Heidi and Leo

Alea’s cabin, Germany

Heidi did not notice the time fly by. After talking with Leo, she went back inside and got busy, distracting herself from unsavory thoughts. And to try to make the tinge of regret go away. She was successful because the cabin needed lots of neglected work since they moved in. Her uncle did not bother to keep it clean and tidy. Adding six more feet and three more bodies did not harm the existing disorder.

Cleaning was new to Heidi, as her servants back in the clan did the work for her. As it did not fit her station, she never bothered to clean up after herself besides the bare minimum that her station required. It was not that the act itself was foreign to her. Her mother ensured that Heidi knew little household chores and how they were done so she did not have to rely on servants.

Her mother’s lessons were handy now that they were left in the wilderness without the familiar comforts her clan could provide. Any comfort. There was no plumbing, so she had to use an outhouse. A shower was out of the question. After she finished cleaning the house, boiling water and having a bath was a chore she spent a half day on.

Time flew by, and Heidi did not notice that the dawn had come and it got dark outside. The trees around the cabin cast long shadows inside that made Heidi light up some of the candles they had around the house. Only then did she remember Leo, who still had not come inside after their talk.

‘Is he alright?’ she thought. She thought about getting him, but before going outside, the front door flew open, and her uncle walked in with Evan on his shoulder.

“What happened to him?” Heidi asked, seeing that Evan had passed out and was not moving a muscle on her uncle’s shoulder.

“Had a rough training session,” Seb responded and laid Evan down on the same chair Leo used when he passed out the day before. “This little runt thought that he was some hot shit and did not believe me to take it easy. Had to learn the hard way what it means to fight a mage who not only knows how to sling spells but how to apply mana to his own body.”

Heidi winced, remembering lessons with her teachers, and said, “I trust you did not go too hard on him?”

“Of course not, niece,” Seb grinned and sat down at the dinner table. “We just sparred a little. Showed the little runt what is what. He took it like a champ. I have to give it to him. If we manage to salvage a few trinkets he can use, he would make a great anti-mage fighter. With time and effort.”

“Are you thinking of training him as a retainer?” Heidi asked, surprised. “Is he not a bit old? Many of our retainers could not even make it halfway through their training. What makes you think this rude fellow over there will?”

“I have a feeling, niece. You should have seen him. He has guts and willpower. Those are fine qualities if you ask me. Would have made a decent mage,” Seb said and remembered. “Where is our little boy-mage?”

“Oh, Leo? I have not seen him the whole day. We chatted during the day, but he did not come back yet. Let me fetch him,” Heidi said and walked outside to search for Leo. She found him inside a mana-gathering array and was surprised to see that he did not break concentration and sat in the middle of it, even as she stood a few centimeters from his face.

She thought to scare him a little, seeing no harm in it, but before she could proceed, Leo opened his eyes and said, “Boo!” The act startled Heidi, who took an involuntary step back and tripped, falling on her back. Seeing her clumsiness, Leo laughed, “Thought to scare me, did you not?”

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Heidi rubbed her backside and said, “Yes. Nice try. What have you been doing all day here? You've been inside all this time?”

“Managed to make good progress with my mana channels. Also, learned more about mana gathering. It is a lot harder than I thought,” Leo said and got up. “Let's go back inside. It is getting a bit chilly.” Both walked back to the cabin and got inside, closing the door behind them.

In the cabin, Seb started the fireplace, making it warmer for all of them, especially Evan, who still did not wake up. Seeing his friend out cold next to the fireplace, Leo asked, “What happened to him?”

“We had a good spar today,” Seb replied. “Come, let's get the dinner going. Then you can tell us of all your glorious exploits.” Leo and Heidi smirked and joined Seb in the kitchen. Soon enough, the three of them cooked some potatoes, chicken breasts, and salad, filling the cabin with a homely flavor. That was not enough to raise Evan from his prone form.

“So, what did you manage to do today?” Heidi asked Leo, sitting down at the dinner table.

“After you left, I watched another crystal about how the mana core gathers ambient mana passively and how to progress this further. I was not surprised to hear that. To advance, I will not need some expensive resources and a ritual,” Leo said, chewing.

“What will you need to do then?” Seb asked.

“Simple. Sit around for days and meditate,” Leo laughed. “Well, that is not exactly true. It is more than that, though hard to explain without showing what my core space looks like. In short, I have discovered this method that allows me to slowly absorb mana from around me and stretch my core’s capacity.”

Seb stopped chewing and paused, looking at Heidi. Then he said, “What you say is true? Did you manage to grow your core? Already?”

“Well, not exactly. Just absorb a bit more mana than I can hold, yes.”

“How much more?” Heidi asked.

“Just a few of these specks that fly in the funnel above my core. I guess that is the thing that connects my core to the outside world filled with this untamed mana. It was a lot harder than I imagined it to be. Barely could hold in around ten of the specs,” Leo answered and chewed in the potatoes.

“Boy, what you describe is already more than any of our masters at the clan can do. Fine job!” Seb congratulated him and raised his glass. “What will you do next?”

“Hopefully, cast a spell? I have been at this already for what? Two days? I am getting anxious that I have not made any real progress, and the Church will come knocking any day now. What will I do then? Run away like last time? I would rather not,” Leo admitted.

“All in good time, Leo. The lessons did say that you will not start casting spells yet. Do you even have an idea how you go about doing that?” Heidi asked him.

“I have an idea, to be fair. Even if I have not seen the lessons on this topic. Everything I have done so far has been based on imagination, intent, and willpower. How strongly I want something to happen. Tomorrow I think I will test something related to that and see how it goes.”

“Test what out? Cast a spell?” Heidi asked, her eyebrow raised.

“Yes, something simple. Like throwing a fireball. I always thought that it was so cool!” Leo said, smiling.

“Wow, hold your horses, boy. We do not even know what affinity you have,” Seb interrupted Leo’s musings. “Without knowing it, it will be harder for you to cast a spell unaligned with it. Impossible even.”

“Really? Damn, I did not think of that. I thought that it only applied to you guys. And I might be an exception,” Leo thought aloud.

“You may be right. I am just saying that we should check it,” Seb answered and remembered. “Damn. But we do not have a testing stone.”

“Eh… No matter, I will do with what I have, “Leo said, not letting this little detail bring him down. “Besides the spells, I am also curious about other things.”

“Like what?” Heidi asked, sipping on a cup of black tea.

“You mentioned something about werewolves being real?”

“Yes, I did. Why do you ask?” Heidi asked, puzzled about what Leo was aiming at.

Leo looked at her with a gleam in his eye, thought back to all the movies he had seen, wondered if the most famous mythical beast was real, and asked, “Say, are dragons real?”