No Cars Go (Violet!)

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

The first day of the semester was always a busy one at Wyrdwood. Returning students reunited with the friends they didn't get to see over the break, sharing stories of their adventures at home. Excited first-years roamed the halls after unpacking, exploring the castle they'd call home for the next eight years. A few upperclassmen cast flashy spells on the school grounds, wowing the small crowd of new students and their parents who'd shown up to watch. The was a general feeling of optimism in the air, as if just being at the school made anything possible.

Naturally, Arthur Clearwater hated all of it. He never wanted to attend this school in the first place! He had hoped his poor performance last semester would convince his father to pull him out of Wyrdwood altogether, and yet here he was- back for his second year. It just wasn't fair!

The Verdan boy wandered the busy hallways, looking for somewhere, anywhere, he could go to escape the noise. Normally Arthur would go to the library when he wanted peace and quiet (which was always), but today it was packed with new students renting their first spellbooks. The courtyard had been similarly crowded, and it looked like the boy was running out of options. The only quiet place left was...

Now moving a bit quicker (though still barely lifting his feet off the ground), Arthur tightened the buckle on his pillow hat. He hastily turned down a side corridor...

...And proceeded to walk right into somebody.

[Codex]

Well this was certainly... Different.

Mavis had honestly no idea what to expect from a strange new place such as this. Hell, she hadn't even heard of it until only a few months ago. She really was sheltered during her early years if she couldn't even name one of the most popular magical schools in the entire kingdom. Then again, it had been a looong time since her family last set first within Serendipity's borders. And the first time she had ever even left Hyoite. Mavis jsut hoped she made the right choice. From what she had gathered, her family wasn't exactly respected in these parts anymore. Something that would definitely feel strange to the girl. She was certainly used to being surrounded by servents and guards who would never dare speak to her without the utmost respect in their voices. But this was a long way from home. People were different. Mavis could only hope her identity as the last Enevia went unnoticed...

The start of the new school year seemed to be busy as Mavis noticed. Students of all different heights, species, ages, and more wandered around the building. Many of which not noticing the small white haired sorceress as they shoved past her. Mavis felt very overwhelmed by everything. She had no idea what to do or where to go. THe only thing she had was a pile of random textbooks given to her when she first arrived, and a small slip of parchment that had the number "216" written in cursive. She had no idea what that meant, but she could only assume it was supposed to be a room number? Right now that was the girl's only lead, so she couldn't really do anything except look for this mysterious room. Maybe she should ask for directions? That seemed like the most logical option, given her situation, but the mouse of a girl was far too nervous to speak to anyone at this point. A few students gave her odd looks as she passed by, which only made the girl even more nervous! What was she going to do? Who should she ask? How should she ask? This was an enormous mistake!

Mavis turned a corner and instantly slammed right into another student! The girl stumbled for a moment and dropped her books before falling onto her butt! "O- ow! Hey!" She exclaimed as she sat on the ground, her purple hat lying on the floor next to her. A few students stopped what they were doing to look at the two but then continued what they were doing. With crowded halls like this it didn't seem that far fetched that events like this didn't occur often. Luckily it didn't draw too much attention.

Mavis observed the kid with an angry expression, but it quickly turned to a puzzled one. Was he wearing a... pillow on his head? Mavis couldn't even begin to guess the reason for such an odd fashion choice but other than his head-wear, the boy didn't really look that strange. He seemed to be just a little older than herself, and a little taller as well. He seemed a lot larger as well, but upon closer inspection Mavis could determine he was wearing a lot of clothing. The reason as to why he chose to appear this way eluded her, but the reality was still present.

Mavis grumbled under her breath and reached for her hat, quickly putting it on her head again and dusting off her coat. Even though it wasn't that cold here, Mavis still chose to wear her usual bright purple winter clothing. Complete with furred lining and heavy boots. It made her feel more secure one could suppose given her current predicament. "Y- You should watch where you're going mister.." She said again, picking up her books.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Arthur stumbled backwards, nearly falling over. The girl he'd bumped into dropped her books in shock, and almost immediately the boy felt bad. "Ah! Sorry, sorry!"

Arthur puffed out his cheeks a little as he looked the girl over. This was clearly her first day at the school- she didn't even have her student robes yet! "Is she wearing winter clothes?" the pillowheaded boy mused, blinking. "That's weird..."

Then the girl spoke, and the young soulshaper suddenly felt rather annoyed. "Well, you should watch where you're going!" Arthur said a bit defensively, crossing his arms. "And don't call me "Mister"! I'm not important, okay?"

[Codex]

Mavis wasn't very satisfied with the the response she got from the kid who rudely slammed right into HER, and then used her own words against her. Such entitlement Mavis thought! The boy explained to the girl that he wasn't deserving of the title Mavis gave him, but that mattered little to the silver haired girl as she frantically crawled around on the stone floor trying to stack all her books back into the neat pile they had been in before. Finally she stood up again, pressing the old scrolls and textbooks against her chest while staring at the pillow wearing moron in front of her.

"I WAS looking where I was going! You should've seen the corner ahead of you, or was that massive pillow weighing your head down in the other direction?" She said again. Normally Mavis wasn't this confrontational, but ever since the day started she had been in a sour mood. She had yet to meet anyone here that gave her any ounce of respect, and most people just looked down at her! This kid was just the cherry on the top.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Arthur's upper lip curled into a sneer, eye twitching. "Don't make fun of my hat!" he snarled. "It's cooler than yours at least!"

"Why am I even here?" the boy thought bitterly. "This is stupid! I need a nap."

The pillowheaded boy stormed past the girl, shoulder brushing against hers if she didn't move out of the way.

[Codex]

The kid stormed off after taking obvious offense to Mavis' comment about his hat. She simply glared at him as he turned the corner before straightening the last of her books and turning in the opposite direction... Now where was that cursed room?

Later that evening all the students had been gathered in a massive room for a feast. Not really knowing what to do, Mavis sort of followed the crowd. However the girl soon found herself shoved and pushed among the bigger kids until she had no choice but to find an open spot and take refuge at one of the tables. Quickly sitting down as her hat slid downwards from the speed of her movement, she quickly readjusted it and looked around her. Much to her surprise she saw a familiar face... But it wasn't a good one.

Her eyes narrowed as she appeared to be sitting directly next to the pillow wearing kid she had run into earlier.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Arthur walked angrily down the corridor, fuming. "What the hell is her deal?" he thought as he turned down a side passage, the chattering of students fading as he went deeper into the labyrinthine bowels of the castle. "Iwasn't that rude when I was a first-year!"

After about half an hour, Arthur reached his destination- the Fountain of Fyarion. The pool had been a gift from a noble house in Moonspear decades ago, and was large enough to require it's own room. It also served no practical purpose- something frowned upon at the school. As such, it'd been hidden away in the depths of Wyrdwood, and was rarely spoken of by teachers and students alike. Arthur had discovered it by complete accident, and the fountain's quiet atmosphere made it one of his favorite spots in the castle.

With a yawn, the boy lay on the the marble floor and let the sound of flowing water lull him to sleep...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hours later, Arthur groggily stumbled into the crowded grand hall. The boy was still half alseep- his stomach had put his body on autopilot. Sitting down at what seemed to be the only free table, the boy rested his elbows on the table. His eyes began to close, but a growl from his stomach forced them open again. In a daze he looked around to see if the menus had materialized yet- and then he let out a groan.

"Oh, come on! You again?"

[Codex]

To no surprise, the boy seemed just as unhappy to see Mavis as she had been to arrive at the same conclusion. However, based on crowded the hall was it didn't really seem like there was an option for her to just get up and find a new place to sit. Mavis did try to spy another spot instantly afterwards, but to no avail. With a low sigh she slumped forwards.

Mavis tried to ignore him for a moment, but soon the menus began to materialize... And the situation looked grim. It seemed as though there was considerably more students at this table than there was meant to be, so the ratio of menus to student was not exact. Mavis stared forwards as one of them materialized directly in between the two of them. She simply rolled her eyes and turned to face Arthur. "Look, we may have gotten off on the wrong foot mister... uh.. pillow wearing.. guy." She stammered, still trying to get over the fact that he had a pillow on his head.

"L- Look. My name's Mavis." She said, hoping to help defuse the tension as best she could.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"Yeah. Whatever."

Arthur eyed the sole menu that lay between them, eyes drooping. Normally he'd just order the pea soup, but the menu was always different on the first night of the school year- an attempt to impress the new students and their parents, probably. "S' Arthur." he mumbled as he snatched the parchment, eyes narrowing as glossed over the food listed. His nose wrinkled. "Eww. Butternut Sqash Ravioli? Gross..."

Groaning, the pillow-headed boy flicked the menu back on the table, pulling his wand from his robe pocket. He tapped his plate twice. "Pork roast... I guess..." A few seconds later, a hot meal materialized out of thin air. Arthur stared at the food lazily, picking a string bean off his plate and nibbling on it. "Sweet Myyla, what a drag..."

[Codex]

It seemed the boy was as disinterested in getting past their previous encounter as he was with the menu of food. Mavis stared at him for another moment before giving a defeated sigh, slumping back in previous position and lazily looking at the menu of food. This was going to be a long year to be sure. Courtesy was dead here it seemed, so much for trying to be polite.

Mavis wasn't exactly thrilled at the menu choices either. They didn't have any of her favourites. Growing up in a castle would often numb the tastebuds of its owners to the delicacies of the outside world. Mavis was no exception. The boy muttered something under his breath but Mavis tried to ignore it before choosing a random dish.

"Uh.. Salmon steak?" She said outloud in a somewhat quiter tone. In an attempt to mimic Arthur, she assumed this was the way to summon the food. Sure enough it appeared in front of her in a perfect portion.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Arthur picked at his food lazily, eyelids drooping. He wasn't feeling particularly hungry tonight, having filled up on sweets earlier in the day. Turning his fork on it's side, the boy struggled to cut the porkchop with the dull edge. There was a knife next to his plate, but he didn't feel like picking it up...

Suddenly the boy made a wretching sound, nose wrinkling. "Eww, gross!" he exclaimed, staring at the meal on Mavis's plate. "That smells nasty! How do you eat that stuff?"

[Codex]

The longer she sat next to this strange kid the more she felt she was unwillingly learning about him. He seemed rather lethargic and didn't exactly burst with energy. Even this menial tasks that involved sitting and eating proved to be above the line of effort he was willing to commit. Not that it really mattered much to Mavis in the end, though. She would just have to try and ignore him if she could... However that plan wouldn't last long.

She turned her head to face Arthur when he remarked on how her food smelled. With a raised eyebrow Mavis looked back at the small plate of salmon and sniffed the air before looking back at Arthur with a scowl. "If the smell bothers you, you are free to sit anywhere else." She told him, despite knowing that there likely wasn't a single spot left in this hall.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Arthur glared at the girl angrily, then looked back down at his own food. "Nah." he muttered, halfheartedly trying to cut a slice of pork with the edge of his fork. "I just got here. Getting up would be a drag..."

The boy looked like he was about to say something else, but was interrupted by the sound of a spoon tapping on glass. The room fell silent, and all eyes fell on the faculty table. An grotesque looking woman had stood up, smiling awkwardly as she towered above her fellow professors. "Um, yes... May I have everybody's attention please?"

Arthur groaned under his breath, slouching in his chair. "Great. Another start-of-year speech." He closed his eyes, exhaling deeply. "Not even worth listening to, probably..."

[Codex]

Of course, Mavis should've guessed that no matter how much Arthur hated the smell of her food, he'd be too lazy to actually do anything about it. She wondered how much longer he could continue to open his mouth and talk before he got too tired and just stopped. Something told her though that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. Sighing Mavis returned her attention back to her meal and was prepared to try and enjoy it as best she could, despite the conditions that were forced upon her when she came into this hall.

When Arthur was about to say something Mavis internally groaned and prepared herself for another earful when all of a sudden the entire room went quiet with the tapping of a glass. Her curiosity piqued and the girl turned her gaze to where everyone else was looking, her eyes widening slightly at the site. A woman of unnatural body size and age began to address the entire hall and Mavis could only stare with a look of shock and concern. "W- What.. Is she a teacher?" Mavis asked with a slight quiver in her voice, completely forgetting her irritation with the pillow wearing boy as the question was directed towards him.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Arthur would have closed his eyes and tuned out, had it not been for Mavis's reaction. He hadn't given the speaker more than a glance before, but looking closer he quickly realized that something was not right. The other students had seemingly picked up on it, and the entire hall went silent save for a few frantic whispers. "A hag." Arthur said softly, remembering the faery tale book he'd had as a child. "That's a real life hag..."

The monstrous woman looked around the room hesitantly, her once-excited smile fading as she took in the frightened reaction from the students. She cleared her throat, glancing down at the notecards she held in her hand. "Um, yes... To all the new students; welcome!" she began, voice a little shaky. "And to those of you returning; welcome back! My name is Magistrix Fen-Breath, and I think I speak for all of us when I tell you how excited it is being here tonight!"

The hag scanned the room, as if she were expecting the students to perk up at this. A few of the older students halfheartedly murmured in agreement. Many of the younger children were still staring at her uncomfortably, as if waiting for the woman to pounce at them. Arthur sighed, leaning back in his seat. "Myyla, this sucks..."

Seemingly discouraged, the magistrix nervously glanced back at the faculty table. The headmistress gave her a curt nod, and she seemed to relax slightly. "Tonight not only marks the start of the semester," she continued, turning back to the gathered students. "But it marks my first day as Magistrix as well. As I'm sure some of you already know, Magister Zinzolin passed away over break. He was a talented mage and a wise teacher, and I'm deeply humbled to have been chosen as his replacement." The hag clasped her oversized hands together, smiling excitedly as she looked around the room. "Teaching our newest generation of witches and wizards is such a privilege, and I must thank the Magistarium for this remarkable opportunity. I look forward to meeting and working with each and every one of you!"

Magistrix Fen-Breath looked around the room expectantly. After a few moments of silence, the headmistress began to clap. The hall slowly filled with unentheusiastic applause, and the hag took a seat. Arthur remained motionless, closing his eyes tightly as the surrounding students began to resume their meals. "Gods, I just want to go home..."