Left Out in the Cold (Eckhart, finished) [M]

[Whim]

"Nothing observed, and not a word from Susie I'm afraid." The headmistresses snorted with something between amusement and annoyance. Perhaps this meeting was worth her time, after all, if only to break up the usual tedium?

"Such a shy girl. But that is how children are, in my experience, they prefer the familiar. She'll go shouting her business to half her village, but leave you guessing." Her lips curled into a smile that was not a smile. "I see. You had to drag the secret out of her little village-friends..."

***

"Its not a test Susie. Just notes you missed." Liam tried to assure her, a little taken aback by the rejection. His notes were good even if you took the time to read them! Part of him was sure if Kana offered the notes she would accepted.

Anwen was in in the midst of a flurry of chalk-scratches, outlining a common diagram used to gather the animus within blood. And then she stopped at the sound of whispering. What the hell were they even muttering about? Her? Once chatter started it spread like wildfire. The entire thing was just irksome. She'd always been nice to Susie, and Kana and Liam (who were her idea). How could they take that for granted?

"Can someone tell me why the Yoreiqi most often use human blood in their sorcery, grizzly as that can be? And what is a risk of using another species? How about...

"Susie?"

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"I actually knew before she did." Juniper said pointedly. The teenager rested her chin on her fist, a bored expression on her face. "If I hadn't told her, she'd likely have gone through life unaware of it."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Susie squeaked nervously, nearly falling out of her seat. "I-I- yes!" she stammered, staring at the professor with wide eyes. "It's because... because..."

A bead of sweat rolled down the girl's neck. Primal magic was her worst subject! She racked her brain, trying desperately to remember what she'd read the night before. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Beatrix raising her hand, bouncing in her seat eagerly. "It's... ummm..."

Susie hung her head, staring blankly at her desk. "I don't know, Professor..."

[Whim]

"Probably not. In girls it usually manifests at menarche. Very rarely does it simply hide; most magic wants to be found; it is endemic to someone's very being." Saoirse corrected sharply, with a roll of her eyes. "But magic dust is somewhat vague. You're a layperson, naturally, but does it do that you find it so significant?" She flicked a finger to call a quill from a nearby inkwell. It wasn't the sort of thing she'd usually waste the effort on, but flustering the girl for her lack of ability might be amusing. Maybe there was something to Susie? Metamorphosis, simulacrum, or genesis?

***

Anwen offered the girl an encouraging smile, which faltered at Susie's admission of failure. Why wasn't she trying? She knew the answer. Anwen was the same way as a student: hiding in the corner, hoping not to be noticed, perfectly content for the instructor to simply move on and let someone like Beatrix claim the accolades. "Well why don't we think about this?

"If you want to turn yourself into, say, a sheepdog what would the ideal focus be? You'd want a bit of fur from a dog. It goes to say, then, that if you want to manipulate the human mind and body..." It was not that hard. She had gotten this one right on the last examination. Everyone did!

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"O-oh... right..."

There were a few stifled giggles as the Professor continued to single out the redhead. Susie's eyes began to water, the stress of being the center of attention eating at her insides. She reached inside of her robe pocket, fiddling with the small cube she'd conjured earlier that day. "It-It's because you need blood from the same animal as you..." she mumbled softly. "Otherwise... you get sick?"

[Whim]

Nothing to say? Oh my.

"We will do an alchemical analysis of the dust. Being able to generate low density mineral matter like that is typical of minor! elemental gifts. From there we will determine how to best develop her gift.

"That will be all." she replied, as if speaking to a student. "And if you deign to share any further information, it can only help her development. It has been a pleasure."

***

"Very good." Anwen forced a smile with some hesitation. But she was technically right; the girl probably just had some performance anxiety.

There came a collection of sighs from the classroom. "Anyone could have gotten that," came a nasal whisper, just a bit too loud. It was Martyn Felbend, a toad-like youth from Jadenshine.

Anwen frowned. Too taken aback herself to even say anything. "Right, well, here is last week's quiz. Why don't we review them?" She handed out a stack of papers which zigzagged through the rows. Fifteen questions total.

Kana whooped at seeing their own score, fourteen out of fifteen. "Perfect as always!"

"You didn't do anything."

"Its a joint effort. The grade is just as much yours as mine. Right Susie?" Kanas lips curled into a little smile. He did know Susie would reflexively agree. Which would piss off Liam immensely. And maybe a little part of him did think it was true.

When the stack reached Susie she rifled through a stack of papers. Most were 12's and 13's. And then Susie saw her own: 11/15. It wasn't bad, and was passing certainly, but surely the lowest I'd the bunch...

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"Perfect!" Juniper exclaimed happily, clapping her hands together. "Do let md know what you find. I'm sure it will be very insightful." She stood up, stretching her arms behind her back. "Now, his name was Erwin, yes?"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Anybody could have gotten that."

Susie stared at her feet, what little relief she'd gained from answering the question vanishing. Martyn was right- she'd only been able to get it with the teacher's help. A pit formed in her stomach as Professor Ferch-Rhys began to hand out the results of last week's test, and she silently prayed to Myyla for miracle...

Kana's voice snapped Susie out of her haze, and the girl shook her head defiantly. "Right." she said, a forced confidence in her voice as she rifled through the stack of test results. Her heart skipped at beat as she found the one with her name on it, swallowing nervously before pulling it out...

11/15

Susie sighed in relief, passing the rest of the papers to her right. She'd been stressing over this test for an entire week- she was convinced she had failed it. Eleven out of fifteen may not have been perfect, but it was a pass! The redhead smiled, allowing her shoulders to relax. "I guess I had nothing to worry about after all..."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Beatrix stared at her test results, looking nearly on the verge of tears. Her score had been a perfect 15/15, but she couldn't think about it now. She glared across the room at Susie, who'd begun chatting happily with the two-headed boy. "But... my hand was up!" she thought, black irises swirling violently. "I knew the answer! Why did... why did she help you?" The girl looked back to her paper, the professor's voice echoing through her mind. "Can anyone tell me why that is? Anyone but Beatrix."

Beatrix clenched her fists, eyes watering. Had she done something wrong?

"Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix. Anyone but Beatrix."

No. This was how it'd always been, hadn't it? She could do everything right- answer all the questions, pass all her exams perfectly, follow all the rules, and people would still pick the other kids over her. That was just how things worked.

Beatrix wiped her eyes with her sleeve, leaving an inky stain on her robe. "Whatever. It's fine." she thought bitterly, an ugly scowl on her face. "I don't need you. Who cares?" She buried her face in her hands, clenching her teeth. "Who cares... Who cares...

[Whim]

"Elwin. Do pay attention." Saoirse waved her out the door, waiting just until the young woman had neared it to wave it open.

Elwin was daydreaming at his desk, shuffling through his deck of cards. Only fifteen minutes and his day would be over! And- "Oh! Juniper!" Elwin straightened, straightened and reshuffled his papers to create the illusion of work. "How are you? Did your meeting go good, ah, well? Did you still want to play cards? I'll be going in a few moments. If you'd like to join me, that is?" The portly apprentice squeaked out the last bit with baited breath.

***

The classroom was rife with shuffling papers and muffled whispers as students set about making corrections. For most of them it was a chance to chatter moreso than an opportunity to learn. Liam felt Kana jabbed his cheek as the class drew to a close. "Oh. Nice job by the way, Susie." He gave the girl a shy smile.

"We were going to go play cards with Arthur after this, by the way, wanna come?" He gave the girl a smirk. "And you never answered. Grade's just as much mine as it is Liam's, isn't it?"

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

With a satisfied smirk, Juniper turned on her heel and left the room. She'd gotten what she wanted, though it'd taken a bit longer than she would have liked. Still, Susie would be getting that extra push...

The portly apprentice was sitting at his desk when Juniper arrived, playing with a stack of cards absentmindedly. He perked up when he saw her approach, babbling excitedly. "It went perfectly, thank you." the noblewoman said, putting a hand in her robe pocket. "Will Susie be playing cards with you?"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"I-I thought I said yes!" Susie stammered, blushing profusely. Had she been too quiet when she said it? She had been preoccupied by her paper- maybe she hadn't said it at all, and only imagined she had? She did that sometimes, and it was always embarressing when it happened. "And yeah! I'll come with you guys, sure!"

Monster Mash! was not a game she enjoyed- in fact, she outright hated it. She'd lost every game she played, which caused people to make fun of her when she tried. She could do without the condescending advice from Arthur and Elwin, too- it wasn't her fault the cute monsters were weaker! "Um, I'll just watch you guys play this time." she said meekly. "If that's okay..."

[Whim]

"Well, all the kids line up to. They look up to me, ya know? We can play with her for sure." Elwin was elated. The Whitechalk heiress would really get to see him in his element now. But who was Susie anyway?. Why the hell was she so interested in this boring little girl he hadn't heard of? "I think its good you really seem to care.

"Most patrons here just think the students they send are their property. They don't really take the time to get to know them or what they want out of life; just see them as a tool." And he did mean it. He just- he just loved strong and forward thinking this girl was! "When I'm in charge of things I really think I'd like to change how that all works..."

The apprentice lumbered through the halls. His younger counterparts ducked and whirred around him; feet pounding as they played chasing games. Elwin had all the functionality and grace of a middle aged man by contrast.

***

"Watching? I'd feel real bad if you came with us and all you got to do was watch. We'll help you!" Kana beamed, helping Liam gather up their bag.

Liam chewed his lip nervously. "You like Oratilla's right?" He squeaked, recalling just how many of the glittering rodents she'd used. The game was pointless but Liam had a better head for numbers and figures than Kana. And spend enough time watching people and you just get to predict them. Susie always picked pretty cards that were utterly ineffective. "I can help you make a deck with one! I mean, um, I always make Kana use a Hylop Faun in our's." He just liked the grinning little goat kid; some little vestige of the mischievous kid he wished he was instead of always so serious? Did Kana play aggressive games because he liked to seem tough because his village was conquered?

As the trio navigated their way out of the mahogany amphitheater they found Anwen lingering near the door. "Susie? Do you have a minute?" The junior instructor fumbled with the lock, balancing an open ledger and pencil awkwardly in her other hand. It all looked very precarious.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Susie carefully placed her quill and parchment inside her bag, eyes lighting up at Liam's offer. A species of small, fluffy rodents native to Altas Verde's mountain range, Orratilla had long been Susie's favorite animal. As a child she'd begged her parents for one, but had been denied at every turn- Orratillas required precious metal ore to burrow in to, allowing only the most wealthy Verdans to keep them as pets. "You'd really help me?" she asked hopefully, slinging her bag over her shoulder and follwing the two boys towards the exit. "Arthur keeps saying their cards are- eep!"

Beatrix had shouldered past her, shooting the redhead a nasty glare as she left the classroom. For a split second their eyes met- or they would have met, had Beatrix's eyes still been there. Susie froze, suddenly feeling very cold. A wave of fear had unexpectedly washed over her, and for a moment time seemed to slow down. She tried desperately to look away, but her gaze couldn't find it's way out! Was this some kind of hex?

"Susie? Do you have a minute?"

The professor's voice broke Susie out of her trance, and Beatrix soon disappeared down the hall. Blinking, she shook her head. "O-oh... Of course, yeah..." Turning to her friends, the girl gave Kana a smile. "You guys go ahead. I'll be right behind you..."

[Whim]

Anwen supposed she ought to give Susie some sort of advice; it was sad, and uncomfortably familiar, to see the nervous girl bumbling about. She fixed her gaze on the student and tried to search for the right words. "You remember the question I asked, Susie, about using same-species tissue in blood magic?

"You had some trouble with it but you knew the answer, right here, see?" she pointed to the entry on Susie's latest assessment, offering a gentle smile. "If you forgot that's fine. But I think you did know the answer. You shouldn't be scared if you think you know it. Its better to try and be wrong, really..."

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"Um..."

Susie started up at the professor, face flushed in embarressment. She settled her gaze on the professor's nose, finding herself unable to make eye contact. "I-I really did forget!" she stammered awkwardly. "I was so busy practicing my dust, that I- um, I mean, I..."

Suddenly realizing that admitting to prioritizing something other than classwork was probably the wrong thing to be telling a teacher, Susie trailed off. "I-I'm sorry. It won't happen again, I promise."

[Whim]

"Well you don't need to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. Its just if you're going to be a wizard some day you need to project authority. Sometimes even if you're not sure about something you'll be the one who knows the most. And if you can't get people to listen, well, you'll just be someone's pet who does magic tricks.

"And its fine to be excited about a new spell. Just don't forget everything else. There's going to be a lot of magic you've never seen before, and if you can't figure out how it works you might get into trouble." She offered a quiet smile, though it faltered for a moment. Wanting but failing to understand was one matter; apathy was unforgivable. But, her own annoyance aside, Susie was meant to be watched. Anwen was not certain why but the instructions were clear (well, relatively speaking, an underlined name was not 'clear' but it meant something). "What've you been doing with your dust?"

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"I'll be a witch." Susie instictively corrected, a hint of annoyance in her voice. Once again remembering who she was speaking to, she covered her mouth in horror. "I-I'm sorry! I just- I just really think there's a d-distiction between the two, and..."

The redhead trailed off, looking rather mortified. It was such a silly thing to get upset about, but Susie found it annoying all the same. Wizards were boys, and had staves and scrolls. Witches were girls, and had brooms and pointy hats. Susie was a girl, so she'd be a witch. Her mom had already sewn the hat! Oh Myyla, would she get a detention for this? The girl's heart pounded in her chest, and she felt as if she were about to throw up. "I'm... I'm sorry..."

[Whim]

"Well, well I-I don't think I'd call you a witch..." A brief look of hurt and anger flashed over Anwen's face. If this was anyone else she wouldn't! The wizardess mustered a sharp, and dismissive laugh wash to it all away. Laughter hurts more than anything. Ewan always had a way of making you feel like a stupid child for disagreeing with him, and with a big smile on his face. "There is a difference but no one, here at least, is training you to cut away unwanted babes or make offerings to storm gods for rain.

"Witch, hedge wizard, cunning woman, and medicine man are what I like to use for magicians who perform magic as spiritual leaders, especially in the country. People who think a slyph is a sky goddess, or that woundwort stops bleeding because they planted it under a full moon." Susie's minor slight was quickly forgotten, Anwen growing more and more animated. "That's not to say they don't know anything of value! We can learn a lot from them. Early Serenian druids and witches laid the groundwork for mostly everything. They just don't have a scientific or scholarly approach to magic."

Anwen paused to catch her breath. The girl was just staring. Probably bored. She hated being boring. But then again how could you not find this interesting? "Susie? Did they call you a witch at home?"

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Susie stared uncomfortably at her professor, feeling rather guilty. The woman seemed more hurt than angry, as if the topic was a particulary sore spot for her. "My-my mum did..." the girl replied softly, voice shaky. She hugged her chest tightly, eyes on the floor. "She said I'd be the best witch in the province, and, um..."

Susie shook her head. "Uh, Altas Verde, I mean. That's the province. And, I, I don't think she knew any of what you told me..." She looked up at the adult's nose, than away again. "I'm sorry if I... If I bothered you..."

[Whim]

"Well there's really nothing to be sorry about. The phrase is common. Its just not something we use in magical circles, you understand? If you're more interested I have a few books I could-" It took a few moments to register the downcast eyes and slumped posture had little interest in such matters. "Anyway, don't hesitate when you answer. Its fine if you're wrong sometimes.

"And I'm sure your mother is very proud." The sorceress offered a small smile. She supposed some students needed to hear it, but Anwen heard it so often the sentiment was meaningless. Of course there were far worse things in the world than unconditional love, but Anwen always knew she was never what made her parents most proud. You could always tell.

***

"So basically what I did was play Fattened Orratilla which counts as bait, to bring out my Screeching Harpy Queen." A smug little smile crossed Elwin's face and he held up the hexagonal card for Juniper to inspect. It was a seductive looking female with black feathers, talons, and a crescent shaped hat. "One thirty pounds of pure terror. She is really strong, you see, but you need a huge sacrifice to bring her out usually. So she comes way early.

"Hey kid, want to play?"

"I got some real good pointers. Just a friendly game...

"That card is terrible. Why would you do that?

"See! You messed up! Let me get that out way too early!

"Bad move. Its over!"

It went on like that. The portly young man heckling anyone and everyone to play cards, or at least, any new faces or eager young beginners he could find. There was always the promise of a few pointers, though it amounted to little more than gloating in the end. From time to time he'd look over at Juniper in hopes the noble girl was sharing in his delight.

***

Kana narrowed his gaze at Elwin, sighing sharply. "Kind of old for all this, isn't he? His age people do proper duels. Or- well- chase girls, I guess."

Liam was meanwhile lost in playing cards with Arthur. It was taking all of Kana's effort not to tell his other head what to do, though even he couldn't quite figure it out. The young illusionist had his favorite card - a beautifully illustrated hydra leaping from a swamp - and seemed to be employing some convoluted strategy where his own monsters attacked the hydra to multiply its strength attribute. Their heads did regrow, after all...

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"Yeah-huh. Weird."

Arthur stared at his hand intently, finger hovering over a particular card. Liam's strategy was clever, yes- but not without counterplay. "I retreat my Brownie..." he said softly, moving a card depicting a plump fairy carrying a broomstick from his frontline to his barracks. "...And use my Call Of The Deep spell to summon my Cave Salamander."

The boy plucked a card from his hand, placing it face up opposite Liam's Hydra. On it was a fat looking newt with white, sightless eyes. Arthur smirked. The Cave Salamander wasn't a very strong monster, but it had the unique ability to ignore an enemy's attack boosts- meaning the Hydra had it's health whittled down for nothing. "Kay." the pilow-headed boy said quietly. "Your move."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Wow... That is impressive..."

Juniper eyes were fixated on a student sitting in the back of the classroom, ignoring the portly man's attempts to impress her. She bit her lower lip. The woman had sensed the potential as soon as she stepped through the door, of course- there was just so much of it that pinpointing it's source had proven challenging. She'd initially assumed it'd be nothing more than a group of mildly talented students bunched together, but to think it was all coming from a single boy...

"Edwin..." Juniper said hungrily, pointing in the child's direction. "I want to see you play against that boy."

[Whim]

"Its Elwin.

"And him? He's just a kid. We've played a lot. It would be boring to watch" They had only played once and Arthur beat Elwin handily. Of course he was rich and could afford better cards. Also if Elwin had gotten out his deepfisher mermaid he would have won. "But fine I guess. Hey, Arthur! Play me." He called out.

Skugg screeched angrily. "That is the third time this filthy cunt has gotten your name wrong? What is wrong with you? Look at her. Do you really even think she- and you always lose to him why the pissing hell are you just doing what she says?" The rodent swished its tale in exasperation, sinking its teeth into a nearby goblet. "

***

Liam had kept a number of spell cards on hand he'd use to get rid of the salamander, but they'd been exhausted against other threats Arthur kept on hand. Minutes filled with sharp sighs and eyerolls went by as Arthur seemed to have an answer for nearly every spell he tried to remove the salamander. "How did you get so many-" Liam huffed, only to be interrupted by Elwin. He gave the pudgy man a glare for interrupting. "Sorry. Play him if you want. I think I'm just dragging this out."

"That was amazing!" the Duhjari boy grinned. "Think your deck can counter almost anything! Totally wasn't expecting the cave salamander. But you know how Liam is - he always has to use that dumb hydra."

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Arthur sat up on his knees, adjusting his hat as the Salamander weathered each attack the Hydra dealt out. It woildn't be long until the game was over- he just just had to wait for Liam's deck to run out of spell cards, and victory would be his!

"Hey, Arthur! Play me."

The pillow-headed boy blinked, turning his head to see Elwin standing a few feet away. A creepy looking girl stood by his side, staring at Arthur uncomfortably. He squinted- she looked familiar, but he couldn't place where he'd seen her before. He shrugged to himself, as if deciding that it wasn't worth the effort to try and remember. "Hm? Oh. Well right now I'm in a duel with-?"

Arthur looked back at Liam, puffing out his cheeks. "Oh. Well, yeah. I guess you're right..." He gathered up his cards, shuffling them. "Good game Liam..."

The boy put his deck to the side, rummaging through his schoolbag. Finally procuring a second stack of cards, he slowly stood up and turned to face Elwin. "I came up with a new deck yesterday." he said, trying to ignore the strange woman's gaze. "Hope you don't mind, I've been wanting to try it out...