My first day at Stellaluna was... not bad? I really thought it would be terrible, but I’m so, so thankful that the Heavens realigned. I made some cool friends and, weirdly enough, Lord Sourpuss was a hit with almost everyone, teachers and students alike.

One teacher he did annoy was Mr. Blackwood in shadow work. Mr. Blackwood said that the species of our familiar represents the part of ourselves that we’re repressing. Lord Sourpuss couldn’t resist raising his paw and asking, “What do puppets represent?” Then he RUDELY added, “Tacky medallion, by the way.” And Mr. Blackwood was like, “Perhaps you represent the inability to keep one’s thoughts to themselves.”

Mr. Blackwood was looking right at me when he said that, not Lord Sourpuss. Does he really think I think his scorpion medallion is tacky? Because I don’t!

Okay, I have to admit, and I’m not just saying this because he gave me homework: the medallion IS kind of over the top. That classroom’s entire theme is as dark and brooding as Mr. Blackwood. He takes himself and the subject he teaches VERY seriously.

Every classroom in Stellaluna is inspired by one of the twelve zodiac signs: Aries for magical defense, Taurus for herbs and potions, Gemini for divination, Cancer for history, Leo for art (yay, art!), Virgo for spell refinement, Libra for meditation, Scorpio for shadow work, Sagittarius for astrology, Capricorn for sacred geometry, Aquarius for magical experiments, and Pisces for astral projection.

Monday is magical defense, herbs and potions, divination, history, art, and spell refinement. Tuesday is meditation, shadow work, astrology, sacred geometry, magical experiments, and astral projection. And repeat for the rest of the week. Since today was orientation, we were introduced to all twelve classes. Whew!

Stellaluna is too magnificent for words. We’re not allowed to take photos, and any photos that anyone risks taking will appear blank. The really cool part is that it isn’t exactly a building. After entering the attendance portal, you’re in this realm of endless ocean and stars, where the planets appear to be watching overhead. In front of you is a set of marble stairs (or a ramp for some) leading up to a silver gateway, which takes you inside. It’s the connecting point between Earth and Stellaluna.

Invisible walls prevent you from falling into the water, but Mom and Tabitha remember the school trips. Dad too. I just finished writing to him. No idea what he’ll think of Lord Sourpuss, but knowing Dad, he’ll be even more thrilled about visiting for Halloween. Dad works for the High Coven as an archivist and a collector of magical artifacts, so he’s always traveling. Mom and Dad split when they realized they weren’t cut-out for parenting together. They no longer had romantic feelings for each other either. That was 8 years ago. I miss my dad. At least he visits twice a year and never forgets to write to me.

The recent postcard that Dad sent me. It’s my favorite so far!

Anyway, the endless ocean can transport you to any of the ten celestial realms, which are reserved for spirits of deceased witches and aren’t open to witches in the flesh until Halloween, unless you’re amazing enough to earn a celestial ring. The realms are so different and even more colorful and magical than Earth. No wonder so many witches choose to give themselves to the Heavens before they reach 1,000 years old.

In other news, I made friends! I’m not a social butterfly and take time to warm up. I’ve had mortal friends in the past, but they always seem to switch schools or move away, except for Lucas. I hope I can keep him close and my witch friends too!

Chloe Hong is from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She loves all creatures mundane and magical, but she really wants to work with magical creatures in the future. She’s like a unicorn: sweet and gentle on the outside, but mess with her and she’ll gut you (with words). I saw her in action at lunch. These second-year girls approached our table and were interested in getting me to sit with them (probably to mock me for my puppet familiar, though Lord Sourpuss would’ve had a blast insulting them if he’d been with us). They misgendered our new friend, Skyler, right after they were politely corrected. Long story short, those girls left us alone. I guess that’s why Chloe’s familiar is a majestic yet fierce mute swan. Her name is Odette.

Skyler Mooney is from Hackensack, New Jersey. They don’t identify as a girl or boy. They have a rat familiar named Felix and are also the definition of chill. When they were misgendered on purpose, they just smiled and kindly corrected the girls again, and when Chloe was finished breathing fire, Skyler just shrugged the whole thing off. We just as quickly forgot about those girls and the conversation shifted to Skyler’s awesome and trippy drawings. Their spell book became their sketch book and the amount of detail is insane! Chloe and I really got to see them work their magic in art class. Chloe doesn’t draw or collage, but she makes jewelry sometimes, and we all made an amazing piece for the assignment together!

Maddox Crane is from Muncie, Indiana. He kind of reminds me of Lucas, except he’s way more shy and paranoid. Maddox believes the first witches weren’t gifted magic by the Heavens, but by aliens. He also thinks cleaning supplies are mostly lemon-scented because lemon is more powerful than salt. I’m not sure we’re really friends, but he’s interesting and amusing enough to deserve a place in my notebook. His familiar is a gecko named Gigi (she’s getting beamed up with the lemons).

Also, I totally get why it’s called a dining hall instead of a cafeteria. It really is as fancy as it sounds, and the food was some of the best I’ve ever tasted. It was like a five-star restaurant! Lunch is the only time of day when familiars aren’t with their students. They’re in the courtyard. Even though he can’t eat, Lord Sourpuss had to join them. Unfortunately, he wasn’t a hit. I’m surprised he didn’t end up a dog toy, honestly.

So, I’m home and doing this assignment for shadow work. Mom and Tabitha (especially Mom) were relieved to hear I had a good day at Stellaluna, minus the event with Mr. Blackwood. He wants me to understand why exactly Lord Sourpuss is my familiar and write three paragraphs. Lord Sourpuss doesn’t even know the answer himself. Can’t I just explain that he was the result of bad spell-casting? Or would that fail me? But if I’m honest, shouldn’t I pass? Ugh!

If only I could turn THIS in. I was cracking up with Lord Sourpuss the whole time making it. Sorry, Mr. Blackwood. I couldn’t resist.

Since Lord Sourpuss was just as clueless as I was, I turned to the Tarot for guidance. I shuffled and drew a card for each question asked, trying to get to the bottom of this, and the Fool and the Magician kept showing up. It’s as if these cards are telling me that Lord Sourpuss was simply born out of my foolishness, and to just embrace that or something. I mean, okay, but I’m not sure Mr. Blackwood will approve. I guess I’m writing three paragraphs about it, anyway.

Speaking of the Magician, after finishing my homework, I called Lucas and we talked about our day. Of course, I couldn’t tell him much about my new school. I wish Lucas were a witch. Sometimes I wonder why the Heavens chose the witches they did. Magic is genetic until the unicorn-rare moment when the Heavens decide that a random mortal should be a witch. Wouldn’t it be crazy if we could petition certain mortals to become witches? But that thinking is pure hubris because even witches can’t see what the Heavens can. It still stinks that my best friend won’t ever be able to do real magic, though, let alone live as long as I will. At some point, I’ll need to wear an aging glamour to avoid suspicion, and to change my name like Mom and Tabitha have. These are the unspoken rules about living among mortals.

Great, now I’m depressed. Maybe Tabitha was right. Maybe we shouldn’t have settled in a mortal-majority town. You don’t really think about death as a kid, and now here I am thinking about it happening to my best friend. I think a spell is in order. A simple spell that I won’t potentially mess up. Or a nice, big bowl of soup.

Ingredients:

  • Lavender (for anxiety)
  • Everything else that makes a soup a soup (for my stomach)

    • Incantation (repeated with each sip):

    Bubble, bubble, quiet and plain,
    One taste and troubles wane.

    The soup kept getting plainer, but before I knew it the lack of spice stopped bothering me. Now I’m eating the blandest soup ever and don’t even care. Success?

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