Sorelle was not paying attention to where she was going, but her feet knew the way well.

She was headed to her favourite place in Brunnhold, and therefore the world she knew. The Lawn. She loved the Lawn. All her favourite classes were on the Lawn. And her favourite activities tended to be on the Lawn, also - practising magic, and watching other spellcasters at work. Watching and learning. Magic.

Sorelle's friends did not like the Lawn nearly as much as she did. They found it scary, and dangerous, a place of chill air and random, weedy tufts of grass in a dust-bowl, with its creepy ancient monolith and the constant presence of people casting backfiring spells. They avoided it. Sorelle found this suited her, because sometimes she felt like avoiding them, if they were being irritating, so the Lawn was even more perfect.

But really, it all came down to magic. Magic, magic and the mona. She loved her magic lessons. She loved working magic. She loved the feeling of power. When she worked magic, she was no longer a helpless, naive young child, she was someone important, someone powerful. Someday she would do great things with her power, and the world would pay attention.

She hummed happily at the thought, still not watching where she was going. Any observer would have suspected her thoughts of being innocent and childlike.

Sorelle arrived without incident. Paying attention to her surroundings now, she saw a small ghostly figure running around in circles. A chill ran through her, though she knew it was just a remnant of a backfiring spell - probably an advanced perception spell. It looked like a lost animal, palest blue and almost invisible. A leira? No, or a cat, or a piikii? No, or... It kept changing. It never kept a form long enough for her to tell what it was, and eventually it blurred and vanished like smoke in the wind. Sorelle continued forward, slightly shaken. What was it? Some failed Horrors spell? She couldn't think of anything else likely. But then...?

It's just a backfired spell, she told herself firmly. It can't do anything to me, and it's gone now.

She moved forward, and continued out into the field, searching for where her class should be. None of her professors were visible anywhere, though she knew she was on time. Eccentric proffessors, she thought dismissively. Probably forgot. She didn't mind.

She sat crosslegged in the dust and prepared to practise her skills. She disregarded the dirt on her school uniform - it would come clean. A servant could probably do it. Besides, it was ugly anyway.

She would play with fire, she decided. She had thought up a good excersise in control, which she had been taught and believed was fundamental: trying to expand and shrink a sort of fireball, so that it appeared to pulse. It was extremely difficult. She'd only learnt ignite recently, and she'd had to find it out for herself as the ignorant adults believed that children would just set things on fire willy-nilly. Didn't they know she was far too sensible for that?

"Oh, clock."

Her guttering, stuttering flame withered and died yet again, and she had to make a new one. She was becoming frustrated. Patience, she told herself. She must be patient. She must be dilligent. She must be powerf... Ah! There it was! For a moment she had it, pulsing flame between her fingertips, warm and regular as a heartbeat, but then it was gone. Still, she was heartened, and she tried again.

The mona responded to her diligance, but perhaps not to her forcefulness. As the little flame began again, a small ringing on the back of her teeth and the taste of stale ash touched her tounge. A slight remprimand. The mona were to be respected, not demanded. Still, it encouraged her to try again.

Sorelle's brow furrowed slightly as she concentrated. Help me, mona! she thought. I need to practise! Why don't you want me to...? As if in reply, a dull pain surged within her skull and her concentration wavered. Really irritated now, she hissed.

"I have to practise! Why don't you want me to practise? I'm not hurting anyone!"

She stood up, annoyed, and vigorously dusted off her skirt. She'd leave the mona alone if they were annoyed at her, though she didn't understand what she'd done. She needed to practise her control of these powers, which they had given her in the first place! Her short life had been too pampered for her to realise that there really were powers she could not win over and dominate, no matter how much time or patience or childish charm she had. Her good mood spoiled, she stared around the Lawn for her class again. Where were they? Was she in the wrong place for some reason? Where were her teachers and classmates?

She narrowed her golden eyes and glared around at everything which dared to be within her sight.