Disnomia was rudely awakened at 7:00 by the morning bell, which was inexplicably the sound of a crowing rooster played over a speaker in her room.
Disnomia: Gah what, w-where am I? Oh, just magics school. Hmm they didn’t give me a clock, I guess I’ll have to get my phone.
What the hell it’s 7:01! What time does class start?
She grabs the schedule from her desk.
Disnomia: Not till 9:00! Wait, ok looks like they give us time to get ready, and breakfast is served from 7:30 to 9:00. Guess I’ll shower then.
After a shower, of which she had to wait a few minutes for as other students were using the showers already. Disnomia finished getting ready, wrapping her air conditioning jacket that had been diligently charged every week around her waist in case the classrooms were hot. Then not seeing her friends, went to the cafeteria for breakfast.
Disnomia found her friends on their way to sit down.
Alceste: There you are, what did you shower?
Disnomia: Um, yes?
Uriel: Ha, I told you, you owe me 5 bucks. Oh and here, we got a tray for you Dis.
Disnomia (taking the tray while smiling): Thank you, it’s perfectly normal to shower in the morning.
Alma: We all skipped.
Disnomia: Even you skipped showering?
The group sits down at the end of a table, next to some other students.
Alma: Ok that’s not completely true. They skipped, I got up early to shower before everyone else.
Disnomia: That does sound more like you.
Uriel: So what was with your dad yesterday?
Alceste: Uriel!
Alma (in a quiet voice, shrinking on herself a little): He’s. He’s just like that.
Alceste (glaring at Uriel, and putting a hand on Alma’s shoulder): You don’t need to talk about it.
Alma (smiling a little): Thanks.
Disnomia (bouncing on the spot a little): Hey we’ll have plenty of time before class. After we finish eating how about I show you some magics?
Alma: I’d love that.
Girl: Sorry to overhear, but can we come too? I’m Scarlet and this is my friend Amity.
Disnomia (looking to her friends for approval): Uhhhhh.
Alceste: Yes of course, you’re fine with that right Dis?
Disnomia: Ya. Oh, I’m Disnomia, she’s Alceste, she’s Alma, and he’s Uriel. It’s nice to meet you.
Scarlet and Amity: It’s nice to meet you too.
–
They make there way outside, and stop in front of the statues in the middle of the magics classrooms, everyone but Disnomia sitting on the brick bench to watch.
Disnomia: Ok, so my wand is special and I can do lightning or electric magics very easy. Like I can make static electricity about it, and it will attract my hair. Like this!
Amity: That’s it! That’s your magic?
Disnomia: W-we-
Amity: Can’t you do anything better?
Scarlet: Amity, you’re being mean.
Amity: I’m being mean, look at what she brought us here to see!
Scarlet: We butted in remember.
Disnomia lashes out with a bolt of lightning from her wand to the statue of Nazzareno behind them, startling everyone with a deafening bang, followed by ringing ears.
Alceste: (unrecognizably muffled)
Disnomia (Even she cannot here this): I hope that was good enough for you, I’m going to class.
She runs off to the 1st-4th year basic magics classroom.
Inside she finds a slightly cold room with many desks, with plenty of room for walking down the sides and middle of the room. Decorating the walls are various posters, seemingly on magical concepts, and some just decorative or motivational. At the back behind a desk with photos and various items, is a chalkboard, a rolled up projector screen, and a door to some other room.
Entering a minute or two later while she looks around, is a man resembling the statue she just electrocuted. He’s bald with brown eyes, and simple monk robes.
Nazzareno (very difficult to hear): Are you alright? I just finished healing your friends ears.
Disnomia: What?
Nazzareno (still difficult): Oh right you can’t hear me.
He waves his wand to cast a spell.
Nazzareno (in Disnomia’s head): There, you should be able to hear me this way, and I can hear you. I’m Nazzareno, I saw what happened and already fixed your friend’s ears. Please allow me to fix yours.
Disnomia (wiggling her toes): Wha- huh. This so so weird, ummmm. Hello Nazzareno, I’m Disnomia. And yes, please fix my ears.
He walks up to her, waves his wand again, and Disnomia experiences the bizarre and extremely uncomfortable sensation of her ears repairing themselves. Shaking her forearms in disgust.
Nazzareno (out loud and in her head): There, that should be better now.
Disnomia: Gah
Nazzareno (canceling the telepathy spell): Oh sorry double voice is not pleasant, how are your ears?
Disnomia: That, that was awful. But they seem fine now, thank you. Wouldn’t they have healed on there own?
Nazzareno: Yes they would have. But. All of you, especially you, would probably have had permanent hearing damage from that if it were allowed to heal normally, and magical healing to fix it at that point would be extremely difficult. So you’re very welcome.
Disnomia: Oh. Thank you again. Too bad you weren’t there when my wand got struck by lightning while I was holding it.
Nazzareno: Hmm, I did hear of that. I’ll be ordering all of you hearing tests anyway. You’ll find out if there was lasting damage then. Now I have to goto my classroom and make sure I’m ready for today. I’ll send your friends in, and you can find seats while you wait for Professor Ashen. Have a good first day Disnomia.
Disnomia: Thanks, you too.
Her face turns red after she realizes what she said.
Nazzareno: haha. If only I could have gone here as a student.
Nazzareno leaves the room, and soon her friends, and 2 new acquaintances she’s not sure about after what just happened come inside.
Alceste: Are you ok? Do you want a hug? How are your ears?
Disnomia: I-I. I’m ok, slow down please.
Alceste hugs her. Which Disnomia happily accepts.
Alceste: Seems your ears are fine then. Have you found us a place to sit?
Disnomia: Uh no, but no one else is here yet. What time is it anyway?
Alma: It’s 8:20, we’re here quite early.
Disnomia: Well why don’t we sit here, and we can find something to watch on my phone.
Scarlet: Can me and Amity join you?
Disnomia: If you apologize Amity. P-Please.
Amity: No, I made a perfectly reasonable observation. I’ll go read my book over here, you can sit with static hair if you want Scarlet.
Disnomia takes a seat, and they crowd around her to see her phone.
Scarlet: I’m sorry about Amity. I don’t really have an excuse for her.
Alceste: Why do you hang out with her?
Scarlet: She protected me from mean kids at our children’s magics school. Anyway I’ll leave you to it, thanks for the show. That lightning was awesome, if scary.
Uriel: You’re sure you don’t want to sit with us.
Scarlet: I’m sure, thank you.
Uriel: So what do you got to watch?
Disnomia: Um, does anyone know the WiFi password?
Alceste: The Academy has WiFi?
Disnomia: Ya right here, unless the one named “The Academy’s Magical WWW Portal” belongs to someone else.
Uriel, Alceste: pffft
Alma: Try open sesame.
Disnomia: Surely not.
Alma: Have you talked to Alcaster for more than 5 minutes? He’s so dramatic, yet goofy. If everyone else is like him the password will be something like that.
Ashen: That’s a good guess, but no.
They all turn around with a start.
Disnomia: Told you.
Uriel: How long have you been there?
Ashen: I heard the part where you wanted the WiFi password. It’s Unlock, with a capital U by the way. What do you need it for?
Uriel: We were just going to find something to watch on Disnomia’s phone while we wait for class to start.
Alceste and Alma: That password sucks.
Ashen: Take it up with the Institute, they setup that stuff for us. Now I’ll leave you to enjoy your video while I make sure I’m ready for the day, and we wait for class to start.
–
Soon enough it was time for the now full and murmuring class to start, interrupting the fascinating documentary on kharkovchankas they were watching.
Ashen: Silence please… (He waits for the class to gradually silence) Welcome first years, to your first class at The Academy of Forbidden Magics! Most of you said hello to me last night, but for those who did not; I am Professor Ashen, you may call me Ashen.
I am your basic magics professor. I will teach you pretty much anything that doesn’t belong in one of the other magics classes. Maybe you want to levitate something, or perform a teleportation without a ritual. That second one is a bit advanced actually, you’d probably learn that from my brother. I hope you get the point though.
Some students look at him in awe.
Ashen: Now before we move to introductions and questions. If any of you do not yet have a working wand, you are to report to me at 9:00 for help completing that over the next 3 days. Don’t worry there are no classes tomorrow, we just quite like continuing the tradition of technically starting on October 1st.
On to introductions, you do not have to participate if you do not want to. As I said I am Professor Ashen. As you can see I am a werewolf, you should know this by now, but I am not dangerous. Just stay away from my saliva. Which to that end, I am sorry to say students are not allowed to pet me.
Many in the class express their disappointment.
Ashen: A student with a cut on their hand did actually get infected doing that. If you want to know more about werewolves you can use the library.
Now I’ll call role, and if you would like to introduce yourself or ask me a question, you may do so. In no particular order… Ava Shaw
Ava: I’m here, and er. I was wondering what your vision is actually like. You know since you’re a wolf.
Ashen: Oh a werewolf question that a book won’t give you a great idea of. I will prepare a spell that gives you wolf vision using a mental filter for our first lesson. Anything else Ava?
Ava: No, that sounds really cool, thank you.
Ashen: You’re welcome Ava. Fabrice Aubert.
–
After getting through all of the students who wanted to share, or ask questions, it was time to make their way to the next class, Dark Magics.
Disnomia: Is anyone else excited for that lesson?
Uriel: What less- oh! The wolf vision one. I am, but I’d be excited for just about any lesson.
Alma: Eh, it’s not particularly amazing.
Alceste: I think it’ll be really cool. Uriel, Alcaster is the Dark Magics professor. Are you good?
Uriel: Ya. I’ve been psyching myself up all day. Let’s do this.
They walk into Alcaster’s classroom, and are met with a dark room with high shuttered windows, a chalkboard, bare wood paneled walls, a similar desk arrangement, and only candles in chandeliers and wall sconces to light the room. Alcaster is not in the room.
They find unoccupied desks to sit together, which isn’t too difficult as not everyone has filtered in yet. Soon enough after everyone is in. Alcaster dramatically emerges from the entrance to the class rather than his office.
Alcaster: Why is it so dark in here? You’d think they had a vampire teaching you.
He gets some chuckles as he uses magics to open the shutters.
Alcaster: Hello class, I am your Professor of Dark Magics, Alcaster Greene, please do call me Alcaster. For those of you who have already gone to children’s magics schools, you will be more familiar with this subject being called combat magics. Here at the Academy though it has always been called dark magics. This dates back to my and Nazzareno’s training at The Monastery of the Silver Flowers, back when it was still in Italy, and researched and guarded magics for the Catholic Church.
But enough of that, I will take role, and if you’d like to introduce yourself to me you may. I know you just did this in Ashen’s class, so I will have no hard feelings if most of you don’t.
–
Alcaster: Alma Magister.
Alma: Here. Um Prof-Alcaster. You said the monastery used to guard magics for the church. Did you agree with that?
Alcaster: Kids these days ask such heavy questions. No I did not agree, however I was in no position to do anything about it for many, many years. You may consult the library, or a history professor if you want to know the details.
Alma: Thanks.
Alcaster: Ava Shaw.
–
Alcaster: Ok wow I wasn’t expecting that many of you to want to talk, we still have time for a little demonstration though. Raise your hand if you have experience running rituals before. Ok a lot of you, good. Now who is unafraid of blasting me with a fireball? Oh a lot fewer of you now haha. How about Uriel. (He gives Uriel a wink)
Uriel: Alright, what do I have to do?
Alcaster: Just stand here where I’m pointing, then face me, and touch your wand to the ritual on this little table and will your magics into it, to run it. I will demonstrate the most basic defense spell, dissipation. Which we will be learning starting Monday. Now when you’re ready, please do run it.
Uriel runs the ritual and an angry blue fireball lashes across the air at Alcaster, who deftly stares it down. The fireball spluttering and loosing its brilliant blue down to crackling oranges, but he fails to fully dissipate it, some of it hitting him square in the chest. Knocking him back a bit.
Uriel cheers a little.
Alcaster: Masterful execution Uriel, not everyone puts enough energy into that ritual to run at its full power first try. Now class you see what can happen if your own defense spell is not strong enough, only a partial dissipation. As a vampire it did not hurt me, one of you would not be so lucky, which is why we start the class with learning to do this properly. I do need a drink though after that, the dissipation spell takes the energy from the spell you’re stopping, and puts it in you which is bad for vampires, let alone the rest of the fireball that did hit me. It will be very useful if any of you ever do need to defend yourselvs however. Anyway, enjoy your next class everyone, you’ll love Nazzareno.
Uriel and Disnomia walk up to Alcaster.
Uriel: Thank you for that, I guess you’re not as bad as I thought.
Alcaster: You’re welcome. I’m sorry for how I hurt you, and you too Disnomia. I have already long made sure to tell all the professors to never use that test again.
Uriel (While walking off): See you in the next class Dis.
Alcaster: What did you need Disnomia?
Disnomia (twisting her hands together): Um, I was wondering if I could have extra lessons with you, to practice with, and get over my fears about my lightning magics? You seem to be the right professor to ask.
Alcaster: Oh of course. Meet me at 10 tomorrow. Nazzareno already filled me in on what happened earlier, it would definitely be a good idea to help you with that, now go on Disnomia. I will see you tomorrow.
Alcaster takes a drink from his blood flask as Disnomia walks away.
Disnomia: Thank you, bye Alcaster.
–
Disnomia makes her way to the Rituals classroom and sits with her friends who have saved her a seat. Nazzareno is already sitting at his desk waiting to start. The room has many large windows; though something is off about them, and its black painted walls are covered in golden patterns that could either be for show, or could be an actual ritual as the class name would suggest.
Nazzareno: Oh it’s time to start, class quiet down quiet down…
Hello everyone, I am your Rituals Professor, Nazzareno Li Cavoli. You may call me what you think best. Basically, rituals are taking a spell, and condensing it down to something that can be run by anyone with a wand, and the will to make it work. Or said more simply you have to put enough energy into it, and no matter your ability the spell will run.
You may have noticed the patterns on the walls, those are actually a ritual, and a curse that keeps it stable after it’s run. If you paid attention, this building has no windows on the outside. These windows are indeed not real.
He touches his wand to the wall, and the walls morph into an entirely different view, from very high up.
Nazzareno: This is the view from the top of the Eiffel tower, pretty neat huh?
Some students who clearly don’t like heights recoil from the walls and shut their eyes.
Tatiana: Hey this is like a video, it doesn’t move with my head.
Nazzareno (Switching it back to the windows): Correct, The windows don’t either. I also use this to show videos, and it would be weird if it tried to give perspective to those. I know because originally I tried that. Waste of time it was figuring out individual perspective.
I won’t ask any of you to give introductions again. Instead, when I call your name, you may touch a wall with your wand, and imagine somewhere you want to see. If you would like to.
Alceste: Ooo what are you gonna show us Dis?
Disnomia: I can’t imagine things like that, so I’ll have to pass.
Alceste (A bit taken aback): Oh, alright.
–
They finally got through everyone, and got to see many interesting sights. Then moved onto lunch and their free period, followed by Nazzareno. Evidently the professors eat at the same time.
Alma: So who’s everyone’s favorite professor so far? Mine has to be Nazzareno. That thing with the walls is amazing.
Uriel: This may shock all of you, but Alcaster. Letting me shoot him with a fireball was quite an apology, and it was very fun.
Alceste: I have to say Alcaster is fun, and I think I’ll like his class most.
Disnomia: I’m partial to Ashen. I really like how he changed the first lesson for something just fun.
Alma: Says the girl that deafened us with lightning this morning.
Disnomia: Sorry about that by the way, it was an accident. And so is being able to do lightning magics so easily. It’s fun, but I don’t see much actual use for it. I already destroyed a toaster trying.
Uriel: Hahaha, poor toaster. Hey what should we actually do with all this free time?
Disnomia: Wana finish that video, then watch other stuff it recommends?
Uriel: Ya let’s do that!
Alceste: You go ahead. I actually want to goto the library and read up on werewolves and vampires.
Alma: I’ll join you.
Disnomia, Uriel: See you.
–
All too soon it was time for them all to meet back up for their last magics class of the day, Curses. This room would have bare white walls, except they are absolutely covered in curses, even the windows are too if you look closely. At the end of the room waiting to start class is an old man with short grey hair, wearing a button up shirt and slacks.
A ding from nowhere plays, followed by absolute silence from the students.
Eli (after a 30 second pause): I am your curses professor, Eli Burks. You have just heard 2 in action. The first one plays a sound at the same time every day, there is one of those for each of my classes. Then just after it another one stops sound in the room for 30 seconds.
Anyway curses are your friend. Alcaster will probably have you doing spells on the spot, but no. Make a metaphorical wall of defense curses and nothing will touch you, and you don’t have to be ready for it. Not everyone is a vampire and would probably be fine if they got hit like he would.
Another ding followed by papers floating to everyone’s desks.
Eli: You have all been “handed” instructions for a redirection spell. Anyone who can learn it, and use it in Alcaster’s class by Monday gets extra credit. You have also been handed a piece of paper to write your name and a bit about yourself on. Finish that up and you are free to go until dinner. There is no non magics class on Thursdays for 1st years, and clubs won’t start until next Monday. I hope your first day was good.
–
Outside that class.
Alceste: Well, um that was an experience.
Disnomia: Give him a chance, it was actually pretty cool he has all those curses setup.
Alceste: I’m trying, but it was really uncomfortable when he silenced the class, and then had us just write things down.
Uriel: I actually liked that. He’s the only one I told anything about myself to because it wasn’t to the whole class. Anyway I need a rest, that was a long day.
Disnomia: Just how long are these days? Oh 6 hours, 7 if you have a club that day. I guess it’s not crazy, but we could shave off some time without the free period after lunch.
Alceste: No don’t do that! I needed that long break. Y’all should check out the library it’s great!
Disnomia, Uriel: Maybe tomorrow.
Disnomia: I need to go be alone for a bit after all that, and Uriel needs a rest as he said. I’ll see you all at dinner.
Alceste, Alma, Uriel: See you.
–
Disnomia walked back to the dorms, and seeing them open, took a shower now. Then rested in her room until the rooster alarm crowed for dinner time.
–
Dinner was pretty uneventful with everyone pretty ready to wind down or get ready for bed.
–
Back in her room Disnomia remembers she hasn't called her parents at all.
Patsy: Hello
Disnomia (wiggling her toes): Hello mom!
Patsy: Albus come here it’s our daughter. We’ve been waiting for your call all day. You were supposed to call yesterday!
Disnomia: Sorry, I was tired and forgot.
Albus: Hello my sweet girl, you’re on speaker now.
Patsy: How was your first day? Tell us all about it!
Disnomia tells her parents about her first day, and how much she really did enjoy it. Soon enough they finish talking and she gets ready for bed, when she gets a knock on her door. Opening it she finds…
Disnomia: Charlie!
Charlie: Hey Disnomia. You could have found me at lunch or something. Though I guess I was busy with my 2nd year friends like you were with your 1st year friends. Anyway I just wanted to stop by and say hi, and see how you’re doing.
Disnomia: I’m doing great. How did you find my room though?
Charlie: I got lucky and your friend Alceste was outside to tell me. Anyway goodnight, I just wanted to say hi.
Disnomia: Good Night Charlie. We’ll have to join our friend groups.
Charlie chuckles as he closes the door.
Now free from reunions small and large, Disnomia takes a well deserved sleep.
