The collective group of Ilvermorny students made their way towards the great hall of Castelobruxo.
Champions would enter after the normal students had sat down, for some introduction and information about the tournament.
While walking, Fila finally found herself with some time to actually look at the decorations and strange things in the hallways of the school. Here there were no armors or big scary paintings of old hags and grandpas who had been professors ones.
Instead they had plants, statutes of stone with different animals and people. The people depicted were of the tribal era looking. They had bows and knifes in their hands, with visible tattoos etched on their bodies.
Some more older than other as vines and moss had started to grow on some of them, but it also seemed deliberate as it could easily be removed.
"Do you think we will get eaten by some plants while we sleep?" June asked in a hushed voice beside her.
Fila sighed. "Yes June, all the plants will go for you. since you are the cutest out of us. The plants are already planning how to divide you up right as we speak." Fila said in a joking manor. But the joke wasn't so funny to June as she gave both a worried look and a smile, as she was called cutest just now.
June shifted her weight, her magic flickering with a mix of pride and genuine nerves. "Well, at least I'll be a high-quality snack," she muttered, though she stayed a few inches closer to Fila as they rounded the final corner toward the antechamber.
Fila felt excited to see what the great hall of the school would look like, hopefully some difference to Ilvermorny.
The hallway opened up, and the walls here were covered in a deep, vibrant moss that felt like velvet under the touch.
"Wait here," Professor Hale commanded, his voice tight. He stood at the front of the small group of Champions, his back stiff as he faced the massive, double-leafed doors carved from solid mahogany.
Professor Hale first brought in the normal students to their seats, which made the five champions stand outside on their own.
Aaron, Marcus, sera and Daniel. Stood in front of her. They seemed a bit nervous and couldn't really stand still for even a moment.
"Have any of you seen the Japanese students yet?" Daniel suddenly asked.
The other looked at each other and shook their heads, "No, I think they arrived earlier than us and have been in their rooms." Sera said.
"I heard they arrived in a giant koinobori kite," Marcus whispered, though his eyes remained fixed on the massive mahogany doors. "If that's true, they've already won the prize for most dramatic entrance."
Fila took this time to lean up against one of the walls, the moss and vines made for a comfortable leaning spot.
She had dismissed her cane, she had during their rest made some more effort into the whole flower sight situation. And felt confident in her ability now. Right now she could see flowers and such about fifteen meter around her. A good radius, but compared to at Ilvermorny, it was a far cry for good.
The others had started chatting already, masking nervousness with jokes and discussion.
The hallway was strangely quiet now that the rest of the Ilvermorny contingent had been ushered inside. Fila could hear the faint, muffled roar of the Great Hall beyond the mahogany, a sound like crashing waves that made the nerves of the other four champions tense.
Aaron was tapping his foot, a sharp, rhythmic sound that grated against the soft dampness of the moss. Marcus kept adjusting his sleeves, his magic buzzing.
"Do you think they're already inside?" Daniel asked, his voice low. "The Mahoutokoro students, I mean. If they've been here all day, they've probably already mapped out the entire school."
"Probably," Sera replied, her voice tight. "They take these things seriously. My father told me their dueling robes change color based on their grades. Imagine walking into a ring wearing your report card."
"You guys are so boring," Fila finally let out, which made them all look at her. "Why are you so nervous? Its not like you're a first year student. Come on, we are the fucking champions of Ilvermorny." she hyped them up.
And the words had meaning behind them. the other realized that they had been so worried for absolutely nothing.
Fila's words seemed to act like a grounding spell. The frantic tapping of Aaron's foot stopped, and the buzzing, static energy around Marcus began to settle into something smoother and more focused. They stood a little taller, the silver embroidery on their black vests and pants absorbing the dim light of the antechamber.
"She's right," Aaron said, taking a deep breath and finally letting his hands rest at his sides. "We didn't get picked because we were good at taking notes. We got picked because we can win."
"Exactly," Sera added, a small, determined smile tugging at her lips. "If the Mahoutokoro students want to wear their grades, let them. I'd rather wear a trophy."
The little hype speech did its thing as they all seemed to stand taller now. But Fila felt something else.
'This is taking way to long.' She thought as she looked at the door and started walking towards it. She smiled as she reached to big doors. "And hey, we are the champions. And I really don't like waiting for too long" she said with a smile.
Inside the Hall. The students of the school were buzzing with energy and excitement.
Castleobruxos great hall looked a lot like any other hall, but with less long tables and more separate tables. They were still divided into their own respective houses, or tribes as they called them.
Hagwa, Snake, Macaw and Capybara. Each of them with their own separate skills and mindsets that sorted them. June sat at the Macaw tables with the rest of the Ilvermorny students. Their blue and cherry red outfits sticking out against the green robes of the Castelobruxo students.
Over at the Hagwa table sat the Japanese student. They had arrived earlier. June had intensely scanned the group and was really jealous of their robes.
The Mahoutokoro students sat with a poise that made the rest of the room look messy. Their robes were the real marvel, a shimmering, pearlescent fabric that seemed to hold the light of a sunset within the threads. June watched them from her seat at the Macaw table, her eyes wide. She'd heard the rumors that those robes changed color as the student's academic and magical prowess grew, and right now, the Japanese group looked like a collection of living jewels.
The Hall itself felt more like a giant, indoor rainforest than a room. Massive trees grew toward the ceiling, their branches heavy with glowing orchids that illuminated the space better than any chandelier. Instead of a flat ceiling, the pyramid peaked far above in a series of crystal-clear skylights, showing the deep purple of the Amazonian twilight.
"The jungle is not a place for the patient," Dourado began, her voice carrying a melodic but firm resonance. "It is a place for the prepared. Tonight, we do not just share a meal. We share our home with those who have traveled across oceans."
Beside her, Professor Fontaine leaned back, a small smirk playing on his lips as he glanced toward the mahogany doors. He knew Fila's patience was a very thin thread.
The speech from the Japanese headmaster had grown longer than anticipated.
"We wait now for the final pieces of our circle," Dourado continued, her arms opening wide. "From the peaks of the North, let us welcome—"
She didn't get to finish the sentence.
The big doors swung open with a fierce push of magic, reminiscent of a certain door in a prison in the alps. The doors slammed into the walls that held them, and let out a groan as they did.
The boom echoed off the golden stone walls, silencing the chatter of the Macaw tribe instantly. The Mahoutokoro students didn't flinch, but their heads turned in a slow, synchronized movement toward the entrance.
Through the lingering dust and the golden haze of the doorway, the five Ilvermorny champions appeared. Aaron, Marcus, Sera, and Daniel walked with a new, iron-clad confidence, their black and white uniforms cutting a sharp silhouette.
"You took way too long." Fila's voice cut out through the hall. "And I really don't like waiting for too long," her raspy voice cut through the silence.
The snake table erupted in a few low whistles of approval. Beatriz, sitting among them, leaned forward with a delighted grin.
Dourado paused, her eyebrows arching high. She looked at Fontaine, who simply raised his glass in a silent toast.
"Well, Welcome to the champions of Ilvermorny." She said and raised her glass.
The five champions walked calmly towards the professors table.
Fila walked last of the five. During the walk she saw several students who looked surprised, shocked and intrigued. But on her left she saw a familiar student sitting and looking at her. Bea.
With a sneaky step she walked closer as she approached her. "Did I overdo it with the entrance?" she asked as she now stood behind Bea.
Bea laughed and turned to look at the American girl standing behind her, the others at the table looked confused at the casual conversation. Even making everyone else look in their direction. "No not at all, I liked it a lot actually. It's a nice change of pace." She said with a smile and wink.
Fila looked down at the sitting girl. "Even winking at me now? If you keep doing that I might fall for you." Fila said with a slight smile as she started walking again, catching up with her group.
But she turned to see the reaction of Bea's face just before, and she had the same shade as the bell peppers on the table.
Fila's smirk widened as she saw the flush creeping up Beatriz's neck, the violet static in the girl's aura momentarily turning into a chaotic, flustered buzz. It was a small victory, but one that made the walk toward the high table feel a lot less like a formal procession and more like a victory lap.
She rejoined her group just as they came to a halt before the stone table. The other four champions were standing like statues, their gazes fixed forward, likely trying to compensate for Fila's lack of decorum.
Professor Hale looked like he was about to burst a blood vessel. His magic was a swirling storm of exasperation, but he managed to keep his face a mask of professional dignity as he bowed to the gathered headmasters.
"Headmistress Dourado," Hale began, his voice tight but clear. "The Champions of Ilvermorny are honored to be here."
"The honor is ours, Professor," Dourado replied, her gaze lingering on Fila with an amused glint. She gestured toward the empty seats scattered among the different tribes. "Tonight, we break bread as equals. Champions, find your places. Let the feast begin!"
'oh we can sit wherever?' Fila thought and her smirk widened. Sera saw her face an immediately knew she was about to do something she shouldn't.
Fila turned and scanned the people around the hall. She could sit next to Bea, and she gladly would, so she walked towards her table and slid into the seat beside her.
"You are very bold, North American," a boy sitting across from her said, his green robes adorned with a small stone jaguar tooth. "Most visitors wait for the invitation."
Fila raised an eyebrow towards the boy, then leaned slightly to Bea.
"Fila, you are more than invited to sit at my table. Anytime you want." She said as if they could read each others mind.
Fila put her hand on her chest, "Oh my, thank you so much Bea. I will gladly accept." They both had a smirk on their face after teasing the boy.
Beatriz had finally recovered some of her composure, though her cheeks were still a lingering pink. She nudged a large platter of grilled meats toward Fila. "Eat, 'Flower.' If you are going to flirt with the local champions, you will need your strength. The snake do not like to lose."
From the stone professors table, Fontaine watched Fila settle in, a look of quiet pride hidden behind his glass of nectar. Beside him, the Japanese headmaster was speaking in low, rhythmic tones about the importance of discipline, but Dourado's attention was fixed on the Jagua table.
"She has already integrated," Dourado murmured to Fontaine. "Most students would be intimidated by the snake. They are... territorial."
"Ophelia doesn't understand the concept of being intimidated," Fontaine replied softly. "She only understands challenges. You've placed her exactly where she belongs."
At the same time the Japanese champions were studying the others who had just walked in.
"The blind girl, who is she?" a female champion said, while looking at Fila stuff her mouth with different sorts of food while talking with Bea.
Itsuki, the boy sitting at the center of the Mahoutokoro group, didn't answer immediately. He adjusted his sleeve on his golden robe. He watched Fila laugh, a raspy, genuine sound that seemed to pull the air toward her, as Beatriz whispered something in her ear.
"She is Ophelia," Itsuki said, his voice quiet and precise. "The rumors from the West call her the 'Flower of Ilvermorny.' They say she fought a dozen dark wizards in France this summer. How is still unclear."
The girl beside him, a sharp-eyed champion named Rin, narrowed her eyes. "She eats like a common street performer. And she has no wand in sight. How does a girl who cannot see expect to compete in a tournament of this scale?"
Itsuki chewed down some of his food. "Maybe wandless?"
Rin scanned the girl. In all her life she had never seen someone blind going to attend a duel. Maybe she was a lunatic and just crazy. Or she could posses some serious skill. The questions bothered her, she had always been able to figure out a person quickly. But this was another sort of apple. One that she would need to crack to find out more about.
At the Snake table, Fila was currently discovering that the local cuisine was far superior to the dried rations they'd had on the balloon. She had a piece of spiced yuca in one hand and was gesturing animatedly toward the Mahoutokoro table with the other.
"So, Bea," Fila said, her voice catching that airy, dangerous lilt. "Your friends over there look like they're trying to win a contest for 'Most Intimidating Statue.' Do they ever actually relax, or does the pink fabric get grumpy if they move too fast?"
Beatriz chuckled, leaning in so their shoulders brushed, sending a tiny spark of violet static through Fila's arm. "They are from the East, Flower. They believe in perfect form. To them, your... theatrical entrance was likely seen as a personal insult to the concept of silence."
"Good," Fila grinned, her jagged smirk reaching both sides of her face. "I'd hate to be forgettable. But tell me, which one of them is the one I should be worried about? The one in the middle looks like he's currently writing a very stern poem about me in his head."
"That is Itsuki," Bea whispered, her gaze flickering to the gold-trimmed robes. "He is their best. They say his magic is like the deep ocean, you don't know you're drowning until you've already reached the bottom."
Fila chewed and looked at the group, sure the Itsuki guy looked strong. But compared to the girl beside him he was nothing. And even more scary was the big guy sitting in front of her.
"Who's the girl and the big muscular guy?" she asked to Bea.
Beatriz followed Fila's gaze, her expression turning slightly more serious as she leaned in closer. "The girl is Rin. She is Itsuki's shadow, but do not mistake her for a follower. She is a specialist in precision—they say she can split a falling leaf with a spell before it hits the ground. She does not like things she cannot categorize, which is why she has been staring at you for the last five minutes like you are a difficult math problem."
Fila took another bite of the yuca, her flowersight picking up the sharp, needle-like focus radiating from Rin. It was a cold, piercing kind of magic, very different from the pressurized depth of Itsuki.
"And the big one?" Fila prompted, gesturing with a half-eaten piece of food.
"That is Kaito," Beatriz said. "I don't know much about him, other than I know he likes using charms. And the other two, I have no clue about."
Fila ate some more before she stood up. Bea looked at her with wide eyes. "Don't tell me…" she didn't even get to finish before Fila had already started walking towards the table of Japanese champions.
As people started seeing what was happening, they went quiet one after another. Fila didn't care, she navigated to gaps in the tables like she had done this several times before. her black pants and vest made her able to move with grace and fluidity across the hall.
At the Mahoutokoro table, the silence became crystalline. Rin's hand tightened around her chopsticks, her needle-sharp magic vibrating with a warning hum. Kaito, the mountain of a boy, didn't move a muscle, but his aura thickened like a physical shield.
Fila stopped right behind Itsuki. She leaned down, resting her hands on the back of the empty stone bench beside him, her jagged smirk inches from his golden-trimmed sleeve.
"You know," she rasped, her voice carrying easily through the sudden quiet, "the view from the Snake table is great, but the air over here is much more interesting. It smells like sea salt and... discipline. It's a bit stifling, actually."
Itsuki slowly set his cup down. He didn't turn around, he kept his gaze forward. "The air is still because we do not waste it on pointless words, North American," he said, his voice a calm, deep current.
"Is that what you call them? Pointless?" Fila slid into the seat next to him, ignoring the way Rin looked like she was ready to split the table in half. Fila turned her blindfolded face toward Rin, then back to Itsuki. "I call them icebreakers. Though, looking at your friend Rin here, I think I might need a bigger hammer for that."
Rin spoke for the first time, her voice like the snap of a frozen branch. "You sit at our table without an invitation, you have no wand, and you treat this tournament like a garden party. Are all Ilvermorny students this arrogant, or are you simply the most delusional?"
Fila let out a soft, raspy laugh and reached for a small, empty ceramic dish on the table. "I'm not delusional, Rin. I just like to see the people I'm going to be dueling up close. It's hard to get a feel for a mountain or a needle from across a room." The insult hadn't worked on the girl, and Fila saw how that irritated Rin more than anything.
She finally looked at the absolute mountain of a boy who sat across. His muscles were impressive, and only because she herself trained a lot did she find this very impressive.
The boy seemed to have caught on to her muscles now as well, as he finally looked at her. First her saw her forearms, than how the shirt she wore was slightly strained against her frame.
Kaito and Fila didn't say anything to each other but both gave an approving nod.
The exchange of nods between Kaito and Fila was silent, a brief bridge of mutual respect between two people who clearly spent as much time training their bodies as their magic. Rin, however, looked as though she were watching a sacrilege in progress. To her, every movement should have a purpose, and Fila was a chaotic variable she couldn't compute.
"A nod?" Rin's voice dropped an octave, dripping with frost. "Kaito, do not encourage this lack of decorum. She is here to disrupt, not to learn."
Fila didn't even turn toward the girl; she kept her "gaze" on Itsuki, who was still staring straight ahead at the high table. "Learning is exactly why I'm here, Rin. For instance, I've just learned that Kaito has excellent taste in training routines, and you... well, you're very good at being annoyed."
Itsuki finally spoke again, "Leave now American. You have overstayed your welcome, or lack of that it." he said, clearly he had enough of the joking and non offended manor which Fila spoke in.
Fila sighed. "Alright," she stood but as she was about to leave she looked at Kaito again. "Lets train together if we get the chance someday."
Kaito once again nodded approvingly, and the rest of his table didn't look as pleased as he did.
At the professors table, Fontaine sat with a big smile on his face. He knew exactly what she was doing by going over there. Creating an imagine of your opponent, not just by seeing. But also understanding the temper, acting and how they talked would give her a better understanding of how they would act in a dueling ring.
"Your little Flower is creating a lot of scenes tonight." Headmistress Dourado said from the middle chair.
Fontaine didn't look away from the Hagwa table, where Fila was now sauntering back with the same casual grace she'd used to dismantle the silence of the room. He took a slow sip of his nectar, his eyes crinkling at the corners.
"She isn't just creating scenes, Benedita," Fontaine replied, his tone conversational. "She's taking measurements. Most duelists wait for the first spell to be cast to understand their opponent's rhythm. Fila prefers to find the cracks in the foundation before the house is even built."
Headmistress Dourado leaned back, her feline-fur robes catching the golden light of the central fire. "By insulting the precision of a Mahoutokoro champion? That is a dangerous way to measure a crack. Itsuki is not a boy who forgives a lack of discipline."
"Good," Fontaine murmured. "Fila has always done her best work when people are too angry to see her coming."
Fila slid back into her seat next to Beatriz, who was staring at her with a mix of horror and genuine awe. The boy with the jaguar tooth across from them had stopped eating entirely, his fork hovering halfway to his mouth.
"You are either the bravest girl I have ever met, or you have a death wish," Beatriz whispered, her violet magic seemed to shimmer. "Did you see Rin's face? I thought she was going to turn your heart into a pincushion."
She didn't get as much as she wanted from the exchange, she still felt that the mystery about the other two students was too big. She watched the other two, a smaller girl than Rin, and a boy who looked to be the same height as Itsuki but he seemed very calm.
Fila turned to Bea, "Who are the other Champions from Castelobruxo?"
Beatriz took a long sip of her juice, her gaze moving across the various tables to pick out the homegrown talent. The "Snake" tribe was buzzing with the energy of the night, but the mention of their own champions brought a sharper, more focused pride to her.
"Besides me?" Beatriz asked with a playful tilt of her head before gesturing toward a boy at the far end of the Snake table. He was leaning back, casually tossing a small stone coin into the air and catching it with a flick of his wrist. "That is Tiago. He is a Macaw.
Fila's flowersight flicked to Tiago. His magic was breezy, light, and constantly shifting, like a gust of wind that refused to be trapped in a bottle.
"Then there is Enzo from the Capybara tribe," Beatriz continued, pointing toward a solid-looking boy who was currently sharing a laugh and some bread with Daniel and Sera. "Don't let his friendly face fool you. Capybaras are stoic for a reason."
She then pointed to the Hagwa table. "The girl with the black braids. That is Iara. She is... different."
Fila raised an eyebrow. "Different?"
Bea looked at Fila. "Cant tell you everything, we are still rivals afterall." She answered with a playful wink. "And the last one is Clara." She pointed at the girl who sat just on the other side from them.
"You've been sitting here the whole time without telling me?" Fila asked as she looked at the brown haired girl. She was cute, a good face, around fifteen years old.
"Si. I didn't want to spoil the surprise." Clara winked.
Oh look at you two being so open with winking and all.
*clink, click*
Could be heard from the professors, and with it the three headmasters stood.
"Now that we have enjoyed the feast, we shall go on with explaining how the event will unfold." Headmistress Dourado, said in her low and gentle voice. She flicked her wand and the lights dimmed slightly in the hall. And from the ceiling a leaderboard came down.
The board had fifteen slots, one for each duelist.
The board hovered in the center of the hall, illuminated by a pale, ghostly light. For now, the fifteen slots were empty, shimmering like blank parchment waiting for the ink of a story that hadn't been written yet.
"Fifteen duelist shall become one. Everyone will be paired randomly against a duelist of another school." She began explaining how it would all play out. "Each win gives points for your respective school, but not only for wins. But also for style, effort and skill. And other that may be judged." That made the hall echo with chatter from the tables.
Fila didn't listen she still had some bean stew she had, and dipped some sort of bread into it. it wasn't that she didn't care, but it was all so unnecessary really. 'Just place me in the ring and have it over with' she thought.
Headmistress Dourado raised her hand to silence the hall with direct effect.
"After each duel, a new pair will be drawn randomly. So the number of duels per week might vary, as all participants need time to heal. Because they might be drawn into the next duel, right after their last one is finished."
That made Fila perk up, she didn't know they would spend so much time here.
This whole duel thing was brutal. The rules made it clear that if Fila and Bea for example would be drawn into the first duel, and both of them got hurt. The winner could still be chosen to the next duel, and given that the winner is hurt they would give her or him time to heal.
Which made the whole thing drawn out, because it could take a while for wounds to heal.
Fila chewed on her stew dipped bread and looked at Bea. She seemed to be listening to it all. which gave Fila some time to actually look at her now. With the help of her tree vision from one of the tree bushes things growing in the hall she could look at Bea.
She had Long brown ish hair with some blond parts in it. A cute face, one that you would want to pinch the cheeks of but she also had that sharp beautiful face at the same time. She had a great body, Fila thought atleast. She looked trained but not too much, with curves that really gave her that Latina girl look.
She was leaning forward, her chin resting on her palm, her gaze fixed intently on Headmistress Dourado.
"Now than," The headmistress's voice cut the attention Fila had on Bea, which made her turn and look towards the front. "Lets draw our first Duel participants." She said with a smile, and a bowl appeared hovering in front of her.
The silence that followed was deafening, you could her a needle drop back at Ilvermorny.
Dourado's hand disappeared into the shimmering silver bowl. The light from the floating leaderboard intensified, the fifteen empty slots pulsing in rhythm with the low, heavy thrum of the jungle outside.
Fila felt the shift in the room's energy. It went from the warmth of a feast to the sharp, static cold of a battlefield. Next to her, Bea had stopped tapping her fingers; her entire body was a coiled spring of violet-tinted magic. Even Clara, the girl sitting across from them, had lost her playful wink, her gaze locked on the Headmistress's fingers.
"The first name," Dourado announced, pulling a slip of parchment that glowed with a soft, bioluminescent green. "From Castelobruxo... Enzo."
A roar of approval went up from the Capybara table. The solid-looking boy Fila had noticed earlier stood up, offering a humble nod to his peers. He looked steady, his magic grounding into the stone floor like the roots of the great trees supporting the pyramid.
"And his opponent," Dourado continued, her hand diving back into the bowl. She pulled a second slip, this one shimmering with a pearlescent, sunset hue. "From Mahoutokoro... Rin."
Rin stood up and bowed respectfully.
'Shame.' Fila thought, she had wanted to go first. But maybe going later wasn't so bad either.
"The first duel will begin tomorrow, in the evening. So do rest well." Dourado clapped her hands together and the names appeared on the board.
"Only one duel tomorrow?" Fila whispered to Bea, her voice rasping with a hint of genuine surprise. "They really are going to milk this for all it's worth, aren't they?"
"They call it 'savoring the spirit of the jungle,'" Bea replied, her violet aura finally beginning to relax, though her eyes remained sharp. "But really, it's about the pressure. Letting the other thirteen of us sit there and watch our rivals fight while we wonder if we're next... it gets into your head."
Professor Fontaine stood up from the stone table, his gaze finding Fila's blindfolded face for a brief moment. He didn't need to speak; the look of expectant pride was enough. He knew Fila was already dissecting what she'd seen.
"The feast is officially over," Headmistress Dourado announced, her voice warming. "Guides will show our guests to their quarters. Champions, take this time to reflect. The jungle is listening."
Fila stood and felt something tug in her shirt. "Come and sleep in the Snakes room. We have extra beds in our dorm room." She said invitingly.
Fila smiled. "Alright, why not." She wasn't about to reject and invite like this for anything in the world.