Jaux Ballad has always wanted to enter the realm of magic, but could not do so by regular means. In his desperation to become a magician he finds himself with more power, and more trouble, than he could ever have imagined.

*=+=*=+=*=+=*

The ebony staff was exactly as Jaux remembered it from Theema's artifact room. The entire length of the stave looked like a very thin cone of rough black ice, or as if someone had broken off a black stalactite. An abstract dome cage of black stone formed at the top, perfectly trapping a fist-sized purple sphere. The other end of the staff was much thinner, but still rounded out enough that it wasn't quite a sharp spear point.

"Oh, that's cool," said Frey when she saw the staff lying on the bed, "when did you get a staff?"

"Uh... I didn't." Jaux replied.

Frey glanced over at Jaux with narrowed eyes of confusion, before staring back at the staff. She was wearing what Jaux guessed was an expression between suspicion and curiosity. "I supposed Desyi or Tricks could have gotten it for you."

Jaux knew none of her other roommates could have gotten the staff for her from the research storage room, but wasn't sure if she should tell Frey about where the staff actually came from. She also didn't think Theema could have moved it here. If the goddess could affect the world this much, then she probably wouldn't be without human contact for so long.

Someone else had likely been in their room.

Jaux pursed her lips and looked around quizzically, though she didn't expect the intruder to stick around. Her eyes fell onto the bathroom door, and for a moment she considered the possibility that it was one of the roommates from the other dorm room. She didn't really know anything about them except that one had blue hair and one had brown. There was probably two others from that dorm room that she hadn't met yet, assuming all the rooms had the same amount of roommates.

"Oh wow, it feels really cold." Frey said when she abruptly picked up the staff with both hands. "It's impractically heavy as well."

"Cold?" Whispered Jaux, as she was suddenly reminded of an interaction she had almost forgotten about.

The demon root had felt cold when she first received it from the old man at the wand shop. She still owed the old shopkeeper for trusting her with the stave that connected her with magic. Guilt suddenly filled her head, and Jaux couldn't stand the feeling of it against her conscience.

"I... I think I know who to ask about it." Jaux claimed. "I'll go ask him right now."

Jaux carefully took the staff out of Frey's hands, expecting to be weighed down. She was pleasantly surprised when she found that it was both warm and lightweight. In fact she could easily hold it with only her index finger and thumb. Frey regarded Jaux's actions with curiosity.

"You're a lot stronger than I thought, Suhara." Observed Frey.

"Oh no, I'm not nearly as strong as you," Jaux quickly noted as she firmly gripped the staff with her right hand, "the staff is just... synchronized with me, I think."

"So, who are you gonna be talking to?" Frey asked.

Jaux felt the slight urge to lie pulling at the back of her mind, but it was becoming a difficult decision. When it came to her, Frey had always been so kind and caring. She really couldn't stand much more of her own deception. Her name, her homeland, and where she snuck to this morning had all been hovering in her head uncomfortably. Jaux didn't feel right adding anymore dishonesty between her and Frey.

"I'm going to go see the shopkeeper at the wand store downstairs." Jaux announced.

"Ah, okay. I suppose he would know something about it." Agreed Frey. "You want me to tag along?"

"Uh, not this time, sorry." Said Jaux, who put on a smile apologetic smile. "We have a tiny bit of... private and personal history that I also want to talk about."

Frey giggled at how adorably nervous Jaux was. It was obvious to Frey that Jaux didn't want to offend by denying. "Okay Suhara. Be careful, and come back soon, alright?"

"Yeah, I will, thanks!" Replied Jaux, who now smiled happily at the fact that Frey didn't look the least bit angry about not being included.

=+=+=

"Theema, did you have anything to do with putting your staff on my bed?" Whispered Jaux as she made her way down the stairs.

As soon as Jaux was alone, she had shifted her Winter Sight on so that she could speak to the goddess. She was almost positive that Theema had nothing to do with the staff, but it was best to confirm that theory personally. She also focused her vision on the ebony stave so that the goddess would be able to see exactly what she was talking about.

"No, I can not move any of my tools from here. However, I am glad that you have possession of it. The staff, Sevla, had always been meant for my vessels, just as most of my other mystic objects are." Responded Theema within Jaux's mind.

"Well, I guessed as much. Uh, thanks for the staff." Said Jaux, then she waited for a moment in case Theema had anything else to say, before she turned her Winter Sight back off.

=+=+=

Luckily for Jaux, the wand shop was empty. The selection of staves available in the shelves, walls, and displays all looked a bit different from what Jaux remembered. It appeared that business had been good for the old man.

"Ah, hello young lady, how can I help you?" The old shopkeeper called out when Jaux walked in.

"Uh, hi sir," Jaux replied, "I came to return something I shouldn't have held for so long."

"Return something?" Questioned the old man, as he raised a single eyebrow with skepticism. "I don't remember your face, young one. It's rare for me to forget someone."

"I've changed... a lot." Said Jaux.

Jaux still gripped her new staff, Sevla, in her right hand, and pulled the demon root out of her robe with her left. She placed it on the counter in front of the shopkeeper, waiting for him to make the mental connection.

"Mm, yes, I remember this." The old shopkeeper carefully said as he picked up the demon root. "Still as cold as ever."

The old man studied Jaux with focused eyes, looking her up and down. His eyes slowly opened up as he seemed to realize something. Then he chuckled a bit and placed the demon root back on the counter.

"So, did you successfully learn any curse magic, young one?" The old shopkeeper asked.

"Uh... yes sir. Thank you for trusting me with a wand, it helped a lot." Answered Jaux.

"Why didn't you keep it?"

"I... never paid for it. I never could have afforded it. Sorry."

"Well, I hope that new staff of yours hasn't completely replaced my wand. I want you to keep the demon root." Offered the old man.

"Huh?" Jaux uttered in confusion. "Why? I mean, I still don't have any money or anything, sir.

"I'm glad someone could use it, lass. Curse magic is a rare type for people to learn, even in this place." The old shopkeeper explained. "I'd prefer it be in the hands of a young and virtuous magician, rather than sitting alone on my wall for another few years."

"Oh, thank you sir... but I really can't. I'm not that good of a person." Jaux replied earnestly. "I'll buy it from here as soon as I have the money though, I promise."

The old man smiled widely at Jaux's sincerity. It was such a good trait for younger people to have, and he believed it was definitely worth rewarding. He wasn't completely certain when he first saw her walking into his shop, but now he was sure that she was exactly who he suspected her of being.

"You know, young one, I heard a great story recently." The shopkeeper began to say. "I heard about how a young novi, who was claimed with a black collar, stepped in front of a terrible armored thief who was trying to kill innocent people. They say she used a magic that looked much like a powerful curse, but had teleported her like dimension magic. She had sacrificed her own safety, and managed to save my life."

Jaux's eyes went wide and her mouth fell open. Her left hand immediately flew up to her collar, which she kept forgetting about lately. She didn't expect him to know about what she did against the knight. In hindsight, there were quite a lot of people who were there to witness it.

"Young lass, I owe my life to you, and I'm sure you know that." The old man continued. "You don't owe me anything, please accept this wand as a gift of thanks."

Jaux bit her lip and looked down at her feet. She wasn't used to being praised as the type to rescue others, and couldn't bring herself to look into the shopkeeper's eyes again. Instead, she carefully took back the wand, and then bowed slightly to the shopkeeper. "Thank you for everything, sir. You've helped me so much."

The shopkeeper laughed in that oddly loud full volume of his. "Oh, so humble, how admirable." He said. "You should be on your way, young one. Curfew is very near. Be sure to visit me sometimes, okay?"

"Yes sir, I promise." Agreed Jaux with a nod, before she waved goodbye and slowly left the shop.

=+=+=

The girls were once again in their traditional circle of pillow seats. Desyi and Tricks had returned back to the room while Jaux had been down in the wand shop.

"Yeah, everything went good," Jaux said, "but he didn't know anything about the staff."

"Why exactly is it so cold and heavy?" Tricks asked as she was holding Sevla.

"Oh, my ruby wand used to always be cold too, but eventually it... warmed up to me!" Claimed Desyi with a little giggle.

"Complex staves tend to feel cold when you hold them for the first time. My new metal wand still feels a bit cool to the touch." Frey added. "The weight might be some kind of permanent enchantment though. I'm guessing the staff can be used for melee combat by the magician who is used to it. Suhara doesn't feel as much of the weight when she holds it."

"Yeah, it still hits pretty hard." Agreed Jaux. "I accidentally bumped into someone with the staff on the way back, and they said it felt like a heavy punch or something."

"Wow, that's useful." Desyi said admiringly.

Tricks handed Sevla back to Jaux, before leaning backwards in her seat and supporting herself with her arms. "Gods, Suhara, you are so spoiled. Frey keeps getting you new clothes and now you're getting valuable staves out of thin air."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Jaux apologized as she heard a tone of disappointment behind Tricks' voice, "You can wear anything I have if you want."

"Aw, you're so generous Suhara!" Desyi complimented as she gave Jaux a little hug from the side.

"Too bad Tricks is so short," Frey teased, "I don't think anything Suhara has will actually fit."

"Oh shut your hole, Frey," griped Tricks, "I can borrow hats and stuff."

The girls collectively laughed and giggled, filling the room with a joyfully atmosphere. Jaux couldn't help but be glad to have made such good friends with everyone. Her roommates were much better company than her old acquaintances back in Welldrop.

The girls continued with their friendly chatter, making plans for their free day tomorrow.

Frey was going to accompany Jaux for some curse magic practice. She didn't have any new spells from Sellwall, so she was free to give Jaux all her attention. This also meant that she could use some of her ace student benefits during the practice session.

Desyi was going to be a part of a field group, which was a group of students who would head out to one of the neighboring towns while under teacher supervision. The trip would be to the city of Galosrea, a shoreside establishment famous for their massive ships.

Tricks actually had a duel scheduled for tomorrow, and she invited Jaux to go watch it before practicing spells.

Jaux agreed immediately.