The Ceremony

The morning came by again. The shining rays of light hitting my face telling me the time was here as always. "Time need to get up and go to the academy" I thought to myself.

"wait... I don't... I don't need to go anymore" - I realized yesterday was the last day. The thought of the last moment as an official student was going through my head all the time. If the circumstances were different, that statement would be quite joyful and fulfilling to make it. This wasn't the case.

"Did that really happened? is this a nightmare or what?" - I got up from bed and looked at myself in the mirror. My face still had the mark of tears all around. I was in a total mess and defeat was my state. I tried not to think about but everything was clear as water. It happened.

The proof was right there on my bed, looking at me.

---

Everyone was finally at the main hall and the ceremony would start in a minute. All the most important witches across the world were there for the rite of passage, and I was feeling every excitement in the world gathered in one place.

"This is so cool..." - I whispered to Glass at my side. Her eyes were shining with anticipation and excitement. I swear she tried to say something but the sudden voices in the crowd made it impossible to hear. Everyone started to scream one name in excitement.

"It's Aidan!" - I knew that name. Everybody knew it. Aidan is considered the strongest Witch of the fire element in existence. He's a living legend since the academy times when I wasn't even born yet. A dark-skinned man with long dreadlocks. He's known to beat even the most proficient fire witches of the Ignis family during the Festival of Seasons. Amelia, who aimed for such a title, would often look at him with an annoyed face. After Aidan had a sit on his respective place in the hall, another legend came by.

"She's so beautiful..." - I couldn't help but think out loud. Just to watch her there with all of us was a honor. - "Gaia...". A long blond to almost white hair woman with green eyes. Her look was unmistakable! As people often receive hats from the rite of passage, She had an entire vestment instead. They said that was the form her hat acquired during the ritual.

She was Glass' elder sister. Like Aidan, her proficiency with wind was unmeasurable. It's said that they battled once during the Festival of Seasons and Gaia almost defeated Aidan who had elemental advantage during all the fight.

"Can you imagine these two having another battle?" - Glass was really proud of her sister and would often talk about her when the opportunity came by. You could see how proud she was just by looking at her eyes. - "I bet my sister could win now".

One or two minutes after Gaia sit on her own chair, an old woman got up and started a speech that could be heard in all the academy. "Attention please. We're now beginning the ceremony. Everyone in your place!" - All the crowd respectfully did as the old witch said.

"As you all know it, This is one of the most important days you can ever imagine in your own lives. From now on all of you will be seen as not an apprentice that we're teaching, but rather new friends on the journey across the planes! We're here to bid you all welcome to a world full of wonders." - She smiled with a gentle and wise energy.

"From now on you all are going to receive some important things! First of all, a title! You're going to be called a Witch. This will be your identity for the world and the other planes. This is a title that will open doors for each one of you. The second thing you will receive is the most important piece of clothing you'll have: Your Witch Hat! This will be your companion through life and will often be seen as part of who you are. A witch with no hat is no witch." - Her words echoed across the hall.

"The last thing you're going to receive is part of the reason you'll have a hat! You will be aligned with one of the five elements. Air, Water, Lightning, Fire and Earth. Your hat is a catalyst for the element and without it, your alignment is weak." - Explained the old witch while showing her dusty old hat. - "The alignment is your source of power and must be controlled with care. Your duty as a witch is to bring balance!" - All those words were something we all have heard through all our years at the academy. We knew all of that, but as a ceremony, every words weighted heavily.

"We're now beginning the rite of passage! It's time for our first apprentice to become a witch!" - Inside a giant cauldron a smoke forming letters appeared. Amelia was the first one. "Amelia Ignis!"

She stood up and went to the middle of the hall, waiting for instruction. I could see her proud taking form for a moment. To be called first was something everyone wanted.

"Approach the five globes and call for the elements, my young. They're going to answer you." - Said the old witch. Amelia didn't even have to say nothing. The red crystal started to shine with a violent flame as soon as she approached. "Fire then! Yours is an element of might and with it, is the witch."

After emitting such light, the fire took form of an elegant and unique hat, way different than most of the other witches in the hall. It was pitch black with red details that you could swear they were moving like flames.

"An interesting hat! With it you will be named as a Fire Witch my dear." The entire hall applauded her with excitement. Even I did it! That was really amazing even if it's someone like Amelia to have such an honor. After some other apprentice witches, Glass was summoned to go forth.

Like Amelia, Glass didn't even have to do anything at all and one of the crystals started to manifest its power. Wind was the element, as expected. Glass' face was of relief for a moment. All the family pressure would be over now that she was aligned with the element everyone hoped for her.

As Amelia got a unique hat, Glass actually got not a hat, but like her sister, the wind took form as a fantastic vestment. It was a transparent hood that would move by itself. Something even more unique than Amelia's.

"I can only imagine what I'll receive when the time comes."

But as time passed, I got more and more nervous. Everyone I knew was already been named as Witch and I was the only one waiting with some others. When there were only two left, I got scared for a moment that they might not call me. A worrying feeling that went away seconds after.

"Azura Star" - They called me. I was the last in a total of fifty apprentices, and my name was there, floating in a clear shape after everyone else.

"Please come forward and align with the elements." - Said the old woman looking at me. I did as everyone else and started approaching the five orbs. I stepped towards it and I could see it happening. one of the orbs started to shine in a bright color.

"Water?" - I said to myself in curiosity. But something was off right as I said it.

Another orb started to get brighter. I was really confused for a moment, and that feeling got even bigger as every single orb emitted a strong unique light. I could hear the crowd making noises of confusion and not even the eyes of the most wise there showed signs of normality.

"W-What is happening?" - I said out loud as I tried to stand back. A voice replied immediately.

"Don't go away, child!" - I saw the old witch standing there looking at it. I did as she said and kept myself close to the orbs hoping that it would stop, but to no avail. It got worse: They all now had the same color.

"They're all dark purple" - I heard someone say. That person was right - every single orb emitted a dark purple aura.

Suddenly, every orb had its color stolen by a new orb in front of me with that particular weird color. As it happened, the elemental crystals all were broken in pieces and the new purple orb stood there, menacingly. Everyone had fear in their eyes as the orb started to grow in size and its color engulfed the main hall in a purple light. I was petrified by the vision as panic came by in a lot of people there.

Then, as if nothing happened at all, the orb shrank in size and disappeared with its light, leaving nothing but a tiny fraction of its own aura. That fraction, however, gave place to something else entirely different:

At first it looked like a weird hat, but as it came to my direction, the thing shaped as a little dark creature with purple eyes and tail. The thing looked at me, floating in air and giving no signs of clarity of what just happened.

All the five elemental orbs were into pieces, there was a little floating creature looking at me, everyone was looking at me and I had no idea what to do. In a innocent reaction, my hand reached the thing in front of me, who replied with an action: in a flash, touched my hand and I had the weird sensation that something was forming in my head as the creature disappeared.

"Hat?"

"Azura Star, Please follow me at this very instant!" - Said the old witch standing there with all the other great witches. Gaia and Aidan were with her, both with menacing eyes at me and the weird thing in my head.

I had no choice but to follow them and leave an entire hall with curious and nervous eyes looking at me. What happened? Which element was I aligned to? Was I in trouble? No one would tell me as we walked away from the hall and entered a building I never had the permission to enter before.