It took an entire month for the Tower to judge the students’ projects. The waiting period was both worrying and annoying, a constant cloud of uncertainty hanging over Ravina’s head. Most days she was confident that she took first, after all she was sure she was the only one who managed to produce a physical item. Everyone else just turned in papers and research. However, there was a doubt in the pit of her stomach, she had delivered a working product, and her friends had not. Did she mess up? Was there something wrong with her project? Why was it taking so long?
Each day felt like it dragged on forever, the tension gnawing at her. Then one day, she was approached by a man who worked in the Tower’s marketing department, and to her pleasant surprise, she learned that her bag was going to be sold and marketed. However, her initial excitement was quickly tempered by irritation when she discovered she would only receive a small, single digit percentage of the profits for the idea. While she didn't need the money as the daughter of the raven it was annoying to know. Her original spell was deemed wholly unusable by the more experienced mages, who had to recreate it from scratch.
“It’s fine, we did manage to get the Αρκαδία readjusted, so it’s fine,” Ravina muttered to herself, trying to stay positive as she spoke to Frank, the gerbil she had somehow ended up taking care of. The little creature had become a simple pet, much to the annoyance of the maids at Crook-Beak Manor. Ravina couldn’t figure out their discontent as Frank just slept in the back corner of his cage, his tiny body rising and falling with each soft breath, the sound barely audible in the quiet room. “Okay buddy, you're cute enough.” she said as she watched him breathe for a while.
Ravina clicked her tongue as she turned her attention back to the stack of papers she had received from the marketing man. She cursed under her breath as she scanned the documents. “They never taught us about this!” She complained. The papers detailed the intricate magical circles used to enchant the bags that the Tower would produce. In essence it was a patent under the tower's name, given to her to ensure to both show her how to properly enchant and to subtly inform her that the bag belongs to them now. In its new design there were 302 Αρκαδία symbols carved into 36 overlapping circles. The design was incredibly complex, far beyond anything Ravina could have created on her own and something that was definitely not taught in class!
She stared at the diagrams, frustration bubbling up inside her. The circles and symbols seemed to blur together, a labyrinth of mystic energy that she couldn’t hope to unravel. “Keeping things to yourself,” she muttered in annoyance, feeling a bitter sting of resentment. The Tower had taken her idea, stripped it down, and rebuilt it into something usable and to make matters worse, she couldn't be mad about it. “Ah well.” she finally said after slumping back in her seat. Her eyes readjusted to the sleeping frank, the creature stirred slightly in his sleep. “At least one of us has the right idea.” she suggested.
A few days after that, Ravina arrived at the academy, her steps quick with anticipation as she made her way to the massive black chalkboard where the long-awaited results were written for all to see in clear white chalk. She stopped before its shadow as the sun slowly rose into the air behind the academy’s entrance. Safe in its shadow her eyes scanned the list, her breath catching as she read the names and the modest smile on her face falling quickly as she read the first name on the list:
1st…..Earl
2nd….Emily
3rd…..Tommie
…
“Looks like I won,” a smug voice sounded behind her, making Ravina’s blood pressure spike. She turned to find the one person she least wanted to see—Earl Hayes, the bastard himself, grinning with satisfaction as he glanced at the board.
“You got lucky,” she snapped, the words slipping out before she could stop them. She didn’t mean it; it was just the first thing that came to mind. “I mean, what exactly did you do that put you ahead of me?” Her voice carried a note of challenge, though a part of her was genuinely curious. After all, she had presented a working bag—sure, they had to refine her spell work to make it marketable, but as far as she knew, she was the only one who had delivered a fully functional product.
“Oh, you don’t know?” Earl’s grin widened as he stepped past her, pointing to a row of flyers lined up neatly below the board she hadn’t noticed. “This one is yours…” he said, pulling out one of the leaflets from a stack, “and…here is mine.” He handed her the one he claimed was his before glancing at hers with mock interest. “Oh my, you actually made something practical, didn’t you?” he added, his tone genuine, though to her, it scraped at her ears, dripping with mockery.
“What of it?” Ravina retorted, her voice tinged with irritation as she looked down at the pamphlet. It was a simple notice detailing what each student had turned in for their final. Her eyes narrowed as she read through it: Earl Hayes; Blink Spellcraft, Ancient Magic Restoration. “Blink Spellcraft?” she echoed, disbelief coloring her tone.
“Oh yes,” Earl replied casually, his voice dripping with false modesty. “I dabbled in ancient magic for a time and somehow figured out the formula for the old spell.”
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“What? That's it!?” Ravina’s thoughts raced, frustration boiling up inside her. Come on, I created something that didn’t even exist before! She thought desperately.
“‘That’s it?’” Earl echoed, raising an eyebrow with a look of feigned surprise. “My word, do you truly not know the difference between modern magic and ancient magic?”
Ravina straightened up, crossing her arms as her posture stiffened. “Of course I do.” She stated before continuing like a teacher as she explained. “Modern magic focuses on the ability of the person, allowing them to thrive by honing their internal magic related to the color of their mana core. Ancient magic, on the other hand, focuses on environmental magic, using the power of the null or void mana. While Ancient magic is more readily available to everyone, modern magic is specialized.”
“Well… yes, to a point,” Earl conceded with a slight nod, “but more importantly, ancient magic allows the use of any and all magic, without the need for one to be a fabled colorless mage. In fact,” he tapped the pamphlet he was holding. “This thing you made relies heavily on ancient magic. Did you not know that?”
Ravina furrowed her brow, “what of it.” she challenged.
Earl shrugged, “well it's nothing, but that’s probably why I scored higher than you—you used ancient magic that was already known, but I discovered how to recreate ancient magic that was lost.”
Ravina’s eyes narrowed, irritation flashing in her purple gaze. “Alright, let’s see it,” she demanded, putting her hands on her hips and leaning forward slightly.
“See what?” Earl replied, his confident smile faltering slightly.
“You said you made magic anyone could use, so go on, let’s see it,” Ravina insisted, her voice challenging as she held up the pamphlet in her hand, using it like a wand to wave him away.
Earl’s composure cracked further. “That’s…”
“This says you made it possible for practical use, but it doesn’t say you can actually use it,” Ravina continued, her voice sharp with annoyance. She tapped the paper on his chest. “You didn’t do anything—you just created a formula for the blink spell. A theory at that!”
“The formula was verified by the Elders!” Earl shot back, his voice rising defensively.
“Yet it states here that the spell shouldn’t be tried because it’s risky! So come on, put your money where your mouth is!” Ravina’s voice was firm, pushing him to prove his claim.
“It’s—no!” Earl suddenly calmed down, taking a deep breath as he tried to regain control. “It’s done. The judges have picked me as the winner. As such, I won the bet.”
Ravina felt her jaw clench, the tension in the air thick between them. Earl’s smugness was infuriating, but there was nothing she could do now.
Ravina clicked her tongue in annoyance. “Yeah, yeah,” she relented, crossing her arms over her chest. It was true that Earl had technically won, but it didn’t make it any less irritating. Ravina had created a working model, while he was just tossing up a theoretical spell. Stupid elders. She let loose a breath of air before shaking her head. “So you just need a date for prom, huh?”
“Prom? No, I need it for the ball,” Earl corrected, his tone slightly more serious.
“Yeah, yeah, same thing—fine. I understand,” Ravina replied with a wave of her hand, her voice carrying a note of resignation.
“And… uh…” Earl hesitated, his confident demeanor faltering slightly.
“And what? That was the bet,” Ravina said, raising an eyebrow at his sudden uncertainty.
“Yeah, but when you’re introduced to my parents, I need you to pretend we’ve been dating for a while now.”
“Sure,” Ravina agreed with a shrug, her tone nonchalant. Although she didn't understand why she would meet his parents she didn’t particularly care.
“R-really?” Earl blinked, clearly taken aback by her quick agreement.
“Yeah, why not? It’ll be all the more tragic when I leave you,” she added with a sly smile, her purple eyes glinting with mischief.
“Haha, yeah… wait, what?” Earl’s smile wavered, confusion creeping into his voice.
“What? You didn’t expect me to stay with you for the rest of your life, did you?” Ravina teased, enjoying the momentary shift in power.
“No, but… can we at least stay together while we’re in school?” Earl asked, a hint of vulnerability in his voice.
Ravina paused, considering his request. This was definitely not the terms of there bet but… Another year… “Yeah, I guess we can. It’s not like I’ve thought about dating myself,” she said with a casual shrug. To begin with she never really felt the emotion of love. In this life or the next. Sure, her heart fluttered when she saw Varis, but she had an idea that it was because he was her knight in shiny armor.
Earl, on the other hand, seemed quite satisfied with her agreement, a relieved smile spreading across his face. “Good, well then, we should probably go shopping,” he suggested, his tone brightening with renewed enthusiasm.
“Shopping? For what?” Ravina asked, a chill falling down the small of her back.
“Matching outfits, of course!” Earl replied, a dangerous gleam sparking in his eye. “After all, it would do well to show my ma that we’re a serious couple and not just two people who won and lost a bet. I’m thinking something dark to match your hair, but we can have accessories that match our eyes. I would look dashing in purple, but can you pull off green? Ah, I’m sure it would be fine if you have a nice frame so we can do well with a closely tailored dress. I’m thinking a black suit with a deep purple undershirt for me, while you have a nice dark green dress with—yes, I can see it now. Come, come.” Earl clapped in excitement before taking Ravina’s arm and all but dragged her away.