The Hillshire estate had no walls to keep people out—or to hold them in. Dame Hillshire had fallen in love with it the first moment she laid eyes on the grand, ivy-hung facade of the main manor house.

Compared to the carved pillars and intricate mosaics of the Dunn estate, the buildings on the Hillshire estate were much more humble. But Dame Hillshire loved them all the more for it.

Greenery seemed to cling to every surface, and each building and shed was separated by wide, lush gardens. Even now, as she paced at the entrance of the main manor house, she looked out upon the flower garden that lined the paved lane.

"He is a grown man," she murmured aloud to herself, wringing her hands. "He is too old to have his mother worrying over him…"

She couldn't help it, though. Ever since Keeper Spire had announced his law against fighting three days before—a law, if broken, would be repaid with one's life—she couldn't help herself from imagining the worst. Her one and only child, Beck Hillshire, was a spirited young boy, with even more spirited friends. What if he found himself in a predicament that ended in an unavoidable tussle between himself and a Dunn?

"He's nineteen years old," she reminded herself, scolding. "He's plenty old enough to avoid such situations…"

Yes, she trusted her son. The real problem was, she didn't trust the Dunns. That wretched Lark Dunn was well known for stirring up trouble. But would he be so bold to do so, even after such a boundary had been set by Keeper Spire?

It was certainly possible.

"Oh!" she huffed, staring out over the estate property. "Where is he?"

Almost as if she conjured them up with her words, a figure came into view far off on the paved lane that led to where she stood at the manor's entrance. Her breath caught in her throat for a moment, and she smiled until she realized that it wasn't her son. Celian Hillshire—her nephew and one of Beck's closest companions—was approaching, not her son.

She picked up the skirt of her pale blue dress, and walked out to meet him. A light breeze picked up the loose strands of her strawberry-blond hair and stirred the scent of fresh blooms. They stood framed on each side by the flower garden.

"My Lady," Celian greeted her with a bow of his head.

"Celian, I'm glad to see you!" she reached out to take one of his hands. "I must know: have you seen your cousin, Beck, today?"

Celian grinned back at her, his silver eyes sparkling. "I believe I have. I spotted him on my way here, moping about in the fruit orchard."

Dame Hillshire sagged with relief, then immediately perked up again.

"Moping? Whatever could he be moping about?"

Celian turned and bent to sniff a nearby white lily flower.

"No idea." He gave her a boyish smirk, running a hand through his white Hillshire hair. "Shall I investigate for you?"

She returned his smile. "Would you? I've been so worried about him lately. He hasn't been acting like himself at all, and with Keeper Spire's decree… Well, I would very much appreciate it if you could talk to him and see what might be going on. He'd probably rather speak with you, his cousin and friend, than his mother, anyway."

"Nonsense," Celian plucked the white lily and offered it to her. "Beck loves you dearly. However, there are some things which are a bit…embarrassing to discuss with your mother."

She stifled a laugh. "That's exactly my point."

"Don't you worry, my Lady," Celian said, turning on his heel to head back toward the fruit orchard. "I'll get to the bottom of this."

She waved to him as he went, happy she could call upon such a loyal friend to help her son. But she still couldn't shake off the sense of dread in the pit of her stomach.

*****

Beck stared up at the branches of the fig tree above him and let out his third big sigh of the past five minutes. The sky above was clear and blue, but it may as well have been gray and stormy for all that he could enjoy it.

I am nothing but a disappointment, he thought bitterly.

A face popped into view above him, blocking out the sky completely.

"What's this? Having a nap?"

Beck sighed again and rolled onto his side.

"Leave me be, Celian. I need to be alone right now…"

His cousin poked him in the ribs, making him squirm.

"It seems to me you've already had plenty of alone time. Now, care to share your thoughts?"

Beck huffed and sat up, glaring at him. Celian only grinned back.

"If you must know, I am dealing with the biggest humiliation of my life, and it's bound to only get worse from here."

"Hm," Celian said, picking a twig from Beck's white hair and flicking it away. "Sounds very serious."

"Oh, you don't care," Beck grunted as he pushed himself to his feet and began stomping through the orchard. "You've only come here to laugh at me."

Celian followed along after him, chipper as ever.

"Though I do love to laugh, I also care. And I've been sent here by someone else who cares, as well."

Beck paused his stomping to send Celian a questioning look.

"Your mother is very worried about you," his cousin elaborated. "I think she fears you might do something drastic."

"Drastic?" Beck wrinkled his nose and returned to stomping. "If shutting myself in my room for the rest of my life is considered drastic, then I suppose her worries are warranted."

Celian scratched his temple. "That does seem a bit severe of a decision to come to." He placed a gentle hand on Beck's shoulder, bringing them both to a halt. "So, please, before you go and lock yourself up, could you at least explain to me what caused you to consider this solution?"

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Beck looked into his cousin's eyes—silver Hillshire eyes that mirrored his own. They could be brothers, with how much they favored each other in looks. However, Celian was older, with a more serious, mature set to his jaw. His white hair was longer, and had more of a curl to it as compared to Beck's, which was short and straight. The silver of Celian's eyes, too was lighter, more blueish, while Beck's were deeper and more grey.

They had grown up together almost as brothers. Celian was an irreplaceable friend, one who knew him better even than he knew himself. He was glad to have him around.

Beck let out yet another sigh and hung his head.

"I'm a disgrace."

"Come, now," Celian said in that joking way of his, "nobody is perfect."

Beck couldn't help but laugh as he lifted his head.

"I wish I could be more like you, Celian. You always see the good in everything. You're able to make a joke out of the worst of things, and laugh at your own mistakes. The only thing I'm good at is sinking into my own misery—misery that I've caused myself."

Celian pursed his lips. "While I do appreciate the compliment, it's rather soured by your self-deprecation." He reached out and grasped Beck by the shoulders, squeezing gently. "There's nothing you could have done to make me think less of you, so you mustn't be so hard on yourself."

Beck tried to smile at him, but it was no use.

"I wish I could be normal, Celian. I wish I could just have magic, like you."

Celian relinquished him and took a step back.

"You didn't choose the way you were born, Beck," he stated. "And, as I said, I don't think any less of you. Just because you were born without magic, doesn't mean you're less worthy than anyone else in Genua."

Beck scoffed and turned away.

"Yeah," he muttered, "well, try telling that to Peonia Howerthon…"

Celian blinked at him.

"Peonia…?"

Beck began to stomp off again, but Celian was quick to catch up to him.

"I knew it," Celian said with a satisfied nod. "I knew this would all come back to some girl."

Beck spun to face him.

"Peonia is not just 'some girl!'" he snapped. "She was the girl." He groaned and sagged against a nearby tree trunk. "Damn me to hellfire! And now she knows what I really am…"

Celian put up his hands and shook his head.

"From the beginning, please?"

Beck sucked in a deep breath and began to spill it all to Celian: He met Peonia Howerthon at a Hillshire party. Before he could stop himself, he'd lied to her about being able to wield Light magic, and then she'd promised to give him magic lessons, one-on-one. They'd met up a few times, and he'd managed to fumble his way through each lesson without exposing the truth… but then, the week before, they'd met up for their newest lesson. And when Peonia had tried to get Beck to demonstrate his magic, the truth finally came out.

"Do you know what she did?" he asked Celian, shaking his head. "She laughed. Right in my face. She laughed and told me to never speak to her again."

Celian winced. "Wicked girl… Who knew there could be such cruelty behind a sweet face?"

Beck's hand shot out and gripped Celian by the arm.

"It was justified. I lied to her! She had every right to react as she did…" his grip loosened, and he leaned back against the tree trunk before sliding down to a sitting position. "You know, I almost began to think that she might actually be able to teach me to use magic. That she could awaken the Light magic somewhere within me." He pounded his fist lightly against his chest. "But it turns out, I'm hollow. I'm hopeless…"

Celian squatted beside him so that they were eye-to-eye.

"You're not hopeless. You've lived the last nineteen years without magic, why shouldn't you be able to live a hundred more? Obviously, you can get on just fine without it."

Beck gave him an unconvinced look.

"How am I supposed to be head of the Hillshire clan someday when I'm powerless and magicless?"

Celian sighed and settled into a sitting position beside his cousin.

"Oh, here we go… Listen, you. We've gone over this before: You don't need magic to be accepted by the Hillshires. I know you don't have magic, your parents know it, Dellen knows it—and we all love and accept you, just the same."

Beck's face fell into his hands.

"Why, then, have my parents kept it hidden from everyone else, all my life?"

Celian frowned. "Because it's something that most people in Genua aren't used to. They haven't encountered someone without magic before. But if you give them time, they will come to terms with it. It may be a slow process, but they will. Or, they'll have to, because whether they like it or not, you're going to be the next Lord of the Hillshire clan. Besides," Celian gave him a crooked smile, "by the time you ascend to that position, you'll have proved yourself more than worthy, magic or not."

Beck only stared back at him with a weary expression.

"What if Peonia tells everyone about me? They won't have time to slowly accept it if the secret is suddenly out there for all to know."

Celian shrugged. "Then we'll face that problem when it comes. But something tells me that Peonia wouldn't be so bold as to betray the Lord and Dame of the Hillshire clan. I'd hope she is cleverer than that, at least."

Beck groaned and covered his face with his hands.

"She is clever. And bright, and sweet, and beautiful, and—"

"Enough of that!" Celian spoke over him, half-chuckling. He hoisted Beck back to his feet and picked more twigs and leaves from his cousin's hair before giving him a firm pat on the back. "All we need to do is find something that will get this girl off your mind, and then you'll be good as new again."