A Calm Day

"So, Mr. Kirby-"

"Just Landon is fine, Dr. Saltzman." Landon said, a little nervous as he fidgeted ever so in a while on the chair.

Alaric, with a grin, nodded at his words before looking at the person by the youngster's side. "Are you sure you want to be here, Rafael?"

"Hmh." Rafael nodded, a little too much actually.

"Okay then." Alaric said, the sleepiness and tiredness still present on his complexion. "So, Landon, I think you noticed this school is a place for the supernatural, right?"

"Right… Kind of hard to miss it." Landon said, events from yesterday to today's morning playing in his mind.

Guessing what Landon might actually be thinking, Alaric chuckled. "Would you believe me if I told you this was the first time I saw a dragon as well?"

"Really?" Rafael asked.

"Yeah, that is a novelty to me as well." Alaric said, the thought of that urging him to drink. But he resisted this, John was one of the few exceptions in the school he revealed this side. "Kind also the first time I saw first-hand the prowess of one of my students." He said. "Also, before you think, he is not the standard here. He actually is the point very much far from the curve."

"Good to know." Landon said, forcing a grin.

"So, John told you you were supernatural as well?" Alaric asked, retreating on his chair.

"Yeah, that's what he said." Landon nodded. "Although he didn't elaborate much after saying it." He said, a little disappointed at not getting more information from him.

Alaric, hearing that, contemplated this piece of knowledge for a moment. "That was probably what he wished to tell yesterday." He muttered, remembering John's words before suddenly leaving the room. "He told you something else? Like how you were supernatural?"

"Actually, yes. He told me to tell you he looked at me and you would know." Landon said.

At these words, Alaric's eyes got a glimpse of understanding, one that didn't escape Landon's observation.

"What did he mean by that?" Landon asked, a little hesitantly, not knowing if he was touching a subject he shouldn't pry into.

"John has the ability of looking at people at a… deeper level, if I can use these words." Alaric said. "He probably noticed something in you. Your bloodline or your soul."

"My soul?" Landon blurted. "Like, my soul Soul? Souls are real?"

"Very much so." Alaric nodded.

Hearing that, Landon couldn't help but think about a hundred things, but the one he made public was a very distinct one. "For some reason, I feel that is a violation of privacy."

"Want to make a complaint?"

"Nah, thanks. I am fine being alive."

Alaric actually chuckled at that. "Relax, John is more peaceful than you imagine, although the past few days' events are not the best of the introductions for you to believe in me." Alaric paused momentarily, using the time for the teenagers to process the conversation up here. "If John said so and you are not lying, I believe in him. That means that you can possibly study here."

"Possibly?" Rafael interrupted.

"Depends on Landon's choice." Alaric eyed the pale young man.

"I- I'm more than willing to study here." Landon said, raising his voice slightly by the emotions he was feeling. "That would actually be great for me!" He added, taking a look at his brother who was sharing a similar smile as him.

"It's a good thing you are willing. But first, we have to do a few things." Alaric said, opening a folder.

"And what is it?"

"Both of you are still foster children. To enroll here legally, we would need the permission of your foster parents, a small problem actually. However, the main problem still relies on Landon."

"Which is?" Landon asked, toning down his excitement.

"You are supernatural, okay. But what are you?" Alaric asked, but didn't wait for an answer. "My responsibilities in this school are many, included in them are to help you understand your supernatural side. Even though I am lost recently in this aspect…" The last part, Alaric whispered to himself, referring to a certain someone.

"And… what Landon is?" Rafael took a look at his brother.

"Obviously, not a werewolf nor a vampire either." Alaric said, looking at Landon as well. "Maybe a witch, have you ever done Magic?"

"Never."

"Hm… an untapped witch, maybe?" Alaric pondered. "Did John tell you something else?"

"He just said that my case had picked his curiosity." Landon said, remembering the words from earlier.

Strange. Was Alaric's thought about the situation, getting himself contemplating about why this set of words was chosen by his student. After all, from where his knowledge about John reached, he wouldn't use these words for something simple.

And that made Alaric's stare at Landon shift slightly. "He didn't say anything else?"

"No. I tried to ask for more, but he said he would tell me more when he knew more himself." Landon said, disappointed at not having more knowledge about himself.

"Then, how about we ask him?" Alaric asked, waving his phone in front of the boys. "Fortunately, there are still a few minutes before class." He said, dialing a certain number before calling it, putting the call on speaker for everyone to hear.

After a few seconds of wait, a voice came from the phone. "Dr. Saltzman?" John's voice was clear, but the sound of the wind whistling on the speaker and the ruffling of the leaves were hard to miss as well.

"Where are you?" Alaric asked, not missing the sounds at the back.

"In the forest, approaching where I left the dragon." John replied. "Why?"

"I thought you would be in the classroom by now." Alaric frowned slightly.

"Something I want to talk to you later. I would have talked earlier, but I thought you would take the day to rest." John said.

"Believe me, I'll rest after I'm done with our new students." Alaric said. He has been awake for too long. So long that the adrenaline released by the body after long periods awake was already wearing off on him, with his eyelids feeling heavy again. "Anyway, I wanted to ask you something. It is about Landon."

"Let me guess. It is about what he is?" John asked, his voice knowingly.

"That would be much appreciated." Alaric said. "Or you don't know yourself?"

"His soul is different from any witch, vampire or werewolf. Actually, his blood lacks any magic due to how his soul apparently operates. That said, I have no idea what he is." John said, admitting his own 'lack' of knowledge. "Although, from what I know, I can make a few many guesses."

"Any chance he is like the wolves and vampires?" Alaric said, knowing well that in this case, the young man most probably had more knowledge in this field than him considering his abilities.

"Definitely not a curse that is triggered when he kills someone. As I've said, his blood lacks any magic, so it isn't possible…" John suddenly stopped his explanation, his words giving himself some enlightenment.

"What?"

"Nothing, just thought of something to research later." John said, putting this thought in the back of his mind for now. "Anyway, what he has doesn't seem like a curse. But yes, it seems something… that can be triggered. But, well, I guess we won't go killing to test it out."

"Of course not." Alaric said.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." John said. "I can think of a few things that might help us learn what he is, but can't make use of it by now since I am keeping watch on a dragon that might regain consciousness at any moment and I need to learn its secrets. So… I will try to help more at a later date." He added, basically finishing the conversation. "Anything else?"

"No, John. I will call if I need any help." Alaric said, ending the call. With him looking at Landon and Rafael afterwards. "I'm sorry, kid. For now, I can't help you with that."

"But, I can stay, right?" Landon asked, with his eyes full of expectancy.

"Of course. Although, try not to get into any trouble. As far as we know, you are physically normal, and almost two thirds of this school are above human standards in that aspect. So, be careful, okay?" Alaric said, making sure to alert him of the dangers in the school.

"No problem. I'm an expert at hiding and running from problems." Landon said, with the barest hint of pride in his voice.

Alaric chuckled at that, nodding his head to show his understanding.

After talking to Landon, Alaric turned to the other young man. "Now, since you are here, I will make use of the moment and talk with you, Rafael."

"What about me?" Rafael asked.

"I think it's fair I warn you of certain things you will face at the school." Alaric started. "For example, the school's pack."

"There is a school's pack?" Landon blurted.

"Yes." Alaric nodded.

"Why?" Landon asked, the more curious between the two brothers. "I mean, besides the obvious that they are werewolves."

For that question, Alaric got a little thoughtful. "For a bunch of reasons. But the primary one is simple, werewolves are almost as territorial as wolves. Once they recognize a place as their turf, things might heat up because of the presence of another werewolf not related to them."

"Why?" Landon said the same words, but now in search of answers for another question.

"It's in their nature." Alaric answered, nonchalantly even. "The same reason why vampires can barely control themselves when sniffing blood even if satiated. They are a predatory species, it's in their nature to hunt, to enjoy the warmth of the blood of their prey." Alaric said, his eyes reminiscent, although very subtly. "And that's one of the reasons why the school was created. We wish to help young supernatural beings to balance their nature and reason. Or else, if unleashed, the results might cause accidents that will make them feel guilty for the rest of their lives." The Principal explained, with the two young men in front of him understanding more of this world with the more he said.

"Returning to our main topic, the school's Pack brings Order to all the werewolves studying here. After all, when joining it, you are part of it, you belong to it. Their house is your house." Alaric added.

"You said that there were werewolves who were already part of packs, right? What happens to them?" Rafael asked.

"Since they are a minority, we can handle things. We've had talks with their respective packs. Think of them like envoys from foreign countries or whatever. They are permitted within national territory and are still foreigners, citizens of another nation, but are obliged to follow the home pack's 'rule'. With all the things written in small letters in what will happen if they defy the school's pack's 'rule'." Alaric explained, rubbing his eyes slightly to keep himself awake.

"Sounds… complicated." Rafael said after hearing it.

"Because it is." Alaric said, letting out a very light chuckle. But then, his expression, ever so minimal, brightened a little. "There has been a lot of bad blood between the three species. And a lot as well between the factions of each species. But this school, and these agreements as well, all serve so these young men and women have the chance to sweep away this bad blood. To turn the legacy of blood they carry with themselves into one of peace and hope for the future, for everyone." At the end of his words, amidst the tiredness of the past few nights and the accumulated stress of how he lived his life, Alaric had a hopeful expression, one longing for the future he imagined. "And that's why we created the Pack. To smooth this process a little."

"So, no matter what, I'm obliged to join?" Rafael asked, his voice unwilling.

"Technically, yes." Alaric nodded. "You might not feel anything right now, but you'll probably soon feel what I mentioned when you spend more time at the school. I can't force you anything, but it would be for the best for you to join the pack. There might surge problems if you don't." He explained.

After hearing these last words from his Principal, Rafael seemed to finally accept what he said and nodded. "Okay. I'll think about it." He said. "Is there something else?"

"No, you can go. Please, go. I really need to sleep." Alaric said, waving his hand to shoo them away, with both students grinning at his actions.

"See ya later, Dr. Saltzman." Landon said, closing the door before leaving the room.

And as soon as they both left, Alaric leaned even deeper into his chair, letting out a long sigh of tiredness. "God, I'm tired. I really need to sleep." Alaric said, rising from his chair tiredly, arranging everything in his office before leaving as well. His destination? His bed.

…

"I was about to head back to the school to have lunch." John said, his eyes still locked on the massive unconscious creature in front of him, but his words were directed at someone else. Or more specifically, the young woman approaching him.

"Don't doubt it. Hard to think of you missing an opportunity to eat when you can." Hope said, approaching the young man from behind. Her eyes also locked on the dragon. "It's a frightening sight." She said.

"Yeah. But for some reason, this frightening beast refuses to wake up." John said, poking the creature with a stick he found around. All the while with him sitting on a log, probably on the ground after yesterday's fight.

As Hope approached John from behind, she passed her hands over his shoulders, interlocking her hands in front of him as she let herself fall on his back.

"Tired?" John asked.

"Classes are kind of boring without you to bother me." Hope replied.

"Hm, love you too." John said, sarcastically.

Hope laughed lightly at that, letting her head rest over his. "So, why is it taking so long?"

"Having their insides fried by lightning and their mind messed up by someone removing a magical parasite from it makes it really hard for someone to wake up." John said plainly.

"You know what I meant." Hope said, not moving her eyes off the dragon.

Listening to her, John didn't joke again. "Her mind is a little of a mess. I can try to get something out of it, but I'm afraid to make her situation worse if I'm not careful." He explained, looking at the small mountain before him with serene eyes, observing her condition with caution.

"That bad, hm?" Hope asked.

"Yeah, although I also got to say that her regeneration is impressive. Both mentally and physically, but the latter mostly. These injuries were way worse yesterday, and being able to regenerate at this rate considering her current situation, that's kind of impressive." John said, really impressed by this level of regeneration.

His praise was fair, with the young man thinking how impressive the dragon's innate regeneration was.

Although not comparable to a vampire's, as a vampire could heal from a serious injury in hours or minutes, no normal vampire could survive the attacks unleashed by John, which was a praise to the dragon's resistance as well.

Seeing how John seemed to be staring intently at the dragon, Hope thought of something. "If you want, I can go get your lunch and bring it here so you can keep watching it."

"No need. I'll know if it wakes up. I'm just in here in case it attempts to do something as soon as it wakes up." John said, his hand enclosing over Hope's interlocked hands, not letting her go as he rose up from his position. "It's been some time since I gave you a ride. Let's go." John said, his feet detaching from the ground, with Hope hanging on him with her arms around his neck as he flew away.

…

"It probably is this one." John said, holding an ancient-looking dagger in his hands, with Dorian by his side.

More than half an hour had already passed since John had finished lunch with Hope and a few of his friends. And after that, John used the opportunity of being by the school and asked Dorian's permission to "search" for the supposed dagger mentioned by the dragon, as the librarian was responsible for the school's collection, from books to artifacts.

And now, said dagger was in the young man's hands after the said "search", a very brief one at that.

"Are you sure of that?" Dorian asked, looking at the seemingly normal-looking dagger.

"The amount of Magic here is something else entirely. Although I am not sure about its purpose." John said, inspecting the dagger, seeing the spell in it, its magical structure. "But I'll inspect all other daggers and whatever knives we have in here to make sure of that." The young man added, receiving a nod from the librarian.

"Then I will go to the archive room and retrieve whatever items we have there that might be it." Dorian said.

"Want me to go with you?" John asked.

"Don't need it. I'll be back in a minute." Dorian said before heading out of the library.

John, now alone, continued to look at the artifact before him, inspecting it thoroughly as he found a comfortable place to sit down. And as time passed, his stare on the artifact intensified.

I wonder if I had taken a deeper look earlier I would have noticed that very much probably the scaling of this world was much higher than I knew. John thought, his mind deriving a little from the artifact in his hands for a moment. Probably not… I had already noticed it slightly with Hope, Marcel and everything else in this school. I would still ignore it until something like a dragon tried to hit me in the face. He thought, a little mockingly as he returned to focus on the dagger.

The artifact, as said previously, had an amount of magic that was something else entirely, as per John's words. But even them weren't enough to bring out what the young man was seeing.

Magic was scattered across the environment, with small points similar to dust floating everywhere and currents like rivers flowing through space.

But the magic in the dagger was different, there were two of them in the dagger, two magical energies.

One that seemingly looked like a star, a huge and complex neutron star with so much energy that it could encompass what was hidden beneath it, deep in it, a dark and nihilical existence like a black hole. But different from a black hole that tried to pull everything in its way, it tried to push outwards, trying to force the magical structure around it, but with no luck as the structure remained unbent, unwavering, making anyone who could see what John see incapable of seeing the black energy, as the seal remained unwavered, and also hid what it is within it from prying eyes.

I don't understand most of this spell's structure. If I don't get the source, I will probably spend some good time researching to understand it completely. The young man thought, spotting a few places in the spell he didn't understand almost a single thing.

"What are you doing, John?" A high-pitch, but already lightly touched by puberty, reached John's ears.

Lifting his head, John stared at Lizzie's pair of curious hazy blue eyes looking down on the item in his hand, tilting her head to the side slightly.

"Remember what I said at lunch about the dragon seeking a dagger?"

"Oh, it's this one?" She asked, her tone a little more curious than with her early words. "I thought it would look like…"

"More majestic?" John finished her words, a small grin on his lips.

"Well, dragons are known for having hoards in those fantasy tales." Lizzie said, taking a quick and attempting subtle look at John.

However, even though the young man noticed the actions, he ignored it completely. "I think it's fair of you thinking like that." John said. Hm, I wonder what would happen if she siphoned all of this magic. He thought at the same time, remembering how powerful a Siphoner could become if siphoned enough magic. "But considering it's not the dragon who seeks it, then it's also fair of it not being part of its hoard." He added, smiling slightly at her.

"Right, right. You said it earlier too." Lizzie said, rather rushed. "And what do you think about it?"

"About who is after the dagger?" He asked, getting a nod as affirmation. "Hm… I have a few guesses." He said, purposefully vaguely, since he knew he wouldn't have more time to tell her everything for now.

Ring!

"I think it's class time." John said, looking up at Lizzie.

At first, Lizzie had a small frown on her face. But quickly, she smiled again and decided to ask something out of the young man. "Want to accompany me to class?" She said, expectantly.

"Sorry, Lizzie. I have to stay here until Mr. Williams comes back. Which should he do at any moment by now." John said.

"Ah, okay. Then, see you later?"

"See you later, Lizzie." John said.

"Okay, bye." She said.

As Lizzie walked away, John waved at her, with the girl doing the same before disappearing from his view as she went into one of the corridors.

And before John could say something, another voice reached out to him.

"Should I be worried?" Hope asked, standing beside John, who was sitting down on a couch all of this time.

"I don't know, what do you think?" John asked. "Or you'd prefer if it was Josie instead? You know, considering what we've seen in Penelope's book, I wouldn't be surprised if she, you know…" John let his words trailing off in the air.

Hope, looking down at him, gave him a side-glance. "Really? You still remember that?" She asked, a little dry in her tone.

"Kind of hard to forget." John said. "And if only you knew what I get from my empathic powers, you'd be really surprised." He added, remembering a few moments, one not so long ago.

"Really?" Hope asked. This time, in a very different tone. One more of surprise.

"As I said, you'd be really surprised." John said.

His words got Hope quiet, resulting in her staying silent for a moment with a certain thoughtful expression.

And seeing this, John didn't need any powers to notice what was in Hope's mind. "You are thinking about it, aren't you?"

"Nothing escapes you, hm?"

"Some people say I can read minds." John said.

Hope laughed lightly at those words. "I think I never told you I had a crush on Josie when I was younger, right?" Suddenly, Hope added a fact that was never unveiled in their relationship, a fact she thought her boyfriend didn't know.

"No. Although it's not hard to believe." John replied, revealing just a little bit of surprise so as not to reveal the fact he already knew. "And what do you feel about her now?"

"A good friend." Hope replied, honestly.

"You can't even let a man dream, hm?" John said, making a slight disappointed face.

"Sorry about it. I bet how much it might hurt knowing I'm only interested in my boyfriend." Hope sarcastically said, not losing the opportunity.

"I will forgive you this time." He said, kissing her cheek lovingly, a small gesture of affection.

Hope smiled amusingly at his action, shaking her head slightly from side to side at his words. She loved these small gestures and interactions.

"Is this the dagger the dragon was after?" Hope asked, reaching out her hand towards the said item, with the young man letting her take it from him.

"Probably." John nodded, observing the dagger. "It's the only one that caught my interest, at least. And I thought that if someone sent a dragon after an item, then said item must be rather special or interesting."

"And what makes it special?" Hope asked, exerting her magic out, into the dagger. Briefly after, she frowned slightly as she could feel a great resistance. Or more precisely, she couldn't feel her magic getting into the form of the dagger. "It seems to have a great resistance to probing."

"It seems so." John said, noticing Hope's magic failing in inspecting the dagger. "Here, let me help you see what I see."

The magic around John's hand moved according to his will, changing its form and structure, forming two lines. Each line connected one of the boy's eyes with one eye of the girl.

Hope, feeling a little tingling in her eyes, resisted the small urge to rub her eye, despite the fact that this small act would have no effect on the magic.

"Vision Propiertatibus Participes." John chanted, his words carrying his will and ideas.

The magic, seemingly quiet, seemed to come out alive when listening to the one who willed it mutter these words, changing its own structure and foundation, adapting into what the one who controlled it wished for it to be.

"Wow…" Hope suddenly said, blinking a few times as her vision abruptly changed. "You see things so… differently."

"That's not the most of it." John said, knowing well how it is for you to have your vision enhanced by dozens of times. "You are about to see magic in its entirety. Are you ready?"

"I think so." Hope replied.

Not waiting for more words, the young man's vision changed, revealing layers and layers of a world that mere mortals were not permitted to see. And this world, at this moment, was revealed for the first time to the girl.

She blinked once, and then twice, and then accepted that what she was seeing was real. That the environment around her had changed.

The space around her… seemed like a reflection of the cosmos in the ocean.

Small particles of light hovered, flowed everywhere. Scattered, spaced through reality.

Sometimes, these particles would merge into pre-existing currents that would course through space, or form ones when enough of them gathered.

"Is this what you see?" Hope asked, looking around mesmerized by the secret scenery unfolding before her eyes.

"In regards to magic, yes." John nodded, a grin placed on his lips when seeing the girl's reaction.

In the last few weeks they had been together, few had been the times Hope let herself indulge in something so easily outside of her usual hobbies and routine. And sincerely, John found the view pleasant for his eyes.

"Okay, okay. I will let you enjoy more of this vision later, but we have to hurry up or you will be late for class." John said, getting Hope's attention, a smile still going on his face. "Here, look at the dagger."

"Hm… Is this a seal?"

"Apparently."

"This black energy…" Hope muttered, taking a look at the mass of power within the dagger.

John did the same, taking another look at the black energy sealed in the dagger. And what he saw took him a little by surprise.

Well, well. This seems interesting. John thought, mildly interested in what he was seeing. "Hope, give me the dagger real quick."

"Here." She nodded, passing him the dagger.

Half-way of her actions, taking a very close look at the artifact, more precisely at the seemingly black hole located in the middle of seal, interested surged in the young man's eyes when seeing the once calm amalgamation of black energy become once again wild in attempt to break the seal when leaving Hope's hands and entering into his.

"Take it back." John said.

Doing as requested, Hope took the artifact from his hands, and again, the black energy sealed it returned to a calm and seemingly restrained or restricted state when in Hope's hands.

"Now, that's interesting." John said, observing the artifact attentively.

"The fact that this black energy seems to calm down when in my possession?" Hope asked.

"Yes." John agreed. "This might help us in learning more about it."

"Hopefully so." Hope said, keeping her eyes on the dagger as well.

…

As John flew back to the woods, the young man rejoiced at the fact Malivore's origin was still apparently truthful to what he knew, and the proof of that was how its power seemed to lessen in the presence of the one who is its only bane, the one who possess the same blood used by all its three creators, Hope.

However, there was a noticeable difference in all of this. The fact Hope's presence apparently was enough to affect Malivore's power.

Hope's presence seems more than enough to surpass Malivore's existence. Which makes sense considering her very being is the amalgamation of all that created Malivore, and at the same time what is needed to destroy him. But… As always, amidst his thoughts, John couldn't help but raise questions in his mind. … her presence has affected the power in the dagger because she is her bane or is it because that portion of power alone is not enough to handle her presence? And when whole, it can deal with it and just be damaged when in direct contact with her blood? John thought, a slight curiosity rising in him.

However, he didn't plan to get these answers for the moment.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to get these answers. Hopefully, the dragon will have enough knowledge for me to use to search and find what I already know. John thought, speeding up as he approached the clearing in the middle of the woods created by the dragon's fall.

When approaching the massive creature, John's lips curled up slightly at the notice of the dragon's improvement, as he could feel thoughts, even if distorted and weakly formed, from the dragon's mind.

Well, it went from totally unconscious to a state similar to sleeping. That's an advance. If things continue to go at this rate, I can probably attempt to read its mind sooner than I expected. John thought, going back to sit down on the horizontal log from earlier.

When finding himself comfortable, he took out his cellphone, taking a look at certain things of his interest, enjoying the soft breeze of nature at the same time, peacefulness slowly encompassing the scenery.

And as time went by, the young man enjoyed the moment. He liked the serenity and calm sensation present, completely different from the constant loud halls and corridors of the school.

With his eyes not wavering away from the screen, John learned about things that caught his interest, from biology to physics, psychology to history. The range of his interest was relatively wide, and fortunately, the internet provided to him all his needs for the moment.

In no time, the sun reached its zenith in the sky, and then started to move along its curve, going down to approaching the horizon.

The weather cooled down, with the winds getting colder as the darkness started to encompass the sky.

By now, amidst the woods, the only sources of light besides the moon and glowing stars in the sky were the two golden rings floating in the air and the light coming out of the cellphone's screen.

And suddenly, looking up at the bright stars in the sky, John turned off his cellphone, raising from the log he sat all this time. "I expected you to have taken a move earlier. It really seems trees are patient creatures." John blurted out, his words resounding across the woods.

After his words, an eerie silence lasted across the forest, one so deep that even the wind stopped howling and whispering against the woods.

But this silence lasted less than a second.

Breaking apart the dirt and stone, the ground shook as monstrous roots shot out to the skies, trespassing the trees' heights completely, obscuring the view of the stars above.

Looking up, John couldn't help but be surprised at the scene as the roots seemingly took possession of the starry sky.

Well, I thought it would take longer. Malivore seems to really want all of his power back. John thought, seeing the roots that encompassed the forest going on his way.