Professor Lele's Magic Class

C'mon, Lele! Hurry up already!

What're you gonna show us next?

Teehee! You ready for this?

Here we go!

Hello, Lele. Helping out in the magic classroom again, I see?

You got that right!

Huh? What are you doing in the magic classroom, Lele? Are you a student or something?

What?! No! I'm teaching them, silly!

Sometimes I ask Lele to help me out with the children. I don't know what I'd do without her.

Right back at you! Playing around with magic with all the kids makes me feel like I could be a teacher myself!

Oh no, but what if I became a real teacher before I got to be a real mage?

Haha. Is that really a problem?

Lele! Don't stop the magic show!

We wanna see more!

Okay! This next one's gonna blow your minds!

I have to admit, I'm surprised you ask Lele to come here. Why do you call on her help?

She's actually very good at proving to the children just how fun magic can be.

We often teach magic in a very formulaic way, just going through one procedure, then the next. But I'd like the children to learn about the fun side of magic first. They shouldn't have to worry about the theory behind it yet.

Okay, this one's even better! You ready? Aaand sparkles!

Ooh, so pretty!

Hey, how'd you do that?

How? Erm... Okay, so you spin your staff around and around real fast, then flap it all about! That's how you get sparkles!

Ahaha! I didn't follow any of that!

Is there anything you can't do?

Teehee! That's why I'm your teacher! Wanna see another one? Come on, just ask away!

I guess if it's fun you're after, Lele's your mage.

Yes, I've never seen anyone get such a kick out of magic as she does. If she was happy to, I'd love for her to...

Pfft! You ain't no teacher!

That magic you're using ain't nothing special! So why're you calling yourself teacher? Don't you know how silly you sound?

Wh-Why would you say that?

Hey, you shouldn't bully people!

Yeah! Apologize to Lele!

Ugh! Shut up, all of you!

My magic's way better than hers! And I'll prove it, too! Unless you're too chicken to put it to the test?

Hmm... But...

Why does it matter who's better? Isn't it great that we're both great?

Pfft! Don't be so naive! The magic world sure ain't! If I can't beat you, I'll...

I'll...

Anyway, we should duel!

Duel?!

I'll be waiting on Derismo Highroad! If you don't turn up, you're a coward!

He's gone.

Aldo, we've gotta do something about him!

Agreed! A duel sounds dangerous. I don't know if he actually knows what a duel is, but still...

No, I'm not talking about that! I mean, he was so sad!

H-He was? Did he tell you that?

Not in words, no. But words aren't everything.

Remember how Alma told us to go away when she actually wanted us to follow her? She couldn't tell us in words how lonely she was really feeling.

Yeah, I guess you have a point.

I think he's feeling something he can't say out loud, and I wanna find out what.

Okay, if you think it will help, I'm in.

Thank you! And while I'm at it... I am a teacher! And I'm gonna make him see it, too!

Yeah, I thought that would be bothering you!

Huh?! You're really a teacher?

Yeah! Aren't I?

I thought you were joking...

Yeah, I wouldn't say you're a teacher! You're just Lele.

And we've already got a teacher. Miss Ratchett. So why'd you even need to be a teacher?

Oh, boo!

Why don't you think of me as a teacher? After I showed you all those magic tricks...

I wouldn't see it as a bad thing. Surely it just shows how close you are with them?

Hmm... I guess me and Ratchett are pretty different then?

Ratchett! How come you're a teacher and I'm not! Tell me, tell me!

Lele, stop getting distracted! You've got a duel to get to!

Oh yeah! I almost forgot!

Come on, Aldo! To Derismo Highroad!

The kid who challenged you to the duel said he'd be on Derismo Highroad. So he should be around here somewhere...

Aldo, wait!

Before the duel, there's something I've gotta do real quick!

Wait, that costume...

Whoa?! How'd you get changed so fast?! What is that costume?

My gramps made it for me! He said they're formal mage robes! Gramps says a mage should always show good manners in times like this.

What was it? Something about a big cat and a rabbit...

Do you mean, "Even the lion works to catch the rabbit"?

Yeah, that's it! You're so clever, Aldo!

Darunis said it to me once. But still, this doesn't seem sensible...

Don't worry, I'm not gonna hurt him! I'm being well-mannered, remember?

I-If you say so...

Hm?

So you came, did you?

What's with the outfit? You got changed just for our duel?

These are my formal mage robes!

Even the lion works to catch the rabbit!

Eek!

Hey, don't scare the poor kid.

Shut up! I'm not scared! A-And I get to decide the rules of this duel, you got it?

Got it! So how do you wanna do this?

I do some magic. If you can copy it, I move on to the next one. If you can't copy it, you lose!

Oh, so it's more like a magic showdown than a duel.

Sounds like fun!

Ugh! You talk tough now, but we'll see how long that lasts!

Let's start! Okay, here's the first one. Can you do this?

Easy!

Hmph! That was just a warm-up.

Okay, how about this?

Ooh, I can do that!

Ugh! You're makin' it look so easy! Fine. You're good enough to be helping out with class. I see that now.

But this next one's gonna stump ya! No way do you know this magic!

Ooh! Sounds exciting! Show me, show me!

This is gonna blow your mind! I don't want any tears when you lose! Okay, here we go...

Yaaargh!

Ooh, it's so pretty! I love it!

Heheh. You've never seen that before, right? Of course it's pretty!

I worked for ages coming up with this spell! It's the most magicy magic of all time! I call it the ultimate, most excellent, special deluxe...

Like this?

Huh?

Teehee! It's so pretty! And you came up with it yourself? That's awesome!

H-Hey... How'd you do that? I thought it up all on my own. A-And I've never shown it to anybody...

Umm, well...

I watched your pretty spell and then thought about how you could've done it. So I gave it a try and well, it worked!

Oh...

But you know, this magic...

Uhh...

Hm?

Waaagh! Waaagh! Waaagh!

Oh no! He's crying?

I hate you, I hate you! You stupid stupid-head!

Eek?!

Hey, watch it! Don't do that around people, someone could get hurt!

Shut up, shut up, shut up! Waaagh!

Hey, wait up!

Eeek!

Are you okay?

I'm fine. But...

I think I hurt his feelings. That spell must be really important to him. And I didn't catch on...

Lele...

I'm gonna go apologize and try to see what's going on with him.

I wanna know why he wanted to duel, and what's making him so sad... And I wanna tell him that his magic spell was in such a kind color.

A kind...color? What's that supposed to mean?

When you make a magic spell for someone, it can have a kind color.

I may have copied his magic, but I couldn't copy his feelings...

So I've gotta tell him quite how great his spell is!

That sounds like a nice idea. I think he ran off that way. If we leave now, we might catch him.

Then what're you waiting for?

*sniffle* *sob*

There you are!

You again?

Come to laugh at me? You won the duel already, wasn't that enough for you?

No, that's no why I'm here. There's something I wanna tell you.

What's that?

I'm sorry for copying your magic spell. I didn't realize how important it was to you.

I-I mean... Those were sorta the rules, it's not really your fault for copying it.

But, I think you made that magic with someone in mind, didn't you? It wouldn't have been such a kind color otherwise.

How did you...

I may have copied your magic, but I couldn't copy your feelings.

Although I cast magic that looked like yours, it wasn't yours. Yours is the only one in the world.

...... Th-Thank you.

But my magic's gotta be better, or else the whole thing's pointless. It's gotta be something amazing, like mind-blowing. Something you can't just go copy so easily.

You know, I was wondering. Why did you challenge Lele to a duel?

'Cause she stood out the most in the magic classroom. I could tell she was real good at magic.

And that kinda annoyed me. I figured if I beat her, it'd prove how great I was at magic.

So you wanna be an amazing mage?

Nope, not really. I just wanted to make a spell to take her breath away.

And who are we talking about here?

My friend. She always used to look forward to seeing my magic.

Oh. So you wanted to show that spell to this friend? But I'd say it's more than good enough to show her. Wouldn't you?

Nope. It's not good enough. It's gotta be better.

Why's that?

'Cause she told me not to come show her magic anymore.

Why not?

She's moving soon. Faaar away.

So she's been kinda down, and I wanted to cheer her up. So I showed her all the magic I got, but it didn't cheer her up. She just told me to stop coming by.

Huh. I wonder why?

......

It's 'cause my magic's too boring, that's what I think. So I figured if I did something more exciting, it'd cheer her up. I worked real hard to come up with that spell. But I still wasn't confident... So I decided I'd only show her if it was good enough to beat the best student in the magic classroom.

Hey, I'm not a student!

But, did she actually say that your magic was boring?

Huh?

Well, no... But I mean, what else could it be? She always used to love watching my magic. Why else would she stop?

You won't know unless you ask her. What you two need isn't magic, it's some time to talk.

Talk? B-But how do I do that? What should I say? How should I act? We don't really get many chances to ta...

Hm? You...

Do you know that cat? It seems to like you.

Yeah, it's my friend's cat. What're you doing here? You gone for a walk to get away from them packing the house up?

I'll ask it!

H-How? It can't understand people talk!

Words aren't everything. What's important here, is caring enough to want to know what they're saying!

Meeeow? How're you doing today, kitty?

Hmm, I see...

Really? Got it!

You really understood it?

It says, "I came to see him before we move." And, "Thanks for playing ball with me."

Oh... Yeah, we did play together a lot, huh? Well, thanks. I'm glad you feel that way.

But that's gotta mean I don't have long until they move. And I really wanna talk to her one last time. I don't wanna have to say goodbye like this.

Yeah, I think that's a good idea.

Okay, I've gotta go see her like right now. But where is she? Can you ask the cat?

It's already answering.

H-How did it know what I was saying?

Teehee! What's important in communication is caring, remember?

I think the cat really likes you.

You do?

Thanks. I'll follow your lead then, kitty.

Where am I going, Acteul? No, it's pulling a face like that's not right.

Ooh, I know! Lake Tiilen! We used to play there all the time!

But I'm not feeling so brave right now. Will you two come with?

Of course! We can all go together!

This is where we always used to play...

Got it! Aldo and I'll watch on from here.

What?! But I thought you were coming with me!

We did come with you. But you're the one who's gotta talk to her. It's best it's just the two of you.

Oh... What do I say?

Hey, wait up!

Oh...

Oh? What are you doing out here?

I-It's you!

Wh-What a coincidence. I was just following the kitty...

......

I was wondering if we could... ...... We could...

Come on! You got this, kiddo!

Quiet down, Lele! We'll ruin the mood if she spots us!

Oh, right!

Ugh! Even though it's not about me, it's SO hard to just sit back and watch!

That just shows how much you're rooting for him. But it's going to be okay. I'm sure what you said to him went in.

I was wondering...if we could talk. I wanna know why you don't wanna see my magic anymore.

B-But... If you hate me now, you don't have to...

I don't hate you.

Huh?

I don't hate you. I'm just sad. When I move, we're not gonna see each other again...

You're sad?

Yeah. Whenever I see your magic, it reminds me of all the fun times we had together. It made me so sad thinking we won't be together anymore, so I stupidly said not to show me your magic. I'm sorry about that. It was a real mean thing to say.

Oh... But it's fine. So you don't hate my magic after all.

Of course I don't! Your magic's the prettiest in the whole wide world! And it's got such a kind color.

Heheh. You know, someone else told me that today.

Really?

Yeah. They're just over...

Hm? What's wrong, kitty?

I-Is that...

Wargh!

Eeek!

Don't you lay a finger on her!

Oh no! It's not working!

Run! Save yourself!

I'm not leaving you!

Huh?!

All right! We've got it distracted!

It's gonna be okay, you two!

You...

You did really well protecting her. But there's no need to be scared now.

I'm gonna protect the both of you!

Whoa! How'd you do that so quick?!

Thank goodness that's taken care of!

Are you okay?

Yeah, I'm okay.

Thanks for saving us!

It looks like you two managed to patch things up before that monster so rudely interrupted. Were you able to have a chat?

Yeah!

It's you who helped us meet, isn't it?

Thanks, miss. Now we don't have to be all sad when we say goodbye.

Don't thank me! This was all your doing. It took a lot of courage to come here.

How did you...

Why don't we get you out of here? We don't want to risk another monster attack.

We'll take you back to Acteul.

Thanks for bringing us back!

No problem. You take care now.

It's so strange.

I felt so anxious until they talked, as if it was me going through it, not just him. When I was watching on, I kept worrying about what I could be doing to help him. I think I was even happier than he was when they reconciled.

I think that might answer your question.

Hm?

Remember back in the classroom, when you asked Ratchett about how you two differed as teachers?

Oh yeah! Do you think Ratchett feels this way, too?

I don't know, but maybe. From where I was standing, you seemed like a pretty great teacher to me.

Teehee. Nope, I've still got a long way to go. It's hard being a teacher.

Hey!

Hm?

Phew, you're still here! I wanted to ask you a favor...

Come on, time to go.

Can't we stay just a little longer? Pleeease?

He's late. So much for seeing her off on moving day...

He must be rehearsing right up to the very last minute.

Rehearsing?

I'm here, I'm here!

Yay! You came after all!

Sorry I'm so late. I had some things to prepare.

Things? What things?

I wanted to show you this before you went.

Wow!

I thought up the firework magic. And I was taught the water magic. By, erm...my teacher, Lele.

Teacher?! He called me teacher!

It was so pretty! That was the best one yet!

And I'm gonna learn even better magic! I'm gonna make my fireworks so big you'll see 'em from wherever you move to!

Thanks. I won't forget you!

So his favor was for you to teach him magic?

Yeah. He wanted to surprise her, so he told me to keep it secret.

You know, I've always found it strange. Why would the same magic spell look slightly different depending on who's casting it?

But I think I know why now. Magic is the manifestation of our feelings for others. That's why it can be such warm and kind colors.

That's a nice way to view it. Your magic's definitely in warm and kind colors, Lele.

Oh, I do hope so!

Those were some beautiful fireworks.

Ratchett!

I thought I'd come to see what my student was up to. Did he give you any trouble?

Not at all! It was super fun teaching him magic!

I never would have imagined he'd seek out your help. It looks like you managed to teach him quite a few things, Lele.

Teehee...

I completely missed the fact that as you teach, so too do you learn. I thought you were just showing everyone how to enjoy magic. But look at you, imparting your wisdom to someone else like a true teacher.

Maybe this was why Gramps made me go traveling?

Yes, perhaps this was what your grandfather wanted to show you. Perhaps he foresaw this moment when he sent me that letter.

What letter?

When Lele came to my classroom, she brought me a note saying, "Look after my granddaughter."

At the time, I couldn't for the life of me work out why he'd write me such a brief note... But now, I think he predicted this whole thing.

You might be right.

A letter, huh?

Lele, what's wrong?

I feel like Gramps asked me to do something when he handed me that letter...

Ah! I remember!

"Ratchett's been acting cold lately. Could you ingratiate yourself in her classroom and talk me up to her?"

That's what he said!

......

*sigh* That man, honestly. That certainly does sound like him.

But I can't tell you what a joy it's been for me, having you come to the classroom. I hope you'll keep coming by.

Of course!