Dorin closed his eyes as the lilac smoke engulfed him. He could feel the spell working around him while Seb held his arm firmly.
"A translocation spell..." he thought to himself, "for short distance travel."
When the smoke dissipated, they were standing in front of a small white tent. Several other tents stood on both side of it, all of which had a table in front and one or two people sitting inside. The People inside this particular tent were both staring at Seb and Dorin. The girl in front of the table was holding a bunch of papers, while inside, a guy knelt in front of a box.
"Seb!" said the girl at the front desk, "You know well that you're not supposed to use spells indiscriminately on campus!"
[Is registration still open?] asked Seb, ignoring the girl’s warning.
"Weren't you here earlier?" said the guy inside the tent. He straightened up and dusted his pants. "Besides, all the slots are full."
"Full?" Dorin asked. The two of them looked at the strange boy beside Seb. "But I've gone all this way..."
[Isn't there any other slots available?]
"Sorry, like we said, we're all full." said the girl.
"But it's just 1 more slot..." Dorin begged.
"You see, we give out photography kits to all registrants, so we can't accept more than what we have on hand," the girl told him. "I'm afraid we can't include you unless one of the other registrants back out."
[Then let him take my slot.] wrote Seb.
"Are you sure?" the guy asked. "Haven’t you been waiting for this all school year?"
"Really Seb? You're giving up your spot for me?" asked Dorin.
[Yes. I will try something else.] was the other's written reply.
"You don't know how much this means to me! You are truly an amiable person!" Dorin said unabashed. "From this day forth, I shall think of you as my brother!" He then took hold of Seb's shoulders and kissed both his cheeks. Seb stood there, his face devoid of emotion as Dorin smiled at him. The 2 people from the photography club looked surprised.
"I thank you too!" said Dorin, reaching out to them, the girl flinched as he took her hand and pumped it enthusiastically. "I am called Dorin Silvius."
"Oh, for a minute there I thought you were gonna..." mumbled the girl, turning red. "I am Anastasia, Technology department year 4, and that one over there is Josiah, Science department year 7." Dorin reached out for Josiah's hand as well but the other stepped back.
"Sorry, but I'm not good with physical contact," said he. "Here's the registration form." He handed Dorin two sheets of paper and a pen. "For the fee, just give it to Seb, since he has already paid for his slot."
"Oh, how much do I have to pay?" asked Dorin.
[Two Hundred alma.] wrote Seb before the others can speak.
"Okay..." Dorin took his pouch from his new satchel and counted 200 alma bills as the three stared at the thick wad of money. "Here, you go!" he said cheerfully.
[Thank you. Now, let's go back and have a bite to eat.] wrote Seb, [your treat] he added shortly.
"Of course!" said the other, "It's the least I can do!"
The two went on their way, Dorin chattering happily. Anastasia and Josiah watched as they turned a bend and disappeared from their sight.
"Isn't the registration fee only 50 Almas?" asked Anastasia.
"I feel sorry for that new kid," said Josiah.

"You mean, you can talk to Mar using this... cellphone?" asked Dorin as he inspected the small phone in his hands. "I have read about telephones in my mother's book before, but I have never actually seen one. Don't they need to be connected to lines?" he asked
[cell phones use radio waves transmitted through antennas, no need for cable lines.]
"Oh... I'd like to read about that sometime..."
[you can study at the tech dept.] wrote Seb.
"Study?"
[they have full 1 yr course for cp tech w/ additional 2 yrs for telecom & satellite tech. very in demand & high pay job <3] heart included.
"This is delicious!" Dorin was no longer listening. He took another bite off the hamburger they bought and exclaimed. "What did you say this was called again?"
[Hamburger. Where did you say you were from again?]
"By the way, how can you call Mar if you can't talk?" Dorin asked, ignoring Seb's question.
[Through text or email] Seb made a sequence of swipes and taps. Later, the phone rang. He pressed a button and passed it to Dorin.
"I'm on my way there." It was Margarette.
"Hello? Hello Margarette! Do you hear me?" Dorin shouted at the phone. People in the burger joint looked at him, some of them snickering.
"You're too loud!" Mar shouted back. "I got your message, I'll be there in a minute." There was a click, then a beeping sound. Dorin gave the phone back to Seb who just sat there looking at him, but something tells him the other guy was snickering at him. His shoulders were shaking. Mar arrived later and gave Dorin a key and several sheets of paper.
"That's the key to your university vault. The papers you need to fill up and hand over to the registrar as soon as you can. They open at 8 am tomorrow. All I had was your name, it was a good thing my aunt was in the registrar's office and agreed to let me take the form back with me."