I couldn't help myself. I jump back in surprise, eyes wide. Then I remember who it is, and I quickly steel myself.

He chuckles at my distress. "How good it is to see you again, madam. Wherever have you been?" He draws out his long, slivery tongue.

I cringe both internally and externally.

"That is none of your concern, I did not call for you. Leave us!" Grabiner orders.

With a dangerous scowl, the manus evaporates, but not before it leaves me with a few parting words. "Until next time, my delicioussss missstressss…"

The professor cracks his knuckles with the force his fists are clenching.

D-delicious? I shoot him a worried glance.

"I will not let him harm you. Ignore him, he is merely being an ass."

Woah. I don't think I've ever heard you cuss before.

He sighs. "That is why I have been unable to send you a letter. My periods of privacy are brief, and at times I find myself overwhelmed, especially since I must tend to the students. Covering Petunia's courses is an additional source of distraction."

I'm still shaken by the hungry look in the manus's eyes. Not even hungry. Starving. As if he hasn't seen food in years. He looked at me as if I were the most delectable morsel he's ever seen.

The professor and I manage a bit of small talk before I excuse myself from his chambers. I make sure to tell him that Papa will expect letters of my progress if I'm going to be staying, especially if I don't return for the rest of the summer and follow up through the upcoming school year from here.

I walk back to my room, feeling as though I'm being watched.

I slump back onto my bunk. The small, plain room highlighted by my splash of color and decoration. Yet, without the fuzzy blonde head and fiery dreads of my sleeping roommates, it seems so empty. I'm going to add more actually. Yeah, that would be a good idea, help me keep my mind off of things. Without a moment's rest I get back up from my bed, and start to work with the rest of my crafting kit. I still have colorful shards of glass, pretty marbles and shiny metals to work with. I have beautiful stones left as well. Turquoise, quartz, amber, coral. Let's see, what should I make?

I already have a dream catcher, and I used to have my wreath here, but heaven knows that was a disastrous idea. Hmm. I look back at the ceiling. No more illusions. I want to do this by my own hands. I'm going to decorate that ceiling. And it'll only be over my bunk so Ellen can't complain about anything falling down or dripping or whatever.

I spend the entirety of the evening creating hanging charms. I manipulate the glass to shape stars and suns and moons. I integrate the rocks and marbles to bear the likeness of elemental symbols. Fire, water, earth, air, etc. There are a few random shapes tossed in there as well. I arrange the rest of the material to make up the sky, ground, grass and trees. Small animals littered here and there, rain, snow, wind… All molded together in an ecstasy of color, forming a mosaic-stain-glass sort of contraption. It looks like a spiked wheel, quartered into sections with different seasons and scenes etched in. The charms are attached to their appropriate areas. I take a closer look at it and realize what it looks like.

"Huh. I made a magick circle."

I look at my blistered fingers, the tips sore and red, my palms swollen and calloused. A labor of love, I think to myself. I toss off my clothes and sleep only in my underwear, not bothering to heal myself. I'm proud of these worn hands. I'll find some way to hang it up in the morning.

A light knocking rouses me from my sleep. "If you would?" His haughty voice calls through.

Knowing better, I call back. "Give me a moment!" I quickly dress and smooth out my hair. Hoping my breath doesn't stink and having finished picking at my face for any morning crust, I open the door.

"Good morning to you."

I cover my mouth for a yawn. "Good morning."

"I am here to give you proper instruction. You should be informed that Monday through Friday remedial courses are available should you wish to engage in extra study. However the sessions are half of the usual length and unlike the system you are accustomed to the courses are already pre-set in schedule. On Mondays red courses are available, Tuesdays are when I shall be teaching blue magick, and the rest of the week is set for Petunia's subjects. Wednesday is reserved for green, Thursday for black, and Friday is the white course. I doubt you will occupying time and space there. Saturday is free for individual study and detention."

He still isn't free on Saturdays. And they bother with detention during summer school? Whatever. I bet he enjoys it.

So instead of the usual two-hour class periods I'm allowed an hour class everyday and rather than having the option of which class I feel like taking that day, I simply choose which day I want to learn what. Meaning it's exactly the same except it's easier. And apparently I'll have every Friday off.

"Thank you, that's helpful to know."

"As today happens to be Sunday, I am free to begin your tutoring. I encourage you to seek me out for your exercises Wednesday through Friday and on Sundays. Petunia has informed me that she refuses to instruct you when I am more than capable on my own. That does not mean she will not appear once in a while to check up on your progress."

I roll my eyes. "So she's forcing us to spend more time with each other and she pretty much admitted that she's going to peek when she feels like it."

"Indubitably."

"What time should I report in?"

"7am is suited to my schedule. As for the end time, I shall use today as a gauge of how long you should endure these practices."

I look at the clock. "But it's already 10:34."

"Indeed. Which means you are already late. Let us be on our way."

Already late? I better not get detention for something that was your idea! "Alright, but let me at least take a quick shower first."

"No need."

"What do you mean-?"

He swipes his wand across the air forward of my face. I feel a cool, refreshing sensation, as if my entire body has been doused in peppermint. Then I can feel myself awakening and rejuvenating. The icky, morning grimy-feeling has gone and my mouth even feels cleaner.

"A basic hygienic spell. Useful when one is running short of time. You are now bathed and dried. I even had the courtesy to brush your hair."

I touch the top of my head. My frizzy head is no longer tangled and knotted. Still wild, but I can actually run my fingers through it. "Impressive!" I say happily.

He looks proud of himself. "Go on, get dressed. Meet me in the conference room no later than 10:45."

"Mhm." I nod.

He nods back, and teleports in a second.

I swipe my sleepwear for jeans, sneakers and a white t-shirt. No point in trying to look pretty for him, especially if his sessions are going to be anything like Papa's. I tie my jungle into a loose, low bun that has a long tail of hair dangling from it.

I meet him in the conference room.

"Do you have any questions before we begin? We would be starting with analysis firsthand anyway, the physical practice will commence shortly after."

So group discussion first? No prob. An interesting thought crosses my mind. "Actually I do have a question."

"Ask away."

"Not so much about what we will be doing, but about the school."

He urges me to continue.

"I'm confused. There are over two hundred students in the entire academy, and only two professors currently. Classes may be two hours long, but there is an hour and a half breakfast and lunch-break to consider. Even though I take one class per day, you don't. You still have the higher grades to teach, and you teach more than one subject. How is this even remotely possible?"

He snickers.

I wasn't expecting that. Why is he laughing?

"You seem to forget that you are student of a magickal academy. The possibilities are beyond the mundane grasp."

"Even with magick, how can you teach two subjects at the same time? The schedule is free-ranged. You have to be available every day for both blue and red class because we as the students can decide which we take and when. I can comprehend working long hours for your red class, in order to cram the entire student body in and make time for them to each get a shot at red magick. But how is this possible if blue is scheduled for the exact same time? Ginia has gone to take your red course while I head off to take blue. And we both see you that same day, she doesn't know how it works either. It's baffled me for the longest now."

He chuckles again. "She is not supposed to know. That would break the illusion."

I tilt my head, completely lost.

He straightens himself. "Breakfast is served from 6-7:30 am. Courses begin at 8am. Students are only allowed one course per day for a maximum of two hours at a time due to the strenuous nature magick can have on the body. The courses are separated by age-grades. Freshman courses and sophomore classes are held in the morning. That is from 8am to noon. Where the lunch break spans from noon to 1:30pm. Starting at 2pm the juniors and seniors have their courses available from 2- 6pm. Where the school day ends and dinner is served until 8pm. There is a four-hour window for the courses because they are taken one right after the other. Broken down, it runs like this: Freshman receive the earliest classes, the 8-10am courses. Sophomores are scheduled from 10am-noon. There is the lunch break. Then juniors are scheduled from 2-4pm. And finally the seniors are scheduled from 4-6pm. You would not have known until the upcoming term began."

I think I'm getting it. That explains how all of the grades have time to take their courses. Much easier than in high school when everyone started and left at the same time. But we had a lot more teachers to compensate that. One for each subject. Each subject for each grade.

"That still doesn't explain how you can be in two places at the same time. That schedule is air tight. Where do you make time to teach blue class? And what is this 'illusion' you mentioned?"

He looks all-too-pleased with himself. "Again. This is a magickal establishment. You are aware of casting illusions. Or am I mistaken? If that is the case then I am assigning you to my remedial blue courses immediately, followed by a well-deserved detention."

I gasp. Is it really that simple?! It's just an illusion of himself in the classroom?! "Wait, it's a literal illusion?"

"Yes."

HOW?! I mean, not how. Why? I mean, maybe not why… But. Really?!

He seems to read my mind. "I can appear in two locations simultaneously because I can simply project an image of myself in the other classroom while I remain in my chosen one. I am never in the same classroom twice mind you. That is why the students do not rebel, there is never a certainty that the professor they are facing is an illusion. And with the aid of white magick, my mind can expand its consciousness. I am aware of all that occurs, and my projected self will react with real emotion and logical thought. It is after all, my actual mind. Just not always my physical body."

"S-s-so. You can split your mind to reach the other courses. And that is how you can remember, react and respond with authenticity. You are in two places at once. Just not physically."

"Now you understand. Be convinced that my physical self is never far behind, so should any truancy occur, I will be there to deliver appropriate punishment. I am merely a classroom away. Not idling lounging in my chambers. Be sure not to make that assumption."

Unbelievable. Will I be able to do that? …I seem to break all the rules, I bet I could if relies more on white magick than blue. But still. That's just. Mind-boggling!

"How else would Petunia be able to perform her duties as Headmistress and teach three subjects for her entire academy? She is never there. Most of her time is spent in her office. However, she does make room in her busy schedule to attend all celebrations and ceremonies in the flesh. It is something of a personal matter to her."

I would've never thought.

He sits himself at the table. "On to business. Tell me, how far has your current magick progressed? What spells are at your disposal?"

Oh YEAHHH. "If I tell you. You have to believe me. Alright?"

He raises an eyebrow.

I don't move a muscle.

"I will consider your words truth."

"All of them."

His eyes bulge. "Come again?!" He rises from the table.

I motion my hands for him to remain calm. "It's true. I've learned all of the spells in the student spell books. For every subject."

He sits, a hand to his hat. "Incredible…"

"You should also know, even though The Headmistress came up with this plan as a cover up, ever since the previous letter, I've been training with Papa to hone my skills with a wand."

"Have you? Did it work? What methods did he use?"

I shrug. "We've been dueling."

"Dueling?!" He shouts.

I put my hands up again. He catches himself, and slowly exhales. "You have been dueling… With The Tempest."

"Uh-huh."

He puts a hand to his mouth. "Go on." He waves his other hand for me to keep talking.

I describe with extra detail the amount of fighting I've done this summer. How I've had to be on guard every day since that previous letter, the experimenting we've done, the strategies we've used. The outcomes of every duel. He urges me to go into depth about Papa's fighting style.

At the end of it, when there are no more questions to ask, no more things to recap, he sighs.

"Your grandfather has a very… 'Straightforward' way of dealing with things."

I smile a little. "I know. That's just how he is. But it worked. Sort of. I can duel without breaking my wand now."

"But you still cannot use it. And you could not reach that point without injuring yourself first."

I look away.

"At the very least, you know how to defend yourself. I will leave that in his capable hands."

He looks back to me. "What surprises me most is how brutal he sounds- coming from you. For someone he constantly dotes on, I at least expected him to show some restraint."

I rub my shoulder, almost feeling the sting of Papa's blade. "The fact that I'm not maimed or crippled is proof that he shows restraint. Other than that, if Papa ever goes any easier on you he must not like you very much."

"Mm. I will take that into consideration."

"Trust me, he may spoil me now. But when I first met him, he was nothing but a hard-ass. He had his soft spots, yes. Still, you haven't seen him tutor me. The man demands nothing less than perfection."

Grabiner sniffs a smile.

"Um. Anyway, it's not that surprising. Well, it is. But… Based on my track record, maybe I should've seen something like this happening. After all, if I can feel it I can learn it."

He crosses his arms. "But what we must teach you is not to feel. It is dangerous to rely on your emotions to protect you. And not just dangerous, but foolhardy. Free-caster or not, you still possess an immense amount of mana, with or without a catalyst. Your mana capacity has no relation to your method of spell casting, that, I am certain of. In fact, I surmise your mana levels are what make it possible for you to execute your spells so proficiently. The nature of your magick may allow you to learn and develop skills early, but to be able to master them in such a short time frame is purely thanks to your mana supply. It has already been proven here, in the academy. The other students may grasp the theory and execution of a spell, meaning, theoretically they already know how to cast it. But when a student lacks the mana to power that spell, all of the aforesaid knowledge is useless. For you, that is not the case. All you require is a vague awareness of the spell, perhaps a general definition, and there you have it. What takes others time, study and practice, takes you one moment of light reading. If your mind knows what it is, then more often than not, you are already capable of the action. It is most likely, one of the defining factors that keep you stable. I have seen for myself when your magick goes haywire. Having extra mana to spare must be what keeps you from draining your soul dry."

I never thought of it that way.

"I can see why there is much concern. Strong emotion from me causes magickal reactions, and magickal reactions equates to the loss of my mana. Any other student could throw a temper tantrum and not accidentally kill themselves from using up their supply. I'm using mana on a constant basis… I get it now! I suppose that makes it especially worrisome for a teenager."

He groans. "Indeed. If everyone possessed the same method of casting as you do, the school surely would already be burned down to the ground. I can trust that you see my point now."

"I do."

"For one reason or another, your mana supply is huge. That plays in our favor. Another important detail to highlight is that you possess steady control over your emotions, and your magick."

"Is that a compliment, sir?" I say with a grin.

"Again, I have seen it for myself. You do not shatter a window every time you are excited, you do not spark a fire every time you are upset. Only in extreme situations are risks like these evident. On the other hand, you appear so in tune with yourself, that those extremes are quite rare. You are not quick to burst, you are not easy to offend. That is why you still stand here today. Something your mana would not be able to protect you from forever. It is your intelligence and maturity that allow you to wield that peculiar magick. Mana merely speeds up the process of mastery."

Oh my, I think I'm going to blush.

He lifts a finger. "That, is the critical difference between your current magickal capabilities, and juvenile magick. There is a refinement to it. There is progress and skill. It is not mere randomness, it is not pure chance. It is decisive action. The danger remains that not everyone and anyone will be able to handle such a burden, for that would demand a balanced temperment. In theory, one could learn to do what you do. Through meditation and things of the sort. Would the verocity of their magick be as stagnant as yours? No. Such things can only be affirmed by the individual. But still, possible it is."

He looks, intrigued by the thought. There is a sinister glimmer in his eye, one I should be cautious of.

"In other words. My magick is tricky. But not impossible. It's one of those things that anyone can learn but not everyone can master. And my mana doesn't make my magick, my mind does. The mana I have is what's allowing me to learn so fast though. There's so much to spare that I greatly reduce the amount of practice and study time."

He nods. "That is exactly my view on the matter."

I huff.

"So what's so bad about it?!" I throw my hands up.

He looks alarmed. "Why does this distress you so?"

"I have mastered free-casting. The risks are mine to take. I have never had an issue with my natural magick. It's trying to do this catalyst method that causes destruction! That's the real problem. Not me. If I'm fine where I am, why are you two trying to change that? Why are you trying to change me?"

He sighs. "It is not that simple." He wipes his brow. "In an ideal world, no one would judge you. In fact, you would be respected and admired for being able to control such immense power, especially at your tender age. You would be deemed nothing less than a prodigy- but such a world does not exist. People fear what they do not understand, and when people fear something enough, it sparks hatred and violence. Our society is not so savage as they would go to the lengths of jailing or killing you, merely for being different. You would surely be ostracized, shunned, even resented. You are not just unique in terms of being wildseed, not just for being human, not for being female, not just for being young."

His eyes go grave.

"No one else on this earth can do what you do, Lumina."

...

"Not on record, not properly registered, not that we know of. That is why it is essential you learn the standard method. The Grand Council is not even aware of the fact that you can free-cast. To our society, it was the earliest form of magick. It is history. Something our ancestors did, not something we do now. If word got out that you can consciously free-cast, it would cause an uproar similar to if you were the first person to succeed in resurrection."

My mind remains blank.

"In life or death scenarios, these stigmas do not apply. I am not telling you to give up your magick, I am not telling you to cease being who you are. I am asking you to let us in. To make room for another method. You do not strictly need to lose one to obtain the other."

I bite my lip and look down. "I understand." I whisper.

"If that is truly the case, then it is about time we put theory into actual practice."

He extends a hand to me, I take it, not sure of what to expect. The next thing I know we're in the dungeons. I cast Awareness.

"You used a spell just now, what was it?"

"I'm sorry. It's a force of habit. I always cast Awareness at the start of every exam."

He relaxes. "A practical strategy." He comments.

This dungeon is very low, I can sense that we're unbelievably deep into the ground. It is a large, expansive room, endless, tall and wide. Stretching in every direction. It seems familiar. "Is this the final exam dungeon?"

"For your freshman class, yes."

It feels so hollow without the little beasties skittering about.

I'm instructed to cast every spell I know, starting with black and ending with white.

I'm able to cast every single black spell, leaving me about half of my energy left.

He hurriedly writes notes down in a small logbook that appeared out of nowhere.

I move onto green, which I easily follow through with more than enough to spare.

After I finish green, I move onto blue. I do manage to duplicate maybe 3/4 of the material before I need a recharge.

Red uses up all of my power a quarter of the way in. It's just too much for me.

This surprises him, and he recommends I visit his red course at least once next week.

Finally my white magick.

He's insanely strict about it. I'm not allowed to cast Call, Ward, Spirit Echoes or anything else that could attract dormant spirits or slumbering creatures. Which is a bummer, because that's what I'm good at. I can easily cast all of the white spells two or three times over without running out of mana. This he hums and nods fervently at. Scribbling away maybe four pages of notes!

He mentions my quirks, that is, things I can do not taught in the spell books, and I perform them, but he seems unimpressed.

Finally, he recharges my mana again. Although I'm physically fine, mentally, I'm exhausted. How long are we going to do this? When am I going to use a catalyst?

"This little session will prove quite fruitful to my research."

"How does this help me learn to use a catalyst?"

I am ignored. "Petunia must be informed of this at once." He turns to me. "I wish you had told me sooner. Preferably before the school year ended."

I squint. "There were a lot of other, magnanimous things going on besides my splendid education, Professor."

He clicks his tongue and turns away.