(eng) Niall Teasdale - Thaumatology 01 by Thaumatology 101

Author:Thaumatology 101 [101, Thaumatology]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Part Three: Sorcery

Stockwell, London, October 6th 2010

Vassall Road was not too far from High Towers, so the Community Learning Centre there seemed like the easiest place for Ceri to gain her Public Practitioner’s Certificate. Anyone planning to make a living out of magic was required to have one; it certified that the bearer had basic competency and, most importantly, knew enough to be safe. Ceri had no plans to actually practice professionally, but a PPC made life easier if she ever had to do anything the police took an interest in, and the university required one if she was to raise circles for Cheryl. So, night school it was.

The building was fairly modern, just the kind of place councils put up to house “adult learning” centres. Ceri walked in through the front door along with various other students, most of them far older and who seemed to know each other. She guessed they went to a lot of night classes. Well, it was something to do.

There was a reception desk at the back of the foyer, staffed by a happy-looking middle-aged woman. Ceri stepped up, holding the pamphlet the university had given her and looking lost. ‘Um, excuse me, ma’am,’ she said, and the woman looked up, still smiling a bright smile.

‘Yes, dear,’ she said. ‘You look like you’re new. Which course did you want?’

‘I’m here for the PPC course,’ Ceri said.

The woman’s smile faltered. ‘Oh. That. You want room two-thirteen. Up the stairs, end of the corridor.’ Her nose wrinkled slightly. ‘Away from the other classes.’

‘Thank you, ma’am,’ Ceri said, turning away and heading for a set of wide stairs at one end of the room. Magic had been around for over sixty years now, out in public view, but some people still did not like it much.

Sure enough, while there were people talking and laughing in the rooms near the stairs, there was nothing further down the corridor until she got to the end where a lone door stood open with the lights on inside. There were five other people already there; a disparate bunch of would-be practitioners looking to make their fortune with their talent. There was an irritated-looking man in a business suit, a boy and a girl who looked to be about college age, a girl wearing too much black who smelled of home-brew potions, and a teenage girl. Maybe the last one had other reasons for taking the course; she seemed a little young to be doing it for professional reasons. They were scattered through the room, largely ignoring each other. Ceri picked a chair at the front and sat down, taking her tablet from her shoulder bag and proceeding to open a note-taking application.

She felt… something and looked up at the door. A dark-skinned man with gorgeous bone structure and a thin frame, and the look of someone who found his job annoying at best, was standing in the doorway. His gaze flicked around the room, then he sucked his teeth and walked up to the front desk to dump a briefcase.

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