36. Chapter 36
Half-eaten food remained untouched on her small table; a handful of strawberries spread across the white plate like a crimson splatter.
Yareli popped one into her mouth, chewing it with indifference.
She needed to eat; magic used an enormous amount of energy, and she was still recovering from the last event, but even as her stomach rumbled, her appetite was nonexistent.
Although she had cracked her core, she was nervous it wouldn’t work, that it had been a fluke.
The door clicked open.
“And that’s the medical purpose of trallesul,” Leo finished saying.
Erick shrugged. “The institute needs to update its research records. The Air Court has proven at least five more uses for it.”
“And they haven’t reported it?”
“I’m sure they’re still getting to that. They aren’t the fastest with bureaucracy—another effect of trallesul.”
“What is it, exactly?” Yareli interrupted, striding over to her sitting area. She sat in the armchair facing the two of them.
“It’s—” Leo started.
Erick interjected. “Similar to that flower that you humans like to smoke.” He plopped onto the couch, legs flopping over its armrest. He blew a curl away from his face. “Only, it has magical properties which make it more potent.”
“Is that what Tonio meant about the Air Court debating its usages?”
“Yup.” Erick popped the “p.”
“It’s used recreationally as well, adding to its popularity,” Leo said. “Scoot over, Erick. You’re taking most of the couch.”
“I need my beauty sleep,” Erick replied. “Augrys has me working overtime these days.”
“Why are you here then?” Yareli said, concerned. “Go rest.”
“He’s here in case things go wrong,” Leo explained.
“Wrong?”
Erick’s head flopped over the edge of the couch, his blue eyes locking onto hers. “Yeah, in case you go boom!”
Yareli blinked, her mouth hanging open.
Leo smacked Erick’s forehead. “Don’t put it like that!”
To her, he said, “He’s not exaggerating, but it’s normal.
” He gestured at her to stand. “Magic is both simple and not. Most modern spellwork doesn’t use spells to cast. You can simply do it.
However, that is highly dependent on a couple of factors: raw power, proficiency, and gifts.
For example, a fire gifted Fae naturally is inclined to fire spellwork and won’t need spells for it at all.
However, water spellwork will be harder and require study to achieve wordless, spell-less casting. ”
He paused, his gray eyes meeting hers. “But the hard part isn’t casting; it’s controlling it.”
Yareli frowned. “But don’t you need control to cast…”
“He means ‘small spell go boom’ if you don’t control how much magic you pour into it,” Erick said, rolling onto his side and yawning.
She thought that over. “Hypothetically speaking, if I wanted to draw a flame, if I wasn’t careful, I could cause an explosion?”
“Exactly.” Leo confirmed. Although that’s only one of the possible outcomes. Magic can be unruly.”
“Great,” she said.
Leo patted her shoulder. “Don’t worry. All of us have exploded once during our formative years.”
“That’s not reassuring at all,” she retorted.
“Geez, Leo. You suck at this more than Augrys.” Erick strode over.
“You’ll be fine. I’m here in case of emergency, but Leo will be siphoning magic from your spell to prevent any extreme.
He’s a rare manipulator. He can infuse everyday items with magic, wielding it to a precision most can’t.
It’s why Augrys tasked us with helping you. ”
Leo stood with his hands in his pockets, a proud smile on his lips. “We’ll take care of you.”
They waited for her answer, their faces gleaming with quiet hope. She acquiesced, nodding. It was one of the safest risks she had taken since arriving in Izmari. She could only hope that exploding wouldn’t hurt too much.
Leo clapped his hands, approaching her, and Erick flopped back down.
“Wake me up if you need me.”
“Do you want hard or easy first?” Leo asked.
And that was the easiest question she had been asked in a long time.
“Hard.”
“Hold out your palm and close your eyes.”
Once she did, he continued. “Now, feel your magic and draw it to your hand.”
Streams of blue flashed in the dark, and her shoulders relaxed.
It was there; she hadn’t failed. Her magic responded to her presence, curling around her like wisps of wind.
While her life force was purple, her magic was an icy blue similar to Erick’s eye color.
When mixed, they were a beautiful combination that reminded her of her favorite yogurt growing up.
Leo didn’t provide Yareli with any further instruction, so she simply imagined coaxing her magic to her palm.
It rushed through her, leaving a chill in its trail, and settled onto her palm. It pulsed, waiting.
“Now what?” she asked, her eyes still closed.
“Oh, she got it already,” Leo said.
“Augrys did say she was exceptionally sensitive to magic,” Erick mumbled.
“I can hear you,” she said.
Leo coughed. “Augrys didn’t test if you're gifted, right?”
“No, what’s that?”
“Magical folk have an affinity toward an element, which really only affects how they draw on their magic. A wind affinity means you’ll likely relate it to things like a breeze or a squall.
However, air gifted are in tune with the actual element; they’ll use less energy for air spells and naturally call upon air spells. ”
“Is everyone gifted?”
“Being gifted is special, but it isn’t an end-all for Fae. We can all cast magic; how much power we have determines the scale and the spells we can cast.”
“How do we test it?”
“Well,” Leo said, “Augrys would have to conduct the test, because he’s learned how. For now, try summoning a flame on your palm.”
She opened her eyes, glaring at him. “Can you tell me how?”
His eyebrows shot up, but he recovered quickly. Yareli blew air from her lips, curling them into a smile. Leo either overexplained or underexplained; there was no in-between.
“Oh, right. The easiest way is to say ‘Dharhekze’.”
After attempting the Izmarian word and failing a couple of times, Yareli frowned. There were a lot of throat sounds in Izmarian that she couldn’t yet pronounce properly. When she asked for an alternative, Leo tapped his foot.
“You could attempt to imagine it into existence,” he answered. “It’s how older, more practiced Fae cast magic.”
Her magic, blue and bright, swirled underneath her palm’s skin faster as though eager. However, Yareli’s mind was cluttered with too many doubts, questions, and worries to paint an image of a flame, and she failed.
“That’s okay,” Leo said, attempting to comfort her. “It’s not easy to do on your first try, but you’ll get the next thing—mind shielding.”
“That sounds harder,” she said, disappointed in her failure.
He shook his head. “Only in theory. It’s easier because you don’t produce an external shield. It requires less magic to fuel, and it's maintained by your natural reserve. For this, you’ll simply want to imagine a barrier.”
Once again, easier said than done. Her mind buzzed with activity, turning one stone of thought to another and disregarding her desire for silence.
Augrys’s voice fluttered into her mind: Quiet your mind.
Release the tension in your shoulders. His soft tones washed over her, calming her raging thoughts until they were but a soft current.
Her breath deepened, and her magic calmed, moving like waves lapping on a shore.
Her senses turned inward; her ears, full as though she was submerged under water, stopped hearing Leo’s instructions, homing in on Augrys’s voice.
Good, now imagine building a wall.
Walls of varying kinds flitted through her mind—brick, barbed wire, steel, mud. None of them fit, dissolving into nothingness as soon as they sprang up.
It can be anything. It could even be a wall of bathtubs stacked on top of each other.
She thought she heard a note of amusement in his voice, and she smiled.
Is that a joke about my love for baths? How can you talk to me anyway? I thought you were away at the Water Court.
She waited for an answer, unsure if she was having an actual conversation with Augrys or if he was an illusion made by her subconscious. His words came slowly, hesitantly, as though it was a great confession.
I wanted to check in on you.
Her eyes shot open.
Leo’s face came into view. “Everything okay?”
She cleared her throat. “Yeah, um, I’m having trouble picking a wall.”
He tapped his foot again, seemingly in thought. “I’m assuming you went through the usual suspects—bricks and such.”
She nodded.
“Walls aren’t always meant to keep things out. They can also keep things in.”
Her fake armor came to mind, the one she imagined coated her skin, keeping her from shattering for all to see. It was snug, but most of all, it was strong. She closed her eyes.
Yareli wanted a coat of armor around her mind, keeping it safe from intruders.
A great sheet of iron—for iron was a Fae's weakness—sprung up in her mind, round like a sphere, and it held. Augrys’s voice no longer came through, both a feat and a disappointment.
She wondered if it had been real or a figment of her imagination. Then, the wall disintegrated.
And in its place was a dome of whipping winds.
“That’s amazing,” Leo said. “You’ve done it. Although I’ve never seen a wall of wind before.”
“You can see it?” she asked, startled to see Leo next to her in her mind.
“Of course. When you attempt to enter someone’s mind, you see their defenses. Yours is particularly vicious.” He placed a hand on her wall, jerking back. Blood ran down in tiny rivulets from a multitude of cuts on his palm. “See, vicious.”
“Good.” No one would enter without her permission. “What about my life force?”
“A basic shield is similar in concept. Simply, go to your life force and raise a wall like this.”
Yareli did so, raising a large dome of whipping winds that dulled its glow, but it was protected. And that was all that mattered.
“And you’re done! You’re ready for the challenge tomorrow.” Leo boomed, his joy evident.
Erick was awake, watching her with what looked like curiosity. “Wind, you say.”
“Yeah, you should have seen it,” Leo said. “A great—”
But Yareli had stopped listening. Her gaze rested on the world beyond her windows.
Leo had congratulated her for doing basic shielding, but she hadn’t managed to cast a flame.
He was horribly wrong; she was not prepared for the challenge at all.
It was, however, more than she had before. Her stomach growled.
As always, it would have to be enough. She would face the challenge head-on and win, because losing was not an option. She smiled at Erick and Leo.
“Any chance we could have a second lunch?” she asked.