Rapid cracks, flaps and flutters came from the young girl’s spell book as she flipped through her spell book pages anxiously. It was about midnight, and the full moon could be seen from her window along with stars surrounding it. She set her books down and started to pace around the room with her fists clenched as a bead of sweat rolled down her forehead.

“I’m never going to learn these..” She spoke, her voice toned with ruin and despair.

“Magic is difficult. I don’t even know how such a huge school accepted someone like me here anyway..”

Suddenly, a loud ‘SQUAWK!’ came from an old cage in the corner of her room.

She jolted at the sudden noise and had managed to knock over her nightstand table, crashing to the floor.

“W-Who’s there?” The girl asked, trembling on the floor. She grabbed her thickest book and held it as if she was in combat.

A smooth, deep voice that sounded alike to a male’s filled the room. “Clumsy, are we?~”

The young girl then got up, adjusting herself. She lit a candle and held it to the corner of the room. She spotted a dark, black raven in a cage. Confusion was written all over her face as she held up the candle all around the room now looking for that someone who spoke. It couldn’t have been the raven..could it?

“I swear I just heard a voice..” The girl spoke doubtfully.

“Over here, dear.”

Her eyes darted back to the sound and met the raven’s black, beady eyes.

“D-Did you just-..”

“..Talk?” The raven cut her off.

“Indeed I did. I don’t know what you would expect at a school that teaches magic and spells.” He chuckled.

“I know, but-..i’ve never seen a raven that speaks or any animal for that matter!” She shouted back almost immediately, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

“Alright, alright. To make things clear, every student here is assigned a raven to help them connect with the spiritual world as they go on their journey of learning magic. Speaking of learning magic, you look like you're having trouble there, dear.”

“Yes, I am. I don’t know if I should stay here anyway. Most of the other students know this spell book like the back of their hand and here I am, who doesn’t even know the first word of the book.” She said, opening the raven’s cage.

His majestic, silk-like wings spread, soaring towards the girl’s arm. The raven landed as soft as a feather landing onto the ground, tightening his grip on her.

“You’ve only spent about four hours trying to read through a book with more than a thousand words. Of course you won’t get it that fast! Others only know what they are doing because they study every day, with breaks. Magic requires a lot of dedication.” The raven continued.

“You lack confidence and determination in yourself. Learning magic won’t be easy, nor will it snap in your head in a flash. Magic comes with a price, are you willing to pay?”