There was an uncomfortable quiet permeating the room as Ulric uttered those words—Jackson slowly taking a seat opposite him at the dinner table. Ulric placed an elbow on the table, raising his thumb and forefinger to his brow, gently rubbing it with clenched eyes. He let loose a heavy sigh, his shoulders lumping forward in a disheartened manner before he looked up, making eye contact with Jackson before looking down again. His mouth seemed to part and close every few moments, but no words came out.

"Jackson, my boy," he began, "don't do this."

"Do what?" Jackson replied in a defensive tone.

"Son, you know what. Don't pretend to be a mage. It'll only make things harder once everyone finds out the truth."

"But I'm not making it up!" Jackson proclaimed, raising his voice. "Really, everything I've said is—"

"Jackson!" Ulric interrupted with a restrained shout before regaining his composure. "Just, please. Don't do this to yourself. You know what mages are like. The second they see you can't do magic"—Ulric's eyes shifted—"well, I don't even want to think about it."

"But—"

"Please. Please stop, lad. I can't have something bad happen to you because you got into something you shouldn't've. I know you wanted to be a mage, but think about—"

"I can prove it!" Jackson yelled.

After a moment of deliberation, Ulric lowered his hand to his eyes, massaging his closed eyelids. "Okay, Jacky. Okay. But if you're wrong, lad, please, just give it up. If something happened to you, Seraphina would—"

"Dad," Jackson piped up, taking his opportunity to return the interruptions from earlier, "just watch. Please." Ulric took his hand away from his face, placing it down on the table to rest, his eyes tinged with sadness as they stared at Jackson. He was exhausted from all his classes, and casting his flight earlier took a lot out of him, but this was no time for dilly-dallying. Jackson closed his eyes and felt the familiar sensation wash over him as it had done so a number of times before, this time moving naturally and automatically through him. Whilst it still took a bit of concentration, and a decent bit of time to activate, Jackson felt his feet lift from the floor as he slowly began floating towards the roof of their twee kitchen. Opening his eyes, Jackson saw a look of awe spread across Ulric's face, followed by the biggest grin he'd seen from his father in a long time.

"Lad, you better not be joking around here!"

"As if!" Jackson replied, his eyes watering slightly as his grin widened. As he touched down, Ulric embraced him in an inescapable bear hug whilst rustling his hair for good measure.

"I'm sorry, lad. I shouldn't've—"

"It's alright. I get it. I wouldn't've believed me either. Hell, I didn't for like, two days."

Ulric let out a chuckle, but his mood quickly shifted to something more gloomy. His eyes began to water, and his voice began to shake. "Jackson, son. I'm so sorry."

"Dad, I said it's fine, really."

"That's... that's not it, lad. I didn't want to tell you, but money's not great right now. I can barely afford to send you to Optima for swordsmanship, let alone as a mage. There's a reason most of those kids are nobles, ya know." Ulric began to cry. It was hard to notice at first, but hushed sniffles quickly turned into streams flowing down his cheeks, getting caught in his bushy beard. "I'm... I'm so sorry, lad. I— I can't afford your mage classes. I've failed you as a father."

Jackson began to choke up in response to his father's sobs. "It's... It's okay," he said in an attempt to be reassuring, trying his best to hide the complete despair he was feeling at the prospect of having to give up magic so soon after awakening to it. "I— I'll be a swordsman. A good one. It'll all be okay. Who needs magic anyway, right?"

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Despite his efforts, his words didn't seem to reach Ulric, who only kept muttering apologies until he fell asleep at the dinner table, completely spent. Jackson was just as empty as he slinked off to his bedroom, curling up into a ball on his bed and screwing his eyes closed in an attempt not to cry as he drifted off to sleep. After a few minutes had passed, the door to Jackson's room was opened a smidgen, with Ulric looking through at his son. He closed the door before grabbing his jacket and boots, pulling them on before leaving the house, double-checking it was locked as he did. It was a cold night, frost coating the town of Baypost in a faint ghostly glow as Ulric walked through its streets, eventually arriving at a cemetery. Walking the route he always did when visiting, Ulric arrived at a gravestone. It was nothing elaborate, just a slab of concrete with some text inscribed on it: Seraphina Trinity - "If you have no choice, make one".

"Hey, Sera love, it's me again," Ulric said as he sat on the wet grass next to her stone. "I feel like I'm coming here more and more often. Jackson's doing well. Hell, he's doing better than well. Listen to this—our little lad's a mage. I know? Who'd've thunk? He's wanted to be one ever since you recited those stories to 'em back before he could read. But you know how it goes, classic Trinity luck strikes again, and now I have to choose between keeping a roof over our heads or letting him pursue his dreams. I'm already working myself to the bone, love. I really don't know what to do." Ulric placed his arm around the stone, leaning against it and resting his chin on its top. "I just... I just really wish you were here right now. You'd probably give me a kick up the arse before telling me to get back out there and find a solution. But, ever since you left, it's harder. I don't want Jackson seeing it, but I'm at my wit's end. I'm not like you, Sera. I can't just go out and solve the world's problems with a smile on my face—not without you there with me. There's no good option here, love." Ulric shifted his gaze to read the grave over once more. If you have no choice, make one. Ulric allowed himself to grin a little. "Still cheering me on from beyond the veil, ay?" Ulric sat and pondered for a few moments before rising to his feet and gingerly stroking the grave. "Thanks, Sera."

When morning came, Jackson got ready as per usual, returning to his diminished state of being. He made his way to the Academy, the colours of the world around him seeming duller and less whimsical than they had just a day prior. The second he stepped into the academy's main gate, a rift appeared before him, Miss Aster stepping out. "Hey, Mr. Trinity. Follow me." Jackson, though taken aback a bit, obliged her request, stepping through the rift into the Ego classroom. There were around 15 minutes before class started, and considering the conversation he had with Ulric the day prior, he wasn't sure he was even on the mage track anymore. Out of the corner of his eye, however, Jackson spotted something very much out of place—his dad, sitting in his class. Miss Aster motioned for Jackson to take the seat next to him, which he did.

"Now. I don't know why you were so intent on seeing me, Mr. Trinity. Jackson is making good progress, so I see no reason for you to believe I would pull him from the Ego class."

"Well, Miss, the problem isn't Jackson, or the classes, ya see? It's money. I can't afford it."

"Oh?" Miss Aster responded.

"But I will do anything it takes for him to stay on the course," Ulric got up from his chair and got to his knees, clasping his hands in a prayer aimed at Aster, "I beg. Please let my boy continue learning magic."

After a brief pause, Miss Aster offered a hand to Ulric. "Please. There is no need to beg. I am quite happy to allow Jackson to continue attending mage classes at no additional fee. The problem lies with the Board of Appraisal. I may be the headmaster, but I cannot be playing favourites, at least not so openly. If the majority vote in favour of Jackson receiving an exception from extra tuition, then that's what will be done. If that's not the case, well, I'm sure I don't need to explain it." Miss Aster pulled Ulric to his feet with ease, dusting off his shoulders once he was standing. "My suggestion? Focus on Rialu. Efail didn't seem too keen on you from the start, and Valentino is a bit of a wild card, although I imagine he would vote against Efail just to annoy him. Therefore, focus on showing academic excellence and determination in your studies. Mr. Landy can also put in a good word for you if necessary."

Jackson nodded whilst Ulric stood still, a crude mix of relief and stress evident on his face. "So, how do I go about impressing Rialu?"

"First off, don't call her that. Address her as Miss Abhar. Second off, you'll join her Shaper class."

"Wait, but didn't you say I was an Ego?"

"Yep. But I'm not convinced that's all you are. The appraisal we conducted didn't give us a clear idea of what type of mage you are, so it's probably you're at least some form of Hybrid."

"Hybrid?"

"Don't worry about it for now, kiddo," Miss Aster replied with a prankish smile, "just focus on being one hell of a suck-up."