Clover didn't really get much from his third class. It was a little bit... Awkward, to say the least. He didn't want to speak again both because the teacher might call him out for it, and because he didn't think Susie would listen. He was kind of hoping Matt would defuse the situation a bit... But, he never did. So, there the two of them sat. Occasionally glancing and or glaring at each other wordlessly.

So, as priorly stated, Clover didn't get much from the class. Which was a shame, cause he'd have loved to hear about geography. But, despite that, he really couldn't find it in himself to care about the class ending. He was just more happy to be able to get away from the current situation. He'd ask Matt for advice later, or something.

Anyways, next up should be gym! Clover wasn't exactly sure what that was supposed to be... Cause like, didn't monsters have magic for bodies? They couldn't work out and grow their muscles like humans could, could they? So how exactly would they work out, and why was gym a necessary thing?

Actually, given Clover was part monster and part human, could he work out like both species, and get double the gains?

Questions for later, questions for later... And that later would be in a few minutes.

"So, gym is... At the front of the school?"

"Yup!" Noelle affirmed as she renavigated the corridors. It didn't take very long at all for the pair to make their way over to the gym, mostly because there was little to no oncoming tide of students to work against, and also because Mrs. Ineanae's classroom had already been close to the front.

The gym was... A little smaller than Clover would've envisioned a school gym being. It would be big enough to maybe fit two or three hundred people... But well, given the Underground had a far smaller population than the surface... You know... Thousands vs millions and everything... He supposed it made sense.

"Heeeey!" Kanako waved at both Noelle and Clover from the center of the gym. Noelle waved back, Clover nodded. Both of them made their way over.

Kanako smiled, sighed, and then started off the conversation. "Last hour was, painfully, slow. I didn't know anybody in there!"

"Tell me about it." Clover rolled his eyes. "I had to sit next to a grump the entire class."

"...Noelle?" Kanako tilted her head at her friend.

"What, me? No, of course not! Clover's talking about Susie! It was kind of the only available desk..."

Speaking of Susie, Clover could've sworn he felt a pair of eyes on him at the mention of their name... And that would be because he did. The feathers of his plumage tingled at the feeling, which was certainly new. Was that like, some sort of sixth sense? Weird.

Anyways, regarding Susie, she glanced over in the trios direction for a bit at the mention of her name and scowled. Interestingly enough, despite being what Clover had so affably described as a "grump", she apparently had some sort of friend group? And that group consisted of, Matt, and that weird eye thing. Evenly matched, three for three.

Clover was hoping they could still get along, because he really didn't want to make enemies within a day... But he wasn't sure if Susie would be willing to negotiate persay. If he really wanted to go about mending perceived rifts, he figured Matt would be his best in. They were... Fairly chill, in Clover's humble opinion. Though regardless of all of that, he had a class to pay attention to, and no monster was going to ruin it this time.

"Wah ha ha! I sure hope all you youngins are ready to get to work!"

...Gerson?

Now, Clover wasn't one to disrespect his elders, but were his elders really fit to be teaching gym class?

"Because your new teacher sure ain't gonna hold back!"

"Wait, Gerson isn't teaching gym class?" Noelle leaned in to whisper to Kanako.

"I'unno?" She shrugged.

Oh, so he wasn't teaching the class.

"Undyne! You old urchin, get out here!"

"...Wait what?" Clover stared incredulously at the fish monster as they stepped into the gym, he didn't exactly have the highest opinion of her... She'd literally almost burned his house down. Well... Technically Clover was the one who did that, but she told him to do it! And she was an adult! Though... Maybe that same passion would serve gym class well...

"OH MY GOD UNDYNE!!!"

And apparently, MK was in the gym too.

...

How exactly had she been talked into this?

"Listen here you youngin, you've been running yerself ragged every day! You need to put that energy to-"

No, no, Undyne knew how she'd been talked into it, but she had to ask herself HOW SHE LET HERSELF BE ROPED INTO THIS, NGAHHH!!!!

Well, whatever. She was here now, she might as well do her BEST DAMN JOB! She wasn't making much progress on the hunt for the human, and the best clue she had was just an odd monster SOUL. And in order to check that out, she'd have to deal with the momma bird. Undyne wasn't sure what exactly had happened with Martlet, but she'd managed to get herself off of a probation that had almost lasted a year and into consideration for a promotion within the span of a few weeks. Not to mention the expression she could still vividly remember when she'd almost burned down the birds house... Heh... Chills down her spine.

Well, Undyne figured she'd have to get over it after she was done at the school today. Any leads she'd been following had officially run dry just a day before school opened back up. So, even if it was slim pickings, she had to follow up on any possible evidence.

"Bah!" Undyne stomped in annoyance (and slightly cracked the floor) "The whole reason you're here is to take your mind off the hunt! Get out of your own head!"

"Undyne! You old urchin, get out here!"

And that was her cue. She took in a deep breath, and walked inside. Kids never really were her strong suit, which just served to confuse Undyne further. Why exactly had she accepted this job again???

She shook her head and stood at attention.

"ALRIGHT RUNTS! WHO'S READY FOR GYM CLASS WITH THE UNDYNE!?"

A chorus of "me!"'s rang out from the horde of ankle biters. One, particularly enthusiastic cry of "DEAR GOD YES!" Came from Undyne's most prolific follower.

She didn't need to even look at the monster to know that it was Monster Kid. They really had too much of an obsession with her... That couldn't be healthy could it?

...Actually, she probably wasn't one to talk about obsessing over an idol. Her own youthful years whispered to her, and she almost visibly cringed on the spot.

Disregarding all of that, Undyne did her best to scan the crowd. Match faces to names and what not. She had been given a list, but, WHATEVER! She was sure she'd do a better job of memorizing them face to face!

"Today we'll be doing some refreshers on magic! Am I clear!?"

Another dozen yes's came from the crowd.

"GOOD! Now, is there anybody here who can't use magic yet? ACTUALLY, don't bother answering that! If you can use magic, stand on the left, if you can't use magic, stand on the right!"

Plus, splitting them up should make memorizing their faces a bit easier.

As Undyne figured, the smaller crowd was the group of monsters who couldn't use magic. Might as well get a grasp over them first. A lizard monster, a dog monster, a cat monster, a bird monster, a bird monster? A bird monster. A familiar bird monster at that.

Now wasn't that curious? That kid had stats to rival her own but no magic? Or had they just not learned it yet?

Maybe this class would be at least a little interesting.

...

At least Matt was acting as a buffer this time around. The dog was also friendly enough.

"ALRIGHT! All of you who can use magic? Feel free to warm up! You'll need it! FUHUHUHU! Now..."

Undyne stomped her way over to the group of four. Lending each of them an appraising eye.

"How long have you all been trying to learn magic?"

Susie rolled her eyes, Matt frowned.

"A few months!" The dog answered a little more earnestly.

"I... Haven't really tried it before." Clover shrugged.

"GOOD! I mean, not good, but it's good to hear that you haven't given it your all QUITE yet! I mean, not good that you-BAH! FORGET ABOUT IT! YOU TWO!" Undyne jabbed her finger out at Susie and Matt.

"What?"

"Come on, I wanna see you give it your best shots! No holding back! You'll never succeed with an attitude like that!"

Undyne took a step back, and began to lead the group towards one of the dummies around the gym.

"Really feel it! Lay into that dummy with all you've got!"

Clover could tell without even looking at the pairs faces that they didn't really believe in themselves, so it wasn't all that surprising that nothing much happened.

"Come on! Really give it your all!"

"Look, Mrs. Undyne." Susie started off a little gruffly. "If it hasn't worked for me all my life, I don't get how it'll just work now because you said it would. I can hit the damn dummy hard enough already."

Matt, for his part, just nodded along with what Susie said.

Undyne frowned. Magic was more than just offensive power, it was integral to life as a monster in general! ...But some monsters just couldn't manifest their own magic no matter what they did. It was an unfortunate reality for those unlucky few.

"Alright, fine, fine. But mark my words I'll make sure you can at least do SOMETHING by the end of my stay, am I clear!?"

"..."

"AM I CLEAR?!"

"Crystal." The two of them said in unison. That actually provoked a bit of a smile on both of their faces.

"Alright, you can go join the other group. Go on! Get!"

They didn't need any further instruction.

"NOW! Are you two ready!?"

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Boy am I ever!"

"Mhm."

"Right! Then really dig deep and let it have it!" She patted the dog, and pointed them towards the dummy. The dog closed their eyes and!

And... Nothing. Their muzzle dipped into a frown.

"Alright, no, that's to be expected! Don't you worry about it you hear!? Sometimes that ain't enough for a monster, sometimes they've really gotta FEEL something, like I do! It took me a bit to get my own magic down, but it helps me to think about something impactful in my life, something that really stokes the flames of my PASSION! You got anything like that kid?"

"...Nope! My life's real nice besides not being able to use magic!"

"You sure? Nothing at all really gets you going? Not an injustice, something you care about, a bad memory, a good memory? Nothing like that?"

"...Well, I guess there are a few."

"Alright! Think about one of those, and really focus! And when you feel something, just let it LOOSE!"

The little monsters chest began to rise and fall in concentration. Clover didn't even think it'd actually work for a bit... But hey, he should apparently hold a bit more faith.

A single spear materialized and fired itself forwards! It... Didn't hit the dummy, but well, they'd managed to use magic!

"GREAT JOB KID!"

"I did it?"

"YOU DID IT!"

"I DID IT!"

"While I'd love to congratulate you some more, I've got another one of you runts to help out! So, move along!"

The dog scampered off with a hop in their step, leaving only Clover and Undyne on this side of the gym.

"Hey there kid! Real surprising to hear you can't use magic with YOUR stats. Good to see you by the way, I was gonna stop by and ask you some questions after school, but heh, saved me the trouble! We can talk later. FOR NOW!? YOU'RE GONNA LEARN HOW TO USE MAGIC, YOU FEEL ME?!"

"...Yes ma'am." Clover nodded a bit stunned in her presence. What'd she mean, "stop by and ask some questions"?

"RIGHT! Now, I'm sure you were listening to the instructions I gave that dog a moment ago, yeah?"

"Mhm, clear as day. "Really dig deep", and what not."

"Come on kid, you can say that with a little more passion! I KNOW you've got it in you! Your fiery spirit shone through while cooking!"

"Ahah... Right..." Clover frowned a little bit. Cooking with Undyne had been entertaining... Not much else he could say about it. Not anything positive anyways.

"Well? GO ON! GIVE IT A TRY!"

Clover shrugged, and closed his eyes. He'd done something similar before, right? He just had to... Focus? He had to "dig deep" like Undyne had said, he needed to FEEL that something was there. Not his SOUL, but his magic...

The advice his mom gave him way back when and the advice he was receiving now felt about the same, so he just...

Clover opened his eyes. In his hand was... A yellow orb? It was more like a ball actually.

"Huh." Clover squeezed it a bit, it felt warm, and it gave way pretty easily.

"Great job kid! Now, go on, try throwing it at the dummy!"

"Uh..." Clover looked at Undyne, and then back at the ball. That squeeze, had pretty much crushed the thing. Its power oozed out of it and onto the floor beneath him. Trickling out of his hand like viscous slime. "Don't think I can...?"

"That's fine kid! Just do it again!"

Clover nodded, and closed his eyes again. With a bit of focus he was able to produce yet another ball of energy. He tossed it up and down a few times, and while it did wobble precipitously, it didn't quite melt like it had when he squeezed it. It was... Kind of like a stress ball.

Undyne smirked and punched at the air. "Go ahead and throw it as hard as you can! Really let that dummy have it!"

Clover nodded in response, took aim, and threw it.

It... Kind of fizzled out midair.

"...Oh."

"Heh, don't worry about it kid. You only just learned how to use magic, I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon. While I'd love to hold your hand through it, I'VE GOT MORE OF YOU RUNTS TO DEAL WITH! SO COME ON!"

...

"NEXT!"

After she'd finished up with the few kids who couldn't use magic, Undyne had everybody else get into a single file line. What for? For a test of course! To be precise, a test of magical capabilities. One by one, she was getting a good look at everybody's powers. What she needed that estimate for? Clover wasn't sure, but it'd probably all be fine.

"NEXT!"

Noelle walked down the line and gave Kanako and Clover a thumbs up as she went. There was some ice covering the dummy, so Clover figured she'd made use of some sort of ice magic, obviously.

"NEXT!"

Smelled like smoke. Conveniently, the frost was also gone. Next up was Matt, this one Clover was curious about. How exactly would somebody with no magic participate in a magic test?

"Good hit kid, next!"

By slashing at the dummy, apparently. There was now a wide gash through its chest. Nice.

Next up was Kanako, this time, Clover paid a bit more attention.

She breathed in for a few seconds, before winding back. With a thrust of her arm, she sent out a massive blast of fire that far surpassed whatever magic that the other kid had used a few moments earlier. How did Clover know that? Well, when one source of fire was a warm, orange glow, and the other was a flash bang, it was pretty easy to tell.

"WHOA! GOOD EFFORT! What was your name kid!?"

"Uh... Kanako?"

"Oh, OF COURSE! HAH! What else should I expect from a boss monster!? NEXT!"

Clover didn't really feel like gracing every other monsters magic a description, so instead, he turned his attention back to his own. Turns out, his magic was a little sturdier than he initially gave it credit for. It wasn't that it just broke apart when it moved away from him... No, he just hadn't... Put much power into it? That was the best way he could describe it.

Clover was currently stretching out a ball of his own magic. No matter how hard he pulled at it though, it wouldn't break. It just kept stretching, and stretching... Why? Because he was keeping it steady. How? Through pouring more magic into it. It was weird.

Now that Clover was actually paying attention to it, he could feel an odd energy travelling from his arms and into the stress ball thingy. He supposed that was magic. So... This, weird, yellow stuff, was his magic? He let go of one end, expecting it to snap back into place, but instead of doing that, it actually stayed in place. Still stretched out and what not. It was actually... More like a cylinder now? A stress cylinder?

Clover leaned to the side and checked how many more students there were until he had to go up. He took a quick count, and if he wasn't wrong, the line was a little over half way finished. So, maybe eight or so more students given he was near the end?

He sighed and redoubled his efforts. It was far fetched, but maybe it'd work?

Clover tossed the now ruined ball off to the side, and envisioned something else in its place.

As the stretched out energy sizzled into nothingness, another object began to form in his hands. This time, instead of a ball, he wanted a bit more of a specific shape. A long, narrow cylinder. And... It actually worked! He'd wanted to make the shaft of a spear, and that's exactly what he got.

"NEXT!"

Time was running thin, so Clover got to work on the next part of his creation. Unfortunately, the bottom of the shaft bent when he thumped it against the ground... But that didn't matter too much! He immediately got to work pulling at the top of the spear, he wanted to give it a pointed end, so he got to work doing as much.

"NEXT!"

It'd be a close shave.

...

Clover just barely managed to "sharpen" the spear before his turn. It'd been a bit messy, but it wasn't like the bits he'd torn off would leave a mess... They just kind of... Sizzled? Evaporated? Faded? Faded into nothingness.

"NEXT!"

Susie strolled past Clover with a look that bordered on distaste and dislike as she took a glance at the spear he was holding. But if they felt any way about it, they didn't say anything. Clover didn't pay them much attention, he was more focused on holding his magic together.

Alright... Here went nothing.

Clover took a step forward.

"Nice spear kid." Undyne noted. "Well? Go on! Show me what you can do!"

"Right..." Clover cocked back his arm. The spear was surprisingly weightless, pro of being made out of magic Clover supposed. Just take aim for the dummy and...

"Hup!"

whoosh

The spear went flying through the air. It had more magic put into it than the ball that he'd initially thrown... So Clover was really hoping that this would at least stay put until contact. He winced when little flecks of yellow began to drift away from it mid flight, but fortunately it made the entire trip mostly intact.

THUNK

It landed solidly and planted itself right into the target. The dummy had been resilient thus far, but apparently Clover had thrown the spear forcefully enough to fully pierce it. The dummy sat, now impaled, against the floor with a slowly melting spear lodged into its midsection.

"Nice shot kid." Undyne smiled and patted Clover on the back. "NEXT!"

"Uh..." Clover mumbled and lightly tapped Undyne.

"Hah?" Undyne's gaze drifted back towards Clover, who was still standing there.

"What's up kid?"

"Oh... Nothing, just didn't realize that my magic would do... That." Clover pointed at the gap in the dummy. The spear had faded away by now but... It would appear "sizzle" was actually the right word for Clover's magic. Below the initial hole, was a trail of what seemed to be acid burns.

"Huh, that's some interesting magic you got there kid! Tell you what? After I'm done asking you some questions later, how about I help you figure out what exactly you can do?"

"...Sure." Clover smiled a little nervously.

He... Sort of forgot that was happening.