Chapter 7-
If You Give a Fangirl Magic…
Charlotte awoke the next day in her dormitory, right as the bell was sounded. Hastily hopping out of bed, she managed to avoid the falling g's. With eyes still foggy from sleep, or lack thereof, she scanned through her schedule to find the following:
Today: Magic 101 @ 7:45 a.m. sharp. Be there, or else.
…I think I like this schedule…I'll never be late… Charlotte thought, smiling slightly to herself. She shoved the slip of parchment into her pocket just as Hikari was hit by an exclamation point and awoke with unpleasant suddenness.
"I didn't do it!" Hikari cried as Charlotte slammed the door shut.
~**~
Ah, early morning at OFAC. There was nothing more serene than the soft carpet under your feet, the empty, echoing halls, and the windows with a lovely view of a garden. No student knew who owned the garden, or who took care of it. The only clue was a sign that said
'Sit, be quiet, and if you litter, I will know.' Ah, OFAC.
It was early enough that most students were still nursing their early-morning bumps and bruises, so Charlotte pretty much had the entire school to roam, think, and forget that she had fifteen minutes to eat and get to Auditorium 3 on the fourth floor.
She wandered down through an old corridor. It seemed as though it had never been used. The air was musty and smelt softly of some fragrant wood. Dust covered everything in it, and the lights overhead were dim and gentle. Charlotte walked to the end of the hallway, and stopped before a large, impressive painting. It showed a garden, complete with fruit trees in flower and a pleasant little bench with a small stone fountain. The golden frame was dull with dust, and the colors in the paint were muted slightly.
Where did this come from? Charlotte wondered. The painting seemed slightly… out of place in the insanity that was the Academy.
Unnoticed by she, there was a white ventilation duct nestled down in a corner. Then, with a shrug, Charlotte turned around and began to try to head for the Great Hall for some breakfast before her class. She had walked about five steps when she heard music being softly played. From what she could hear, it was piano music. Finally coming to the conclusion that she really didn't want to know, Charlotte continued down to the Great Hall. Her short time at OFAC had already taught her that if something strange was found, it was always best to just smile, nod, and pretend that you understood completely. Anyway, breakfast was calling.
~**~
Charlotte was just sitting down to a lovely breakfast of bagels and cream cheese when she felt the most irritating prick on her leg. It came from the general area of her pajama pocket. She reached down into it, and produced the schedule. On it was written:
In Three Minutes: Magic 101. The current time is: 7:42 a.m. You should get your bum moving, dearie.
Charlotte felt a most incredible jolt in her stomach. She had forgotten completely about her class. She rushed from the table in an explosion of bagels and little tubs of cream cheese, which landed perfectly back where they had been before Charlotte ran like her life depended on it. …For, of course, it did.
Fourth floor, third Auditorium, fourth floor, third Auditorium… Charlotte thought as she ran up the stairway.
Third floor, fourth Auditorium, third floor, fourth Auditorium… Charlotte's mental chant had become slightly distorted as she ran up the stairs to the third floor. She found the fourth Auditorium's doors, and stopped at said doors, waiting for her breath to catch up with her.
Once her heart rate returned to normal and her brain was in a bit more control, Charlotte quietly opened the doors and stepped into the Auditorium.
The wrong Auditorium, as it was.
Charlotte shrieked as she fell through a plothole and promptly landed somewhere that she shouldn't have been.
Oooooooooooooww… her brain cried in pain. Then, just as suddenly, there was another plothole. In a burst of luck that might not really be luck at all, Charlotte re-appeared in the middle of the correct Auditorium just as Magus walked in.
As most would see it, this was a rather nice bout of luck. However, the sudden stampede of raging hormone-driven fangirls might prove this otherwise.
There was a loud boom, a not-so-brief flash of red flame, and numerous Magus-lusters lay in charred heaps on the floor.
Magus rubbed his temples with one gloved hand. Oh, yes, this was going to be fun.
He strode up to the front of the Auditorium, cleared his throat, completely forgot what he was originally going to say, and promptly made something up.
"Welcome to Magic 101, the course where, against our better judgement, or lack thereof, all students will be given magic officially. The previous magic that you had because of what was written on the applications will not be successful until we give it to you. Understood?"
There were numerous excited nods.
"All right, then…" he paused a moment to collect his thoughts. "Spekkio, if you would."
Then, out came Spekkio.
"Right…" he cleared his throat. "Miss Raven…"
Raven the vampire walked nervously up onto the auditorium, and stood in front of Spekkio. Then… she was engulfed in flames, and given her magic in the most dramatic way possible.
Mass confusion resulted. Again.
[A/n- Sorry it took me so long to get this thing up. I apologize to anyone who cared. Anyway, please, if anyone (and I mean anyone) wishes to apply to OFAC, contact me! If anyone wants to adopt a mini-Lavi or a Moving Pillar, contact me as well. …Please?]
