[hider=An Ordinary Interview]
The admission’s officer blinked twice. Some mixture of disbelief, joy, and sheer exhaustion filled his eyes. Finally. After all this time, having sloughed through countless anomalous, inexplicable, painstakingly [i]weird[/i] admits, he could hardly believe his eyes when someone who seemed [i]normal[/i] walked into his office. The officer was almost shocked by how much he savored this moment, but at this point, it was everything he had ever wanted. Someone who was normal…

The officer blinked again. The boy who had walked into his room was about six feet tall, and was clearly of an athletic build. He had two amber eyes and long dark hair. The officer vaguely recognized this individual. But where from? Irregardlessly, the boy had made his way up to his desk and was presenting his papers. Was it possible that he had even filled out the necessary forms before arriving? What a wonderful boy.

[b][color=d6ecef]”I’m Leonhard Cantor. Thanks for having me today.”[/color][/b]

[i]Huh… WHAT?[/i]

While the two sat in silence, the admission officer looked over the forms he was presented. This boy was nothing short of a genius. He was from a noble family, and attended one of the top institutions for juvenile mages. His scores on any written test were flawless, and he had achieved perfect grades in every single class he had taken prior. As well, he had received not one but seven accolades for magical knowledge in the fields of alchemy, engineering, and magical theory. Not to mention, the file he presented was filled to the brim with extracurricular activities, and as a polish, he had even included a well written admittance essay. It would’ve been impossible to believe, if not for that [i]one[/i] tiny detail. Not that something that small would matter for someone of his merit. Now, however, there was another issue that the officer had to figure out. Why was such a scholarly magnate applying to an institution like Fae Creek?

[b]”Ah, thank you for waiting, Leonhard. My name is ██████. I’m so glad to have you here this evening!”[/b] The officer extended his hand to the boy.

The boy smiled, and shook it. [b][color=d6ecef]”Thank you. It’s my pleasure, truly."[/color][/b]

[b]”Please, take a seat”[/b] The admissions officer smiled. After all this time, he just didn’t think someone like this ending up in his office was possible. [b]”It looks like you’ve already filled out all the major points on the form, so now I just have to ask you a few questions before we can process your admission.”[/b]

[b][color=d6ecef]”Of course! Ask away.”[/color][/b]

[b]”Well, first off, just for my record keeping -- I know it’s silly to ask a question like this -- but what’s your gender.”[/b]

[b][color=d6ecef]”Please, don’t worry about it. I’m a boy.”[/color][/b]

[b]”Haha, of course. And your age?”[/b]

[b][color=d6ecef]”Sixteen.”[/color][/b]

[b]”Excellent, excellent. Alright, next question: where do you live?”[/b]

[b][color=d6ecef]”I’m from the Imperial Federation. I have been my whole life. Surely, you must’ve heard of my family. The Cantor’s are a well known line of powerful wizards and witches.”[/color][/b]

The admissions officer looked at the boy up and down. Indeed, he had noticed the connection long before Leonhard informed him. The resemblance between him and one of the great archmages of the federation was uncanny. [b]”Of course, of course. The Cantor's are well known among scholars.”[/b]

[i][b]Not that it matters.[/b][/i]

The admissions officer continued. [b]”Very well. I see that you have listed magical engineering as one of your talents. I’m very interested, could you elaborate on this please?”[/b]

[b][color=d6ecef]”Certainly. My whole life, I have been enamoured by magical constructs. Be it self opening doors, or massive mana crucibles, I have always been interested in the way that we could both understand and apply magic to our technological endeavors. It was only natural that I should begin to explore such constructs myself, and soon enough, I found myself involved in several different projects of a magi-technological nature.”[/color][/b]

[b]”...Wow.”[/b] The officer couldn’t help but let that one comment slip. This student was something else. He almost wondered if Leonhard was here just to mock him, as if he were flaunting his endless achievement in front of this D-List academy just to get a rise. [b]”Well, uh, that’s terrific. Now, all there is to talk about is your magic. And, uh, before we talk about that, I just want to ask you something. It says here that you received zero points on the practical section of your placement test. I’m sure this must be an error, perhaps you were absent, but it would be reassuring to hear confirmation of this from yourself.”[/b]

Leonhard stared straight into his eyes, and the officer’s soul sank. [b][color=d6ecef]”About that. I have absolutely zero affinity for magic.”[/color][/b]

It was like a boulder had crushed every last bit of the officer’s hope. He should’ve known better. Studious, stand-up, great students did not apply to Fae Creek. There was always a flaw.

[b]”You... mean to say… that you cannot do magic?[/b]

[b][color=d6ecef]”I’m not saying that at all. I just have no magical power myself, nor any affinity for channeling magic, nor can I invoke magic in any form whatsoever”[/color][/b]

[b][i]Huh? Wasn’t that the same thing as what I just said?[/i][/b]

[b]”And… And you want to attend a magical academy?”[/b]

[b][color=d6ecef]”Yessir. I’m so glad we’re on the same page.”[/color][/b]

The officer’s soul shrunk three sizes that very moment. [b]”I… I guess that’s it then. You, uh, can go. I’ll handle the rest.”[/b]

Leonhard smiled. As he left the room, he bowed to the officer. [b][color=d6ecef]”Thank you very much for the interview. I look forward to hearing your decision.”[/color][/b]

The officer watched him incredulously. What an anomaly, and there were still countless more like him waiting for him on the other side of his office. He supposed he ought to get to work, the students weren't going to interview themselves.
[/hider]