The Great Hall was abuzz with energy. Chatter reverberated off the stone walls as students filled the rows to hear whatever announcement was happening. Leon, Finn, Isla, and Fanny came in together and maneuvered through the throngs of students filling the hall.
"I wa sleeping so nicely…" Finn mumbled, eyes half closing and rubbing the centers. "Why did we need to be dragged here for this boring announcement?"
Leon shrugged. "I don't know. But it probably something about the tournament."
At that moment, Magnus-sir entered the stage at the mouth of the hall. He held a hand to speak, but it did nothing. The noise in the hall was louder than ever.
Without a word, Magnus created an enormous wave of icy cold aura.
The temperature dropped immediately. Frost raced across the stone walls, and a chilling atmosphere invaded the airspace. The students fell silent with the weight of the absence of the noise in the hall. Even Leon and his friends stood in frozen shock as they felt the disruption of Magnus's power in the room.
Just when we were processing the experience, the icy aura disappeared as abruptly as it had arrived.
Magnus appeared to shrug off the experience and remarked calmly as he adjusted his robe, "Now that I have your attention..."
The silence was deafening.
"Let me just say this: the past three months have been as amazing as any cohort has ever been. Better than the last cohort. But now... your first true test will come to you. You know that the inter-academy tournament against the Obsidian Sanctum is coming up."
A ripple spread through the room of excitement.
Magnus cut his eye, looking sharper than ever. "What I didn't want to say but was forced to was that your opponents will be two years your senior."
The hall erupted into gasps and worried murmurs.
"They've trained for two more years?!?" someone muttered.
"This isn't right..."
Magnus put his hand up as a signal for silence.
"It may not seem fair, but it is fair. This is what happens in the tournament. One year you play your seniors, the next year you play your juniors. That's part of creating balance."
He allowed those words to hang in the air for a moment.
"But now, for the record, this is your wake-up call. Your opponents will be, on average, five times as strong as you at your current level."
Leon's heart sank. "Five times...?" he repeated, incredulously.
Isla glanced at Magnus, anxiety flashed in her eyes. "If he's warning us, then they must be full-on monsters..."
Magnus nodded grimly. "At your current rate, you would have a ten percent chance of winning."
Silence. Heads bowed. Even the boldest of students looked unnerved.
Finn clenched his fists. Ten percent? I'll be part of that ten percent.
Beside him, Fanny nodded. "I don't usually agree with this idiot," she said, meaning Finn and tossing her head in his direction. "But he's right. We need to show our metal."
Leon saw the fire in their eye, he breathed in deeply, and steadied himself.
Magnus continued. "After much discussion with the faculty, we have set up an additional training plan. It will involve three grueling sessions. They won't be like your normal classes, ten times more difficult.... and dangerous. You will almost certainly be injured."
He paused to allow that to sink in.
"Participation is optional. Whoever decides to participate in these training sessions must complete all of them. Only students who complete all three training sessions will be allowed to represent our academy at the tournament. The training will last for three months. At the end, we will select four students."
The room was again silent.
Magnus briefly smiled. "We're giving those four a personalized gift--it's connected to what power type you have, and it's meant to help you develop...and understand your power more deeply." Leon's interest resumed. A gift dependent on all of our powers? If I'm chosen... then maybe I can finally figure out what this Purple Blood means. This is likely my last chance. He glanced over to his friends. Finn and Fanny appeared eager. Isla--he presumed she would be too. But as he turned to her, she had a distant expression on her face. Sadness. Magnus wrapped up. "You can pick up the training forms in my office. But fair warning--this is not for the faint of heart." He stepped down off the stage and out of the hall. The students began to leave in small and quiet groups. Leon turned to Isla. "Hey... are you going to sign up for training?" Isla looked down and avoided his gaze. "I... I don't know." Leon frowned. "What's wrong?" "No... it's nothing." Her voice was small, "There is something I need to take care of. See you later." With nothing else said she walked away with a slumped posture.
Leon watched her walk way with his chest tight.
Then the loud voices broke the tension.
"Well, she called me stupid!" Finn shouted.
"Because you are stupid!" Fanny yelled back at him.
Leon exhaled loudly and rubbed his temples. "Oh no, not again..."
He stepped in between them. "You guys can't fight for 5 minutes?"
And then looking directly at Fanny he said, "Hey... is there something going on with Isla?"
Fanny's smirking smile dripped away. "Why do you ask?"
Leon replied, "She looked... different. Distant. And when Magnus started mentioning the tournament, her whole demeanour changed."
Fanny frowned and then furrowed her brow and hesitated.
"I think I know," she said finally.
Leon leaned in, feeling concerned.
"I don't know everything," she started, "but Isla told me once about her family. Her mom was a maid. Her dad - the head of the house - had an affair with her... and that's how she was born."
Leon stayed silent, only listening.
"And then she lost her mom when she was seven," Fanny added quietly. "And after that she lived with her dad, stepmom, and half-brother. They're horrible to her."
Leon's chest constricted.
Fanny took a breath. "In front of everyone, she's a rock. At home? ...Another story. She puts so much pressure on herself to please her father, to have a place in that house. Whatever she does, she never feels like enough.
"And now, her father and stepmother are coming to the tournament. Maybe she doesn't want to see them? Or maybe she's too scared to fail in front of them."
Leon stared at the floor, taking it all in. The picture he had of Isla—a constant, reliable person—was compromised by the burden she'd carried for so long.
"Thanks for sharing," he mumbled.
"Don't tell anyone," Fanny warned. "I only told you because I know you care. If Finn had asked I would have punched him."
"Why do you always need an excuse to hit me?" Finn grumbled to himself.
Leon chuckled. "I won't say anything. But we need to help her. We can't let her give up."
Fanny nodded. "Let's go find her."
They split up. Finn searched the grounds while Fanny searched the library.
Leon went to the terrace.
There, against the opening sky, was Isla.
Isla was standing at the edge and looking away. Her hair moved as the wind blew. While standing, she still appeared sad which was visible from her shoulders. Her shoulders were slumped.
"Are you alright?" Leon asked softly.
Isla turned to him, surprised. "Leon? What are you doing here?"
He did not answer, he simply walked over and sat next to her.
"Fanny told me," he said softly. "About your family and stuff."
Isla turned away from him, barely able to speak. "So... now you know."
Leon nodded. "I just don't get one thing. Why do you care so much about some family who does not care about you?"
Isla looked at him with tears in her eyes. "Because... they are still my family."
Leon looked into her eyes and in that moment she knew—he understood.
"When I was five," she said softly, "my mother used to tell me, 'take care of your family. Make them proud.' Those were her last words."
Leon reached out and took her hand. Isla felt stiff at first, and then let him hold her hand.
"Your mother was a kind lady," Leon said. "Just like you. But I don't think she wanted you to suffer. I think she wanted you to be strong—and happy."