nature's design

[twellen]

It wasn't her colleagues first advice because it had been a given to them. When she told them she had classes for the entire day, they looked at her strangely and asked if she kept all her classes.

“Of course,” she answered confidently. “I want to keep teaching. We're also gaining more students by day. We need as many professors around.”

Their strange looks turned to concern. She shouldn't overwork herself. As the new headmistress of Mannaz School of Magical Arts, she had many new responsibilities to fulfill. If they were getting more students, then as professor and headmistress, its weight on her was twice or thrice the usual. She had to deal not only with the students' education but also their acceptance. Unlike a typical institution, enrollment in Mannaz was quite irregular and impromptu.

“I'll be fine!” Twellen waved their faces with a silly laugh. “And don't tell me to be mindful of my age! When my mother was fourty, she was still chopping lumbers and carabaos.”

The conversation was still in her mind three hours later and caused her to smile to herself as if it were a funny joke. Maybe foreigners were frail at her age. Being in a community where nationality and race didn't matter, they must have overlooked that Twellen was a Feroxi woman. Didn't they believe her when she told them stories of her and her sister hunting in the woods and beating up men who tried to steal their horses? At the age of twelve?

Twellen's eyes were humming at the windows. A few students were already trickling inside the empty classroom. It was still early, but Twellen knew the students were already present in the grounds, using their time wisely to study, practice, or read books in the library. For no particular reason, she turned her head to doorway at the instant a figure had entered through. Twellen smiled.

“Speaking of horses, hello, Ten'mi! It really makes me happy that you're in all of my classes now. Were, for Philosophy of Magic. How are you?”

ten'mi

[ten'mi]

"Horses" was about the last thing Ten'mi wanted to hear coming into class, especially when she was dumb enough to be caught off-guard and flinch at the word. Hastily she relaxed her posture, responding with a bright "Good morning, Headmistress. It's my pleasure taking more of your classes. I'm fine, how are you?"

From behind her glasses though, she glanced around the classroom, the frames not quite covering the dark circles under her eyes. Her recovery was smooth, so maybe her classmates didn't notice that jump. And maybe some fear before class wasn't such a bad thing, either. It woke her up. She'd been in a bit of a daze thanks to yet another night of little sleep, but at least she finished that book she was reading.

Though she still hadn't figured out how to talk to the headmistress about the whole Horseback Riding class problem. Should she do it now? Before any more people come in? No; the sound of several footsteps behind her told her it was already too late. After class would be better; it'd give her some time to collect her nerve, too.

"Also, Headmistress? Do you have some time after class?" she added in a lower tone. "I had a question about my schedule."

twellen

[twellen]

Twellen wrapped her hand atop the other one's knuckles and concisely answered Ten'mi,“I am feeling healthy and empowered, thank you.” Her smile, showing a fraction of her teeth, said the same thing, glowing as brightly and energetically as the morning sun.

Twellen appeared as a very sophisticated woman, draped in a shiny, violet cloak lined with gold hems. A garnet wrapped in gold cord (sewn from the high collar of the cloak) rested between her clavicles, where a lavender cloth was ribboned into two long tails and weighed down by a red sphere each. Her head was encased by the funnel of her collar, which elongated five inches above her ears like the petal of a flower. She had a platinum blond bob-cut, where half of her face was curtained by an ascending length of bangs while the other was pulled back with a silver clip, showing her ear.

Despite her mature style, Twellen's hooded eyes and pinch-size brows were youthful and dancing with creativity, as if they saw adventure right about the corner.

Whether or not Twellen noticed her student's flinch was hard to say. The conversation had plowed away any curious initiative to ask.

“Your schedule?” Doing it after school would be better or tomorrow before the start of the classes. But Twellen did not like saying 'no' to her students. “You have Anima after this, don't you? All right, just come to me later. I might forget.”

Twellen glanced to the class, which had quieted down and given her its attention. She leaned to the back of her chair, looking at each familiar face. It was a silent message that lecture was about to begin.

ten'mi

[ten'mi]

Ten'mi wasn't sure if it was the Headmistress's energy getting to her or the passing buzz of that first flinch, but somehow, asking the question left her more awake than before. "Of course," she answered, nodding. "Thank you, Headmistress." Maybe the older woman might forget, but Ten'mi definitely wouldn't. If something could help clear her mind of unnecessary worries, then she could definitely spare a bit of time before Anima.

Noting the Headmistress's glance, Ten'mi turned, taking a seat near the front as always. Briskly she set out her paper and quill, trying hard not to think of how she was going to phrase her question; after all, she had a lecture to listen to.

twellen

[twellen]

Twellen stretched an arm across her desk. The glint of adventure continued to shimmer in her eyes, but something sharper and more calculative was piercing as she looked at each of her student.

“You are all mages with the exceptional ability to study the dark arts. Can I see who's taking the Anima class again?” Twellen already knew that at least twelve or thirteen of her students were also taking Anima, but to see those hands raising in the air was there to help prove a point.

“No one's taking Higher Magic? No faithfuls of Naga?” There were small smiles and faint chuckles from the class. Twellen smiled as well. “Faithfuls of Grima?”

“Secretly,” a student whispered. In a small class, it was heard by everybody.

“In Ylisse and Ferox, being a dark mage is a mark of being a Grimleal,” Twellen explained, her eyebrows rising. “But as you all know, Plegia's – quote and unquote - “Queen” is a practitioner of Elder Magic like all of us and she's the least fan of Grima. Mr. Joshua, do you find it ironic?”

Standing from the very back of the class was a seventeen-year-old freshman with unkempt short brown hair and bangs. On his ears were two tufts of long hair. For someone new in Twellen's class, he took being called serenely and with a sweet smile on his face.

“Oh, not at all, ma'm,” Joshua answered, his green eyes twinkling. “Elder Magic doesn't belong to Plegia or to Grima. What religion Queen Maeve supports has no relation with Elder Magic.”

“But Ylisseans and Feroxi think so. I'm sure a majority of Plegians do, too. The Feroxi is more neutral about it. We cannot expect them to show care to magic, but Ylisseans are different. Anima Magic has been taught in Ylisse since ancient times, but not Elder Magic. It is the trademark of Grima. Do you still believe religion – that is, Grima – has no relation with Elder Magic?”

“Yes. It doesn't. Grima is a dark god, but there is no evidence that Grima invented Elder Magic. The relationship between them is cultural as a result of exposure and experience. Elder Magic has become associated with Grima.”

“Are you a faithful of Grima, Mr. Joshua?”

“No, ma'm.”

“A faithful of Naga?”

“Nah.”

“If the curriculum of Mannaz School of Magical Arts allowed Elder Magic students to take Higher Magic, is there anything stopping you from taking it?”

Joshua paused to ponder on it. “I would be a terrible healer.”

“Ability then?”

Joshua pouted. “Yes.”

Twellen smiled. “That's fine, Mr. Joshua. Thank you.”

Joshua sat down.

ten'mi (Basically I'll just let Ten'mi react. If she wants to speak out or just show her thoughts. Twellen will continue the lecture if she doesn't say anything which is a-okay. You learn even by just sitting! But yeah, just letting ya know since I'm cutting it without any direct interaction with Ten'mi.)

[ten'mi]

She'd raised her hand for the Anima question, but kept it down when religion was brought up. Instead, she wrote on the parchment, "Ylisse + Ferox: Dark Mage = Grimleal." It was information she already knew, but seeing it written down in her hasty scrawl cemented the knowledge. Plus, it kept her in the class for those tired days—especially now, when the prior burst of energy was waning.

Ten'mi turned to look at the student the Headmistress called on; movement helped with concentrating, too. She wasn't all that familiar with this Joshua, but his discussion with the Headmistress was interesting. She'd come from Chon'sin to learn magic, but if she had to choose just one unexpected pleasure her studies brought, it was discovering more about other countries in the process.

She jotted down more notes. "I know I'd take Higher Magic if I could." Ability didn't matter to her. What mattered was trying, and knowing.

She kept her lips pursed for now, though her mind kept running.

twellen (kk, gotcha. she'll be a stellar student and participate later, maybe. :'D)

[twellen]

From her seat, she could see Ten'mi taking down notes. The only one taking down notes. The other students had closed tomes and elbows on their desks as they listened attentively to the lecture.

Young Ten'mi didn't have to write anything down, but as a foreigner, perhaps what she was saying was information too new to her.

Oh wait – There goes 19-year-old Lalayna, seated on an adjacent chair behind Ten'mi, pulling out her quill and paper. She had gotten self-conscious seeing Ten'mi writing.

“Mr. Joshua is correct. Elder Magic is associated with Grima, just as Higher Magic is associated with Naga,” Twellen explained, her eyes growing and staying wide as she spelled down her points. “But there is no evidence in nature that links the gods and magic, not even the slightest, most remote possibility. Magic is universal, but these gods are not. Your other professors have been through many lands and they never heard of them, but they can teach you how to comprehend the ancient language! Have Grima been an influence on the labeling of Elder Magic as evil and malicious? Or could it be the other way around?”

Twellen stood up and moved to the right side of the classroom. She didn't move around much but her wide eyes and high eyebrows were brimming with attention.

“Elder Magic is an esoteric practice, more so in the past. Illnesses, curses, bad luck have been associated with Elder Magic because of fear brought forth by ignorance. They are not to blame. It's difficult, isn't? It's hard to understand Elder Magic. It requires years of studying and practice. It is very abstract and technical at the same time. Ms. Yra," (A middle-aged woman with two bun black hair looked alert) " - Mr. Nasir," (A young man with short blond hair continued listening intently) " - and the rest of you make up the small population of talented and intelligent minds with the ability to learn the ancient arts. The others who are unable to fathom the mysteries of magic are left to learn from experience, exposure in the form of harm. It's different from Anima – ” Twellen cast a look to the Anima students, “—Right? Fire, wind, and thunder have a physical manifestation. We are familiar with the elements and have evolved in such a way that we manipulate them. Moreover, we observe them as natural components with some use. Elder Magic solely brings harm and disaster.

“How does this relate to Grima and to Naga? The misconception does not only exist in the layman community. It exists among mages. In the past and the present time, mages were looked up to as the spiritual leaders and spiritual leaders, at times, have greater power than the highest sovereign. Proof? Ylisse. Plegia. The Exalt descended from the pope and Plegia was governed by the Cult of Grima. Control of what people believed in were in the hands of mages. If these mages thought those mages were evil, then they were evil. If these mages thought their sorcery was superior and salvation, then they were righteous.

“The conflict between Grima and Naga and the personalities these “gods” supposedly embody originated from us. From the magical community.”

ten'mi

[ten'mi]

Ten'mi didn't mind that she was the only one writing. Or rather, she didn't notice she was the only one writing. Even if she did though, it wasn't as if she'd put down her pen and stop. Writing helped her. Her hand did not pause even when she heard some rustling behind her, the sound of another student taking out their supplies.

It did a moment later, her quill hovering over the parchment as she thought. She'd pondered on the applications of Elder Magic before. As far as humans knew, the elements of Anima existed in nature. People knew how to use their tomes outside of fighting, and did. But what was elder magic? "Darkness," if its other name and apparent manifestation meant anything. The world seemed unsure, though. Humans used their tomes solely for combat. The kinds that existed implied as much; there was elder magic that hurt to heal the user, had a chance to strike harder, or enabled faster attacks.

It was this curiosity that led Ten'mi to elder magic. In her childhood, she'd leaned toward magic over swords because from what she knew of her Anima tomes, there was more to magic than just fighting. The day she learned of magic that was used only for combat was a momentous one that sparked her inner scholar. That some mages would cast Elder Magic aside purely because it was "evil" irritated her.

Ten'mi raised her hand when the Headmistress stopped speaking. She knew what she'd say if acknowledged: "I have a question, Headmistress. Considering that Elder Magic is often associated with Grima, can we assume that its negative image came from Grima's loss when he first attempted to take over the Ylissean continent? Because Naga and the first Exalt won, Grima and subsequently, Elder Magic came to be viewed negatively. Their mages won the right to call elder magic 'evil' and have that image spread. If this is true though, would this mean there were none or few dark mages fighting on their side?"


twellen