I gape for a moment, not having expected the words. “B-but, I’m not-”

“A mage?” Mr. Leverton finishes, a twinkle in his eyes.

“I’m a street rat!” I half-yell.

“Is that how you define yourself?” Mr. Leverton tilts his head questioningly. “Is that all you are in your mind?”

“It’s what I am.” I say quietly.

“Would you like to be more than that?”

I look up to see the man looking directly into my eyes.

“It is the only way I can allow you to save your death spirit.” Mr. Leverton says seriously. “It is clear that you have talent and Sarah likes you. Plus, I have need of an apprentice. Don’t you want to be more than a street rat?”

My mind goes back to my thoughts just a few minutes earlier. Even if the mage used me for horrid experiments, at least I’d be wearing good boots as he cursed me.

But what happens when he realizes that I’m not as talented as he thinks I am? When he realizes that I’m not a real mage?

My gaze sticks to the orb that my protector, the death spirit, is trapped in.

It’s the only way to save her.

I look up at the mage who sits across from me.

“I’ll be your apprentice if you’ll help me save her.”

“Wonderful!” The man claps his hands together and stands up. “Follow me!” He grabs the orb and heads to the door with a skip in his step.

I hurry to follow him as he leads me back down the stairs of his mansion.

He casually points towards a room across the entryway. “There’s the library. Feel free to explore it in your free time.”

He moves on before I can tell him that I only know how to read Laelic.

He steps in front of a solid stone wall, marked with a small pentagram. He places his hand on the pentagram and a familiar pressure surrounds him.

The pentagram lights up, brightening with a soft glow. Slowly the wall starts to shift, pulling back into itself and revealing another staircase down. “Never come down here without me, I keep some rather… dangerous things down here.” With that said, he starts walking down the stairs.

I follow behind him, Wolf just a few steps behind me.

The basement is filled with that same pressure that sometimes surrounds Mr. Leverton. The entire floor is lit by glowing balls in the ceiling. He moves past a few closed doors, eventually opening one to reveal something terrifyingly close to a dungeon.

A large pentagram and various spell circles cover the floor of the room as large as the entire upper floor. Shackles hang from the wall above certain spell circles, while empty cages line the right side of the wall. “This is the summoning room.” Mr. Leverton says. He turns to me and quickly adds when he sees the fear on my face. “We deal with some dangerous entities, but the cages are mostly for show. They haven’t seen use in years.”

I hesitantly nod.

Mr. Leverton sighs, before moving towards one of the larger spell circles in the floor. “The process of bonding a death spirit is relatively simple.” He says, pulling a pouch from his belt and placing stones at certain spots along the edges of the spell circle. “The spell circle is just a precaution in case something goes wrong. Always a good idea to be cautious when dealing with powerful spirits.”

He looks over the circle one last time before nodding his head. “When I release the Death Spirit from the orb, I will be unable to speak because it might affect the bonding. There are two things you must say and you must say these things exactly. You must ask them their name. Then, using their name, you will ask them if they are willing to serve you. If they agree, it ends there. If they don’t, well… that’s unlikely to happen considering the rough bond you already have.”

He places the orb in the center of the spell circle, then turns to me.

“Do you understand what you need to do?” He asks.

I nod.

“Good.”

Pressure surrounds him as he turns back to the orb. First a crack appears, then it shatters.

The familiar spirit stands there, hovering above the floor. Immediately her gaze turns to me, and she smiles. Blood drips from the cut in her neck down her finger and into the ground before disappearing.

She looks more real than I’ve ever seen her.

A nudge from Mr. Leverton reminds me what I need to do,

I step forward, her gaze following me. Clearing my throat, I ask, “What is your name?”

She smiles joyfully, “I’m glad to finally hear your voice.” She says, her voice echoing through the room with a powerful presence.

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I notice out of the corner of my eye that Mr. Leverton is frowning from beside me.

“I’ve tried to reach out, and it makes me so happy to finally hear you, Keo.” A tear falls down her cheek, not affecting the smile on her face in any way. “My name is Launa De’Estereth.”

“Launa De’estereth,” I say slowly, the name somehow feeling powerful. “Will you protect and help me?”

Mr. Leverton stirs, opening his mouth, but before he can say anything, Launa speaks “Yes, Keo.”

The pressure in the room increases, causing the lights in the ceiling to dim and a breeze to flow through my clothes.

Launa steps through the spell circle as if it wasn’t there, and Mr. Leverton steps back raising his hands as his own pressure joins the room. Still, he doesn’t do anything as she approaches me.

Her hand raises, touching my head and ruffling my hair. “Always.”

A burning sensation comes from my shoulder as her body seems to enter mine.

The pressure in the room disappears.

A loud exhausted sigh fills the room. “I’m such an idiot.” Mr. Leverton says, “Of course a child wouldn’t listen.”

I turn to the man who is covering his eyes with his hand, he lowers his hand, glowering at me. “In the future when I tell you to do something, do it exactly as I say.”

I cringe back, trying to hide myself.

Mr. Leverton’s glower disappears as he looks away. “Don’t be afraid of me, I’m not going to hurt you. No need to cover yourself with shadow.”

I don’t listen to him and keep backing up from him. Still, I can’t help but ask, “What did I do wrong?”

The man shakes his head. “You ask a spirit if they’re willing to serve you.” He lengthens the word “serve” as he says it. “You did not ask her to serve you.”

“O-oh.” I say, finally stepping forward as he seems to calm down.

“There’s nothing to be done about it now. Where did she mark you?” He steps forward, examining me carefully.

“Mark me?” I ask quietly, my hand moving to my shoulder where I’d felt the burning sensation.

Mr. Leverton nods, “Can you show me?”

I nod, pulling back my tunic to reveal a black tattoo on my shoulder. It’s the image of a crow standing on the top of a scythe.

“Hmm. The scythe as a symbol of death. The crow is a watcher?” The man runs his hand through his beard as he thinks. “Well, I suppose congratulations are in order.” He shrugs his shoulders and clasps my shoulder with his hand. “Congratulations on bonding with your first spirit. It is a momentous occasion for any mage.”

He seems to be waiting for my response, so I answer with a hesitant “Th-Thank you.”

“Now let's- Wolf! You mutt! stay away from that.” The mage turns to Wolf who is sniffing at a pair of shackles.

“Wolf.” I call out, “Come.”

He turns away from the shackles and hurries back to me, wagging his tail.

Mr. Leverton mutters something under his breath before spinning around and heading towards the exit.

I follow him, Wolf a step behind me.

Sarah greets us at the top of the stairs, her eyes studying me curiously. “How was your bonding?”

“A disaster.” Mr Leverton mutters.

She leans closer to me before a wide smile spreads across her face,“Oh hush, Max. They are bonded and that’s what matters for the inquisitors.” Sarah chastises Mr. Leverton before turning to me. “I bet both of you are hungry. Why don’t you join Max and I for dinner?”

My hand moves to my shoulder, “Do spirits eat?”

“They can, but they don’t need to.” Mr. Leverton answers, already walking off.

Sarah smiles, and motions for Wolf and I to follow.

As we walk, Sarah leans down conspiratorially, mock whispering to me “Don’t mind him Keo, he gets grumpy when he’s hungry.”

Mr. Leverton grumbles something under his breath.

“Is it okay for me to eat with you?” I say carefully. “I’m happy to eat with the servants.”

Mr. Leverton pauses a few feet away from us, turning back around with a contemplative stare. “I have no servants except for the spirits under my care. And they are free to eat with me just as much as you are.” With that said, he turns around and continues walking.

Sarah smiles softly at me, “I’m told my food is quite delicious.”

Still feeling hesitant, I follow the mage and his spirit through the house.

As soon as I see the food waiting for us, my mouth starts to water. Delicious food like this wasn’t meant for people like me. I look over to Wolf, and see him drooling just as much as I am at the sight of the food.

“Oh dear me, I forgot.” Sarah says. She waves her hand and a bowl of meat makes its way in front of Wolf.

Wolf looks at me pleadingly, drool falling from his mouth to the bowl in front of him. I take a big gulp and look up to see Mr. Leverton who is already eating his food with gusto.

I look back down to Wolf and say “Eat.”

The dog immediately starts digging into the meat.

I turn to my own food, then slowly reach out to grab a bread roll.

I take a bite.

The soft sweetness surprises me.

I take another bite.

Tears roll down my face, adding a saltiness to the bun, but I don’t mind.

I reach out to a dish with an unfamiliar fish on it. I shove a piece of the fish into my mouth, savoring the bite.

I keep eating until a hand on my arm stops me. I look up to see Sarah watching me with her strange gentleness.

“You shouldn’t eat too much, I don’t want you to get sick.”

I slowly pull my hand back and put it in my lap. I’d never had so much food available to me, but I know better than most how sick food can make you.

I look down at Wolf, who is chewing on a bone given to him by Sarah, then at the mage who is reclining in his chair as he reads a letter and finally to Sarah who hums to herself as she takes away the used dishes in front of us.

It can’t be real.