Pyra looks into the lights of the town of Amalyn with a resolved glare. They had been traveling the wilds since the disaster at Lolacal, and she had been learning more attentively what Marshall was teaching. She couldn't get the hollow looks of those young humans out of her mind, and after the anger of her transformation dimmed down it had been weighing on her. Now she walks to the door while throwing a look at the man who brought her here. He claimed that being in a larger town would be good for a little while, to gather money and rest after all the "deadly adventures" as he called them. She didn't agree with his mewling about the risks, but had to agree that everything didn't work out the best. And she still couldn't get in contact with her Mother like before. Of the many things on her mind of late, it was still second to the looks those young humans made. Thus the reason for her, now, nightly walks around the town.
Her mind focusing through the floating pictures trying to grab her attention, and on the feel of the mana in the air. She never took the same path twice, or at least she didn't think she did, but she always tried this trick to connect with her old power. Flame was, like the coins Marshall liked to count, made of a single thing with more than one purpose. It could kill all it touched like it did in Lolacal, or it could cook a tasty stew like the one on their trip. Though that was just once, and later attempts just made the man appear far more useless. Her hands dance in patterns before her as her feet take measured steps down the stairs leading to the street from their rooms. A flick of a finger sends a flash of red-orange flame into the air, it's light appearing as a character meaning light. Marshall had been teaching her about reading and writing lately, and had been making zero progress until he suggested this trick after seeing her form pictures. It certainly improved the speed at which she remembered the complicated characters and symbols for different places.
As the imprint of the character in her eyes fades she throws out another tongue of yellow-orange light to make a character representing money. Supposedly this was the one you wanted to look for if you were looking for a bank, which seemed like a dumb place in her mind. A cavern filled with coins seemed like a more secure place since no one would know where it was but you, and you could place lots of lethal traps or magic around it so no one would know. When she mentioned that Marshall just sighed and turned away. The concept of money was weird since she knew it could buy 'things' but it also was how they got into the town. When Marshall gave some of the shiny coins to a guard to let them in, so it seemed to do more than he claimed. The flickering lights she has dancing in between her fingers were calming to her, and the effect they had on a certain group of people was even more so. As she approaches a small crossing of streets, she stops to twist around to face the several young, dirty faces watching the magical lights.
"Do you want to see some magic?" She asks the expectant faces, and they quickly nod with enthusiasm. She had been doing this for a few nights, and so people had heard about the odd witch roaming the town with fire. Once she got stopped by a pair of guards, but she gave them each a few shiny coins and they bowed quickly before walking away. Though Marshall was pleasantly frustrated with her and went to bed early that night. Something about the amount she gave them being too much, but she didn't care all that much. He brought enough of those coins back when he went out each night, he could live to lose a couple if she didn't have to be bothered by guards.
"Can we see a dragon!?" A boy asks with his eyes bright and staring at the dancing flames. Pyra nods to him before making a few meaningless gestures since she found that the kids liked things to have a lot of movement. Then, several braids of colored flame twist into a green and blue scaled dragon that breathes white fire from it's mouth. The detail on the construct so clear you can count the teeth in the mouth of the creature even though it is only a couple feet in size. Though also clearly made from fire, the kids gasp and point at the flying construct bringing a smile to Pyra. She liked hearing them praise her flames and the detail that she could make within them. It was that other part of the fire that she was now apart of, the part that was born from the warmth of emotions. Like the name she was given from her mother, it was a part of her she wanted to make many memories of. Something to balance the times that she would have to burn those smiles away. She shook her head to remove the needless thoughts.
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
"Perhaps a story of a dragon and a little girl?" She asks the group, now of eight as a couple had joined in the last couple minutes. Once she even had a few adults who watched her work, and it was actually nice to see their gazes of wonder. This time the kids all looked around at each other, at her words and seemed to have some kind of agreement.
"C-can you show us the mountains? O-or something far away?" The boy asks, stumbling a little on his words. Personally, Pyra liked to tell the story that her Mother had told her several times, and it was the only one she really knew. Yet, they were just asking to see places, so she shrugs to them and spins her fire around herself. The flames looking like a small hill then moving forwards to see a large set of fancy gates leading into her Mother's maze and domain. She shows them the wonders of her home, and the children all gasp and look on with starry eyes. It amuses her to see their reactions to such a place, and it is important they understand the beauty of her Mother's realm after all. Marshall continued to tell her that she wasn't a princess, but she still strongly disagreed considering his reasons against it to be reasons she actually was. Though she agreed not to spread it around since it would be considered "rude".
"Hey, you urchins get away from the young lady!" A forceful voice breaking the revere of the children and herself as a guard approaches from the nearby street. While it was always quiet in the early evening, the main streets still saw enough people for the guards to be around. Pyra's emotions flare at the man as the kids run away from her leaving her standing with dancing flames of many colors. She slowly banishes the flames and rejects the noises of the System trying to get her attention, looking towards guard with a frown on her face.
"Um, magic, especially fire magic, is banned without a permit, Miss." He says, trying to keep a tone of authority and a stern expression on his face. Though inside his interface is sending him warning flashes about [Unstable Magic] which starts sweat to form on his brows. He had never seen such warnings before, but it was clear that the source was the young woman with the odd but beautiful hair in front of him.
"I have been doing so without issue for a while now..." Pyra responds with a tilt to her head, "Ah right the others said so as well, here then." She proceeds to hold out two gold coins to the guard, who immediately swallows. A single gold was a weeks pay, and her reaction spoke to her bribing city guards before. The man grew angry at this realization since it was important for the guard to not take sides and be above taking bribes in any case.
"I am afraid I will have to take you to the Post so that you can answer some questions." He says, standing up straight and leveling his spear at her gently. A mage was never a character you wanted to drop your guard around, even if they tended to have weak physical stats compared to a melee type like himself. Pyra's face falls at his reaction, and she puts the coins away before walking deeper into the alleyway. The guard chases slowly after her, paying close attention to which direction she goes.
"Hey, you need to come with me, any further defiance will be punished with worse consequences." He shouts out, but his eyes widen a second later as a bolt of blood-red flame consumes his spear and body. The flames then twist into a variety of colors, as if testing to see which color looks right on his body as he screams to the uncaring night. Long minutes later more guards arrive to find nothing where witnesses said a flaming guard was standing. Nothing but a small dusting of ash in the dark alley, and a bounty was put out the following morning for any leads to the mystery. A few mentioned the strange woman who put on shows of fire magic on the streets, but no one really knew where she was staying or oddly what she looked like under her cloak. But, the guard made sure to keep an eye out for her in future nights.