Summer job, must feature Yen Sid in some way. 300 words min
As the bells echoed through the school halls signaling the beginning of summer vacation, Hermod had little trouble going unnoticed amidst the ensuing chaos and excitement. As Bragi, Eraqus, and the others practically ran out of the classroom, he stayed back, waiting for the classroom to clear.
“Everything alright, Herm?” a voice said from behind him. Hermod felt a comforting hand rest on his shoulder as he turned to lock eyes with Xehanort.
“Yeah, I’ll catch up with you in a minute. Just need to ask Master Odin about a question on that final,” he said. Xehanort squinted his eyes for a moment as if he were studying Herm for a truthful answer.
“Always overachieving,” he finally said with a sly smile. “Try not to spend too much vacation time with your nose in a book.”
“I’ll try,” Hermod said with an unconvincing laugh. He watched as Xehanort left the room and the door closed behind him. His eyes turned to Master Odin, seated at his desk at the front of the classroom as he scribbled away on a piece of parchment. Hermod swallowed his pride and made his way up to the desk.
“Master?”
“Considering you received a perfect score, I assume this isn’t about the final?” Even as the Master looked up at him, the sagging brim of his brown, pointed hat still covered one of his eyes.
“I was wondering if there might be anything I can do around here over vacation. To make some extra munny,” he said nervously, worried that he’d have to answer some uncomfortable questions. He imagined Master Odin’s eye looking right into his mind and uncovering all the secrets he’d kept hidden from his instructors and classmates.
“It’s gotten awfully dusty in here, don’t you think?” Odin said. “Stop by in the mornings and clean the classrooms. How does fifty munny a day sound?”
“That would be perfect, sir. Thank you. Oh, one other thing—"
“Yes, you can use the library whenever ever you’d like.”
*****
The weeks of summer vacation passed quickly. As agreed, Hermod came to the school most mornings to tidy up the classrooms. With all the time he spent sweeping away at the layers of dust, he often wished he could enchant his straw-bristled broom to do the work itself. At least then he’d be able to spend more time poring over the books and ancient texts in the library. Once all the classrooms had been cleaned, he moved on to cleaning other common areas and the instructors’ offices.
One day, as he was cleaning Master Odin’s office, he noticed the Master had left his hat on his desk. The hat wasn’t much to look at. The brown fabric was old and worn, the brim sagged, and the tip could no longer stand upright. But Hermod sensed an energy emanating from it, almost as if the hat were alive and calling to him. Without fully realizing what he was doing, he picked up the hat. For a moment, he thought how silly he must look standing there holding his Master’s dingy hat.
Then it began to glow with a white light. As Hermod watched in awe, the drooping tip of the hat straightened to stand upright, and the wide brim curled onto itself transforming into a thick, fluffy base. The hat’s dark brown color morphed into a sapphire blue covered in symbols of glowing stars and a crescent moon. The fabric no longer looked old and worn, but fresh and new.
As he clutched the hat, Hermod could feel power flowing through his body. It was different from using the Keyblade. While wielding the Keyblade felt like the power originated from the weapon itself, this felt as if the hat was unlocking power already within himself. With some hesitation, he began to raise the hat to rest it on his head.
“Hermod?”
Hermod instantly dropped the hat at the sound of Master Odin’s voice, letting it fall back onto the desk.
“Master, I apologize. I didn’t mean to—"
“What are you sorry for?” Odin asked.
Hermod looked down at the hat to see it was the same old, brown hat as before. He figured he must have imagined the whole thing, but it seemed so real.
“The dust in here may be getting to you. Why don’t you call it a day?”
“Thank you, sir.”
As Hermod hurried out of the room, Odin picked up the hat and placed it on his own head.
“He’ll do great things with you one day,” he said as he pulled out his copy of the Book of Prophecies and flipped to a page depicting an incredible sorcerer.
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