The schools when they lose a loved one for the first time
Storm students lose that creative… spark they previously had and were known for. They won’t talk to anyone, and definitely won’t talk to you if you mention the terrible storm brewing outside, or if you try to give your condolences. Sometimes, you’ll be able to hear heartbroken sobs if you lurk outside of their dorm. Please, knock on their door, invite yourself in if you have to, and show them that there is still more to life than this grief.
Ice students become colder than ever before. They shut themselves off from everyone, freezing the door shut to their dorm room. They don’t attend the funeral. They become angry, and tend to lash out to their loved ones verbally. Their touch will give you frostbite if they’ve sunken that deep into their own depression, so please be careful, and I’d suggest a warm coat and some mittens before you hug them.
Fire students are… not the most stable at this time. They aren’t safe either. Their possessions tend to be blackened and burned beyond recognition, and their own skin may be as well, if no one is willing to care for their friend who is so obviously in need of love and friendship. Many fire students don’t survive the aftermath of their own grief, so please care for them.
Death students have the short end of the stick, as usual. They blame themselves for this. They say it was their fault. At the funeral, all of the flowers wilt and die when the death student speaks. They won’t cry in front of anyone. They’ll stop eating, or doing anything to continue their own existence. Please, take care of them. Don’t let them go out and fight monsters, because they’ll pick dangerous fights they know they’ll lose. Please, love them, and tell them they study death because without it, the Spiral wouldn’t be balanced. Remind them that without death, life wouldn’t be worth living.
Myth students do not react well to their own sadness. The tightrope they constantly walk between dreams and reality frays, their footsteps too heavy and grief-stricken. They sleep for days on end, smiling slightly, but with the remnants of unshed tears caught in their eyes whenever they wake. They walk as if constantly in a dream now, sometimes you’ll worry that they’ll never wake up. Please, be their alarm if you have to. Wake them, and hug them so tightly that they can’t deny that it’s real, and that they are here.
Life students… oh goodness, those poor life students. For all those years they spend studying the vibrant nature that is Life… they don’t know what to do when it ends. They can’t understand why they didn’t see it, why their healing spell fizzled or why it wouldn’t have worked even if they used one. They walk around in a daze now. They can’t speak of the one they lost. They feel like everything they worked for was for nothing, if it’s all going to end anyway. Please, remind them of why they’re still here, of why everything is worth living for. Sometimes, advice for a life student can be the same for a death student.
Balance students become like bad reflections of themselves. Instead of the mild mannered support everyone’s used to, they are temperamental. They can’t use spells at all anymore, they can’t meditate, or read, or even sleep. They blame themselves, for not protecting and being there for the one they lost. They need the wisdom of old friends. Even if you don’t think you know what to say, talk to them. Please, tell them to take as much time as they need, but to remember that they can rely on others.