Merry Christmas! Sorry this took so long but I have university. Enjoy!

[First Person, Emily]

I keep asking myself, "Emily, What were you thinking!" I guess I'll just tell out what happened after that. I left before the teacher could ask me any questions. Outside the school, I couldn't help but hyperventilate as I walked away. I was also shaking a lot and my head started to spin; I felt a little sick to my stomach. I was having an anxiety attack.

I was afraid I was going to get in trouble for what I did. I was freaking out so much that my hands got really hot. I collapsed onto the ground next to Bernie and I singed some grass. Fireballs had started floating around me.

"Whoa kid," said Bernie. "What's going on?"

"Anxiety…Attack," I said between huffs. I haven't had one of those in a while. They're pretty scary whenever they happen. The fireballs had landed and were starting to set fires around me.

"Calm down," I told myself. "Calm. Down." People had started to notice. Ice students had rushed forward, even though they didn't like the heat.

"Isn't she a fire student?"

"Why would she be doing this?" The fires had started to get pretty big. Some storm students had come by too, including Genevieve. When she saw it was me in there, she began to freak out.

"Can someone put this out? We don't know how to work with water yet!" The ice students began firing ice blasts at the flames. I'd noticed I was drawing a crowd and I began to freak out some more. Once the flames were out, I pressed myself up against the wall of the fire school.

"Let me through," said Genevieve. Just great, I didn't know if this was better or worse. Genevieve made it through the crowd to me.

"Em, are you okay?"

"I don't know," I breathed out. Genevieve looked around.

"Did you start the fire?"

"It was an accident," I said.

"She was having an anxiety attack," said Bernie. "That's what started the fire."

"I think I get it," said Genevieve. "Everyone part ways, distressed girl coming through." She ushered me along, everyone parting ways to let us through. I could hear them in the background.

"That was one of the heroes of Unicorn way."

"The defeater of the Iron golem?"

"What was she anxious about?" When we were a good distance away, I spoke up.

"I didn't want to draw a crowd. This is just great; now too many people know I was upset about this."

"Come on, Em," said Genevieve. "Let's just get you to the dorm, and then we can talk about it."

Genevieve opened the door for me in our tower, leading me inside. Once we were in, she set me down on my bed, and she sat on hers across from me. Genevieve spoke first.

"First anxiety attack in a while," she said.

"Too many people saw it," I said. "They think I'm weird for it. I set a fire."

"You were fine," said Genevieve. "I guess it's time for me to do the cheering up. No one thinks you're weird, Em. They were concerned for you. You have their sympathy. This isn't like back home."

"I don't need their sympathy," I said. "I've been handling these attacks for years with people belittling me for them. I just need this to stop." I was starting to cry.

"I don't think it's ever going to stop," said Genevieve.

"Not the anxiety," I said exasperated. "This attack; I want to calm down, but it's hard. I'm just too scared."

"Well we have to do something about your anxiety. We now know that whenever you have one of these attacks your magic goes out of control. What caused this attack anyway?"

"I think I made a mistake that I can't undo."

"Oh," said Genevieve. "Can you elaborate?"
"Sure, but you won't like it." I curled up on my bed. "I couldn't make a decision. I liked the idea of going to any school."

"Even myth?"

"Even myth," I said.

"Even death?"

"Even death!" I cried out.

"What did you do?" she asked. "Did you leave your sheet blank?"

"No," I groaned. I put my face in my pillow so she couldn't hear what I said next.

"Could you repeat that?" she pleaded. I took my face out.

"I checked every box." I then plopped my face back in the pillow.

"You…did…what? I didn't even know you could do that."

"Well I did," I said through the pillow. "I don't want to get in trouble, but I'm going to. I just made everything harder for everyone. Why do I have to do that?"

"It's okay, Em," said Genevieve, stroking me. "Things will work out."

"And if they don't?"

"Well, that's pretty much all I can say. You can't worry about it right now. What will happen, will happen."

"Because of me," I moaned.

"Oh will you just-wow," said Genevieve. "Now I know how you feel sometimes." Suddenly she got an idea.

"Hey, how about we ask Bartleby what will happen."

"The grandfather tree?" I picked my head up.

"Yeah," said Genevieve. "If you're worried about this so much, we can just ask him what will happen. He can see the future."

"Alright," I said getting up. I was calmer now. "Let's give it a shot."

We approached the great tree Bartley. I was a little nervous to ask my questions, so Gen did most of the talking.

"Hello Bartleby," she said. Bartleby looked down.

"Well if it isn't the two heroes now," said Bartleby.

"Yes, Bartleby," said Genevieve. "We probably shouldn't be asking, but-"

"You wish to know the future," said Bartleby.

"Yes," said Genevieve. "And we know that-"

"The knowledge of the future shouldn't be shared for selfish purposes and for most of the time should be kept a mystery for sometimes the knowledge of the future can lead to your own peril."

"Yes," said Genevieve. "But you see, Bartleby-"

"Your sister is recovering from an anxiety attack and would like to know what may unfold to set her mind at ease."

"Yes," said Genevieve. "And before you say anything, I really would like to help her out, because I don't like seeing her suffer like this. You don't have to tell us much, just tell us what might happen based on this little mistake she made."

"What mistake would that be?"

"You don't know?" questioned Genevieve. "Can't you see what I'm going to ask you?"

"Not exactly, no," said Bartleby.

"Could you try?" asked Genevieve. "Because Emily doesn't really like to talk about it, besides it might just cause another-"

"We're picking out secondary schools and I filled out my sheet in an unusual way," I said.

"A simple request," said Bartleby, "I will tell you what I see." Bartleby looked out at the horizon. "Everything will work itself out," he said. "You just need to give it time."

"You see Em," said Genevieve. "No need to worry."

"What about my anxiety attacks," I said.

"Oh yeah, we should probably ask about that," she said nervously. "Bartleby, here's a concerning question, will Emily's anxiety attacks be something to worry about? Will it become a major problem?"

"The future isn't certain," said Bartleby. "I see two futures: One where the power she emits becomes impossible to control, becoming an emblazing inferno." I gasped and gulped. "Another I see is where she manages to use her power as a force for good."

"Good to know," said Genevieve. We were about to leave, before Genevieve quickly turned around. "Rule of three, will I get a handle on storm magic?"

"Yes," he said.

"Oh thank goodness," said Genevieve.
"Let's go, Gen," I said pulling her away.

We spent the rest of the night in the dorm room, per Gen's suggestion. We tried to brainstorm something that could get my anxiety under control. In the end, we agreed that it was something where Gen had to be there for me.

The next day, I got up, put on my soot-stained hood, my sturdy coat and ruby slippers. While Genevieve simply had the same thing as the day before except with her Rattlebones cowl. We started the day by looking for reagents. I found myself some Mist wood, deep mushrooms, and cattails, while Genevieve just settled for the deep mushrooms.

After that was done, we headed to the commons. While we were there, we ran into Penny. She ran up to greet us.

"Emily, Genevieve," she said happily as she approached us, "Nice to see you two again."

"It's nice to see you too Penny," I said.

"Have you two picked your secondary schools?"

"Uh, can we try not to talk about that," said Genevieve. "Emily had panic attack yesterday because of that."

"You don't need to bring it up," I said.

"Do you want to have another panic attack?"

"I'm sure I can manage," I said.

"It's okay," said Penny. "I haven't picked a class yet because I arrived a week late. Who knows? We might be in class together."

"Maybe," we said nervously.

"Anyway," said Penny. "I wanted to talk to you about something else."

"And that would be?" asked Genevieve.

"First of all, thank you two so much for helping me earlier."

"Don't mention it," I said. "It was mostly Gen that helped you anyway."

"Of course," said Gen, "if you didn't say let's go talk to Mister Lincoln, we wouldn't of had a trail to begin with."

"True," I agreed.

"Thanks to you," said Penny, "I'm enrolled in classes at the death school now. There's no classroom or teacher, so I'm doing an independent study."

"Good for you," said Genevieve.

"I'm also working with Malorn Ashthorn and he says I should probably write a report on my research of the Undead. Problem is I don't know the first things about them."

"Didn't your parents tell you stuff?" I asked.

"Only basic information," said Penny. "I don't know the specifics. With everything that's going on, there's so much research I can do."

"So why not go do it?" asked Genevieve. "Is it the problem of deciding which one you'll do first?"

"No," said Penny. "The problem is I'm busy; Independent studies are harder than they seem. I have so much work to do if I'm to catch up with everybody."

"So let me guess," I said. "You want us to help you with this while you work on other things?"

"If it wouldn't be too much of a problem," said Penny. "Just fill out these worksheets as you find and duel different types of undead through Wizard City. Here's a list of everyone I'd like you find." I took a look at the list she gave us; there were four things on there and we haven't even run into half of those undead.

"Penny, question," I said. "When do you need this back?"

"That's the fun part of an independent study," she said. "I set my own deadlines."

"So we can work on this as long as we want?" asked Genevieve.

"Yes," said Penny. "Just don't take too long, otherwise Malorn would think I just didn't care to get it done."

"That's great," I said. "Thanks Penny."

"Thank you for doing this for me," said Penny. "I'll see you later." With that, she left us.

"We know where half of these are," said Genevieve.

"Alright then," I said. "Let's go to Unicorn way."

When we made it to Unicorn way, we were a little surprised of what we saw. Unicorn Park was full of people. I counted at least six guards, nine civilians and nine students. There were two life students, two death students, two balance students, one person from my class, one person from Gen's class and one ice student.

They noticed us as we came down the road.

"Hey look," said Ceren. He was one of the life students. "It's the heroes of Unicorn way themselves!" Everyone applauded us as we came into the park.

"What's going on here?" asked Gen, as Ceren came to greet us.

"Ever since you made Unicorn way less dangerous, a group of Ravenwood students decided to pick up where you left off. Every Saturday afternoon we work on evacuating more Undead and getting residents back into their homes," explained Ceren.

"How far has that gotten you," I asked.

"If we're lucky," said Ceren. "The street should be back to normal by Halloween."

"I guess that's good news," said Genevieve.

"I want you to meet my partner in this," said Ceren. He led us through the crowd to the gazebo, where there was another girl there who was from the life school. "Emily, Genevieve, meet my friend Delia." Delia turned to look at us and smiled.

"Delia," I said. "We heard about you from Ceren; it's an honor to meet you." We shook hands."

"The pleasure's all mine," said Delia. "Thanks for showing Rattlebones a thing or two."

"It was nothing," said Genevieve. "Have you moved back into your tower yet?"

"That's what I'm trying to do," she said frustrated. "Since Rattlebones is a skeleton, he'll keep reforming. I need to find a way to properly evict him. Before I do that though, I need to help get rid of the other problems first. That's where this group comes in."

"With the combined efforts of the life and death schools we can combat the dark fairies and truly put an end to Rattlebones schemes, they also help with the skeletons and the ghosts" said Ceren.

"Where do the other schools play a part?" I asked.

"The balance school students are just here to help in any way they can," said Delia. "The students from the elemental schools they form their own team, our main attack team. They wanted to do this because of you, so they're pretty much doing what you did."

"How much undead is there now?" asked Genevieve, for multiple reasons.

"Last time we checked, there were ghosts on three sections of the street, fairies on one section of the street, and skeletons on two sections," said Ceren.

"And Rattlebones still resides my tower," said Delia.

"Seems like you'll have it back soon though," I said reassuringly.

"There's less undead then before, thanks to you two, but there's still enough for there to be trouble," said Ceren.

"We were wondering if you could help us," said Delia. "This might go by faster then."

"That's actually what we're here to do, sort of," said Genevieve. "We're trying to help out a friend here by fighting some undead and filling out these worksheets." She pulled them out of her bag. Ceren and Delia looked confused.

"What? Are you baking them into a stew or something?"

"Why would you ask that?" I said. Gen then looked at the worksheets and her face went white as a ghost.

"Em," Gen squeaked. "Penny gave us the wrong worksheets." I took the worksheets from her and looked them over. Serving size? Cooking time? Ingredients? These looked like worksheets to a home economics project.

"Oh this is just great," I said sarcastically. "Penny wants us to fill these worksheets based on facts about the undead, and we can't even do that."

"Its fine, its fine," said Gen. "We'll just call Penny and explain the situation." She waved her wand saying, "Call Penny Dreadful." An image of Penny appeared in front of us.

"Penny," we said hopefully, and then the image spoke.

"I'm sorry, I'm currently busy with my magic right now and I wish not to be disturbed. Please contact me later." We had blank looks on our faces.

"Okay," I said. "No problem, we can just find Penny and go talk to her about this." I waved my wand saying, "Find Penny Dreadful." Inside of my wand, instead of getting arrows and numbers, I got 'do not disturb.'

"She did say she did not want to be disturbed," said Gen.

"This makes no sense," I said. "How is this possible?" The death students approached us.

"Did you say you're doing something for Penny?" said the girl; I did not know her name.

"Yes," said Genevieve. "Why?"

"Well," said the boy, I did not know his name. "Penny is a really hard worker. When she gets into the zone she doesn't come out for a while. She sets her wand on do not disturb, and does her work somewhere we do not know."

"You mean we can't contact her to tell her about the mix up?" I said. They nodded. Genevieve went and started to bang her head against a wooden beam in the gazebo.

"I'm sorry Penny," she said to herself. "We couldn't help you because you gave us the wrong sheets and we couldn't fill them out, because they made no sense!" Meanwhile, I was looking over the sheets again, trying to make sense of them. Suddenly, I got an idea.

"Does anyone have a pen I can borrow," I shouted out.

"I have a pencil," said the ice student, a girl whose name I did not know.

"That works too," I said. She floated the pencil over to me through the crowd. I grabbed it and began to write things down.

"Em," said Gen, who stopped banging her head. "What are you doing?"

"If you think about it," I said. "You could transfer these to mean something else."

"Like what?"

"Serving size could be how many there are in a group, and cooking time could be how long it takes to fight them, and ingredients could be…" I goaded her on.

"What they are made of?"

"What type of magic and spells they use," I corrected. "See? Now it makes perfect sense."

"Great work, Em," said Gen happily. "That sure was creatively smart! Are you sure you're not a storm student?"

"I'm sure," I said.

"Great, now let's go fight some undead, fill out these worksheets and do these guys a favor," said Gen.

"Wait!" we heard a voice call out from the civilians. A person broke through the crowd; it was Olivia Dawnwillow. "I heard the heroes of Unicorn way were here and I was wondering if they could help me again."

"Well Em," said Genevieve. "This is your expertise."

"What is it Ms. Dawnwillow?" I said.

"The other day while I was walking down Unicorn way, I noticed a tall man leaving the area. As he hurried down the street, he dropped this book." She held out what looked to be an arcane book.

"What a strange tome," said Delia. "I don't recognize the markings." She drew the attention of one the death students. "Do you recognize the markings on this book?"

"Sorry no," they said, and went back to their group to discuss plans of action. Olivia continued.

"I yelled at him to stop, but he did not seem to hear me. It is strange. It looks rather sinister, and I am not able to open it." I took it from Ms. Dawnwillow and tried opening it myself, it didn't work. Genevieve tried, and that didn't work either.

"Maybe it needs a bit of magic to open it," said Delia. She called over death student from before.

"Can you try opening this with your death magic?"

"I don't think I'd know the right spell; this seems too advanced for me." They left once again.

"I was thinking," said Olivia. "Maybe you could take this to the Library in the commons. Perhaps Boris knows who owns it. Maybe he might know how to open it. He knows much about enchanted books."

"Boris Tallstaff," said Genevieve, "seems legit, and a little interesting."

"You know him, Gen?" I asked.

"I know of him, but we've never been formally introduced. Boris Tallstaff is apparently an older Storm student who works at the Library part-time, and also works on the Ravenwood Bulletin: the school newspaper."

"I guess we can meet him together then," I said. I shrunk down the book and put it in my bag. "Don't worry, Ms. Dawnwillow," I said. "We'll handle it. First we have to fight some undead, though."

"I trust you two can handle things while you're out there," said Delia.

"Please," said Gen. "This is the first thing we ever handled.

Genevieve and I cleared two sections of the street: one with ghosts and one with skeletons. First we fought ghosts. We could beat them in 1-3 turns, they were from the death class but they mostly liked to use ice and storm magic, there was about 2-4 ghosts in a section. To beat the ghosts Genevieve just used a simple Bloodbat spell. Meanwhile, I was using spells that didn't cost me any mana. I was using fireballs and fire blades, and the ghosts I fought kept firing Ice beetles at me. Who knew fighting a ghost would be so chilly.

Second, we fought skeletons; my expertise. They're from the death class, but like to use fire and balance spells mostly; you would find 2-6 skeletons in a section. We could beat them in 1-2 turns. Genevieve ended up beating hers with an imp spell, while I just used a simple Firecat. In summary, we beat our monsters, me without really using much energy, and Genevieve without even using spells that were hers.

We filled out the worksheets, said goodbye to students, wishing them luck on their task, and then went back to our dorm for lunch. After all of that, we decided to deal with the sinister looking book. I had a feeling it belonged to Malistere, but why would he be so careless as to drop it?

The librarian, Harold Argleston, seemed busy with something when we entered; so, we went and found Boris ourselves. When we found him, we showed him the book and explained the situation; I left out my hunches; I didn't want them to panic.

"You say Olivia Dawnwillow found this book on Unicorn way? Well, I know it's not one of our books, for we don't have any with this kind of dark leather binding." His voice trailed off there for a moment, like he was pondering something. "Hmmm…It must be enchanted. I cannot pry it open no matter how hard I try!" he said while trying to pry it open.

"Yeah, we had the same problem," I said. He turned his attention back to us.

"Someone used some serious magic to seal this. They must not want anyone reading what is in it."

"A book this sinister," said Genevieve. "I can understand why."

"If it was from Unicorn way, maybe it's from the guy who was causing all the trouble and they don't want us to know what their plan is," I said.

"You mean Malistere?" said Genevieve. She then covered her mouth, realizing she said something she shouldn't of.

"Malistere," said Boris. "He was the one behind the events of Unicorn way?"

"Uh," said Genevieve. "Maybe," she said nervously.

"If that's the case," said Boris. "Maybe we should try to get this book open and find out what's in here." He uttered some words under his breath. But nothing happened to the book.

"Wow, this magic is strong! I think you should take this to Headmaster Ambrose. He should be able to open it. It must contain some dark secrets to be sealed with such powerful magic!"

When we made it outside the Library and started heading to the Headmaster's place, Genevieve shot me a look.

"Maybe next time you can tell me your thoughts before we enter a situation like that; that way, I will know to watch my mouth!"

"Well, I liked it better when you didn't know what I was thinking."

"Then why bring it up?"

"Because you were going to give up on figuring out what was in the book; it could be important."

"Yeah," said Genevieve looking nervously at the book. "Hopefully, the headmaster can get this open. Of course, while we're in there, you should probably not mention your hunch; you could be wrong."

"Who else would have a strongly sealed dark book?"

"You say that this book was dropped on Unicorn way by some tall dark stranger?" said Ambrose once we were in his office.

"Yes," said Genevieve. "And it is sealed with powerful magic."

"It is sealed with powerful magic?"

"Yes," I said. "And I have a suspicion that the stranger might have been Malistere."

"This does not bode well!" said the Headmaster.

"But this book might have what he's planning in it," I said.

"Then why would he have allowed himself to drop it?" said Genevieve.

"I'm still trying to figure that out," I said. "Why would he drop it?"

"Why indeed," said the Headmaster. He used his wand to create a force field around the book. As he spoke his words of power, the book suddenly burst into flames and was consumed, which caused us to jump.

"By Bartleby!" said Ambrose. "I'm glad I used a protection spell on it. That book had a trap spell on it. I think that they knew it would be eventually brought to me."

"A trap spell," said Genevieve. "Darn it! Why didn't we see it? We learned about them in class."

"I wanted him to open it," I said shamefully.

"Don't blame yourselves, girls," said the Headmaster. "You had the city's best interests at heart and you are just beginning to learn magic. You were most likely not paying much attention during that lesson." We chuckled nervously.

"I think your hunch was correct, Emily. The book is obviously the work of Malistere. We should be on guard, for I am sure there will be more dangers ahead for us! Be brave, you two." We kept that in mind as we turned to leave, but he stopped us again. "Emily, I think it is about time you had that dueling lesson with Diego."

"Really," I said excitedly. "Yes headmaster, I'll go right ahead and do that!"

"You have fun, Em," said Genevieve. "I'll hang out at the Library until you're done."

My dueling lesson was pretty much the same as Gen's, except I was casting fire spells. I thought they were pretty amazing. The firebird was such a powerful spell. When I was done, I went and met Genevieve at the Library.

She was with Boris.

"Hey Em," she said happily. "Boris was just telling me more about enchanted books."

"Yeah," he said. "She also told me about the exploits you and she had." I smiled. I pulled Gen to the side.

"Does someone have a little crush?" Genevieve looked shocked to hear this; pun not intended.

"No," she said indignantly. "I just like enchanted books."

"Yeah," said Boris who overheard us, "and I just like a good story."

"He does work on the school newspaper, Em," she said.

"Do we really need it all over the paper?" I asked. "We have enough attention already."

"Yeah, but Boris thought it would be a good idea for people to hear it told from our mouths; see our side of things; well, at least mine."

"I might do your story later," said Boris.

"I'm good," I said. "For now at least; I just hope I don't end up reading your sour attitude in the paper."

"I'll get started on the article right away," said Boris.

After Genevieve told me all she could about enchanted books, we left the library trying to figure out what else we could do that day. That was when we met Prospector Zeke.

"Why hello there, young lassies! Name's Zeke. Prospector Zeke."

"Why hello there, Prospector," I said.

"Hey," said Gen nervously.

"I'm Emily, and this is my sister Genevieve; it's a mouthful, but I just call her Gen."

"Nice to meet ya," said Zeke. "Say, aren't you the wizards who helped out with Unicorn way and took down that Iron Golem?"

"That's us," said Gen.

"Well, I'll be; it'd be really nice to meet ya. So, I've heard you've nothing to do."

"Uh huh," I said. "We'll think of something though."

"Wait," said Genevieve. "Do you have something you want us to do?"

"If you don't mind helping me out," he said.

"Well, we're the ones people ask for help," I said. "What do you need help with?"

"You see, I been all over the place, exploring the differ'nt worlds along the Spiral."

"That's sort of interesting," said Genevieve perking up.

"Uh huh," he said. "Each world I get to, I always find some'n people have gone and forgot, like them dwarf-like fellers called the Smiths."

"What?" I said, confused of how he was talking.

"The Smiths," he repeated, not getting what I was confused with. "Tiny dwarf-like fellers; people pay them no mind for they're so tiny."

"Oh," said Genevieve, trying to understand. "So you find odd oddities?"

"I guess you can say that," said Zeke. "Say, you wouldn't mind helpin' me out, would ya? Those Smiths are hiding all 'round Wizard City. They don't do much good where they are."

"You're helping them get back to work," I suggested.

"Pretty much," said Zeke. "Locate'em and let me know wheres I can find'em, and I'll pay you kindly for yer trouble!"

"Do you really need to pay us?" asked Genevieve.

"Oh I insist," he said. "You can go around the city finding all the Smiths; there should be one in each area of the city, except the pet pavilion. I am bit concerned about the dangerous parts. You can go find them now, and I'll pick'em up when the trouble's calmed down a bit."

"Okay," I said. "We'll start by finding the Smith in the commons. I think I remember seeing one by the fairegrounds."

"Good luck, young wizards!" he called after us as we left him.

It wasn't that hard to find the Smiths; it helped that we noticed them before. I had a memory of when we went to the fairegrounds, I saw a little dwarf man taking a nap behind the tree there. Gen had a memory of when we were searching for wisps in golem court, she nearly ran into a little dwarf man behind the tower, and he told her to watch where she was going. We both had the same memory of when we went searching for reagents in Ravenwood we found some Mistwood by the casem and a little dwarf man. We fibbed and told him we needed it, so he obliged.

It was harder to find the one in the shopping district for we never saw one there. It took a half hour to find him; he was behind the buildings in a woodsy area. I guess the smiths like woodsy places.

Last place to check that day was unicorn way, so we decided to give that place another visit. When we arrived there, we ran into the defense group again.

"Hey, the heroes of unicorn way are back!" cried Delia. Everyone clapped when they saw us and we met Delia and Ceren at the gazebo.

"So guys," said Gen. "How are things?"

"Just great," said Ceren. "We managed to get the civilians back into their homes. In fact, we were just about to send most of the students back to get some rest."

"We managed to get rid of the sections of the street with dark fairies and skeletons for the time being," explained Delia. "Now is the perfect time to defeat Rattlebones once and for all, properly evict him from my tower, and finally end the dark fairy problem."

"That's great," I said. "When are you attacking?"

"Tonight," said Delia. "I'm taking Ceren and the death students with me. That's all I need to take down Rattlebones."

"You know," said Genevieve. "Em and I could take him out for you and then you can evict him; make it less hard for you; I mean we're already here."

"That's not a good idea," said Ceren.

"Why not?" I asked. "Gen and I took him down so easily last time."

"Yeah," said Gen. "I'd like another round at old Ratts."

"The thing is guys," said Delia. "We've had some fairies and students listening in around his tower, spying around, you know. Rattlebones is furious with you two."

"He doesn't like the fact you defeated him," explained Ceren. "He also knows one of you took one of his bones."

"Guilty," I said, raising a hand.

"He's not the same," said Delia. "He's even crankier then before; it took him a bit longer to reform because of you. Also none of the other undead are letting him live it down that he got defeated so easily by two newbie wizards."

"Two powerful newbie wizards," said Gen.

"Anyway," said Ceren. "His plan is to gather as many skeletons, dark fairies and ghosts (if Lady Blackhope lets him borrow them) and hunt you two down. He's not planning on dueling you; he's planning on outright attacking and overwhelming you."

"He won't fight fairly against you two because he knows you two are too strong for him," summarized Delia. "Better to just let us just handle this one."

"Okay," I said. "I wish you luck on that."

"What are you guys doing back here?" asked Ceren.

"We're finding a Smith for Prospector Zeke," said Gen.

"I remember seeing a little dwarf man beside the hedge maze," I said.

"We should also pick up some more reagents while we're here," said Gen. "Some Mistwood, some cattails, some deep mushrooms; stuff like that."

"Well good luck on that," said Delia. "Oh and try not to go near Rattlebones tower. He's keeping some extra close eyes out for you two."

"Got it," I said.

"Stick to the sidewalks," said Ceren. "There are still a few skeletons out there."

"We will," said Gen. So we took the long way, staying on the sidewalk and not going near Rattlebones tower. We picked up some reagents on the way, by checking out around the other tower. We found the smith at the hedge maze and made our way back down the long way. Before we left we saw the only students left were the life and death students; they were practicing some moves before they headed out. We said goodbye, wishing them luck and then went to enjoy the rest of our day at the fairegrounds and in the shopping district.

The next day, we mostly lounged around. There was a new addition to the Ravenwood Bulletin, so I took a look at that. The article on the main page which included Genevieve's interview with Boris was pretty okay, of course there were a few shocking things I read about. Genevieve basically told Boris everything we did since we came here, including her struggles with Storm magic and our little bought with Malistere! Why would she mention that?!

"I figured it would be safer to be honest with the public," said Genevieve, when I demanded information.

"This honest?!" I exclaimed.

"The public should know about the struggles we're enduring," she said.

"Why did you have to tell them about Malistere though? People are going to panic that one of their beloved teachers is now evil!"

"They're not panicking that much," said Genevieve, motioning to everyone reading the paper in our vicinity. No one was screaming their heads off, but their eyes were very wide. One of the students approached us, speaking to Genevieve.

"I didn't know how hard it was for you Genevieve. You have the sympathy of me and my friends." they left.

"It's nice to actually have some for once," said Genevieve.

"Hey," I said.

"From besides you," she corrected.

"I've noticed how they're not mentioning me at all," I said dryly.

"Well I don't know your perspective, Em," said Gen. "In my eyes you're a prodigy."

"I'm not," I said. "They should know I'm having troubles with this too."

"I thought you didn't want people to know about your anxiety attack."

"Better that then everyone thinking I can handle this all by myself. News flash: I can't! People are going to think I'm amazing when I'm not."

"You're amazing to me."

"Yeah, everyone now knows your story and your side; meanwhile people are going to expect me to do the impossible."

"You can talk to Boris about having your story in the paper," Gen suggested.

"Maybe next week," I said. "Let's see if this whole thing blows over."

The next day, I had decided to wear my crown of seasons, my firestorm vestment, my soot stained boots, while carrying my novice athame and branded wand. Gen wore her canvas wraps, her canvas cover, her novice robe, while carrying her baton of the clouds. We went straight to class that day.

I was so nervous as I took my seat. I had no idea what was going to happen; what was the teacher going to say to me? When I entered the room, Madame Falmea looked at me once and then continued to prepare for the class. What did that even mean?

When class started, we started with a simple Pop quiz. Oh no! Last weekend I was so stressed out I forgot what we went over Friday. I did my best on it, but overall I got a C+. After that I was determined not to let stress get in the way of my focus in class.

After the pop quiz, Madame Falmea handed out the timetables she organized over the weekend. She handed out timetables to everyone, except me! This was just great; I'm the weirdo who doesn't get a timetable; I'm the weirdo who probably doesn't even have another class! All because I didn't fill out the sheet properly! I'm a failure!

I started to shake, I got all hot, my muscles tensed and my eyes stated to tear up. This was bad; I couldn't be freaking out in the middle of class for that would be a disaster! I tried to keep in mind what Bartleby told us which was that it would all work out in the end; you know how difficult that is with anxiety?

How long was I going to suffer before it ended? I needed to step outside for a little bit. I kept telling myself it was going to be alright while hugging my knees.

"Hey kiddo," said Bernie. "You're not having another one of those attacks, are you?"

"I'm fine," I said short of breath. "At least I think."

"Is this about the whole secondary school business?"

"Yeah," I admitted. After that, I seemed to calm down a little. Maybe talking to someone did help. "I checked every box."

"Whoa," said Bernie. "Why would you do that?"

"Because I didn't know what to check," I said exasperated, and the huffing returned. Scratch that last idea.

"Listen, kid," said Bernie. "What will happen, will happen; there isn't much you can do about it now."

"Yeah, but I caused it," I was starting to cry.

"Please don't cry," he said. "I'm sure this will work itself out. You don't have to worry about it."

There was that reassurance again. In the back of my mind I kept telling myself that over and over again; perhaps that's why I didn't freak out in an explosion of magic. Maybe I just needed somebody else to tell me that so I could feel better. So I brought myself back around and headed back to class.

"Thanks for talking with me, Bernie," I said. "It really helped."

"Anytime kiddo," he said. When I re-entered the classroom, I saw they were in the middle of a lesson and that just made me feel bad. Luckily, when I sat back down the person beside me let them look off of their notes, and the writing on the board helped to catch me up as well. We were looking at the type of spell being the summoning spell, specifically the Firecat, its origin, and how to cast it. I felt a little better knowing I was a little more advanced in that area. We then moved on to learning how to duel with it.

We then talked of other spell resources we can call in battle, such as magic deflectors, or how to use magic without dueling. After that, we talked of how Pyromancy interacted with other types of magic and with the real world. We then had a special lesson in learning the origin of the spell which had the fire sword. We were a bit inexperienced to cast it; Madame Falmea thought it would be fun for us to learn about it. She then discussed the next important lesson which would be the forging of spells, or crafting them, along the lines of potion making.

That got me excited. I was always interested in the mixing of ingredients to make something else. At the end of class though, I was reminded of the important matter at hand, for the teacher wanted a word with me in her office.

Just great! So I left the building and went across the lane to Madame Falmea's tower. I was amazed at what I saw in there. The room was huge! The whole room was red and orange, like the fire school; it had a scrying pool on one side and at the end of the room Madame Falmea was sitting at her desk. Behind that desk was a painting of her in all her elegance.

I approached the desk nervously.

"There is no need to be nervous, Emily," said Madame Falmea. "I don't bite."

"Why did you want to see me," I asked still nervous.

"A few reasons," she replied. "First let's discuss the present matter: You had to leave during class today and you got a C+ on the quiz, when before you were getting higher marks. You seem to be troubled by something."

"Yes Ma'am," I said. "I suffer from anxiety attacks. I'm at a new school and I'm not familiar with all the basics, so I'm getting a little overwhelmed."

"Well Emily, it's a good thing this was mentioned to me earlier in the year instead of later."

"I didn't want to trouble you with my personal problems," I replied sheepishly.

"Emily," she said with a look full of concern. "As a Pyromancer, your magic is linked to your emotions. If these anxiety attacks are a problem for you, it might make you lose control of your magic, and my student's progress in magic is my central concern."

"I'm sorry," I said.

"Well I know now, so don't worry yourself too much over it. I will try to help you when I can. This leads me to the main reason I called you in here." Here it comes, I thought.

"I saw that you checked every box for the sign up to a secondary school. I would have asked you about it earlier, but I did not want to bother you on your weekend. Of course, this gives me problems in making your timetable. Would you like to tell me what you were trying to accomplish in checking every box?"

"I didn't know which school to choose from, so I chose all of them."

"That was impulsive," she said. "Are you sure about what you did? Most students pick one school for it is easier to orchestrate and easier for the students to handle."

"I can't choose just one," I said. "I would like to experience all fields of magic while I'm here. Besides, I want to do everything I can to help people; like on Unicorn Way." Madame Falmea smiled.

"If this is what you really want," she said. "I'll try to work something out for you by the end of September."

"Really," I said happily.

"I'll do my best," she said. "I'm not sure if I will succeed." Well, at least I wasn't in trouble just yet. My anxiety eased up, releasing its hold on me for the time being. I felt like hugging her, but I don't think that is allowed. She then dismissed me, and I skipped out of the office.

I talked to Genevieve about it in the dorm.

"So, let me get this straight," said Gen. "She's actually going to try to give you what you want."

"Yes," I said, ecstatic.

"If you do get it," she asked. "Do you think you'll be able to handle it all?"

"Well I wouldn't have asked for it if I didn't think I could handle it."

"Well don't go jumping in the deep end; I wouldn't want you to drown, alright."

"I'll figure something out," I said. "How hard can first year be?"

For the rest of the week, we focused on spells and their components and how Wizards gain access to them. True, there is such a thing as spell cards that are used when dueling other creatures and wizards, used in dueling circles and with wands, but the cards would not even be able to be used by the wizard without a ritual called spell forging.

It is a very complicated process as each spell is unique it's power and effect. Normally, the wizard has to be tested for their mettle and worth; they need to be deemed worthy. Pyromancers have to go through tests of fire. Once a creature of the plane you are attuned deems you worthy, you can gain access to new power. The creatures will gift you special materials and words of power to utilize in the crafting of a magical link that will summon the beast to you aid.

As for other powers of the Pyromancers, which was also covered that week, those should be drawn from the Pyromancers themselves. This demonstrates the strength of the Pyromancers in controlling the world around them, thus affirming the allegiance of their summoned creatures.

The weekend itself was uneventful; we didn't even check the Rattlebones situation. There was a rumor that there was going to be an exam at the end of the month, before secondary schools start. Great, just what I need, another thing to add to my plate.

The next Monday, I wore something a bit simple. I wore my normal attire, plus my Vrixx wraps and my scepter of ignition. Gen still went all out in her Rattlebones Cowl, her Raiment of Storms, her Roughspun shoes, and her charged wand.

That day in class we talked of what spell forging needed in ingredients, how spells are forged, certain recipes for certain spells, and basically what a treasure card is. I already knew what a treasure card was. We learned how you use treasure cards in a duel, or how we could use certain spells for other tasks we required. We also learned how spells were different from each other in the manner of their cards and how that was most important. For a change we ended the day with a pop quiz, in which I got a B+.

Apparently, Pyromancy is very important in the forging of cards, especially related to the fire school. For that, you need to understand the full origin of fire magic.

The next day was very simple for the both of us, me only bringing my athame, while Gen only brought her ruby slippers. Today was the day we learned of our inner defense, with no help from clothes. I learned to have a greater tolerance for heat, and also to keep myself warm in the cold. Madame Falmea then quizzed us on what we knew about that, and I got an A. We also learned about the special types of clothes that could give us power and shield us; how it was made, and where it could be sold.

She taught us on how the general potion was made and where we could go to get more lessons in the craft. She taught us of the magic that runs deep in the spiral keeping everything connected to each other. She quizzed us on what we knew and I did just as well.

She then went on to teach us on how being bonded with your summons was important, and how you could get deeper connections with them. I had a feeling there was a deeper meaning to her teaching us all of this stuff. She informed us we had a test coming up, and that we should study hard for it. That wasn't what my feeling was pointing me to.

Wednesday was a fun class, for we were taught that it didn't just need to be wands that people used to cast spells. I was already aware as sometimes I used just my hands. Wands were an extra boost of power, but based on what tool you used anything could happen. We learned of other magic users other than wizards such as Bards who used instruments which could affect the mood of their target, or mage warriors who used swords to fight. Not only could they fight in a duel, but they could swordfight as well. We learned of a few famous examples.

We also learned of witches, fairies, and druids to name a few other magic users. This was inspiring, to think magic was so variable. If only I could experience them all if not most of them. No situation would be out of depths for me, and I would not be a nuisance to anyone. I want to help anyone I can while I'm here. This is a fresh start for me. If I can't influence my world back home with my words or my personality, I want to do that here. I want people to see me and realize I'm doing something to help the world. I want people to see me and be relieved, be happy, be proud to know me.

That's what I want. I want to feel like I belong here.

Thursday, the day before the test, was somehow the day we felt like dressing up. I wore my novice hat, my firestorm vestment, my ruby slippers, and I brought my branded wand. Gen wore her novice robe, her charged cover, her storm weave boots, and brought her baton of the clouds. This was the day we would the last few lessons of the main class before heading to our new timetables. Today was the day we would learn new spells. Today was the day Gen learned the Lightning bats spell, and I learned the Fire elf.

It was a big day for me; my first aura spell.

"The Fire Elf is the first higher rank spell I am teaching you," explained Madame Falmea. "Therefore when casting this spell you will use up more Mana and it will cost more Pips to cast it." We wrote down what she was telling us in our notes.

"The Fire Elf spell delivers three rounds of damage to enemies. The first round is hardly noticeable, but the amount will grow each round." She gave us a full understanding of the Fire Elf Spell, and soon enough, I was able to use it. We then practiced dueling with it and using it in instances outside of battle. Before we moved on to review for the test, she warned us of accidents that could happen in using such spells. After review, she gave us the rest of the day to study at our own pace. I used this time to study in the library and at the arena. Genevieve also had a test coming up as well, so I did my studying with her. I also took my time to get my potion flask filled up again.

The last day of the week, the day of the test, Gen got dressed up and I wore something simple. Gen wore her Rattlebones Cowl, her Raiment of storms, her Vrixx footwraps, and brought along her charged wand. I simply wore my soot stained hood, and brought along my novice athame and my scepter of ignition. I hid myself because I didn't want the pressure of 'Just because I'm the hero, I have to do well.'

I headed to class and took my seat. Soon enough the rest of the class filed in. I was nervous; I decided to go over my notes again. Once class started, Madame Falmea quieted everyone. She went over how the day of testing would go and the rules of each test. First would be the written test: No talking, no cheating, and no question asking. We had an hour and a half to write the test.

The test then started, and let me tell you, it was about as hard as EQAO testing. I only had a bit of difficulty in some places, which I guess was pretty lucky. As soon as that was finished, it was off to the arena. There the students had to show Diego and their teacher how they were doing at performing magic. First, we had to demonstrate the casting of basic spells of their school branch, and of basic magic; I struggled a bit more in that part because I wasn't used to that type of testing.

The next part of the test involved our demonstration of dueling. I felt more confident in this area for I had special training from Diego. For this test we had to duel a dummy, and from our outcome and performance we would be marked. Luckily, it wasn't that hard for me, I had the Fire Elf spell. The challenge was balancing it out with all the other dueling spells I learned.

The last part of the test involved all the other cool tricks we learned, such as detecting morality or heat or starting fires. We also needed to test our abilities in scrying, and also potion-making and spell forging. It was all pretty easy; except for spell forging because that is not something I practice regularly.

At the end of the day, I was so tired. My sister was tired too. We felt that we deserved a break, so we stayed in the dorm all night. We each wondered how we did on the exams. We concluded that since we were confident and the solutions seemed easy to find, we were probably going to do well overall.

The next day was the weekend, the last weekend before we acted on our new schedules, which I still did not have. That Saturday, we were still in de-stressing cooldown mode, so things went a little simple for our wardrobe. Genevieve wore her plain robes and no badge; she didn't even carry a wand. As for me, I wore my plain hat, but I also wore my firestorm vestment and my soot-stained boots. I decided I also didn't need a wand or badge that day, or even my athame.

We decided for our day to be of relaxing, we would take in the sites of the city, without much on our minds. We would also stop at the library, read some books, and give Boris that interview on my perspective in Wizard city. After that, we would stop for lunch in the shopping district, and take a look at the shops while we were there. The plan after that was to visit Unicorn way, see how the Rattlebones problem went and if they solved it.

My plans had a change though. As we started to head to Unicorn way, we ran into Simeon.

"Oh, there you are Emily," said Simeon.

"You were looking for me?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said. "I was sent to come get you. I figured around this time you would either be in your dorm or in the shopping district. I decided to try the shopping district first."

"Good choice," said Gen.

"Who wants to see me?" I asked.

"Well, Madame Falmea sent me," he said. "Of course, pretty much all of the teachers were in there, and even the Headmaster." That made us go silent. "Anyway, they're waiting for you in the Headmaster's office. Good luck." He then left us to do his own thing.

"Just what I need on my cooldown day…more stress," I said sarcastically.

"Well," said Gen. "If you get it done and over with, then you don't have to be afraid of it anymore."

"I guess," I said. "Well, I'll be seeing you, I hope."

"You'll be fine," said Gen. She then headed off saying, "I'll tell the others on Unicorn way you said hi."

I waved after her, took a gulp, and then headed to the headmaster's office.

If I knew I was going to be meeting with every teacher in the faculty, I would have dressed up nicer. That was the thought running through my head as I walked through the door. There they all were, waiting for me. I gulped again, and nervously walked in the room.

"You…wanted to see me," I said nervously to all the teachers.

"Yes Emily," said Headmaster Ambrose. "We thought it prevalent if we were all here to discuss your secondary schooling." Of course that's what it was about.

"I think she's being foolhardy in this decision, Headmaster," said Cyrus Drake. "Certainly she must have so huge an ego to realize the idiocy of this decision. A student cannot handle every single class in their regimen, and I know certainly that she will not meet the expectations for my class."

"She could surprise you, Cyrus," said Madame Falmea.

"Don't you think that it's a bit much for the poor dear," said Lydia Greyrose. "Our classes are not exactly easy; especially if the magic we teach opposes her own."

"I think it might be alright to learn a little bit of each school of magic," said Arthur Wethersfield.

"It is just like I teach my balance students: there is a connection in magic that we can only understand if we understand each school."

"Perhaps she is trying to find the harmony that exists between the magic by connecting with every school," said Moolinda Wu.

"I already explained to all of you what she told me," said Madame Falmea. "She wants to experience all types of magic while she is here in the spiral."

"That is just greedy," said Cyrus Drake. "Just because she likes it, she wants to possess that type of magic. She wants to be able to call herself every type of wizard imaginable, is that it?"

"Maybe," I said quietly to myself.

"Thank you for imputing your thoughts on the matter, Cyrus," said Headmaster Ambrose. "Of course, I do not think this action is just because of greed. I distinctly remember Dalia telling me there was another reason for her actions. As we all know, Wizard City is under threat of dark magic as seen with Unicorn way and a few other streets as well."

"Wait," I said. "A few other streets? Why wasn't Gen and I told about this?"

"We didn't want to interrupt your schooling, Emily."

"But you brought us here to protect the city; why are we not allowed to do our job?"

"Because I do not think you or your sister are ready to handle those streets yet; I will tell you when I think you are."

"Yes headmaster," I said.

"Emily did bring up my other point just now. I brought her and her sister here to help Wizard City, for my magic tells me we will be able to rely on them in times of trouble. Emily feels inclined to learn all she can to do just that. Emily, you may now state your case."

I cleared my throat. "I just want to say, when I checked every box on the sheet, I didn't mean to trouble anyone. I admit it, doing that because I couldn't decide was selfish."

"I understand why it's perplexing," said Halestrom Balestrom. "Each school is interesting and powerful in its own way, but I'm confused why you didn't just pick your sister's school."

"I was considering that," I said. "But I felt that if I just focused on the storm school, I would be missing out on learning the other schools spells that could help me out of a bind, if I ever needed it. I know every school has its weaknesses, so I want to know every way to counter. So, in a way, I am doing this for myself, to understand the magic better; but I'm also doing this to help others, and do what I was brought here for."

"That was well said Emily," said Ambrose smiling.

"Thank you," I said.

"Luckily for you, we may have figured out a way to achieve what you're asking for."

"You did?" Malorn Ashthorn stepped up.

"When you were taking the tour, I did say I could teach you death spells whenever you stopped by. Also, we don't exactly have a class. I'd be willing to help you out."

"Gee thanks," I said smiling.

"Emily," said the Headmaster. "This is what we have decided amongst all of us. You will take your fire school classes when they are scheduled. On the days of other schooling, you will differentiate between the other classes. They will develop different teaching regimens for you to work with your schedule."

"Don't feel so spoiled," said Cyrus Drake. "The only reason we're doing this for you is because you're supposed to save the city, and the headmaster agrees that you should know several types of magic. If anyone else asks, we're not giving them this type of treatment."

"Relax Cyrus," said Madame Falmea. "She's skilled enough to be an apprentice, so that's what she'll be."

"Thank you," I said. "Thank you all. I promise I won't let you down."

"You should have this before you go," said Madame Falmea. She handed me my new schedule. I left that office feeling more confident. I really felt that I knew what I was doing.

Now how was that, we'll take more of a look into her schooling later. Also I don't think I'm going to talk about what they're wearing anymore, unless it's important to the story. Until I mention otherwise, imagine them wearing what I picked out for them in chapter two. Keep your eyes open for the next one, for I don't know when I'm posting that. See ya then!