Darak watched as she left, he still wasn’t sure if he could trust her, it had only been a day, but he would be a liar if he didn’t admit her beauty to himself, and he could see why his half-brother had her, but that was not important now, what mattered was getting things ready, so he picked up the bag of material, "Zaiz, please watch over Meaio and her son, and guide her to me when she is ready." He said as the cat sat down in the doorway.
"Yes master, did Olivander give you much trouble?" The cat mentally spoke back.
"Initially yes, but the sting of the mana shot from me reminded him of who I am. Also please split and overwatch the door and notify me if there is a guest." Darak said as he looked at the cat, watching as Zaiz got up and split into two perfectly cloned cats, one walking over to the window and lying down on the windowsill, while the other made his way to the stairs.
Darak smiled and got up before turning to the back of the home, to a room off in the back past the kitchen, a room that was technically the broom closet, now made into an extra planer pocket and study, lined with shelves of books and reagents, with a single table and stool in the middle.
As he reached the stool his mind was already wishing for an end to the long and tedious process of forging new component pouches, not that he could help it, and with a wave of his hands he called the extra things he needed from the shelves, while his mind wandered to other things.
‘Meaio is not a rarity these days but she is uncommon, her mana point is small but I could feel the power it is choking back was massive, and she has a mana eye, could it be that she thought I was my father, I know that I dropped my vail for a second, and she latched on as soon as I did. She is beautiful, and her voice does soothe me, but I will not force her, I would prefer she came to me willingly, I'll have to check over her room later, make sure all the wards and charms are still in place, I would hate to see her hurt…’
Darak stopped his work, and thought about his last thought, while he mused aloud "Would it really be that bad for me to see her hurt?" He retreated inwards again.
‘Yes, yes it would. She is a caring mother, like mine and I can't stand to see that. She has a right to live the life of the wife of a magic user of renown, and I will make that happen for her, she will learn, be loved, and be cared for without conditions. I will see her dressed in royal regalia, and sit beside me in the throne room, and I will make this nation better, even if I have to tear out every form of corruption, root and stem.’
"Master, you have guests." Zaiz notified him through the telepathic link they shared.
"Thank you, I'll be right there." Darak called out telepathically as he stood and pocketed the three pouches he had made, and headed to the door.
As he approached the door he heard the knocking on it again, "one moment please." Darak called out before looking through the peephole and saw two women dressed like young noble ladies of a lesser house or an upper-class mercantile family, they were escorted by two maids that were acting as their chaperones, and looked somewhat displeased by their current location "Can I help you ladies?" He called through the door.
"Are you a user of magic, we were hoping to make a request, we have been to most of the others close to us and we noticed your place this morning, Could we please speak with you?" One lady said in a bit of a high voice.
"We are terribly sorry for the inconvenience, but we really could use your help." Said the other quickly, trying to soothe over any minor slights.
Darak opened the door and gave them a bow, "I am Arcanist Darak Lordarn, Master of the Hundredfold spell and traveler of the mystical planes, please come in." And gestured to the sitting room, while actively seeking out magic about the four, found only weak mage arts coming from the accessories that the ladies had.
He followed shortly after and sat down in a recliner while the ladies took to the couch, and the maids flanked them from the other side of the high table behind it. Darak waved his hand to call for a new tea set to be brought in with three cups while the one from this morning hovered back towards the kitchen. The pot came to a boil a few seconds after the tray was set down. Darak waved his hand again, moving the different components of the set to make three cups, and looked up "Sugar, honey, or neither?" He asked as the cups were being filled.
"One sugar for me, thank you." The nobleman’s daughter said.
"A bit of honey for me, thank you." The merchant's daughter said a second after.
Darak willed a spoon of sugar into one cup while pouring out a fine amount of honey into the second, then lifted his hand and slowly pushed, making each respective cup reach its person with grace. Finally calling for his own cup, he spoke again, "I would like to preface this discussion with a simple statement, I am an Arcanist, and as such I am not limited with my magic, if it is in my power to do, I will do so for compensation." His tone was soft and well-mannered as to invite them into speaking, "With that out of the way, how can I help you?"
The nobleman’s daughter shifted a bit and finally spoke, "We have been courted for the greater part of two years, and despite having had many visits from our suitors, we have not been proposed to yet, we fear that our courtships are but a ruse to do little more than maintain a connection with our fathers, we would like to know the truth.” her tone a bit down trot, and made Darak frown a bit at the information.
A two-year courtship is indeed a long time to hold and visit someone you have no real care for, but their fathers may be powerful or influential, which meant this was likely more of a means to an end for the suitors while for these ladies it is a heart-rending ordeal to be approached by someone for no reason but her family.
Darak looked to the other lady, and got a nod from her, as he sipped his tea, and sighed, “I could help, but first I must ask somethings?” he spoke and noticed that even the maids now focused more, “I need to know what you would do if the suitors were indeed using you and cared not for your hearts?”
The two ladies shifted a bit and the merchant’s daughter spoke, “I would end our courtship and take more care with the next suitor, I will not be a pawn in the politics of the nobility or business.” Her tone was confident, and her friend shared the reason with a nod.
“And if they genuinely cared for your hearts, what would you do then?” Darak asked before taking a second sip of his tea.
“We would encourage them to move forward with our partnership.” the noble lady said quickly.
Darak nodded then smiled, “Now would you really like to know or could you live in ignorance for your love of the suitors?” he said flatly, and noticed them stop and think over his question, a clear effort to find an answer.
“You are saying that you can give us the marriages we wish for while never gifting a truth to our suitors’ motives.” the merchant’s daughter said as she looked up at him.
Darak nodded then spoke, “It is in my power to give, in fact, it is all in my power, but I can only do what you wish.”
They sat in silence that was only broken briefly by the placement of the cups on their saucers until finally the noble lady looked up to her friend and gave a determined look, one her friend agreed to with a sigh, before she turned her head to face Darak, “We would like the truth, be it good or ill, I would like to know the truth of my suitor.”
Darak put his cup down on the tray and looked up while resting his hand with interlaced fingers on his knee, “As you wish, now on to the matter of payment, know that I have no need for coin, however, given the conversation, I would like to be introduced to your fathers as payment for solving your woes.” he said in a clear tone that this was not a negotiation.
The noble’s maid shifted a bit to move but was stopped by her mistress's hand, “Is there a way for us to pay you some other way, my father is a busy man.” she said calmly, “surely asking for so much as a payment is a opening tactic.”
Darak shook his head, “I am afraid you misunderstand, I plan to gift you the truth and knowledge, even ill knowledge is powerful, more over you will likely seek out my assistance after this too. An introduction will be a one-time payment for my aid for the next ten years within reason.”
“You are confident in your skills then, to make such a request before proving your magic capabilities.” the merchant’s daughter said calmly as she finished her cup and placed it on the table. “Do you really believe you will succeed?”
Darak smiled at her, “I am an Arcanist, and a master of the hundredfold spell, decorated by three foreign kings, and have a mastery of my mana, I can guarantee that my magic will work out as intended.”
The two ladies leaned back and thought it over before exchanging a glance then looked at him.
“That is agreeable, but you will not have an introduction until I have the truth from my suitor.” said the noble lady.
Stolen story; please report.
“Yes, my father will not see you unless the truth is brought out from my suitor’s lips, anything less is not acceptable.” the merchant’s daughter added a second later.
Darak smiled and looked to the doorway where Zaiz was waiting, “Zaiz, please fetch for me two truthseeker charms from my Arcanium.” he said and watched the cat leave, but looked to the stairs as the clone of Zaiz descended followed by Meaio. “My dear, we have guests.” he said and got up and walked to the doorway, “Ladies, this is my wife, Meaio Lordarn.” he said with an extended hand to her.
The noble lady stood, “A pleasure to meet you, I am Luciella Willicar, daughter of Viscount Jacob Willicar.” She said with a small bow.
the merchant’s daughter stood up and bowed a bit too. “I am Julianna Wessex, of the Wessex Traders”
Meaio Smiled at them, “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, I am sorry I could not greet you when you arrived, I was tending to our son, Arcaio, Please sit back down.” she said and gestured to the couch, while she and Darak sat down in the recliners “I overheard a bit of the conversation, and I can assure you that my husband is a skilled magic user.”
“You flatter me, my dear.” Darak said warmly then looked to the Zaiz clone at the doorway, “Please watch over our son and tell me if anything happens.” making them watch as the cat moved back upstairs, only to have the same cat come around the corner and leap up and into his lap, holding to charms by their strings in its mouth. “Thank you zaiz you are wonderful.”
Darak looked over the charms, checking for any damage, then waved his hand and let the charms come to a rest before each lady, “These are truth-seeker charms from the lands of Waino, far to the east, when next your suitors come to call on you hold them tight and focus on them as you ask your suitors anything, your suitor will be unable to lie to you even if they would wish too. You will have your answers, be they weal or woe.” he said with a gesture at the small envelopes with Japanese on them, closed at the top by a fine silk cord.
The two ladies and maid looked down on the odd items he had presented, and Luciella looked up to him, “will it work?”
Darak smiled, “yes, you can even use it on me if you would like.” he said back.
Julianna took hers, held it in both hands and looked up at him “What do you think of your wife?”
Darak felt the mana wave wash over him and he allowed it to carry him “I find her beauty intoxicating, her grace is that of an angel I long to hold, and her voice is a sweet melody I will never bore of. if I had but one wish it would be to give her anything and everything she wished for.” he said in a tone that was warm and affectionate, the air around him shifted to a warm and soothing aura that lulled them all as his buried thoughts of Meaio came forth in the joy and love he hides.
Meaio smiled and took his hand, “I know my dear,” she said then turned to the ladies, “As you can see it works wonders as he normally would not speak like that before company.”
The air shifted away as the magic that affected his mind faded, “Yes, I do not like to sing of her when in front of others, lest I embarrass her.” He said and squeezed Meaio’s hand a bit, “If this is all you require then I believe our dealings are done.”
“Please allow me to escort you to the door.” Meaio said as she stood, with the ladies.
“Thank you Arcanist Lordarn.” Luciella said before turning to walk away.
“Yes, thank you for your help.” Julianna added a second after then turned and left, followed by the maids.
“It is a pleasure to be of assistance, please get home safe.” Darak said with a bow as they left, then sat back down and let out a sigh, but looked up to Meaio as she stopped in the doorway.
“Did you really mean to say those things, surely you could have resisted the effect of the magic.” she said, her voice sounding uncertain of the truth of his words or lack of resistance.
Darak nodded and sat up, “I could have, I could have been unaffected and lied to close the deal, but my aura would have been wrong, also Lady Willicar had a ring that told her if I had lied, so it would have been worse, at the end I choose to let the magic carry me and I spoke truthfully.” He said and looked up at her, noticing the light blush on her cheeks, “I do find it hard to look at you without my heart racing, but we are still strangers and I will not force you to do anything.”
Meaio nodded and looked away, “I’ll start making lunch, call me if you need something.” She said then stopped before leaving the line of sight through the doorway, “and thank you for the praise, it was flattering.” her voice sounded reassured as she left.
Darak leaned into his chair, and looked to Zaiz, “Watch over the door, and call if we have more guests, I have more work to do and split again and watch over Meaio, if she needs me let me know.” he said and walked back towards the Arcanium, giving Meaio a smile as he walks through the kitchen, getting back to his work while his mind wondered again.
‘Did I really just tell her how I feel and think of her, maybe I should have resisted, but then the deal would have been a sham, no, I need connections and she is my wife, I shouldn’t hide my thoughts and feelings from her. For now, focus on the future, once they use the charms on their suitors they will show them to their fathers, who will be shocked that there is a user of the shinto magic of Waino here in the city, and they will call on my skills soon, then it is a matter of working to solve more issues in a way that is not common here, I just need to show that I can use not only mage, druidic, and priest arts but also use any other to my advantage, even huckstar if I must, not that I would want to sell the souls of others. Yes in a few weeks, for sure by then I will have a summons.’
His work was stopped by a hand on his shoulder, looking over he saw Meaio’s face, “Food is ready, will you join me in the kitchen?” she asked with a bit of concern that was warm
Darak looked over to the clock on his table and noticed that a better part of an hour had passed, and smiled to her “Yes, I will.”
She smiled back and walked away while he followed a bit behind, his eyes wandering over her, but he shook his head to clear his mind of the thoughts he felt bubble up. Their walk to the kitchen table was quick and he found a pot of soup resting on the table with the lid on, and some fresh sliced bread on two plates and a cutting board, coming to a seat at the head of the table, he watched as she served him a bowl of the rich smelling soup.
The wafting scent of the barley, vegetables, and chicken wet his palate before he even had a taste, but waited for her to sit down too, “It smells delicious Meaio, thank you, I am sure I would have been lost in my work if you hadn’t come for me.” he said with a warm smile and tone.
She smiled back with a hint of nervousness, “Thank you, I am not sure if it will be to your liking, so please let me know if I can improve it somehow.” she said back, before ripping a bit of bread and starting to eat.
Darak took a spoonful and found it delectable, the softness of the barley combined with the rich flavor of the onions and chicken made it perfect, and he couldn’t help but take a second spoonful before sitting upright and smiling wide. “It is perfect like you, please make it again whenever you like.” He said and took a bite of the bread.
Meaio looked up and smiled, “Thank you, though I wish I had some more spices.” she said a bit of dismay in her voice.
“I will see to getting some, just write a list for me.” Darak said back as he took a new spoonful.
She looked up with a bit of shock “Really? Spices are expensive are they not?” she asked.
“Yes, but I have too much in the way of coinage, I will have to show you my vault later, for now, let us enjoy this wonderful meal.” he said with a warm smile.
Their meal was calm and warm to him as they ate, Meaio let out a sigh as she finished her bowl, “Can you tell me something?” she asked while resting her chin in her hand.
“If it is something I know then yes.” Darak said back.
“Why do I have a magic power, more over how is it that a commoner like me has one, I was taught that magic power can only be found in nobles. So why me?” She asked and stared at him.
Darak looked back at her, staring into her eyes while he thought about it, the prolonged contact making his heart race, then looked away as she started to blush and shift away. “Well, first off, anyone can be born with magic power or the correct term Mana point. One of my master’s believed that it was a game of chance who would have it, while a different one said that it is fated at birth, and my master from the Lower New Lands said it is the will of the gods. However, after extensive checks and research, I believe that about ten percent of humans have a mana point, and while I found a correlation between bloodlines and those who have it, I can say with near-perfect certainty that that way of thinking is wrong. As for why you have one is a mystery, maybe you are the descendent of a lost house maybe the gods deemed your soul fit to have one. At the end of it all, it matters little, you will with time and training be able to use magic like I do.” he said carefully, then finished his bowl, savoring the last bit of it.
“So, I have it because I have it, but what is it exactly?” She asked a second later.
Darak looked up and recalled how it was explained to him, then spoke, “A mana point works like a bridge between your physical form and your soul, it allows for the flowing of the energy our souls hold to be used by us, normally that bridge is not open as the energy is needed to let us live, but for a magic user they can use that energy to make things happen, the usage of the energy leaves us feeling drained, but that can be recovered from with rest and relaxation.”
“But didn’t you say mine is weak and underdeveloped, wouldn’t that be bad for me to use magic?” She asked.
Darak shook his head, “Your mana point right now is like a small trench you dug in the dirt with your finger, then you pour a bit of water through it, the amount that will come out is too little for it to be useable. However, with training, meditation, and study, you can make that mana point bigger and sturdy enough to hold the same amount of mana as the river themes.” he said calmly while still looking off of her eye line.
“And how big is your mana point?” She questioned.
“I can let you feel it if you want.” He said back as he extended his hand to her.
She took it as he placed her hand over his heart, then closed his eyes and focused his mana towards her hand, the soft touch of her palm was nice even through the layers of fabric he wore, but he let the mana flow from him into her hand and got a shallow gasp from her as the energy made contact. He held her there as he kept at it, willing more mana to cycle through her hand before coming back to him.
“It is warmer than I thought it would be, I was expecting it to be cold and uncomfortable, yet it feels nice, like holding my hand close to a fireplace in winter.” she said, making him open his eyes to her smiling face, the soothing nature of his mana right now made her blush a bit.
He pulled her hand away, “Yeah so that is my mana point, it would be about the size of a fist, but I have spent three years reaching that level while I had no real instructor, I believe you will get to that in half the time if not faster.” he said while looked a bit away and a bout of shyness rang over him for the nature of their contact just now.
“I see, and what will happen then?” she asked, a bit of shyness in her voice too.
“We will open your mana channels, that way you can start learning magic.” He answers, before looking back. “Actually we will be opening them while we work to develop your mana point.”
“And those are what?” Meaio asked while looking away from him.
“Think of them as canals that carry mana from the mana point all the way out to your fingers and toes, like your mana point, yours are too small to be used, so we will expand them, the way to do so is a bit uncomfortable, but I will make sure you will be okay.” he said back scratching at the scar on his neck.
“Is it dangerous?” she asked as she noticed the scar that ran up the left side of his neck and webbed out as it did, fearful of the task.
“Only if you are trying to do it alone, but I will be there to help you along, and I will make sure you don’t get hurt.” He said slowly and sighed as the memory of his near-death at his efforts still in his head.
“And after we do that I can start using spells?” She asked carefully, a light uncertainty at the idea still present in her speech.
“Yes, do you have a spell you would like to learn first, or would like me to pick one for you?” He said with a faked joy, as the memory of his time from then still played in his head.
“I want a spell that will make you smile.” She said with a warmth drawing his eyes up to her smiling face. “I don’t like it when you look sad, it reminds me of my past, and I want to forget that.”
Darak laughed a bit but covered his mouth quickly, “Sorry, I did not think you would answer that way.” he said then shook his head to banish the memories, “How about the first spell I learned, it's not fancy or amazing, but I was so ecstatic when I did it. I think if I got to see you achieving the same would make me smile.” he smiled a bit.
She watched him for a second, then smiled “Great, then I want you to truly smile, so that way I can know when you are really happy, and not faking it like you have been.” she said before getting up and taking the pot off the table.
Darak watched her as she cleared the table, her light brown hair still tied back by the workers of the dress shop, the way her body moved the dress he had gotten her, the way it hugged at her waist and pressed her chest up and forward, the skirt showing her hips move and sway as she walked, the light coloring of her skin that reminded him of soft snow in the early night. Her blue eyes landed on him every now and then, each time making her blush a bit, and every time his heart lost its beat for a second. His mind called to him to sweep her off her feet and carry her upstairs, to indulge in her completely, to hear her voice cry out with pleasure, to allow them both to be lost in the fog of ecstasy. Now was not the time for it so he shut his eyes and leaned back while rubbing the bridge of his nose, sighing out in an effort to regain control of his mind.