Professor Dellik was talking to a handful of Pixies when I arrived in the waiting area for the Creature Cage. I looked around, a random splattering of colors everywhere.

No red.

I was used to the lack of red, but in moments like this with not even a speck of it, I felt alone despite all the people around me.

I hadn't been in this room before, Celica probably had though. It was somewhere that lead out into the Chaser field. It was kind of strange, this place of wood and stone intermingling. It didn't have lockers, it had a few stone benches with no backs, stone pillars but an open wood ceiling.

I wondered if this building was once something else.

Dellik was the only professor here. Looking around it seemed like it was only first years. I recognized most of the faces, but couldn't place names.

We were going in alphabetical order, so I might as well get comfortable.

"I have to admit I'm shocked to see you here," Professor Dellik commented.

I hadn't noticed his approach.

"Trust me, I'm just as shocked as you are."

"This was your mother's doing, wasn't it?"

"Yep."

Wait.

I blinked twice and looked at him with narrowed eyes, "Did…did you know?"

"I was here when she started teaching with her Hearth name and when she changed to Stewart. It wasn't hard to piece together the details."

Wow. I really fooled no one about anything.

"I won't pretend to understand the full story, but whatever the details, I'm sure at least one of them know what they're doing."

I shook my head, "You don't have to tell me to have faith. I just need to focus on what's important. And it's not winning." I wanted to prove myself. To know the last couple of months meant something that if nothing else, I was making some semblance of progress.

Dellik looked concerned.

"It's okay professor. I know what I'm doing."

I could feel the weight of my Focus in my pocket. It wasn't that heavy, but as the time drew closer it seemed to grow heavier.

I wished it was true. But I had to try. I liked being able to try. I was never able to try before.

"You know, you don't have anything to prove to anyone."

Says him. And maybe I didn't have to. But I wanted to. And it was me I wanted to prove it to. But I doubted he would understand that.

Hells, I barely understood it. Just felt it.

"It's…not about proving anything," I told him in an attempt to explain how I felt, "it's about doing myself proud. The test itself, not the result."

I don't know if he understood. But he blinked and nodded, a serene smile. "It's your first year, you have all the time in the world to win any prize. It's good to pace yourself."

"Let the others worry about prizes. I'm here for something else." No point in telling him that I was too in over my head to even think of winning.

I could handle this. I was going to have to.

(*********)

I took a deep breath. I hadn't moved from my bench and no one had come to join me. As people were called one by one the room was far emptier than when it started.

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It was just us students and everyone around me was clumped up. I was just proud I hadn't crumbled in on myself. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my Focus.

Sharp spikes faced me back, hints of a twisted and distorted reflection blinked back at me. From my angle of looking down at it I could see mostly green with hints of pink and bits of red.

The spikes felt sharp enough, but doubts were starting to grow. Like layers of lava piling up and cooling.

I didn't know what to do. I didn't know if I could do this anymore.

What was Mom thinking? I was out of my league. Everyone else here had years more experience. I was never going to catch up.

Breathe Serafina.

This wasn't about catching up. That was already hopeless. But I maybe could prove that I did belong here. There wasn't a metric in the world that told me I didn't belong. A bunch of rude jerks who didn't, and would never, know the first thing about me wasn't going to change that. Couldn't change it.

I put my Focus back in my pocket. It wasn't like other people's but that didn't mean it couldn't still serve a purpose. In a way, the one it was always meant for, helping cast spells.

I just hoped whatever I was stuck with wasn't immune to fire.

(*********)

"From Dragon Tower, Serafina Stewart." I couldn't identify the voice coming from somewhere outside. It seemed to fill the room and the air itself.

I wanted to puke but the point of no return was about three days ago. Too late to turn back. Too late to run. The broken in black closed toed shoes on my feet felt too heavy, the Dragon red overcoat heavier than the weighted blanket I had at home.

My throat was dry and I couldn't tell if the lingering chill on my face was the November air or the pounding of my blood as I stepped out of the room and onto what was normally the Chaser field.

The light of the sun refracted off the honeycomblike pattern in the barrier between me and the stands. Vivian was easy to spot, she was standing with some other professors and Dellik.

"You can do it Sweetie!" My mother's voice. The mastermind behind this really bad idea. Where was she?

There, sitting by herself and clapping like her life depended on it. I couldn't quite see her expression from where I was.

I exhaled slowly to try and calm myself down. I wanted Dad here.

Dellik had what almost reminded me of a bingo ball machine. A large wooden basket with a hole on one side. I couldn't really see what was inside from my angle so far away, but it looked colorful.

Mom's clapping stopped and I could see her hands clasped together like she was praying.

Thanks for the vote of confidence. Maybe next time don't do this.

I couldn't blame her though, my luck was awful and couldn't be trusted. Frankly, I would just settle on not getting the worst option in that basket. Whatever that was.

I tried to calm myself with what I did know for sure. It wasn't going to be a real thing, whatever it was. Simulacrum was the name. Duplicate was a spell designed to make a perfect copy, Simulacrum was imperfect by design. Fine for a student to test their mettle against without putting anything or anyone in real danger.

Unless the student couldn't cast.

In which case this was going to be dangerous and difficult.

I wondered if this was why none of Mom's friends were happy to see her again.

Then a bell tolled once. Loud and clear and signaling my doom for sure.

I sighed as the shell of the barrier pulsed with a red color. A sign of what got picked for me or just some extra flair for being a Dragon?

Whatever it was, something was moving. The grass about twenty feet in front of me began to grow rapidly upward. Twisting and expanding as the blades wove themselves together.

Something was glowing red. Two little orbs of light. Were they supposed to be eyes? Parts of it were turning dark and brown, like bark on a tree. Claws, teeth, something resembling small horns, bipedal, about four feet tall, long tail.

It looked like a kobold.

Not that I had ever seen one in person before, but I had seen enough pictures to know what to expect. Good news, this thing wouldn't have the full range of abilities kobolds had. Not as strong, not as fast, no special resistances.

Being a plant might mean weak to fire though.

But maybe that was too hopeful.

It mimicked the motion of roaring without making a sound and then rushed towards me.

Never mind, it was plenty fast.

Nope nope nope!

What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?

I stepped back to get away from it, fake or not it those claws looked sharp.

The first swipe of its claws passed way too close to my face. I needed to be careful. I tried to remember what I needed to do.

The face of it was gnarled, twisted and curved and looking menacing.

I was out of my league.

But I wanted to try anyway.

I clenched my fists and tried to focus. I stepped back from the creature and steadied my feet. I had to do this. I'd run enough.

Running wouldn't solve anything anyway. It wouldn't break my curse. It wouldn't prove that I belonged here. I was already in the ocean and it was time to swim.

I clenched my fist tight and swung a punch.

It landed on the snout of the fake kobold. Bits of bark breaking under my hand. The shock of it seemed to go through my arm. Rippling like and Earthquake in my muscles.

I hated the feeling.

But I needed to stay focused.

It was barely even reeling, not surprising as this is designed to test magic.

My focus!

I reached frantically into my cost pocket. There it was, smooth and sharp and if I'm going to use any magic during this thing, my best hope.

I wrapped my hand around it, the spikes poking into my palm. It didn't have to be deep cuts. I just had to draw blood.

I squeezed my hand tight around it. The pain was sharp and made my left hand burn. My wrist started to itch like it had broken out into a rash.

I took that as a sign it had worked.

I was going to have one shot at this, I needed to pick a spell that would end this quickly. As it rushed forward to attack again I ducked underneath its wooden claws.

Memories of spiders and pink flame danced in my mind.

I placed my hand on the ground, flat and with my fingers wide. I focused on the blurry memory of fire pillars and ashes.

For a moment, a single instant frozen in time, I felt a rush of…something from somewhere that I never knew existed. It swelled from somewhere between my heart and throat and rushed through my right arm and into my fingers.

Then pink filled my vision. My pink. The pink of my magic. The flames were giving off more heat than I remembered.

It remained even as my vision began to blur and agony shot up my left arm from the curse.

I grabbed my cursed wrist with a hiss of pain.

Stay conscious. Come on, Serafina.

Something burned in my throat. I started to cough and saw small droplets of dark green leave me.

That was probably a very bad sign.

The flames died, snuffed out like a mere candle.

To my horror, the creature still stood. My flames had missed it entirely.

My body and consciousness gave out before I could even think of what to do next.

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