Chapter 32: Surprise exams – Part 2.

We arrive to the Laboratory B, where Professor Lukić usually imparts her alchemy and pharmaceutics classes, after the nurse patched me up and gave me quite the scolding for being so reckless. Honestly, at this point I should at least get some sort of "frequent client" card with her, or something, maybe get a treat for so many visits. But thankfully I'm feeling better now. Not enough for complicated potion making, but then again, I'm never feeling up for that.

"Just don't blow anything up." Croix whispers in a joking tone before going to take her seat at the other end of the lab, while I take the closest one to the door, smiling at my friend's jest and feeling more confident already.

"For today's test you'll be doing a deadly potion! Hehehehe! And testing it on yourselves! Hehehehe!" Professor Lukić laughs maniacally once we're seated, making a chill run down my spine. She can't be serious, can she? Honestly, with her it's quite difficult to know.

"At least, that's what I'd like to say." She cuts her own laughter off abruptly, replacing it with a frown. "You're making an invisibility potion instead. Let's see what you can do." She pauses, giving me a malevolent smirk. "You'll have as much time as you need, but after the first one finishes, the second one will only have five more minutes to complete her potion. Hehehehe. Begin!"

Croix nods and quickly gets up to pick up the ingredients stored in jars at the back of the lab. I get up a lot more hesitantly, trying to remember what the heck the invisibility potion was supposed to be made of. Maybe if I take a peek at Croix's ingredients…

"Stop right there, Miss du Nord." Lukić's raspy voice stops me dead in my tracks. "Let her get her ingredients first, and then you can retrieve yours." I sigh, but relent, instead trying to memorize at least which jars she opened. Once she's finally finished, she turns around and walks to her seat, discreetly showing me a couple of dry leaves as she passes. I can't fully identify them for their shape though. Were they violet mimosa leaves? Mystique line leaves? Maybe something completely different? I'm so going to fail this, aren't I?

"Miss Du Nord! Hurry up and pick your ingredients, we don't have all day!" Lukić's voice makes me jump a little in fright, and I quickly hurry up to the jars, picking up what I kinda remember were the right ones.

Let's see… a small dragon teeth, or were they two? Better safe than sorry, I guess. Next is… two spoonfuls of Minotaur's horn dust. I'll take three, just in case. Then a magic clover… or was it a four-leaved clover? I'll take one of each. Now, I need a siren's scale. Or was it a figment moth's scale? Huh. I like siren's better, so siren it is. And finally… the stupid leaves Croix showed me. Which I still don't know what exactly they are. I guess I'll take violet mimosa, because they have a pretty color.

I then return to my cauldron, turn the heat on with my wand, and add the ingredients in the order I sort of remember them being supposed to be added. Granted, I'm not sure about that. Nor about the boiling time for that matter, or the temperature, or if I'm supposed to cut or grind some of the ingredients.

Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if this just ended up being another explosive disaster.

"Croix, I see that your potion is ready." Professor Lukić says, breaking my already poor concentration.

"Uh. Yes. That's correct." She answers hesitantly, probably because she wanted to stall a bit. To give me a chance to finish.

"You know what that means, don't you, du Nord?" Lukić cackles. "Five more minutes!"

I curse under my breath and pull out my wand, ready to infuse the potion with magic even when I'm absolutely sure it won't work. Maybe I should just not put any magic into it; that way if it fails, at least it won't explode either, or turn me green or something (it's happened). As it is now, it's a very gross, very useless, harmless soup. If I drink it, nothing should happen. I won't turn into a three-eyed monster (also has happened), but I won't pass either.

Unless…

"Ready you two? It's time to test your potions." Lukić says, laughing manically. I wished she wouldn't do that. It's not helping calm my nerves.

"I'll go first." Croix says before taking a spoonful of her potion and drinking it swiftly. I'll give her points for not making a face at the taste. Not that it matters though, since she disappears completely within just a few seconds.

Lukić approaches her and examines the space where she is, nodding in approval once she seems satisfied by what she saw.

"I've seen better. Your silhouette is still distinguishable at the borders, but it's very impressive nonetheless, considering magical pharmaceutics isn't exactly your strongest point."

"Thank you, professor." Croix answers politely. I can almost see her self-sufficient smile, even if she's invisible.

"Now you." Lukić approaches me, wearing an excitedly malicious expression on her face. "Come on, if you're going to blow up my lab, do it now. Then we can start the reparations sooner." She scowls.

"R-right." I stutter out, nervous because of what I'm about to do. Does it count as cheating? I'm guessing it does. But I really have no choice.

With shaky hands I take a spoonful of the disgusting-looking maroon potion and bring it to my lips, making a grimace as the awful taste attacks my tongue. Then comes the difficult part.

I have never casted a spell without pronouncing the words out loud, but I know how it's supposed to work. It's not enough to just think about the words in your head; you have to also imagine what you want to happen, to feel it. If you want to become invisible, you need to desperately want to disappear from sight. Oh! Maybe if I recall one of the many occasions I was ridiculed in front of the school! Yes, that should work!

Toriara faciesse. Isay inside my head while I recall all those occasions I made a fool of myself in front of everyone and just wanted to disappear, grasping the feeling of deep shame inside my chest and embracing it completely, letting it consume my whole body until I truly wish the earth would just open up and swallow me whole.

I slowly open one eye to see Professor Lukić eying me with interest, and from different angles. I hold my breath in anticipation for what she'll say next. Did it work?

"I see… This is some very advanced invisibility magic you used here, Miss du Nord." She nods thoughtfully. "Even better than Miss Meridies' actually." She laughs, with that awful laugh she always uses.

Instantly, I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I can't believe I managed to pull that off!

"However…" Her raspy voice manages to put me on edge again with just one word. I see her dip her fingers inside my cauldron and bring them up to smell the gooey potion. "You don't fool me. You didn't use an invisibility potion! Hehehehehe!" My stomach drops to my feet. Oh no, I've been discovered! "This is just a combination of various common ingredients, but lacks the main ingredient of any invisibility potion: transparent-plant leaves."

"But Croix's leaves weren't transparent!" I protest without thinking.

"Of course not." She scoffs. "They only turn transparent when boiled in water. Any decent witch knows that!" The scowl she gives me is enough to make me want to run away as quickly as possible before she turns me into a frog or something. "I won't be tolerating your poor attempts at cheating on my test! I will, therefore, fail you."

"B-but…!" I start a feeble attempt at protesting, even when I don't really have anything to say on my favor.

"One more word, and I swear I'll cut your tongue off and use it on my experiments!" Lukić interrupts me, sending me a glare so intense I swear I can feel it burning on my skin. When I just gulp in fright and say nothing else (I'm pretty sure she's serious about her threat), she turns around and scoffs. "Now, you two go to the classroom 2-1 for your next exam. I wish you the worst of lucks."


Astrology with Professor Holbrooke should be easy. I think. Just a couple of harmless predictions about the weather or whatever, and she should be satisfied… right? I mean, I'm good at her class! Not the best, of course, but at least I'm not failing.

"Chariot, please come to the front and read the horoscope for this season. It can be yours or someone else's; it's your choice." She calls, and I stand up from where I was before, confident of my abilities but still nervous because, well, it is an exam.

"Right." I quickly say as I get out my wand and cast the projection spell in order to visualize the positions of the stars in a green sphere of light surrounding me. I instantly distinguish some rather contradictory signs (or maybe I'm just bad at understanding what they mean together), but since the future is always open to interpretation, I decide to not take risks and just state what I'm confident makes some sort of sense, at least in my head.

"Well…" I start. "It looks like the next months will be full of challenges and personal growth for me. And, uhm… a blossoming romance?" I blush. Gosh, why did that have to be one of the things I understood? I don't even like like anyone! Yet. I guess.

"Excellent! I knew you could do it." She smiles happily at me, and I instantly return the gesture, feeling proud of my accomplishment. "Croix, your turn now."

"Okay." She says boringly as she prepares to cast the same spell. Meanwhile I dissipate my own. She barely glances at the stars before giving her answer. "So… it looks like the professors of Luna Nova will have a difficult decision to make. Their choice could possibly affect something far greater than this school, and will shape the foreseeable future."

"That's… a very accurate and advanced prediction, actually." Holbrooke answers, impressed, and my jaw drops to the ground. So… she really did see that? Meanwhile I struggled predicting my own future! Why does Croix have to be so amazing all the time? "You both did well, girls." The kind professor smiles. "And you should get going now; you wouldn't want to be late to your next test, right? I believe Professor Babcock will be on charge of it."

Professor Babcock?! Great just when I thought things were taking a turn for the better. She's probably the only professor that hates me almost as much as Finnelan does.


"Miss Meridies, Miss du Nord! You're late!" Professor Babcock chastises us as we enter the classroom.

"Sorry." I say sheepishly.

"We're just in time." Croix contradicts her, crossing her arms over her chest and frowning. The professor, however, just ignores her as she quickly goes to stand in front of two cages, a tiny mouse inside of each one.

"Time is money, so it's better not to waste it. This test will be brief then, so we can come to our decision about your future here at Luna Nova as soon as possible." Babcock says as she picks up a pen and a clip board. "Miss Meridies, you go first." At this, one of the cages disappear and the mouse is left standing confused on the table. "Turn it into whatever animal you want; the better the transformation is, the better your grade."

"Child's play." She shrugs, getting out her wand before pronouncing the spell with ease. "Metamorphie faciesse."

Instantly, a swirl of green magic surrounds the mouse before it's enveloped in a cloud of white mist, emerging transformed into a… dragon?! Did Croix just turned a tiny mouse into a human-sized dragon?! Similar to the one that attacked us in Blytonbury? What a show off!

"A Fruit Dragon?" Professor Babcock raises an eyebrow, apparently unimpressed. "It's missing a few details. For once, the head is too big, and the horns too small. Next time try using something you've seen beyond fairytale illustrations." She scoffs. Even though it was an exact replica of the one we'd seen. Ugh. I hate her. "Miss du Nord, your turn."

"R-right." I stutter out as I ready my wand. I shouldn't feel nervous. Metamorphosis magic is one of the few things I'm good at, after all! But I almost always use it in myself. When I try with other animals… the results are always less than favorable. I should try something simple then. A bat, maybe? I just have to add two wings, right? The body is almost the same.

I concentrate on my own mouse (now outside its cage), but it's difficult when its body isn't mine! It's like there's an invisible barrier between it and me! I can't feel the exact position of its paws, and ears, and nose, and… ugh! I'll just try visualizing the changes it'll have to go through on my head before finally pronouncing the spell. It has worked before. A couple of times.

"Metamorphie faciesse!" I say. And as soon as the words leave my mouth, I find myself no longer standing, but flying on the air, supported by my two wings. Wait, what?

"Disgraceful." Babcock says with a scowl. "You can turn yourself into a very realistic-looking bat, yet you can't manage to do the same to a tiny mouse. I guess that's just a reflection of how self-centered you truly are."

Feeling a pang of pain on my chest, I end the spell and sigh, now in my human form. I'm disappointed on myself, but not really all that surprised. Maybe if I practiced metamorphosis magic on other living beings, like Croix suggested, I could have done decently on this exam. I mean, it's the exact same magic I use every time I do my shows! Just applied on something other than my own body. Maybe I really am too self-centered.

Whatever. It's not like I will be able to change Babcock's mind. I may as well accept my destiny with a brave face.


As we approach the headmistress' office, I start nervously clenching and unclenching my very sweaty hands. My stomach turns painfully and my legs tremble just because of the anxiety this whole thing is giving me. I mean, sure, I did fine in a couple of exams, but… I am the school's troublemaker, and what I did the other day did endanger many lives, even if it wasn't intentional.

I don't think they'll go easy on me. Croix? Sure, they'll spare her with a little more than a light scolding, but me? My only hope is that Holbrooke will have mercy as she usually does.

Suddenly, I feel slim fingers slipping between mine, squeezing my hand in a comforting gesture. I look up and find Croix's teal eyes looking at me in a warm kind of way that makes my heart jump for a totally different reason. And that smile! It's enough to make me forget about all my problems and smile like a fool back at her.

"Everything is gonna be fine. You'll see." She reassures me, squeezing my hand once again for good measure.

"I hope so." I answer. But now the doubts have entered my head again, more so because we've just come to a stop in front of the unmistakable door to Holbrooke's office.

Babcock (who escorted us all the way here) quickly knocks the door and enters without waiting for an answer. Unsurprisingly, standing there in front of the desk at which the headmistress sits, are the other professors that evaluated us today, already waiting for us.

Croix and I follow her in, but unfortunately she lets go of my hand. I guess such a show of affection isn't proper here.

"Professor Babcock. Miss Meridies. Miss du Nord." Holbrooke acknowledges us with a polite nod. "We were waiting for you." There's a tense atmosphere in the room as Babcock goes to join the rest of the professors, who are now staring at my friend and I with serious expressions. Of course, this only makes me get even more nervous.

"As you already know, today we'll be deciding if you are suited to remain attending to this school." Finnelan is the first one to break the silence, speaking in a cold and strict tone, and looking at me with those depreciating eyes I hate so much. "This will, of course, depend on your performance on the tests you just presented." She pauses, and turns to address Professor Nelson, who is next to her. "Professor, please tell us what their grades are on the Flying Magic test."

Professor Nelson steps forward and gets out a notebook, clearing her throat before speaking with what sounds like a resigned tone of voice.

"Well, Croix Meridies did quite well, as expected, despite pausing to try and help her friend. That's why I decided to give her an A+." She pauses, glancing briefly at me before continuing. "On the other hand, Chariot du Nord recklessly tried to show off her skills at flying, which resulted on her falling and getting injured. Then she used some rather… unconventional magic to finish the race, and still arrived after the deadline." She makes a grimace. "I'm therefore forced to give her a B. And I'm being generous, to be honest."

I try to suppress a small whimper, but I guess I failed, judging for the sympathetic glance my friend gives me. I wished I could hold her hand right now! Or hug her! That'd make me feel infinitely better.

"I see." Finnelan nods thoughtfully. "Thank you, professor." Nelson takes her cue and steps back, at which Finnelan turns to acknowledge the (probably) oldest witch in the room. "Professor Lukić…"

"Yes, yes. I'll give my report." She cuts her off, stepping forward and regarding us in the same way a serpent watches it's pray. I'd feel scared if I didn't already know what she's going to say. I just feel… empty. "Miss Meridies' invisibility potion was quite good, but not perfect, so I gave her an A." She pauses, then pointing her bulging eyes directly at me. "Miss du Nord just made a mess and tried to cheat by using an invisibility spell, so I gave her an F."

"Very well. Miranda, please." Finnelan then turns to address the headmistress, who alternates her gaze between her and us, before sighing and getting up from her chair in order to rely her verdict.

"Both girls performed extraordinarily on my test, managing to do some very complicated and accurate predictions. Though I'll admit that Croix's was more advanced. Therefore, I'll give Chariot an A and Croix an A+." She says.

"I see." Finnelan says sourly, obviously not liking the answer, but wisely refraining herself from saying anything else, before addressing Professor Babcock.

"Miss Meridies tried to show off by transforming a mouse into a Fruit Dragon." Babcock starts explaining. "While it wasn't perfect, it was a very advanced transformation and she managed to do it well enough, so I think she deserves an A-." Wow, Croix's lowest grade so far. I don't even want to know how she's going to evaluate me. "Miss du Nord, on the other hand, only managed to transform herself into a bat, instead of the mouse." She scoffs. "For a second-year to struggle with transformation magic is unheard of! So I believe she deserves an F."

I'm not going to say that I wasn't expecting that, but it sure still hurt. My possibilities of remaining a student here at Luna Nova are getting thinner by the second.

"I see." Finnelan nods. "I will also express my opinion then." She pauses, regarding Croix with a strict, but almost gentle, expression as she speaks. "Miss Meridies has proven to be a prodigy in almost all fields of magic time and time again, and today was no exception. Even in the Bird Language exam she performed wonderfully and earned an A+." She then turns to me, and I can't help but cower under her intense glare. "On the other hand, Miss du Nord is nothing more than a troublemaker, and a lazy girl that relies on tricks and cheats to get what she wants. In my opinion, she's a disgrace to this school and to the magic community, and definitely isn't worth all the chances we've given her just because she's, maybe, the descendant of one of the Nine Olde Witches. Which I still seriously doubt." She makes a dramatic pause. "Today's exam of Bird Language was a perfect example for this, as she resorted to the use of transformation magic in order to pass it. Demonstrating, not only that she still can't understand bird language, a skill essential for any witch, but also that she's willing to use magic for her own benefit." She then scowls at me and I cower under her gaze. "Therefore…" She continues. "I'll give her a C-, even if I think she deserves an F, and deem her unfit to remain in this school."

My face drops and my stomach twists painfully, and I have to actually hug my own midsection in order to get some sort of comfort. I mean, I have always known Professor Finnelan despises me, for whatever reason, and absolutely loathes the unconventional ways I use magic. I obviously expected her to say such harsh things about me and yet… her response doesn't hurt any less, nor is it less unsettling. She is the school's counselor, after all, and the deputy headmistress. I can't help fearing the Headmistress will heed her advice.

"Professor Finnelan, don't you think your words are a little too harsh?" Holbrooke speaks up, giving me hope and stopping the stinging tears on my eyes from falling. "What Chariot has done surely doesn't merit such…"

"What Chariot has done?!" Finnelan interrupts her, indignant. "May I remind you that she has been struggling in every subject ever since she was accepted in this school? That she has caused more mischief and found herself in detention far more times than I could count?! That she has cheated on exams, broken the rules and made preposterous shows of magic on numerous occasions? And that she endangered the lives of magicless civilians because of said stupid displays of magic?!" By this point, Finnelan is positively fuming, and I… well, being reminded of all my failures just serves to make my tears fall in rapid succession down my cheeks, the knot on my throat tightening painfully.

"And don't get me started with what she's done to Miss Meridies!" Finnelan continues her angry rant. "I thought them being together would be a good idea; that the prodigy of Luna Nova would be a good influence over this troublemaker, but it was the other way around! Miss Meridies' grades, though still excellent, have dropped enough for her mother to notice, and she has even called to inform me about her concerns! And what can I tell her? That the reason her daughter's performance was affected is a student that should have been expelled a long time ago?" She pauses, trying to regain her composure but failing, her chest still heaving and her face red in anger as she looks at the Headmistress. "We have allowed this to go on for too long! Miss du Nord can't even be deemed a witch when compared with Miss Meridies! You have to acknowledge the problem, Holbrooke, and act rationally for once. She needs to be expelled."

The Headmistress sighs and closes her eyes, intertwining her fingers as she takes a pensive posture. We all hold our breaths as we wait for her decision, but I don't dare hope. Finnelan is right. I'm nothing compared to Croix! She did amazingly today! And all the other days too. While I'm just… a buffoon. Even some first years do magic better than me, so who am I kidding? I'm a failure.

Yet, a tiny spark of hope remains. The part that wishes to see Holbrooke's kind smile, and hear her motherly voice as she gives me yet another chance. As she says she believes in me.

A tiny spark… that is promptly crushed.

"It deeply pains me to say this, Chariot, but…" She takes a deep and shaky breath. "I have to agree with Professor Finnelan. You are no longer suited to remain in this academy."


"Wait… WHAT?" Akko screamed, not believing what her ears had just heard. "You were expelled?! But… You're freaking Shiny Chariot! You're my sensei! You…" She trailed off, agitated and not making sense of anything at all.

"Ah… yes." Ursula said shyly. "Unfortunately, being a troublemaker doesn't exactly get you in good terms with Finnelan. And, although I did know Miranda since I was a child, she too had her doubts from the beginning about accepting a self-taught student into this academy. I believe at the end she decided that, since most professors seem to want me expelled, I was probably better suited for a less prestigious academy, or even that it was best for me to study a non-magical career." She explained, trying to appear calm, but her pals were sweaty and she was looking to the side instead of at her student. She really didn't want Akko to think less of her. "Honestly… I wasn't all that surprised."

"Sensei…" Akko noticed the way Ursula's shoulders tensed, how her fingers were shaking slightly and her eyes were sad, even if she tried to conceal it, and she instantly knew this was still a very sensitive subject for her mentor. So she took her hand as a sign of comfort and smiled at her. "Listen… Finnelan was wrong. She's a bitter old woman who doesn't understand creativity, and progress and anything that differs from her point of view. They shouldn't have expelled you."

At this, Ursula smiled gratefully at Akko and even chuckled a little.

"I know that now." She said. "That's why I stood up for you when they were trying to expel you. It wasn't fair for you, just like it hadn't been fair for me." She paused, and her smile turned happier. "It really isn't fair to compare someone with someone other than themselves, because we're all different."

At this, Akko paused and looked at her sensei with a thoughtful expression.

"Didn't you say something like that to me when I was trying to become Moonlit Witch?"

"Perhaps." She smiled mysteriously.

"But… then what happened at the Samhain Festival? It was only a few weeks away, right? Were you even able to participate after being expelled? I have so many questions!"

The professor laughed at her enthusiasm and tried to calm her down.

"Hold on, Akko. It's already quite late, and this story is pretty long. You should go."

"But sensei…" She whined and pouted adorably.

"Akko, come on, I'll tell you the rest tomorrow, alright?"

"Hmf." She crossed her arms over her chest and huffed indignantly. "Fine. Whatever. But you better tell me the whole thing or I'm gonna riot!" At this, Ursula could just laugh in amusement.

"I'll try."


A/N: Have I ever mentioned I love cliffhangers? XD. But hey, look at the bright side! You'll only have to wait two weeks to read what's next. And anyways, thanks for reaing, I hope you liked this little thing, and that you leave a review/favorite/follow if you did. See you soon!

Thanks to my beta reader monwatcher13.