CHAPTER 5: A VERY SMALL WISH

After classes, Jill was instructed to go behind the school building to learn the ceremonial song and dance. Grim lacked the patience to watch people rehearse over and over, so Jill once again had to leave Ace with his Grimsitting duties, much to the redhead's chagrin. Jill promised that she'd help Ace with his dorm duties as thanks for taking care of the little direbeast, while Grim acted as if he was doing Ace a favor with his presence.

Jill hurried behind the school building, where an enormous tree stood. There were already plenty of Wishing Stars hung up by strings, making the branches and leaves glow with a bluish-yellowish light. Deuce was already present, and so was Trey, both in their Starsending Robes—Trey's ensemble contained mostly golden stars, save for the sun on his belt and the moon on his crown. Above them, a small boy was tying the Stars to the branches, and Jill's jaw nearly dropped when she realized he was floating.

"All done!" the boy said triumphantly. He floated back down next to Deuce. "Deuce Spade, all your Wishing Stars have been placed!"

"Thanks, Ortho," said Deuce. "That's much faster than me trying to climb the tree myself."

"Deuce, ah… who is this?" Jill asked curiously. This boy seemed too young to attend Night Raven College; he only came up to Jill's chest. He had blue flames in place of hair, and a matching fire on the upper-left side of his chest that flickered with every second. He also had yellow eyes, a mouth covered by a metallic mask of sorts, and a sheen to his white body that made him seem robotic. And he was still hovering a few inches off the ground.

"This is Ortho Shroud, from Ignihyde," Trey introduced. "He's Idia's younger brother."

"Yes, that's right," Ortho confirmed. He floated up to Jill, hand raised. "You must be Jill Bones, from Hallowgrim dorm, formerly Ramshackle dorm," he said.

"That's right. It's nice to meet you," Jill said. She shook his hand, and it felt like cold metal. She retracted her hand and asked, "So, are you wearing armor? You almost look like a… robot."

Ortho scoffed, and Jill noticed that his voice had a slight echo to it. "I'm much more than a robot," he corrected. "I am a technomantic humanoid with a learning AI!"

The goth blinked. "Techno… mantic?" she repeated confusedly.

"Technomancy is advanced technology, even better than magic," Ortho said proudly. "I'll be happy to show you all my functions later, but first, would you like me to hang up your Wishing Stars?"

Jill briefly recovered her composure. "O-Oh yes, sure! Thank you." She gave him the burlap sack, wondering if Grim's wish would be at the top of the tree like the direbeast asked. Oh well. It wasn't like Grim would actually climb the tree to check.

Ortho went to another sack and took out a set of strings. He put his index finger over one of the spikes in a Wishing Star, and there was a brief drilling noise. A tiny retractable drill installed in his finger, it seemed like. Ortho then tied the string through the tiny hole he had made. He did this with a dizzying speed through each and every one of the Stars, and when he was done, he floated up again to hang the Stars on the tree. Jill watched this process with awe, her jaw still stuck open.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Trey commented. "Ortho's been a real help so far. Before this, Stargazers had to drill holes and hang the Stars themselves."

Jill nodded, watching Ortho flit back and forth. "He's amazing… but is he allowed to do this?" she wondered. "Mr. Crowley didn't pick him as a Stargazer…"

"Apparently, Ortho is a special case," Deuce said. "He's a first-year, but he attends Idia's third-year classes. Idia and Ortho are apparently like two halves of the same student."

"So he's like Idia's backup…" Jill glanced around, but there was no sign of Idia anywhere. Not that she would recognize him anyway, as she'd never seen his face.

"Ortho is also the only technomantic humanoid in school," Deuce went on. "Ignihyde is known for top-class technology. Everyone from that dorm is good with computers."

"That's probably why I didn't get into Ignihyde," Jill laughed shakily. "The only technology I'm good with is my old PC from back home."

The thought made her frown. Home… how was everyone doing back in Crittenden? Jill had gone missing for several days now, since she fell through that mysterious door…

"Done!" Ortho floated back down to ground level. "Pretty good, right?" he bragged.

"You did excellent. Thank you, Ortho," Trey said.

The tree wasn't entirely full, but the Wishing Stars were glowing beautifully from the shadows of its canopy. The trio of Stargazers were amazed at they gazed at the tree… but there were still more wishes to collect.

"Well, look at that tree! Fantastic work, all of you!"

It was Headmage Crowley coming up from behind the Stargazers. He had few papers in one of his talon-like hands. "Now that you've gotten the hang of collecting Wishing Stars, it's time to teach you the ceremonial song and dance," he announced. "Of course, I was hoping that all of the Stargazers would be present…"

"Sorry, Headmage. Idia promised to help with the performance remotely, but that's it," Ortho said. "Hang on, I'll call him now." He took a tablet out of a holster attached to his waist. He pressed a button, and it floated in the air, showing the blue triangle on its screen. It looked identical to the one that Idia used inside the auditorium.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm logged in. What'd I miss?" Idia asked idly.

"I'm about to assign the roles for the Starsending song and dance," Crowley said. "Two Stargazers must dance, one must drum, and one must sing. Many news outlets visit every year, so you need to make sure it's perfect."

"Sing and dance… in public?" Jill got another pang of anxiety. She knew the basics of singing and dancing—she did take ballet for awhile, but only through YouTube videos. At the time, she was too self-conscious to learn dancing in a proper studio. She also sang choir and played piano in church from time to time, and only managed to do so because she wasn't the focus. But performing out in the open as the center of attention, without the safety of her bedroom or getting to blend into a crowd… it made Jill want to run and hide.

"Who should sing?" Trey asked. "Honestly, I can't carry a tune in a bucket."

"I'm not much of a singer, either," Deuce admitted. "Jill? Can you sing?"

"I…" Jill gulped, knowing that Idia wouldn't volunteer. "Yeah, I'll sing," she promised. "I've sung before a few times…"

"K, I'll drum," Idia said. "Sounds like the easiest job. I can stay in here and play one of the recordings from last year's drum rehearsals."

"Very unorthodox," Crowley argued. "But I am well-aware of how excessively stubborn you are on not showing yourself…"

"Playing the drum remotely isn't the same as playing it in person, though…" Jill said quietly. "It won't sound as good."

"Oh, ROFL, new kid thinks she's level 100 in music," Idia snorted. Okay, Jill officially didn't like this guy.

"For your information, I do know about music!" Jill argued. "I can play piano, and I've sung in choir! There's a big difference between playing an instrument and just playing a recording!"

"There is?" Ortho asked curiously.

"Of course there is!" Jill said, getting a little heated. "Song and dance are tied to the performer! It's all about expressing yourself, and doing it through a machine just defeats the whole point—"

"Okay, okay, newbie. Simmer down," Idia snapped. "You are literally the only person who cares. If you joined us in this century, you'll find that this is the better way."

Jill crossed her arms, turning away from the tablet. "Hmph!"

Trey glanced away awkwardly away. Deuce openly glared at the tablet. Ortho seemed to be lost in thought, looking up towards the Wishing Stars.

Crowley cleared his throat. "Miss Bones, since you'll be the singer, I'll entrust the song to you," he said.

"Thank you, Headmage," Jill said. She took one of the papers from his hand, and saw that it had lyrics on it. Even better, it was the lyrics to When You Wish Upon a Star. Jill's nervousness was fading away. She had to prove herself to Idia, and this was such an easy, familiar song!

"In that case, Deuce and I will dance," Trey said.

"Sounds good," Deuce agreed. "What kind of dance is this?"

Crowley handed them papers that illustrated their routine. Jill glanced over Deuce's shoulder to look. The paper depicted a duo of Stargazers stepping in and out, while waving their wands to the beat.

"This looks a little complex," Deuce said worriedly.

"It only seems that way on paper," Trey assured him. "We may as well rehearse."

"I have the recording ready to go," Idia said. "Ortho, set the tablet between the dancers, okay?"

"Got it!" Ortho moved the tablet in position, and Trey and Deuce flanked Jill. Jill stepped up front, and when Idia started the drumming, she sung the song the way she'd always heard. Slow and steady, like a lullaby…

"No, no, Miss Bones," Crowley said. "You're singing it far too slowly. It must be more cheerful, more upbeat!"

"Huh?" Jill knew that When You Wish Upon a Star was slow and melancholic, the way she heard it back in the Pinocchio movie. How could it be cheerful and upbeat?!

"If you can't do it, I can replicate your voice into an AI and use that for you," Idia said.

"I can do it by myself!" Jill insisted. "I just need to change my tempo, that's all!"

"Guys, please don't fight," Ortho said. "I know you can do it!"

"I'll leave you all to practice," Crowley said. "Let me know if you have any concerns." He walked away, leaving Jill suddenly unsure if she could do this at all.

"Try it like this." Trey hummed a bar in the same tune as the song, but with a much quicker tempo.

"Oh, I think I got it now. Hit it again, Idia!" Jill ordered.

Idia started the music, and Jill sang again in the tempo that Trey had hummed earlier. It seemed jauntier and happier with a faster pace, almost like a jazz number. Idia's 'drumming' was flawless, mainly because he was just playing a recording. Trey was stepping in and out as the instructions told him to, but Deuce was stumbling. He held the paper in one of his hands, watching it as he danced at a slow pace, and nearly tripped over the tassels on his robe.

Finally, the song ended. Deuce was still looking over the notes, aware of how poorly he had done.

"That wasn't bad for a first try," Ortho said.

"I'll keep practicing," Deuce promised. "Though I think it would be better if you showed up in person, Idia."

"Ha! Not with you newbs!" Idia said. "Maybe if you guys were better performers, I might consider it."

"Is that a promise?" Jill asked him.

"…That was a joke." Idia logged out, leaving the tablet blank.