“I…okay, Uncle.”
“I’m sorry, Alistar, but it’s inevitable that you’ll end up meeting the rest of our family. When you do, it’s important that you try to draw as little of their attention as possible. This is why we can’t openly announce a third name.” Caedmon patted him on the head and then headed toward the door, where he stopped to look over at him with a warm, reassuring grin. “Don’t fret over such things. Today’s a day for smiles and laughter, so just remember to enjoy it. Hmm, now that I think on it, your friends arrived quite early for Anice’s Name Day so I suspect that they’ll be showing up at any time.”
Now that Alistar thought about it, he hadn’t given Zech and Jaden a specific time of arrival to convey to the others.
“What time did they arrive back then?”
“Early enough for breakfast.”
“That early?”
“They were quite eager to eat our food,” laughed Caedmon, who seemed to enjoy the recollection. “Which is why I’ve had plenty prepared for today. Now, I’ll be off to see Anice. I’m afraid she’ll sleep into the afternoon if someone doesn’t rouse her.”
“Uncle, please wait.”
Raising a dark eyebrow, Caedmon turned his head. “What is it, Alistar?”
“Well…” He held up his wrist and pointed at the plate of his bracelet, specifically at the crack. “This is something that you’ve gifted to me, but I’m worried that I’ll break it.”
“You’re worried that you’ll what?” His uncle strode over and inspected the gleaming metal. “A crack? How did this appear here?”
Alistar replicated the scene from earlier, casting the room in a pervasive blue ambience. “It seems to do this sometimes while I sleep. If I’m not awake and I can’t control it, I fear that it’ll break.”
“You can freely make it glow, then?” It seemed that Caedmon had suspected something along these lines, for a light of confirmation momentarily lit up his eyes.
Alistar retracted his focus from the bracelet and fought off the thoughts that had been fueling it. “This is for containing my aura, right Uncle?”
Caedmon nodded, pride in his gaze. “Indeed it is. It’s common for children from noble families to wear these once they come into their energies, since it’s very easy to accidently cause harm to those around you when you can’t control your magics. It’s called a limiter.”
“The day you gave this to me, did everyone become sick because of me?”
“No, that was my fault, Alistar. I was too careless, but I won’t be next time.” Muttering to himself in a lower voice, he added, “It seems I’ll have to find a limiter with a high-class crystal attached to it…or at the very least, several more of this quality.”
Alistar thought of the crystal within his locket and hesitated over whether or not to offer it up for the sake of saving his uncle some money. He’d read that high-class crystals were worth hundreds of golden lucets, and felt extremely uncomfortable over the thought of being the cause of such a burden for his uncle. After all of the kindness that Caedmon had shown him, how could he allow for such selfishness on his part? The only thought that held him back was his strong suspicion that his hidden treasure was actually an exquisite-class crystal, and that his uncle would die a terrible death if he happened to touch it. He had seen its deadly powers with his own eyes back when one of the guards that had assaulted him and Kaila had picked it up and died within seconds of contact.
No, he thought, I can’t say anything. For now, he resolved to continue keeping it a secret, as it was the only possession that he had carried with him from Crystellum.
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“I’ll have Alder run into town to procure some more limiters for you. It’ll be a while before we can find one that better suits you, so just treat these ones as disposable.”
“How could I throw away something you’ve gifted me, Uncle?”
“It’s important that you get a good feel for controlling your inner energies, since they seem to be increasing. Even if I have to give you a hundred limiters, I’d gladly do so if it helps you to gain more control over your magics. I’d actually prefer if you practiced making your limiters light up, but not to the extent that they’ll threaten to break.”
Finally experiencing a positive emotion, Alistar revelled in the burst of excitement that suddenly ran through him. His guess had been correct. His bracelet had glowed because his inner energies had been stimulated by the emotions brought on by his night terrors.
Doesn’t this mean that I can practice magic now?
The estate’s library contained plenty of books on the subject, so there was nothing stopping him from studying in secret.
“I know what you’re thinking Alistar, and you must promise me that you won’t practice magic until I find a proper teacher for you.”
Hearing this, he deflated. “But wouldn’t it be better if I started sooner?” The earlier he began to practice, the better his chances of saving Kaila and Talon from Crystellum.
“With the amount of innate energy you have, it’s likely that you would end up hurting yourself or those around you should you attempt to practice on your own.”
“I promise that I’ll be extra careful.”
“I’m serious, Alistar. In House Silverkin alone, two of my cousins have accidently killed themselves when they were kids because they decided to practice without supervision, and that’s just in my generation. In one case, several house servants were caught up in the accident and also lost their lives. You wouldn’t want to risk hurting Madeline or Patricia, would you?”
The thought of ever doing such a thing made Alistar feel sick, so he quickly relented. “Okay, I promise, Uncle.”
“You won’t have to wait too long, for I already have someone in mind.”
Several familiar auras suddenly appeared on the peripherals of Alistar’s perceptions, and he nearly fell out of bed.
“What’s the matter?”
“T—the others,” he stammered, suddenly panicked. “They’re at the east entrance of the estate.” He was still dressed in his pajamas and had yet to even wash his body. Since Anice was still sleeping, he would likely have to greet them first.
“These children…” Caedmon turned to leave, but paused mid-step. “Alistar, how far did you say your friends were?”
“At the east entrance. I think they’re talking to Harold and Rayson, because they’re not moving.”
“Okay, I just wanted to make sure.” Without turning, he continued over to the doorway and walked out. “I suggest you get ready so you can greet them. Bring them to the dining hall afterwards, so we can all eat together.”
Alistar caught a glimpse of his uncle’s expression as he closed the door behind him, but it was too complicated to understand. Growing up in Crystellum and constantly having to be wary of everyone around him, Alistar had a good sense for reading people. As far as he could tell, his uncle was a bit troubled.
I hope Uncle’s okay.
Stripping out of his nightwear and walking over to a stone basin of water that had recently been refilled, Alistar grabbed a nearby cloth and soaked it before proceeding to clean himself with quick hands.
Once he had finished washing up, he pulled on a pair of grey trousers and a matching tunic with short, wide sleeves, securing his lowers with a belt of black leather. He then slipped his mother’s locket over his neck and tucked its head beneath his clothes, but only after making sure that the latch was firmly locked in place. Focusing intently on his magical awareness, he tracked the others as Harold led them along toward the manor house.
He hadn’t expected that the Dozen would come so early, as the sun had only risen a couple of hours ago. He also hadn’t anticipated that they would arrive as a group, a development that left him oddly relieved. In the days leading up to today, he had been harbouring a subconscious worry that only one or two of the girls would end up attending the celebration, and that he’d find himself stuck in an awkward situation where he had no choice but to fumble for things to say to them. After all, one of the many things that his mother had mentioned during his previously incomprehensible lessons on etiquette was that it was rude for someone to ignore their guests, which he now had for the first time in his life. Thankfully, however, they would all be able to entertain one another and thus he wouldn’t have to stress too much over such things.
Rushing from his room, he sprinted down the warmly lit hallway and up the stone steps to the main level before hurrying to the eastern vestibule to intercept the others. Coincidently, he bumped into Anice along the way, the two almost colliding as they suddenly sprinted out from adjacent hallways. Alistar stopped just in time to prevent contact, but Anice tried to avoid him out of shock and tripped over her feet, falling in a tumble of flailing limbs.
“Watch where you’re going!” she snapped, jumping to her feet with fire in her eyes. She took off her shoe and made to throw it at him, but changed her mind and put it back on with a dismissive puff of air. “I’ll pay you back later. Now come on! Everyone’s here already.”