Darkness or light...?

1.

"Run, run, run! That's all you're good for anyway. Keep running until your feet burn."

the voice screams at me to run, run away like I always have, should I run? or should I....fight?

I close my eyes and a spell makes its way to my lips. Magic forms in my hands, and shooting from them comes a blinding light that disperses the darkness that lurches towards me, but only for a moment. The darkness soon envelops me, and I start to lose consciousness from the pain.

A loud growl from Alfa wakes me up, my face covered in tears. Alfa, sensing my distress, looks at me with concern.

My footsteps are barely audible as I approach the window. That dream is haunting me again. How am I ever going to succeed? It's been over 16 years.

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"Are you certain that you will be fine, Mother?" I inquire one last time before departing. Even though I haven't felt close to anyone since I was young, she is still my mother...

I am running through the forest, feeling water splashing on my face as I try to go faster. My heart rate increases with each step, I know I need to hurry back home, I have 30 minutes before the academy starts...

Upon reaching the entrance of the village, my feet came to an abrupt stop. A red-headed guy caught my attention as he hopped on his bike. I couldn't shake off the feeling that we'd met before. I hastened my steps towards my house on the main street, eager to change into a nicer pair of clothes. I quickly donned my new attire, grabbed a slice of apple, and darted out of the door. There was barely ten minutes left before my first class on sword fighting.

I walked into the grounds where our first class would be held. The teacher saw me and waved at me to come to the front. "Good morning class! Today, we will be welcoming back one of our old students who has returned after a whole five months! Be sure to welcome her back warmly," the teacher announced loudly. I couldn't help but wonder how such a jolly person could teach something as serious as sword fighting. As I walked to the back, I spotted the same red-head that I saw earlier.

Before I can wander too far in my thoughts, the headmistress enters the room with a strange girl by her side. As she steps forward, she announces, "A new student will be joining us today!" The students erupt into whispers, all wondering the same thing as me - why do we have a new student in the middle of the year? As the new girl's eyes meet mine, I sense a change in her aura - she becomes defensive. But why? If a new student is joining the school in the middle of the year, they must be powerful enough. Wait, perhaps she wasn't scared of me, but of Rex and his group...

as if on cue, Rex walks up to the front as the headmistress asks him to guide the new girl throughout her first week, rex looks unimpressed..however, the same redhead I saw in the morning ...as he introduces himself to the girl...I hear snippets of their conversation as the students start to walk to their positions...

"Hey, I'm Rufus, the best friend of this mean-looking guy here," the redhead said with a grin while pointing towards Rex. Rex just rolled his eyes and said nothing. The girl held back her chuckles but smiled sweetly and replied, "Hello Rufus, I'm Cyria." She hesitated for a moment, as if unsure of her own name.

As I warm up and swing my sword through the air, the teacher begins pairing up students for their first fight of the class. When she comes to me, she asks if I'm comfortable fighting against Rex, who is the strongest student in the class. I know she is just checking to make sure I'm not too weak to handle the challenge and avoid getting hurt on the first day back. I nod and smile at her, and she walks away to inform Rex.