"Wow, so you knew Zita when she was younger? What was she like?" I asked my grandpa. Both of us sat at the table together with a cup of juice.

My grandpa smirked and had this faraway look in his eye. "Zita was always a very hard worker, had a good sense of humor about her, and always seemed to make friends with everyone. I don't think anyone was on her bad side. Whenever there were opportunities for her to be captain of the Dragonstryke team, president of the theater club, or any sort of leadership position, she always ran for it. She won her club elections most times, but I wasn't really part of them, so I can't remember. In our fourth year, we were in a class and sat next to each other, and that's when we were friends, but after that, I didn't speak with her too much. Even though we both played Dragonstryke, she played for the Winderons. We just waved at each other in the hallway."

I smiled. Her first impression was superior to Prinipal Pine's for sure. "She seems pretty cool."

"She most certainly is. And she has a high approval rating as the Principal at Loxton, so I think you're in luck for having some of the best leadership at an academy in all of the world."

"If only she taught all the classes, that would be sick. I'm a little nervous the teachers might not like me." I folded my arms.

Grandpa flicked his wrist. "Oh, nonsense, Rollie. The teachers will like you. The teachers on campus are an extension of Zita. She's the one that has the final say in hiring all teachers and evaluating them. They are all met with her approval, and you should like them. I imagine you will."

I felt like my grandpa wasn't completely understanding of my situation and what I experienced at Attleton, but maybe he was saying that to ease my stress about going to Loxton.

There was another knock at the door. Benson's floppy ears perked up and started barking, which I thought was strange because he didn't bark for Zita's knock.

"What in the world, we never get any visitors, and today, we've had two! Unless it's just Zita again, and she forgot something." My grandpa sauntered out of the kitchen and peeked through the living room window to see who was on the front porch.

"Oh my goodness, I don't believe my eyes!" My grandpa rushed to the door and threw it open. "Zane! Is that really you, old chap? My goodness, it's been far too long! Come in, come in!"

A man in a white colored cloak came inside with his hood up, blocking most of his face, but I could see his white beard hanging out underneath. Benson began roaring. His barks were out of control, which shocked me. Ordinarily, he was such a calm dog.

"Benson! Settle down! Benson, relax. This is an old friend of mine, Benson!" Grandpa said.

I ran over to my grandpa, picked up Benson, and held him in my arms. He was a big dog and a little heavy, but nothing I couldn't handle. I rubbed his neck, and he settled down after a few whines.

"I see you're not alone," Zane said, still underneath his hood.

My grandpa chortled. "Zane, this is my grandson, Rollie Magpie."

He nodded. There was an awkward silence between us, I wasn't sure if I should shake his hand or not, but I was holding Benson anyways and didn't want to set him down. Benson was always so well-behaved, even around people he didn't know. I was surprised he was acting up.

"Rollie, why don't you go upstairs with Benson. I don't know why he's acting up, but let me catch up with my old friend. It's been a long time since I've seen him."

"Yeah, sure thing," I said. I slowly carried Benson up the steps and tried to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"It's been a few years, old chap. How was it sailing around the world? Did you see anything interesting? You know, before you say anything, I would recommend not wearing any white cloaks in public. Lately, there have been these hooligans committing crimes, and they wear white cloaks."

"But I've always worn a white cloak," Zane said.

Grandpa paused. "Well, I guess as long as there are no golden triangles on there, You're probably good, but still. To avoid suspicion and frightening anyone, it might be best to not wear it."

"Hm. What's been going on in the world?"

I headed to my room and quietly shut the door. Benson gave a little whine, but a few strokes of my hand seemed to do the trick. Couldn't hear their chatter anymore and figured from the sound of creaky floorboards they'd moved to a different room. Something about Zane didn't sit right with me, especially with Benson acting weirdly. I spent an hour or so in my room, just chilling with Benson, then dozed off on my bed. Woke up to Grandpa knocking on my door.

"Come in!" I shouted.

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My grandpa shuffled inside and smiled. "Sorry about that, Rollie. I didn't expect that. What a hectic day it's been. And I'm sorry you didn't get to talk to Zane. We were best friends during our Loxton years and remained in contact even after school. But after our wives left us, we started hanging out more, and then he said he wanted to travel the open sea for a few years. I'd get a letter from him occasionally telling me how he's been, but I didn't expect him to show up today. That was a real treat."

"That's all right, someone had to calm Benson down." I patted Benson on the nape.

"Yes, and thank you for doing that." My grandpa paused. "What an exciting day it's been. You graduated from therapy, Zita came over, and Zane dropped by. I'm in a great mood." My grandpa chuckled.

"That's awesome, Grandpa."

"Whattya say we have some dinner?" he asked.

We went downstairs and cooked a dinner of dumplings and gravy, and then went back upstairs to my room and opened the letter Zita gave me just before she left.

Dear Rollie,

On the 31st day of August, we request that you embark on a voyage to Port Harbor, with an arrival time before 3:00 p.m. The utmost importance lies in your timely arrival at Port Harbor by 5:00 p.m. Please secure a passage on the ship designated as Loxton, which is distinctively adorned with an assortment of hues corresponding to the school's mage colors and, thus, is unmissable. Ensuring your presence on the vessel by 5:00 p.m. guarantees your timely arrival at the campus for the orientation and subsequent communal dinner.

It would be most beneficial if you could carry the following textbooks with you: The Mage Journey The Zoology of Lementum Elixirs 3 Arcane Magic 3 These volumes can be procured from the bookshop in Bexleyford and at Port Harbor. Please note that due to the tendency of students to make late purchases, these books are subject to rapid depletion. A cloak conforming to the dress code is required. You may opt to don the cloak previously provided at Attleton. However, you will be presented with a new one upon arrival at Loxton as our color scheme differs.

In case you intend to bring a dragon bike, it is permissible. Kindly transport it to Port Harbor and check it in at the counter. It will be subsequently transferred to Loxton via the equipment boat. For any queries that might arise between now and your arrival, you may address a letter to Margaret, our head counselor, who will provide timely responses, much akin to the assistance provided by Jonathan at Attleton. We eagerly look forward to welcoming you to campus. Enjoy yourself and partake in all activities, particularly the inaugural dinner, which promises to be an unforgettable experience.

Enclosed with this letter, please find your boating ticket to Loxton.

Best Regards,

Zita Wattle.

In the envelope, there was an iridescent boating ticket. I had never seen anything like it before, no matter how I folded it, the light gave it a rainbow effect.

I folded up the letter and took a deep breath. My heart pounded in my chest, it was filled with excitement. I had two weeks to buy my materials And get ready for my new school year at a new building. At the beginning of the summer, I wondered if I would miss Attleton, but truth be told, I didn't. The only thing that kept me clinging to Attleton was thoughts of Farrah. I would also miss Jonathan, but other than that, I didn't mind leaving. I was more nervous that I wouldn't get accepted at Loxton than anything else. Now that It had been made official, there was no looking back.

I smiled. It was hard going to bed that night, I couldn't fall asleep. I kept thinking about how much different the school year would be now that I had a new attitude and a new building.

The following day I showed my grandpa the letter and told him we had to buy those books. But my grandpa chuckled.

"Even after all these years, they still haven't changed the curriculum. Isn't that wild?"

"What do you mean?" I tilted my head.

"I mean, look at these books. I have all of those for you already." My grandpa went to a bedroom where he stored things and pulled out four textbooks. He showed them to me, and they were definitely old. The covers were a little faded, and they had yellow pages, but aside from that, they were in decent condition.

The only thing I was apprehensive about was if the newer versions of those books had updated techniques or parts of history that had changed from when my grandpa was around in school. My face must have said it all because my grandpa said, "Okay... we can go to a bookstore in Bexleyford, and I can show you that these are the same books as those others."

I shrugged, but my grandpa smiled. Which was relieving to see. If I had done that to my parents, I would have been yelled at, but he understood the skepticism, and we left for Bexleyford the next day and went to a bookstore. I saw other kids my age hounding for books in the aisles as my grandpa compared his textbooks to the new ones. They all had different cover art than my grandpa's books, but he was right. They were written identically. We ended up leaving and grabbed lunch in a park downtown.

Leading up to the day when I left to go to campus, my grandpa and I practiced our Dragonstryke maneuvers in the backyard. I couldn't wait to be on a new team. Things would be different this time. I wouldn't start off like a jerk, in fact, my plan was to not speak much at all and learn the social environment before saying anything. And also let my skills do all of the talking. But even through therapy, I learned how to manage my aggression a little better and how to manage my emotions. I felt confident, and I felt... good. Therapy helped me considerably.

Even though I didn't get to practice as much as I would have liked over the summer, It was still enough to where I felt a slight improvement over the year before. It was weird to think, but school couldn't come fast enough for me.

The night before I would leave, I was wide awake and kept thinking about the new school and how much fun it would be. I couldn't sleep at all, though, and eventually, the sun gleamed through my curtains, and I woke up and started making breakfast while my grandpa still slept in.

I took the last boat I could have going to Port Harbor. I left at 3:00 p.m. I could have gone earlier, but I wanted to spend as much time with my grandpa as possible. On the docks, before I boarded the ship, my grandpa held me in for a binding hug.

"I'm so happy you'll attend Loxton, the same school I attended. I'm so proud of you, and I think you're going to like it more. Anyways, that's what I've been hoping, at least. Please write to me if you ever need me, the letters will get to my house quicker than they would have if we had been exchanging them from Attleton," my grandpa said as he had a tear in his eye.

"All right, Grandpa, I'll be sure to write to you when I can. Thank you for everything and for letting me stay with you."

"Of course, Rollie. I love you, grandson."

"I love you too."