explore the Mistra tower. The room you're looking for – the same one I think Jade's heading to – is on the first floor in the conference room. Third door on the left."
Tori hurried to the indicated area, sparing a short "goodbye" and "thank you" to Beck before trying to make up for lost time. Within a minute, she found herself standing in the doorway of the vast conference room he spoke of – all of the girls looked like ants from where she stood, and vaguely did she wonder how they all got down there…
"Thank you for finally joining us, Ms. Vega."
Tori felt like a little boy that just stumbled upon an all-girl's slumber party. Over a hundred pairs of eyes set upon her standing there helplessly. Ms. Blackwell wasn't making it any better.
"You… will join us, right?"
"Y-Yes…" If it couldn't get worse, Tori's stutter echoed throughout the hall.
But oh, could it get worse.
"Okay then, Victoria. Just grab one of those gliders hanging to your left on the wall, and fly down here."
Glider…? "Ms. B-Blackwell… I don't know what a glider is," or how to use one, Tori admitted. Accompanied with a series of laughter, Ms. Blackwell continued.
"Well sure you do. It's right next to you."
"But ma'am… I don't know how to use it."
When Tori finally managed to seat herself in the last of the occupied rows next to Tassia, she just held her head low in shame. After trying to explain to the headmaster that no one in her town sold or bought magical products – not even her father – she didn't press so harshly on the subject, and instead summoned some stairs for the girl to descend before continuing teaching.
"It's okay, Tori," Tassia whispered, smiling sadly at the embarrassed, ashamed brunette. "I've never used one either." Tori sighed after Tassia refaced the stage in her seat. She knew the comment was supposed to make her feel better, but the brunette knew she had basically revealed her inabilities to everyone – to girls she didn't even know – and for that she felt like hiding in a corner somewhere. The lecture or briefing or whatever it was Ms. Blackwell was saying (the whole thing fell mute on Tori's ears) edged by painstakingly slow, leaving Tori to wonder when it would ever end. It wasn't until a thunderous applause sounded did Tori raise her head from her cupped hand and realize she was the only one still sitting. The speech wasn't that amazing, Tori thought bitterly, still holding on to small traces of anger directed towards the headmaster.
When everyone finally sat down after another thirty seconds of nonstop clapping, the brunette was still hunched over in her chair, her head back between her hands with her elbows resting on her thighs. A repetitive 'thump, thump, thump' was the only thing in her mind at the moment, as the sound got louder and louder and louder–
"Could you please stop?" The half-Latina briskly whispered, her eyes shooting a glare to her left only to catch Tassia shrugging.
"S-Sorry, it's just a nervous habit."
Nervous habit..? "What's there to be nervous about?"
"Tori, t-the Caput of the Mistras, she's–" Oh boy, Tori leaned back in her chair, not this stuff again.
"Cap-what?"
"The Caput – the most powerful student in our whole tower, t-the strongest Mistra." Tori, being in the bad mood she found herself in, felt like waving off the entire ordeal, willing to try and shut out all of this magic business for the next thirty minutes and just get lost in her own conscience. Though the impressive title of the strongest female wizard was, in fact, impressive. Tori didn't find any harm in getting a peak at this Caput person despite her not wanting to be involved any longer with the magic school. She straightened up in her chair and leaned forward, the view from the back row not really the best. She was only to be able to get one good look at the stage before another girl's head blocked her line of vision, but that was enough.
One look was all she needed.
"T-T-Tassia… s-she is… she is–"
"Tori, what's wrong?"
Jade.
Jade is the Caput?!
A/N: Well, that was definitely the longest chapter I've ever written, and it may be the first and last in terms of length. I guess it didn't feel natural to me to put a break in this and make two chapters, so whala - enjoy!
So now I'm in the Jori fandom! :D I kept reading countless stories about Jori, and so I thought it was only appropriate for me to add to the mix. Thoughts? Questions? Love? Please review and let me know how you feel about this story concept! I thought it was kinda neat, and had to really do some extensive planning before writing. There will be, as you may have noticed, some OCs in here because, let's face it guys, the Victorious cast wouldn't be able to fill the school entirely, you know? Rest assured, Victorious characters will definitely be in here, but I thought it'd be nice to introduce new faces early, you know?
Questions about the world I created will be answered gradually throughout the coming chapters. You all can also make suggestions about the names of towns and whatnot, I might use them :)
One more thing: excuse the google translator-y Latin, lol. I've been through four years of spanish, not Latin, so I'm not even sure if every Latin bit is correct. Feel free to help!
- Ocha and Out ;)