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High in the summits of Fiore's southwestern mountains, a large mansion-like cabin stood, deep into the season of Spring whilst the radius surrounding it was being blanketed in heavy snowfall. The clean, perfectly circular cut off was a result of a magical dome. A dome created by the meteorology mage of the guild resting within.

This guild is Twilight Zone, the newest edition to the branch of legal guilds within Fiore's kingdom.

Tossing a pebble between hands, a girl of average height sat up on the blossoming meadow, watching the outside blizzard intently. Her hair was black, with a soft green tint to the bottom, that reached down her chest. The sharper green belonged to her eyes, and a distinct crescent shaped scar accented the left. A sigh escaped her lips as the inches outside the dome built up.

"I wish our winter would hurry up," she mumbled.

"You can always go out in that winter, Ev," a voice chimed from behind her, followed by a chuckle.

"Caelestis, I told you not to call me Ev. My name is Evanee," an angry huff followed her words, "say it with me: EV-A-NEE."

The male behind her placed his hand on her head, tussling the already messy black waves.

"Sure thing... Ev."

"Why you...!"

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From inside the guild, a girl with vanilla blonde hair eyed Evanee and Caelestis, feeling a mixture of nervousness, anxiety, and excitement at what she was told would come when she met the ace.

She paced and chewed her lip, anxiously tapping her fingers.

"I hope it's nothing too harsh..."

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The white haired male, standing at a height of six-foot-two, snatched the small pebble from Evanee's hands; she rewarded him with snappy suck of her teeth.

"It's your responsibility as our ace to give your... weird ritual to any new girls."

"It's not weird, and I don't want to meet her," the shorter female retorted, staring down her pebble being juggled in the Master's hands.

"But you have to."

"Who says?"

"As you guild master-"

Evanee immediately cut in, "fine. Give me back my stone first."

Caelestis complied, tossing the rock into the air and above his accomplice's head. She caught it effortlessly in her mouth, bit into it, and swallowed it before turning and heading into the guild with a sour face.

Mere seconds later, the front door was practically kicked open as Evanee appeared, fists planted firmly on her hips. An inquisitive expression was easily identifiable as the black haired mage glanced around the loft for the newbie she was to initiate.

That girl, however, had been startled by the sudden entrance, and scuttled into the kitchen, an action that Evanee really didn't like.

So, she shouted.

"Alright, newbie! If you're not out here in five seconds, this ritual turns into a punishment! 5... 4... 3..."

Just like a bolt of lighting, the newbie appeared before the SS-Class mage, balling her fists in attempt to shade her nerves.

"H-Hai! Victoria Lynn at your service...!"

Evanee raised a brow and folded her arms over her chest simultaneously.

"Age. Magic. Reason for being a mage. And why you came here," she recited in a monotone voice, not changing her facial expression either.

Victoria swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded quickly several times. Any faster, and Evanee feared her head would fall right off.

"17. Neon Make. I was taught by a maker mage after my grandmother passed. I heard about the newest recognized guild and was intrigued..." Victoria blinked, realizing her gaze had fallen to the floor after being so intimidated by Twilight Zone's ace. She quickly straightened, and almost shouted, "I-I hope that's okay..!"

"Relax, sheesh. Wait here."

After leaving the loft and entering the kitchen, Evanee shuffled through an assortment of stones she had collected around the snowy mountain top. These were used whenever she was to initiate a new member, as these were the stones she did not find appealing to herself. The mage fingered a smooth gray scale stone, studying it intently, before tossing it up and catching it completely with her hand. "This will do," she thought.

Upon walking back into the lounge area, Evanee noticed Victoria had not moved an inch. Under her breath, she mumbled about how this girl would either be a great lackey, or a very annoying stick in the mud. Eventually, she came to the conclusion it would probably be both. At least, in her book it would be.

She held the stone up to her new family member's face. "Open," Evanee commanded.

"O-Open...? What do you-"

Before she could finish, the rock was shoved into her mouth. "I'm betting Master didn't tell you, so I'll do it now. My name is Evanee Stalactite. I'm the Stone Dragon Slayer and ace of this guild. I guess rituals are the thing now, so I had to come up with my own." A faint, yet devious smirk was painted onto Evanee's lips. "This stone is not to touch the ground. If you drop it, you'll stand in the snow, holding cinder blocks on your shoulders." –

It wasn't very noticeable, due to the object in her mouth, but Victoria was frowning. She had already been told that Evanee wasn't the nicest, but she hadn't really expected to her to show so little emotion to someone she would have to live with now.

Something that had been more noticeable, was that the blond's nerves were certainly beginning to get to her. Victoria's hands were shaking; her stomach was twisting in knots. The last thing she wanted was to upset the ace of the guild. The idea of standing in the snow with cinder blocks wasn't a favorite, either.

– "Got that?" Evanee inquired, seeing that the new mage in front of her had been clearly afraid.

Victoria nodded her head quickly before being led outside and placed next to the meteorology bubble that guarded their guild.

Evanee walked away, now standing approximately 10 feet from Victoria. Her smirk returned as a copper magic seal formed in front of her body.

"I forgot to mention, I'll be firing these projectiles at you. Don't move. Don't drop my stone."

Giving no time for Victoria to react, the ground began to shake, and a multitude of differing size rocks and stones emerged from the Earth, immediately flinging themselves in the newbie's direction. "Sandstorm!"

The attacking mage felt almost no remorse as the newer molder mage struggled to keep the stone in her mouth while being pelted and bruised by rocks.

Eventually, she dropped it to let out a pained squeak, and Evanee dispersed her attack accordingly, matching with a suck of her teeth. "I'll get the cinder blocks."

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Outside the dome, despite the cold, Victoria was clearly breaking a sweat with the immense weight on her back.

Just then, a pained scream could be heard from Caelestis' office, and it could only mean one thing. Evanee leaned in to Victoria's ear, "just be glad you aren't a guy. That's a harsh ritual."