A Touch of Magic

Mira had no definitive destination in mind, really. And this time it was she who took the lead, just walking from one street to the next. This continued for roughly ten minutes until Mira had found a space to sit down; to a bench in a large tree’s shadow. They passed by plenty of people, some of whom threw curious glances, especially at Mira. All of them were humans, she could tell from their ears.

My people really aren’t common here, are they? She thought.

She sat down, crossed her legs and opened her spellbooks, the new one and the old. Rhys sat down a few inches away from her and crossed his arms over his knees.

“Okay… Time to get started!” Mira chirped.

She pulled out the quill and the inkwell, dipped the quill in it and started transcribing the spells. She focused, the tip of her tongue stuck from the corner of her mouth. Rhys watched over her shoulder and rubbed his chin.

“So… Uhhh…” Rhys muttered as he looked over Mira’s shoulder.

“Can… You actually read that?” he asked bluntly.

“Of course! It’s my handwriting. I wouldn’t be able to transcribe it otherwise.” She said.

When given a glance, Mira knew that what she wrote appeared like near indecipherable scrawl. Even what she was writing now was no different. Nonetheless, she continued her swift movements across the paper with a cheery hum.

“I see… But all of this just looks… All over the place. I can’t make out anything.”

“That’s on purpose. It’s a wizard tradition to encrypt your book. You can read it, someone else can’t. If I had magicked ink, that would make it even harder! The letters would just shift around on the pages all the time. No way you can read that.”

“An odd tradition… Don’t take this the wrong way but are you sure you’re not just saying that because of your uhm… handwriting?”

“W-what?! No! That really is the case!”

Mira puffed her cheeks out in a pout. She didn’t feel outraged or angered. If anything, she felt a little amused by it. If he hadn’t seen a proper spellbook before, she could see where he was coming from. Rhys shook his hands before himself in surrender while chuckling.

“I kid, I kid! But… I take it you recall magic practices then?”

Mira halted her quill. She closed her eyes and once again reached inward. Her name and her craft, those were the things she recalled. And she couldn’t describe it either. To her, this was as natural as breathing or walking. The way her mind processed these diagrams, the alignment of all these runes. It simply felt right in a way she couldn’t explain.

“Funny, isn’t it? I know how this works. And how to handle a catalyst too. But I can’t recall my spells.”

She tapped her staff, said catalyst. She narrowed her eyes with a smile.

“That shop… I felt at home there. I don’t think it’s far-fetched to say that magic was important to me, right?” she said and turned her head over to him.

The light reflected briefly in her glasses and the gentle breeze stirred her lavender twintails in waves.

“It just… Feels natural to me.” She added.

Rhys’ gaze wandered to her staff, then the book, then her eyes. Once their gazes locked, he started smiling again.

“Sounds like it was important to you.”

“It does. A shame I don’t recall the rest of my spells… It just means I have to start from scratch.” She sighed.

“What do you have so far then?”

“Hmm… It’s called ‘Starlight Missile’ and it allows me to… Hurl a missile of Starlight. An offensive spell. And the other is called… Levitate. And it’s uh… some minor telekinesis spell.”

She reached for her staff and curled her hands around it. A demonstration. No, this was more for her. What wizard would only write and think about spells? No, she needed to cast at least one of those spells. And since using an offensive spell in the middle of town seemed quite counterproductive, she chose the other. She aimed her staff’s tip at her utensils and steadied her breathing.

Okay… Focus. Let your Vis circulate… Let it leave through your hands and… she thought.

She felt something rush through her, to her hand and through the staff. It was a tingling sensation, like a warm, comfortable shower. A feeling that felt strange yet all so familiar to her. The magical energy gathered and rushed through her body, to her arms and hands. In response her staff’s head emitted a faint, lavender glow and a soft humming sound in response.

They heard a clear sound, like that of tinkling bells. A gentle, amber glow surrounded her books, her quill and inkwell. And then they began to float evenly. She focused on her utensils. They lifted, faint amber sparkles falling from the glowing surrounding them. Mira gasped in delight and bounced in her seat.

“Ah, it worked!” she squealed.

That little display of magic, and of course her delightful squeal, earned her a few curious glances from the passerby but also Rhys right next to her. Rhys watched on with wide eyes. Cautiously but still curious, he lifted a hand and poked the book. It swayed gently to the side but stayed aloft.

“Fasciniating! I wonder… How much can you lift with that?”

“Good question! Want to test it?”

“Sure! With what?”

“Hmm… Can I lift your halberd, maybe? It looks heavy!”

Rhys seemed taken aback by that suggestion. But she smiled brightly at him, her eyes glinting with a delighted shimmer. Sure it was a weapon but maybe she could lift it anyway! She got no direct answer, but he chuckled and unstrapped his halberd, holding it out for her.

“Just be careful with it.” He said with a smirk.

“Don’t worry, I will. Aaand… here we go!”

She set down her items and focused on the halberd instead. Another rush of Vis through her body, another magical release and the halberd was lifted. It floated just a few inches above Rhys’ hand and Mira showed no signs of strain.

“Hmm. It looks heavy in your hands… But I can lift it with no problem. Oh, wait a second! I have an idea!” she chirped and let the halberd sink back into his hands.

“What are you t- Huh?!”

This time Rhys was engulfed in an amber glow. Mira puffed her cheeks and tried to lift her staff up. But nothing happened. Instead she got a headache and began feeling dizzy. Unlike before, she was met with resistance, not unlike trying to manually lift a heavy object. She could not raise her staff. But that didn’t mean she would stop trying!

“I feel a little lighter though. Not much but…” he looked back at Mira and chortled when he saw that red-faced, strained expression of hers.

“Stop it, Mira! You’re overexerting yourself!” he laughed and poked her cheek.Mira exhaled and lifted the spell, the amber glow vanishing from his form.

“Ah… Hah… I guess a whole person won’t work…” she said.

She hunched over and supported herself on her staff. That wouldn’t work, it seemed. The dizzy feeling was short lived and faded as soon as the spell was broken. She caught her breath and straightened herself again. So there was an obvious weight limit to the spell. Rhys watched her recover and eyed her staff again, then her magic utensils and rubbed his chin.

“I have to say… Seeing magic is always curious. I’ve seen Velvet cast it and now you too.” He said with a smile and strapped his halberd back on.

“You could do it too by the way.” Mira said and beads of sweat from her forehead.

“Wait… Me?” he asked with wide eyes and pointed at himself.

“Of course! You’ve done it before. Maybe not consciously but those little sparkles you conjure up? That’s magic too.” She said and angled her head with a finger on her cheek.

“Technically speaking, all people have Vis, magical energy so to speak. We take it in from the environment. Some have more, some have less. But not everyone can control it. That’s what makes a wizard a wizard.” She said and tapped her staff for emphasis.

“Ah, that is oversimplifying it! But basically-“ she started and pointed a finger at him.

“You could do it too. I can tell you’ve got aptitude for it.” She finished and crossed her arms behind her back.

“Me, a wizard…?” he put a hand on his hip and looked to the sky.

“Maybe not a full wizard. But you could supplement your martial skills with magic. Like uh… making your halberd sharper or bigger. Or infusing it with light. Like that.”

“Rhys the magical guard…” Rhys said, tasting it on his tongue. His smile grew wider, and even wider. Mira could tell that he was picturing something in his head. And he was really liking what he saw. She began to mirror his smile.

“You know? Your gramps and you helped me out a lot. And uh… I don’t have much money. But if you would like me to… then…” she said and looked to the ground, drawing circles into the stone pavement with a boot.

“You mean… You would teach me?” Rhys said with his mouth open.

“I mean… I’m not sure how good I would be with it but… If you want to?” she said and gently lifted her head, looking up at him through her lashes with a sheepish smile.

Rhys’s face was a show of surprise. Even Albert said it: Wizards were not common. And she could tell from his face that the thought never crossed his mind that he could possibly wield the arcane himself. His blue cape danced in the wind, just like Mira’s lavender hair did. She waited, patiently for an answer. Part of her expected him to reject the offer. But then he breathed in, smiled and nodded firmly.

“I would like that, yes! Once we’ve seen your ship, I’ll take you up on the offer!” he proclaimed and moved to a bow.

“I, Rhys Milunis, the most recent member of Laotaan’s militia, will gladly take up on this fair maiden’s offer!” he added.

Mira’s brows furrowed and she smiled wryly. Again with the overly chivalrous mannerisms. To her it was as puzzling as it was charming. But unlike Albert, she didn’t have the heart to tell him to shut up, let alone cane him. He looked like he was having fun, and far be it from her to say anything against that.

“You’re odd… But it’s a deal then.” She said and brushed a hand through her hair. “Shall we go?”

“Of course, just follow me. I’ll see you to your shipwreck in no time!”

Rhys said and walked on ahead. Every step of his was filled with newfound enthusiasm and Mira followed closely behind, aiming for the town’s edge.