Accepio Magica

The others noticed how shaken up Bard was by the whole situation. Iris hopped off the beast and released the spell, causing its body to slide off like sand into a lump of snow. 

"Bard!" She kneels next to him holding onto his shoulders.

"Did...I just kill her...?" Bard screamed and cried out while Iris was trying to comfort him.

"You need to get it together! She was an enemy and you were trying to defend us..."

"I can't take it anymore! All this magic stuff is taking away how I want to live my life!"

A sharp smack was felt on his cheek as everyone fell quiet. Ryner's arm was curved against his chest as he stood still after committing the act of slapping Bard across the face. 

"You were never meant to have a normal life, Bard. Just because you didn't have anyone else around who knew of your magic doesn't cleanse your true nature. Now that you know the truth, accept it! Instead of whining, you should feel honored..."

Bard gritted his teeth, his eyes threatening to shed tears, "I didn't want to kill her either......"

"Trust me, that is not something to take lightly, however, you must understand that we are at war with the witches. Unfortunately, there are no peaceful methods when dealing with Saru's followers....much less when they respond with violence. We're lucky to have met Kurt who seems to be the exception. I know it must be a lot to deal with now, everything is changing so fast, but I have faith in you... Believe in the powers that have been bestowed upon you to regain what was taken away from you."

Iris softly spoke after Ryner's speech with simple words, "And for us too Bard... we also had our lives taken away from us that we had to live in the shadows..."

Hearing them held all the lives of the present wizards, now upon his shoulders. Bard could no longer think of himself and hold on to the idea of being the one who couldn't do much. He had to do more, a lot more. 

Bard stood up firmly with his head up high and turned out to the vastness of the snow, cupping the sides of his mouth with his hands and strongly yelling, "I ACCEPT! I ACCEPT THE MAGIC FROM WITHIN!!"

He heard a voice again in his head and repeated with a strong echoing yell, "ACCEPIO MAGICA!!!"

The inside of his coat began to glow catching everyone's attention as they hovered over Bard he reached inside and noticed that it was the journal. The lock opened and the pages swiftly opened on their own to split halfway and reveal a hologram of a familiar figure.

That's the man who would appear in my dreams!

"My name is Cordeous, best known to you as the Hi-"

"Well if it isn't my wonderful students!"

Iris and Ryner shoved Bard's face away comically as they couldn't believe their eyes at the sight of another hologram figure bumping into Cordeous they both exclaimed, "Master Taru?!"

"Get your hands off of my face you two!"

"Taru I was speaking...."

"I'm so sorry Cordeous, I couldn't help it!"

It's Lord Cordeous...

Kurt chuckled at the scene. 

Iris and Ryner relaxed their arms and rested them on each other side as Bard sighed in relief. Cordeous cleared his throat and began to speak again, "As I was saying...I am known to you as the Hiking Wizard. Humans may not have powers themselves but can carry a lot of spirit, especially when it comes to wishes and dreams. Being prayed to as a shooting star has collected these wishes forming the rock that collided with Earth years later. Specs of the stone scattered all over the world, unknowingly granting people magical powers, and ultimately crashing down to be discovered by Taru and his brother. But there was indeed a third stone that split and landed elsewhere in a distant field. The stone revealed an infant later taken in by a fami-"

"You were taken by a family, then grew up and left because you found out about your powers, documented everything in this journal, and refused to enroll in my school because you were too good!" 

Cordeous was visibly irritated as he was interrupted once again. 

Those stories of Master Taru are true...he's so.......easygoing.

"Anyways...may I ask what is a witch doing among the three of you?" 

Kurt bowed and lifted his head to speak, "I may have witch's blood running through my veins, but my ancestors have since regretted their involvement with Saru's teachings. I'm not much of a fighter, but willing to put up with it to not summon such an evil in this world again." 

Everyone stood silent as they were so admired by Kurt's words, that Bard was beyond inspired. 

Cordeous slightly nodded in acknowledgment to Kurt as Taru clapped happily. 

"Alright..so what happened after you left the Academy Master Taru?" 

"Wonderful question Iris!"

Taru explained that during his pursuit of the witches, he was ambushed and gravely wounded. He was found by Cordeous who took him in, but his time to be reincarnated was coming soon. So he spellbound himself and Taru inside the journal with a seal that would only open to the next Hiking Wizard. 

"How's the new bookkeeper?" 

Iris rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms "Who? Everard? I guess that bookworm geek is fine..."

Ryner slightly laughed at her response, but his attention was on Cordeous as he began to chant.

Taru's hologram dissolved as the specs reformed onto the snow and summoned him in the flesh.

"Bard, it's hard to carry power you may not know about, but trust in your abilities. Accepting who you are now is the first step. Keep going to fight against the witches and restore a sense of normality for everyone. Now that we have made contact, my magic is withering away."

"But I still have so many questions!"

"Fret not Bard, you are in good hands...especially with Taru present. Unfortunately for me, my time has come, but you have this journal to guide you. I'm sure you'll find the answers you seek. Farewell...."

The hologram dissolved and the pages of the book stopped glowing.