3: First Day as a Sorcerer 1

A whole week later

It was finally time for Dan and Sam to leave and go to their new school together. 

Their flight was at 8 a.m., Dan was awoken by his mom at 5 a.m. The airport was actually only thirty minutes away, even with moderately heavy traffic. Dan wore his uniform from home. He had his suitcase filled with a bunch of clothes. Two extra sets of suits, a bunch of underwear, few pairs of socks, and some casual shirts and pants. 

Dan was feeling anxious about moving away the entire car ride. He can only come home and visit every few months or so. That's if he's not busy with missions.

He leaned his head to the window and stared out.

"Are you okay?" She asked with a gentle voice.

"Mostly..." He then pauses to feel his heart beat harder than usual. "Just feeling nervous," he admitted.

 "Since when are you ever nervous?" She chuckles.

"Ehh… I dunno," he couldn't really recall the sensation. He's usually either really confident or indifferent to arriving new places. "This is just... Different," he remarked.

"Yeah, I get it," she sighed, relating to him. "I've never been to a sorcerer school, but I get that anxiety."

"You always seem... Unshaken by everything," Dan pointed out a counterpoint.

"That's because I'm thirty-six," she laughed.

"You're not that old."

"Not young either," though she appreciates his comment.

"I wanna know what you were like in high school," Dan's mind ran free to imagine what kind of student his mom would be.

"It was... Fine. Nothing like what yours would be like."

His mom rolled down the window to wave at a ticket sensor. She grabs the ticket and rolled up her window. She looks for parking space. Despite it being relatively early morning, the airport was quite packed. She started slowing down and parked in the lot. The parking lot were almost full. Dan and his mom got out and Dan grabbed his singular suitcase. Dan shut the door and grabbed his phone from his pocket. He texted Sam.

Wya? Dan sent to Sam.

At the airport, he replied immediately, U?

Just arrived, Dan informed. Meet you inside.

K, Sam replied tersely.

Dan and his mom entered the airport and met up with Sam and his family. He wore a dark tan yellow high-collar jacket as his uniform, with cargo pants. Dan was surprised by Sam's family. All of them, except for one, was there with him. His little sister and little brother, mom and dad.

"Hey," Dan waved at him. He wore a heavy smile as he looked at them. He wasn't sad, he was genuinely happy. But deep inside, he couldn't help but feel sorrow for something he never told anyone. Not even Sam. Not even his mom. A lingering aching pain in his chest every time he's reminded of it. He hates the sensation, and he would never want to expose that vulnerability to anyone. It greatly irritated him.

"Hey, glad you made it," Sam said.

"Did you think I wasn't going to?" Dan retorted.

Sam clicked his tongue. "Of course not," he replies.

Dan felt a reluctance within himself, then he backs away slowly, "I gotta go to the bathroom really quick," he excuses himself. "Watch my things will ya?" Dan turned away whilst fixing his jacket.

"Okay…?" Envy. That's what Sam felt from Dan.

Dan left his suitcase on the ground and went looking for the bathroom. He had a little less than ninety minutes before his flight. He walked down the hallway. Kept walking until he saw a sign that read toilet. He slipped his hands into his pant pockets and realized it had quite big pockets. He admired them. He hates not having any pockets, but the worst for him is having pockets but too small to fit anything. It's half-assed.

Dan started humming a tune aloud while walking. He was close to the bathroom alley, he turned right into the alley. Women on the left, men on the right. He immediately walked to the right. He entered, it was empty. He walked to the urinal, passing a few before actually decide which one he would piss in. The third urinal from the left. 

The wall in front of him had a giant mirror, he stared into his own eyes. He leaned his head back and shut his eyes, "ore wa doushitanaaa…" he sighed aloud, his voice filled with annoyance. His heart stings a bit.

Ore wa doushitanaaa = What's wrong with me

After he was done, he zipped up and flushed. Migigawa, Jon called out. 

Migigawa = Your right

Dan turned to his right and saw Sam enter the bathroom. "Oh, hey," Dan greeted.

"Daijoubuka?" Sam asked in an interrogative tone.

Daijoubuka = You okay?

"Of course, I am," he said with confident smirk. "Why wouldn't I be?" He retorts as he chuckled, veiling his emotions.

"You're wearing that same face when you're upset about something," Sam notices. "Not that you ever talk about what you're exactly upset about," Sam pointed out, in his voice, he expressed irritation. 

"I'm not upset. Really," he insisted.

Sam walked to the sink and washed his hands, "whatever, man," he sighed. "Suppressing shit like that is only going to hurt you more. You'll snap one day and nothing will be holding you back. You might hurt those you actually care about," Sam warned, taking offense from Dan's attitude.

"You sound like my mom. Stop," Dan felt uncomfortable. "Besides, I'm ignoring them. You're suppressing them." 

"That's not the point," Sam argued.

"Then?" He asks.

"We're... Friends, aren't we?" Sam asked, feeling a heavy weight of doubt in his chest.

"Of course, we are," Dan replied with no hesitation, arguing Sam's doubt. "Don't ever ask that."

"Then, I'm here if you ever want to talk. I can't know what you're dealing with when you don't even say anything," he replied wholeheartedly. 

"Sure," Dan was very reluctant to the idea of pouring his feelings out in front of someone. It makes him feel vulnerable, and that's a feeling he hates. 

"See you outside," Sam said, walking out immediately.

Why didn't you take up on his offer? Jon asked, genuinely wondering.

"I… I dunno," he himself was confused of his choice.

Emotions aren't a weakness, y'know? Jon claims. They may be a liability and are dangerously unreliable, but they're never your weakness, that was something Jon could say for certain.

"Is it?" Dan was uncertain of Jon's word. "I wonder if I can ever come to that conclusion too."

Dan couldn't bring himself to admit it. He really hates emotions. Or he hates how it makes him feel. So much that he prefers to never acknowledge them. He walked over to the sink and washed his hands. He flicked his hands down, snapping the water off his hands and used the excess to brush his hair. He brushed it upwards. He didn't like it. He patted his hair back down.

He left the bathroom and got back to Sam. They went to the boarding pass and waited in the lounge.

They were waiting for the flight and someone else. The two of them were still underage, so they weren't allowed to fly by themselves. After thirty minutes of waiting, and their flight being in less than an hour, they got irritated. Dan and Sam went around looking for snacks to eat, whilst also killing the hour they had.

They walked into a convenient store and were quite baffled by the double price of every item sold. Dan got a bag of chips and a juice box, which cost 700 yen and 400 yen consecutively. He paid 1100 yen for snacks and he only got two things.

Sam just bought the same juice box Dan had, he thought he'd just make Dan share his chips. They walked up to the counter to pay, and the clerk was busy with a coffee order. Only one clerk was working the floor.

The man who ordered the coffee was wearing peculiar choice of clothes. A light grey haori that matched his hair color, and then baby blue grey bunker gear pants. He was also wearing heavy military boots, the boots were worn, like a veteran of war.

"Are those the pants fire fighters use?" Sam whispered to Dan while pointing at the pants.

"Yeah, looks like it," Dan nodded.

His phone then started ringing. It was the default ringtone. Dan had the same ringtone. The man picked it up immediately. "What's up?" His voice sounded like a young man's, even though he looked a lot older.

Dan decided to eavesdrop on his conversation if he could. Sam however, was hearing the conversation perfectly. His sharpened senses were always a gift and a curse to him.

"Hi, Ava. Weird that you're calling me," he then paused to listen as the other person started speaking.

Dan was taken aback slightly; my mom's name is Ava… Probably a coincidence, Dan was suspicious.

"What? No, I'm at the airport. As promised. Just grabbing coffee."

Oh, that's definitely my mom he's talking to, Dan was convinced.

"Huh? Daijoubu da," he paused. "Second years? 

Daijoubu da = It's fine

"How do you know about that? Did Cathy spill? That little shit," he was annoyed.

"Shinpaishinaide yo. I won't let them get killed off like that."

Shinpaishinaide yo = Don't worry about it

"My kid?" He utters in confusion. "I have a protégé, not a kid," he corrected.

The clerk was finishing the coffee order in a few seconds. "Got to go," the man hung up and paid for the coffee. He quickly turned around and glared at Dan and Sam.

"Dan and Sam, yes?" He knew what they looked like.

"Uh… Yeah, we are," Dan nodded, feeling a bit tense. Dan realized that that man was a lot taller than he expected. 

"How much time do we have before the flight?" The man asked.

Sam looks at his phone and replies, "twenty-four minutes."

"That's short. Okay, go buy whatever you need then we board."

The two nodded in response.

"I'm Kai. Hinora Kai," he introduced.

"Nice to meet you," the two said awkwardly.

"Likewise."

Kai grabbed a straw from the counter and popped a hole in it. He drank a lot of his coffee immediately, then he walked out of the convenient store. He had a cold brew cappuccino.

Dan and Sam went up to the counter and paid for their snacks. They immediately speed-walked back to their parents. It was at least a four-minute walk, unless you were running, then it would take a little over a minute. Kai was already there.

"Ah, there you are. Come on, twenty minutes left. Go board."

"Okay," the two said.

Sam bid his farewell to each member of his family. His farewell was incredibly distant. He didn't hug his parents nor his younger siblings. He did pat his younger siblings on their head. Dan gave his mom a half-hug, though she went all in anyway.

"Don't be stupid. Got it?" She reminded.

"I won't be," he laughs. Accepting the challenge.

"Make friends. You'll need them."

"Gotcha," he took it somewhat to heart.

"Good luck."

"Thanks."

"I love you," his mom said as she gave him a kiss on his forehead.

"Love you too," he pulled away.

They waved each other goodbye as they walked to enter the plane. Entering the plane, their seats were 12D, 12E, and 12F. Kai took the aisle seat, Dan the middle seat, and Sam the window seat.

The flight to Hursh was quiet. At least, sounds coming from people. Sam was still feeling sleepy, so he just slept the entire flight. Not a word spoken.

Dan tried to sleep too, but he kept catching Kai staring at him. He felt awkward and a little intimidated by his bright blue eyes that looked unnatural.

"You got a problem? Quit staring at me," Dan confronted in a very straightforward manner. 

"That's a bit rude," Kai replied, feeling a little off put from Dan's personality.

"It's also rude to stare. Now shut up and let me sleep," Dan fired back.

"You started talking first," Kai decided to stop. He was still surprised. He closed his eyes and smiled.

I can't believe this is your son. You really made it, huh? That would be impossible for someone like me or Cathy. I'm really happy for you, Kai chuckled gleefully.

"How did you get my mom's number?" Dan whispered suddenly.

"She visited the school for consulting. I'm your homeroom teacher. It's only normal," Kai replied, giving a perfect reason with no hesitation whatsoever. Almost like it was premeditated.

"You used her first name," Dan pointed out.

"What?" Kai played dumb.

"Never mind," Dan sighed, he was too lazy to pry. He had questions in his head and he could just let his mind run free with the answers but he didn't want to. He just popped his earphones in and listen to his favorite band, a math rock song released in 2023, Super Sonic Aurorally. 

He had a playlist that would last exactly an hour. Twelve songs that totaled roughly 3600 seconds. 

What kind of song is this? Jon felt annoyed at the chaotic music composition.

Math rock. Get used to it, you'll hear a lot more of this shit, Dan replied.

I wanna crash the plane and kill myself before it lands, Jon expressed his torture, sarcastically.

A bit extra, don't you think? Dan chuckled.

This song is extra.

Dan had his eyes closed and was falling in and out of consciousness, his songs kept waking him up. Kai tapped Dan's shoulder, waking him up fully.

"What?" Dan was startled.

"We're landing."

Dan looked over to Sam, he was playing his phone. Dan stretched his hands, back, and legs. He yawned and rubbed his eyes clean. The wear your seatbelt indicator was blinking. Dan never unbuckled it in the first place.

Dan took off his earphones and pocketed it in his jacket. He slipped his phone into his pocket and readied himself, mentally.

It was still early and school starts today. He had to focus up and prepare himself for things to come. No time to deal with jet lag. He was confident about everything except technicalities. Thanks to Jon, he's not completely fresh into it. He's a bit worried for Sam, however.

Sam wasn't obligated to join the school, but for some reason, he wanted to. Dan could think of a few reasons that would make sense to him, boredom and perhaps jealousy. He just thought Sam would be bored living a regular life and be jealous of him who was living an eventful life. And another reason he feared to be true. It was actually the most likely answer.

Dan was incredibly dubious about Sam being jealous of him, he never was the jealous type. Sam always seemed happier than him anyway. At least, by the looks of it.

The plane landed and parked safely. Kai got up from his seat and grabbed Dan and Sam's suitcases for them.

"Thanks," said the two.

They left the plane and headed to the train station. Hursh is a country neighboring Libra and Idly City, it would take about two hours to Libra by train, and four hours to Idly City by train. They made active train stations that travelled throughout the country and neighboring countries. They could've taken a train from Icade to Hursh, but it would take them about twelve hours.

It was very common to use trains, as everyone does so. Kai handed the two a card specifically for sorcerers. It's a student ID that also acted as a smartcard for public train transport. It was unlimited. And would last until they die. Kai doesn't have one, because he doesn't need one. He actually didn't need to fly by plane at all, he could be anywhere he's been to before, but he likes taking things slow. At least that's the reason he uses if he's ever late for anything.

They rode the train and got in the fifth cart. Dan sat in between Kai and Sam.

"What's the school like, Hinora-sensei?" Sam asked, excitedly.

"Hinora-sensei?" He felt disgusted. "That sounds so weird… Just call me Kai," Kai requested.

"Kai-sensei?" Sam still trying to use the proper suffix. 

"Nah, just Kai."

"Okay, Kai…" Sam feels a bit disrespectful, calling a teacher by their first name. 

"To answer your question… It's big. You have separate dorms with other years. The dorms are four stories tall. Third floor for boys, fourth for girls. Second floor is the lounge and kitchen and dining, first floor is just the lobby."

"Do we share rooms?" Sam inquires.

"Nah, there're too many empty rooms. In fact, this year is the most we've had first years," Kai pointed out with joy on his face.

"Oh, yeah? How many?" Sam asked.

"Ten students, including you two."

"Second years?" Dan budges in their conversation.

"Well, no hiding it. They're dead," Kai was very blunt about it.

Sam lifts his eyebrows, "oh, that's sad," Sam said in an apathetic voice. 

"That's part of the job," Kai sighed. "Being ready to die at any time," Kai felt a little helpless. He liked the second-year students a lot.

"Third year?" Dan asked again.

"Only one left. He's on a mission though, so he won't be around for a bit," Kai replied.

"Do we have regular orientation?"

"I guess you can call it that," Kai nods. "You'll be learning a lot about yourself and other students."

"Will we?" Dan intrigued.

"You bet," he looks down on Dan.

"How? Regular introductions?" Sam asked.

"That's one part of it, yes."

"The rest?" He asked again.

"If I told you, it would ruin the surprise," Kai grinned. Dan had a good idea of what it might be.

They arrived in twenty minutes exactly. There was a station next to the school, about a three-minute walk. So, the three walked to the school and to their dormitory which was six-hundred meters away from the main entrance. 

They passed the faculty office, cafeteria, assembly hall, indoor training facility that was turned into a storage room, outdoor training facility which was just a big grass field, and finally they arrived at their dormitory. It was rectangle shaped.

Entering the lobby, there were nothing but two elevator doors. Kai pressed the button and the door came down from the second floor. It arrived in seconds, they got in, the doors closed and Kai pressed the third floor. The elevator was playing a piano tune that constantly looped.

This is so much better than your music, Jon jokingly said.

Urusai naaa... Dan smiled feeling incredibly irritated at the blatant jab to his taste in music.

Urusai naaa = Just shut up

They arrived and the doors open to a small space that only had one path to a hallway of doors. Ten doors on both sides, a total of twenty dorms. It also included a bathroom.

Dan's room was number 11, on the left. Sam's was 13 also on the left. Kai handed them their keys and told them to meet him in the lounge on the second floor in two minutes.

Dan and Sam hurried to their rooms. Dan unlocked his room and entered. The bed on the left side of the room, a desk on the right, the bathroom door in the middle, the closet at the end of the bed.

"Fitting," Dan commented out loud. He placed his suitcase on his bed and left. He shut the door and locked his door. He met Sam outside.

"How's your room?" Dan asked.

"It's alright," Sam didn't mind the mundanity of it, compared to his actual bedroom.

"Nothing special?" Dan teased.

"I like it though. Very simple."

"I mean, it's a student dorm. No special privileges."

"I'll get some cool stuff and decorate it," Sam said while visualizing items to hang and display.

"Heh, I wouldn't even bother."

"It's coz you're bland."

Dan shrugged his shoulders as if he didn't know whether he agreed or denied it. The two called the elevator and met up with Kai on the second floor. They arrived and the door opened. Revealing the very cozy lounge. It had big couches sorted neatly, and a giant flat-screen TV. Sitting on the couches were the eight other students.

"Now, we're all set," Kai said. The students got up and stood behind him. Kai beckoned the two to go behind him. Dan and Sam quickly walked behind him. Kai walked over to a nearby window. Beside the elevator were two big openable windows, Kai walked to the one on the left.

He opened it up and put a leg over the frame, "meet me at the field, everyone through this window. Don't be a bitch, don't use the elevator."

"What…?" Dan muttered to himself.

It's a race. Brace yourself, Jon gave him a heads-up.

Kai grinned while fully sitting on the frame. "See ya!" Kai fell down and landed perfectly fine, he immediately ran to the field. Following behind him was a trail of lightning. In a blink of an eye, he arrived at the field. He began to wait for his student. Tapping his foot on the grass impatiently.

Dan then saw a flash of light and a quick trail of blue light following Kai's path. One by one the students hopped out of the window. Dan and Sam were the last two to hop out. 

Once they reached the ground, Dan casts Dark Boots and started running. He gained the lead over four people. Running beside him was a girl who was running while holding a sheathed katana tied around her waist. Dan looked over at her, he noticed her whole look. A brunette with pink end-strands. Something like his own. She wore a light grey high collar sport shirt. She glanced at him too. Dan immediately threw his eyes to the front and focused on running. In a minute, all of them reached Kai standing in the middle of the field.

Kai gave a slow applause for them, with a devilish smirk across his face, "slow."

The person that got first place was a girl with bright blue hair, probably cyan, she wore a tight sleeveless shirt. It was a bit too tight, Dan thought he would suffocate if he wore it. He also couldn't help but notice her chest being pressed against her shirt, it was quite distracting. He thinks she looks really cute with it.

"Alright, all ten of you line up in one row," Kai orders.

They all did so. 

"Now say your name and core element. Starting from the left."

Core elements, there are four core elements, Heat, Cold, Light, and Dark. Each sorcerer is tailored to one core element. Their uniform color is assigned to their core element.

Black and dark grey for dark cores. Blue colors for cold cores. Light grey and white for light cores. Red and orange for heat cores. Sam's a special case, he wears a yellow uniform because he's categorized as a Core-User. He cannot use mana traditionally, he needs a channel to use it. For example, with magic weapons.

Starting from the left was the girl with light blue hair that zoomed out of the window. 

"Volta. Light core," she said tersely. Her voice was dull and quiet, but enough to be heard by the entire class. Sam looked captivated by her. 

Next to her was a tall dark skin kid that looked older than the rest of them. Maybe he was sixteen. He had an athletic body, well trained and maintained. About 200 pounds and 6 feet tall. He wore a slightly tight red wetsuit. "My name's Jason Johnson, call me Jay. I'm a heat core. Nice to meet you," he seems like a genuinely nice guy.

Next to him was a yellow haired kid that was fully Japanese. His shirt was similar to the girl Dan saw earlier, but with grey instead of pink. "Watashi wa Kiota Hiro. Raitokoa desu."

Watashi wa Kiota Hiro. Raitokoa desu = I'm Hiro Kiota. Light Core

Next to him was a kid that looks like he'd eat people. A mean serious look on his face, a look that stated don't fuck with me. He wore a red hoodie outlined with black lines. "I'm Heath Hart, a heat core," his voice was deeper than Dan's. 

Next to him was Dan. We all know what he looks like, "I'm Daniel Fash, a dark core."

"Eh? Souka?" Hiro surprised as he looks over Heath.

Souka? = Really?

"Hai. Hajimemashite," Dan turned to Hiro and replied.

"Hajimemashite," Hiro replied while bowing his head slightly. Dan awkwardly bows back at him. 

Hajimemashite = Nice to meet you

Hai = Yes

Beside Dan was Sam, "hi, my name's Sam Merrickson. I'm a Core-User." 

Beside Sam was the girl Dan ran with. She was the only one wielding a weapon openly amongst them. Dan thought there was probably something special about her sword. Either it's a magic weapon or an extension of her abilities. Which is kind of the same thing.

Dan leaned back to see her sheathe. He saw a crescent moon on her very light pink scabbard. It looks like the crescent moon was pressed into the scabbard.

A crescent moon…? What does that remind me of? Dan tries to recall.

Jon knew but didn't want to tell. He was annoyed at how it should've been obvious for Dan. For literally everyone. Even Sam knew what it meant.

"I-I'm… Uh… Laura. I'm a light c-core," she stutters over her words because of her stage fright. She rubs her hands together and had her head bowed down. Couldn't make eye contact with anyone so she looked at the ground.

"Thank you, Laura. Next, please," Kai smiled reassuringly at her. It only made her feel worse.

Next to her was another girl, with black hair tied to a top knot. And rimless circle glasses. She wore a dark maroon leather suit with black pants. She looks very serious. "My name's Victoria Lau, I'm a heat core."

Next to her was a guy that does not look friendly. He looked bored actually. Dan didn't like his face, not that he was ugly, he thought he was quite attractive, he just has a punch-able face. "I'm Nathan Varr. A cold core."

A Varr? I'm soooo beating your ass, Dan planned.

Careful now, he's a royal.

There may no longer be a monarch system in Dayland but there are still families descended from the three Dayton siblings. Asarath created the Hinora clan, Leuvis created the Varr clan, and Elena created the Crescent Clan. They're technically royal families but only have jurisdiction for sorcerer-related issues.

The entire class was surprised that a Varr, an incredibly prestigious and supremacist family, would send their kid to a sorcerer school. They're usually taught in their own grounds. They actually detested the whole idea. They were the only family to disagree when the sorcerer school idea was proposed.

Then finally the last student, a girl with short yellow hair but half dyed with black. Her hair was above shoulder level. She wore a dark cyan beanie that matched her crop top shirt. She wore a black long sleeve shirt as her inner-wear, and incredibly baggy pants. She was also sucking on a lollipop.

"I'm Kris Colt. A cold core too."

Kai rubbed his hands together, he looked excited. He was anticipating this event for almost a year. This was the most students he had in years. The most he used to have was five students, that number doubled.

"Now then… To prevent field deaths, I would like to pair you guys up. Who you'll be pairing with would be based off my evaluation after this test."

"What test?" Dan asked, challengingly. He kind of knew what was coming, if it was true, his assumption, he welcomes it completely. He really hoped to be matched with either Heath or Nathan. The two looked like heavy hitters in a fight.

"A fight!" Kai yelled enthusiastically. "Let's start, shall we?"

His blood thirst for a good fight may finally be quenched. He just hopes he wouldn't have to fight with Sam or the timid girl with the sword, Laura. He thought it be terrible to fuck up her face.

You're really outrageous, y'know? Jon complained.

Oh, shut it.