Chapter Thirty-Nine
Victor and Leo walk through a mirror into a tiny shop.
Half of the store resembles a convenience store, offering food and drinks, while the other half serves as a gift shop with a wide selection of Hawaiian-themed items. The shop owner sits behind the counter on a tall chair, reading his magazine while listening to the radio.
He doesn’t bother looking up when they arrive.
“Aloha, Koa,” Leo says as he and Victor approach him.
Koa doesn’t look up and gives Leo a little wave. If you would call raising your hand off the counter and fluttering your fingers in the air a “wave.” As soon as Victor is about to step outside, he stops suddenly. He turns around and begins scanning around the shop.
Leo is already walking away from the shop. He turns around when he notices Victor is not next to him. He looks back and spots Victor looking around. Leo walks back up to the entrance. “What is it?”
Victor looks around the shop until he notices a rack of necklaces and bracelets against a wall.
When he walks over, his vision begins to blur.
This time, he focuses on the energy given off by many of the items in the shop.
One in particular catches his attention.
A red hue surrounds the small charm hanging on a hook.
Leo steps up beside Victor, asking softly, “What do you see?”
“This charm,” Victor responds as he points to it. A Hawaiian fishhook made out of lava rock from the island. It is an inch and a half long, and gleaming. Unlike the other charms, it is not attached to a necklace.
“Pele must like you,” Koa says. Victor and Leo jump out of their skins because they didn’t hear Koa walk up behind them.
“DON’T DO THAT!” Victor shouts as he holds onto his chest. “Why does everyone have to sneak up on me?”
“And you’re the empath,” Leo jokes.
Victor fixes his breathing as he returns his soul back into his body. “What do you mean by ‘Pele must like you?’” Victor asks Koa.
Koa takes the charm off the hook. “Pele is the Goddess of Volcanoes and Fire. She does not allow anyone to remove native pieces from these islands, like the lava rocks or sand. If you do, you will be cursed with bad luck until you return it.”
Leo gives Koa a skeptical look. “That’s just a myth.”
“I would trust what Koa is saying,” Victor says as Koa hands him the charm. “I’ve been on flights to Hawai’i, carrying mail and boxes filled with lava rocks being returned because someone started having bad luck when they got home from their holiday.”
“Seriously?” Leo questions.
“Don’t tell me that Mr. Leo over here doesn’t believe in superstitions,” Victor jokes. “I’m sure Brazil has a few, like if someone sweeps your feet with a broom or if you leave your flip-flops upside down.”
Leo gives Victor a pointed look. “Don’t you dare joke about those things.”
“So, will this charm be for you?” Koa asks as he studies Victor.
“What kind of charm is it?” Victor inquires as he examines the charm in the palm of his hand.
“This charm is perfect for those who are gifted with Fire. It helps it burn hotter and brighter.” Koa leans in, speaking in a lower register, “It is also said that if it is a gift, the receiver will have a strong bond with the one who offered it to them.”
Victor studies the power stored inside the tiny fishhook made from lava rock. “I’ll take it.”
Moments later, Victor and Leo walk out of the shop. As Victor looks at the charm, he purposely walks slower than Leo. Once Leo’s in front of him, he says, “Hold on. Let me fix your tag. “
“My tag?” Leo questions.
Victor walks up behind Leo and pretends to fix Leo’s shirt tag. With quick hands, he unclasps Leo’s necklace and slips the charm on it. He attaches the chain and allows the charm to drop forward.
“What the . . .” Leo is startled when he feels the charm fall down his chest. He looks down, holding it with his fingertips, and says, “I should have known you were up to something.”
Victor leans in and kisses Leo on the cheek, barely touching the corner of Leo’s mouth. “I think it suits you. So, where are we heading?”
As the words leave Victor’s mouth, a black 1979 Lincoln Continental town car pulls up as if on cue. And surprise, surprise—it’s the same driver from New York and Kyoto.
“How much longer is she going to be our driver?” Victor queries.
“I think for a few more weeks,” Leo mentions as he opens the door for Victor.
A 20-minute ride later, they pull into an empty field, half of which is covered with dry lava. In the distance, Kīlauea, an active volcano, is visible, with a light plume emanating from it. After Victor and Leo walk a few feet from the town car, the driver takes off, only to park under a tree.
“What? She’s not going to leave us behind this time?” Victor asks sarcastically.
“Nope, because she has nowhere to be. Also, she has all our food and drinks, so she can’t go anywhere.” Leo walks forward onto the dry lava. “Welcome to your Fire Magic training, young empath. And just because I’ll be your instructor for this doesn’t mean I’ll go easy on you.”
“Do I get a passing grade for sleeping with the teacher?” Victor jokes with a devilish grin.
Leo shakes his head and laughs. “What am I to do with you?” Leo twirls his wrist around, making a makeshift coat rack out of the lava rocks.
He slips off his jacket and tosses it onto the rack.
Leo moves further into the field while flicking his wrist and conjuring a blue fireball in his hand.
“If you haven’t already noticed, I have conjured fire in colors other than your typical reds or oranges.
That’s because the color depends on the intensity. ”
“So, kind of like how hot a star is based on its color. Red stars aren’t as hot as blue or white stars,” Victor suggests.
Leo nods as he processes Victor’s response. “I think that’s one of the best analogies that has been said. In this case, it’s the opposite; red is more intense, and blue is less intense.” Leo flings the fireball at Victor.
Victor blocks it with little effort. “Seriously, Leo?”
Leo ignores Victor’s response as he continues.
“The most commonly used are red, orange, and blue. You will sometimes see yellows or greens. But you’ll only see that for those with more Fire Magic experience because they use more magic.
Let’s say if I want to burn down Derek’s house, I would simply use a red fireball.
But if I need to break through three feet of steel, I would need to use a yellow flame thrower. ”
Leo shoots his palm above his head, and a yellow flame blasts up at least ten feet.
Victor has to cover his eyes from its brightness.
The heat from the flame causes him to sweat instantly.
“Fireballs and Flame Throws use different forms of energy and intensity. You need to be careful when using either.” Leo cuts off the flame and dusts off his hands.
Victor takes off his jacket and places it on the coat rack next to Leo’s. “Why are you telling me about this first?”
“Because just like actual fire and its intensity, if you cannot keep it contained, it can grow out of control,” Leo explains.
“I’ve seen some ‘know-it-all’ witches that claim they are experts in Fire Magic.
They ended up with severe burns on their hands.
Some can’t grow their eyebrows any more like a Kardashian. ”
Leo conjures two small fireballs in one hand.
They slowly circle each other like two stars caught in each other’s orbits.
“When learning Fire, you should always master other specialties first, even if your first specialty is Fire. If you can control the other specialties, you will understand how to control Fire. It’s also beneficial if Air is one of your other specialties.
It helps fire breathe, and it helps snuff it out. ”
Leo balls up his hand, snuffing out the two fireballs as he walks a few feet backward. “Take off your sword and come stand over here.”
Victor removes his harness and hangs it with their jackets. He walks over and stands a couple of feet from Leo. The uneven ground makes it appear as though Leo is taller than Victor.
“Now, hold out your hands with your palms raised. Almost like you’re praising a god.” Leo motions his hands as mentioned.
“Like Pele?” Victor grins slyly.
Leo giggles and loses focus. “Yes, like you’re praising Pele.
” He clears his throat and straightens his stance.
“Now, I want you to feel the heat beneath your feet. Feel the flow of the magma under you. Focus on the fire burning the ground. When you feel that, take hold of it and bring it up and into your hands.”
Victor raises his palms and closes his eyes, focusing on his breathing to open his mind.
He turns his attention to the energy below him.
He could feel the heat rising. A warm sensation begins crawling up his legs.
It warms his torso and continues up to his shoulders.
The sensation extends down his arms and into his hands.
Victor suddenly hears clapping.
As he slowly opens his eyes, a tiny orange flame dances around in each hand. It’s not quite a fireball, but the fire spins in the ocean breeze. They cover his entire palms and are about six inches tall.
“Wow,” Leo exclaims proudly. “Many who start learning can’t do this for at least a week.”
“Maybe it’s because of the connection from the charm I got you,” Victor winks.
Leo snickers as he rolls his eyes. “Now, drop that energy back into the ground.” Victor closes his eyes and starts to feel the warmth in his body fade away.
“Good,” Leo remarks. “That’s really good. I’m impressed. Now, bring back that energy. Only this time, I want you to focus on how much of that energy you want. Try to make the flames blue.” Leo holds out his hand and conjures a blue flame in his palm.
Victor nods and returns to focusing on the fire below. After a moment, he stops, opens his eyes, and starts shifting them around as he wonders what to do.
“What is it?” Leo asks curiously.
Victor thinks for a moment. “I’m trying to figure out how to control the amount of energy. I can feel it in my core, but it feels too hot for some reason.”
“So, what would you do if your body is too hot?” Leo probes.
Victor deliberates on what Leo is asking. “You would try to cool it down.”
Leo nods in agreement. “And how would you cool it down?”
“By turning on a fan or drinking some water,” Victor replies. Leo gives Victor a smile and a wink.
Victor has an epiphany. “Ahhhh, I get it now.” Victor starts focusing again, this time on the air around him to help cool him down. He can feel the air being absorbed into his pores and notices the change in his body’s heat. Soon enough, blue flames dance around in his hands.
“Perfeito!” Leo cheers. “Now, this is the tricky part. Do you remember how to focus on creating a water ball?”
“Yeah?” Victor responds.
“Use that same thought process—only this time, with fire,” Leo orders.
Victor focuses on the fire in his hands. He can feel that the fire doesn’t want to become a ball. He takes a deep breath and keeps trying, but the fire doesn’t want to listen. Victor’s hands begin to shake, and the flames extinguish as he drops his hands.
“It’s okay,” Leo says as he gently rubs Victor’s arms. “Let’s try again.”
After several more attempts, which felt like several hours had passed, Victor could finally create a fireball in each hand. He lets out a sigh of satisfaction with a huge smile.
“Very good. Only took you an hour,” Leo jokes. Victor sticks out his tongue at him. Leo chuckles before continuing. “Now, let’s see how long this will take you. I want you to make your blue balls bigger.”
“Phrasing,” Victor says sarcastically.
Leo throws his head back in laughter. “I’m sorry, my English no good,” he says in a thicker Brazilian accent.
“I think when I met you, my blue balls got bigger,” Victor adds. Leo keels over and loses it.
Victor loses focus and joins Leo in the laughter.
Once Leo finally calms down, he shakes off his giggles and returns to his posed stance. “Okay, let’s get back to focusing on creating larger fireballs.”
“I’m sorry, but I think I need to take care of my blue balls first,” Victor snickers.
Leo rolls his eyes. He’s beginning to regret teaching Victor. “Fine, let’s take a break. Can you finish in less than two minutes?”
Victor clutches his imaginary pearls around his neck. “Excuse me. What little faith you have in me. I can be finished in 45 seconds.”
They both break into laughter as they make their way to the town car to get lunch.