Rin practically skipped along the stone path toward the academy’s main building, her wand flicking at anything within range.

  A pebble jerked up like it had been yanked on a string, hovered for a moment, then shot into a neat arc before plopping back onto the grass. A cluster of flowers bowed in unison as if greeting royalty. Even the academy’s brass lamp posts weren’t safe — one gave a faint metallic

  as Rin tapped it with a spark of harmless light.

  “This is amazing! I’m actually a sorceress now!” she declared, admiring her wand as if it were a priceless treasure.

  Beside her, Eddie shoved his hands into his pockets, staring forward with more patience than his personality seemed capable of.

  Rin’s eyes sparkled as she gathered a handful of pebbles, arranging them into a floating smiley face in front of Eddie.

  “Rin. That’s cool and all, but that’s like…the most basic form of magic. We’re about to do way cooler things now.”

  “Even… cooler?”

  “Yeah. Like, much better than throwing rocks around.”

  “Oh! Like when you saved me from falling down the stairs? I’ll learn how to save you from falling too!”

  Eddie blinked, then muttered under his breath. “…I don’t need saving.”

  Rin glanced up at Eddie, really trying to dig deep. It wasn’t just what he said — it was the way he sometimes. There were moments when his voice shot up, full of excitement and confidence, almost like he was carrying everyone with him. But then there were the inverses, like now. His voice dipped low and quiet, and the light in his eyes dimmed, narrowing in this soft, almost distant way.

  “Eddie?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Are you… okay?”

  “What? Yeah, of course I am! What makes you say that?”

  “Well… you just sounded sad.”

  “I’m not sad, Rin,” he said again, his voice low in that same quiet register.

  “There! See? You just did it again!”

  “Rin! I’m not sad! What’s with you today?” Eddie snapped, quickening his pace to put some distance between them.

  Rin only sped up to match him.

  “We should probably sheath our wands. Don’t want to get yelled at in our next class.” Eddie continued.

  “Sheath our wands? Why?”

  “Yeah. Just put it away. Having your wand out automatically means you intend to use magic. Unless you’ve built up a certain trust factor in public, people never know what you’ll do with it. It’s a law, you know?”

  “L-Law…?”

  Eddie nearly facepalmed, then stopped in his tracks. The group of kids ahead of them kept walking, leaving the two of them alone on the path.

  “Okay. What’s with this ‘I’m a dumb girl’ act?”

  “Wh-Wha—!” Rin flinched back.

  “Seriously! The novelty of emissive magic… while carrying the toughest kind of wand there is. No family. Random strangers popping up saying they’re your uncle because they’re rich. And you still look at everything like it’s the first time you’ve ever seen it! You even

  like that! What’s wrong with you?” Eddie’s voice was caught between concern and frustration.

  Rin looked away, unable to hold his stare. Her arms swung idly as she answered. “I… I don’t know. One moment I was in the desert… and then suddenly I’m here. Attending this school of magic.”

  “Desert? What on earth were you doing in the desert? And for how long?”

  “Um…” Rin tilted her head back toward him, thinking hard. Then she simply shrugged and flashed a bright smile.

  “…Don’t tell me you lost your memories,” Eddie muttered, slouching over.

  “I might have…”

  “You’re so weird!”

  Rin blinked, pointing at herself. “Me? Is that… a good thing?”

  Eddie finally dragged his palm down his face. “Let’s just get to class. We’re gonna be late.”

  Finally, they stepped inside the main campus. Hoards of kids filled the hallways — some leaning against walls, chattering in little clusters, others rushing past and vanishing into classrooms.

  And in the middle of it all, Eddie and Rin stood out. Alone, together.

  “Eddie? Where do we go now…?”

  “Just… follow me,” he sighed.

  Rin eagerly trailed him up to the second floor. After a long walk through the western wing, they reached a wide classroom buzzing with noise. Dozens of kids jostled for seats, laughter and chatter bouncing off the walls.

  Only three desks remained empty, tucked away in the far back corner on the right side — the darkest part of the room, where no one else wanted to sit. Rin and Eddie slipped in quickly and claimed them.

  Her gaze drifted toward the center of the room. There stood a massive golden and silver archway. No doors, no portal, no glassy surface. Just an empty arch.

  For some reason, it filled Rin with dread.

  “What’s that… gate in the middle for?” she whispered.

  “Probably the sorter,” Eddie replied.

  “Oh… right…”

  “Good morning, class!”

  A booming voice cut through the chatter, and the students scrambled to their seats.

  “Sorry, I’m late. But it’s the first day, and things are always crazy on the first day. I am Professor Oraus, and this is Magical Elements class…”

  His words carried on, half-formal, half-droning, bouncing somewhere between introductions and small talk about the academy itself. Rin tried to listen — she really did — but her thoughts tugged elsewhere.

  She glanced sideways at Eddie. He sat with his arms crossed, chin propped on one hand, staring at the professor with the look of someone already regretting the next hour of his life.

  Rin’s wand hand twitched against her desk.

  “Eddie?” she whispered.

  He flicked his eyes toward her without moving his head. “What.”

  “Do you think… I’ll be any good at this class?”

  “Why wouldn’t you be?”

  “I dunno. You said earlier I sounded weird. And I don’t know a lot of things I should know. What if… the sorter thinks I don’t belong here?”

  Eddie let out a short breath, somewhere between a sigh and a laugh. “Sorter doesn’t care about that. It just tells you what you’re good at.”

  “Oh.” Rin lowered her eyes, fingers fidgeting against her wand.

  “Stop overthinking,” Eddie muttered. “You’ll fry your brain before the test even starts.”

  Rin smiled faintly, more to herself than to him.

  At the front of the room, Professor Oraus’s speech rolled on, fading into meaningless formality about “honor,” “responsibility,” and “tradition.”

  Rin wasn’t listening anymore. Her eyes had wandered back to the archway. Empty. Waiting.

  And still, it made her chest tighten.

  “Alright, class. I know all of you have passed your emissive magic exercise — which is good. That’s why you’re here. I’ll now take attendance. Just let me know you’re present and I’ll mark you down. And if you’re not here…” He paused, his voice sharpening. “…I will make sure you understand how much of a hindrance it is to skip this class. All your fundamentals of the magical world begin here.”

  Rin sat quietly, her legs tapping a rapid rhythm beneath the desk. One by one, students shouted “Present!” or “Here!” as their names were called, the professor checking them off without much interest.

  “Absent,” he muttered at one name, crossing it out briskly.

  Finally—

  Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  “Rin… er…” Professor Oraus squinted at the clipboard, flipping it around as if her last name had slipped off the page. He even lifted the sheet to check underneath. Rin wished it were that simple.

  “Rin? Are you here?”

  “Y-Yes, sir…” Rin answered, slowly raising her hand.

  “Uh-huh. See me after class.”

  Her eyes darted to Eddie. He was already staring back at her, one eyebrow raised.

  Rin gave a quick, nervous nod. “Yes, sir…”

  “Good. Now then—without further ado, welcome to Magical Elements class. Today, we’ll be covering two things: the basic elements of spellcasting… and your affinity sorting.”

  Professor Oraus clasped his hands behind his back and began pacing in front of the archway. His voice boomed, steady and practiced, as if he’d given this same lecture a thousand times.

  “Our magical world is built on seven fundamental elements. They shape everything—what you can touch, what you can feel, even what you can think. Earth, Fire, Water, Air, Divine, Curse, and Neutral.”

  Rin perked up.

  “Each of you,” Oraus continued, “carries an affinity for one or more of these elements. That affinity gives us insight into where your strengths will lie. Divine may mean healing or clarity of vision. Curse is its opposite—decay, fear, corruption. Earth, Fire, Water, Air—straightforward enough. Neutral, however…”

  He paused, tapping the side of the archway. “Neutral is rare… but it’s also exactly what its name implies. Nothing. An absence. Did you know, emissive magic is itself a form of Neutral magic?”

  Rin’s fingers fidgeted with her wand. She wanted to ask out loud, but the silence in the classroom felt heavy, expectant. Holding her anxiousness back.

  Beside her, Eddie muttered under his breath, “Bet half this class gets Fire. Everyone wants to shoot flames from their hands.”

  Rin smiled but quickly covered it with her hands.

  Oraus kept speaking, striding slowly toward the archway. “Some of you may have affinities to multiple elements. And yes—elements can combine. Fire and Divine form Lightning, as one example. But that is for a later lesson.”

  His eyes swept the room, finally settling back on the silent archway in the center. “For today, you will learn your first truth—your affinity. And the sorter will reveal it to you.”

  Rin’s gaze fixed on the arch again, her chest tightening.

  Professor Oraus raised his clipboard again. “We’ll proceed one at a time. When I call your name, step forward to the sorter and make sure to bring your wand. Now… Arie Jackson.”

  A boy from the front row shuffled nervously up to the archway. The room went still. Oraus gestured, and the boy hesitated before walking through the empty frame. For a moment, nothing happened—then faint streaks of light shimmered across the stone, colors twisting and pulsing before settling into a deep, earthy green.

  “Earth and Air.” Oraus announced. “Strong, steady, reliable. You’ll do well.”

  The boy beamed and hurried back to his seat as the class murmured.

  Rin leaned closer to Eddie, whispering. “Did you see that? It just… knows?”

  “That’s the whole point,” Eddie said flatly. “It reads you. Doesn’t matter what you want, it spits out what you are.”

  Rin’s fingers tightened around her wand. “What if it spits out something bad?”

  Eddie gave her a sideways glance, then snorted. “Then at least you’ll know what you’re bad at too.”

  “Eddie!” Rin hissed, puffing her cheeks.

  “Relax. You’ll be fine,” he said, softer this time.

  Rin let out a shaky breath.

  Professor Oraus called the next name. “Eddie Trofen.”

  Rin blinked. “Wait—that’s you!”

  Eddie grunted, pushing himself out of the chair with all the enthusiasm of someone heading to detention. He strode toward the archway, slipping his hands into his pockets as if daring it to impress him.

  The moment he stepped through, the archway erupted in light. Flames licked red across the stone, waves of blue water curling between them. Wind howled faintly, earth rumbled low, pale gold shimmered like sunlight, and sickly violet crackled with curse. One after another, the six elements blazed at once—everything except Neutral.

  The class gasped. Even Oraus leaned back a step, his brow furrowing.

  “You seem to be an extremely talented boy. A bright future ahead of you.”

  “W-Was that… six elements?” Eddie asked, still dazed.

  “Indeed it was. What was your name? Young Trofen?”

  “Y-Yes, sir.”

  “Hm. Take a seat.”

  Eddie stumbled back to his desk on wobbly legs, the entire class buzzing in hushed murmurs.

  “R-Rin?” he whispered, as if she might have vanished in the commotion.

  Rin only blinked at him. “Eddie? Are you… okay?”

  “I think the best thing that could ever happen to me just happened to me!” he squeaked in a hilariously low pitch.

  Rin giggled despite the knot in her stomach.

  “Now, let’s see… Rin? Bring your wand. Let’s see your affinity.”

  Rin shot up so fast she nearly tripped over the leg of her desk. She clutched her wand tight, heart hammering, and shuffled toward the center archway.

  The stone rumbled before she even stepped into its frame.

  “Hm? That’s not supposed to happen…” Professor Oraus muttered, frowning. He strode toward her. “Let me see your wand, girl.”

  Rin handed it over with trembling fingers.

  “How… perfectly balanced?” he whispered, almost in awe. Then his eyes widened as the truth hit him. “A corrupted core? For an eleven-year-old!?” His shout cracked across the classroom.

  Gasps echoed from every corner.

  The wand slipped from his hands, but he snatched it back before it hit the ground and pressed it firmly into Rin’s grip. He leaned close, his voice low and sharp.

  “Do not—and I repeat, do not—let anyone take this wand from you. Is that understood, young Rin?”

  Rin hugged it to her chest like a teddy bear, nodding frantically. “Y-Yes, sir!”

  “N-Now… step into the archway. Hopefully it doesn’t fight you…”

  “F-Fight me?!”

  “Forget I said that. Forward. Now.”

  That was a hard thing to forget.

  Rin gulped and shuffled a step closer. The arch rumbled again, louder this time.

  “You can do it, Rin!” Eddie called out—much too loudly in a classroom that had gone deathly silent.

  She took one last look at Eddie, forcing the best smile she could manage, then nodded. Finally, she stepped into the archway.

  The stone shuddered violently. Tremors rippled through the floor and walls, desks rattling as students clung to them. The arch vibrated harder, a low growl building until—

  A blinding flash of golden light burst forth, searing through the room. Then came jagged green veins of glowing curse energy, crawling over every inch of the arch. Finally, it all collapsed into a billowing white mist, hissing from every pore of the stone.

  Professor Oraus’s voice cut through the haze. “Divinity. Cursed. And… Neutral. How quaint. Please take a seat now.”

  Dismissed, Rin bolted back to her desk, clutching her wand tight.

  Eddie blinked at her, leaning in. “Rin… are you okay now?”

  “Did I… do good?” she whispered, wide-eyed.

  “Uh… maybe good?”

  Rin tilted her head, slowly craning toward Eddie. That’s when she noticed it. The kids behind him weren’t just looking at Eddie. They were staring at her. Actually—everyone was. Even the professor.

  #

  A few more classes passed — Botany, Alchemy, Physical Education — and finally, it was lunch.

  The cafeteria wasn’t kind. Stares followed Rin and Eddie, sharp and unwelcoming. Without a word, they grabbed their trays and carried them outside to a campus bench.

  Rin barely touched her food, poking at it with her fork. Eddie, on the other hand, inhaled his meal like he was a vacuum.

  “Hey, Rin?” Eddie mumbled through a mouthful.

  “Yeah?”

  “Are you gonna eat that?” He jabbed a messy fork at her untouched plate.

  Rin looked down, sighed, and shook her head. “No…”

  She slid the plate to him, and he practically absorbed the contents clean. A final swallow, a thump to his chest, and then a giant burp ripped out of him.

  Rin blinked at the noise.

  “Gross, right?”

  “…Is it supposed to be?”

  “Well, most girls think so.”

  “Then… I guess it was…”

  Eddie froze mid-smirk, studying her carefully. She’d averted her eyes, almost like she’d said it just to fit in.

  “Hey, Rin?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Are you sad?”

  “No…”

  Eddie squinted, smirk tugging at his lips. “You are.”

  Her cheeks flushed bright red, and she fiddled with her fingers.

  “It’s a terrible feeling,” she whispered.

  “It is…” Eddie admitted, scooting a little closer.

  “Do you get sad?”

  He hesitated. His eyes dropped to the ground. “…I do.”

  “Then… what do you do about it?”

  “Well… I stop thinking about whatever’s making me sad.”

  “Is it really that easy?”

  “No. Not for everyone. It wasn’t for me at first. Actually…” He scratched his cheek. “…it might not be. I don’t know.”

  Rin stared at him, then stifled a sudden giggle.

  “What? What did I even say!” Eddie huffed, offended.

  “N-Nothing!”

  “I totally did!”

  “No you didn’t! It’s just… you actually said it. That you don’t know.”

  “Huh?”

  “You said ‘I don’t know’ and

  it!”

  “… Are you going to bake me cookies now?”

  “I don’t know what baking is, but I have cookies in my room.”

  “Oh right, you do! From ! Give them to me,” Eddie snarled playfully.

  Rin burst into laughter again, wiping at her eyes.

  “What’s so wrong about not knowing, anyway?” Eddie asked, smiling now.

  “Nothing! Not a thing. I just… felt like I had to work hard to keep up with you. It’s nice to see you can slow down for me.”

  Eddie tilted his head at her. “Sorry about that.”

  “Sorry?”

  “Yeah. I haven’t really been too… close with you.”

  “Is that not okay?”

  “I mean, I guess? I don’t know…”

  “You just did it again!” Rin leapt to her feet, grinning wide as she pointed at him.

  Eddie groaned, dragging his hands down his face.

  “Knock it off! I just… haven’t had friends before.”

  “You haven’t?”

  “…No…” he admitted, cheeks tinting pink as he looked away.

  “Do you… like being friends with me?”

  Eddie glanced back at her, staring as if he were trying to read something hidden in her eyes.

  “…Or not…” Rin murmured, stepping back cautiously and wringing her hands.

  “No, no! It’s not that, I promise!” he said, jolting to his feet. “I just… I feel like I’m being a terrible friend. You’re the only person who’s stuck with me like you… actually wanted to stay. Usually people just want homework answers, or spells they can throw back in my face. This is… different, you know?”

  “I don’t think you’re a terrible friend, Eddie.”

  Their eyes met again. Rin didn’t flinch, didn’t look away. She smiled at him, and despite being taller, she wasn’t looking on him — she was looking him. Steady. Her knees bent slightly, grounding her in place, as if to close the gap between them.

  “When I fell down the stairs, you caught me with a wand you weren’t even supposed to have. When Drenco yelled at me earlier, you pulled me away. When I was nervous trying to perform magic, you told me I could do it. And then again at the affinity sorting!” Rin’s voice climbed higher with each memory.

  Eddie stood frozen, eyes wide.

  “No one else did that for me. Only you. And that makes you a good friend!”

  “It does...?”

  “Mhmm!” Rin nodded frantically, hiding her hands behind her back in her usual innocent way.

  Eddie dropped his gaze to the ground. For the first time in his life, he felt… acknowledged. Accepted. Not mocked, not used, not pushed aside. Just seen. This na?ve, slightly scatterbrained girl had chosen him as her friend. And she liked him for it.

  “You mean that, Rin?”

  “I do!”

  “…Okay.” Eddie’s voice softened as he folded his hands behind his back.

  Rin’s smile never wavered. She just looked at him, taking him in: the messy lock of black hair falling over his right eye, the faint red freckles across his nose, the curve of his small but rounded shoulders under his gray sweater. For the first time all day, she felt like she belonged. With him.

  “If… If I ever say something dumb, or do something wrong, and hurt you… would you leave?”

  “What? No!” Rin giggled. “What would you even do?”

  “I don’t know! Like… make fun of you?”

  “That doesn’t sound like you, Eddie,” she said firmly, her sweet smile steady.

  He went quiet, stunned.

  “I learn so much from you,” Rin continued. “More than I ever could from Drenco. So… I want to be your friend. And I want you to be mine. Is that okay?”

  “…That’s… okay. That’s okay with me, Rin. I’ll be your friend.”

  His voice brightened, wavering at the edges. He rubbed at his eyes quickly, hiding the shine before she noticed. It worked. Rin only nodded, beaming.

  “I think you should keep the cookies,” Eddie added after a pause. “You’re probably gonna be starving once we’re back at the house.”

  “I can share?”

  Eddie laughed, doubling over and clutching his stomach. “You’re too much! Fine! We’ll share!”

  #

  Rin had sat in the living quarters with Eddie for hours, sharing her cookies until the very last crumb was gone. He’d been right—her stomach was roaring by the end. When their house master finally ordered them to split up and head to bed, they exchanged one last wave and a soft goodnight before parting ways.

  Back in her room, Rin paused.

  The second bed, which had been empty all day, wasn’t empty anymore. A blue and yellow blanket was neatly spread across it. A small wooden luggage sat at the edge, its lock faintly sparkling with enchantment. A folded shirt and a pair of deep-blue jeans rested on top.

  But there was no one there.

  None of it had been there earlier when she’d grabbed her cookies. Which meant… someone had placed it all here while she was with Eddie.

  Rin simply shook her head, deciding not to think too hard about it. All that mattered was she had a friend now. A good one. For the first time, she felt like she was doing things right—one step closer to becoming a strong sorceress. And another to being a normal girl.