Life is unfair. Death never was. Everything happens for a reason.

I was under the impression they were keeping her in the life tower for the time being.

It had happened on the day of my arrival; all was normal. The work space was cluttered and thereby the room was stacked with an unnecessary amount books and discarded paper. Wizards, novice and other alike, paced the room frantically. The newborns (or so I liked to call them) moved with a certain absence of mind. Likely trying to get a better feel of their new home, I supposed.

I, unlike them, stood timidly in the corner of the room next to a lectern. Furthest away from the door because I wasn't much of a social butterfly. That's a bit off topic though.

I had made the decision to sit back and wait until Ambrose had taken care of the last of his students. The line was orderly in no way, shape or form. Somewhere along the fine line of boredom I'd been walking since my uneventful arrival (aside from the note that I may or may not be the prophecy's foretold savior of Wizard City), I'd slipped into the other room.

I figured the other wizards had left it alone because it was the headmaster's bedroom, maybe? I was wrong and inside I'd found the same room I'd taken that damned test in. A girl sat in my place.

Sat as in both legs were wound on either side; she sat unevenly. Almost pathetically in my opinion, not that I'd voice that any time soon. I'd say she looked like me, but her skin was a bit paler compared to mine, likely having been sun-kisses at some point in the human world. Hers was a bright contrast to the dim lights that hardly illuminated the spiral circulating just above her head.

She looked up. She was lost.

I shut the door behind me and ducked behind a stack of stray papers, wary of Gamma noticing my presence in the room (in which I was sure I did not belong). With a look that worried me, he fluttered in my direction and the door swung open. The girl and I were alone and she looked at me, but did not speak. I did not try.

The footsteps once resounding from the newborns running about the lobby had died down. I was afraid. He'd ask me to leave if he saw me, so I kept deathly still and her gaze averted. She must have thought the same and sought no wish to create trouble for me.

The headmaster regarded Gamma sternly, "How long has she been here?"

"Five minutes. One to determine something was wrong; four to confirm my suspicions. I apologize."

He rubbed his beard and knelt down next to her, "My, oh my.. This isn't looking good. Contact Sylvia immediately. If we wish to save her, we must be quick. No time to waste." He faced me and the stack puffed away into a thick cloud of spoke. "You will escort her to the tower. No time to waste, now... My, you're the same age. Take this. The gate will open for you."

I was fearful and my mind was racing. I was already well over nervous and this was only provoking the anxiety that I had ever so slowly built up, but adrenaline ceased the greater half of my worries. I'd come to the conclusion that whatever it was that seemed to be wrong with this girl, was serious, and needed to be treated.

While I never intended to greet my secondary teacher with such urgent news, I rushed to lift the girl's arm over my shoulder. She was light. She was thin.. She was easy to guide out the door and I made no effort to start a conversation. She looked at the world around her with unfocused eyes. They were pretty in contrast to my own, which were a bit too brown and a bit too big in my opinion.

She was paler up close. I escorted her out the door and across the grass and cobblestone, hardly glancing behind me to watch the tower grow further, only slightly. What I'd expected to be a longer journey had turned out to be nothing more than a walk across the street. I was thankful.

The gates opened right up and I practically threw us both inside. Guiding her through the black tunnel, we emerged on the other side greeted by the worried faces of.. what appeared to be the staff. Malistaire, Falmea, even Cyrus had turned up (though I didn't know the severity of such at the time, nor had I known their names very well) and every single teacher crowded us.

Ambrose parted the crowd, Gamma and a teacher decked in green (Sylvia, but I didn't know that either) stood close by. He lifted her chin and I moved away, but kept my grip on her torso and shoulder. She looked dazed.

He broke the irritable murmur of a worried crowd with the snapping of his fingers, directing their gaze to a tall green tower a little ways off. He took her from me. "Act quickly." The crowd had left me in their dust.

My body adjusted to the loss of the excess weight and urged me to egress. I was at a loss.

What was I supposed to do now? Flee, remain? This was never covered in the basics.

I had made the decision to stay out of any more trouble and return to the headmaster's formerly evacuated house. It appeared that he had returned by now and was diligently awaiting his next student, but I wasn't sure. Was I late? Early?

I approached carefully. He looked down at me through peered eyes and a thick monocle.

He only once commented on my nervous and timid exterior as he sorted through my enrollment papers. I was right; he was always a kind man. Cautiously I slipped the Ravenwood key on his desk and he grabbed it, holding it there for a moment. I was worried until he chuckled and slipped it into my backpack.

I nodded and bowed a quick thank you, taking my leave. I checked the map, check the syllabus and directed myself toward the shopping district on what little funds I had. Before I got anything done I'd have to change this ridiculous robe.. Resurfacing the other end of the tunnel I came across quite a few people of familiar variety. Some I'd recognized had been lurking around the lobby with me. The others were merely higher levels passing through, standing around, listening in.

The intermediates did most of the talking.

"I heard a girl collapsed on the spot. Barely five seconds into arriving, isn't that weird?"

His hooded buddy shook his head, "I don't believe you, dude. Like anything that serious would happen here. There's a spell guarding all students from mortal sickness, you know?"

A lovely blonde chimed in, "You're both out of your mind; you obviously weren't told the full story." Her hands illustrated the story as she spoke, "Alright picture this. A girl is escorted to Wizard City by the magic system as we all were, but runs into a problem. She has inherited her mother's sickness and is now slowly curling her way towards death! Scary isn't it? It could have been you."

That was a bit far fetched. I would have told them all my side of the story, but they were clearly looking for the only answers I didn't have. At the very least, she looked sick, but he wasn't kidding when he'd said Ambrose had cast a spell protecting his students. Not to say magical fevers didn't exist, but those were fairly rare and usually common in Grandmaster's adjusting to their newly acquired power.

I pushed my way through the crowd, received an outraged shout insisting I was a newbie (which I took no offense to, knowing the original term was quite true) and headed toward the robe shop. Since I had been assigned necromancy, I looked for something related to my class and level. The shop keeper recommended something called Robe of the Boon. It looked long, and it wasn't quite a dress (which I had never favored in a past life), so I figured it was good enough.

I requested red trim, abided by the black base, tried it on and set the pouch of gold on the counter. He thanked me and urged me to come again as I left. I didn't want to worry about anything else, not caring much for the shoes covered by the robe or the hat that just didn't matter at the time. I headed off for Unicorn Way and after a short discussion with the gatekeeper, was permitted entrance. I received a message from Ambrose appearing in magical lettering across my field of vision. His voice told me I was ready for enrollment.

After touring Ravenwood, I had already come to the conclusion that life seemed like a fit secondary school. Cyrus was a tough teacher, thankful I'd been chosen for Necromancy, but wondered what to do about the missing classroom. Did they hold classes outside now? Or none at all? That was doubtful..

Regardless, I found myself nearing the school of life as I made another round, this time just to casually browse. I stopped at the tower and curiosity peaked. The plaque on the door stated that entry must be discussed with the Headmaster. God, imagine the fuss if those nosy student's got their hand on a 'permission slip' to sit here and bother her all day.

I hesitated. If entry wasn't permitted, I had no chance of getting in, but..

I grabbed the key and stuck it in the doorknob. If I wasn't supposed to have this, he never would have given it to me in the first place. In fact, I doubt he conveniently forgot that I was the student that carried her to Ravenwood. Pretending he had no idea why or what I looked so nervous for back at orientation must have put on quite a show for himself.

The key turned and twisted on it's own, jiggling a bit. I heard the door unlock. I looked around, wary of someone that might see and I was thankful for a moment they all seemed to be chatting away as of now, gathered in the shopping district. I pushed the door open and shut it quickly behind me, locking it in place.

Looking on, the situation was as serious as it had ever been. Her body had been placed on a rogue futon in the center of the carpeted magic symbol of life. A water bowl was placed next to her head and green candles floated among her. Her black hair was strewn about on either side of her face, and her skin was a pale contrast to even this pace. I slowly knelt beside her, unsure of what to say or do.

She stirred a bit and opened her blue eyes, peering at me curiously. She must have been expecting someone else because she weakly regarded me with a smile, "Is it time to go now..?"

I shook my head, "I'm not here to take you anywhere.. You'll get well soon enough, alright?"

She nodded, though she hardly looked reassured. Her smile faded and she rested her head, staring up at the round ceiling. I looked up with her, and looked back down. There was nothing interesting up there.. "Can you tell me what's wrong?"

Her attention remained stuck in place, but she acknowledged me at least. "I'm sick. I'm sorry, that's all I know."

I nodded. She sounded, looked, and probably felt just as sick as she was. I'd take her word on that. ".. What do you believe it is? The sickness, that is.."

She sighed for a while, but she could have been catching her breath. I didn't know. "I'm sorry, I don't know that either.."

I sat back on my robe and played with the ends for a bit, before shuffling through my backpack. I wanted to find something to do.. something to entertain her with. Students would turn in to their dorms soon enough, for a good night's rest, and I wouldn't be with them. That was fine with me, but would she really spend the night in this tower alone?

"How long have you been here?"

Her eyes hazed, "At the city... or here? Where am I..?"

I told myself to stop asking questions. I didn't listen. "What's your name?"

Her smile returned, only slightly. "..Alura. What's yours..?"

"My name.. is Allison. It's nice to meet you." I offered my own smile, which surely wasn't so bright.

I noted she omit her last name, which I did too. I'd prefer it if she just called me Allison and she must have thought the same. She raised the upper half of her body and turned over, reaching for the bowl. I grabbed it, urged her to lay back down and placed the ladle in her hands. She gave herself a drink and winced a bit at the taste.

It wasn't water? I looked at it curiously. She chuckled a bit, which was a good sign. "That's medicine. They told me to take it every hour or so, or whenever I felt I was getting worse. I wouldn't taste it, if I were you.."

I sat the bowl a bit closer to her, and looked her around. I rested on my knees and she sat up again. She was smiling so I figured it wasn't quite enough cause for worry. I felt stiff.

"You seem worried." she spared me a glance, taking one last bitter spoonful and dropped the ladle back in the bowl.

"Do I?" Now that I've seen it up close, it's become apparent to me that the 'water' she'd been drinking was green. I'd never liked nor trusted anything colored green.

She nodded, "I don't know you, do I..?"

I shook my head. "Not at all. Forgive me."

"Nothing to worry about.." she assured, wiping her mouth. "I'd be appreciative if they'd have left some water for me, y'know..? Just a bit.."

I looked around. Water, water.. Siphoning a bit from Kelvin's pond couldn't hurt, right? "Not to worry." I assured, rising to my feet and she clutched my robe.

"You don't have to do such a thing for me." I gently shook her hands off and ran out of reach, waving when I reached the door. Her hands fell to her lap and she looked blankly. I smiled to the best of my ability (it had never been a strong suit of mine) and shut the door behind me.

I followed the rounded cobblestone pavement to Kelvin, waved despite the fact the tree obviously had nothing to say to me. He smiled, and I presented him with an empty potion bottle I had stored in my bag. I gestured to the life tower. Whatever it was that was going on, he seemed to know. His branches ruffled. Snow piled off and I bit back a laugh, dipping the bottle into the freezing water. I hoped it wasn't too cold for her..

I returned, water in hand, and panicked. I dropped it into my bag and threw it down, rushing to her side. She was laying flat on her back, head tilted facing the desk on the far end of the room. I pressed my head against her chest.. Her heartbeat was faint. Not gone, but faint. I pressed the cold water to her head and she stirred, swatting it away weakly.

I grabbed the ladle of green and pressed it to her lips, supporting the back of her head with my free hand. She groaned, but took a sip. Her head scrunched up at the bitter taste and it seemed to be enough to jolt her awake. She grabbed the ladle and finished what was left inside, dropping it back in the bowl. I waiting patiently, catching my breath. She did the same.

"...Ah, I fell asleep.."

My palm hit the base of my forehead. "Asleep? You were hardly breathing.."

"..Thank you, then." she yawned, laying back down and curling up in the blanket provided. "I'm glad I didn't die in my sleep."

"How can you say something so casually..?" I muttered against my racing thoughts. Never mind that, "Does this happen often?"

She shook her had, staring up again. "I was doing fine for a while, but sometimes I get better or worse.."

I grabbed her hand. Whether or not she was contagious never occurred to me. "You'll get better with time. Who is looking after you?"

"I thought you were.."

I dipped my head and threw it back, cap falling off. "You're kidding me..you're kidding me.. you've got to be kidding me.."

"I am not kidding.." she admit. I walked back to the door, grabbed my overturned backpack and shoved the contents back inside. I dropped it by her side and pulled out the potion bottle that miraculously hadn't cracked once. I placed it in her hands, curling the frail digits around it.

She looked at the bottle, "So you weren't joking.. I thought you'd left.."

"Why would I have done that?"

She took a few sips, and pulled away, staring for a while. Her eyes shone with a brightness I'd yet to see. "This is good." she noted, then regarded me with a glance, "Caring for a sick stranger isn't a very fun thing to do, especially this late at night, unless.. perhaps you're a theurgist and taking extracurricular.."

I shook my head. "I'm a necromancer.. but, don't be alarmed." I stated as she stiffened, "I'm not here to reap your soul or anything like that..Although, a theurgist would come in handy, right..? I should fetch one.."

She grabbed my wrist, "This is fine. I don't want to be taken care of anymore.."

I sat back, crossing my legs and gently wriggling my hand in a show of acknowledgement. It truly was getting late, and I needed sleep to soothe the anxiety of attending new classes in a world that I hadn't known existed, but..

I resolved to spend the night with her. I was met with very little protest; she passed out again. I wasn't worried.

I had started my classes that next day, and things were going well. For about a week or so I carried on the routine of visiting Alura before, between and after classes to make sure she was doing alright and dropping off necessary supplements. At night, depending on the rate of her recovery (how well she was feeling during the day) I'd spend the night with her. I didn't have a sleeping back, but my backpack made a fine pillow and the robe was long enough to keep me warm.

The tower was pretty decent in regards to temperature, so I didn't have to worry about extreme cold or heat for the most part, nor how she dealt with it. I grabbed a few books I'd grown tired of reading (a few I dropped after the first chapter) and left them behind. Some afternoons she'd read them, others she'd fall fast asleep.

Things were going well in my opinion, but you'd have to ask Alura. She'd never tell me otherwise.