Red Coven's dorm
As there is still another four hours until the next class starts, the Red Coven returned to their dorm after Broom Flying class (and after Akko has confronted Amanda and Constanze for almost running over her with their go-kart).
"It's a shame that I could only manage a few inches when you two flew much higher than I did." Akko said to her Coven mates.
"At least you were able to take off at all." Lotte encouraged her. "That's pretty amazing for someone who lived her entire life as a Muggle."
"Too bad you didn't fall and chip a tooth..." Sucy said with a tone of indifference. "I could've used a tooth for my experiments..."
The pale Filipino's statement made Lotte reel in disgust. "Ew, Sucy! That's gross!"
"And yet you consider pies made of months-old fermented fish as snacks..." Sucy argued.
"You...kind of have a point, actually..." Lotte is not the kind of person to argue about one's definition of gross, so she gave a simple response.
At the same time, as Akko went over to pick up (and greet) the Shiny Rod, she noticed her Alcor plush sitting on a folded piece of paper that wasn't there before she went to Broom Flying class.
"Who left this here?" Akko wondered as she picked up and unfolded the paper, revealing a message written on it.
Dear Asuko Kagami, since you left in a hurry before I could ask you this, can I have a short moment with you? I will be in my office at the New Moon Tower.
~Professor Ursula Callistis
P.s.: You can bring along Shiny Rod if you want to.
"Professor Ashura?" Akko wondered. "I guess she has more to talk about? She misspelled my name, though..."
"If you are going to meet Ursula, don't take me with you..."
Akko blinked in confusion about the voice before remembering that it belonged to the Shiny Rod.
"Why not?" Akko asked Shiny Rod as she picked up up. "Aren't you happy to see another fan of the person who wielded you?"
Shiny Rod made a sound that resembled a scoff. "Not if I'm going to be called by that embarrassing name."
"How is 'Shiny Rod' an embarrassing name?" Akko countered. "It is easier to remember than... your other name, and that's how the whole world knows about you."
"I'd much rather be reduced to dust than be called 'Shiny Rod' until the end of time..." Shiny Rod gave a deadpan response.
"'From the legends'?" Akko pointed out. "What do you mea-"
The magic staff was suddenly yanked out of the Japanese girl's hands by a pair of pale hands.
"You're not high on anything, Akko..." Sucy said indifferently as she held the Shiny Rod closer for inspection. "The Rod really can talk..."
"Ugh. The potion fumes..." Shiny Rod groaned.
"Hey, give it back!" Akko said as she snatched Shiny Rod back from Sucy.
"I've talked to the spirits of objects before..." Lotte joined in. "But for the object itself to speak? That's... certainly new..." She noticed the piece of paper. "What's that?"
"That's... uh... a message from Professor Ursula." Akko answered. "She wants me to meet her at her office."
"Professor Callistis? What does she want to talk with you about?" Lotte asked.
"I don't know. That's why I'm going to see her now." Akko answered.
"And you're bringing the Shiny Rod with you?"
"She said so..."
"No, she didn't."
Lotte then glanced at Shiny Rod.
"Nice to meet you, Shiny Rod." The glasses girl greeted the magic staff.
Shiny Rod groaned. "Don't call me that..."
"Why not?" Lotte tilted her head in response. "The whole world knows you by that name..."
"Because it's a terrible name!" Shiny Rod argued. "People are never going to remember my real name because of it!"
"Well, you can blame yourself for having a name that's hard to pronounce..." Akko counter-argued.
"It's only hard for you." Shiny Rod counter-counter-argued.
Sucy eyed the Shiny Rod with indifference. "For a talking staff that is sentient, the Shiny Rod sure is terrible at appreciating fame..."
Shiny Rod groaned so hard at being called that by Sucy that if it had a human body, it'd have tore its hair right off in frustration.
...
Luna Nova hallway
"I said don't bring me to Ursula with you!"
"Why? Because you hate being called Shiny Rod?"
"Because I don't want everyone to call me that!"
"Sucy was right. You are terrible at appreciating fame."
Akko had brought along Shiny Rod, much to its protest, as she headed for Professor Ursula's office. Along the way, the two's conversation (or argument, depending on who you ask) had drawn the attention of the other students in the hallway.
Much gossip ensued as the students took notice of the unique design of Shiny Rod and the fact that it is talking.
"Is that the Shiny Rod?"
"The one-of-a-kind magic staff owned by Shiny Chariot?"
"No way! That's probably a cheap plastic imitation!"
"And yet it can talk, and is even arguing with Kagari."
"Why does it have an Irish accent, though?"
Akko paid little attention to the gossips as she continued walking down the hallway. Shiny Rod, however, did pay attention.
"Even those who don't like Chariot are calling me 'Shiny Rod'..." The magic staff lamented. "Oh, why does this have to happen to me?"
"At least everyone remembers you." Akko reassured.
"They're not remembering me for what I really am!" Shiny Rod countered.
Akko rolled her eyes. "Then what do you want everyone to remember you fo-"
Akko wasn't paying attention to where she is going, and bumped into none other than Diana Cavendish, who is at the moment accompanied by Hannah and Barbara.
"Watch where you're going!" Hannah warned.
"Hey, isn't she the Shiny Chariot fan girl who tried to blast us with her toy Shiny Rod?" Barbara pointed out.
"You're right, Barbs! It is her!"
"She can't even cast spells properly! At least she can fly a broom, though, if for just a few tiny inches. Ha ha ha ha!"
Akko looked down at the floor, away from Hannah and Barbara's smug faces. Now she knows how Lotte felt being bullied.
Hannah and Barbara's teasing would've continued had Diana not raised her hand to silence them.
"Where were you going, Kagari?" Diana asked.
"To- to see Professor Ursula." Akko answered.
"Professor Callistis, the new Fortune Telling professor? What is your reason?"
"N-nothing. Just an ordinary chat."
And with that, Akko continued on her way, running past the Blue Coven without looking back.
"'Just an ordinary chat'?" Hannah said smugly while doing an intentionally terrible imitation of Akko's noticeable Japanese accent (so bad that Hannah herself cringed at it).
"Who knows, Han? Maybe she's just trying to get on the new professor's good side with some sweet arse-kissing talk~" Barbara said, also smugly.
"Enough, you two." Diana interrupted the smug duo. "Where are your manners?"
Hannah and Barbara dropped their smug facade and straightened themselves. "Sorry, Diana..." They both said in unison.
As the smug duo walked on by themselves, Diana glanced over her shoulders just in time to see Akko turning around a corner, bumping into yet another student who she quickly apologized to. Something about the Japanese girl sent the honor student deep in thought.
"That staff she is holding...Is that..."
...
New Moon Tower
It took Akko a few wrong turns and asking a goblin janitor for directions, but she was able to make her way to the New Moon Tower without too much hassle (aside from her brief encounter with the Blue Coven).
The Japanese girl found herself standing before a blue wooden door with a small circular window on it. Attached to the front of the door is a sign that says "Ursula Callistis: professor of Fortune Telling", making it unquestionable to Akko that she came to the right place.
Akko gulped nervously. This is the first time she came to see a professor by herself. Well, there was the time in secondary school when the headmaster called her parents over because she pushed the school's fire alarm button out of curiosity. But this is a different situation than that one because 1) she came here by herself; and 2) this is simply Professor Ursula asking for a little chit-chat.
Making up her mind, she approached the door, and raised a hand to knock on it...
"Do me a favor and don't mention Chariot Du Nord or her performances when you are chatting with Ursula..." Shiny Rod suddenly said.
Akko paused for a bit to roll her eyes. "Is that why you never spoke during any one of Chariot's performances?" She asked, annoyed by the talking magic staff's constant complaining about its name.
Shiny Rod didn't answer. It simply made a sound that resembled sighing.
Deciding to ignore Shiny Rod, Akko gently knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer it.
It didn't take very long for someone to answer the door. "Who's there?" Ursula inquired as she look out of the small window from inside her office.
"Professor, it's me!" Akko answered as she waved at Ursula. "You wanted to talk to me?"
"Oh, yes." Ursula said as she then opened the door. "Thank you for coming, Akko." She greeted. "This will only take a short moment. Please come in."
Akko did as told, and entered the professor's office.
Professor Ursula's office is actually quite a large one, enough to double as a residence. In one corner is a desk next to a shelf filled with things that Akko couldn't identify. In another corner is a couch, a sofa, and a tea table. Directly across the office from the entrance is a large telescope pointing out of a large window into the sky.
"Please take a seat." Ursula said as she lead Akko to the couch. "How about some tea?" She then asked.
"That will be fine..." Akko answered as she sat down on the couch, placing Shiny Rod on the armrest.
As Akko waited for Ursula to prepare the tea, she continued to look around the room, scrutinizing its details.
A globe sat on the desk alongside a table lamp and several textbooks on Astrology and Fortune Telling, while the things on the shelf are still unrecognizable to Akko. But stuck to the side of the shelf facing the table, which is not visible from the entrance, is unmistakably a poster of Shiny Chariot, just like the one Akko has by her bunk bed in the Red Coven's dorm. To the opposite side of the table is a perch that has a white crow perched on top of it, which appeared to be sleeping. Akko can't help but wonder why the white crow looked so familiar...
"Sorry to keep you waiting." Ursula said as she brought a tray with a teapot and two teacups over, and placed them on the tea table.
"It's okay..." Akko reassured.
Ursula poured a cup of tea, and passed it to Akko who accepted it only to quickly put it back on the tea table as it was rather hot.
"In the western world, we hold teacups by the handle, actually." Ursula gently pointed out for Akko.
"Oh, right. This isn't Japan." Akko acknowledged. She accepted the teacup again as Ursula passed it to her again, this time holding it by the handle. Akko watched as Ursula take a sip from the other cup of tea, and then tried to copy the blue-haired professor.
It resulted in the Japanese girl quickly putting the teacup back down again as her tongue reacted badly to the heat.
Ursula stifled a laugh upon seeing that. "Got a cat's tongue?" She joked.
"Yes..." Akko answered. She then paused as she looked at Ursula. "Wait. How do you know what a "cat's tongue" is?" She then asked.
Ursula squirmed for a bit before answering, "I...uh, have been to Japan for a while before..."
Akko suddenly shot up from the couch. "Is the 7th of July, year 2006 one of the days you were there?!"
Ursula backed into the sofa behind her, and sat on it. "Well, uh...yes..."
"Then you must have watched Shiny Chariot's performance that day!" Akko then said excitedly. "That was the only time she performed in Japan, and I still remember every detail of it, especially when it was halted for a minute due to a malfunction in the stage equipment!"
Ursula looked at Akko in amazement. She had to give credit to this fangirl for remembering even the embarrassing details of that one performance, which she is present at on that day.
"That also means we could have seen each other for the first time that day!" Akko added. "Isn't it wonderful to meet a fellow Shiny Chariot fan you saw in one country, only to see her again in another country over a decade later?"
Ursula straightened her sitting posture. "Well, there was quite a lot of people that day. So even if I have seen you, I probably don't remember it..."
Akko then sat back down on the couch. "Good point. I can remember every single details I saw that day, and a woman with blue hair isn't among them."
"True. I wouldn't have remembered seeing an excited little girl back then." Ursula agreed. "That aside, I asked you to come because I wanted to ask you something..."
Akko perked up. "Huh? About what?" She glanced at Shiny Rod. "The Shiny Rod?"
"Yes, of course." Ursula said. "Why don't you start by telling me how you got it?"
"Well, it's very complicated..." Akko began with her explanation, starting with the turbulence in the Leyline tunnel on the way to Luna Nova, to the best of her ability and English vocabulary...
"It just...came to you?" Ursula summarized what she was just told, not fully understanding it despite Akko's effort.
"At least, that's what I think..." Akko added. "Shiny Rod didn't speak to me back there..." Saying that, the Japanese girl then looked at Shiny Rod before picking it up. "Hey, Shiny Rod, mind telling me why you came to me?"
"No." Shiny Rod flat out refused.
"Only because we were calling you Shiny Rod?" Ursula said to the magic staff. "Oh, you never change..."
"The only thing changed about me is that I went from being the legendary Claiomh Solais to a stage performer's tool!" Shiny Rod complained. "On top of that, everyone in the world are now calling me by such a ridiculous name as 'Shiny Rod'!"
Ursula shushed. "Well, from the looks of it, the only thing changed about you is the fact that you are now an egotistical je-"
"Professor Ashura..." Akko, mispronouncing Ursula's name again, interrupted as she took note of something the professor just said. "You sound like you have known Shiny Rod as a sentient being for a long time..."
Ursula made a panicked gasp, while Shiny Rod made a sound that resembled a snicker.
"I'm...uh...terribly sorry for going off topic!" Ursula tried to dodge the question. "S-so, back on topic. Anything else about the Shiny Rod that you want to add?"
Akko, not smart enough to notice the professor's sloppy attempt at dodging the question, fell for it. "Well, there is the dream that I had before I woke up this morning..." She proceeded to explain - again, to the best of her ability - the dream in question...
"The Seven Stars of Jennifer the Great?" Ursula repeated that name after Akko had mentioned it.
"Chariot in that dream also mentioned what is called the 'first'." Akko added. "Professor, do you know something about it?"
Ursula is about to answer, but then stopped herself. "Can't say I do..." She said.
"Liar." Shiny Rod whispered.
"Did you say something?" Akko noticed, and looked at the magic staff.
"Nothing..." Shiny Rod denied.
"Really?" Akko wondered. In the process, she failed to noticed Ursula looking away nervously.
"I...might be able to find something if I do some research in the library first..." Ursula, still looking away from Akko, said.
"Or maybe we can just look it up on the internet?" Akko suggested.
"Well, I could try that some other time..." Ursula said. "Oh, and speaking of time, it sure flies by! We've been talking for almost an hour!"
"So, new thing I learned about Shiny Rod: she has an egotistical personality!" Akko stood up and summed up the conversation.
"I'm not!" Shiny Rod argued. "I just hate being called Shiny Rod!"
"In that case, you should blame the Nines for giving you a name that's hard to pronounce." Ursula responded to Shiny Rod with a joke.
Shiny Rod could only respond to that with an exasperated groan.
"Thank you for inviting me over for a talk, professor!" Akko said as she picked up Shiny Rod. "I'm going to have lunch, so maybe we can talk again another time. Bye!"
With that, the Japanese girl excitedly ran out of the office with her idol's iconic magic staff in tow.
After watching Akko leaving her office, Ursula let out a sigh.
"Shiny Rod was right. Why Atsuko was chosen, only Woodward knows..." The blue-haired professor mused.
...
"Is Claiomh Solais really so difficult to pronounce?!" Shiny Rod complained as Akko took it with her out of Ursula's office.
"Kurau...sorasu..." Akko tried, and struggled again to pronounce the Shiny Rod's real name. "Well, yes..."
"That was a rhetoric question." Shiny Rod clarified.
"Whatever..." Akko then proceed to find her way to the cafeteria.
Unbeknownst to the Japanese girl, she had been followed all the way here, and had her entire conversation with Ursula eavesdropped upon by a certain cabbage-haired honor student.
"The legendary Claiomh Solais? But why? And why was it Kagari, not me, who was chosen to wield it?"
That's a good question, Diana. Why did Akko get the Shiny Rod instead of you? Of course, we as the readers already knew why Akko is worthy. But the real question is, why is Diana not worthy? That's a question for another time.
Also, as you probably noticed, I've just changed the name of the story from Luna Nova: School For Witches to Atsuko Kagari and the School For Witches, with the series as a whole renamed as the Atsuko Kagari Series. Why? Well, that's because I found Luna Nova series to be a rather lame name, now that I think about it. It wasn't an issue when I came up with it months ago, but as time went by, I...well...
That, and just so I can get a Harry Potter reference going...
"Just remember: a believing heart is your magic..."
Afterwords end here.