Amara's POV
The lecture hall buzzed with anticipation as Professor Dominic, a wiry man with a penchant for theatrics pointed his long fingers at me. I rose from my seat, my bangles clinking in a symphony of metallic chimes, this drew everyone's attention and I loved that, a satisfied smile appeared on my lips. The title of the "AFRICAN GIRL" was one I wore with pride, seeing that I was the only one who dressed stereotypically in the whole class or even the whole school, this title carried a lot of expectations in these European witching society, where whispers of "AFRICAN WITCHES" often followed me around like a shadow but I couldn't care less to be honest. My coven, the daughters of midnight, had sent me here to this academy of ARACNUM far away from home, not only to learn but to shoulder a responsibility which I barely understood, I was to be the next mother supreme of the coven.
Professor Dominic adjusted his large spectacles, his piercing gaze pulling me out of my thought stream, he softened it down once we made genuine eye contact and rephrased the question he had asked earlier
"What is your perspective and personal take on magic?"
I shifted, my voice being quieter than I intended it to be, "in Africa we always say magic is an expression of your inner self, we use magic to heal, divine, to curse or to weave spells of fortune". My words felt inadequate, as if they couldn't captured what I actually wanted to say, I began to remember the thrumming pulse of the rituals I grew up with, the chants and echoes of songs that swimmed through the moonlight, European magic is truly different.
Dominic nodded, his eyes glinting with curiosity, "What's the name of your coven"
"Daughters of Midnight" I replied, straightening. My coven was no secret in Africa, its name whispered with reverence and fear, the most powerful witch of all time after all came from my coven. A gasp rippled through the classroom somewhere behind me but I ignored that. Fame was a familiar companion by now, though it sat uneasily on my shoulders.
Dominic raised his eyebrow. "The coven does live up to its name now doesn't it...? I take it that your coven draws power from ancient African Gods"
"Yes, any god at all" a smile appeared on my face breaking through my nerves. "we practice Traditional magic, inculcating the old methods sourcing their original strength" it was more than that of course ___our magic was a tapestry woven from the stories of creation, from gods who shaped the mountains and rivers and living things all alike, it is said that even the Christian God had a hand in the creation of our magic, thus the gate keeping of this magic system.
With a flourish of his hand, Dominic signalled for me to sit. As I settled back into my chair, I noticed that his feet wasn't touching the podium floors, he was naturally gliding, levitating was a skill reserved for the most potent of witchcraft, not everyone could levitate and Dominic was a master in every sense. His voice carried over the room, rich and commanding. "Traditional magic, also known as the first form of magic second to the original magic wielded by the Gods or the Entities is arguably the most potent form of magic on earth, write this down students"
The rustling of flipping pages filled the air. I opened my note book, though I knew what he was saying, I had heard these lessons over and over again in the confinement of our coven, Dominic's words however, carried weight and demanded attention and also I just love writing.
"Traditional magicians draw power from Gods they worship or Gods that are affiliated to the ones they worship so this just means that they have unlimited source in general, they can also draw power from the concept of a higher being" he continued. "These deities or entities ancient as the world itself, helped shape reality as we know it. But a rift amongst them caused a fracture of power, leading their worshippers to scatter, that's what gave birth to the many forms of magic we have now. In what we now call Africa, where we know all live began, the old ways endure vibrant and unbroken." He paused, his gaze drifting to a boy with striking pink eyes seated across the room. He was handsome but was definitely not my type, why was the professor staring though, I know this because I am a very observant lady.
Dominic coughed, snapping back to his lecture. " a wielder of this magic can alter reality on a grand scale , cast death spells without faltering, acquire transformation or become an aminus, a being capable of spontaneous creation, but we only have one in the whole of history and that was THE MONA LISA the most powerful witch in the whole of magic history till date, a witch so powerful that even that whore Zeus feared her power. This is why true traditional witches are so rare, most either die trying or abandon the craft for lesser tricks.
The lectures ended abruptly when Dominic zoomed out of the class room, leaving us to two more sessions. The first was with Nadia, a radiant fairy who was one of the core maidens of iris, the Greek goddess of rainbows, who taught us the delicate art of channelling magic through light. The second was with a boaf centaur, a towering creature with a mane of silver and dark hooves, he lectured us on the hierarchical levels of witchcraft, I found out that I was a third level witch with three more levels to reach the top.
By the time classes ended, I was drained, my limbs heavy as I trudged through the academy's labyrinthine corridors, my mind was fixed on my soft welcoming bed in the dorms, but first, I had to find my cousin, Kai. He was more skilled than I was, despite us both being third level withes. His mastery of spells were effortless, almost infuriatingly so, and he never lets me forget it but there was one thing he lacked, true, raw power. Kai wasn't a traditional magician like myself, infact he had ever visited Africa once and that was during our grandmothers' burial. He practiced Soul magic and was darn good at it. As I walked his instructions echoed in my mind "last class, left wing". I navigated the bustling halls, ignoring the chatter of students.
A piercing scream shattered my thoughts. I turned to see a girl with wild hair and a long nose, her face contorted in panic. She looked half transformed, caught in a botched Animalia spell, her body flickering between human and something else. A deafening explosion followed, forcing me to duck as a wave of heat washed over the corridor. A fairy, no taller than my fore arm but radiating authority zoomed past me towards the explosion. 'Return' I whispered, the glasses that had been shattered as a result of the explosion and the heat that had spread around the corridors served once more and reversed back to its source, a dark loom occupied the area and left immediately.
"Amara" a voice called, it was kai my cousin.