Beako’s small legs easily fit in my lap— her four foot three frame easily resting on my much taller six-foot body. It felt natural having her there. I gave her a quick full-body squeeze, wrapping my arms around her torso chastely and resting my chin on her head for a moment.
“It makes me happy to see you so excited about magic!” I said. In this position, I couldn’t see her head if she wanted to turn and face me, so I released her and leaned back in the chair. “Both of my ideas have to do with the concept of ‘stop’: stopping time and stopping magic.”
Beako shook her head side to side as if to clear her head. “Ah, we are back to talking about magic now, I suppose.”
I twisted my head slightly confused, “Yeah?”
“It’s just, Betty’s Subaru held her... for a moment...” She trailed off, mumbling.
“What is it?”
“Never mind, in fact!” Her ears flushed as she hastily replied, nearly tripping over her words.
I let out a small huff of laughter in realization. “You got flustered because I hugged you tight a second ago, huh?”
“Su-Subaru is changing the subject, in fact!”
I chuckled, and pat her head again, careful to avoid the small crown on the side of her head.
“Okay, well if you’re ready?” I prompted.
Beako huffed, “Betty is always ready for magic, in fact.”
“Great! Then, let’s start with my idea for a spell that stops other magic. My idea is that we create a ‘field’ or a certain area, with the two of us at its origin, wherein no one can use magic. What do you think, is it possible for Yin magic to do such a thing?”
Beako furrowed her brow, deep in thought. “Betty supposes such a thing is possible, yes. It will take time to develop. The spell will also need a name, I suppose. Would Betty’s Subaru like to name it, I wonder?”
I smiled, “Yeah. BMT! Beako, major tenshi (angel)!” Phantasm Subaru cringed at the name, how could I steal Emilia’s nickname!? I also slightly cringed due to the chuunibyou, but if I couldn’t live out my anime fantasies here, then what was the point?
“Betty has no idea what nonsense you are saying, in fact.” She held a finger to her chin in thought, “But, the name is as good as any other, I suppose.”
“Then it’s decided! Our first magic spell together... You’ll have to let me know if you need help developing it. You’re the magic expert, so I’m not sure how much I can help, but I’d love to be a part of the process with you, if you’ll have me.”
“Of course we will work on it together, that is a given, I suppose!” She crossed her arms. “Betty will first read some books, and then after my research we will practice together.”
“I’d love that, but I’m not sure you fully understood what I meant to say earlier.”
Beako gazed up at me with a frown.
“I mean to say that I’d also like to be a part of the research phase, too, if possible. Though, I might hold you back since I know so little about magic— since it’s our first spell together—”
I shook my head and then corrected myself. “No, even if it were our thousandth new spell together, I’d always like to be a part of the process from the very start.”
Beako smiled up at me, perhaps one of the most genuine smiles I’d ever seen on her pale face. Her purple butterfly eyes shined with joy. Then, she turned her head back around into a relaxed position. She scooted further into my lap, resting her back against my torso— her blonde drills draping the sides of the chair.
Naturally, I chastely wrapped my arms around her front, crossing them. We sat there for a time, me enjoying her small body on my lap, her warmth seeping through to my skin. She enjoyed the contact too, since she practically melted into my embrace. Eventually, a book floated over into her lap, and she opened it to read.
In this new version of the Forbidden Library, tucked away in my Sweet Home and intermingled with Beatrice’s mastery of spatial magic, no one would be able to interrupt our moment together— even if it lasted for eternity.
Beako wanted to get started on research right away, our earlier conversation igniting the fires of development within her. I, on the other hand, barely knew anything about magic, so she started me on a primer for the basics of Yin magic. I wouldn’t actually be able to cast any of the spells, but the ideas and theories behind them would serve as a future foundation for the day that Beatrice and I could make new magic together as equals. Such a day would be far in the future, however, even with Soul Talent.
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Reading magic theory was both surprising and paradoxically unsurprising at the same time. The Yin magic primer I was reading had way more detailed information than the light novel or anime versions of Canon ever explored. In those, we got a basic, ‘yin is shadow magic’, and ‘some people are better at it than others’. Other than that, and the basics behind a gate, the magic system was surprisingly under-explored.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
According to the primer, very few Yin magic users existed, and as such, hardly any spells existed for the element. Beako was quick to correct that this book was actually wrong about that. There were a lot of spells, it was just that most of them had been forgotten. A classic, ‘lost archaic magic is powerful’, trope. Yin magic also was far more complex than just ‘shadow magic’.
“Shamac is not about spreading shadows around the enemy, but it is in fact about creating the absence of light around the enemy, I suppose.” As Beako explained.
In reality, Yin magic embodied the concept of ‘absence’ or ‘lack of’. That gave me tons of ideas, and also neatly fit in with my dragon void element. I figured, with time, research, practice, and a butt-load of mana, one day Beako and I could probably erase someone out of existence entirely— Thanos style. That day was so far away though it might as well have been a pipe dream. We had all of eternity to get there, though.
“Subaru.”
Yin magic really fascinated me, and it seemed to resonate somewhere inside me— my gate naturally being drawn to the concepts, most likely.
“Subaru?”
For now, I focused mostly on Shamac— the most basic of all Yin magic. If I could master the concepts behind it, that would bring me one step closer to true, deeper understanding of ‘absence’.
Beako lightly kicked my leg, drawing my attention. “Subaru???” She looked at me, frustration marring her gaze.
I shook my head. “What?”
“Someone is here to see you, I suppose.”
I moved my eye up to the new Forbidden Library’s exit, where a certain blue-haired girl in a maid uniform stood at the precipice.
Smiling, I waved to Rem. Then, I lifted Beako up under the arms to deposit her back on the floor from off of my lap.
“Be sure to return later, I suppose. Betty will get lonely if you are gone for too long, in fact.”
“Do you want to come with us?” I offered, holding my hand out.
Beako’s face lit up with joy, but she quickly squashed it as she glanced at Rem. “Betty knows how to read the room, I suppose. Besides, there is more research to be done.” She waved me off.
“Thanks, Beako.”
Then, I began walking over to Rem. Our relationship had been a bit weird— I wanted to spend more time with her, but things had been so busy we’d hardly had any time to ourselves.
“Subaru-kun is thinking about dirty things,” Rem said matter-of-factly.
I opened my mouth to deny it, but she cut me off, “Rem knows all of Subaru-kun’s faces, so don’t try to lie.” She said that, but her face had a smile on it, so I knew she was just teasing me.
I smiled back and held out my hand for her. She looked down at it and blushed just a bit, only barely noticeable. She easily put her hand in mine as we walked a few steps away from the Forbidden Library’s exit. I summoned my phone, and we walked out through the portal together.
The dark village outskirts met us. The sun had already set, and I could hear insects chirping in the night. We walked a few steps through the rough dirt path, a few simple, medieval-style single-story houses lining the sides. Trees, shrubbery, and grass grew interwoven throughout the village, and the night air smelled like fresh yet slightly mildew-y air.
“Did you have any place in mind or were you just looking for a midnight stroll?” I asked, breaking the companionable silence over us as we held hands. Rem’s fingers interwove with mine; her hands were warmer than mine, and I wondered if it was due to her Oni-heritage.
“Emilia is still taking the trial. Have you eaten anything?” Rem asked.
I shook my head, “No, I hadn’t even realized it’d gotten so late.”
“It’s just like Subaru-kun to work so hard he forgets to eat,” Rem said, chagrined.
“I wasn’t really working. Beako and I were coming up with new magic together.” I half-heartedly defended.
Rem turned around to face me, her simple black flats twisting in the dirt. She got right into my personal space and poked my nose. “Subaru-kun should take better care of himself. It sounds to me like you spent all day working— we just sparred earlier this afternoon. When’s the last time you ate?” She re-grabbed my hand and continued leading me forward.
“I...” Surely I’d eaten something today, right? If I hadn’t, wouldn’t I be feeling low-blood sugar by now? Sure, my stomach seemed to be eating itself alive with how starved I was, but it couldn’t have been too bad... Probably. “I can’t remember.”
“Geez!” Rem pouted, then we turned off the street directly onto the path toward a familiar cabin. This was Ryuzu Shima’s (the pink-haired clone loli-baba) house. Rem led the way, opening the creaky old wooden door and holding it open for me as I followed her in.
Seated at the table was the aforementioned Ryuzu, as well as a well-muscled and blonde-headed young man.
“Well, if it ain’t tha damn dragon-boy again,” Garfiel proclaimed with a smile full of fighting spirit.
“Well, if it isn’t the little kitty again.” I quipped right back.
We stared at each other with fierce eyes, neither backing down. After a moment, we both forced a laugh— breaking the tension without hurting either side’s pride.
“Good to see you, Garfiel. I trust you’ve been working hard?”
“Aye, I’ve been tootin’ about like Rascal in the full moon.” He grabbed a cup from the rickety wooden table and took a sip.
“Your references are as inscrutable as always, I see.” I moved to sit down across from him, scooting the wooden bench out a bit so I could fit.
Rem moved to stand behind me, in the customary place of a servant, but this wasn’t an appropriate time for that. I was all for the maid-play in the bedroom, but I wanted to try to get her used to acting like my equal instead of my servant.
I turned slightly on the bench and wrapped my hand around to reach the small of her back. I ushered her around the edge of the bench and then pushed her down into the spot next to mine by placing a hand on her thigh. I had to scoot a bit to the right so she could fit on my left without sitting halfway off the edge.
Primly, Rem tucked her skirt under her legs, straightening out the black and white fabric.
She was still sitting somewhat stiffly, uncomfortable with sitting here most likely, with her hands crossed politely in her lap. I wrapped my arm back around her, forcing her to lean into my side.
“Not that Rem isn’t happy, but isn’t this a bit too much?” She protested verbally, but made no action to actually try to separate us. In this position, her head was resting against my shoulder.
“I’ll only let go of you if you loosen up a bit. Relax. Eat with me?”
“Rem is Subaru-kun’s, after all, so if he insists...”
“I do.”
I slowly released her, bringing my arm back to my side.
Rem still appeared a bit hesitant at the situation, but I could tell my actions had loosened her up a bit, getting her slightly more comfortable with the situation as she straightened back up, so I called it a success.
“Ya sure are a lady’s man, huh? So long as ya ain’t also goin’ for Ram, I guess you ‘n I won’t have a problem.”
“Too bad, I’m going for the full set.” I smiled across the table at him, challengingly.
His pupils flared, and Garfiel abruptly stood up from the table— the bench behind him scooting backward suddenly and forcefully tipping over. It hit the ground with a slam, followed by a second slam when Garfiel smashed his palms into the table, rattling it. Some of the liquid in his cup spilled out onto the table.
“Whatcha mean yer goin’ for a full set?! Huh?!”