A Brand New Beginning

Fall of the Magnificent Ace

"I can't keep hiding this anymore!" Lydia sobbed. "What's wrong, Lydia?" Professor Oxford asked worriedly. "You're the only one that I trust, professor!" Lydia said, "This is not the real me!"

--"Lydia, what are you talking about?!" Professor Oxford inquired. "My true name is not Lydia Sullivan," Lydia replied. Professor Oxford took a few steps back, gasping in horror as she saw Lydia shapeshift into her true self. 

By the next morning, during History of Magic class, Akko was taking notes when Rogelio fell asleep. Daisy was doodling in her notebook as she rested her head on Andrew's shoulder. Lydia scribbled rapidly on her notebook, often stopping and zoning out until gentle thunder snapped her back to reality. Noticing Rogelio's slumber, Michael reached for a rubber band and placed it between his fingers, aiming a small ball of paper at Rogelio's back. Before he could shoot, Diana stopped him with her wand. Akko then woke up Rogelio but shaking him softly. "What did I miss?" he whispered. "Not much," she answered, "are you feeling well?"

--"I'm fine," Rogelio replied, sitting back up and grasping his pen. As he started writing down his notes, he saw in the corner of his eye Klaus at the other end of the row. Half of his face was covered by Sucy's head. "Klaus wanted to kill you," Andrew's voice resonated in his head. "As if I ever needed a werewolf's forgiveness..." Klaus's voice echoed in his head as well. Feeling his stare over him, Klaus caught Rogelio's eye, making him go back to his notes. After classes ended, Andrew headed to the courtyard with Rogelio when he noticed a shadow soar over them. "What was that?" Rogelio asked. Andrew did not answer and instead ran in the direction the shadow headed. "Hey! Wait up!" Rogelio ran behind him. They ran to the North campus, where the shadow landed. "Isn't this part of the school off bounds?" Rogelio thought. He then saw how Andrew ran towards Thunderstorm, his Wild Hunt wolf. "What brings you to Luna Nova, my friend?" he asked. Thunderstorm then let out a bark. "Cyrus wants me to attend training? Right now?" Andrew asked again, "I'm not sure if I can--"

--"I'll cover you!" Rogelio exclaimed. "Are you sure?" Andrew gasped. "Leave it to me!" Rogelio smiled, "Just go and be awesome!" 

--"Thank you, Rogelio!" Andrew smiled as he mounted Thunderstorm. Rogelio stood behind as he saw them take off into the cloudy sky. He then turned around and headed towards the main campus. "Hey, Mendoza!" Daisy called, "Have you seen Andy?"

--"He, um..." Rogelio lowered his voice, "he left to train. You know, with the Wild Hunters..."

--"Did he say when he's going to return?" asked Daisy. "No, sorry," answered Rogelio, "I'll cover for him during tutoring."

--"Tight," Daisy said, "Hopefully he'll return by tonight," she sighed. "Yeah," Rogelio sighed as well. 

Across Blytenbury, in the large fields, the Wild Hunters gathered for training. "I know the international tournament was over a few months ago," Cyrus explained, "but we better prepare for the next hunting season. Ah! There you are, Ace!" he said as Thunderstorm landed on the ground. Andrew dismounted the wolf, wearing his Ace gear. "There's our superstar!" one of the Wild Hunters shouted. "I'm not a superstar," Andrew said, "Flash left the team, and it was my fault."

--"It was not, Ace," a red-headed hunter said, "Flash was jealous of your talent. He made the best choice in leaving, besides, we already found a rookie to take his place. Hey, newbie!"

Andrew then directed his eyes at the new hunter. "H-Hi!" the rookie said, "I'm Cole! Wow, I can't believe I'm in front of the Magnificent Ace! Hi," he said louder, "my name is Cole! Can you understand me?!"

--"He's mute, not deaf," Cyrus said. "Nice to meet you," Ace signaled. "He says it's a pleasure to meet you," Cyrus translated. "Has nobody looked under your hood?" Cole tried looking underneath Ace's hood, which prompted Andrew to look away immediately. "You're much shorter than what you normally look!" added Cole, stubbornly trying to look under his hood. "Stop it, kid," Cyrus snapped, "nobody is allowed to see under Ace's hood. That's an order."