Rhonda and Sofia chose seats in the last row, for obvious reasons. The Countess ranked fairly high on their list of individuals they never wanted to see again (right below Abigail, funnily enough). The latina looked over at her friend and saw her nervously rubbing her neck, a habit she developed after their encounter with the vampire. They didn't stay alone, as Lichi soon joined them. Though her mood was pretty much the exact opposite. “What's up with you two? Aren't you excited for Conjuration?”
“Not really,” Rhonda grimaced. The truth was that she did initially look forward to this lesson due to conjuration being one of the few magic arts that even mortals can learn, as most summoning techniques don't require the caster to add their own magic. “We have some history with the teacher. What about you?”
“Oh, I’ve always been excited to learn this. Once I fully master the art of summoning, I’m going to call upon all the demon lords of hell and force my will upon them so they will apologize to my mothers,” Lichi proudly declared.
Before Rhonda could reply the door was thrown open and a familiar figure entered. She didn't change during the last three years (why would she, she's a vampire). Still the same long, black hair, pale white skin and piercing, blood red eyes. Instead of her usual gothic attire she wore a rather casual sweater and skirt combo, even a pair of black-rimmed glasses. Her most defining feature, however, was still there, one foot tall plateau heels, which were the only reason she was even able to reach the eye-level of the sitting students.
“Well then, class, I’m Miss Selena Youngblood, though I prefer if you just refer to me as The Countess,” she introduced herself in a refined voice. “I’ll be your Conjuring substitute teacher while Miss Rydia is away, potentially for the whole semester, if what I heard is right.”
This was looking good. She already seemed much more reasonable than during their last encounter. They might have worried for nothing.
“However, for those of you that worry I’m one of those substitutes that have no plan what they're doing, I can ease those. I’m quite a master of conjuring myself. Once I even summoned a whole army of vampire servants.”
Oh oh, that's not a good sign. Or the fact that she started walking towards the back row.
“I could be sitting on top of the world right now, being doted on by an army of slaves, but someone had to disrupt such a delicate summoning spell. With. A. Pool Noodle!” Now she stood right before Rhonda's and Sofia’s desks, staring down (well, trying to) at the two. “What do you say about that, girls?” she said with an evil grin that proudly displayed her fangs.
She remembered. And she's mad. Now Rhonda could only hope that the ward will hold. The other students elected to just watch, knowing how dangerous it can be to incur the wrath of a vampire.
“Didn't expect to see you two here. Well okay, I expected to see my dear Sofia here.” She turned to Rhonda. “Can’t believe they let a runt like you in. What, hoping I wouldn't recognize you as a dragon? I’ll let you know my nose is nearly as good as a werewolf’s, even if your scent has a touch of wet dragon now. Though I have to admit the new hair color suits you. Regardless, this time no vampire hunter will be able to help you. Oh, but that's a nice ward casted on you. I can already guess where it's coming from. “
She turned around to look at Sofia. “So much untapped potential and you're wasting it in such a frail body. There's a reason I chose you to assist me in my summoning. But it's not too late, you can still learn so much from me.” Her face got closer to the german, who reflexively covered her neck with one hand. “You can’t lie to me. I know you enjoyed the body of a vampire. Inhuman strength, massive magical power, eternal beauty. If you come to me willingly, I’ll even let you keep your free will this time. Oh, how much I’d love to sink my teeth into your beautiful neck.” The countess opened her mouth wide and made a show of licking her teeth. Then she suddenly straightened herself again. “But turning someone without clear consent goes against my probation requirements.”
Sofia and Rhonda both gave her blank looks and the Countess seemed to be slightly offended by those. “What? Do you think I chose to work here as a substitute teacher? It's a harsh world out there. But don't you two worry, I’ll give you a taste of this in this class, ohohohoho… At least as much as I’m able, because Miss Rydia is a massive control freak and planned these lessons down to the last minute, even homework and exams.” She threw up her hands in exasperation. “But next year I’ll finally get my own classes and can show her how to teach properly. It's all about the dialogue with the students and…” She pretended to cough into her hand. “I mean, I’ll make your lives a living hell, if you happen to end up in my course.”
A beeping sound interrupted her. The countess rolled up her sleeve and tapped her watch to stop the alarm. “Introduction time is over, time for the lesson proper.” Then she added in a low grumble. “I hate this woman and her downright neurotic micromanaging.”
On her way back to the front of the class she stopped halfway through. “Two more things, first, my door will always be open for you, my dear Sofia… just watch the opening times, because I’m sharing that office with two other teachers. Second, I was surprised to find out I’m not the only faculty member here, who has some history with you girls. I could tell you who it is, but I don't want to spoil the surprise.”
With that the Countess moved back to the front of the classroom and properly started the lesson on conjuration. Unlike Lichi, Rhonda however wasn't really able to follow her lecture. Again she had been completely frozen when faced with an enemy from her past and only got out fine due to the whims of said person. She may look like a dragon, but she sure as hell wasn't feeling like one. The latina had always been so gung-ho about punching every problem that got in their way, but since her duel with Abigail she felt like said confidence had been punched out of her.
She looked over to Sofia. Since the Countess left her side she had been hunched over her table in the same position. “Are you alright, Sofia?” she whispered over.
“Y-Yes, s-sure,” Sofia replied, while everything else about her said otherwise. The Countess was one of only a few people, who could reduce the sassy and headstrong german to this state. And it pained Rhonda that she couldn't do anything against it at the moment. It made her feel powerless in more ways than one. She didn't even want to imagine who else of their various enemies could be lying in wait here and potentially not be chained to the laws of probation. The only thing she could do right now was trying to pay attention to the lesson, so their teacher wouldn't get the satisfaction of her failing this class.
Their teacher meanwhile had started talking about various methods of summoning. “The simplest and safest method of conjuration is, of course, the summoning circle. It doesn't require any magic from the caster and therefore can be used by anyone, as the glyphs you draw absorb residual magic from out of the air. That is because your body will be used as a sort of magical beacon that will tie the summon to this plain of existence. There are however still some risks involved. The creature’s magic will be flowing directly through your body and if your focus wavers it could lead to some transformations to your body based on that creature. The stronger the summoned monster, the higher the risk of that happening. In really bad cases your body could end up completely being taken over by the summon, but creatures of that level aren't allowed at this school for that reason.” She sounded slightly annoyed at the last line.
The Countess moved to the blackboard and in one jump quickly drew a perfectly detailed summoning circle on it. “By the way, it is simply a myth that you need blood for a summoning circle. Any material is fine for most summoning methods, as long as the glyphs can clearly be seen. What a waste of blood. Anyways, according to Miss Rydia’s schedule we’ll finish this lesson by demonstrating a summon with the circle I just drew. I think it’d be fine if one of you students tries it. Don't worry, I’ve chosen a 1 star monster on the summon rating, so there shouldn't be many risks involved. And of course I cast the ward against the school curse… I think.” She flashed a toothy grin right at Rhonda. When no student raised her hand, she added, “If nobody volunteers, I might have to choose a student myself.”
Rhonda found this setup quite suspicious. While there indeed was a chance that the Countess was genuine in everything she just said, it could also easily be a trap for her and Sofia. She never mentioned what creature the circle was for, it might be for something stronger than 1 star. She doubted the Countess would risk being fired with a high star summon, but there were more than enough summons of 2 or 3 star rank that would likely trigger a transformation for a beginner. And she made it sound very ambiguous if she really cast the ward for the case someone got transformed. While Sofia did already have her fair share of higher level summons, right now she didn't seem to be in the right state of mind for one. Rhonda herself did try a few summons with mixed results. Should she volunteer herself and potentially trigger a trap by the Countess or should she wait and hope someone else volunteers?