Spells and Sorcery

by S. Usher Evans

  "I would guess it had something to do with how you felt towards your sister," he said. "And you've had so much magic bottled up for so long that it needed a release." That part sounded more convincing, but it didn't answer how natural it felt to let that sort of spell come out. It felt like breathing.

  "What kind of spell was it?"

  He was quiet for a moment and I feared I'd said the wrong thing. Maybe I was some kind of deranged person like James Riley. Maybe I took—

  "It was an attack spell," he said, finally.

  That seemed obvious, but something about the way he said it gave me chills.

  "Unfortunately, or I suppose, fortunately," he winked at me, easing some of my worry, "the only real use for an attack spell outside of a magical duel is in a sparring match. So there's no reason to teach you about them."

  I recalled a brief line about a magical duel in the book, but couldn't recall the specifics. Still, knowing that Gavon wasn't going to teach me how to wield attack spells left me inexplicably sad.

  Worse still, we'd finished our walk and were back at the precipice of peace and the fury I'd encounter when I got home.

  "I find, with things that I'm concerned about, that just marching forward and doing the thing tends to make it less scary," he said. "'Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is' says an old German proverb."

  There was certainly a big wolf growling in my head at the moment—or maybe it was a dragon.

  I didn't move, and neither did Gavon. We stood on the sidewalk for several minutes without saying a word to each other. I kept telling myself to move, but I wasn't listening.

  "Tell you what," Gavon said after a long stretch, "why don't you go home and accept your punishment, whatever it happens to be. Then, if you keep your head down and complete your homework, behave yourself and don't use magic at school, and definitely don't hurt your sister anymore…" He paused and stared at my house for a moment. "This weekend, I will show you a few sparring moves."

  A gasp escaped my lips, and suddenly facing Jeanie didn't seem so terrible. "You will?"

  He nodded then wagged his finger in my face. "But you have to behave until then, understand?"

  "Yes, sir!"

  "You're a good kid, Alexis," he said with a kind smile. "Now go on and get home."

  I turned and marched toward my house. After I'd gotten two steps, I turned back to Gavon, but he'd already disappeared. As did most of my gumption.

  There were seven houses between me and my home, and the walk was the longest of my life. I felt like a condemned prisoner being led to my own execution. I tried to focus on the fact that I'd get to perform that spell again—in a safe space, where I couldn't hurt anyone—but the closer I got to the house, the less it seemed to boost my confidence.

  Before I knew it, I stood in front of my door, staring at the knocker and the numbers and wishing I had more bravery. With a deep breath, I put my hand on the knob and twisted it, ready for the horror.

  "Thank God!" Nicole's shrill voice echoed before she crushed me to her in a fierce embrace.

  "W-what's going on?" I stammered.

  "Did he hurt you? Are you hurt?" Nicole said, holding my face.

  "Who?" I blinked.

  "Nicole, let her breathe," Jeanie said, sounding much more calm than I would've thought. "Lexie, what happened here?"

  The wall had been repaired, the dust cleaned. In fact, it looked like nothing had even happened. Then my gaze fell to Marie, lying on the couch, still unconscious.

  "Marie! Is she—"

  "She's fine, just recovering," Jeanie said. "Tell us what happened."

  "I…" I glanced at Jeanie, then to Nicole. Neither seemed angry with me, so perhaps this wasn't going to be as bad as I'd thought. "It was an accident. I didn't mean to. I didn't know what I was doing, and it just happened and—"

  The tone in the room changed abruptly. "You did this?" Jeanie asked.

  "Who else would have?"

  "You did this?" Jeanie repeated, glancing down at Marie on the couch. "You hurt her like this?"

  I took one step back. "It…it was an accident, I swear. She was…she was being mean and…" A foul stench reached my nose and I gagged. "What is that smell?"

  "I am making a healing potion," Nicole said, sounding much less relieved at my safety than before.

  "I didn't mean to—"

  "Right, because you would never use magic against your sister, who teases you all day?" Jeanie said as Nicole left for the kitchen. "Who makes your life miserable? I find that hard to believe, Alexis."

  "I swear, I didn't mean to!"

  "Magic happens because you will it to, Alexis," Jeanie said. "Consciously or subconsciously."

  I swallowed and looked at the floor. "I didn't know…I didn't mean to hurt her."

  "You do not use magic to hurt anyone, do you understand me?"

  "Yes, ma'am," I whispered.

  "You have to learn to control your magic. You cannot just let your emotions get the best of you."

  The urge to remind her that she hadn't done anything except tell me what not to do bubbled up, but the reminder of a weekend training session with Gavon kept me quiet.

  "I really didn't mean to," I said after a few moments.

  Nicole emerged from the kitchen holding a steaming mug that smelled like the inside of a diaper. "Help me get her to drink this."

  Jeanie used her magic to elevate Marie, and Nicole gently tipped the mug into Marie's open mouth. Marie's cheeks turned from pasty to rosy, and she murmured as she woke.

  "There we are," Nicole said, standing back up. "Marie?"

  "Wha..." Marie said, looking around. "What…happened?"

  "You took a little fall," Jeanie said. "But you're all right now."

  Marie took another sip of the potion and her eyes grew more focused, searching the room before landing squarely on me.

  "You little bitch!" She flew off the couch, but only made it two steps before falling to the floor, moaning and clutching her head. "What the hell?"

  Nicole winced and chewed her thumb. "It's supposed to completely heal her. Maybe I didn't add enough aloe? The book said three palmfuls, but it seemed off to me…"

  "Don't worry about it, Nicole," Jeanie said. "Marie probably deserves to heal a little bit slowly."

  Marie took the mug of potion from the table and sniffed it, retching loudly. "I'm not drinking this crap. I can heal myself." She placed her hands on her upper arms and closed her eyes, but nothing happened.

  "Healers can't heal themselves," Jeanie said with a knowing smirk. "Drink up or you'll have to sport that bruise at school tomorrow. I don't think your boyfriends will like it."

  Her steely gaze then turned to me.

  "As for you, Alexis—"

  I swallowed.

  "Go to your room. I don't want to hear a peep out of you for the rest of the night."

  "That's it?" Marie bellowed. "She nearly killed me and gets a slap on the wrist?"

  "She's got a lot of credit for good behavior, unlike some people." Jeanie paused and put her hands on her hips. "Speaking of, we need to talk about you not coming home last night."

  I took that as my cue to hurry up the stairs, though I could hear the strains of their screaming long into the night.

  The next morning, things seemed to have returned to somewhat normal. Jeanie was only slightly annoyed with me as we ate breakfast, and Nicole even offered to wash my dishes so I could get out the door.

  The only evidence that I'd done anything amiss was Marie. Fully healed, thanks to Nicole's potion, she breezed into the kitchen looking as perfect as ever. But when I asked her how she was feeling, she walked right by me.

  "Hey, Marie, I asked you a question."

  Her gaze darted to me for a second before she turned her nose up. "I'm sorry, did anyone hear that? Sounds like the ghost of a dead-to-me sister."

  "Grow up, Marie," Jeanie said before checking the time on her watch. With one puff of smoke, she was dressed in a suit, and then another, an
d she was gone.

  "How often does that happen?" I asked Nicole, who shrugged as she put our bowls in the dish rack.

  "Daily," she said then furrowed her brow. "Where'd Marie go?"

  Outside, I heard a car start and rolled my eyes. "She's not leaving without me, is she?"

  "Better hurry up then, because I'm not taking you," Nicole said with a wink.

  "Crap."

  10

  The only thing that kept me from losing my mind for the rest of the week was the promise of a sparring lesson with Gavon. Every free moment I had, I was scouring the primer, looking for something that could help me be ready for whatever he had planned. But the primer was, for once, unhelpful. There was one line in the preface about attack spells, but the only thing I could find about a duel was one section:

  AS TO THE MATTER OF A DUEL

  In the Magical communities, it is oft the nature of Man to have disagreements. While most Magicals may settle disputes of business or trade through mediation by the Clan- or Guildmaster, on the occasion of accounts that may not be settled with words, Magic may be used in the form of a Duel. The rules of the Match will be set by the participants, or, in such cases where it is merited, by the respective Clan- or Guildmasters.

  It is recommended, however, that words be used before magic.

  I couldn't argue with that logic, but at the same time, I couldn't stop thinking about how the spell had felt and how much I wanted to feel it again. Sometimes, I wanted it so bad that my hands began to spark, and I had to quickly divert my thoughts to something less magical.

  I wasn't surprised that Marie left me at school, but the ominous black clouds in the sky were a different story. And I hadn't gotten two steps before the deluge began.

  I cursed and ran back to the school, standing under the awning and wiping rain out of my eyes. Carefully, I tested a bit of a magic to dry my clothes, and to my delight, the wetness disappeared without any adverse effects.

  I looked at my hands, considering how…well, un-eventful the past few days had been. The magical hum was there, but I didn't feel like my magic was bursting at the seams to get out. Only when I was thinking about sparring did things get a bit purple.

  I wondered if it had anything to do with the spell I'd used on Marie, but I couldn't ask anyone about it. Not when I was almost back on Jeanie's good side.

  So, instead, I sat down on a bench and found the notebook that I'd been using to jot down questions for Gavon. I squinted out at the parking lot, barely visible in the rain, and wondered how long the storm was going to take and if it meant a cancellation on our sparring plans. A quick check on my phone told me it would pass within the hour.

  But that still meant I was stuck here until it passed.

  Unless…

  I summoned my primer from the space under my bed where I'd hidden it and flipped the pages until I found what I was looking for.

  TO TRANSPORT

  One of the most helpful aspects of Magic is the ability to transport oneself from one place to another. The effort is very similar to the Summoning Spell, but care must be taken, as physical harm or death can come to the untrained Magical.

  A Magical must take great care to Transport to an unknown place, and the longer the distance of the Transport, the more magic is required. This is why Transport across the Atlantic is ill-advised.

  The TRANSPORT spell occurs in three acts;

  ONE, the identification of the Magical to be transported;

  TWO, the discovery of the location to which the Magical shall be transported;

  THREE, the use of Magic to transport the Magical to the location.

  It is recommended that a Magical first practice their Transport with the help of a Master until a comprehensive understanding is achieved.

  I chewed my lip. I knew the distance between my school and my house like the back of my hand, but something about the warning in the book made me nervous to try it without help. And the rain had stopped, as was the case in the weird weather capital of the world, so it was time for another three-mile walk back to my house.

  I wasn't sure what time Gavon would be meeting me, but I made sure that every single piece of my homework was finished before I came downstairs.

  Jeanie was in the living room, staring at her phone. She hadn't said two words to me since the mishap with Marie, which was better than her yelling at me. But I still wasn't sure if I was in trouble or not.

  "H-hey, Jeanie," I said slowly.

  She glanced up from her phone then back down. "Yes?"

  "Can I go take a walk?"

  Another glance. "Why?"

  "Um…" I shrugged. "Clear my head?"

  She stared at her phone for almost too long then heaved out a loud sigh. "Fine. Take your phone."

  I pulled the device from my back pocket and waved it. "Got it."

  She didn't say anything else, so I inched toward the door, scurrying out before she changed her mind. The storms of the afternoon were a long-gone memory, and the sunset cast a pretty orange glow over the houses. Gavon was already waiting for me at the park, his face lighting up when he saw me approach.

  "How's your sister?" he asked.

  "My s… Oh, she's fine," I said with a wave of my hand. "Nicole made her a healing potion."

  Something like amusement crossed his face. "How bad was it?"

  "What? The potion? It smelled for days."

  He laughed. "No, your punishment."

  "Oh, it actually wasn't that bad," I said, rubbing my hands along my arms. "Weirdly."

  "So maybe you should give your aunt a little more credit, hm?" His eyes twinkled.

  I pursed my lips at him. "Aren't you supposed to be on my side?" He laughed, a genuine sound that dissolved whatever annoyance I'd had. "I've done my homework and I've been a good girl, so…sparring lesson?"

  "I suppose you won't stop asking until we have one, hm?"

  "Nope."

  Another smile from him. "We can't spar here, though. Too many people, and I'm not quite sure that we should be throwing attack spells around where the nonmagicals can see us. So we'll practice a transport spell."

  "A transport spell?" I asked, excited. "I read about them today, but I didn't want to attempt one—"

  "As well you shouldn't without supervision." He held out his arm to me. "Hold on, and I'll walk you through it."

  I placed my hands on his forearm and waited.

  "Now, do you remember the three steps?"

  "Figure out where you want to go, use your magic to find it, then go."

  "Good girl. But since you don't know where we're going, we're going to do things a little differently. Close your eyes." I did so. "Now, can you find my magic?"

  I released the grip on my magic and it smashed into his. He chuckled. "Bit excessive."

  "You could feel that?"

  "Indeed. You've still got a lot of pent-up energy, it seems." As he spoke, I felt his magic grab hold of mine as if he were taking my hand. Then his magic and mine zoomed through time and space to a dark spot where there was sand, and water, and the smell of the ocean and—

  And I opened my eyes and I was standing on the white sands next to a rolling ocean.

  "Holy crap!" I said, releasing him and spinning around. "How did we do that? What just happened? Where are we? What—"

  He held up his hands. "One question at a time, Alexis."

  "Where are we?" I asked. "I mean, I know this is the beach, but—"

  "This is a training ground for a local Air Force base about fifty miles east of you. There are no people, no roads. Plenty of space to practice. Any…mess we make can be attributed to their munitions testing."

  "Mess?"

  "Mess." A purple glow surrounded his hand, illuminating his face. "Are you absolutely sure you want to do this, Alexis?"

  "Yes," I said. "I—"

  The magical orb hurled toward me with the rushing sound of a freight train. I squealed and dove out of the way faster than I'd thought possible.

  "
What the hell?" I screamed at him. "You could have killed me!"

  "You would've gotten a bad sting, but I wouldn't have killed you," Gavon said, with another deep purple spell ready in his hand. "Besides, as I said, sparring is based on instinct, not thought. The best way is to just react when you're being attacked."

  I stood and brushed the sand off of my pants. "Yeah, but a little—Gack!" I fell backward, the purple spell landing square in my solar plexus and my butt landing hard on the white sand.

  "Warnings mean you think about it. Instinct is acting."

  "But I don't even know what to do?"

  His eyebrow quirked. "Is that true? What about what happened with your sister?"

  "That was…an accident."

  "That was instinct. You know what to do, you're just overthinking things."

  I pushed myself off the ground just in time for another spell to knock me back down. I cried out in frustration and glared at him. "Stop doing that!"

  "Make me."

  I would've laughed, except he was serious.

  I was able to get to my feet again before another spell zoomed toward me, but I ducked out of the way. It exploded into the sand behind me, showering me with fine grit. I swerved left then right then another hit me square in the chest and I found myself face up, staring at the darkening sky.

  I looked over at Gavon. The son of a bitch was smiling.

  "Ready to quit?" he asked.

  "Not on your life," I grunted, coming to stand. "Let's—"

  Another attack spell had me scrambling, but this time I felt the growing power in my own hand. It was the same calmness, the same knowing that I was in control. That this spell would do what I wanted it to do. And when he struck again, I would be ready.

  He didn't keep me waiting long, and once I'd dodged his spell, I released the power from my hand, the release washing over me and filling me with excitement and something else I couldn't place. I readied another spell in my hand, taking in the swirling, pulsing purple that cracked and sparked. It looked dangerous, and yet, it was part of me. I didn't fear it—I reveled in it.