"Kuzon, focus!"

I… Am…

"That's it! Finally! Now, shape it!"

The young half-elf, his face strained under his crimson hair, twisted his hand, attempting to shape the ball of water he held above his head through magic into a form. Any form. But the second he attempted, the magic slipped from his grasp, as did the water, drenching him from head to toe. Again.

"A failure. Again. Why am I not surprised Kuzon…" The voice came again from behind him, sparking the young half-elf to anger.

"My name is not Kuzon! It's Algren!" he spun and spat the words at his master, and the elf returned his look of rage with one of passive acceptance. The same look one gives a puppy that tries barking back when you give it an order.

"Ah yes. Of course. Forgive me, Algren . Your grasp of magic is at the level of a human, so perhaps your human name would be the best way to address you." His master, Dolan, sighed and mused to himself. "To think, this is the child of our dearest Elva… That I have to live in a world where the name Fairmind is tainted by human blood... "

Algren stood still and silent, as he had been taught, but inside his rage was coming to a boil. With a shriek, Algren lashed out at his master, his magic bursting from him before he had the chance to even think about controlling it. Dolan was driven to his knees by the weight of the psychic magic Algren had created, but the surge ended just as quickly as it had come. Though Algren was still full of rage, his magic had left him. And without it, he was defenseless.

Dolan stood to his full height, his usually passive features twisted. "You… you human bastard." With a flick of his wrist, Algren was off his feet and flying through the air. With a crack, Algren slammed into the stone wall of the chamber, driving the breath from his lungs. For a moment, he allowed himself to think it was over as he started falling back to the ground, but Dolan's rage wouldn't be satisfied with that. After a moment, he had caught Algren again, and he felt the breath being crushed from his lungs.

"Remember this moment, Algren . Remember what real magic feels like, magic you will never possess! Remember that it could have ended here, and no one would care. No one would miss Elva's greatest failure."

With that, Dolan released him, and Algren fell to the floor, gasping for breath. When he dared look up again, Dolan was standing at his window, not even giving him a second glance.

"Leave. And never return here again. I don't care what Elva tried to tell me, you are exactly what they label you. A half-human bastard, a waste of our finest psychic magic bloodline, a worthless failure, and I want nothing to do with you."

Algren got shakily to his feet and stumbled out of Dolan's chambers and the school itself, collapsing in the snow outside as the shock of the cold hit him. He had forgotten his coat inside, but there was no way he was going back for it now. He knew better than to attempt to. He wouldn't face the ridicule of those he was forced to call his peers. He wouldn't face Dolan's wrath again. Even at ten years old, he had more pride than that. As the cold overtook him, Algren heard…

"Are you okay?" A voice called to him.

Algren kept his eyes to the snow. No. I won't be tricked again…

"What are you doing out here without a coat silly? You've got to be freezing!" The voice said again, closer. Now that the voice had said more, Algren could tell it was young, probably around his age. "Here!"

Algren finally looked up as a shadow fell over him. Standing over him was a girl around his own age, with green eyes glittering in the light cast up by the snow, red hair, a few shades lighter than his, mostly covered by a hat she wore to keep out the cold. But below the cap… Pointed ears… A full blooded elf.

Algren took his coat without a word of thanks, waiting for the usual tirade to come against him. They always said the same things. Worthless. Elva's failure. But you have to live until she has another, a true elf child, so take care of yourself…

"My name's Emma. What are you doing out here in the cold Kuzon?"

Algren's eyes snapped up to meet hers, to try and detect any sign of the hate he was used to, but he couldn't find it.

"My name is Algren…" he whispered, afraid that any moment what he saw would change.

"Oh! Okay!" Emma smiled at him. "Sorry, I didn't know you preferred that name. Algren it is! Now come on silly, let's get you out of the cold." With that, Emma offered her hand to him, and after a moment, Algren took it and allowed himself to be pulled from the cold world he had lived in until that moment.