The Wizarding Tale of Fiona Seasong

Wanted: Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust!

Lost and out of breath, Fiona sat down on the spiral stone staircase. The female dorm was a maze, the first staircase linking to several different corridors lined with numerically ordered dorms, with another stair case on the other end. Somewhere, Fiona couldn't remember which staircase was which, and now she had been wandering up and down for at least half an hour. "I'm as lost as Catfish in Grizzleheim" she admitted to herself, propping her elbows on her knees; chin in her hands, letting out a groan. "First day of enrollment and I can't even find my dorm… King Triton help me…" Cyrus Drake's words rang in her ears.

"I wish Ambrose would send us some more gifted students for once," he had said in annoyed disgust to her very face. "Just who is he to say that when he just met me?!" The sheer memory made her blood begin to boil, her hands curling up into fists, she stood up with a huff.

"Oooh! The nerve of that man!" she growled through gritted teeth, face flushing an angry red. Energy restored and with a dangerous determination, Fiona began marching up the stairs stiffly. "I'll show him!" she promised herself, "I will prove I am not some worthless want-to-be if it's the last thing I"

The new sound of light approaching footsteps snapped her out of her rage, making her turn to look down at the empty spiral staircase. It was a few moments before a hunched over shadow appeared on the wall, quickly followed by a physical twin dressed in emerald-green robes. The person had their head down, with a hood hiding their eyes, while books were hugged firmly against their chest. Fiona stayed perfectly still as they slowly came closer, not seeming to notice her yet.

"Excuse me" she finally said, startling the person to squeak and stumble back in surprise. Fiona watched in slow motion as the person lost their balance and began to fall backwards. Before she even fully realized what was happening, the Siren found herself grabbing the person by the collar of their cloak, holding them suspended in the air from falling. The hood flew back to reveal a girl around her age, with bright auburn hair pulled back in low bun, lightly tanned skin, and big terrified eyes that were brown, sprinkled with gold flecks. For a few moments neither of them moved, until Fiona slowly pulled her to her feet and let go.

"I beg your pardon! I didn't mean to frighten you!" she apologized quickly, clasping her hands together and bowing slightly for forgiveness. She then rose to see the girl prancing down the stairs to catch an escaping book that was sliding down the stairs, the rest of them strewn about. "Simply wonderful Fiona" she complimented sarcastically to herself, before crouching down to pick up the rest of the books, reading the titles as she went.

"'Hilda's Recipes for Health potions'; 'Woodland Wikipedia'; 'Dark Sprites: The Corruption and Process'; 'The Science behind Pixie Dust explained by Lady Oriel'"she muttered them under her breath as she read them, before stacking them. She looked over as the girl jogged back up the stairs, slightly out of breath. She looked over at Fiona kneeling beside the neat stack of books, her expression turning to that of surprise.

Fiona smiled sheepishly, "Sorry about that."

The girl glanced between her and the stacks of books, as if she was trying to figure something out, before whispering breathlessly "it's- it's fine, I-I'm…clumsy" She kneeled down in front of Fiona and quickly grabbed the books, rising again to move a lose hair behind her ear. Fiona stood up. "I … thank you for grabbing my books. I am in debt" she did a small gracious curtsy.

Her words caught Fiona's attention, her eyes narrowing in a newfound interest in the girl. "Please, it was the least I could do for startling you like that" she quickly recovered, waving her off. She thought for a moment, before thinking it wise to introduce herself as the girl rose from her position. "I'm Fiona Seasong, what's your name?"

The girl didn't make eye contact as she looked up at the lamp illuminating the staircase hanging above Fiona's head. "Krista" she finally said "Krista Emeraldfrost."

"Krista" Fiona repeated, the girl nodding. Fiona's brow furrowed in concentration, the name ringing a bell. "Krista…" she mumbled again. "Where have I heard that name?" she thought.

"W-well it was… p-pleasure meeting you Ms. Seasong" Krista stuttered, lifting up her hood and jogging past Fiona up the stairs with her load of books, leaving Fiona to figure it out.

A minute or two later, it hit Fiona, her head shooting up with wide eyes. "Oh!" she exclaimed as it did, spinning around and running up the stairs. "Krista?! Krista wait!" she called after her desperately. It was probably about two full circles of stairs before she saw Krista's sweeping cloak swishing down a corridor, the label beside the entrance reading '80-89'. "Krista!" she yelled, breathing heavily as she jogged toward her.

Krista finally turned around curiously, watching Fiona stumble to a stop and attempt to catch her breath.

"Y-you're-pant-I mean I-pant- think you're-pant-my roommate!" Fiona managed to say as she gasped for air. "I just got these legs I don't want to break them now!" she thought as her calves and thighs burned.

Krista tilted her head to the side slightly, hood still hiding her eyes. "I-I am?" she questioned, sounding confused.

"P-pretty... s-sure"

"…Oh." Krista thoughtfully grunted. "Uhm- h-hold on, let me see…" she turned and continued down the hall a short ways, stopping at a single door in the wall that had '89' in iron numbers on the door. Fiona watched from her bent over position as Krista looked above the door. "Oh." She said once again, before looking to the poor Siren and nodding curtly. "You are."

"G-great to know…" Fiona walked over, her footsteps slightly out of synch and she stumbles a few times. "My legs feel like quicksand!" she panicked, "keep it together! They're still legs! You can still walk! Come on! 1, 2, 1, 2…" she kept the rhythm going in her head before finally making it to the door, Krista waiting patiently, not saying a word.

"E-excuse me but- could you maybe hold these?" Krista held out the books to Fiona, dropping them in her arms before she could protest. "Of course! I feel like I'm about to fall over from chasing after you but you know! I'm so happy to help!" Fiona thought sarcastically, brooding while Krista rummaged through her robe pockets, pulling out medallion-this and pet-snack-that before finally pulling out what looked like a tree branch victoriously. Fiona stared, dumbfounded.

"A stick?" she blurted in a perplexed and subtly disgusted tone. "Why in the Kraken's name does she have a stick? I understand she's most likely life and deals with nature but just what can she do with a twig?!" she continued to think, while automatically mumbling an apology. "Ok Fiona, calm that Hermit Crab temper of yours!"

"Yes" Krista said with no emotion whatsoever, disregarding Fiona's irritable confusion as she tapped her palm a few times with the tip. Fiona's face turned red in shame as the tip began to glow green, Krista tracing what looked like a light green leaf in front of the door. The leaf then burst into bright green sparks, a metallic click heard from the door. Krista opened the door for her, Fiona catching a hint of a smile on her lips.

"You sounded a tad like your professor" the quiet yet sly Theurgist said, making Fiona look down in embarrassment. Fiona heard a faint chuckle before Krista said "At least…you speak your mind." The comment made Fiona look up in surprise, only to see the Life student slipping through the doorway, "Not …many people do… here that is."

"What do you mean?" Fiona asked, following her in with the books. She spots a small wooden table and sets the load of books down with a loud sigh, before standing up straight to look around. The room was a large octagon, with light blue vines twirling around the walls with a darker blue backdrop for the wallpaper. The life school tapestry was hanging on the main left wall, the Ravenwood banner hanging from the main wall directly ahead. There were two windows at opposite angles opposite of the door, which had dark green curtains over them. On the wall in between the windows sat some sort of alchemy set with tools on a counter, materials brushed to the sides. To the left side was what seemed to be Krista's domain; a plain bed with a bookshelf, a lamp, a dresser, a chest, along with a desk against the wall. She looked down to realize the floor was covered in leaves, but once she kneeled down and pick one up to examine it, her hand went right through them. "It's an illusion" she realized, before knocking the floor to hear what she thought was wood. She then stood back up to look over at Krista, who was hanging her cloak on a hook beside the desk, before sitting down in the stool.

"Krista," Fiona started to grab her attention.

"Hm?" Krista hummed, not looking to her but instead dipping a quill in ink and beginning to write in a small leather-bound book.

The new Conjurer decided to continue, "What do you mean by nobody speaks their mind?"

The roommate gave a little "hmph" before saying mysteriously "You'll see at dinner."

"When's dinner?"

"6 o'clock."

"Do you know what time it is?"

Krista just pointed at the wall without looking up, Fiona following her gaze to see a clock reading '4:30'.

"Thanks." Fiona said.

"Mhm."

Fiona looked to the right side of the room and noticed the same furniture as the left, but empty and undecorated except…

She spotted her medium-sized carpet bag sitting promptly on the plain quilted bed, and hurried over to it, opening it with a few metallic clicks. "I suppose this would be a good time for unpacking" she started taking out things before suddenly stopping and looking over at Krista's back.

Fiona inclined her head slightly, eyes narrowing while she speculated just what kind of person Krista was. "I should keep an eye on this one" she mused, "There's clearly a lot more than meets the eye. When I first met her she was like a skittish Kid Carp. Then when I insulted her wand…she hardly stammered at all, she was likely a completely different person. Perhaps she was angry." A thought suddenly hit her, her eyes widening "Did I… pass some sort of test?"

The loud turning of the page in Krista's journal jolted Fiona out of her thoughts and back to reality. She quickly decided to think more about it later and just instead continue unpacking her things for the time being, things like a jar of seashells, a lamp, some Celestian novels, brand new 'land lubber' clothes (as Kyra insisted on calling them), and other stuff that seems slightly unnecessary for the author to tell its readers. The poor author would have said instead; "Fiona became the Spiral's newest Mary Poppins"

Time past, before Fiona face-planted her bed in successfully unpacking everything. "Phew! Glad I got that out of the way! Now I can get relax a little before-

Bells rang loudly in the distance, causing Fiona to yelp, try to scramble to her feet, and end up falling out of her bed instead. She landed on the ground with a thud, watching upside-down-Krista stand up from her stool and silently grab her cloak before looking at her quizzically.

"Coming?" she asked softly, as if Fiona didn't just fall out of her bed. Fiona sat up with a groan, before getting to her feet, rubbing her arm. The bell was striking six, she realized after a glance at the clock.

"Yeah" she said through gritted teeth, Krista holding the door open for her. Fiona wasn't sure if it was courtesy or necessity for a guide that made her wait in the hallway for her. Krista closed the door which seemed to lock automatically, and lifted her hood over her eyes.

"How come you do that?" Fiona wondered out loud before she was able to stop herself. "Starfish, again?!" she scorned herself.

"I do what?" Krista asked coolly, looking straight ahead as she walked.

"N-nothing…" her voice wavered

"Tell me." Krista's voice was soft but had a commanding ring to it that made Fiona turn to look at her, caught off guard. "Might as well be truthful" Fiona sighed.

"You seem insistent on hiding your face. I would normally excuse it as it's simply chilly but something tells me that isn't the case" Fiona explained with a hinted suspicion.

Krista is silent but Fiona saw the same hint of a smile as she said "Whatever told you that is right." Fiona waited for an explanation but there came none, and she just quietly followed Krista down the spiral staircase. The Novice Conjurer wanted an answer, but Krista's unpredictability scared her a little, and she didn't have the nerve to demand one.

The journey was silent as they walked out of Ravenwood and through the Commons, Krista suddenly stopping at a waterfall, examining it. Fiona's confusion got the best of her.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, making Krista turn to her.

"Did Ambrose not tell you?"

"What?"

Krista looked back at the waterfall, "The death school was found through a door behind this waterfall, called the Nightside, which is currently being used as the cafeteria"

Fiona took this in before going "oooh" in understanding. She then noticed Krista's shoulders moving as if she was laughing or giggling at her reaction but no sound could be heard over the waterfall.

She moved to the edge of the shore before leaping through the waterfall and disappearing from sight, leaving Fiona to follow.

"Ok. Ready?" Fiona thought to get herself ready as she got to where Krista was standing 10 seconds before. "3, 2, 1, go!" she took a leap of faith and felt ice cold water splash her face before suddenly she found herself on the other side in a dim lit tunnel, Krista waiting for her.

"Great Triton!" she exclaimed, hugging herself and shivering violently from the freezing water. Krista let out a small chuckle, making Fiona look at her to notice she was completely dry. "H-how did you-"

"Fire spell." Krista answered, "A fire type spell has been cast on the entrance to dry off guests. You should dry off in a few moments."

Fiona then noticed that her clothes were mysteriously becoming less and less cold, her blue hair not stuck to the sides of her face. "Glad I put my hair back to unpack in a…what do they call it? Oh right! A ponytail"

Once Fiona is able to stand up straight without shivering, Krista goes the door, waiting for Fiona to walk over.

"My turn to open the door?" Fiona joked, but when silent when she saw Krista placed her hands on the wooden door. She then looked up at Fiona, her eyes can be barely seen in the shadow of the hood.

"Remember what I said…" She whispered in a warning tone, making Fiona tense up.

"Huh?" Fiona grunted, still wondering what she meant by that.

"A lot of people here don't speak their minds…." She repeated her earlier ominous comment. She lets that sink in before leaning in and whispering "But they make it happen."

Fiona feels a chill go down her spine, swallowing. "I-I don't understand…" though she had a dreadful feeling in her gut that said she did. Krista didn't say a word as she pushed open the large doors with her hands, putting them back under her swishing cloak as she walked ahead of Fiona. Meanwhile, the Novice Siren took in the small gloomy area that was fighting the cheerful atmosphere surrounding the populated area. There were wizarding students sitting at varying sized tables, talking and eating with each other, though some looked over to see whoever just walked in. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw the lopsided Death school behind the students, and- hold on a minute did that dead tree just blink?

Fiona tensed up when someone tapped her arm, before looking over to a see a vibrantly dressed girl, her short blonde hair sticking out in all directions under a fire red wizard hat with yellow trimming. She was grinning at her rather adorably, clearly only around 13 or 14.

"May I help you?" Fiona managed to ask in her friendliest tone.

"Are you new?" the girl squeaked in a high energetic voice, standing on her tiptoes to get a closer look at Fiona's face.

Fiona took a step back for the sake of personal space but was still able to form a warm smile "I am, why you ask?"

"I was just wondering! Welcome to Ravenwood School for magic!" the girl took a superhero stance before she threw her hands up in the air, little fiery explosions sprouting from them. "Tada!"

Fiona laughed and applauded, "Why thank you so much!" "My my, what a little ball of energy!" she thought with amusement. The girl then quickly switched expressions to that of innocent curiosity, big eyes looking up at the Siren who was '5, 6' height wise.

"Say, how old are you? You're so much taller than me!" the Fire student giggled impishly.

"I'm 19."

"Huh?" The girl with bright innocent blue eyes looked up at her with a lifted eyebrow. "You're really old for a new student" The comment made Fiona shrink a little, self-conscious about her lateness in becoming educated in magic.

That's when she saw it.

The flicker in the girl's innocent eyes made Fiona's stomach drop, and it almost made her lose her composure. But Fiona just giggled, acting as if she didn't see the glimpse of the dark mind behind the girl's cheerful smile.

"Well I'm from Marleybone! Like Professor Wethersfield!" she mentally high-fived herself for remembering her cover-story; she was a girl from Marley-bone.

"Oh yea! Gee! What's it like living in Marley-bone?" the girl questioned curiously…too curiously.

"It's very…" "Shellfish! I've never actually been there!" she panicked "Think! Think!" she urged while the girl leaned in expectantly. "Well I guess it's hard for me to explain because I lived there my whole life. You know? So everything there is sort of the norm for me, but I guess people are pretty nice."

"Oh yea I see, but what about the crime? Isn't it really bad there?"

Fiona's blood turned to ice, now catching onto the sneaky Firecuda-she was testing to see if she was lying. "Well not on my side of town."

"But I thought it was all over?" "Seagull s**t she's good!"

"Not really, I know a lot of people say that but I know that people exaggerate things in the newspapers and stuff like that. But that's just my side of town."

"Oh…" the girl looked down and then looked back up at her "That's cool! Well I'ma gonna go eat! Bye!" the girl waved spastically, turning to leave.

"Bye! Nice meeting you!" Fiona raised her hand and did a finger wave.

The girl giggled back in return and then skipped off, as if she was nothing but a bubbly young teen. That's what terrified Fiona the most.