Ch. 12 - The Cold Shoulder

I had just finished filling out my form when I finally noticed her—a girl hovering behind me. How long had she been there? Her eyes darted over my shoulder, scanning my choices.

What’s there to see, anyway?

I spun around, locking eyes with her.

She flinched, clearly caught off guard. For a second, her gaze flickered around like she didn’t know where to look before she busied herself with something in her hands, pretending it was important.

"Hey," I said, cutting straight to the point. "What’s up? You’ve been peeking at my form this whole time."

"Uh… well, not the whole time," she stammered, laughing awkwardly as she scratched her head. "I just… noticed the senior helping you knows a lot about wands. Thought I’d, you know, borrow some ideas."

I dangled my form in front of her, grinning. "You sure about that? Isn’t the whole point of a wand that it’s got to fit you? Copying mine might not do you any favors."

I wasn’t exactly an expert on wands myself, but for beginners like us, the details couldn’t matter that much.

Still, didn’t you need a fighting style or at least some signature spells before worrying about the perfect fit? Right now, we were all just fumbling around. Who needed a pro-level wand for that?

She hesitated, her confidence wavering. “Wait, really? Then… maybe I should tweak mine a bit…” Her voice trailed off, uncertain.

I raised a brow. “Don’t you have a senior guiding you?”

She sighed, frustration slipping through. “Yeah… kind of. Our senior dumped us at registration, gave a few vague instructions, and vanished. Said we’d ‘figure it out.’”

Oof. That sounded rough. Compared to my setup with Bai Yu, she got the short end of the stick.

But something stood out—us.

So there were more of them? I glanced around, half-expecting to see a group lingering nearby.

Helping one newbie was doable. But a whole squad? That was a different story. Just because we were all freshmen didn’t mean we’d be allies.

“Yeah,” another voice cut in. “That senior was useless. Said we could ‘handle it ourselves,’ but it took us forever just to find this place. So much for getting a head start.”

I turned to see a second girl sidling up, clearly in the same boat as the first. Looked like they’d both been ditched by the same deadbeat senior.

Before I could say anything, she locked onto Bai Yu, her tone flipping from frustration to full-blown pleading in an instant. “PLEASE, could you help us out? We’re totally lost—first time at the academy, no clue where to go, and we’ve still got a bunch of steps to finish…”

I blinked. Wait, what? They were talking to me two seconds ago—how did they pivot so fast and latch onto Bai Yu instead? My jaw practically hit the floor as they swarmed her.

Bai Yu didn’t even flinch. “Sorry, I don’t have the energy for that,” she said, her voice calm but final, leaving no room for argument. “If you don’t know your way around, you’ve got phones. Use the map.”

Not icy, exactly, but it shut them down cold.

“But… our phones don’t even get a signal here,” one of the girls mumbled, barely above a whisper.

Bai Yu didn’t miss a beat. “You didn’t pick up your academy phones? They’re at the registration desk. Head back, grab one, and while you’re at it, find a senior who’s actually available. Way more efficient than begging me.”

Her tone stayed even, but the message was clear—she was showing them the door, no debate.

The girls took the hint and shuffled off.

They weren’t dumb—girls pick up on vibes fast, and Bai Yu’s vibe screamed ‘not interested’. Lingering any longer might’ve just pissed her off, and who knew what kind of payback a senior could dish out? They’d probably mastered some freaky powers by now. A sneaky curse slipped into your shadow? No thanks.

“They’re just… gone?” I muttered, drifting over to Bai Yu’s side, half-amazed. I hadn’t even needed to step in. That cool, no-nonsense version of her? Definitely new to me.

“What else were they gonna do?” she said, smirking. “I’m here for you, not to play babysitter to a gaggle of chatty freshmen.”

“Fair enough.” I glanced at the form in my hand. “So, I just turn this in? When do I get the uniform?”

“If you don’t have any special requests, you can grab a standard set now,” she said, considering. “But custom stuff? Might take a few days.”

Good enough. I marched over and slapped my form onto the counter.

The senior behind it—another one—picked it up, scanned it, and immediately frowned.

She tilted her head, peering at me over the paper. “Well, well, little freshman. You’ve got some demands, huh?”

“Uh… yeah, sorry for the hassle,” I said, flashing an awkward grin. Smiles worked wonders everywhere, right? After all, no one punches a smiling face.

“You’re definitely hassling me,” she shot back, but her lips quirked up just enough to take the edge off. “Fill out your name and address here. The wand’s custom, so we’ll ship it to you when it’s done.

"Cloak, hat, and badge, though? You can grab those now. Pick what matches your specs—assuming you can tell them apart, since you wrote all this fancy stuff down.” 

Her tone had a teasing lilt, like she’d seen my type a hundred times before.

“Got it!” I said, throwing in a quick thank-you. She was sly, tossing that little jab in, but I had Bai Yu in my corner.

Without her, I’d be squinting at a pile of gear, clueless about what was what—especially if I’d aimed for the priciest options like she’d suggested.

I scribbled my name and yanked out my room keycard to copy the address. That’s where I’d be living from now on, even if I didn’t have a clue where it actually was. Bai Yu had mentioned the phone’s GPS, though—shouldn’t be too hard to figure out.

“Done?” Bai Yu asked, perking up as I stepped away from the counter.

“Yeah. She said I’ve got to hunt down the cloak, hat, and badge myself since they’re in stock. Wand’s getting made, though.”

“No problem,” Bai Yu said, smooth as ever. “I’ll help you out.”

“Thanks, Sister Bai~ ” I chirped, letting my voice go all syrupy-sweet on her name.

It came out so gooey it gave me goosebumps. I had no idea I could sound that sappy.

But Bai Yu? She ate it up, grinning like I’d just handed her a prize.

Huh. Maybe I should look into one of those quickie voice-acting classes—master the art of the cutesy clip?

…Nah, I let the thought slip away as fast as it came.

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