Author's Note: Pretty quick update, huh? Yeah, shorter chapter than normal and things have been pretty calm, so I have far more time to write. Anyway, thank you guys a lot for supporting my return, very nice. I do hope to finish this fanfic very soon, and although I don't have an exact number on how many chapters are left, I can say that we are nearing the end. Anyway, let's answer the comments and get on with the chapter.

"Nobody wanted you to return with your self-insert OC. A male in the academy? Not even the slightest bit canon and realistic."

You know, I'll give you that. Your 100% accurate. This story isn't canon or realistic to the show. Some might even call it fanfiction.

Walking into the courtyard, it looks just as it always had been, any evidence of the party now gone with the wind. It really didn't take the school long to clean up.

Although I'm sure the vast majority of people enjoyed their time, I know I did, the more conservative teachers such as Finnalin most likely had to bite their tongue. I'm sure the swift income of outside investments, as well as the modern entertainment that was brought in rubbed these individuals the wrong way.

As for me, the salvation of school, as well as hanging out with Diana and Anchovy at the same time, was well worth whatever traditions were forgotten about for the night.

I suppose everything has to accommodate the ever encroaching modern world, even Luna Nova.

I scratch my head, thinking of all the assignments and homework which await me when I return to my dorms. Required reading, lecture notes to flesh out, worksheets to complete before their due date, even if it is a magical, the work can be just as dull as your standard high school.

But that can wait, at least for now.

I'll admit, Faralda kind of left me on a cliffhanger once class ended. For the remainder of the day, although the teachers were lecturing and assignments were being distributed, I could only think about what she wished to speak to me about.

Of course, I can come to my conclusions, and I did. I just hope it's not what I think it is.

It's not long before I spot her, sitting alone on one of the benches spread around the Jennifer The Witch statue, sipping from a sugar free rockstar energy drink.

Overall, no one else is in the courtyard besides us two, making the atmosphere quite quant and silent, almost as if this were a secluded section of the world, far from the stressful antics of class.

Without even looking at me, Faralda continues to stare off towards the statue, saying to me

"You came earlier than I thought."

This jab prompts me to respond with my own.

"You know, I didn't have to come at all."

Faralda chuckles at this, taking another sip.

"Yeah, but I knew you'd be here. You're good like that."

Am I really?

"Take a seat." She instructs, patting down the empty spot next to her.

As I do, Faralda tosses the now empty can into a nearby trashcan, pulling out another one besides her. Opening the beverage, she takes one big gulp.

I'm not familiar with energy drinks, having only had a couple in my whole life, and have no idea what's in them. Either way, she really seems to like that stuff.

"Did you want to talk to me about what happened earlier with Hannah and Barbara?"

"Perceptive as always." She remarks with a smile, taking another strong sip. "Yes, I want to talk to you about that, but that can wait. No reason to dive into the nitty gritty right away."

I feel a lump form in my throat.

Although I predicted such a conversation, hearing her confirm it is something else. What happened earlier today may have been several hours ago, but still cuts me deep all the same. I tried so hard to be the nice guy, to be understanding and patient, and it ended up just exploding back in my face.

"So, how have your classes been?" The teacher casually asks me, spreading her arms out as she gets comfortable. "Luna Nova been treating you well?"

Well, that's an interesting start to this conversation. It would be more fitting to have this asked by an academic advisor or counselor, rather than everyone's favorite rock star professor. But, I suppose at the end of the day, despite her wild and untraditional antics, Faralda is a teacher, an educator to the youth.

"I'll admit, it is quite different from what I first thought, but I think I like this version better than the one I imagined."

Honestly, when I first walked in through those doors, I didn't expect much in terms of friendship. I only wanted to learn magic, and not just for learning sake, but for my own ambitions and goals. That was it.

"And your teachers?" She continues. "Are you getting along well with them?"

"They've been fine as well. I'll be honest, I think you and Professor Finnalin are my favorites."

Professor Europa is a good teacher too, but Finnalin just has that air overwhelming confidence around her which I admire. As for Faralda? I'm not sure. Maybe it's her youth, making her more relatable to the other older teachers on campus, or maybe her easy going attitude and lax profile as opposed to the more authoritarian and strict teachers of the school. I mean, the lady smokes in class!

This response causes the corners of Faralda's mouth to turn into a slight smile, the first one I've seen from her since I sat down.

"Me and Finnalin, that's a unique choice of characters."

She ponders this for a moment, before casually asking another question.

"What's your relationship with Ursula like?"

I guess I should've seen this question coming.

Whenever I'm in Akko's presence, she always finds a way to mention Shiny Chariot, she can talk on and on about her as if she were reading a book. Faralda is very similar, casually mentioning her best friend whenever it suits her fancy, which is quite often. While Faralda has brought her up a number of times, I'll admit that I don't have much familiarity with Ursula.

"Well, I haven't really had a class with her, but she seems like a good teacher. I haven't interacted with her much. I hear only good things about her from Akko, though."

"She is a good teacher…" Faralda nods, following up with "…and my best friend too."

Although conversing and connecting with teachers and staff is overall good for students, I could be studying with Diana, or hanging out with Lotte or Akko. Given what happened right before Faralda requested to talk with me, one would assume it would have to do with that situation. But still, I can't help but wonder what this has to do with Hannah and Barbara.

What might be to break the ice between us is only making me more anxious. The pit in my throat, the butterflies in my stomach, every time Faralda opens her mouth they are only agitated. The anticipation, hanging on every word she says, waiting for her to get to the main point of our meeting, is a struggle to bear.

"You two met at Luna Nova when you were students, right?" I ask, trying to forget about the difficult conversation about to come.

It doesn't work.

"That's right." She nods. "It's funny that you bring that up. I've got a story I want to tell you, a parable of our time here."

I'm at the edge of my seat, waiting for her, just as I have been all day, and she wants to tell me a story? While I can only assume her tale is related to the grand scheme of her main point, I really wish she would just tell me what she wanted and leave it at that.

"Before I continue, let me ask you a question. Why do you think students attend school? Besides the education, what drives teenagers to wake up early every morning and trudge through long and boring classes? And I'm talking everybody in the world, the boys and the girls, those who go to Luna Nova and those who go elsewhere."

Well, this certainly is an unexpected question, more so than her previous ones.

I pause as I ponder the question. When I first came to Luna Nova, I only wanted to learn, to gain power and influence through magic, and somehow use it to bring back my family's past glory, friendship was never really something I had in mind. Honestly, having as many friends as I do is a new concept to me. Back in Italy, outside of my estranged family, there was Anchovy, and that was it. All of the sudden, having so many new friendships, and even a girlfriend to top it off, wasn't my original endgame. Besides the obvious educational values, seeing my friends on a daily basis surely is a motivator.

With this in mind, I come to an answer.

"Friendship?"

Faralda nods at my answer, responding back with another question.

"And would you be willing to do anything for that? Companionship, friendship, connecting with others? Even if it meant hurting yourself and acting against your best interests?"

I open my mouth to say something, but can't.

Really, I don't know how to honestly answer something like that. My answer may not have been the same had I been asked this mere months ago. Back when I first joined Luna Nova, I really was in it only for myself, even after I started to mingle with other people. But now, with all the trials and tribulations under my belt, I couldn't have done any of it alone, I never could.

Faralda, sensing my answer which never comes, continues.

"Ursula did just that a long time ago, and it didn't end well for her."

This sudden news strikes me.

I know that she's a caring and generous individual. Akko always speaks highly of her. Hosting private study meetings, providing her the tools she needs to catch up, Ursula really goes above and beyond the call of duty to ensure her students' success. That's very admirable, despite how uneasy I'm sure that is for her. Perhaps next year I should try and take a class or two with her, I heard she's a really good Magic Astrology teacher.

I assume she would get along with just about anyone she could encounter in life.

"Ursula and I were friends back in Luna Nova, yes, close friends, best of friends." Faralda continues, closing her eyes as if to relive their shared past with a smile on her face. "Although we weren't part of the same dorm, we were inseparable, always choosing to hang out with each other rather than our preselected partners. We modeled our schedules around each other so we would always be together in class, sat next to each other, had lunch together, homework, study, everything."

It's no secret that those two were and are close friends, even if I wasn't subjected to hearing Faralda talk of the two basically every session of class.

"Ursula may have wised up a bit more since then, but back then I like to think that she had two servings of heart, and only half a serving of brain."

Really?

Ursula to me seems like a wise woman. While not strict or authoritarian like Finnalin, she also isn't as easy going or loose as Faralda. She's a happy medium between the two extremes. Either way, she doesn't seem like a dull individual, certainly above average.

But I suppose we all change over time. After all, just looking back at how much I've changed since the start of this school term leaves my head spinning.

"There was this one girl in our year, Croix…" Faralda continues, her voice tightening as she speaks her name. "She was the star student, the Diana Cavendish of her day. She was perfect in everything. Academics, research, alchemy, even the damn Broom Relay of all things."

The professor lets out an audible grunt at this, her smile she once bore when speaking of Ursula now gone as she recalls this Croix individual, replaced with a deep scowl.

She holds this expression for several seconds, her piercing eyes stabbing at the concrete walkway. I can only imagine she's thinking some not so nice thoughts.

Looking back at me, she quickly regains herself, her face becoming neutral once again, as if only now remembering that someone else was with her.

She gives a small sigh, as if to brush the feelings away.

"Anyway, Ursula thought that someone like that would make a good addition to our friendship group, and that our duo would become a trio. After a request from Ursula, she did join our group, and those two seemed to hit it off quite well."

I'm very unaware of what life was like at Luna Nova before I arrived. The only things I really know for sure are that Faralda and Ursula were students together, and the likes of Finnalin and Holbrooke have been part of the faculty for quite some time.

But still, hearing about Faralda's personal Luna Nova history isn't exactly what I thought we'd be discussing.

"Not to sound rude, by why are you telling me all of this?"

If she was offended by my question, she doesn't show it, taking it in stride as she does with just about everything else.

"We may live in a world of magic, but life isn't a fairy tale, Ted. Some people have to learn that the hard way. Ursula did…"

Faralda's face grows tense, pensive even, her brows narrow as she recalls what happened.

"They might've gotten along during school time, maybe even been close, but she completely cut Ursula and everyone else out after she graduated. I haven't heard of her since, and I really don't think I'd want to."

This hangs in the air, the teacher pausing, flaring her nostrils as her lips tighten slightly.

In one solid motion, Faralda chugs the rest of her drink, the liquid quickly disappearing down her throat. Crushing the now empty rockstar can in her fist, Faralda throws it into the garbage can, huffing as she does so, the clanking noise of the metal ringing loudly in the otherwise quiet courtyard.

Something tells me she might've been letting out a bit of pent up anger with that one.

Scratching her face, Faralda folds her legs together, staring off with a glare of disgust.

I think this the first time I've seen her so worked up. She's normally such a calm and collected teacher. Sure, she may have a tendency to blare rock music and break out into random air guitar solos, and her sobriety can leave something to be desired…

But still, it's rare to see her in fits of anger, even passive aggressive attitudes.

Finally, just as sudden as it grew tense, Faralda's face relaxes, her eyes tired, bearing a hint of sadness.

"It really hurt her, you know?" She dimly grumbles, returning to face me. "I never trusted Croix, I could tell just by looking at her that she was a washout, only in it for herself. I forced myself to be nice to her, hang out with her, talk with her as if she was a friend, all for Ursula. In the end, that didn't matter. Croix shattered their friendship like it was nothing, and I was left to pick up the pieces."

Once again, Faralda is forced to pause herself, the recollection of such past events obviously stirring a storm of negative emotions within her.

Another nostril flare, this one not out of sheer anger, but almost of defeat, as if she just lost the broom relay, and forced to concede defeat to her rival.

Her face turns hard, tense even. She holds this stone cold expression, leaving me alone with my own thoughts.

I may only just now be hearing of this character, but Croix sounds like a real piece of work. I couldn't imagine a rational justification to betray someone like Ursula, especially like that. I really can't see a reason why she would deserve such treatment.

As if the inner workings of a steam engine, another stream of air leaves her nose, before she gradually opens her eyes.

"It's because I've been a very similar experience that I was able to recognize what happened earlier today." She explains, facing me once again. "I could see it on your face, smell it in the air, even with the scent of burnt chicken fresh. You were biting your lip, holding all your valid emotions back because you didn't want to displease Diana's best friends."

Now I see what she's getting at.

Faralda is afraid that I may be following a similar path as her, that I'll go above and beyond my capabilities, pushing myself, changing myself, acting outside of my own best interests, for the sole purpose of pleasing Hannah and Barbara, attempting to please everyone involved, only to end up pleasing no one. That's what seemed to happen during this story of Faralda, Ursula, and Croix.

My worst fear, but that won't happen to me, I won't let it.

"Hannah and Barbara are Diana's best friends." I tell her. "I couldn't imagine dating Diana while those two stare daggers into me every day."

I hear Faralda grumble at this, clearly not approving of my choice of words.

She chooses not to say anything at this, her eyes glancing around the courtyard, perhaps trying to distance herself from this hard conversation.

"I have to try something!" I ground myself in my conviction, the very thought of this failing sending me into a fit. "How else are we all going to get along unless I don't?!"

Faralda shakes her head at what I've just said, responding with

"Ted, you can't just be the good guy, and expect things to go your way in life. There's some stuff that you just can't control. You're only in control of what you do, not what others do. That's just how life is. You can't set your life up, and expect it to stay that way forever. Sometimes things happen that are out of your control, and you just have to roll with it."

She shrugs to herself, taking a long breath, before looking up at the dark and grey sky.

"Damn, if I only remembered to bring my cigarettes. I could take a nice long drag right about now, and look kind of cool."

I want to respond, to think of some sort of rebuttal, any argument to justify my actions these last few days. I can't, and it makes me feel utterly helpless.

Of course she's right, what she's saying is perfectly correct, healthy even. It's not wise to burden yourself with unneeded baggage. It might even be easier for me if I just let go, and accept what Hannah and Barbara already made clear to me.

But I can't do that. I'm not just going to sit idly by. If I just sit on my hands, what's to stop Hannah and Barbara from repeating the yelling assault that took place early today? What's to stop them from escalating this, perhaps even putting pressure on Diana to distance herself from me? I wouldn't put it past them. I have to do something, anything really, to get on their good side. It's not because I want to, but because I need to.

With my mind more or less made up, I turn back to my teacher, breaking the silence.

"Faralda, can I ask you something?"

"Go for it." She answers back without hesitation. "That's why I'm here. Shoot."

I stop for a moment, mulling over my words as I decide how to continue.

"Well, besides what's going on with Hannah and Barbara, things are going well in my life."

"That's good to hear." She comments.

I nod at her statement as I continue.

"My grades are good, I have really good friends, Diana is an amazing girlfriend…"

I trail off as my thoughts turns towards the blonde beauty in question.

I've said it once and I'll say it one hundred more times, I really lucked out with that one.

"Besides the school work, I'm honestly not being burdened by much, it's just them that are the problem. I see a problem, and I want to fix it, especially if it affects me or the people I care about, and it happens to be both in this case. Ignoring and accepting the issue might work, but it also might not. Either way, it's something that really doesn't appeal to me. If I'm going to burden myself with unneeded baggage, it may as well be baggage I chose…"

Faralda weakling nods at this, remaining silent as she stares at me with expecting eyes. I think she can see what I'm getting at, but doesn't seem to approve much.

"You tell me that I shouldn't change myself, to make accommodations to Hannah and Barbara. You're confident in what you're telling me, you think it's the best way to go about this, to leave them alone, and just let whatever happens happen. How do you know for sure that's the right thing to do in this situation?"

She doesn't respond, instead deciding to break her gaze from me, her eyes glancing around the courtyard as if searching for the answer.

I can tell by the look on her face. She's hesitant, uncomfortable even, to tell me one way or the other. She doesn't want to misguide me.

After a moment of contemplating this question, Faralda turns her gaze back to me.

"Well, I can't make the choice for you, and I'm not trying to. I can't control your actions just like I couldn't with Croix, like how you can't with Hannah and Barbara."

She takes another moment to ponder this, the gears moving in her brain overtime.

Perhaps she thought that I would just nod at everything she said, to agree completely, and then move on.

Even if that may be in my best interests, I can't. I'm not going to stop until I form some kind of positive connection with Hannah and Barbara.

Shrugging, she simply states

"I suppose nothing's ever for sure, Ted. It's the most for sure thing I know."

Without waiting for any further questions, Faralda stands up from the bench, stretching her back as she nonchalantly states

"You're a good kid, Theodore, remember that. Whatever path you choose to take, don't feel like you have to change yourself to please others. Don't make the same mistake that I did, you'll just exhaust yourself."

The teacher then pulls a third rockstar from her uniform pocket, cracking it open before walking away.

The last thing I see is her taking another long sip, before rounding the corner, out of sight.

Walking towards my dorm, I feel as though I'm dragging a large iron ball behind me, like a prisoner in jail.

I'm really not sure if my conversation with Faralda helped much.

She did make some great points, really it's practical and sound advice that any rational person should take.

Then why does the very thought of it terrify me?

I mean, I just can't stop now, and let the situation develop on its own, right? If anything, Hannah and Barbara yelling at me earlier only showed me how dire it truly is, and that I must do something, and fast. What that something is, I have no idea.

If there was a rock lying around in these hallways, I'd probably kick it.

As I continue to trudge through, a warm and welcoming sight melts the cold state I'm in.

"Hello, Theodore." Diana greets me, her two friends in tow. "How did your conversation with Faralda go?"

Although I told Diana that Faralda requested to speak with me, I never told her what it was truly about.

Unless Hannah and Barbara spilled the beans, which I doubt they would, Diana is completely oblivious to what took place once she left. Although she does know that there is tension between me and her friends, and I confided with her that I wish to make amends, she's unaware of how serious this situation seems.

Speaking of the two, they don't say hello, but rather flash fearsome smirks towards me, looking somewhat like the Grinch, perhaps satisfied in each other after what transpired earlier today.

I can only imagine that those two found it amusing that I wasn't able to stand up for myself, but rather let them walk all over me.

Attempting to ignore those two, I look away from them and back to Diana.

"It went well." I tell her, trying my best to keep a neutral tone. "Just the usual teacher-student talk. She asked about my grades, classes, standard stuff."

While that's not untruthful, I do leave out the vast majority of the conversation.

With any luck, hopefully I can sort out the issues between myself and the two without involving Diana. After all, it would be so incredible if Diana were to wake up one day, and see her boyfriend and her two best friends suddenly getting along, right as rain. Just imagining how happy that would make her makes any and all insults those two could throw at me completely worth it.

"My my…" Diana lightly chuckles to herself. "I didn't take Professor Faralda for a student advisor."

I follow suit with a chuckle myself, trying to forget about the tough talk from before.

Glancing over to the duo, I see something peculiar in one of their hands, something I didn't notice earlier.

"You two still have that mirror?" I ask, pointing at the object in Hannah's hands.

Although I expected those two to keep the mirror, we are allowed to keep whatever objects we found, I would assume it would be in their dorm. Why would those two be carrying around a mirror with them? I don't think they're that big of narcissists.

"We wanted to keep up our fabulous looks." Hannah replies, her smirk cutting me like a hot knife through butter.

Okay, maybe I was wrong, maybe they are that big of narcissists.

"Yeah, but we didn't know it was, like, a person." Barbara adds.

Her statement raises a brow from myself, asking

"What do you mean?"

"It appears that there is a spirit living inside of the mirror the two of them found." Diana informs me.

"Yeah, we've been trying to talk to it all day. When it responds back, words form on the mirror, but we can only get a word or two out of it at a time." Hannah sighs to herself, staring longingly at the mirror.

"I think it's having a hard time communicating to us underneath the glass." Barbara ponders with a finger on her chin. "I think it would be so cool to talk to a spirit."

"Girl, you're righter than my right hand." Hannah grins at her friend, the two giggling at their shared thought.

Glancing at the mirror, I see no current activity from the object, it's as stagnant as any mirror would be. I don't see any letters or words forming in this moment. However, I do see a slight shimmer in the reflection, a tell tale sign that a spirit is indeed inside.

Interesting…

Perhaps I can use this situation to my advantage.

Before I have time to ponder this further, Diana waves at me, stating

"Well, it was a pleasure seeing you this afternoon, but we're going back to our dorms now. Professor Badcock distributed a large amount of magic numerology assignments before class ended. I believe she's trying to make up for our lack of school during Christmas Break."

"Isn't that the point of Christmas Break?" I ask.

I honestly thought that was our time to wind down and relax, even if it was just for two weeks; and even if in this case, I spent the majority of the time preparing and going on an expedition to an island full of monsters.

She smiles at my question, perhaps finding the situation equally amusing.

"Maybe for most people, but not for Badcock."

And with that, the three take their leave, continuing towards their dorms.

However, I am not alone, for I have a plan with me.

Those two, Hannah and Barbara, have been trying to communicate with whatever spirit is trapped inside the mirror. Although the words of Faralda still ring through me as clear as a bell, I feel as though I now have the opportunity to do something spectacular for them. If I could someone manage to establish reliable and continuous communications between the mirror's spirit and the two girls, I'm sure that they would be very appreciative of it. After all, they said so themselves how much they would love to be able to reliably communicate with the spirit.

However, I know that I don't possess the capabilities to do this. I really haven't dabbled into spirit magic at all, let alone summoning one from an object. I haven't taken Basic White Magic yet, and what I managed to do with Bruno was only after dedicated around a dozen hours of complete focus, nearly reaching my breaking point, in which Diana provided invaluable assistance. Without her, I really don't think I could've pulled that off.

Luckily, I happen to know a certain someone who is an expert at communing with the spirits of objects, and I'm sure she wouldn't mind helping a friend in need.

Some spirits may be bad, indeed, but I've seen Lotte summon and communicate far more than I could count, and they have all been peaceful. Perhaps she can tell the difference between a good spirit and a bad spirit before she even summons them. I'm sure she wouldn't hesitate to assist me in this endeavor, especially is she has a chance to add another spirit to her list of otherworldly friends.

I know now what I must do. It all seems so clear now, as clear as the crisp spring skies above.

Author's Note: And there we go. Did you guys enjoy this chapter? Do you enjoy Faralda playing a larger role? Maybe not. Will you enjoy the next chapter much more? I sure hope so.

Anyway, thanks so much for the support. Don't forget to follow and favorite, as well as leave a comment (I love them all, even the hate). Keep calm and carry on, and don't forget to leave support for everyone's favorite Luna Nova teacher, Faralda.