The guest room, after breakfast…

Butterflies vibrant with the colours of spring flutter freely through lush gardens verdant with newly-bloomed flowers. From out the window, the courtyard’s as beautiful as it has always been in my dreams.

Good grief. I didn’t really get to properly appreciate the Chantry in all its beauty and splendour, back in the previous timeline. Adjustment issues, y'know? Spent a lot of time cooped up in this guest room, thinking hard about life back home. Missing Mom and Dad, and my friends on the rooftop. Even the damn Student Council!

Miss them all still. Really, I do! I’ve been in the world of Nisha for quite a while now. Not anymore, I suppose. But throughout that time, I was always wondering how things were going along back home. And I still am.

For now, Anna and I just got done putting away the dishes and cleaning up. The table’s now clean and pristine, and I even got dressed! Little things, but I still feel that sense of pride and accomplishment from a job well done.

“Umm… Arisa?”

“Yeah? What’s up?”

With her hand upon her cheek, Anna gives me a sheepish smile. She looks a little... tense. Nervous.

“You said that you’re my Healer, right?”

I nod. You see, as ordained by the word of the First Saint herself, every Healer is assigned a Paladin. Twin souls, their fates entwined. That together, they’d leave their mark on the world of Nisha.

That’s how it’s supposed to be, anyway. Healer and Paladin for life! On paper, at least. Many remain together, but sometimes it’s just not meant to be. And for those without that affinity, they go their separate ways after their training in the Chantry. Freelancers, making their own way with other adventurers. Oh well.

Before I was summoned here, Anna didn’t have an Healer paired with her when she was brought into the Order of Selene. Lady Nhaka Mezalune, the Oracle, requested that it’d be so, for Anna’s fate was tied to me, or something like that. And so, Lady Iris stood in as her Healer. Under her guidance, Anna’s honed for herself a strong sword arm and a firm grasp of a claymore, waiting on the Healer fated to be hers to serve and protect.

We were both newbies in that timeline. At magic, I mean. Learning and training together under Lady Iris’ watchful eye for six months before becoming a fully-fledged Paladin and Healer duet. However, things are different now! If I am who I am, with everything in me intact… I dunno. Fuck it, really. I’m just glad to be here again.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“Umm… I was wondering, could you show me what you can do?”

“Sure thing. But first…”

I bring my hands together in deep prayer, closing my eyes and quieting my breath. Drawing into wellsprings of Mana deep within my soul, I manifest my staff Elizabeth into the world once more, letting the silver of its angelic wings spread anew like blades of light.

“That staff!” Anna exclaims, eyes wide with shock and awe as Elizabeth fully materialises into my grasp. “Is that…”

“Elizabeth, Frozen Light.”

“Oh my…”

Quite a mouthful for a name, honestly. And so, I just call it Elizabeth! Just rolls off your tongue. With silver bladed wings imbued with the very essence of holiness and life magic, this staff’s a part of me as much as I’m a part of it. And now, across timelines, as I behold those ornate, silver wings once again, it’s also a symbol of my memories. That Rinnah willing, the past year I lived and breathed and felt ain’t just a dream.

“So… what’d you like to see?” I offer Anna with a cheeky grin as I hold out Elizabeth. “Luckily for you... I'm taking requests!”

“Umm… how about a Heal!?”

“Sure!”

Okay, let’s do this! Magic is the act of willing forth a miracle into the world, weaving spells that create and destroy and shape existence itself. Spells use Mana, energy from the wellspring that is our mortal soul. We master every breath, we focus the thoughts roiling in our heads… and in that silent space between heartbeats… we change the world.

There are many spells out there, from standard offensive magic like Fireball, defensive barriers like Mage Armour, and of course… restorative spells like Heal! Oh, and each of these spells have many variations to boot! Casting patterns, Mana investment… the list goes on and on.

Healers, paladins, mages, conjurers… even necromancers and warlocks, follow the same rules of magic and Mana. Regardless of our chosen path, the types of magic tend to overlap and intersect each other, especially for the basic spells. We all start on different points of the same web, so to speak. But even then, each of us knows spells and secrets the others can only dream of!

But I digress. I have a Heal to deliver! And so, my eyes fall upon Anna, on her and her alone. Taking a deep breath, with Elizabeth raised up high, I quell the thoughts in my head. Within seconds, my hands glow bright with white and blue light – a Heal rippling and radiating potently with Mana that I immediately unleash, casting it forth towards her.

“Oh my!” Anna exclaims, her mouth agape as the light of my Heal falls upon her, as her body visibly relaxes from the soothing panacea of its restorative magic. “That Heal… it’s so powerful! Under its light, I feel so warm… so relaxed…”

I smile and nod. Heal is very much a basic spell, but it’s also the cornerstone of the Healer’s sacred art! It does exactly what it says on the tin – curing wounds, restoring lost blood, and mending broken bones. And this energy can be manipulated in so many ways, be it a single restorative burst or a channelled, all-mending ray of light. Even so, after the initial wave of panacea and relief goes away, it leaves behind memories – reminders of what had been cured. Sometimes, anyway.

“Arisa… that’s amazing!”

“Learned from the best, remember?” I answer coyly, giving Anna my best smile. “Would you like to see another spell? Holy Fire, maybe?”

“Umm…”

With a sheepish smile and a hand on her cheek, Anna shakes her head. She's no longer nervous nor tense, but rather, excited!

“I’d love to, Arisa… but Mom needs to know about this! She did ask for me to have you over to her office as soon as you’re ready! And umm… it looks like you are right now!”