Meaio was a bit put off by this man who was leading her by her hand, he was a mystery, all she knew was that he was a magic user, his name, and his, in her opinion insane goal, yet for some reason she agreed, she willingly accepted his marriage proposal, and choose a name for her son in front of him. Could it be the vow he made or the way he used his magic to protect her son, or was it the gentle demeanor he tendered to her?

She shook her head and thought about last night, she remembered that she was lying down in an alleyway near the baron’s manor, she was waiting for the baron to come out again, and she was too hungry and weak, It was night when she felt an aura that felt like the baron’s, an aura she had felt when she was thrown out or when the baron was angered, and she was sure she asked the baron to take her son back, yet she woke up in this man’s house, and his aura was none existent which was weird to her, as she could feel the magic around magic users. She looked down at her ring and could feel the magic that waved off of it and over her body, a soothing warmth that made her feel assured.

“Please keep that ring on at all times,” Darak said over his shoulder, “Especially when I have friends over, it is for your protection, and as long as you wear it no magic will harm you.” he then pulled her up towards a dress shop.

The interior was well-lit with skylights and magic lamps, the walls were lined with dresses fit for the wealthy and influential, and the dresses, hats, and accessories were made of vibrant colors of cloth, materials, and other things made into many different styles.

Darak turned to face her and held out his hands, “Give me Arcaio, and go shop to your heart's content.” he said with a smile, and a warm tone “Consider it a wedding gift for you, I want you to love any clothes you wear.”

“But these dresses are too much, I am not…” she started to protest but was stopped by his finger on her lips and he slipped his other hand under the cloak and took her son carefully into his arms.

“You are the wife of an Arcanist, one that has recognitions of his work and capability by the King of Frankia, the Sultan of Jerysalim, and the Holy Emperor of Waino. You are entitled to be dressed in the best clothes, and for now, I want you to find things you will wish to wear around me. So please go and shop, money is not an object.” His tone was still warm and soft, but his words made her feel like this was not a conversation for them to hold but a request of her.

So she walked about the store finding a few dresses that were like those that she had helped the baroness wear sometimes, The thought of wearing such fine clothes like a lady of a prominent house was like a dream to her, and she had to look to him, a true wish to know that he was serious about his offer to buy all of this for her beyond her acceptance of reality, but as he smiled and nodded her heart skipped a beat, he was sincere about all he had said just now, and she started her search in earnest.

Their time was not fast but used well, and she even changed into a fine blue dress that matched the color of his suit, her hair was also brushed and set by a few of the workers, and as she approached the counter, he turned to face her, she saw as his eyes first took her visage in total then focused on some areas, his wondering eyes finally settled on her face, and he reached up and stroked her cheek, “You look radiant my dear.” he said with a tone that only barely hides his desire, yet he turned to the shopkeeper, and smiled after clearing his throat with a cough, “Please have the rest of the dresses delivered to my estate, here is the address, now how much for all of this.” he handed her a slip of paper.

The lady who ran the shop looked over the address he had written down, “It will come out to sixteen gold and seven silver.” she said in a bit of a bitter tone.

Meaio had to gasp at the price, it was more than three years of her wages in the employment of the baron, and she immediately grabbed at Darak’s sleeve, but he turned to her and smiled, “Can you hold on to our son for a second?” he said while holding Arcaio out for her, his smile faltered her protest before she could form the words, but she took her son back into her arms.

Darak smiled, pulled out a coin purse, removed the amount, and placed it on the counter while counting it out. Finally turning to the shopkeeper, “If you or any of your workers require magic, please come to that address and I will be happy to help.” he said then tugged on his suit changing the main color to match hers while shifting the accents to a fine green, then he turned to Meaio, “shall we find a place to have a breakfast?” he gestured for the door.

She could only nod and took the lead out of the shop, but stopped at the door as a bit of a downpour came on during her shopping, Darak stepped out and waved his hand through the air over them and pulled her out into the rain, yet not a drop landed on her, and her shoes found no water under beneath. The area around them shows the water running around them like a ball of glass and came into being about them and she looked at Darak, “You have magic to stop the rain?” she asked nervously.

He smiled, “Yes, I do, and I will teach you as well how to use it, but for now let’s go get some breakfast.” he said in a calm and reassuring tone. “It is a simple spell that you can use in a month or two.” he took her hand again and led the way, guiding them through the rain to a cozy restaurant off one of the main roads.

The dining area was well made and finely furnished, the large windows allowed the dimmed light of the rainy morning to get in, while the space had the scent of pipe smoke, yet it never really reached her, the smells of cooked eggs, ham, bacon, and cheeses did though. As they sat down Darak raised his hand and gave a wave summoning a small crib beside her, to her and everyone’s surprise, but she looked up at him and smiled, before speaking “Thank you, it would have been difficult eating with him in my arms.”

Darak smiled back, “Of course my dear, I may be a magic user, but I am not heartless, not yet anyway. For now, my sole wish is to enjoy this breakfast with you.” he said as the waiter got to them and handed them menus.

“Good morning, I am Joshua, and I will be your waiter for the morning, do you need anything for the moment, water, tea, coffee?” the waiter asked.

“Two elder gray teas please, with honey, and a piece of the strawberry cake for my lovely wife.” Darak said with a warm smile to her.

Meaio looked up a bit confused and shocked that he had ordered something she was thinking about. “Yes, that should be fine for now.”

“Right away.” the waiter said and walked away.

Meaio looked up at him, “How did you know I wanted the cake?” she asked carefully, a bit of fear of his answer. She knew mages could read thoughts with the right contracts, but did he have such a familiar?

“I made an educated guess, that and I read your lips while you were reading the menu.” Darak said back with a smile and a warm tone of amusement.

“I am sorry, I learned to read from the head maid, and she was a bad teacher.” Meaio said back a bit sheepishly, hiding her face a bit more with the menu, “She insisted I read out loud so that she could make sure I got the words right.”

“Well, that is not surprising, my teacher made me do the same. But I plan to teach Arcaio myself so for now we need just a maid to watch him while we are busy.” he said back with a comforting smile.

“You plan to hire a maid to care for him, do you plan for us not to be home often?” Meaio asked carefully.

“We may be called on to go and meet with nobles and wealthy merchants that need of my skills, as my wife and assistant you will need to accompany me.” he said then looked away and to the waiter that had returned with their teas and a wedge of cake for her. “When we do, we will need someone trustworthy is needed, and while I could call on a familiar to do the task, I feel it would be better for now not to.”

Meaio poured a spoon of the honey into her tea and stirred, “Are your familiars not trustworthy?” she asked before cutting a piece of the cake off with her fork and eating it.

“Well, for most they are, but the only one that can be useable for childcare is not something a young child or baby should be exposed to, not until he can understand the nature of that familiar.” Darak said as he took a sip of his tea after he added a spoonful of honey and stirred it.

Meaio thought over his answer and looked at him with a bit of concern, “You make it sound like you have a succubus in your retinue.” she said out loud as she thought about it but got a nervous smile from him. “No, you jest, surely.”

“Her name is Dialilla, and like all succubus, she can turn into an incubus at will, then she prefers to be called Dianel,” He said calmly, then took a second sip of his tea, “However, she is on a three-year punishment for trying again to influence my actions. So, you will not meet her anytime soon.”

“Does she try to influence you often?” Meaio asked nervously before taking a second bite of her cake.

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“Unfortunately, she resents me for the contract she has with me, and she tries to convince me to nullify the contract whenever I summon her.” Darak said back with a sigh.

“Why?” Meaio asked as she took a sip of her tea.

“Well, she was thinking I would allow her to roam free in our world as long as she didn’t interfere in my work, but I never planned to use her like that, I need her for her skills, and as such I need her to stay close. Add to that that a succubus’s master is unaffected by her magic means she can’t force me to release her.” Darak said before taking a third sip of his tea and glanced down at the menu.

“So, how many familiars do you have?” Meaio asked with curiosity in her tone but a calm expression on her face.

Darak stopped and leaned back as he thought about it before he spoke, “I have six, You have already met Zaiz, he is the most useful for day-to-day life, then you have Dialilla, and then you get Phoinas who is a minotaur, Wiazz the divine couatl, Alizal the Silvered wing, and finally, Alucard the bloodied horror, but I would never let him out unless it is life or death for the both of us and Arcaio.”

“Why is he so bad?” Meaio asked as she took a sip of her tea.

“Because he was once a human and as such, he has no remorse for his victims, that and I have trouble keeping him in check.” Darak said back calmly and looked over the menu again then looked up at her and the now empty cake plate, “You ready for the meal?”

Meaio nodded and looked over the menu again just to make sure her desired meal was there, while Darak waved the waiter over.

“Yes, I would like the breakfast plate with bacon, and sourdough bread for toast.” Darak said before finishing his tea.

“Excellent choice sir, and for the lady?” the waiter asked.

Meaio looked over her choice once more, then answered “Yes, can I get the Gracian breakfast with berries for the yogurt?”

“A brilliant choice, I’ll get those both out as soon as i can.” The waiter said and hurried away.

“So, you have summoning magic, and familiars, along with healing, Would I be able to use all of those magics too if I learned?” Meaio asked while taking the last sip of her tea.

Darak looked up and over her, “I believe so, you have a mana point that is suitable for an arcanist, more over you possess a mana eye too, so with training and work you could be more powerful than me.” he said calmly.

“Mana eye?” Meaio asked and leaned back as their food was brought.

“I am sure of it, you felt the magic I put in the ring right, and you can feel the auras of magic users that can’t control or are allowing their mana out.” Darak said and looked down at his plate, “As an example,” The air around them suddenly felt warm and soothing, while making the area where they were having their breakfast suddenly feel like nothing bad would enter before it faded, “That was my mana through the filter of my happiness.”

“So that is what I feel sometimes,” Meaio said then shuddered, “Wait, then when I feel overwhelmed, like death is creeping in?”

“Malice, if you feel that aura from any magic user it will be bad, your ring will protect you from most damage, but a magic user that is motivated to the point you feel their malice means you run and find me as soon as you can.” Darak said with a hard tone but smiled after, “If you feel that from me, I am sorry, I can get too into my own head sometimes.”

“So, I did ask you for help last night…” Meaio said a bit stunned.

“Yes, you did but I was surprised that you did so, normally people run away from me when I let that side out, but you grabbed on to me and asked me to take your child in, though I suspect that you thought I was someone else.” Darak said before eating a forkful of food, and swallowed before continuing, “that being said, I have to admit that you are far more beautiful then I would have imagined last night, and I am overjoyed that you accepted to be my wife. I swear to do you no ill or harm for as long as you will have me.”

Meaio studied the man again, he was and is a mystery, one that made no sense, he wields magic like a noble, yet his attitude and demeanor are more of a commoner, he has traveled the world, yet he calls this land home, and while he does, he plans to overthrow a millennia-long monarchy for it supposed corruption and defilement of magic. He had taken her in and made her his wife, while vowing to protect her and her son, treating her like a lady, and seeing to her care, all the while teaching her of his skills, and now he states that if she wishes she can leave their marriage at her discretion. And for some reason, she smiled and laughed a bit, then spoke, “I honestly do not think I really had a choice earlier.”

“Yes, I was rather harsh this morning, but I would not do away with you without thought, my goals would still benefit from you learning to use your magic.” Darak said with a smile, “I have much to teach you before I would be happy and assured you could protect yourself and your son.”

“Does Arcaio have a mana point?” She said as she finished her yogurt.

“Yes, and like yours it is weak but not ready to be developed.” Darak said back as he slid his plate a bit forward while smiling. “Maybe when he is six, I could start teaching him, otherwise it could harm him in the long run.”

Meaio thought about that and spoke, “The Baron’s sons started to learn about magic at the age of three, so why are we starting at six?”

“Because the mana point from the age of three to six is in a state of uncertainty, during that time it will mold and contort to work with the magic the child is taught,” Darak said as he got a gold coin out and handed to the waiter, “so if you teach a child how to do Mage Magic at three his mana point will become usable only for mage magic, and they will have no choice but to be a mage. However, if you wait until the sixth birthday then the child’s mana point will never settle and can be useable for all forms of magic, that is why you can be an arcanist and so can I and so will Arcaio.”

Meaio thought it over, she had seen the baron use magic with the power of his familiars, and how the duke would use his Seer arts to do perverted things like lift the dresses of maids when he visited. But for this man to be able to use all of them was a bit of a shocker, more over the idea of her being able to do the same, and for her son to be that powerful too. She couldn’t help but smile at this dark savior she had found and found herself vowing to help him for the sake of Arcaio. “Right then I and Arcaio will be in your care then.” she said with a loving tone, as she got Arcaio out of the crib, which turned into a vapor at the wave of his hand. “Now, let’s go home?”

Darak turned to her but shook his head, “Do you need to feed him? If not, we have one last stop to make.” he said back.

Meaio looked down at the baby boy in her arms, “He is still asleep, so I think we have time, but not long.” she said confidently.

“Right then can I ask for you to step as close as possible,” he said as he pulled a small pouch out of his pocket. “We will go to a friend's shop that way it will be over with quickly.”

Meaio wasn’t sure what to make of him but stepped closer only to have him pull her in by the waist while holding the pouch tight in one hand, the soft flow of air as he exhaled caressing her skin as his eyes shifted to a pale blue mana flow, before he spoke. “Ekat su ot s’radnavilo pohs fo stnegaer”

She watched as a whirl of light tore the area around them to a different place altogether, she glanced about as the musty smell of books, herbs, and other items that she guessed were used in spellwork filled the air around her. They were standing in a carpeted and circular room with a single doorway out, with walls lined by shelves that held tomes and books of different colors, along with bowls and jars of different things, and a few statuettes of monsters and angels. the shuffling of movement coming close drew her eyes to the door and Darak shifted a bit in front of her and whispered over his shoulder to her, “Do not make any noises or faces when you see him.”

As the sound grew greater, she could see the shadows of a monster of innumerable feelers and tendrils, the bulky form of a giant, and the heavy and squishy footfall of whatever was approaching. Finally, a simple-looking man peeked around the corner, a look of concern in his eyes, he was a bit rounded but looked harmless to her, yet as Darak didn’t shift his posture, she maintained hers.

“Darak Lordarn, Arcanist of the Life Valley, Master of the Hundredfold spell, undisputed king of the forbidden occult. What can Olivandar do for you today?” The man said with a bow.

“I need you to give me my Proof of Safety unless you want your shop to burn.” Darak said back with a harsh tone.

“Right away sir, I assume it is for the lady and babe behind you, a waste you know, the soul of a child,” the man's face started to bubble and shift as he gained height, “Is extraordinarily powerful, and I have many clients that will pay handsomely for it.” he said as his voice shifted to a rumbling bubble like a few voices spoke at once.

Darak raised his arm faster than Meaio could see, and a sudden explosion emanated from near the man’s disfigured face. “They are my Kin, and I will not ask again, you are aware you can’t beat me, and you can’t break the protection I have given them, now hand over the proof or I will let Alizal loose on your shop.” Darak roared, as he aimed his hand at the man’s face.

“Yes, right away,” The man said as he shrunk down again and waved his hand making a parchment appear in his hand then he threw it to Darak.

Darak waved his hand and unraveled the parchment and it glided to Meaio, “All it needs is a kiss, please do so and for Arcaio, have him kiss it too, just press it to his lips.” he said without taking his eyes off the man, who looked both infuriated and aggravated.

Meaio kissed the parchment and her name appeared below Darak’s, then she pressed the parchment to Arcaio’s lips, and his name appeared too. Once done she looked up and the man sighed, while Darak reached over and looked over the proof. “What is that, and who is he?” she asked as he relaxed once he read over the document.

“His real name must never be spoken aloud, moreover he is a being from the edge of the magic realms, he doesn’t do much more than collect but he sells anything for a price.” Darak said with a hand on her shoulder, “he is, however, unable to harm those in his proofs, hence why I had you add yourself and Arcaio to the proof I have with him, that way we can shop without fear.”

“You make it sound like he is something that even the empire can’t fight.” She said as she pulled Arcaio in a bit tighter.

“The empire would lose if they tried, I beat him thanks to my training.” Darak said back then looked to the man, “I need the components to a blessing of Freya, and three teleportations, also the materials for the true vision spell and the Barrier shatter spell.”

Olivandar waved his hand as different things flew off the shelves and entered a bag until finally it closed, and the man looked to Darak, “It will be pricey, and you know I don’t care for gold, so I will ask for something else, I want the boy.”

Meaio gasped and moved behind Darak, but was happy to hear his answer, “Forget that. How about I give you Dialilla for a week, I know you like her, and she has been looking for some fun.” Darak said back.

“Hmm, no, she will just stay and complain the whole time, even if I did try to have her.” Olivandar said back and started to pace.

“Ok, how about the soul of a powerful Baroness, I should have her in a phylactery within a few months. If that works, then say so.” Darak said after a second.

“Agreed!” Olivandar said and waved his hand.

The world around them tore again but they found themselves in the sitting room Meaio had woken up in, she turned to Darak, “The Baroness you offered, it is Baroness Wiandran, isn’t it?”

Darak turns to her and smiles, “Would you really like to know, or shall I lie to you?” His question sounded like a trap within a trap, a harsh decision to be made. On the table was the terrible truth, while on the other was blissful ignorance.

Meaio looked down at her son, they were talking about his grandmother’s soul like a bargaining chip from a gambler’s den, and they did so casually, so she knew what she wanted and looked up to Darak, an authoritative glare in her eye, “I want honesty between us, even at the cost of pain.” she said in a hard and cold tone.

“You are the mother of my nephew, and I am the bastard son of Baron Wiandran whom he tried to kill thirteen years ago, I have been traveling the world learning how to wield any and every magic that the gods have given us to take my rightful place as the Baron. But that was my goal three years ago, now I want to topple the empire.” Darak said back with a cold tone, and an equal glare in his eye, “And I will happily sell the Baroness’s soul for my mission, so do you still want to work with me, or do I have to change my plans again.”

Meaio felt the air shift, it was not dreadful but still uncomfortable, but she didn’t shrink away from his eyes. “I never liked that woman and now that you have told me about my magic, I have more reason to believe that my employment was for that reason only, so no, I will not leave as long as you will protect my son.” she said after a second.

Darak relaxed and smiled warmly at her, affection in his expression “Thank you for choosing me again, I will see your son made the baron, and you, the Empress at my side.”

“I will hold you to that, Darak.” She said and looked down at her son as he stirred away and cried out. “Is there somewhere I can feed him in private?”

“Up the stairs first door on your left, it will be his nursery, the furniture was summoned by Zaiz while we were out, you should find everything you need.” he said and gestured to the stairs.