Time flew by as the students relaxed in the cafeteria. Benjamin and Isabelle walked along the selection tray, picking out specific meals to place on their plate. The two talked about how their first day of classes went. They weren't satisfied with what they got so far. Chi and Harry peeked out of Benjamin’s hat while listening in on the conversation.

“It’s only the first day; that’s always the hardest part,” Harry told them. “There’s always tomorrow.”

“Things will get better if you keep at it, I’m sure of it.” Chi-Chi added, her face beaming.

Benjamin nodded in agreement, while Isabelle sighed.

“Glenda told me the same thing.”

“Oh, so you chose her special class?” Benjamin asked, his face perking up.

“Yeah, but I’m not sure if I can meet her expectations.”

“You got this. After all, what’s stopping the best team from a couple of measly classes? The great dark magician and sidekick will prevail; just you wait and see!”

Isabelle couldn’t help but chuckle at the remark. “Well, that's true.”

“Now, if we could just ‌improve our magic, especially before the main event starts in a couple of months...” Benjamin rested his hand on his chin.

His eyes adjusted toward Isabelle’s tray, which had minimal items on it. Her eyes drifted off elsewhere.

“Hey, Isabelle?”

“Huh?” Isabelle quickly turned and asked.

“We’re almost at the end of the line. Did you not find anything appetizing?”

“Well, I guess I couldn’t find some good ones. Mind giving me some recommendations?”

“Sure thing.”

After filling up their trays, Benjamin and Isabelle walked around to find a table to sit at. While doing so, Isabelle noticed a familiar figure from the corner of her eyes as she walked past a certain table.

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Lauren sat by herself; her elbows rested on the table, her eyes gazed at the small plate of food in front of her.

“Hello there.” Lauren snapped around at the sound of Isabelle’s voice as she walked towards her. “Is this seat taken?”

“No, not really...” Isabelle made herself comfortable and sat beside her. Lauren shrugged and looked away. “Why are you here, though? No offense...”

“Look, I thought about what you told me yesterday. I think you’re right about one thing. Things aren’t easy here, but I still want to try my best.”

“What?” Lauren’s eyes widened as she turned back to face her. “You mean you’re not mad at me? After everything I’ve done?”

“No, should I be? You only talked to me about—”

“It’s not just that. If you knew about my past actions, you’d want nothing to do with me.”

“Hey, guys, what’s going on over here?” Benjamin asked, joining the two at the table. “Oh.” He muttered, noticing Lauren sitting across from him.

“Hey, are you aware of what she did months ago?” Isabelle leaned over and whispered.

“I don’t remember,” Benjamin replied‌.

“You don’t?” Lauren scratched the back of her head. “You know why our previous school got destroyed, right?”

“Hmm...” Benjamin thought about it for a while; his face lit up as he snapped his fingers. “Oh, yeah, I remember now! Troy was the one responsible for that.”

“Anything else?”

“What do you mean?”

“I did some pretty terrible stuff, too, remember?”

“Well, now that you mention it, you did trick Sebastian into entering the human world with me. Not to mention, you broke into the principal’s office without her permission.”

“That wasn’t what I meant!” Lauren thundered, slamming her fists on the table.

While the two went back and forth, Isabelle couldn’t wrap her head around what they said.

“I don’t mean to interrupt, but who’s Troy?”

Lauren and Benjamin both fell silent and lowered their heads. “Someone we once knew...”

“Oh, sorry for bringing it up.”

The loud chatter from everyone else outside their table filled the silent void between them. Benjamin looked over and noticed Bridget walking by them.

“Hey, Bridget!” He shouted and waved to get her attention.

Bridget glared with narrow eyes and stormed off in a huff, with Midoricha following suit. Benjamin tilted his head, unsure if he said something off. Now that he thought about it, Sebastian was nowhere in the area either. What’s going on here?

This day is getting weird. Isabelle thought, staring at her near empty tray. I have a hunch that it’s about to get weirder...