I followed the dirt pathânot feeling particularly rushed anymore. If this was supposed to be my only class for the whole day, I couldn't imagine there was much of a time constraintâespecially if it was taking place outside the university. So, I decided to enjoy my leisurely pace; it was another sunny day with the wind gently blowing over the valley. I closed my eyes and gave a content sigh as it blew through my curls.
After a few minutes, I saw the building that my ring had told me to go to. It was one of the barns I had seen before. With how small it was, I guessed that it would be able to house maybe a dozen cows comfortably. There was a wooden fence surrounding about approximate three acres of land surrounding the building. Connected to a gate was a wooden post, etched with the same grass symbol I had seen on the wall in the auditorium. This had to be the place.
Finding that the gate was unlocked, I went through and then closed it behind me. A much smaller dirt path led up to the barn, and I followed it up. Several bees and a handful of blue butterflies danced between the clover flowers in the field.
I reached the barn and noticed that the large barn doors were shut. Following the path, I went to the side of the barn and found an open entrance. I went inside.
Inside, I saw about eight stalls where cattle could be kept, and then a bit of open space near the large barn doors. I was surprised to find that it was remarkably clean. There were no patties or furâor any signs of animals for that matter. Though the ground was covered in hay, it was not the dusty straw form that would have had me sneezing.
I knelt and touched it to find it was both reasonably soft and also deep enough to make a very comfortable ground. Of course, this left the barn smelling fresh.
"Hello?" I called softly, looking around for any sign of people.
"Oh, you're here!" called someone from one of the stalls. The person stepped out and waved with one hand while carrying a clipboard in the other. She was a head or two taller than me and was of medium build. Her wrinkled skin was a light green with a bluish tint. The green woman was olderâseeming to be in about her fifties.
She wore the same canvas material that I did but in the style of coveralls, under an open robe that was a vibrant red. This color went well with her fingernails and eyes, which were also both a bright red. On her head was a straw hat over green hair, with what seemed to be living flowers growing on the brim. Was this a dryad ... or, more specifically, some kind of nymph?
"I'm here for the ... healing class?" I said, hoping I was in the right place.
The nymph gave a nod and a cheery smile. "Welcome! You can call me Hyrranesusâconsultation expert on organic composition."
"So, you're not a professor from the school?" I asked, confused.
"Correct. I just step in from time to time to aid in a particular class or for consultation work regarding my field of study. I like to travel, you see, take my focus to the world at large. But helping out at the university is nostalgic, and occasionally even interesting. Think of this course as more of a ... directed study. I'll help you along from an advisory lead perspective. But you get to call the shots whenever you like. Though, judging by your student profile, I would say that's not often, huh?" Hyrranesus gave a playful wink.
I gave an awkward smile and nodded.
Hyrranesus continued, "Anyhow, I come by from time to time. To be honest, though, it's been a while since I've seen an underclassman take this courseâand on a Monday no less! Usually, I just get a couple upperclassmen filling a spare midweek time slot."
"It seemedâuhmâuseful for a starting magic," I said, not knowing how to explain videogame logic to a nymph and not quite yet comfortable explaining my more erotic motivations to someone I had just met.
"Indeed," Hyrranesus said, studying the notes on her clipboard. Her eyes widened in surprise. "And a voluntary surprise student as well. Well, won't this be exciting."
I bit my lower lip and forced a chuckle, not sure what to say.
Hyrranesus lowered the clipboard to her side and beckoned me to follow while she talked. "You know, of course, about your safewords. Use them at any time. I remind you because I will be following your annotated preferences and limits to best utilize the surprise-factor in enhancing the potency of your magical capabilities."
"What do you mean?" I asked as we approached the stall that she had exited earlier.
"All magic in this university is fueled by sexual arousal," Hyrranesus explained. "More specifically, it is powered through your sexual connection to yourself and, to a lesser extent, others. Not just a component or a key but the entire furnace. All we do here will be to teach you to tap into that. After all, you'll hardly be able to use that in times of need if you can't figure it out when conditions are ideal."
We stepped into the stall. Though big enough for a cow, it was much more spacious for me. It was fairly privateâparticularly on the sidesâwith swinging doors at the entrance. The floor was still soft straw. In the center of the room, however, was a wooden device. It looked like a pillory set at knee-heightâmeant to leave someone helpless and kneeling.
"No like for pain," Hyrranesus mumbled to herself as she glanced again at her chart. She then went to a back corner of the room, where there were a few miscellaneous items on a small shelf. She picked up a few blankets and ropes and then began to tie them to the pillory as padding.