Tsubasa Reservoir: A Child of Celes (Chapter 3, two parts)
III. Enter The Hedge Witch (Part II)
“You mean The Fence's magic is hanging around my home?” Incredulous, Faina pulled back the woolen drapes of the kitchen window, peering out into the darkness. “But why haven't I been able to see it or sense it?”
“I'm not entirely certain. All of its behavior has been rather unusual,” Magmeteva replied, drumming her fingers against the dinner table. “But from what I can tell, the magic has reconfigured itself and combined with the magic of the Pul'kheriia trees. That might make it more difficult for you sense it. My guess is that when the magic escaped from its bindings, it was drawn here because your farm has the largest concentration of the trees around it. All that magical energy is undoubtedly the reason you've had a problem with demons around here.”
Her expression grim, Faina closed the drapes. “I'll be glad when the magic is untangled and removed. I worry about my family, working those long hours outside, especially when it's dark all the time. Especially Fai. I've tried to get him to stay inside but he loves to play outside with his little friend - especially in the trees. That's where they were when the demons attacked them, in trees. We didn't draw the link between the trees and the attack, however. But I'll have to forbid the boys from playing in them now or even being around them without an escort.” The older woman took a seat next to Magmeteva. “I have half a mind to chop them all down myself, but I guess that's just the crazy protective mother in me talking.”
Magmeteva patted Faina on the shoulder. “Your domovoi's pitching a fit at the mere thought of it.” With a wave, she gestured towards the stove - a cloud of ashes was falling through the grates onto the clean kitchen floor, as if a small animal were kicking them out of its burrow for spring cleaning.
Haughtily, Faina arched an eyebrow. “Oh, he's going to make a mess to get revenge, is he? Well, the joke's on Honorable Master Domovi. I'm going to make his dear Faiik clean it up.”
“Good for you! A little housework's good for a man. And have you given Fai an amulet? That should be sufficient protection, Faina.”
The older woman nodded. “Yes, I gave him and his friend holy wards to wear. I had the priest bless them for added protection.” Upon seeing Magmeteva's cross expression, Faina quickly added, “I know you don't like him, but he does have ability. And if his divine connections makes my little boy distasteful to demons, then that's good enough for me. The demons do seem to have stayed away ever since, although I'm not certain if it's the ward or the bow in his hand.”
“Hah, just like a dog. Carry a big enough stick and it will run away.” Magmeteva said, and they both laughed. The demons' attack on the boys was upsetting, of course, but demons were a fact of life in the outer villages. A morbid sense of humor was necessary to cope with demon attacks and failed crops and freezing blizzards.
Faina took a few sips from her mug. “You aren't going to be able to untangle the magic, are you?”
“No,” Magmeteva replied curtly. It stung her to admit her shortcomings, but she had always tried to be honest with Faina. Faina had been her mentor when she was a young teenager, and later Faina had encouraged her to apply for the position of hedge witch when her abilities had surpassed Faina's ability to teach her. “That magic has become permanently entangled with the trees.”
“That means we'll have to have a team out here to create a new batch of magic for The Fence.”
Magmeteva agreed, noting Faina's overly casual tone. She knew the other woman well enough to recognize it as a sign of tension. “It will take a few weeks for anyone to arrive. A team that large is going to move slowly, too. How much of a hardship is that going to be for the village? I walked around town and didn't see much damage, but yours is the only farm I've visited so far. I did see a lot of dead rodents on my way here.”
“It's getting rough. As of now it's mostly the smaller animals that have suffered - wild animals, some game, and poultry. We've been keeping the larger animals confined to the barns and have made out okay so far, but some of our neighbors have already lost pregnant cows and ewes. Luckily no one's frozen to death yet, although that stupid Obiden was definitely tempting fate, wandering around outside half-drunk; he was found buried in a snow drift. Losing a few fingers will probably serve him well as a reminder of his stupidity.”
The hedge witch nodded; Faina's words would seem unduly harsh to a southerner, but Magmeteva knew that Obiden was fortunate indeed to have not paid for such a lapse in judgment with his own life. “You have all been fortunate, although I wonder that you personally haven't been a bit more sharing with your own fortune. It's not like you, Faina.”
Faina stared at her in surprise. “What do you mean?”
“Your heat spells around your house and barn. With Fai's help, you could have aided at least a few of your neighbors. You've never been hesitant to help in the past.”
There was a long silence before Faina began hesitantly. “It's not that simple, Magmeteva. I do care. You saw the windblock by the lake - Fai helped me with that. We could prepare that without people hanging over our shoulders since people don't usually go by the lake without a reason. But doing heat spells around people's homes, you've got to expect that they'll be watching.”
“A little curiosity never bothered you before.”
“It's different now, you know that. People don't view magic the way they did when you were growing up. They - the young ones in particular - can't seem to view magical talent outside of a militaristic context. They aren't interested in hearing about herbs or healing applications; it's all lightning bolts and ice storms for them. I used to let Fai do little tricks and show off, but I just don't think it's a good idea anymore, especially not since there are no other children with magic in the village. Faiik is even more uptight now. I think he's half-a-mind to order Fai to just stop 'being magic' and me to stop training him. The sad part is that my husband has always loved magic so much for a man with none himself. He used to be so excited about Fai's talents but he can't stop obsessing now.” Faina smiled wistfully, lines of worry etched around her eyes and mouth.
“The one who walks alone is the polar bear's dinner, eh?” Magmeteva gave her scarf a punishing yank. It was one thing for the village girls and the bar patrons to indulge in idle talk about magic, but it was depressing that her mentor had been infected by fear as well. “I suppose this is the sad standing of magic now, that we must worry about exposure instead of being able to appreciate one's gift.”
“Please understand. We're living near the edge of civilization in this village. It's difficult for us to judge stories by the time they've trickled down here, and we don't know what rumors to toss out completely and which have a shred of truth to them. You know Faiik's never had any great love for Ashura-ou, but this war's made him apt to believe any negative story about the kingdom. And I have five grown sons - if they wanted to take Fai, I couldn't exactly claim hardship.”
“You're worried that they're going to draft him.”
“Shouldn't I be?” Faina locked eyes with Magmeteva. Magmeteva stared back, ready for an argument (they'd certainly had their share of them), but she found no accusation in her friend's eyes, only a tired pleading. The hedge witch wondered when her mentor had gotten old.
“When I saw him in the village earlier, I sensed him influencing his archery with his magic.” Faina's suddenly rigid posture did not escape Magmeteva's notice. “He wasn't doing it on purpose, and it was rather subtle elemental influence. No untrained observer would notice so you needn't worry. Still, that he has such an ability without that training indicates his magic's greater than ours, and he'll probably have a boost during puberty too. Definitely above-average. But that's not what the kingdom is scouting for. They're looking for very particular types of abilities and a certain level of raw power.”
“What sorts of abilities?”
Magmeteva pinched the bridge of her nose. “I shouldn't tell you. But I don't want you to keep worrying about something that's not going to happen, and I certainly don't want you to let Faiik stop you from training Fai. That would be an absolute crime for his talent to go to waste, which is what I recall you telling me when I didn't want to go to the capital for training. But I know you are discreet and won't repeat this.” She felt faintly embarrassed at lecturing her mentor, but Faina only nodded solemnly so Magmeteva continued: “They want recruits with talents in combustion, denotation - explode the enemy's ammunition, spook the animals, burn them up, that sort of thing. Premonition's of interest as well - some of the recruits have honed their abilities enough to be able to sense ambushes and approaching storms. A number of them have elemental control, but unlike Fai, they also have a massive amount of power so they can create ice storms and blizzards. As if the weather weren't cold and inhospitable enough already! So I doubt they're going to want a little boy who creates windblocks and mixes herbal cures, as they're clearly more interested in mass destruction than protection and healing.”
Faina's fingers tightened around her mug's handle. “How... disgusting. I can't fathom such a twisted perversion of magic. Is... it true that they have been recruiting children lately?”
The hedge witch shifted in her chair uncomfortably, wondering at the flicker of deep fear she'd just seen in Faina's eyes. Her words should have reassured her friend. Magmeteva knew that Faina was worried about Fai... but this wasn't simple worry. The older woman was terrified, for reasons Magmeteva couldn't puzzle out. She had never seen her mentor in such a state. “Faina,” she said gently. “It is true that some children were recruited. Very, very few. Not that I'm privy to the exact numbers, but it was only exceptional children. You don't come across those very often; that's why they're called exceptional. And even before the war, those children would have been taken anyway, for their own safety. We've never had this happen in our area - but apparently if a child's born with enough raw talent and not trained properly, the child can become a real danger. In the capital, we reviewed a few case studies about this... rather tragic. I know it sounds bad that children would be taken, but the kingdom's not doing it to be evil. It's for protection. You understand, right?”
Faina shook her head. “At such young ages, how can you tell if they're the type who enjoys a fight? Some people are too gentle for warfare; it goes against their nature. You put them into combat situations and it twists them up on the inside.”
And some of them were just the right type for the military. The image of the witch who liked to “accidentally” torment peasants came unbidden to Magmeteva's memory. It was rumoured that she had been scouted young, although that witch's real age was hard to puzzle out - she always had the oddest grin plastered onto her face. It seemed incongruous to imagine a child like Fai exposed to such a person, and Magmeteva knew that she wasn't the only sadistic recruit in the army. Most just managed to disguise their cruelty better. Faina would have a lot of reasons to worry if Fai were actually a candidate. “I'm not disagreeing with you, Faina, but I don't have much influence on the military's recruiting policies,” Magmeteva replied sharply, rather annoyed that she had to keep answering for the military when she wasn't even in it. “It's rather pointless for us to keep obsessing over something that's not going to affect your family anyway. But - I do have some good news: when the team comes to visit, it's likely that they'll bring Dedumil. He's an old seer known for having true insight. He's nosy too so he'll probably end up examining the village children for talent even if they're not of age of yet - but because he is so respected, no one will bother to re-examine them later. Whatever he says goes. He'll take one look at Fai, point at him with his bony old finger, and tell you exactly what I already told you, and then you're set. No need to worry about silly gossips or the scary army anymore.”
“He sounds like quite a character. Is he a trustworthy man?”
“As honest as any Oznobishin, and just as likely to speak his mind whether or not it's asked for.”
“Ah, then, we should get along splendidly with him, especially after a few rounds at Blanka's bar. What exactly does a seer do on a team of crack wizards anyway?” Faina replied with a twinkle in her eyes.
“Knock some sense into them, one hopes,” Magmeteva shot back with energy, pleased that Faina felt reassured enough about the hypothetical Fai-testing to switch topics. “I do seem to recall that he carries a large staff all the time. On a mission like this, though, Dedumil is needed because not all wizards and witches have the ability to discern magical patterns well. For most, it requires a lot of concentration so in a case like this one, they need someone to keep an eye on the magic while they perform the spells. For a seer of Dedumil's ability, that's not a problem at all.”
“Hmm, I've usually never had trouble detecting magic myself - this latest bit with The Fence excluded - but I don't go sticking my fingers into magic that complex either. How do you suppose they'll construct a new Fence? I dug around the town archives to try to uncover some records from when The Fence was first constructed, but I only found some insipid poetry about the sun gods judging this village to be far more pious and worthy than the other villages, and so naturally they gifted it with The Fence.”
“You heathen, am I going to have to report your heresy to the priest?” Magmeteva flashed Faina an appreciative smile. “What the team will try to do is tap into the largest source of magic around here, in this case the lake, although since that magic is rather chaotic Dedumil will have to find an area of relative calmness. It's going to be an immense amount of magic - the majority of the people on the team will be acting as grounders, only about one or two people are actually needed to manipulate the magic itself.”
“Grounders? Like a lightning rod but with wizards?”
Magmeteva nodded. “It's common practice in the capital for safety purposes. When you're handling that much magic, there's always a possibility that you'll call up too much magic or it will become unruly. The person manipulating the magic is at the most risk, naturally, since he's calling up the magic in the first place. Thus the grounders link themselves to the spell-caster in case the magic overwhelms him - they will partially absorb the magic backlash as well. The more people involved, the more the backlash is divided among them. Hence they'll only suffer from minor injuries as opposed to serious injury or death.”
Faina tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm, I suppose that is also a reason that many witches and wizards carry staffs. Not only does it serve as a focal point for spells, but if a spell backfires, the staff can also act as a grounder and take some of the damage.”
“If the staff is configured properly, yes. Any magical object can serve as a grounder - but other witches and wizards are usually used since they tend to have more magic. The more magic, the better the grounder.”
“That makes sense. So the team's challenge is to first identify the magic to be used, then to call it up safely, then to enchant it, then harness it to the crystals. Sounds like quite a complicated process, but I suppose you do that sort of thing in the capital all the time.”
“Some do, but it's still a dangerous procedure. The spells themselves are fairly intricate as well. They'll have to assemble a very talented team, and unfortunately for us that's going to take time. I'm calling a town meeting for tomorrow evening to advise everyone of the situation,” said Magmeteva.
Magmeteva and Faina discussed the meeting for several more hours until Magmeteva grew drowsy from the combined effects of the drinking bout and the long trip. She excused herself, intent on crashing in the comfortable bed Faina had prepared in the guest bedroom.
Fai was waiting outside the kitchen. “Hello, Ms. Hedge Witch. Are you done speaking with Mama?” he asked, tilting his head back and smiling.
“Yes, I am. Thank you for asking,” she replied, surprised by his pale beauty now that she was close enough to study him. All the Flowrights had nice blue eyes, but his possessed an unusual translucence to them that suggested secrets. Which was silly because eight-year-old boys didn't have secrets other than that they'd hidden bugs in someone's drinking glass. “Did you enjoy my treatise that you pilfered during my last visit?”
The boy had the grace to bow his head in apology. “I put it back in your room. It was really interesting.”
“I'm glad you enjoyed yourself, you little rascal.” Magmeteva mussed the boy's already unruly hair with her knuckles. He giggled and ducked under her arm, escaping into the safety of his mother's kitchen. The witch rolled her eyes. Children, honestly.
***
Although her weary muscles still ached all over from riding on the tobaggon, Magmeteva couldn't drop off to sleep and tossed in her bed for several hours. Too many random thoughts and theories kept bouncing around her head; she couldn't help but worry that there was some critical thread she was missing. She picked up the treatise Fai had returned and leafed through the familiar pages, her expression darkening into a frown. Someone had added commentary in a loose, whimsical scrawl alongside her own tidy notes in the margins of the treatise. The scrawl commented not only on the body of text but also on her notes as well, often disagreeing with both and proposing alternate theories. The scrawl's suggestions were completely unconventional and rather crazy, yet Magmeteva felt unsettled that she was unable to outright dismiss any of them. The writer of the notes possessed an entirely different perspective than any she'd been exposed to in the capital or on her travel - but unique thinking was the only way to create breakthroughs in magic and revitalize an art that lapsed into stagnation too easily. Even if the proposals were all wrong, it could still provoke needed debate.
Whoever the writer was, he or she would definitely be noticed in the capital if the writings were discovered. The hedge witch frowned. The handwriting and arguments weren't Faina's and couldn't belong to any of the other Flowrights. It was probably the work of an itinerant who kept on the move: many “free thinkers” in all fields preferred to travel in order to escape unpleasantries. The writer had likely spent a night at the Flowrights' compound (who were known for hospitality), spotted the text that Fai left lying around, and couldn't resist adding a few notes.
Regardless, Magmeteva decided to wait to turn the text over to her superiors until she finished copying the notes. She knew she wouldn't be satisfied until she had puzzled out and discredited the writer's crazy theories. With care, she wrapped the treatise into a waterproof bag, then tucked it inside a sweater in the bottom of her traveling bag.
Suddenly the air crackled. All of Magmeteva's hairs stood on end as the atmosphere was saturated with magic. She froze in shock, unable to think. Then her sense of duty kicked in and she threw on a coat and shoes before rushing outside, where an intense blue light bleached the compound and surrounding woods white. Magmeteva winced and realized that the light was pulsating from the Pul'kheriia trees. She touched the bark of one but rapidly jerked her hand back. It was hot. “Reveal,” she commanded, and set of runes glowed white, distinct against the trees' bark.
The hedge witch's eyes widened in recognition and she raced towards the lake where The Fence stood. However, as she approached the banks of the lake, a pulse of energy knocked her to the ground. A small figure stood behind a section of The Fence, enveloped in the same intense light that radiated from the Pul'kheriia. Magmeteva squinted at the figure, shading her eyes with her fingers. Those features were unmistakable. “Fai!” she called weakly, unable to regain her balance as the spell intensified. Fai did not turn around, totally absorbed in the runes that danced in the air as his hands wove an intricate pattern to enchant the summoned magic. The wild magic writhed and hissed like an enraged serpent, but the boy ignored its threats.
The overflow of magic rolled over Magmeteva in relentless waves, pounding and pushing and pulling her as if she were a toy sailboat that had accidentally gotten caught in a real storm.. Magmeteva started shivering uncontrollably as the magic began to overwhelm her magic-sensitive senses. The witch crouched into a ball, pulling her knees up to her stomach as she willed herself not to throw up. Blood pounded in her eardrums as the magic increased to a fever pitch and she murmured a few words in a futile attempt to dampen the effects around her. It can't last much longer, can it? Magmeteva gripped her scarf desperately, as if it were a lifeline.
Only once before had she experienced such power, a violent yet mercifully brief surge during her training in the capital.
They said Ashura had been angry that day.
Ashura. Just like that man, this boy... Dread gripping her heart, the hedge witch managed to lift her swimming head a little. In the center of intensely glowing maelstrom, Fai still stood waving his hands like a conductor of magic, bidding it to play his music and dance to his tempo. The winds of the magic whipped the child's hair and clothes viciously, but his expression remained focused and calm as if it were only natural that he would be obeyed. Like Ashura-ou, the man whom people feared and worshipped as a god.
She'd found her missing thread, the one that tied all the loose ends together. Fai wasn't “above-average;” he was a prodigy. One with terrifying, unnatural talent in both theory and power. Somehow his talent had been concealed to her, yet the boy had chosen to expose himself. Magmeteva swore to herself that she'd beat the truth out of the lot of them later when her head stopped screaming that it going to split open. That was if she survived, the witch noted grimly as her vision began to spin, and she wondered again how long she could tolerate the overload. If Fai slipped up, the magic could very well wipe them and the surrounding area off the face of the map. And even if she could manage to move, interrupting a spell of such magnitude would be suicidal.
The spinning abruptly ceased and Magmeteva crashed into the earth as if she had just toppled off a suddenly halted merry-go-round. The witch lay stunned for a moment then cautiously moved her limbs, testing them. Her body stung from the impact, but the sensation of nausea was gone. The magic overflow had ceased, although she wasn't certain of how much time had actually passed. She willed her eyes to unfocus and saw that the once-wild magic now lay twisted and tame around the crystals, configured into familiar appropriate patterns. Fai had correctly executed the spells and anchored the magic to The Fence, which was a very good thing as it meant she wasn't going to die just yet.
Magmeteva scrambled to her feet and Fai looked over his shoulder at her, finally noticing her presence. His mouth formed an “o” of surprise and he turned around, but his legs wobbled and he collapsed onto the ground. “You're in a lot of trouble, little rascal,” Magmeteva growled, kneeling by his side. “You're sharp enough to scribble notes in my treatise so you're smart enough to realize that you aren't allowed to practice that sort of magic without permission. You could have killed us.”
Fai gave her a smile that was both apologetic and despairing. “But I just wanted to make everything okay. I fixed it so we don't need to have anyone come here, right?” His eyelids fluttered as he fought to stay awake. Magmeteva placed two fingers across a carotid on his neck. The boy's skin was hot to her touch, but his pulse was steady. He had simply overexerted himself, which did not surprise Magmeteva. A wizard of lesser ability would be dead.
“We'll discuss that later. You go to sleep now.” The boy nodded sleepily and promptly fell asleep, his breathing thin because of his exertion. Magmeteva unbuttoned Fai's high-collared shirt so that he could breathe easier. Two chains with pendants hung around his neck, and Magmeteva turned them over in her fingers, studying them. One was the holy ward Faina had mentioned earlier, and the other was a masking amulet that had Faina's magical markings. Magmeteva cursed. The holy ward alone was sufficient to conceal a person from demons, but to trick trained witches and wizards, a masking amulet was necessary. Fai's power was such that the amulet didn't completely mask his power, but her assessment of his power had been skewed.
Faina hadn't mentioned this amulet. Ergo, Faina had deliberately deceived her. And not just Faina. Magmeteva's mind kicked into overdrive (now that she was free from the threat of imminent death) and she began to connect the dots. Saadak was Faiik's best friend; Faiik discussed just about everything with him. Saadak hadn't been worried about the village's priest getting in trouble with the authorities; he was worried they would discover Fai. The children in the square and the women in the bar had also behaved oddly: undoubtedly they'd witnessed the boy perform some incredible feat of magic and hence were completely justified in fearing his abduction into the military. No wonder the Flowrights weren't allowing Fai to perform magic in public any longer. They were all plotting together to deceive me, the outsider. Magmeteva dabbed at her eyes with her scarf, surreptitiously wiping away foolish hot tears. Some tough witch I am.
The demons and wandering magic were drawn to the Flowright compound not because of the Pul'kheriia but Fai; magic called to magic, stronger to weaker. He was the one who'd written in her treatise and had probably located the information about The Fence from the archives before his mother's search and long before Magmeteva's arrival. But the only information he had been missing she had readily volunteered in Faina's kitchen - he hadn't known that he could substitute his trees as grounding devices. Fai hadn't been waiting to speak to his mother; he'd been eavesdropping on the conversation. Hearing about Dedumil had pushed him to act quickly. An amulet would deceive her but no amulet or trick could deceive a talented seer; she had said as much during the conversation in the kitchen.
“Oh gods, is he alright?”
Magmeteva looked up. Faiik and Faina stood about thirty meters away, frozen from the shock of seeing their youngest prostrate and still on the ground.
“He's fine. Just magical fatigue,” Magmeteva replied curtly. The two rushed forward and Faiik swept the boy into his arms. “Found something of yours.” Magmeteva pushed the amulet roughly into Faina's hands.
Faina's mouth opened and closed as she struggled for an explanation. “Don't bother,” Magmeteva said. “I already figured it out on my own, so don't insult me with any more lies.”
“I didn't lie,” Faina said softly, her eyes downcast.
“A lie of omission is the same as a direct lie, and your omissions were wide enough to fit the whole damn lake into them! I trusted you. I trusted all of you. I bet you all had a good laugh, playing me for a fool. Well, you could have gotten us killed”--Magmeteva waved in the direction of the crystals--“letting a little boy tamper with this sort of magic!”
“I had no idea Fai planned to do this. Do you honestly think I'd be letting my child mess with such crazy magic, especially so late at night by himself? And I didn't want to deceive you. None of us did. We just didn't want you to have to choose between loyalty to your title and loyalty to us. Your achievements mean a lot to us too, you know.” The older woman's eyes began to mist over.
“We need to get him inside,” said Faiik flatly, standing up with Fai pressed to his chest. He had wrapped his son in his own huge coat. “It's too cold out here.” They trudged through the snow back to the compound in silence, except for Faina's soft crying. Magmeteva refused to look in her direction, not wanting to begrudge any sympathy. Once inside, Faiik laid Fai in front of the stove's fire and Faina prepared a meal of cold cheese and meat upon Magmeteva's order: Fai would be extremely hungry when he woke up.
“Now you should both leave,” Magmeteva commanded, her posture steeled. “I will speak to him alone when he wakes up. I won't tolerate any further interference in my investigation.” Faiik's face flushed with anger and he began to protest, but Faina placed a hand on his arm and led her husband from the kitchen, murmuring to him.
With a sigh, Magmeteva pulled up a chair next to the sleeping boy and sat down wearily, propping her chin up with a hand. The flames in the stove flickered invitingly, but her insides still felt frozen and twisted. She prided herself on her ability to solve problems, but this one didn't have a palatable solution. Following her standing orders would be betraying the trust of her village and friends - she currently hated them all in principle, but Magmeteva knew her anger would subside eventually. And the boy. Gods. Now that the amulet was removed and they were inside the compound away from the magical forces outside, Magmeteva could finally appreciate the quality of his magic. It emanated from him, pure and potent; Magmeteva felt herself drawn to him as if caught in a magnetic field. Magic called to magic, and his magic would always attract other wizards and witches, including the sort who wouldn't hesitate to manipulate him. His beauty only complicated the matter. He was a beautiful child who would likely grow into a beautiful man. It would have been better for you if you'd been born large and intimidating, Magmeteva thought sadly. Or maybe at least plain and uninteresting like I am. It was best not to stand out too much when one rubbed shoulders with the powerful and dangerous. Fai didn't even have the advantage of experience or age to protect himself and Magmeteva didn't think she could stomach being his betrayer.
Yet simply not reporting the matter was a poor solution as well. The evening's debacle had demonstrated that Fai was not afraid to dabble and experiment in very powerful magic. He could easily harm or kill himself and others. In such a case, he would end up being exposed anyway and she and the village would be punished. How exactly, she didn't know. She did not know of any cases of people conspiring to conceal magic talent from Ashura-ou, which either meant that no one had been dumb enough to try or worse, that they had and were never heard from again. And she, the Hedge Witch, was the one ultimately responsible.
Fai stirred after several hours and sat up abruptly. “Where are my parents?”
“They're here. They're fine. You can see them after we have a talk. But first, eat before you starve to death.” Magmeteva thrust the platter of food into his hands. Fai ate slowly, then looked at her questioningly.
She sighed. Where to begin... “Fai, did your mother tell you why you wearing the necklaces?”
The boy fingered the lapels of his father's coat. “The ward protects against demons. The amulet... hides me from other people with magic.”
“What do you know about our capital?”
“It's our country's birthplace of magic. Most of the magical developments come from there. There's a school with lots of talented witches and wizards there too. The king lives in the capital too and he's the most powerful.” It was a textbook answer.
“What you did tonight, did you figure that out by yourself?” Fai hesitated and Magmeteva gave him a stern look.
“Mostly,” he said quietly. “Mama taught me basic magic so I added onto that using what I read in some books. I practiced by doing the spell in parts, just to make sure I understood it right. Then I put it all together. Am I in trouble?”
“You're in trouble with me and that's about the worst kind of trouble there is,” she said crossly. “How good at magic do you think you are? Compared to other people.”
Fai furrowed his eyebrows. “I don't really know. You and Mama are the only magic people I know. You're stronger than Mama, but I think I might be stronger than you,” he said apologetically as if afraid of causing offense. “Mama told me I have lots of talent, but then she said that it's more important that I'm considerate to other people.”
“She's right, of course. Even a great wizard is trashy if he doesn't behave properly. Fai, I'll be frank with you. You are one of the most talented people I've met.” She did not say the most talented because it was unwise to tell a child such things; it made them lazy and overconfident. “How would you feel about coming to the capital with me?”
“I... don't know. I would like to learn more about magic. I've read almost all the magic books in the village and I don't think Mama has much more to teach me.” He paused. “When I perform a new spell, I feel really happy. Like I've created something beautiful. Magic to me is the most beautiful thing in the world. You can see magic... didn't the magic tonight seem beautiful to you too?” A smile spread across his face as if he were seeing the magic again in his mind's eye.
Magmeteva nodded. Now that she thought back on it, it had been beautiful. Beautiful even though its raw energy horrified her and made her sick. She didn't know how to explain to Fai that not everyone loved magic for its beauty, though. It seemed wrong to take that from a child.
“But I don't want to leave my family. I really like playing with my brothers and my dad. And my mom - she says that when she's really sad, I'm the only one who can make her smile. She needs me. I think I need her too.” Tears formed in his eyes. “If I leave, they can't come with me. And I won't get to see them either, will I?”
“I don't know,” Magmeteva said hoarsely, burying her hands in her scarf. The scarf was the only thing she had left of her mother. Their house had caught on fire when she was thirteen and her mother had soaked the scarf in water and wrapped it around her mouth and nose as a barrier to the smoke. She had made it out. Her mother hadn't.
“Please let me stay until I'm a little older. When I turn thirteen I'm old enough to make my own decisions and then no one here will blame you if I leave. I think I'll be ready to leave then; I'll be bigger and smarter. I promise not to do any dangerous magic again... you can leave me a list of what I can practice and what I can't. Please. I promise to be good,” he pleaded.
Magmeteva's eyes began to sting and she looked away.
***
In the end, she hadn't been able to say no.
Magmeteva gave Fai and his parents strict instructions on where he could practice magic (only away from the village and any magic sources like the trees and the lake), which ones he could do (she gave him a notebook crammed with practical, safe magic), and warned him to only practice the more difficult ones in his mother's presence. “If you don't follow these rules, be warned that it could have grave consequences,” she said, staring at Fai. “You told me your mother taught you to be considerate to others - part of magic is always being aware how your spells could affect others. It's one thing if you blow yourself to bits and entirely another if you involve bystanders. And make no mistake, harming someone through magical means will leave a scar on you that you will never be able to erase. It's not like hitting someone with a rock or an arrow or even your fists. You'll feel their screams in your soul.”
Fai turned pale and shook his head solemnly. Convinced that he would not forget her words, the hedge witch promised to return once a year to check up on him and give him a new notebook.
She glanced back only once as the toboggan slid over the lake, taking her far from her village.
***
More notes:
Author's Notes: Regarding the spelling of our favorite wizard's name, I've been spelling it as "Fai" because that reminds me to pronounce it to rhyme with "Rye." And when Fai/Fye/Fay's name is pronounced in the anime, it always rhymes with rye. In Japanese, the "a" sounds like the one in "father" and "i" is pronounced like the one in "medium." I don't, however, really think that
the spelling of his name is a big deal, and Romanization from Japanese katakana is not always an exact science. (Lately CLAMP has spelled his name as “Fay D. Flourite” so I guess that's the official version.)
I ended up writing a lot about the huskies. I love working-breed dogs and I did research into huskies and fell in love with them. They're sweet and loyal and powerful and intelligent: What's not to like? The bit about Captain Saadak giving them commands in different languages is based on RL - I saw a sheep herder coordinate his border collies by speaking to one in English, one in Spanish, and one in whistles. It was awesome.
Regarding the temple, I did base Celes on Russia and some rural Russian villages have a lot of Eastern influence so you get a fascinating blend of Russian and Eastern architecture, but the villages still have that "cozy" feel to them. The capital, on the other hand, is like Moscow in my mind. Intimidating and gorgeous and huge. The government is not unlike that of Stalinist Russia - there is a lot of fear and violence and unexplained disappearances that everyone knows about but is afraid to discuss.
I hope I portrayed child Fai realistically. As an adult, he's definitely intelligent and he seems to have risen to a high rank despite his youth, so I assume he was a child prodigy. Adult Fai is also portrayed as being sensitive and thoughtful, thus it's natural to assume he was like that as a child. I added the part about the archery practice since Fai seems to be a master archer when we see him in Shurano with Kurogane - and six months really isn't enough time to develop those sorts of skills (being able to shoot someone in a specific body part like an arm.)
Let me know if the magical descriptions seem off or anything. It's just some stuff I cobbled together (I haven't read fantasy literature consistently for several years, but I do want the magic in Celes to have an internal logic.)
I'm not sure when the next chapter will come out. Right now I'm only planning one more to explain when things go really wrong for poor Fai and how he ends up with Ashura-ou. I don't care for Ashura's character (I read the bits with him in it in RG Veda), not that I hate him, but I'm just not that interested. So please don't expect to see Fai in the capital. I might write a one shot or something about it but currently I'm thinking about a series of short stories about "Fai and Kurogane in Shurano" that focus on the language barrier angle. Fun fun. ^^