Voting Pole Close, 2-3 chapters won out.
This chapter lacks AI presence, so any grammar mistakes or feedback on how I should write dialogue or perceive other characters having conversations that don't include the MC would be much appreciated.
Also, there is a plot hole in the previous chapter. Towards the end of the poll, Stefan was behind the MC while he was getting his timetable, which has been retconned. But besides that,no other changes had been made.
Enjoy
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Time flew by and I was on to my next class, Besides the looks Elena shot me during class along with the others, things were relatively normal for now well at least till shit was going to start to picking back up if my presence hasn't drastically changed cannon events, knowing that Damon is still Katherine's in-denial boy toy.
(Hallway/Changing Rooms)
The hallway leading to the locker room was colder than the rest of the school. Maybe it was the draft from the old vents, or maybe it was just in my head, knowing what was waiting on the other side of the door.
PE. Great.
Thanks to the previous tenet of my body, I wasn't out of shape or anything, but I had way better things to do than pretend to care about running drills or throwing a ball around. I'd barely been back at school for a day and was already wondering if it was worth the effort. It wasn't like I needed this. If anything, it just took time away from things that actually mattered to me, like my magic.
I could be reading. Practicing. Experimenting. Hell, I could be out collecting something useful, like the Phoenix Stone, if it even still existed, living in an alternate universe and all that. Or the Moonstone. Maybe I could trade it to Elijah for one of his mother's grimoires. That would be a real win.
But no, here I was, about to waste an hour sweating for nothing.
I reached the locker room door and stopped for a second, hand resting on the handle. The guys inside were already talking and joking around like always. It should've been easy to just walk in. Be normal. Act like my mind wasn't elsewhere.
I needed to focus up. I was getting ahead of myself again. None of those plans mattered if I wasn't strong enough to back them up. That was the real problem.
It wasn't the artifacts. It wasn't the knowledge. It was me.
I wasn't powerful enough.
Not yet.
I walked in and went straight to my locker, keeping my head down as I started changing. The usual noise filled the room: someone arguing over a missing sneaker or some other shit going missing or being stolen, But It was all background noise.
Because I was thinking about him.
Papa Tunde.
I'd been reviewing my memory about the show and the originals for the last week. The way he drew power into himself. And the fact he could enhance his physical stats while retaining his magi without being a heretic. If he wasn't using an original/immortal, it wasn't permanent, but it was effective.
He used sacrifices.
Vampires, mostly. But that was the part that stuck with me. Power didn't come from nowhere nature majority of the time. It came from something else.
I pulled my shirt over my head, jaw tightening.
What if I didn't have to go that far? What if I didn't need vampires at all?
I sat down on the bench, hands clasped together, staring at the floor but not really seeing it.
There had to be another way. Not that I had a problem killing one, let alone sacrificing one; the problem was the effort I would go through, and I don't plan to ask Stefan for a lot of blood or help Damon open a tomb of vampires for his blood. Actually, scratch that. I'm going to shelf that plan.
But that's not the point. I need something smaller. More controlled. Tunde's problem wasn't just that he was unnecessarily ruthless; it was that he burned through his power too fast. But what if I didn't need to steal at all? What if I do a transference? It's almost the same concept but a different result entirely. The effect could be permanent.
Coach's whistle snapped me out of my thoughts, and I realized the guys were already heading out. I hurried to tie my shoes and stood up, shaking off the thoughts for now but keeping a mental note to jot the theory down later, god I love mind magic.
(The Field)
Coach's whistle cut through the gym again, sharp and too early for this kind of energy. "Out on the field! Sprint intervals, cone drills, change of direction work—let's go!"
I kept to the back of the group as we jogged out. Most of the guys were already laughing or trash-talking each other about who was going to throw up first. I just kept my head down, adjusting the sleeves of my top. The wind outside was biting, but it helped keep me focused in the moment ADHD can be a bitch a times with magic or not.
We hit the first round of sprint intervals, straight 20-yard bursts. My legs moved instinctively, each push off the ground reminding me of what this used to feel like before my occupation.
The assistant coach had a clipboard in hand, yelling out split times as we passed the cones. "You're off to a good start, close to your best, off by a second!"
Right. My "best." Before my mother's death. They probably think that her death still affects me.
We hit the change of direction drills next, zigzagging through cones, sharp cuts on the grass. My feet slid once, but I caught myself fast. Faster than I should've, maybe. The spell from this morning flickered in my thoughts, an enhancement charm. I'd toned it way down, but the 1.1x amp. I added a light numbing spell on my calves, too. Just enough to dull the slight fatigue without completely removing the feedback.
Sweat started to gather at my temples. The one takeaway I'm thrilled with is being here and testing my magic in unexplored ways. And I was warming up.
Then smack.
A teammate clapped me on the back as I came to a stop between drills. His grin was wide and infectious as if he had not a single functional thought.
"Now you're back, baby! Most of us didn't want pretty boy Salvatore on the team, but at the rate you're going, he will be a bench warmer at best."
I forced a small nod and let out a laugh that sounded more like a breath than anything. "Yeah… good to be back, man."
Internally though?
Yh. These kids are definitely going to peak in high school.
Some of them didn't even know who they were without this field. I could already see the future beer bellies, hometown pride, and living off memories of high school glory. Meanwhile, I was over here debating whether to test another type of enhancement or try a completely different route, Something that didn't fry my nerves afterward.
Across the field, I caught Coach murmuring something to the assistant. The guy scribbled something down on the clipboard. What better way then to try it out now? Shifting the flow of magic I used for my speed to my ear, sharpening my, I instantly dialed a generous amount back to due to sensory overload but enough to slightly hear them.
"He's moving like before… if not better," the assistant said, squinting at the timer. "Sure, they say losing someone close prematurely could change them, but this is different. Maybe he processed that sadness and anger in a different way. If he keeps this up, he definitely has a shot at being scouted."
Scouted? While not surprising due to my cheating, I'm not gonna lie to myself like I was expecting it. We rotated stations again—more sprints, then backpedal work into direction changes. I started to slip into the rhythm, not thinking about the drills themselves but how my body reacted, where the pressure landed, and how my magic moved.
The tiny buffer I placed over my joints was holding. My legs weren't aching. The spell worked in tandem with my body instead of brute-forcing it like the first version of the spell did. It was progress. And I could definitely improve it due to it not being sustainable all day round. Maybe it could offset it by using a talisman. Creating/using one isn't hard at all. It's pretty basic because, as of now, my knowledge of runes is not up to snuff.
I jogged toward the benches with the rest of the guys, half-listening to their chatter. Someone tossed me a water bottle. I caught it one-handed without thinking. The kid who threw it blinked, then laughed.
"Damn, someone's back on their main character arc!"
I gave him a small smile and cracked the seal.
Main character, huh, I like the sound of that.
With the break being over. We got back to work
The drills shifted to less conditioning and more skill-based work. Positional drills, technique refinement, reps on reps.
I got in line with the other defensive backs for backpedal drills. Coach set up a cone sequence, calling for fluid transitions from backpedaling to sprinting to breaking on an imaginary pass. I kept my stance low, and when the whistle blew, I moved. I spread my amplifications evenly, my reactions got tighter and my executions more crisp.
Tackling drills came next. The dummies lined up, padded shields braced, ready to absorb impact. Some guys came in at sloppy, wrong angles and at bad pad levels. When it reached my turn, I hit clean, controlled, and felt the force transfer properly through my body. The amps were doing their job. At that point, I felt like the Raikage. And thinking now, the more I trained, the more I would adapt/the stronger my foundation would be. This was the best way to increase my effectiveness until I could figure out something better other than financing a gym membership or purchasing things for my own homemade one.
Receivers ran their routes, quarterbacks threw, linebackers read plays. I cycled through different stations, locking in on every rep.
One of the younger players, cocky and eager, tried to keep up. He probably could keep up, and if I wasn't using magic, he probably could, but it looked like he wanted to prove something to the others more so than himself. Either way, he lined up across from me during a one-on-one drill, eyes sharp with challenge.
Coach blew the whistle. He broke off the line fast. I broke faster. Stayed on his hip, matched him step for step. He cut inside. I mirrored. The pass sailed toward him-too slow. I jumped it, batting the ball away like it was nothing.
A few guys laughed as the kid stumbled. "Damn, sit down, rookie!"
I didn't say anything, just helped him up and patted his back. No need to humiliate him further. He got the message.
Mr Tanner noticed too. After a particularly clean rep, he gave me a quiet nod. "That's more like it. The rest of you need to take notes."
A slow, smug grin pulled at my lips. Not because of the compliment itself, but because I knew I was cheating the hell out of everyone. They were putting in work; I was putting in work plus magic. Unfair? Maybe. But hey, it was all genetics, so was I really cheating?
(Tyler POV)
Something was off with Mal. Not in a bad way, just… different.
He'd always been one of the better guys on the team, top five easy, but this? He was moving like he hadn't just taken months off. Like he hadn't recently lost his mom. No rust, no hesitation just straight dominance.
It pissed Tyler off a little. Not because he had anything against Mal specifically, but because seeing him move like that, seeing him level up after losing a parent, just reminded Tyler of his own situation. The tension with his dad, the pressure, the expectations. The way part of him wanted to finally snap and do something about it.
He exhaled sharply, muttering under his breath, "Damn, if playing like that is what losing a parent does, maybe I should just kill my dad."
A fist lightly thumped his shoulder. "Dude," Matt said, exasperated. "Can you last a day without being a dick?"
Tyler just smirked. "What? I'm just saying."
Matt rolled his eyes, clearly used to this. "Other than practice, you should be worrying about getting a date for the party."
Scoffing at that, due to the irony of the situation " I know you not talking didn't Elena dump your ass"
With jab landing, all got a response was he rolled his eyes "your a dick you know that" Smirking at him "Yeah Yeah. You'll live.
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PowerStones!!!!!!!!!
Well hope you guys enjoyed this chapter giving some insight to his thought process and how he perceives magic to some extent. And on a side note things will start to pick up in the coming chapter. P.S you gremlins have gotten 5 chapters this week unless I bless you with a bonus one on Sunday see you guys next week on the new schedule, much love for the support.