Chapter 1: The Almanac Of Magic

VALENTINUS COMPLEX
Chapter 1: The Almanac of Magic
I
Céleste stared at the magic almanac she pawned off an untrustworthy merchant. Perhaps the book came from dubious origins, but it contained a treasure trove of words leading to this—that magic was a wondrous thing. Something beautiful. A miracle. Breathtaking, like the splendor of the majestic heavens, God, or even the birth of a newborn baby. Maybe that’s the kind of ordinary magic that people would be perfectly satisfied with, though Céleste yearned for something more. Something that expanded the width and depth and breadth of her mind so that it wouldn’t return to its original dimensions again.

She sorely wanted to become a Witch. The earnest yearning in her heart led her to going to the shady merchant every time, gathering more and more tomes, reading them cover to cover, and practicing the spells within. Reading through the rune-encrypted text underneath her blankets at nighttime, she would practice mouthing and shaping the words and creating the glyphs needed to spellcast. When her fingertip glowed with a small light like a tiny firefly trembling with a luminous pinprick heart, Céleste was absolutely pleased beyond words.

She performed magic!

When she first made this magic, forming light and illuminating the tip of her finger with its warm glow, something lit up in Céleste’s heart. She knew magic was something she would treasure forever in her heart. Her parents would mutter magic was for Witches and Witches and magic were things decent people just don’t do, but how could something as lovely and beautiful as magic be something that shouldn’t be shared and learned with throughout the world? Even if she had to hide in the middle of the night getting off books from the shady merchant, she would definitely continue practicing magic. Yet some of the higher level spells in the book she couldn’t interpret and learn on her own—therefore she needed to find an actual Witch to train her in magic.

“Even if the whole world were to condemn me,” Céleste said. “I will have something that will make me meaningful and fulfilled. If I learn magic and feel its warmth, I feel comforted in a world that feels cruel and unfair. I want to make this world alight with magic! It’s the most powerful force in the world!”

She giggled to herself as she continued to read the book trying to decipher the glyphs that she saw in its dust-worn pages. Some of these gestures and symbols looked really complicated, and Céleste imagined that the more powerful the spell, the more complicated and intricate the glyphs were. Her parents would never have let her have such a book otherwise, though the shady merchant knew that Céleste wanted to learn magic and would pawn books from the Underworld to her for a high price, though to Céleste, these books were worth it. While she studied by a small pool of light that she proudly illuminated with the tip of her finger, Céleste hungered to know more about Witch culture and Witch Society. They seemed to be hidden from the world, and she wondered where they could possibly hide. Magic could make anything possible, didn’t it, even the impossible. She wondered if magic could change people’s hearts.

Her parents didn’t want her to become a Witch. Her mother cried when Céleste claimed that she wanted to be a Witch. She threatened to take away the books that she loved reading and burn them. Céleste, in horror, recoiled at the thought of having her books burned, so she had to resort to hiding her small collection of books and studying them at night underneath her bed covers.

She was fourteen years old, and she wanted to become an apprentice of a Witch. Becoming a Witch’s apprentice had somewhat of a stigma in the society that Céleste lived in, though Céleste thought that showing Witches were good hardworking people like the rest of them and that magic was beautiful would be something she could one day prove to the world. Because magic…ah, magic. It was a glorious splendor that left you in awe. It was like the reverence one had towards God in the Church, except it was something more tangible than something divine in nature. Magic was rooted in alchemistry. Magic had symbols and rules that could be learned. And even someone like her could learn magic.

Céleste was a black-haired girl (A Witch in Training, she told herself) with rather large, doe-like blue eyes that shimmered with excitement whenever magic was mentioned. She hated her tiny stature and how she would never grow no matter how much milk that she drank, either in the features that made a woman have her charms and sex appeal, nor did she grow any taller. She was as flat and slender as a young pubescent boy, and sometimes Céleste would resent the fuller figures of her peers in the village, who would make fun of her for looking like a kid. Not to mention that they would think her loony for thinking of magic and going on and on about it at length without any signs of stopping. She would theorize about magic, she would think about magic, she would talk about magic, every single day, magic consumed her thoughts until she drove the rest of her classmates crazy and led her to be ostracized.

Though Céleste thought that was just as well. She had more time to study magic. But without anyone who would talk to her in the village, Céleste didn’t know if she could find a Witch who would train her. The villagers didn’t outright drive out Witches, though they didn’t welcome them into the village either. Céleste wondered if her talk of magic made the villagers cold towards mention of anything magical or anything related to Witches.

Céleste snapped the tome shut before she whispered. “I’m going somewhere out at night to practice a bigger spell. I don’t want to destroy the house or village…so I’ll practice this spell somewhere far off.”

Céleste let out a sigh of satisfaction before she took her little light from the tip of her finger and the tome of magic that the shady merchant gave her. There was a meeting place they would gather at, and perhaps she could ask him, around this time, where a Witch was that could train her.

Céleste grinned ear from ear. She could make light from her fingertip, sure. But she wanted to do something even more impressive and amazing than just making a little flicker of light from a fingertip. She wanted to learn spells and Magery that could control the weather and phenomenon. She wanted to divine to the spirits and Faye Patrons. She wanted to become a Divine Saintess of the Elements that manipulated all Magical Arts. Trained Witches often served underneath a Monarch as a certified Court Magician, though Céleste didn’t know what kind of fate she had in store for her future. She wanted an adventure, so maybe being tied to a Kingdom just wasn’t her thing.

Though if she had to make a temporary compromise to learn training for more powerful magical spells, she would travel the world and help people with her magic.

Because magic was meant to help others.

She had nothing else but magic.

If she couldn’t help others, what good was she?

When she made her way outside with the book in a hooded cloak, Céleste made her way out on the cobblestone streets and went through narrow passageways, careful to hide the light on her fingertip from casting too much light outwards but just enough so she could traverse the darkness.

When she made her way to the meeting place, she found the shady merchant there as always.

“Welcome, welcome, Céleste,” the shady merchant said with a magnificent flourish and a bow. “Have you come to see my wares and baubles? You will find amazing things in this emporium, things beyond your imagination and creation! Do you want to see the tuft of a Phoenix tail feather? Red plumage with scorch of flame. How about an alchemy potion? Or perhaps…you want another book on magic? Sorry, I’m out today, but I’m sure that next week I will have one in stock.”

“I wanted to ask you where I can find a Witch,” Céleste said to the shady merchant. “There’s a spell I want to learn, and low-level spells like making light with my fingertip just aren’t cutting it.”

The shady merchant’s finely polished mustache trembled. “You know it’s dangerous. I suggest that you stop this nonsense!”

“You were the one who supplied me the books and I learned them quickly enough,” Céleste said. “So why not tutor me further? I want something powerful and amazing!”

“Little Miss, perhaps you would be more interested in buying my wares rather than silly magic books,” the merchant said before Céleste looked towards him curiously. “Oh? Do you want to find a Witch?”

Céleste nodded, sitting on the edge of his caravan of wares and swinging her legs playfully. “Indeed I do!”

“Pray tell, what will you do when you find a proper tutor for magic?”

“I will befriend her,” Céleste said with a smile. “And learn underneath her. I want to become a proper Witch.”

The shady merchant twirled his thin mustache, harrumphing underneath his breath.

“It won’t do to get involved with Witches,” the shady merchant said. “Yes, they appreciate the wares in my Emporium, which I get from VERY RELIABLE SOURCES, but Witches…why do you want to get involved, Céleste?”

“Why not?” Céleste said as she jumped off the ledge of the back of the caravan, putting her arms akimbo on her hips to stare the merchant down despite her short height. Oh, how she bemoaned that nearly everyone was taller than her, including some children younger than her! She was fourteen!

“Why don’t you want to stay in your village?”

“I want to go on an adventure,” Céleste deciding. “And prove to the world that magic is beautiful. That it’s not something to be afraid of, that it can help others and do amazing things!”

The shady merchant’s mustache stopped trembling for a moment.

“And?”

“I want to learn magic because…it’s the one thing that I have a little bit of skill for. I worked hard to do what I can do now. But now, I need a proper mentor to teach me the intermediate and advanced things, or else I’m afraid that I’ll waste away in this village without learning the true beauty and intricacies of what makes magic so fun and beautiful and…”

“Do you think that you’re using magic as a way to cover a hole inside yourself?” the shady merchant said, not unkindly. “Magic is a tool. It seems amazing to those who are superstitious and mundane to those who practice it. Though magic isn’t a cure-all for everything, you know?”

“What is magic to you, then?” Céleste said.

The shady merchant considered.

“Magic is something that the illusionists and mages and shamans and diviners use,” the shady merchant said. “For me, I’m nothing more than a humble merchant that sells magical goods from VERY RELIABLE SOURCES.”

Céleste considered for a moment. “Isn’t there a Witch that you know of or has connections to you?”

The man harrumphed again.

“Odd duck, that one is,” the man said, and Céleste leaned forward eagerly.

“What’s her name? Is she nearby?”

“Young lady,” the merchant said. “I must play the part of a responsible adult and advise you that you don’t get involved with the Starlight Witch. She has a reputation of sorts, you see…”

“Where does she live?” Céleste pressed, and the man sighed at her insistence.

“It’s a dangerous trek that you’ll need to buy wares for,” the shady merchant said. “However, that means you’ll have to get a job around the village and earn your keep to buy them. I’ve given you some free books before, old tomes that I’ve lent to you, though if you’re really determined to meet this Starlight Witch, you need to prove that you’re willing to work hard for it.”

Céleste heard nothing else except the possibility that she would be able to meet the Starlight Witch. She would work hard, she had a good work ethic, and she was able to do a number of spells because she studied them so frequently and practiced them often. It wouldn’t do if she didn’t come prepared with some rudimentary knowledge, though she thought that since she mastered the basics, she was ready to become an intermediate learner in the craft of magic!

“I must meet the Starlight Witch,” Céleste said, her eyes alight with passion. “No matter what!”

The man harrumphed again, twirled his mustache, before he leaned forward and began to whisper tales that he knew.

Céleste's eyes widened as she listened to tales from the shady merchant. She wanted to go on adventures to collect spells, but to do that, she needed to get a license as a Witch practitioner. And to do that, she needed a Witch mentor to train her. She heard of the Starlight Witch’s reputation, as a wandering eccentric with silver hair glimmering like ethereal moonlight and sky blue eyes that shimmered and sparkled like sapphire jewels. As one of the most powerful Witches in the world, she never got a license to become a Court Practitioner as a Magician, even though she was perfectly capable of receiving one. Céleste wished to collect all the spells in the world to learn the secrets of magic and find a beautiful spell that would grant a wish dear in her heart—to make people happy. But what spell would make people happy? Spells were said to be manifested by wishes, and could grant people what they wanted—wealth, fame, knowledge, anything.

The Starlight Witch was a walking grimoire of spells, having all the tomes of ancient magic stored inside her head. No one knew exactly how long she lived, though people mentioned that, despite her youthful appearance, she was a hundred years old, or perhaps more. Céleste didn’t know whether it was the use spells or having a powerful mana affinity, that made people young, though the Starlight Witch, according to rumors, was many a man’s passing fancy. She…also had those womanly charms women coveted, so if Céleste found a spell for having a heavenly body coming through people’s orbits, then it would make her happy to be the object of admiration and attention. Though no, Céleste was born with a flat chest, scrawny hips, and a short stature, which, as much as it was a part of her, she wished she could change out of her body, much like used clothes.

“So if you’re to meet this Starlight Witch,” the Shady Merchant said. “She’s up on the wandering house on the hill. I recently saw it there.”

“She has a moving house?” Céleste breathed in awe.

“It takes magical gears and pulleys and other things to operate, though yes,” the Shady Merchant said. “She might be willing to take on an apprentice to take care of the house and chores, before she’ll teach some magic.”

“Chores?” Céleste said curiously, then nodded. She supposed it made sense, though she didn’t think doing something as mundane as chores would help her with magic. “Is it true that she’s a living grimoire and has every tome of magic and spell memorized? Can she…really grant whatever wish you desire?”

The man harrumphed.

“Wishes are for dreamers. What you need to do is focus on making your dreams a reality and seize it! What are you waiting for! I’ll guide you along the way, only if you don’t practice magic for twenty-four hours. And I’ll know, too, if you’ve done so or not.”

Céleste bit her lip.

“Do you have connections with the Starlight Witch?”

The shady merchant looked toward her, before he laughed. “I don’t have anything to do with Witches, normally, though I’m a collector of books, whether magical or otherwise. The Starlight Witch is a secret legend that has been passed throughout the ages among few circles. How did you come to know of her?”

“I know of her legends,” Céleste said with starry-eyed admiration. “She’s the whole reason why I wanted to become a Witch! The marvel of knowing whatever spell you want, from the great grimoires that are stored in her head..I want to pass on her legend and becoming a living library of grimoires! I want to grant the wishes of the people, and fill this world with flowers and make this world Heaven on Earth for those who wish for better lives.”

“That is an admirable wish,” The shady merchant said in admiration. “Perhaps there will be legends written about you, one day. I try to keep whatever books on lore and history that I can, so that these things will not be forgotten.”

“You know, we’ve talked occasionally,” Céleste said. “Though I don’t believe I’ve ever asked for your name before, have I?”

I make a point not to introduce my name,” the shady merchant said. “I do, after all, have a variety of potions, baubles, and grimoires of the forbidden nature.”

“Well, even if there are forbidden knowledge and indexes,” Céleste said. “Isn’t it good to know about them so that one can defend against them, should an unscrupulous person use them against you one day?”

“And what makes you think that I’m such a trustworthy person, Céleste?” the shady merchant said with a chuckle.

“I can’t know for sure, but I have my suspicions that you’re more than who you say you are,” Céleste said with a mysterious smile on her face. “Though anyway, I think I should start to do this test of yours, of not performing any magic or spells for twenty-four hours. Do you absolutely swear that you will take me to the Starlight Witch if I do?”

The shady merchant gave her an equally mysterious smile. “I always make sure that my promises are fulfilled. After all, promises are meant to be kept.”

Céleste smiled, before she gave the shady merchant a wave and headed back to her manor where she would pore over the books on magic that she acquired, but didn’t practice any of the spells. It was tempting fate, to be sure, though if Céleste didn’t do something that involved magic of some sort, she would be bored out of her mind. So she read about the history of magic and the genealogy of witches instead.

She hunted through the words and timelines through history, recreating a historical replica inside the 3D model of her mind the re-enactment of events and feats of Witches long since past inside her imagination. If there was one thing about magic, it all started in the imagination, and Celeste supposed that this would be a fine thing to practice before she eventually went on to advance to finer spells that would require more finesse and technique.

As time passed by and Celeste hummed to herself and entertained herself by reading books, trying her hardest not to perform magic, clock in her room ticked and chimed, indicating that the hour was nigh where she would meet with the shady merchant once more. Celeste jumped out of her bed, grinning ear to ear, before her bare feet slapped against the marble floors. She went and grabbed her shoes, slipping them on as she went, before she ran across the countryside and went to the usual place where she met the shady merchant.

She trekked up the cobblestone streets, along the dirt path that swirled into the dark forest that loomed overhead with towering, sentinel pine trees, and she waited on a tree stump that a logger cut down on a particularly girthy tree many moons ago. She swung her legs to and fro, anticipating the shady merchant’s arrival, and just as promised, the shady merchant arrived with his caravan, the wheels grinding and churning along the forest path.

“Good evening to you, Celeste,” the shady merchant said cheerily as he opened up his emporium of wares. “Here to purchase anything?”

“You know what I’m here for,” Celeste said, leaning forward as she eagerly recounted her day. “And I didn’t use magic at all! It was quite difficult, though I managed, but my resolve to meet the Starlight Witch was stronger than whatever boredom or temptation that would overcome me!”

“Hm,” the shady merchant said as he twirled his mustache. “What makes you want to practice magic so much, Celeste?”

Celeste leaned forward, the grin outstretched on her face. “Why? Because she’s marvelous! She’s my inspiration! If I learn magic like her and travel across the world collecting spells and grimoires like she did, that would be a wondrous adventure, don’t you think?”

With a flourish of his cape and slipping a crate from his caravan with his foot, the merchant skillfully maneuvered the crate underneath him and twirled, his entire body swirling and distorting into a spiraling swirl that disappeared into space like a magician’s act. Celeste stood open-mouthed at such an act, before the shady merchant rematieralized again, not as the shady merchant, but as an entirely different person.

She had gossamer white hair that was reminiscent of starlight, and her eyes were an infinite blue like the cerulean skies on a clear cloudless day. She wore her full outfitted Witch Reglia, which was in the color scheme of violet and pink and hints of light blue as the accented trimmings. Her hat, which was stitched with eyes for holes and a crazy patch sewn mouth with a face on the hat, looked quite impressive. Then finally, the tip of her pointed had had a blue flame protruding from the end, burning intensely.

“Well then,” the Witch said, adjusting her hat on her head and smiling gently toward Celeste. “You’ve proven your dedication and your tutelage underneath me. You’ve read all the basic beginners books that I’ve had to offer. So now the real lesson begins, I believe.”

Celeste’s eyes fluttered in disbelief, before she said, “Are you…could it be possible that you’re…the Starlight Witch herself???”

“I’ve come to be known by many titles and names, and that was one of them, yes,” the Witch said. “However, since you know my true form now, and not my disguise, let me introduce myself formally. My name is Estrella. Nice to meet you properly, Celeste.”

Celeste smiled, before she curtsey's with the ends of her dress and bobbed her pixie-cut hair. She then straightened and saluted the Starlight Witch, her idol of idols, before saying, “Just let me know, Ma’am, when training starts. I’m ready for anything and everything.”

Estrella smiled, before she said, “My, eager, aren’t we? But first we must exhibit patience first, Celeste. Magic isn’t something to be taken lightly. Yes, it can grant wishes and provide miracles, but there are also many things of the forbidden nature that can corrupt and elicit malice in others, should one allow themselves to be overtaken by it.”

Celeste considered for a moment, before she said, “Can you let me think for a moment, please? I’m just really excited, that my idol is here and I’m ging to learn magic underneath her.”

Estrella bowed her head, before saying, “If there is one spell that you would like to learn, what would you like to learn, Celeste? I can grant you any spell that you wish, should you ask for it.”

Celeste paused for a moment, before she saluted the Witch again and bowed her head. “I want to discover all the spells in the world myself. I will gather all the knowledge of the spells that you’ve learned by your own hands by myself, with my own skilll, talent, and experience. I don’t want someone else to give it to me.”

Estrella chuckled a bit, before saying, “Well said. That is why I will be your mentor.”

Celeste gaped her mouth open again. “For real?”

Estrella put a hand to the side of her cheek. “Of course. I’ve determined that you’ve got a good heart, Celeste. A heart that is untainted by malice ambition and a lust for power. Even if you do know all the spell in the world, I’m sure that you will use them wisely.”

“If I were to learn a spell,” Celeste said as she looked toward the sky, which was starting to become pink with the tinges of dawn. “I want a spell that fills the world with flowers.”

Estrella laughed again.

“What a wonderful spell. Let me show you a spell that grows the most radiant of flowers of all colors.”

Estrella, with a wave of her hand, swept her hand across the landscape and the fields were suddenly abundant with flowers. Wildflowers of different colors of pink purple, white, yellow, blue, orange, and every color in between. Celeste knelt down by the flowers, delighted by their sight and smell, fragrant with the heady sweet scent of nature and colorful pollen, before Celeste turned to the Starlight Witch.

“Thank you for showing me such a wonderful spell,” Celeste said with a smile. “I want to make a spell that would make everyone smile like this. Flowers are so beautiful…I’m sure if everyone saw flowers as wonderful as this, people would have a smile on their face.”

“I’m glad you like them,” Estrella said. “I can show you other spells, should you wish it. There are many Tomes to read, many spells to learn, and everything that you learn will be imprinted into your mind and heart. Because magic is emotion, and emotion is magic. Because without emotions and our minds and souls, we wouldn’t be the wonderful and fascinating creatures that we are.”

Celeste smiled, before she gathered up a bunch of flowers without plucking them and cradled them, inhaling their scent. She loved these flowers, and the flowers nodded drowsily in the wind as their pollen spread across the breeze. A butterfly flapped its wings and settled on a petal of one, and then more butterflies gathered around the field of wild flowers in glittering streams of sparkling light.

“This is a magnificent sight,” Celeste said with a smile. “One day I hope to create a world where the entire world is covered in flowers! It would make everyone smile, wouldn’t it?”

Estella gave that mysterious smile of hers, before she said. “I can teach you the spell for making a field of flowers, if you would like, Celeste. Though didn’t you say that you wanted to learn more sophisticated spells?”

Celeste nodded.

“That is true. But something that captures the happiness and smiles of others is something I wish for, too. I want to know all the spells in the world, finding that one spell that would grant the wishes of anyone who would ask me for it.”

“You want to learn magic to grant people’s wishes, then,” Estrella said, before she smiled. “That’s not a bad answer. I like the way you think, Celeste.”

“Say,” Celeste said as she stood up and smoothed the wrinkles in her short skirt. “Since you’ve accepted me as your apprentice…what kind of training did you want me to do?”

Estrella put a hand to her mouth and began laughing a bit. “I’m going to be taking you to my magically constructed house. It’s a transdimensional house that moves and has a ton of gears and pulleys that allow it to wander the landscape while also standing at the edge of the world. I sometimes use it to hide, in general.”

Celeste put a hand to her mouth, before saying, “You…you haven’t committed a crime or anything, have you?”

Estrella smiled, before she waved her hand. “Nothing so serious as that. No, I hide because…I have many suitors who come from the transdimensional spaces to ask for my hand in marriage. That interferes with my life’s work, you see, so I just hide. That’s why I created this house. It really wasn’t meant to house anyone else, though I’ll make an exception in this case.”

Celeste’s eyes literally glittered with wonder.

“T-Thank you so much, Estrella! You’re the coolest teacher that I know!”

“Hmhm,” Estrella hummed as she waved her hand and the field of flowers and butterflies glittered with more vibrant light, preserving them in peaceful solitude in the woods. “Let us go, then.”

“Er, you know,” Celeste said as she continued to fidget with the ends of her skirt. “Do you know what I should do about getting many suitors myself? I er…certainly don’t have your buxom body, miss Estrella.”

“To tell you the truth,” Estrella said as she leaned close and whispered something in Celeste’s ear. “I use a spell to make my breasts bigger. We can do something about that for you too, if you want to.”

Celeste clapped her hands together, before saying, “There is a spell for that? Oh, well, I suppose they would have a spell for everything, wouldn’t they?”

“Spells for beauty and charm have always existed,” Estrella said with a mysterious smile. “If I can transform into the shady merchant that you know and have trusted all this time, don’t you think there would be a spell for enhancing bodily assets.”

“That is true,” Celeste said as she considered it. “Still, now that I think about it—would there be anybody who would love me for the real me, instead of the magic spell and charm that I put on myself.”

Estrella smiled again, before she gathered Celeste into her arms before stroking her hair. “You’re a very good and earnest girl. Even though you may not have the ‘assets’ that you would like, you are beautiful and you have an earnest heart. You also have an aptitude for spells and magic, and a keen intelligence and curiosity for learning. I’m sure that there would be someone out there who would love you, because these are wonderful qualities in a person that one can’t help but think are admirable.”

Celeste smiled up at Estrella, before she said. “Before I go…can I talk with my parents for a moment? I’m sure that they won’t miss me overly much, but you know. It’s formality that I tell them that I’m leaving on a journey.”

Estrella nodded.

“I’ll be waiting here. Same time, same place. I’m about to be leaving soon, so be sure that you catch me before I’m off.”

“Of course,” Celeste said as she bowed. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world! I can finally get out of this dreary town and learn magic, for real! I’m honestly the luckiest and most excited girl in the world!”