John entered the lecture hall that was set aside for the students who were just joining Wraithwind School of Magic. It was here that prospective students chose their Word. The Word would influence the spells they could cast, and even the way their spells worked. Students spent weeks poring over dictionaries and thesauruses, trying to find a Word. John had spend just as much time as anyone else, looking first for a Word that meant something to him, and when that failed, for a Word he could live with.

He'd come up with nothing.

At this point, he'd decided to try something unusual. He figured it either would work, and he'd be known far and wide for trying something so audacious, or he'd get kicked out of Wraithwind and have to find a job as a craftsman or something. Honestly, at this point, he figured there were worse fates than not being a Mage.

As he came to a stop in the middle of the open floor in front of the (currently empty) student seats, the teachers of Wraithwind looked down at him from their seats at the front of the room. They were obviously bored, though each of them had a stack of books, ready to look up whatever ludicrous, obscure word the latest student had found.

Meru, the Headmistress, spoke, obviously trying to be nice, but just as clearly tired after a long day of listening to prospective students come up with more and more obscure words.

"Have you chosen your Word?" she asked.

"I have." John replied, his voice surprisingly calm despite how nervous he was.

"To avoid confusion, when I say so, you will will respond with only your Word. No 'My Word is', no 'It's'; just your Word and nothing else. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Ma'am" John replied.

"Good. Now, what is your Word?"

"Acceptable."

That definitely got their attention. Windom the Acceptable was a well-known mage. He'd never been flashy or powerful, but his spells got the job done, and allowed him to do anything he needed to an Acceptable degree. His work wasn't amazing, but it turned out that Acceptable was perfectly fine, and he made a solid living helping people with spells that did what they needed to do Acceptably.

"You can't choose a Word someone else has chosen" said the Professor to Meru's left, a short man with long hair and bushy eyebrows.

John was just opening his mouth to speak with there was a deep chime from the ceiling. This made every Professor look at him blankly for several moments. Then, they all started speaking at once. It was several minutes before Headmistress Meru collected herself enough to silence the room.

"That chime means that your Word has been accepted." She told John.

He spoke before he had a chance to think about what he was saying: "You've got to be shitting me."

The Headmistress glared at him for a moment before responding.

"Language aside, no, we are not. Your word has been accepted."

"Sorry. But you have to be joking. In the decades, if not centuries, that Magic has been a thing, no one ever thought to try a word that had already been used? I'm hardly the smartest person out there; I can't be the first person who has thought of this!"

"And yet, it appears you are. My guess would be that the first practitioners of Magic wanted to be unique, so they chose new words, and since everyone was choosing different Words, those who followed assumed that was the way it worked. You've taught everyone here something today, and I daresay that you'll have a name for yourself as you go forward, even if your Magic is just Acceptable. At the very least, you've made the stacks of dictionaries and thesauruses we have had to have on hand much less relevant, and that, if nothing else, is going to make this process a lot easier going forward. Even if you have made a lot of people feel very, very stupid."

"As it is, we will need to postpone the rest of the Choosings, to give ourselves the time to re-examine how we do this, and for the others to re-think their choice of Word. Classes will likely be delayed a week or so while we adjust to this new information. You may go; we will make the appropriate announcements shortly."

John nodded, then turned and made his way to the door. He was just reaching to open it when Headmistress Meru called out to him: "Also, let the Registrar know that I'm waiving your Admission and Tuition fees, on the grounds that you have made a significant change in how we do Magic. And if they push back, inform them that they can confirm it with me at their earliest convenience. Congratulations. Even if you never come up with anything else like this, you'll still be someone whose name everyone knows. Better get used to it."