Not as easy as it Seems

[alamea]

The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.

All Alamea could see was the candle in front of her. Unlit. She was sitting alone by a table in the Academy in Magic, trying to light the thing. The apprentice had been at it for about an hour, and so far was unable to bring the candle to go aflame. Her calm blue eyes were focused on the white wax in front of her. Taking a deep breath the girl uttered the spell that should bring flame before her eyes.

An aggravated voice said the words, her eyes carefully watching to see if the incantation had worked. To her frustration, it didnt, and she was still sitting in the darkness. With an angry groan Alamea put her forehead on the table and hit it against the wood several times. "Why...cant...I....do...this...stupid...spell!" It was a basic one, fit for an apprentice. But still she couldnt do it. The girl had been struggling with any magic since she arrived at the Academy. It seemed she would never get good enough to become an alcolyte.

With an angry glare Alamea brought her eyes to meet the candle, and her teenage impatience took over. "If you do not light this instant you will find yourself a very squashed candle!" she hissed at the unlit wax in front of her. With no surprise it didnt light, but the apprentice still had to hold back to urge to throw the thing against the wall. "Fine be that way." The girl pushed her chair up and rose from the table, her limbs sore and stiff from sitting for an hour. All she wanted was to get away from this for a while.

So walking around and pondering for a minute, Alamea tried to calm down before she returned to her studies. If she didnt get this spell in about another hour, the apprentice promised herself she would go horseback riding. This was just so frustrating.

[Adam]

Adam watched the other apprentice try in vain to light a candle over the top of his book, and felt a smile creep across his lips. He had only been here for a few days, and it seemed that everyone was vastly superior to him in magical talent. It was somewhat depressing watching someone lift up a boulder when you couldn't lift a feather with your mind, and Adam understood the girl's frustration. He stood up from the window ledge he had been sitting in, put the book in one of the volumous pockets in his black robe and started to walk over to her. Or, at least he tried. Having only been in the Academy a few days, he still wasn't used to walking around in his apprentice robe, and tripped, falling face first into the stone floor.

Blushing furiously as he pulled himself up from the floor, Adam nearly fell again in his haste. Way to go Adam... Wonderful first impression, he thought sarcastically. But that's the way things had always been with Adam. As a youth, he had been much to clumsy to help his father in the forge, and his mother feared her fine china plates being broken by Adam's graceless hands. He was kind, and gentle, but Adam always seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. In fact, it was because of one of his many falls that he found himself at the Academy. Adam went to see a priest after a particularly nasty tumble down a hill had broken his arm, and the priest told him he had the talent to become a mage. Adam was excited by the prospect, but his father was disappointed, hoping to have a respected knight in the family. Adam shook his head free of the thought. It's my life, and I'll show them...

Adam walked the rest of the way over to the girl, who by now must have thought him an idiot, what with his talking to himself and constant tripping. When he got close enough, and his eyes had adjusted to the dark, Adam extended his hand with a smile, saying, "Hello, my name is Adam. I'm pretty new here, and I was wondering, do you mind if I work with you on some spells?" He felt very strange standing there with his hand out, but he waited. Perhaps she wanted to be alone.

[alamea]

Alamea turned frantically as she heard a loud thump, searching for its source, her robe swirling around. She found it extremely hard to surpress laughter as she saw a boy on the ground, and not by his own choice it seemed. Putting hand to her mouth to hide the smile, and her blue eyes twinkling with amusment, she waited for him to stand up. Noting the color in his cheeks from embarassment, the girl was ashamed she found this so funny, but that didnt change the fact that it was. When he got close enough she shook his outstretched hand, trying to keep laughter from her voice with no avail.

"Hello Adam, its a pleasure to meet you. Im Alamea, havnt been here very long myself." The girl said cheerfully, tucking a lock of brown hair behind her ear that had escaped its braid. He seemed so much different than her. While he was clumsy, she was graceful. While he was hasty, she was calmer. Returning his smile she sighed. "You are welcome to come and do spells with me, though I have to warn you, Im a failure. That candle hasnt been lit for about an hour, and Im about to squash the thing."

She said the last part with a hint of frustration, reaching her hand over to pick up the candle, spinning the thing in her hand. Magic was so annoying sometimes. In truth she wondered why she was even chosen for the academy. Sure she had shown all signs of possesing magical power, and had even demonstrated it sometimes, so she had the ability. But when it came to the simpilest things she failed. Sometimes I wonder if they should have just left me in the village to become a tavern worker, like I was supposed to. Alamea thought while she was looking at the candle. Turning her gaze back towards Adam she motioned to the candle. "Any idea how to get this thing lit?"

[Adam]

Adam could here the laughter in her voice as she welcomed him to sit and study with her, but he didn't mind. He only had to imagine how strange he looked lying there on the ground, trying to get himself up as fast as he could to make himself smile. "I'm glad. Not that you are a failure, that you're willing to let me work with you. Not that you're a failure at all its just that... Oh never mind." He pulled out one of the chairs at the table for her and nodded to it, and then sat down in another himself, after carefully making sure the chair was under him. He suddenly bolted up, wondering if perhaps she was tired of sitting. She had said that she was working on lighting that candle for a long time... Adam shook his head, his brown hair flopping as well.

"Yeah... so, have you chosen a particular school to focus in yet? I'm still unsure myself." Adam said, hoping to break the ice a bit. She was different from Adam in many aspects, and he was a little unnerved by the whole situation. She was calm, collected, and graceful, where he was hasty, jumpy, and clumsy. He had a feeling in his gut he would make the situation worse before they were done studying. Adam suddenly realized that she had asked him if he knew how to get the candle lit. Closing his eyes in frustration, he smiled grimly Right on que... Nice. Looking back up at her, he shrugged apologetically. "I'm sorry, but I'm not really sure. I have no aptitude for fire anyway so..."

[alamea]

Surpressing another laugh with her hand, Alamea had to struggle to keep herself standing. "Its ok, I get it, dont worry. Im glad to have someone to work with too." Her voice was light and cheerful. Eyebrow raised as he pulled out a chair for her, the girl apprentice sat down and made sure her robes were neat. But out of the corner of her eye she noticed that he was making sure that chair was there under him. This was highly amusing for Alamea. With a small hand she placed the candle back onto the wooden table. But when he sprang from his chair, her eyes darted to him and her heart skipped a beat. Was something wrong? "You alright there Adam?" She said quietly with some laughter. The girl had never seen anyone move that fast. Maybe it had been a spider. Briefly looking at the chair to see if there was anything there, she was utterly confused.

Then his next question caused her to ponder a bit. In truth she hadnt decided what she ulitmatly wanted to be in the end. The girl just wanted to get past being an apprentice. But if she had to choose, there were two possiblities. Turning her blue eyes to the now standing Adam, she responded softly. "Im not really sure either, right now I just want to become an alcolye. But if it came down to it, either an Elemental Master or a Dementia Master, both are appealing to me. Im not religious enough to become an Archbishop." Alamea said with mirth in her eyes. Motioning towards the chair, she got her mind refocused.

"Would you like to sit down, I dont see anything wrong with the chair? You are are jumpy one arent you." Alamea teased gently. It was a pity he didnt know how to get the darn candle lit, but still she would work at it. If she wanted to master anything, first she had to get the basics down. "Its a shame you dont know, Maybe we could find out in a book or something. Lighting a candle is supposed to be basic, even for an apprentice."

[Abram]

'My God, how I just can't stand this.'

Abram walked into the hall, looking extremely weary. His brown hair was vigorously combed back, and his eyes had black sacks under them. He was carrying his wooden apprentice staff, and mumbling incoherently as he came to a nearby desk and slouched down lazily. The studies that he took at the Academy were seemingly never-ending, and he was so far from home he couldn't stand it.

Looking over at the people next to him, he saw they were both caught up over a candle that they were trying to light. Neither of them seemed capable of accomplishing it, and finally they decided that lighting a candlewas basic and that any book would be able to teach them. "That's absurd," Abram boldly interjected, "A book can't help you. A book can tell you how to accomplish it, but it won't accomplish it for you. Surely both of you know how, you just don't seem to be doing it."

[alamea]

Alamea's careful blue eyes saw as another apprentice entered and slumped down in a chair, obviously wearied. Arent we all these days. She thought, knowing the stress of an appretice herself. The girl felt bad for him, and wanted to invite him over to try and light the candle too. But she thought for a moment he wasnt going to be interested in more magic. So returning her focus to the candle, she ignored the boy. Right now she had to get this done.

But her attention snapped back to him when he spoke, and she kept calm at his words. No matter the fact they frustrated her. "Im sorry sir, that we need help from a book designed to teach us this art. Yes, I know how Im supposed to light the candle, I just am having....difficulties doing so. I apologize for the fact that I need a little bit of help." Her voice was calm but held a hint of frustration. Concentrating her blue eyes on the boy she tried to impress upon him the fact that she was highly annoyed at his comment. You just didnt say things like that to people you have never even met.

With weary eyes, she turned her gaze back to the candle, uttering the incantation and waiting for Adam to respond. The candle didnt light and a sigh of anger escaped her. If she couldnt light this candle, how was she to move forward.

[Abram]

Abram blinked a couple of times, obviously about to fall asleep right on the table as the girl spoke. With a long, loud yawn, he blinked his eyes faster and realized from her tone and her glare that she was angered by his intrusion. "Oh, I'm sorry," he said, "I didn't mean for that to come out so mean. I'm tired, you see, and I'm very cranky." Stretching and moving his head around, he lifted up his cane.

"Since you two can't light a candle, I figure you're both apprentices. I am too. My name is Abraham Von Lickerswitzch, but I prefer it when people call me Abram Von." With a laugh, he said something else. "And I can't light a candle either...I just have no faith in books. What are your names?"

[alamea]

Alamea’s heat was lighter as he said he meant no harm by his words. Weariness could do that to a person. “Don’t worry about it Abram Von, the long studies here could get to anyone. My name is Alamea, and yes, I am an apprentice.” The girl said with a smile, thinking this was a good day. Ive met two apprentices, but I still havnt lit that stupid candle! With an angry sigh she turned back to the candle and tried again, but it didn’t work. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Alamea turned back to Abram.

“I don’t like books that much either, its just I would do just about anything to light this candle. It makes me feel so powerless when I cant even bring flame to such a small area.” The girl said with frustration. If she didn’t light it soon, if would find itself under her foot. Noting again how tired Abram was, she gave a small chuckle. “Are you alright?” her voice came out with a worried hint. She didn’t want to be bothering anyone who really didn’t want to talk at the moment.

[Abram]

Abram was relieved when Alamea stated that his outburst was no insult to her. He yawned again, and listened to her complaint about the candle once more. "Well, I doubt books will help anyhow. I've already stated - even if it did sound rather cruel - my opinion on books and your trial. Understanding and Practicality, though they can not live without each other, are not each other."

He then looked at the candle himself, for he had been ignoring it for most of the time. The wax had already started melting, for even if a fire had not appeared, the heat energy that came from the very force of mental strength was taking its toll. "Perhaps you should look over what you already know about elemental magic. Naturally, we're apprentices, so we hardly know anything until we're acolytes. But none the less, we've had some study on it."

When Alamea mentioned his weary appearance, he shook his head and said "I'm fine. It's mostly my fault that I spend so much time studying instead of sleeping."

[Justin]

Justin sat down abd was bored and he wanted someone to talk to

[alamea]

OOC: Justin, if you are not going to take the time out and effort to match the posts of those with you in the thread, please dont post. Please either modify your post and make it a good length, or delete it please, because you are jumping into this thread with a one line post.