Strixhaven's First Lesson

# Session Recap

**TL;DR:** Luna III and Juliana Angora arrived at Strixhaven University, were sorted into a dorm room together by enchanted orbs, and won the race to claim the best room on the fourth floor of Marrowgate Hall.

Welcome to Strixhaven

Luna III and Juliana Angora arrived at Strixhaven University, a school founded seven hundred years ago by five enormous dragons who believed magic was too dangerous to leave unstudied. At Strixhaven, magic wasn't merely a subject—it was the tool students used to study everything else. Historians conversed with the dead, artists painted with lightning, and scientists grew plants the size of houses. The campus sprawled across five colleges: Lorehold studied the past with gold-glowing magic; Prismari created art from fire, ice, lightning, and wind; Quandrix explored patterns and numbers hidden in nature; Silverquill mastered words and rhetoric with magic like spilled ink; and Witherbloom delved into life and death from their swamp laboratories. First-year students wore plain black, white, and gray uniforms and would choose their college next year.

Orbs and Introductions

In the crowded courtyard, eight hundred first-year students from everywhere and of every kind gathered—owlin with wings, a student made of fire, a twelve-foot-tall creature, even a literal tree wearing a scarf. Juliana approached a shadow fey who had traveled from Menzoberranzan, introducing herself and mentioning she came from Minrothad to practice her magic. Luna III, meanwhile, found a shy first-year student named Derrek from Westhold, who had been sent to Strixhaven after accidentally setting his mother's kitchen table on fire. As they spoke, violet and amber orbs of light appeared before each student's face, hovering patiently. When Juliana walked toward hers, it zipped away; when she tried to walk away, it shocked her with a static snap that made her fur stand on end. Luna III followed her own amber orb without watching where she was going and collided with Juliana, whose violet orb had just zapped her mid-hop. The two students tumbled to the ground in a heap, and when they stood, they discovered their orbs had merged into a single muddy-colored sphere.

The Sorting

The combined orb led Luna III and Juliana to a clear space where two other students waited: Katureena Fundicuss, a tortle in reading glasses carrying an impossible stack of belongings, and Sivart Nightquill, an owlin with a magnificent gold crest who stood as if expecting to be admired. Katureena cheerfully announced she had read the entire handbook twice and the map three times, eager to answer any questions. Sivart introduced himself with pride, noting that his plumage was natural and could be looked at but not touched. Before anyone could ask why the orbs had merged, Professor Mavinda Sharpbeak—an owlin with enormous orange eyes and disheveled robes—appeared at the podium. She explained that she had personally sorted all eight hundred first-year students into roommate groups of four based on their abilities and histories, and that rooms in Marrowgate Hall were first come, first served. With a sharp "Chop chop!" she dismissed them, and the entire courtyard erupted into a stampede.

The Race for the Room

Luna III immediately decided to race for the top floor, which offered the longest climb but also the quietest quarters, the best views of the Dawnbow and beacon towers, and a balcony. She wove nimbly through the gaps in the crowd, with Juliana following close behind. Sivart, hearing the plan, took off flying toward the building's exterior windows. When they reached the packed staircase inside Marrowgate Hall, Juliana made a split-second decision: she used one of her powerful rabbit leaps to jump the entire staircase in a single bound, sailing over every student ahead of her. She landed at the top, slid down the hallway, and slapped her hand on the doorway of the best room just as Sivart came tumbling through the window. He grudgingly complimented her extraordinary hopping. Katureena arrived much later, breathing hard and still carrying all her belongings, asking if this room was theirs.

Unpacking Secrets

The four roommates settled into their new quarters—a freshly mopped room with four beds, empty shelves, two windows, and the lingering smell of soap. As they unpacked, each revealed something they had brought that they weren't supposed to. Luna III brought an enchanted item: a firesteel bracelet connected to a cat collar worn by her familiar, Waffles. The collar could detect lies through a subtle vibration on Luna's wrist, though Waffles hated the sensation and would flee whenever it activated. Juliana brought a magicl food dispenser for her companion, Michu, controlled by twisting a ring on her finger. Katureena admitted she had brought a second set of everything despite the letter specifying only one set, and had been worried about it since the shuttle. Sivart claimed he had brought nothing unpermitted—at which point Waffles immediately yowled and ran under the bed. Before anyone could press Sivart to prove his claim, a bell rang out over the rooftops, followed by doors banging in the corridor. Their acceptance letters had all said the same thing: report to the Hall of Oracles.