A Brand New Beginning

Blood of Oxford, Part 2 -- The Journey

"Ace! Long time, no see!" Cyrus smiled as Andrew landed his broom. "Good afternoon, Cyrus," Andrew said, "how do you do?"

--"Things have been tamed since, y'know, the whole arrest thing," Cyrus sighed, "how about you? How have things been over at Luna Nova?"

--"I recently discovered that I am the descendant of an important witch," Andrew replied, "I've been hearing this voice for a few days now, and currently I am preparing to go find an old family heirloom. But other than that, everything has been fine!"

--"Family heirloom? As in the Hanbridge family?" Cyrus asked curiously. "As in my mother's family," Andrew answered, "my mother gave me a map that I must follow to get to old family ruins in the depths of the Forest of Arcturus and find an old staff that will grant me great power."

—"Well, that's interesting," Cyrus gasped. "I'm here because I need Thunderstorm to come with me," Andrew said, "my mother said his spiritual connection with me will take me where I need to go."

--"Huh, that explains why he has been acting weird lately," Cyrus explained, "he's been throwing fits and howling at random times."

Andrew directed his eyes to Thunderstorm, who was resting surrounded by the other wolves. "Right now, he's resting," added Cyrus, "if you need him, you'll have to wake him up."

--"Thank you, fa--I mean, c-captain," Andrew stuttered, walking towards the wolf nervously. "Hey, Thunderstorm," Andrew whispered, "wake up, buddy. We're going on an adventure," as Thunderstorm lifted his head, Andrew heard the voice call once more. Thunderstorm let out a loud howl in response. "Seems like you can hear it too, huh?" Andrew asked, stroking Thunderstorm, "Come with me, let's get to the bottom of all this." He proceeded to mount Thunderstorm and lifted off. "Good luck, Ace!" Cyrus shouted as he saw them fly away. Back in Luna Nova, Lydia packed as much stuff as she could. "Vegemite? Check," she said, "Boomerang? Check. Wand? Oh, my wand! Check! Emergency healing potion? Check. Emergency poison flask? Check! Oi, I'm ready!" she then took her bag and broom, then headed outside excitedly. "Ugh, glad to know we won't have that noisy kangaroo-smelling Australian for a while," Paola rolled her eyes as she and Helga saw Lydia walking out. "Yo, Sullivan!" Dean and Drake called, "Andrew told us to tell you to take this to him," they handed her a large bag that rattled with every movement. "Chief said this is very important to him," Dean explained. "And we'd take them to him ourselves but we're hiding from Professor Badcock," added Drake, "so if you see her, we weren't here!"

Lydia then observed how the twins ran away as fast as their legs could take them. "Pfft, twins..." she rolled her eyes and headed towards the Leyline central, where everyone was waiting. "Apologies for the long wait, mate!" she waved. "Seems like everything's ready," Professor Oxford sighed. "Wait! Andy, I have something to give you!" Daisy interrupted, she placed Julius on the floor and reached for the keys of her motorcycle and took off a small flask with a glittery white powder from the keychain. "Daisy, is that--?" Andrew gasped. "Take my stardust with you," Daisy smiled, "if you guys get lost, the stars will guide you home. And I also want you to take this," she took off her silver moon necklace and instead placed it around Andrew's neck, "it will give you luck. Oh, and take my knife with you, too! You never know when you're gonna need it," she reached for her pocket knife from her boot, "Take care, Andy."

--"Thank you, Daisy," Andrew smiled before exchanging a kiss with her. "Lydia, I have something for you too," Sucy took a step towards Lydia, "I made you a necklace with a real mushroom. I hope you like it."

--"Oi! Thank ye, Sucy!" Lydia smiled cheerfully, "I love it!"

Akko and the other noticed how Sucy's visible cheek turned into a soft shade of pink. "It is time for you two to get going," Professor Oxford, "take care of each other."