THE MOMENT
"This is such a waste of time...," Aurelio sighed as he dropped his hand on the white orb. He wasn't even there to attend the academy; he only wanted access to the library. Unfortunately, the rules and regulations of polite society slowed him down. He didn't NEED to be gauged, but he did want the permission that came with it, to be allowed on school grounds. He was in a hurry and dropped his magic to zero, and the white orb immediately went black. All light vanished from it. "There, see? Nothing. Can I go in?" He was surprised to see a shocked expression on the clerk, moments before an alarm sounded. "Wait... was that me?" he asked as the clerk pulled down a black metal shield and closed herself off.
"Can you not cause problems everywhere you go?" A familiar voice spoke up behind him, and he turned to see a white-haired young woman with blue eyes. She wore a lime-green hoodie with a golden star on the front, and Aurelio remembered he could've asked her for access directly. At the same time, the alarm stopped, and the clerk opened her window again with a smile.
"Cass! I need to get into the library," he said.
"First, I need to know why you set off the alarm?" She asked with a neutral expression.
"I don't know?" he shrugged. "It says no glow means no potential," he pointed at an infographic behind the clerk.
"Why'd you turn it black?" she asked. "It's meant to kick off an invasion event, and you just disrupted every class. Do you know how hard it is to get the students to calm down again?"
"Well, how am I supposed to know what scripted events you have lined up?"
"Why did you turn it black? You should've just left it white if you wanted to have 'no potential'!"
"I thought it was a trick...?" he shrugged.
"What? How?" Cassie asked. Aurelio had a reputation for being dense and mischievous, but almost never at the same time. She was annoyed, but she was the mature one in the conversation.
"It says: no glow means no potential!" he repeated.
"I know... how is that a trick?" she asked.
"It's already glowing white! Just from magic in the ambient air, I guess. I thought a person with no magic would cancel that out and turn it black."
"Oh," Cassie giggled to herself. "I guess you can't help causing problems."
"So... can I get into the Star Academy Library now?" Aurelio asked.
"First, you've gotta do me a favor," she said.
"Fine...," Aurelio nodded. Whatever it was, it would be easier to accept it now rather than try to argue about it, and still end up doing it later. "What do you need?"
"Ever since the alarm shut off, I've been getting complaints from the staff. So, I need a Dark Lord to invade the school. You can even take over the library for a while."
"Yeah, okay. It sounds fun," he nodded and opened a portal to begin assembling his troops.
"Wait," she stopped him, then pointed at the clerk. "You gotta trigger it by turning the orb black again."