Chapter Text
Olruggio had heard about the Great Hall numerous times back in Ghodrey. His father had explained that it’s the heart of witch society in Zozah Peninsula where all education pertaining to becoming a witch was centered. Typical of a seven-year-old, Olruggio had asked if the Great Hall was the center of witch’s education, why were they in Ghodrey instead. His reply was simple and delivered with laughter and a ruffle in his hair.
“Because Ghodrey needs us.”
Olruggio huffed in annoyance as he smoothed his messy hair. Not really understanding what his father had meant. Later that evening, he remembered his father had promised to take him to the Great Hall when he passed his first test. Excited, young Olruggio was fired up and did his primer under his father’s watchful eye until late night before his mother found them and scolded them both to go to sleep. That night, Olruggio dreamed of the underwater city and the whale that he had never seen in real life.
At twelve years old, Olruggio was standing in the Great Hall alone. The undersea hummed in his ears that it felt like he’s drowning despite standing up in the middle of the street. He looked up and saw a giant whale passing by like it’s a normal occurrence. What’s supposed to be the blue sky was replaced by the dark ocean water so deep that he couldn’t see any sunlight. He didn’t know whether it’s day or night here and the only indication of time was a bell in the central tower.
His father had lied about how amazing the Great Hall was.
Alone in the city that was built like a giant maze under the sea, Olruggio was walking aimlessly as he tried to familiarize himself with his new home. The coldness he felt here was different from the coldness in Ghodrey. In Ghodrey, despite its extreme temperature, they’re always surrounded by fire that makes them warm. While in the Great Hall, the coldness didn’t come from the temperature but from the rigid society it had. Everything was scheduled. From morning to evening, all apprentices knew what they’re going to do that day.
Whether it’s fortunate or not, as a newcomer, Olruggio was thankful that he was spared from the rigid schedule. All the adults were walking on eggshells around him. Looking at him pitifully while whispering among themselves, trying to be considerate. They should have known that the action was never considerate and plainly rude. But what did he expect from witches who had lived all their lives secluded under the sea without ever seeing the outside world properly?
In hindsight, his father truly exaggerated his story about the Great Hall. It was never that amazing now that he’s here.
As Olruggio walked among the bricked walls of the Great Hall, he realized he had wandered to somewhere he’s not familiar with since this area seemed more deserted compared to the lively main street. He stopped and looked around to see anyone and found none. He would get a map for this freaking place after this. But for now, he’s going to walk until he found a semblance of humans to point him to his lodging.
It was fifteen minutes later that someone was passing by.
“Was that.. snow?”
Olruggio quickly turned his head back to call out but was frozen as his eye landed on a figure of a kid around his age with white hair and cladded in white robe with some seafoam blue color accent here and there.
“Guess not. Who is he? He’s practically as white as snow.”
As his eyes followed the kid, his feet slipped and he yelped as he fell to the ground. His right cheek burnt and his head hurted. He’s sure a bruise would bloom in his forehead later.
He was nursing his head when he heard a yelp from behind and saw the kid from earlier had collided into the wall of water and flapped his hands wildly.
Goosebump spread into his body as his heart seized at the scene. An unwanted vision that he had tried to forget for the past two weeks crossed his mind and without thinking, Olruggio sprang into action by pulling the kid out of the wall of water. But the dense water made it hard to pull the kid out so his first instinct was to grab his palm squire. A nasty thought gripped his heart and mind, reminding him of the time when he let a little girl’s hand go in favor of closing his magic circle and ended with the little girl engulfed in fire while crying painfully.
Droplets of water hit his face and woke him from spiralling. The white-haired boy was unmoving now.
Olruggio gritted his teeth and took out his palm squire. He had no time to ponder. His hand flipped the small parchment to find the empty one before drawing some spells that could save the boy. Once finished, he lifted the spell with both of his hands and mouth and the wall of water dispersed. Sending the drowning kid to the cobbled stone while drenching him with the cold water.
“It’s so cold. It hurts. It feels like I was being dunked into a freezing lake back at home! Is this just how cold the water is down here?”
Olruggio was trembling as he approached the unconscious boy.
“Hey, are you okay?”
As Olruggio rolled the boy over, he was faced with a very pale face as white as his hair. Panic gripped his mind and he was brought back to the time when he was so helpless that he couldn’t save anyone. Where screams of agony permeated in his eardrums left and right. Where the smell of burnt flesh hit his nose that he almost gagged. Where his father had shielded him among the fire and brought him outside the burning compound before ruffling his hair and running back inside to save more people.
“Please, no.. I’m not letting that happen again!”
So Olruggio did what he’s best at.
Drawing spells.
He flipped his palm squire again and drew the very first spell he had mastered under his father’s tutelage. He cradled the boy's body in his lap as he closed the circle and the magic took place.
The magic glowed and all of the water around them evaporated in an instant. As the drying spell was working, Olruggio forced the boy’s mouth open to extract excess water that probably filled his lungs with wind spell. The boy’s lashes fluttered and his hands twitched before he coughed violently.
“I don’t think I’ve ever drawn a dying spell that well before.”
As Olruggio pondered, the boy sat up and continued to cough out the water inside his lungs before settling down and opening his eye. “Wha─ what happened to me?”
The moment the boy directed his gaze towards him, Olruggio was stunned by the eye staring at him. He had never known that a person could possess such a brilliant shade of aquamarine blue as eyes and dare he say that his mother’s jewelry was nothing compared to the boy’s single eye looking at him wearily.
“Um.. who are you?”
Olruggio blinked rapidly and realized where he was. In the middle of the maze-like city, surrounded by freezing ocean water, and was faced with a snow-like figure with eye as beautiful as the shallow ocean water hit by the sunlight that his father had once brought him to for work.
“You’re alive!” Olruggio leaped to hug the startled boy. “You’re okay. I’m okay. I saved you just in time. I can still be a witch that actually helps people."
He knew he sounded desperate. Maybe this was what he had buried after that incident. Something that he never shared to anyone since there’s no one for him to talk to since his parents were among those who were burnt due to the incident. But with this accident, maybe.. maybe he could still be a witch that his father could be proud of. He’d work hard from now on. No more tears and sadness.
Without his realization, Olruggio tightened his hug and the boy also crumpled on his shoulder before he was pushed away abruptly with a horrified look. The snow-white boy stood up quickly and grabbed his robe tightly.
“Oh, um.. Sorry, I must have scared you.” Olruggio quickly got his bearings back and smiled sheepishly as he stood up.
The boy’s horrified look had mellowed into somber expression and Olruggio couldn’t help but stare up pathetically at the change of expression in that delicate face.
“Thank you for saving me but it’s really unnecessary. I was just trying to go outside.” The boy turned back and left with his white robe trailing behind him like a pair of dove’s wings.
Olruggio blinked dumbly. He looked at the retreating figure with jaw slacked in disbelief.
“What the hell?!”
●○●○●
Later that day, he had learnt from his mentor that the boy’s name was Qifrey and he was an apprentice to another master called Beldaruit.
The following week, he met the boy again in the cafeteria and saw him gathering his vegetables in the corner of his plate. So as revenge from last week, Olruggio teased him about being picky and the boy quickly stuffed his face full with vegetables like a chipmunk. He decided to sit across from the boy and continued to banter.
Much more later, Olruggio had found that the snow-white figure he had saved that day was prone to loneliness and prickly. But for some reason, he’s drawn to him all the same.