Chapter Text
She is an obscure child, yes; quiet and seemingly mournful of something. Strange for sure, but she is full of questions and curiosity, and that particular trait of hers is what had made her an exemplary student.
- The Seventeenth Headmaster of the Grand Academy
The moment she opened her eyes, the first thing she noticed was not of of the grey skies with its looming clouds and of life all around her, but instead of the strange lightness lingering all over her body: seemingly so as if the weight that keeps her on the ground was gone, replaced with an emptiness that felt more larger than it should.
She lifts a finger. It moved.
She moves her head to the side, her eyes spotting the pallid glow that surrounds the glade; similar to a fuzz. Was she supposed to be here?
Her staff was nowhere to be found.
The weightless feeling prodded at her being; stretching itself down from her head to where the nerves of her feet end. At least she can move, she mused in her head. The overfamiliar smell of lilies hangs high in the air, wafting against her nose. Her eyes looked around, the sight of the massive lily glade made something in her chest twist; of what she can’t figure out. Melancholy, perhaps?
She moves her hand, her fingers flexing in no real direction and would totally make her look like a fool if someone saw her like this: a woman lying on the ground, silently watching her hand wriggle about. Thankfully, she was the only one here, the place void of anyone else but of herself. Fields of green and white stretching across from what she could see. There was no sunlight here, only a vague but still looming gloom cascading her and the glade.
Where am I? The question was only hers to hear, but she winced anyway.
She racks her head for answers. She doesn't find any.
She stood up, her hands anchoring her upper body as she lifted herself up from the ground. Her dress and hair and hands (miraculously) unstained with a single speck of dirt. There was very little wind here, she noticed after a while, a wilting breeze brushing itself across her face. Its touch a little too cold.
Half-lidded eyes stared from beyond the fields, a strange feeling hovering itself over her shoulders; foreign and heavy.
She took a breath, her hands holding the front edges of her cape. Hiding the wince as the faint throb behind her eyes worsened for only a moment.
She closes her eyes.
She was unsure how many days had passed, but nothing much had changed.
The strange lightness never left her, its presence lingering on every second and every inch of her body; from the top of her head down to the nerve endings of her feet. She knows she should be worried, but she had more pressing matters to care for. Far more important.
Another thing she had realized just hours after her awakening was that her stomach had seemingly dispelled the natural need for food. She'd panicked of course, immediately snatching her satchel to grab some sustenance for her to eat. The food was fresh and fragrant, despite the many days she had spent in this place.
There was no taste when the food touched her tongue.
She turns her head back, sees nothing but the vast lily glade stretching for yards ahead. Nothing new, she told herself, a sigh escaping from her lips. Her staff was still missing, a reminder that should have more importance but she finds that she doesn't care much - a bad sign definitely. With more effort than expected, she walks her way to the mass fields of looming lilies, scolding at herself to find it. Under her heel, the grass gave way, the occasional breeze ruffling her hair lightly.
Her head throbbed, a soft ringing sensation erupting in her ears. She ignored it.
The search didn't last long - the pungent smell of rain had imprinted onto her clothes it seemed, her staff standing upright on a willow tree that most certainly wasn't there before. Despite the faint twinge at the back of her eyes, she approached it, felt the breeze brush itself against the back of her head; almost like a push. She touched it, the familiar cold feeling of metal on her fingertips and the fragrance of home soothing her worries for a temporary while. Small, but she would take it. Anything is better than the haunting lack of the voices in her head.
She wonders why it's gone now. She wasn't used much to complete silence; the vague gibberish often sticking itself into her ears and enrapturing her in a loose sense of focus for most, if not all, of the day. It was annoying, definitely, but the relentless questioning was something she didn't mind much. If anything, she often took note of it.
“They hold potential,” a disembodied voice echoed in her ears, familiar yet not. “ Write them down, speak them loud, and hold them close. Take that fuzz of yours as your guide for something you truly want.”
“Of what?” She questioned, her teacher turning to look at her. The classroom had been empty then, her friend having to leave early due to a project with his assigned group for the assessment next week. He complained about it to her though, telling her that he was ‘lonely’ and ‘I don’t know them, Lilia!’
Silly, her friend was. His group mates will treat him just fine.
Her teacher hummed, closing their one eye. “That can only be answered by you, my dear.” Moments later, they ushered at her to leave, telling her to go back to the dormitory because the curfew was near. She obliged then, bidding them farewell and walking down the empty hallways. A soft thumping gait reverberating in her ears.
She never got her answer, even years later.
There had been temporary ones: her friend, whose company was often warm and welcoming, gave her some answers. “How about philosophy? I think it’s interesting.” he said, closing his book to look at her instead. His blonde hair in a mess.
She sighed, eyeing the drawn-out passage etched on paper with disdain. “Not my type,” she mumbled, pushing her research papers to the side. They were the only students here, a sight very much common to the librarian - whose never-blinking stare was unnerving to all firstcomers -. The torches were alit; sparked up by an old magic whose origins kept her intrigued - not that the professors would indulge her in that particular information. “Thank you for the suggestion though.” She said, leaning back into her chair just slightly. A sigh leaving her lips.
Her friend stared at her; heterochromatic eyes assessing her.
“What about Medicine and Practical Theory? I’ve heard it’s gonna be added to the extracurricular classes next month.” He said then, his cheeks reddening when she cocked her head towards him.
“Medicine and Practical Theory…” She pondered. The latter sounded interesting, maybe some further insight on the origins of magic application? Her professor did tell her that there were many career paths when it comes to magic - something she is proficient with, in her professor's words at least. She could use the extra knowledge for her own experiments, although they had been postponed for a while due to the hellish last week that was ‘quarterly assessment’. “Isn’t medicine a separate class though?” She asked. “Ah, the teachers were considering merging them due to the lack of interest from the other students.” He answered, looking fidgety as always. It bothered her a bit sometimes, but he always reassured her whenever she asked.
She hummed, “I’ll think about it.”
The third thing she noticed was the stagnant air all around the area.
The smell of lilies were strong (especially if one is stuck in a lily glade), but underneath it was something odd; subtle but not hard for her notice. She frowned, her hands holding her staff steady as she stared off to the distance, again. There was something, she knew. It was important, her gut told her, so very important.
Her fingers gripped tight, the metal freezing against her palms.
She looked at the road, and saw a vague silhouette impending far on the horizon.
She blinked once, then twice, but the silhouette only beckoned closer. Unsure what to do, she stalled in place, her grip on the staff tightening just momentarily.
"I've been telling you, we are not lost!" The first voice reached to her ears, sounding akin to a child.
"You sure about that kid?" A cheeky voice jeered at the first, a woman's pitch, she'd realized. "We've been chasing after a mutt and there's no crown to be found!" Definitely crass.
"The smell of the lilies are strong." A third one mused, their words only heard because of the breeze that flew past her. They were getting closer now, their voices echoing with more clarity and their figures taking a more tangible form; a large mass slowly dividing itself into five.
"I haven't seen such abundances of lilies like this before," a fourth voice commented, another child it seemed - just how many children are there? "This looked well-tended for a wild field though?" They asked, the familiar cold air that magic always brings brushing against her skin. Electric and vagrant.
"Are we there yet? I'm getting hungry!" She was sure that this fifth voice was the youngest of the group; their pitch was shrill and piercing. “A king needs to eat, you know?”
“Yeah, yeah,” the second voice brushed them off, “This chase better have some treasure at the end or something…” They paused suddenly, their shoulders tensing as red eyes narrowed at her, one arm hovering over the children as they stopped. Her dark attire contrasted against the green grass; her red hair even more so.
Oh, she thought, gazing into scarlet eyes. She must be the children’s guardian.
“Hey, I can’t see!”
“Who are you?” She asked, her free hand reaching for the knife strapped to her belt. “You don’t look like you’re a local from here.”
“I am not,” she answered honestly, her eyes unblinking if only for a show. “I’m lost.”
The stranger doesn’t look convinced at all. She looks past her; sees the children looking at her; their eyes curious. One was wearing an outfit that felt vaguely familiar, garbs of blue and holding a staff in his hands. Another boy was standing on his side, his eyes narrowed and his left hand holding onto the child wearing a pink jacket. Her hand trembled. They looked like nothing more than ten. A lily glade isn’t something that children would casually stroll in...
Then she spotted it; bright blonde hair peeking out from the very back.
Something in her paused, an almost painful shock running through her head and traversing in her arms and ending in her fingertips. Strong in its wake and making her head spin even more.
Without much thought, the air around her shifted; cold and burning all at once, magic gathering itself in her hands unconsciously; a vibrant green.
“Woah!” She hears, but that is not of importance to her.
‘You sure you’ll be alright on your own, Lilia? I can stay with you if you want?’
She took her step forward, eyeing the child holding a staff. A staff fit for a king.
She stared at him, the smell of orchids he loved so much was strong. They were alone, the lilies he had so adamantly pestered her for him to grow were in full bloom. Her friend seemed to care for them well; their petals untarnished and their fragrance fresh.
‘I’ll be fine,’ she assured, taking a sip of her tea. ‘I can wait.’ She smiled then, a hand gently nudging at his arm to go. His staff, whose sentience still piqued her interest from time to time, stared at her. Its vines move ever so slightly.
‘Alright,’ he murmured, his cheeks red. ‘I won’t take too long.’
‘You never do.’ She almost said, her fingers tracing the edge of her cup. From her back, the lilies swayed, the wind strong.
“Don’t take one step forward,” the children’s guardian snarled at her, her eyes narrowing even as she stopped in her tracks. The glint of her weapon was seen clear, a flaming red reminiscent of the ripest peppers. “Stay where you are and don’t move an inch.”
She says nothing.
Then without a word, she leaves them be. Acutely aware of their sounds of surprise as her body fades away. It still hurts a bit, using her powers like this. But, it would have to do for now.
His smile towards her was warm, of light and compassion, and she never felt ever the more safe.