Disnomia had been practicing creating her wand for about a week when her acceptance letter came in the mail on the 1^st of September. Still getting used to wand making, and refusing to say the incantation. She almost got to the first milestone, but was interrupted by a call to get her mail, and eat dinner.

Disnomia: Mail for me? Wait I know what that is!

She ran down to the dining room to a smiling Patsy and Albus. Who excitedly handed her an envelope with The Academy of Forbidden Magics written in the return address section.

Opening it revealed first the acceptance letter, a list of required supplies, and last the note of medical approval. The latter of which she handed to her parents to sign while she looked at the other two papers to read.

The Academy of Forbidden Magics

From speaker of the year: Professor Alcaster Greene

Disnomia Pagodin, you have been formally accepted into the Academy of Forbidden Magics. Attached you will find a list of required supplies.

Please arrive for orientation on September 30^th

Your first day is October 1^st

Disnomia (bouncing on her feet): YES. I already knew I was in, but it’s special to have the letter.

Patsy: So what supplies do we need?

Disnomia: Hmm, ah

“Supply list:

If you are unable to obtain anything on this list, please send a letter or email to the Academy and it will be covered for you when you arrive. Irrelevant items can be ignored if you will be using an accessibility device instead.

• • • A binder

    • notebooks

    • writing utensils

    • A wand, preferably already operational for magics

If you do not live in Gilded Springs you have automatically been assigned your own room in the repurposed Monastery of the Silver Flowers. Please send a letter or email to the Academy if you do live in Gilded Springs but will be requiring a room.

There is not a uniform, and you may wear what you like within reason. We haven’t needed an official dress code for 84 years. DO not make us implement one. Please bring plenty of clothes.”

Albus: Huh doesn’t seem so bad, how are you doing on that wand making?

Disnomia: I’m doing really good. It felt different like something was about to happen, like the first milestone or something when you two called me down here and I lost it.

Patsy: Aww I’m sorry.

Disnomia: It’s ok, I can always do it again. Let’s eat.

–

And the days of September continued like this, Disnomia creating her wand, having hit 2 milestones by September 20^th. She had noted that as a milestone is reached the magics in the wand feel different, and there’s kind of an electrical spark from the wand.

On one uneventful shopping trip they got the mundane supplies she needed.

Despite the wand making progress she had attained, it was still not good enough for a working one she wanted before going to the Academy. Increasingly desperate by the 25^th, there was a storm outside, and she remembered how wand making kinda worked in a breeze even with her inability to imagine it visually.

Patsy: Dis what are you doing?

Disnomia (Running outside into what she doesn’t realize is a lightning storm): I’m gonna make my wand work before school with the wind!

Patsy: Dis no it’s a-

BANG

Patsy jumped back at the horrendously loud sound and bright light of such a close lightning strike. The lightning that just struck Disnomia.

Patsy: Disnomia, are you ok‽

Disnomia having dropped her wand and recoiled to the ground where she was huddled up, her ears ringing unable to hear.

Patsy: Dis!

Patsy makes her way over to her and hugs her.

Patsy: Dis are you ok.

Disnomia (barely able to hear her): I don’t think it hurt me.

Patsy: Never do anything like that again, grab your wand let’s get back inside.

Patsy had to hold a very shaken Disnomia the whole way back into the house.

Disnomia (about to cry, though her ears getting better): look at my wand.

Patsy: Fuck, you’re lucky it didn’t do that to you.

The base wood part of her wand is burned black, as well as cracked and lumpy, though it doesn’t seem any weaker, in fact it doesn’t act like normal charcoal at all.

Patsy: Dis this isn’t normal.

Disnomia (crying): Huh?

Patsy: Look it isn’t rubbing off on our hands, and it still feels strong. Do you think the magics you already put into it saved it from being completely ruined?

Disnomia (wiping her eyes): You mean I didn’t ruin it… It actually looks kinda cool like this. Maybe we should email the Academy? (to herself) There got it right that time.

Patsy: Ok I’ll go do that and see what we get back. You go calm down with TV, or a book or something, and please don’t go back outside while the storm is raging.

Disnomia: You do not have to worry about that. I’ll go clam down with more normal wand making.

–

Disnomia running back downstairs after only a few minutes.

Disnomia: Mom I started my normal wand making and it’s already filled with magics and fully functional!

Patsy: Yes I know, Alcaster got back surprisingly fast:

“It’s very nice to here from you Ms. Pagodin. Nazzareno finally got me on email after too many years of my refusal when letters are good enough. Now what it sounds like happened is Disnomia made a lightning wand on accident.

Even I had to go back and research this after Disnomia used wind to try and make a wand during her test. There’s a very old way of making wands that was long stamped out and mostly forgotten when I leaned magics all those years ago. This involved using things like a windstorm and telling it to go into the wand, without requiring visualization.

Disnomia was attempting exactly that, however her wand was struck by lightning instead, luckily it seems it already had some magics in it by your description of the aftermath, so it was simply made into a fully working wand and cosmetically transformed by the lighting.

Moreover, it can probably do lighting spells with only a thought and maybe with a flick now, no visualization required. Have her attempt telling it to lash out with little safe sparks.

How do you end these things? I guess like a letter.

From,

Alcaster Greene, Professor of Dark Magics

p.s. She can stop the sparks by telling it to stop, or just letting go of the wand.

p.p.s. She can do normal wand making for maintenance. No need to get struck by lightning again.”

Disnomia excitedly tried as instructed, telling the wand to make safe little sparks in her head, and to her shock, quite literally and figuratively, sparks were coming out of the wand in all directions, giving her hand a tingling sensation.

Disnomia: Haha, little safe sparks from only the tip.

And the sparks ceased everywhere but the tip.

Patsy: That’s amazing sweety, it’s too bad your dad is at work. Though it’s probably for the best he didn’t see the part where you were struck by lightning.

Disnomia stops the little sparks.

Disnomia (sliding her thumb on the now interesting texture of the wand): I can’t wait to show him later, I wonder what else I can do with this?

Patsy: Please be careful, don’t hurt yourself, or the house.

Disnomia: Of course.

Patsy: Maybe you can power the toaster. /s

Disnomia: Wait let’s try that.

Patsy unplugged the toaster, leaving the end of the cord in a good position for Disnomia. Then holding the plunger down after putting bread in it.

Patsy: Whenever you’re ready.

Disnomia not knowing much about electricity just told her wand to send power to the toaster, which it did, way too much in an impressive arc, the power of which was burning out said toaster.

Disnomia (recoiling in fear): Ahh stop, shit…

Oh, it’s alright. I just broke the toaster, sorry.

Patsy (Grabbing her hands): No this was my fault for suggesting you try that. I’m sorry.

Disnomia: I think I need some more time before I do bigger lightning spells like that after being struck by lightning.

Disnomia releasing her mother's hands, opens her arms for a hug, which is gratefully accepted by Patsy.

Patsy: No more telling you to power a toaster with a bolt of lighting through the air, got it. Now do you want to help me with dinner before Albus arrives home from work? Sans toast, haha.

Disnomia (smiling a little): Ya.

–

Later at dinner.

Disnomia (Feeling better after helping with dinner, and squirming with gesticulations while she tells the story): S-so I got struck by lightning! Well more like my wand, but that was actually a good thing, well other than terrifying me. I only hit 2 out of however many milestones for my wand there are, Alcaster didn’t say how the milestones work. Anyway it filled it completely into a working wand! And now it can do lightning magics super easily with just instructions. It also looks really cool now, here I kept it out to show you.

Albus (with his mouth agape): Wow that’s quite the story. And your wand does look even cooler now. At the least it has character. Wait are you ok‽

Disnomia: Ya I’m ok now. I was shaken up by the lightning, and then the massive arc I broke the toaster with…

Albus: What you broke the toaster…

Patsy: I sarcastically suggested she power the toaster, not thinking of what might happen without knowing how it works. The arc of electricity was very cool at least.

Albus (facepalming): You two should have been more careful trying something like that, one of you could have been hurt.

Disnomia: Don’t worry, I’m still a bit freaked out by it and won’t be trying anything with big arcs again until I’m at school.

Albus: Good, and I’m glad you and Patsy are ok.

Patsy: Now who wants soda?

Albus: Sure, thank you.

Disnomia: Me!

–

The remaining days before their plane trip on the 29^th continued typically. Disnomia still practiced wand making, though now wand maintenance. Even doing so far more often than the required once a month as she enjoyed the calming action. And spent the rest of her time watching TV, or reading books.

She had gotten good at mental commands to make static electricity to do fun things like charge and lift her hair, or to the annoyance of her parents, charge surfaces to shock them. The last time earning her a threat to lose her wand until she’s at school, ending those pranks.

–

Finally the day was upon them. Disnomia checked she had everything she needed one last time, her parents also checked their much lesser luggage, they would only be staying a few days to drop her off and make sure she’s ok.

Patsy: Dis are you ok, nervous, excited?

Disnomia: Both, I-I’ve… Never been in a boarding school. And I am excited to learn magics, but what if it’s all as hard as making this wand, before the whole lightning thing anyway.

Albus: Dis, you aren’t going to be the only one struggling with magics. It is a school after all.

Disnomia: I guess you’re right. Can we all hug before we go?

Patsy, Albus: Of course sweety.

They all hug for a moment, then make their way to the airport.

–

They have another uneventful trip through security and boarding the plane, even though Disnomia’s anxiety would suggest otherwise.

–

Patsy: Sweety it’s alright.

Disnomia: I know, I just need a minute.

Albus: Don’t forget her surprise.

Patsy: It’s kinda early for that, they won’t let us turn it on before takeoff, but now that you’ve ruined the surprise…

She fished a box out of her bag and handed it to Disnomia.

Disnomia: Is this a phone‽

Patsy: Yep! So you can stay in contact with us at school. We also put some movies we thought you’d like on it for the plane ride.

Disnomia (giving an awkward hug in the airplane seats): Thank you. You two spoil me.

Albus: Well you’re worth spoiling.

Disnomia happily watched one of the movies during the trip, awkwardly trying to find a way to share the earbuds it came with, with 3 people, ultimately proving futile. Albus wasn’t into the movie anyway, and read a book instead.

–

Finally they arrived at the same motel as last time around 21:00 Arizona time. Though they had a different room, which they promptly crashed in, as they had to get up pretty early for Disnomia’s orientation tomorrow, and were very tired.