A/N: This is for all the people that kept reading and sending power stones even though I haven't been updating this book in a long time. Thank You for the motivation, hope you like it.
The walk to the ice-cream parlor was… tense. Josh was trying to make small talk with Maddie, who was still carrying a happily dozing Morgana. I was walking beside them, plotting, as one does. Jordan was trailing a few steps behind us, kicking at loose pebbles with a permanent scowl plastered on his
face.
'He called her a lizard, Clover. A *lizard*.'
[I'm aware, Talia. I was there. I also recall you saying you could handle an eight-year-old boy acting his age.]
'That was before he insulted my daughter.'
[She's your familiar.]
'She call me mama, she's my daughter. He must pay.'
[What are you planning? Nothing that will get us banned from town, I hope. Your parents are already paranoid enough after the sword
incident.]
'Of course not. It'll be subtle. Annoying. Utterly infuriating for him and hilarious for me. The perfect crime.'
[I'm almost afraid to ask.]
"What flavors are you guys getting?" Josh asked, trying to break the awkward silence.
"I'm thinking strawberry," Maddie said, her voice soft so as not to wake Morgana. "What about you, Talia?"
"Chocolate," I said, my eyes flicking back to Jordan for a split second. "With extra sprinkles."
We arrived at the little shop, its cheerful bell announcing our entrance. The smell of sugar and cream filled the air. Maddie gently
transferred a still-sleeping Morgana to my shoulder as she went to order.
"I'll get pistachio," Josh announced, practically vibrating with excitement.
"Vanilla," Jordan grumbled from the back of our little group.
'Vanilla? How boring. His personality is vanilla.'
[That's an insult to a perfectly respectable flavor.]
We all got our cones and found a small bench outside the shop. Josh and Maddie were chatting happily, and I was mostly listening, my mind still churning with vengeful thoughts. Jordan sat at the far end of the
bench, pointedly ignoring all of us.
Perfect.
I focused, just a little. It was a trick I'd been
practicing. Not a big, flashy spell. Just a tiny manipulation. I reached out with my magic and nudged the air, ever so gently, right behind Jordan's cone.
*Splat.*
His scoop of vanilla ice-cream detached from the cone and landed squarely on his lap.
There was a moment of stunned silence.
"Oh, wow. That's unlucky," Josh said, trying and failing to hide a laugh behind his hand.
Maddie bit her lip, her shoulders shaking with suppressed giggles.
Jordan stared at the white, rapidly melting glob on his pants, his face turning a fascinating shade of red. "It wasn't the wind!" he accused, his head whipping around to glare directly at me.
I widened my eyes, putting on my most innocent, three-year-old-but-actually-seven face. I took a delicate lick of my chocolate
cone "What's wrong?" I asked, my voice full of concern.
"You! You did this!" he insisted, pointing an icky sticky finger at me.
"Me? How could I do that?" I tilted my head. "I was just sitting here eating my ice-cream."
"With your… weird witchy stuff!"
"Jordan, that's a bit of a stretch," Maddie said, finally letting a giggle escape. "It probably just melted and fell. It's a warm day."
"No! She was smirking!"
'Was not.'
[You were.]
'Details.'
"I think you're just clumsy, Jord," Josh added, taking another bite of his pistachio.
Furious and outnumbered, Jordan threw his now-empty cone on the ground, stormed off a few feet, and tried to wipe the ice-cream off his pants, which only succeeded in smearing it further.
'Round one goes to Talia.'
[You're a menace.]
'Thank you.'
[Not a compliment]
'It is for meee'
We finished our ice-cream, the mood significantly lighter for everyone but Jordan. As we started to walk back towards Maddie's shop, I decided it was time for round two.
Jordan was still sulking, walking ahead of us this time. He passed by a small puddle left over from the street cleaners earlier that
morning. It was irresistible, like heaven itself approves of my rightful intentions.
I focused on the water in the puddle, just a little tug. As Jordan's foot came down, the water leaped up, drenching his shoe and sock.
He stopped dead in his tracks, letting out a frustrated yell. "AGAIN?!"
He spun around, eyes wild. "It was her! I know it was!"
I was busy talking to Morgana, who had woken up and was now curiously sniffing at my empty cone. I looked up, feigning surprise "What happened now?"
"My shoe! It's all wet! The puddle just jumped!"
Josh burst out laughing. "Puddles don't jump, dude. You just stepped in it."
"I did not! I was walking around it!"
"Maybe you're just having a really unlucky day," Maddie suggested, though the twinkle in her eye told me she suspected something. She gave me a quick, questioning look, and I just shrugged innocently.
This was even better. Now he just sounded crazy.
[You're evil]
'Shhhhhh'
He stomped the rest of the way back to the shop, his steps punctuated by a wet *squelch*. When we got there, John was waiting outside.
"What happened to you?" John asked, looking at Jordan's stained pants and soaked shoe.
"Nothing," Jordan snarled, shooting one last death glare at me before disappearing into the store.
Josh just shook his head, still chuckling. "He had a little trouble with his ice-cream. And a puddle."
John raised an eyebrow but didn't press. "Well, your parents are here to pick you up, boys."
"Aww, already?" Josh whined. "We were having fun." He looked at me and Maddie. "It was nice meeting you, Talia. And you too, Morgana."
"You too, Josh," I said with a genuine smile. He was alright.
Maddie waved. "See you guys at school on Monday!"
They left, and Maddie turned to me. "Okay, spill. Was that you?"
"Was what me?" I asked, batting my eyelashes and giving her my best innocent face.
She just stared at me, a slow smile spreading across her face. "The puddle. Did it really jump?"
I grinned. "Maybe just a little."
She laughed, shaking her head. "He deserved it. Nobody calls Morgana a lizard." She gently scratched Morgana's head, and my familiar purred, rubbing against her cheek.
My heart felt warm and fuzzy. 'Yeah. He deserved it.'
[You're creating a nemesis, you know. He's going to be gunning for you now.]
'Let him try. It'll be fun.'
My parents arrived then, and after the usual round of goodbyes and promises to see each other next week, we headed for our carriage.
"Did you have a good day, sweetie?" my mom asked as I climbed in.
"The best," I said, leaning against her. I looked back and saw Maddie waving from her doorway, a huge smile on her face. I waved back until she was just a small dot in the distance.
Yeah. It was a good day.
********
The next few months fell into a comfortable, happy routine.
Every Saturday, we'd go to town. Maddie and I would spend the morning on our lessons. She was getting surprisingly good at creating small, stable spatial distortions, and I was learning how to identify the properties of different metals for alchemy.
The afternoons were for us. We'd explore the town, play with Morgana in the park, or sometimes just sit in her room and talk. Josh and Jordan were often around, and my prank war with Jordan escalated in the most
delightful, petty ways.
I'd use a bit of air magic to tie his shoelaces together. He'd trip. I'd use a tiny bit of earth magic to make his chair wobble just enough to be annoying. He'd fume. He never had any proof, and the more he accused me, the crazier he sounded. It was my favorite new hobby.
One afternoon, I was sitting under my tree, trying to follow one of Maddie's alchemy theories. It involved using my own elemental magic as one of the core components instead of relying on raw materials.
'She's a genius, Clover. I can just *will* the fire element into the mixture instead of having to, you know, set something on fire.'
[Her grasp of theoretical application is advanced for her age. Though, your control over creating elements out of nothing certainly helps].
'Exactly. We're a great team.'
I was trying to transmute a small piece of lead into copper. According to Maddie's notes, it required earth, metal, and fire, all guided by
will. I had the lead for metal, I could pull the earth element from the ground beneath me, and I could now create my own fire.
I placed the lead on a flat stone, closed my eyes, and focused. I drew on the earth, feeling its steady, grounding energy. I created a small, intense flame, letting it hover over the lead. Then, I focused my will, picturing the dull gray metal turning into a bright, shiny copper. I imagined the atoms rearranging, shifting, becoming something new.
I felt a surge of energy, more than I expected, and the lead glowed with a blinding white light. When it faded, I opened my eyes.
It hadn't turned into copper.
The small lump of lead was now a perfectly smooth, black stone that seemed to absorb the light around it. It felt… empty. And yet, full
of potential.
'What is this?'
[Analyze.]
'Analyze.'
[Stone of Potential: An unstable, artificially created catalyst. Can be imbued with a single, specific magical purpose. Warning:
Highly volatile. Current purpose: None.]
'A catalyst? So I can use it to… make a spell stronger?'
[Not exactly. Think of it more like a blank magical scroll, but for enchanting objects. You could, for example, imbue this stone with the purpose of 'light' and attach it to a stick. The stick would then function as a torch. The stone holds the *concept* of the spell, not just the raw power.]
'That's… way more useful than a lump of copper. I am a genius!'
[You were trying to make copper. This was a happy accident.]
'An accident born from genius. It still counts.'
I grinned, picking up the stone. It was cool to the touch. This opened up so many possibilities. I could make enchanted items. I could create tools for my missions!
[The next mission is still years away, don't get ahead of yourself. You still need to master your compound elements and get your basics to the Advanced level.]
'I know, I know. But still!'
My excitement was cut short by my dad calling from the house. "Talia! Come inside for a minute!"
I pocketed the stone and ran inside, with Morgana flying lazily after me. My parents were sitting at the kitchen table, looking
uncharacteristically serious.
"What's up?" I asked, hopping onto a chair.
"We've been talking," my mom started, taking my hand. "About you. And your magic."
I felt a knot of anxiety form in my stomach. 'Did they find out about the pranks?'
[Unlikely. Jordan has no proof.]
"You're seven years old now," Dad continued. "And your control over your magic is… remarkable. Far beyond what we ever expected."
"We've taught you everything we can," Mom said. "But we're not powerful witches, Talia. We can't help you get to the next level. And
keeping you here, hiding you away… it might be keeping you safe from your grandmother, but it's also holding you back."
My eyes widened. 'Where is this going?'
[I think I know. And I approve.]
"We think it's time for you to start formal training," Dad said, his voice firm. "There's a place, a school, a few kingdoms over. It's
hidden, protected. They specialize in training young witches with rare abilities. Elemental masters, dimensional manipulators… all sorts."
"A school?" I whispered, my heart starting to pound with excitement. "With other kids? Like, a magic school?"
"Exactly," Mom smiled, her expression softening. "We've been in contact with them. We sent them a description of your abilities, and they are very interested. They believe they can help you reach your full potential,
safely."
"But… what about you guys? And Maddie?" The excitement was immediately warring with the dread of leaving them.
"We would move closer," Dad assured me. "We wouldn't be able to live on campus, but we'd find a small house in the village nearby. You'd be able to come home on weekends. And as for Maddie…"
He shared a look with my mom. "We already spoke to John. He's been thinking about it too. Maddie's abilities are just as rare as yours. The school is very eager to have her as well."
My jaw dropped.
Me and Maddie. Going to magic school. Together.
"REALLY!?!?" I screamed, jumping out of my chair.
My parents laughed. "Really," Mom confirmed. "If you want to go, that is. We won't force you."
I didn't even have to think. I tackled them both in a hug, squeezing as tight as my little arms could. "Yes! Yes, a million times yes!"
Morgana, sensing the happy mood, did a series of joyful loops in the air above us.
'Magic school, Clover! We're going to magic school!'
[This is an excellent development. A structured environment with access to knowledge and powerful peers will accelerate your growth exponentially. The plan is proceeding ahead of schedule.]
'The plan? I thought the plan was just to train until the next mission.'
[The plan is to save the world, Talia. This is a significant step forward. Now you just have to survive it.]
I pulled back from the hug, grinning from ear to ear.
Survive it? I was going to own that place.