Profs and Prophecy

Much is Revealed

Chapter Seven

Much is Revealed

It was Tuesday night, and the common room in Stephens Residence was unusually quiet. Actually, it was not at all unusual if compared to the past few days, since the disastrous incidents at Merlin Hall. It was only unusual if you compared it to what would have been expected only a week earlier. The incident had had a severe effect on everyone; all the witches had been markedly subdued in all their activities ever since.

Priti, Sara, and Cassia had made it out of the courtyard, with a few bad cuts and bruises, but less than they might have expected given they had spent even a small amount of time in a tornado. Cassia was unable to attend dance the next day, but time was now well on its way to healing their injuries. It is unfortunate that some scars run deeper than others. Even Priti’s seemingly indomitable spirit was seemingly domited.

All students were to be in their own rooms by ten. It was only nine thirty, but most of the witches had already left the common room. When Professor Brodie arrived there were only a few remaining. Priti, Sara, and Cassia were in their room and ready for bed when they heard the Professor’s reprimand.

“This will not do! Gels, every one of you, attend immediately,” she called. When Professor Brodie called, everyone reacted. Within moments the hallway was filled with students in their nightgowns, following the Professor’s voice to the common room.

“It’s Tuesday, nine thirty,” she reminded them. “Did every one of you forget that we have a regular appointment?”

“But Professor,” said Priti. “Since last week, well, we all thought, everything has changed.”

“Some things may have changed, but others most definitely have not. I’ve made a commitment to you all, and I intend to honour it. You know that I expect your word to be your bond; you also need to know that my word to you is no less. Now everyone settle, class has begun.”

All the girls found a place on the various chairs, couches, and floor space. Priti felt an uplifting of her spirits for the first time in days, and smiled at Professor Brodie. She was also pretty sure that the Professor had smiled back, albeit briefly.

Professor Brodie began. “To this point, you have been using your internal energies to perform small feats of magic. The amount that can be achieved using this source is indeed so small, most people tend to discount the effects even when they see them. You may be looking at a pinfeather, and think about it floating. If it actually did you might be amazed, but would not think of it as magic. Rather you are more likely to attribute it to a sudden draft. The very act of noticing the feather floating would end your concentration, terminating the magical connection and causing it to fall. Further attempts to float the feather will fail, as you have used up your internal magic reserves. In this way, magic remains safely out of the hands of the vast majority of men and women.

“Over the past few weeks, you have been training your minds to focus that internal energy source, and get the maximum effect from it. The feats you now perform are still small, but can no longer be mistaken for random events. You know exactly what you intend to achieve, and you are capable of doing precisely that.

“I know many of you are impatient, and have been anxious to move on. However, the level of control you have developed is more important than you can imagine. The more control you exercise, the better your magic will become. Anyone can take a source of stored energy, and use it to create spectacular magical effects. With the control you are developing, you will be able to produce ten times the effect, with only a tenth of the energy. This could be extremely valuable, if you should ever find yourself in need with only limited magical resources available.