fic: Wild Magic
Jan. 1st, 2014 08:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bonnefoisTitle: Wild Magic
Series: Rune Factory 3
Pairing: Marian/Colette
Rating: PG-13
Word count: 5251
Summary: Marian's broom breaks the same week that Colette goes missing. Marian sets off on a mission to find her friend, trying to control the unleashed magic within her and the unexpected feelings realized in the wake of Colette's absence.
Author's note: If you marry Colette, there will be Marian options for all of the end game date questions. One of them says that Micah thought Marian would save Colette, to saying that he was scared by Marian that she would be jealous.
Intended for a Yuletide treat for Etasenline, but it kind of got away from me and decided to become a series.
In one conversation with Marjorie, it's revealed that Marian's broom is special made to control her magic, given that she's much more powerful than Marjorie.
Some artistic liberties taken with the place, because "and then she waited two weeks while she farmed the right vegetables and/or left the place to steal them from Micah" rather kills the pace.
*
Marian had taped together the pieces where her grandmother couldn't see, but even that work wouldn't bring the magic back. Her broom in all its wonderful strangeness no longer held the tingle of contained magic, and instead felt like a dry, withered twig.
Even rocks and trees had life in them, but she could no longer feel even the slightest spark from her broom.
Marian sighed, smoothing the tape over again. What had been released couldn't ever be fixed, her grandmother had taught her that. But it could be remade, maybe even more powerful than the last. She smirked at this, imagining a flaming broom that was so powerful, she could give shots to everyone in the town at once, making her studies go twice as fast!
Of course, grandmother would need ingredients to fill the cauldron for the spell to remake the broom. It would be no good expecting her grandmother to go off and hurt her back. She'd just have to do it herself!
And by herself, she meant dragging Colette along as well.
*
The thing was, she hadn't thought Colette not showing up that morning too odd. Sometimes she had to help clean up for the morning crowd, which was usually just Sherman and herself, but between them, they could out eat the entire town. Sometimes she
She showed up almost every day, even if just to bring Marian some lunch she'd made, practicing for her cooking exam, or just to talk.
"Is Colette around?" Marian asked.
Rusk looked up from the cup he was drying. He had pastry dust across his apron, and even dipped on his sleeves."I thought she was with you."
"No, I haven't seen her all morning," Marian said, disappointment filling her voice.
Person after person repeated the same—if they didn't suddenly have other things to do right that minute.
Marian let out a sigh. She couldn't even cast up a seeking spell at this rate, with her broom broken.
—or could she?
Technically, witches weren't supposed to work without their brooms, though for the life of her, Marian couldn't remember why. It was something her grandmother had warned many times—and always to her alone. Now, Marian. Don't go forgetting your broom when you go out.
Marian looked at her hands. Desperate times called for desperate measures.
She focused on the space between her palms, and mouthed words of the language of magic. Energy crackled between her fingertips, so powerful that it hurt deep under her skin. But, Marian barely noticed the pain, only the thrilling freedom of the power. The spell had come out far more intense than any other she had tried. A ball of flickering light rose up and floated above.
"Wow!"
She chased after it, barely able to keep up. The light wove through the paths of Sharance, whizzing around higher than she could reach. Even at this long, it hadn't burnt out like all her other attempts at finding spells had.
It went over the beach and over the waters. Colette was swimming? Or....
No, she wouldn't have. She never went alone. Marian clung to that hope. If she was dead, the spell wouldn't have found her—it was a spell for life, not death.
It lingered at the doors of the ruins, still burning bright. Marian followed the light until she was thigh-deep in water. A fish nipped at her heels, and she jerked back. Carlos was always talking about the king of fishes down in the deep. While it'd be wonderful to have his scales for her experiments, she didn't have Colette here, and she wouldn't fight a fish that big without her favorite guinea pig to slice whatever monster they took on with her axe.
She kicked the water. Now, what was the spell again? She supposed she could just freeze the whole lake. She was sure the fishes wouldn't mind too much.
She had a mental image of Pia and Carlos teaming up to take her down with a righteous fish-related fury. That certainly wouldn't work. She rested on the beach. The waves lapped up around her feet.
Just last summer, she and Colette had stayed out late in their swimsuits, the fishing poles bobbing in the lake. She'd talked about....what was it? Shara's magic beans looking so delicious, she could eat them.
Magic beans?
Marian took off at a run towards the flower shop.
*
Monica let out a hiss and went running to the stairs as soon as Marian came in the door. She didn't take it personally; Monica did it to plenty of people, it was just her way.
"Welcome," Shara said. Her usually bright smile wavered a bit as Marian came closer.
Monica huddled on the stairs, hissing and spitting and growling as Maria.
"Monica, be good," Shara said. She crossed her arms.
"You wouldn't happen to have any magical beans I can ride, would you?" Marian said. "I'm on a quick errand."
"Actually, I do," Shara said brightly. She dug beneath the counter and pulled out large seed infused with magic. Marian handed over the money, which was the last she had in her wallet. She tossed the seed on the floor and it sprung up green and large.
She didn't even wait for the water before she stepped onto the leaf, which was so large that it easily took her weight. Of course, everything could always use a little more magic. "Onwards, leafy steed!" She lifted her arm as a she let out a battle cry, leaving Monica and Shara in her leafy wake.
*
She powered through the waters, salty spray splashing up from the force of the Lily Pad. She should really buy more magic seeds—just think of what wonderful plant monsters she could enchant! She had a mental image of a giant octopus-like thorny vine which snagged up potential patients and people who didn't pay.
A silvery fish flopped away as she pushed through the still lake.
"Take that, fishes! You're delicious!"
Had Colette been here, the wouldn't laughed and turned it to a whole theme song, and then probably taken a really long lunch break. As she wasn't, Marian just filed it away for when she actually did find Colette. All day had been marked my Colette—missing Colette, remembering anecdotes to tell her, and of magic seeds to convince her not to eat.
The light still burned bright at the front of the ruins. Marian studied it as she stepped off of the lily pad.
"Honestly, what is she doing in a place like this? How'd she even get in there...?"
The doors were shut tight. She pushed at them, but they didn't even creak. It was like pushing at a wall.
"Hmmmmmm."
The door was covered in runes she couldn't read. There was no key hidden under the mat, not spell she could discern, and yet, the seeking light definitely said that Colette was there.
She traced her fingers over the lines.
"Open Sesame?" Marian said hopefully.
No such luck.
"Open, or I'll blow you to smithereens?" Marian said, with a slightly maniacal grin.
Still nothing.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to do this the hard way...." Marian said.
She gathered up energy in her palms, feeling the draw of magic deep into every meridian of her body. A glow surrounded her as she let loose a simple fireball spell.
"Hiiiyaaah!"
Flames hit the door with a sickening force. For a moment, they turned black with smoke and ash, but a light within them shone, and the door returned to just as it had before.
Of course it wouldn't be that easy.
She slammed her hands against the door. The metal was filled with a sort of energy she'd never felt before, new and exciting testing ideas filled her mind. If only she could turn it in on itself—and then capture it in a bottle to make really good potions out of.
"See, door. You're not keeping me from Colette. I'm not going to leeet you," she said in a sing-song voice.
She focused on the world around her. The clear sky above, the gentle wind tousling her hair, the trees at the shore, the gritty sand beneath her feet, and the lake which lapped at these island ruins.
She closed her eyes as she called up the force around her, especially to the lake. Crack the rocks. A single drop goes in, and the rock cracks, cracks!
She swayed as she called up the spell, collared it as her own. Eyes open, she saw a massive storm of water and sand surrounding her. Torrential rains beat upon the door, the entire force of an ocean deep, a storm conjured up straight from the ocean by her newly revealed magic.
Still not enough.
She dug deep to memories of Colette. Flour over her nose like freckles, in her hair, a constant stain on her apron. She went deeper, drawing to the energy of the trees, and even the whole desert beyond.
"I don't care who you are, you can't have Colette!"
With one final burst, the doors flew open. Marian stood in a daze as she stared inside. She took tentative steps in, and no magic forcefield pushed her back any longer.
Inside, lesser demons marched across the stone paths, which cris-crossed across pools of water.
She'd never seen one outside of her grandmother's books. They had a special quality in their horns which not only made for great potions, but also were good in crafting. Lifeforce would be sapped back to the person who attacked with this. And she could just imagine what would happen if her broom was mended with magic like this.
She couldn't fight every monster here, but she wasn't going home without at least some souvenirs for her spells.
One noticed her, and let out a keening sound, as all of them turned. Pitchforks raised, they rushed towards her.
She thought of Colette, of the color of her hair and her smile as she called up the force of spinning light barriers around her. The magic seemed to come from deep inside her, a place deeper than she had ever known, as the spell went wild. It wasn't merely tiny circles of energy, easily broken though. No, these were giant diamonds of white light that spun so quickly about her, no demon could get through. Even through the onslaught, none pushed through.
She stomped her foot, focusing on the ground as the floor split beneath her feet. Spikes of earth flew in every direction, cutting through monster flesh and destroying the portal at the far left.
In flashes of light, each demon diapered back to the Forest of Beginnings. And quite a few of them had left their horns in the process. She whistled to herself as she bent to put them in the pouch at her waist. She'd spelled it to hold quite a bit, and be as light as a cloud.
Runic carvings of dragons were all over the golden-hued wall, with two large statues of dragons were right between them. As she tried to go to the right, wind blew her back. She pushed against it, but the wind only push her back further, slamming her against the wall. Not even her power could make a dent in it.
Left door it was.
*
A statue of a Racoon filled the interior of the room. A plot of earth was in the middle, as more monsters roamed about. She focused on the space between her hands, where a little square of earth was. Up from the earth she called up the energy, the thick rocks that splintered out around her in an explosion. Demons fell back, cut and bleeding. She'd never known she could do something like this. She'd always been a little unpredictable, her magic far below her grandmother's. For some reason, today had been her awakening.
A racoon statue stood in the middle, its arms up and its jaw gaping.
"Hungry?" Marian said.
She pushed the rocks dredged up into the mouth of the raccoon. It shuddered, glowing faintly.
"There's plenty more where that came from," she said.
Magic seeped into the rocks, bringing more and more sharp stones that cut the statue from the inside. There was a sound of a roar as the statue burst into pieces like a rain of smooth ash.
Marian dusted off her hands and walked deeper into the ruins.
The next room was a twisting path was surrounded by water. There was no railing, no bushes to catch her fall this time. She would have to tread carefully, lest she slip. Red panthers prowled, along with big minotaurs. She'd never faced off with monsters of this caliber before, but for the first time, her spells weren't going wrong.
It was like becoming a god—commanding the elements to her control. And through it all, she felt a perfect calm. Whatever creature had stolen away Colette would pay, god-beast, dragon or sea king alike.
She walked in, gathering the magic almost casually. Stone and water and ice came to her call and surrounded her, turning each monster into.
Her heart beat so fast, with a giddy, manic light. Where there once had been fear and anxiety for Colette's sake, now there was nothing but the huge well of power, and the knowledge that whatever had taken Colette would be soup before the night was out.
*
Spears of ice lined the walls. The floor beneath her feet was slippery, as dark faeries and demons pushed out from between the frozen stakes. Marian drew a line around her, and ice gathered where she touched. She frowned. Not enough, not nearly enough.
She scraped her nail, a forceful gesture as ice burst up around her. A spiky wall hovered around her as the demons charged. Wind blasted into her from the faeries, pitchfork spikes sunk into the shield, but nothing broke. Just as each and every monster surrounded her, she pushed outwards, and the shield followed. Spikes thrust and burst like a rain of spears. Cut up, dredged and undone, they ascended back to their world just as the spinning blue portal was destroyed.
Stone statue after statue fell through each room. The monsters were nothing compared to the powers she'd gained. Nothing was. She could reach out and take anything she wanted, anything she needed. Even the air she breathed could be turned into a weapon.
Magic tingled around her, under her skin. Everything was ready for her, like a country waiting for its rightful queen. Marian was only too happy to take that offered crown.
*
Four orbs surrounded a dark room. Four dragons held up the circles of glass with ethereal light. Marian stepped into the middle circle of light, even as a deep voice rung through her mind.
What do you fear, Sealed One?
"Nothing," she said.
Losing her, her heart said.
"Then face your fears, and see if you are worthy."
She was drawn into a vortex of shifting water. Marian was dragged deep to an islet of coral and stone beneath the waves. Somehow, she could still breathe. In the darkness of the other side, a large shadow loomed.
Colette appeared before her in a bubble. She was crying big, ugly tears as her face reddened from rubbing at it. She sniffed noisily.
"Colette! What are you doing here?!"
"I can't do it anymore. I'm going to move on from that dream, and get married."
"What?! What are you talking about! You can't go have babies, you have cakes to make! You were going to be so good that even Rusk would like your vegetables! You'd be so good that anyone who ate your food would be happy!"
Images of world flashed in front of her. Colette carrying around someone else's child, smiling at him. Colette in her wedding dress, walking down the aisle to marry someone else.
And she'd be an afterthought. Maybe after Colette had finished spending time with her husband, she'd be able to spare a minute to talk. But she'd be gone all too soon, until it was just Marian and her dreams which somehow, she'd always thought Colette would share. Colette had her own dreams of being a chef, of course, but being a great chef and being a great guinea pig went hand in hand! Because one of these days, Marian was bound to get her super tastebud-improving spell working and make Colette win every award a chef could get. Never mind that last time she'd nearly burned Colette's tastebuds off.
Marian thrust her hand out in an irritated gesture. The water bubbled around her. "You can't get married, I won't allow it! Listen up, you can't give up your dreams! In fact, I won't let you! I'll fight for your dreams, and mine, too....Do you hear me, Colette? You aren't going to move on without me!"
The shadow floated above her and came into focus.Tendrils of filmy fins fluttered in the water. She could breathe, somehow, and it wasn't even her magic. Rough coral was beneath her feet on this little island of a world.
The bubble disappeared into nothing. In a second, Colette was gone. The feeling of being queen of the elements was replaced by a sudden weakness. Like a punch to the gut, and the feeling of losing her breath.
She let out a cry into the deep.
Colette! Colette!
No response came.
Prepare yourself, Sealed One."
"You should be the one to prepare yourself!"
She focused on the water, pushing him back with the force of his own world. He shook his long neck, unhurt by the onslaught of his own element.
Of course. Any witch worth her salt knew that magic creatures absorbed their own elements. But there was nothing else here to work with. No fire or air, and the stone beneath her was too necessary to take. If she tried to work with it, the entire islet might collapse.
She pushed herself further as a deep ache settled in her mind. She reached past the stone walls, past the kingdom of the dragon. Up to the clouds and sun and sky, and wind beyond.
The magic rained down uncontrolled, a burst of flame and wind and stone, curled together and growing deeper by the second. She lost herself in the power, as the pain in her head became splitting. The magic came to her, eager at the chance to be sprung free. She could hear roars of pain, but it was so distant over the roaring in her head. Like an ocean of waves in her mind, magic vibrated through the room. Rocks rained everywhere around her, collapsed in as the light flickered out, until it was just her. Only her power that filled the darkness, outshining even the ancient blue light of the dragon above.
With a large cry, a surge of water pushed her back. He was far from defeated yet. With all his ancient power, he pushed the water back, crushing rocks about her barrier, pushing in until the pain was so intense that she could barely breathe.
The cold grew as she felt herself frosted in. Snowflake walls of ice froze about her.
Colette was waiting for her somewhere. An anger pushed through the pain, as hot as a flame. How dare he take Colette from her—how dare he think he was even worthy to touch her!
Power burst forth more than before, searing away the ice. She pushed on, breath and force past the ache until she was just before him.
"This is for Colette," she said as she reached for more magic than she had ever used before. The whole room was filled with the light of stone, flame and wind. The dragon was lost to her, brilliant blue scales obscured by rocks.
She fell to the ground as she heard the final stones fall, and the dragon fall with it.
Marian gasped for breath as the dragon rose again. She'd just keep fighting and fighting, until one of them could no longer fight. Then—
His voice echoed through her mind again.
You have proven yourself worthy. What will you use this power for, Sealed One?
"I'm going to find a cure for all disease! Even if I have to make everyone sick in the process, I'll definitely save them! But it's not just everyone I'm going to save....it's her."
Without uniting the people, the tree will wither and the land will die. You wish to heal the world? Heal your own country, first. Then you will find the power for your panacea."
"You mean, the Univir?" Marian said.
The dragon nodded slowly. His tendrils floated like seaweed in the water above her. She could feel an ancient power that had only grown stronger by the centuries.
Do you understand the meaning of true power now?
"I will, once I get some of your scales," she said. She grinned with just a little bit of manic glee. The dragon's face twisted in fear as she came closer. She couldn't help but torture him a little, after all. He had taken Colette, and she couldn't just leave that unpunished.
Magic clung to her, begging for her touch. If she could just sap the power from this dragon, she'd be like a living goddess. Even though she was so weary, the magic called her in desperate stops and starts.
The crown awaited her to take it.
She lassoed a bit of lightning and caught him tight. In his weakened state, he couldn't even fight. Before she could touch him, a bubble reappeared. The bubble popped, and Collette burst free. She gasped through the water, and realized she could breathe.
She had a choice: take the powerful magic ingredients, or take Colette before the dragon changed his mind.
She turned her back on the dragon and bent to help Colette up.
There never was a choice when it came to Colette.
"Magic water is pretty neat, huh?" Marian said.
"You really saved me," Colette said.
"Of course, where would I be without my best guinea pig?"
"Marian!"
Marian laughed. "Come on, our families will be worried."
She attempted to lift Colette up, then remembered there was a reason she used magic and willing (and sometimes unwilling) assistants for all her heavy lifting.
They floated up on a boat of bubbles which Marian cast into being. Up from the sea-dragon's lair, and above Sharance. Her world, her home.
"You have sticks in your hair," Collette said. She reached into Marian's mismatched
blue braids.
"And blood, and a bunch of other stuff. I can't wait to go to the inn and take a bath, and then sleep for a week," Marian said.
"Me too, I'm exhausted. I could eat the entire pantry," Colette said.
"I'm really glad you came for me."
"No running off and getting married, or it'll be you I'm lassoing and talking some sense into," Marian said. She smiled tiredly. Still, the magic called at the edge of her senses. Even as Sharance came closer, and they saw just what had become of it. It was spring, but the leaves looked tinted golden, even down to the plants. Crops were gone in a dusty haze.
"Was I gone that long a time? It looks like cider making time," Colette said. Her expression grew worried as she touched the side of the bubble.
"I don't think so," Marian said.
She willed herself to land, and aimed straight for the flower field near Privera. They came at a harsh drop as she saw the field. Withered stems and brown petals were all that was left of a field of eternally growing flowers.
They could only stare as they walked into the monochrome dullness of Sharance. Near the end of the ruins, she thought she'd come back a hero. Now, she could only wonder if she was too late.
The streets of Sharance were empty as they walked on, which only accelerated her anxiety. Had the dragon been willing to destroy that much? Colette pulled away.
"I have to go check on my family—meet you back in front in a few?"
"I'll be there," Marian called back as she rounded the bend towards the Witch's Cauldron. She opened up, and felt a true sinking of relief as she saw her grandmother seated behind the table.
"I found the pieces of your broom," Marjorie said in lieu of a greeting. Her lined face was drawn in concern. She held up the pieces of her specially made trumpet syringe.
"I'm sorry, it broke on me, and I couldn't fix it at all—But that's not the important thing—my magic works now! It's so powerful and amazing! I'll definitely be able to make a panacea now!"
"Marian, I have a confession," Marjorie said. For once, there was no mischievous gleam in her grandmother's eyes. She was all sternness and worry. Marian's last bit of enthusiasm withered down to brown leaves and dead stems.
"Grandma?"
"True power can only be achieved with control. The broom was your stabilizer; it kept your magic from going wild."
Marian reeled from this. She'd thought her magic had lain mostly dormant, like a clumsy teen girl who had suddenly bloomed into a beauty. But all this power, it had been hers for the taking all along.
"Perhaps I put you on too tight a leash. If you'd known, this wouldn't have happened."
"But, I took down an ancient dragon—"
Marjorie's gaze hardened. "When you use magic without thought, other people are hurt. To take that water, you may have dried up rivers, made droughts fall on the countries around us. Just look at the fields around us, they're as broken and lifeless as your broom."
She'd been so close to her cure-all medicine. For one giddy moment, she'd held the world in her hands. And now, she was facing the consequences. Marian hung her head.
But she never let herself fall into despair. Potions that exploded were just another bit of learning experience towards her goal. This was the closest she'd ever come, and the magic weighed down inside her like a growing mania. She craved the spicy taste of it, the electric feel of power in her hands.
Even now, she wanted to draw a storm just to see the lightning, with no heed of what would happen to the people caught in the downpour.
"Grandma, get the extra nurse uniform, Colette and I will go and check on everything. And I'll give the magic back, or rearrange it, or something. I broke it, so it's my job to fix it."
"First, let me make you another broom," Marjorie said. "I'll make it just enough so you don't destroy the world in the process, my little doom-bringer," Marjorie said.
"Are you angry at me?"
"No, I'm angry at myself for not trusting you more," Marjorie said.
"Grandma—the dragon said the Sharance tree will die if we don't unite with the Univir."
"The sins of our past are catching up to us," Marjorie said.
"I have to do something. I don't know what, but I'll...figure out something. Even if I have to kidnap them and drag them to all our festivals to fix the tree."
Marjorie chuckled. "I don't think that's the way to work it, Marian." She bent down underneath the counter and brought up a broom almost identical to her last one.
"I made a back up, in case this ever happened," Marjorie said.
As she touched the broom, the world around her seemed to flatten. No longer could she feel the energy of each tree and stone. No longer was even the air above a deadly weapon for her command.
The crown was gone. She could no longer be a god-queen of elements, drawn to the edge with need. Even as the magic called her, she resisted and held tight. The magic within her bucked at the control, exploding out for one fiery moment, but the broom did not break.
It was one thing to accidentally paralyze someone in the process of finding a cure—Colette didn't mind that much, anyways—but it was another thing to leave Sharance an empty husk. For the first time in her life, the power in her grasp left her with a healthy fear of just what she could do.
She could hear the dragon's voice, a refrain in her mind: Do you understand the meaning of true power now?
She wasn't sure she really knew, but she was getting closer.
*
"Leaving already?" Rusk said.
"For the inn," Marian said.
"You might see dad there when you go, he was making a delivery," Rusk said.
Colette came down from the stairs, golden and thin as always. Her hair was like two golden buns—she'd always joked that one day, Colette would try and eat them when she was too tired to know any better.
"Hey, Colette, will you be my partner?"
"Wh-what?" Colette blushed furiously.
"Turns out I messed up, so I'm going to fix it. We're going into the desert until we figure out a way to save the Sharance tree, so stock up enough lunch."
"I'll be right on it!" Colette said. She disappeared behind the large counter. The sound of food being gobbled could be clearly heard over the sound of rattling pans and packing.
"Aren't you afraid of the desert?" Rusk said.
Marian scoffed. "Between Colette and me, the monsters will be so afraid, they'll have to be friends with us."
"I'm not sure that's how friendship works," Rusk said dryly. He brushed flour off his hat, and took a step back. "But if anyone can do it, it's you two."
Colette had already started to munch on the food overflowing from the large duffel bag over her shoulder. Despite her diminutive size, she could hoist a whole lot.
"Come on, Colette. We've got a whole new adventure—right after we take a nice soak at the inn and rest."
"It's okay, I only packed enough for about an hour, anyways," Colette said with a laugh.
Colette tried to say something else, but her mouth was full of a bun, so it came out garbled. Marian smiled, feeling the same weakness and happiness in her chest. If anyone laid a hand on her, she'd break the broom herself, and make them wish they'd never met either of them.
Series: Rune Factory 3
Pairing: Marian/Colette
Rating: PG-13
Word count: 5251
Summary: Marian's broom breaks the same week that Colette goes missing. Marian sets off on a mission to find her friend, trying to control the unleashed magic within her and the unexpected feelings realized in the wake of Colette's absence.
Author's note: If you marry Colette, there will be Marian options for all of the end game date questions. One of them says that Micah thought Marian would save Colette, to saying that he was scared by Marian that she would be jealous.
Intended for a Yuletide treat for Etasenline, but it kind of got away from me and decided to become a series.
In one conversation with Marjorie, it's revealed that Marian's broom is special made to control her magic, given that she's much more powerful than Marjorie.
Some artistic liberties taken with the place, because "and then she waited two weeks while she farmed the right vegetables and/or left the place to steal them from Micah" rather kills the pace.
*
Marian had taped together the pieces where her grandmother couldn't see, but even that work wouldn't bring the magic back. Her broom in all its wonderful strangeness no longer held the tingle of contained magic, and instead felt like a dry, withered twig.
Even rocks and trees had life in them, but she could no longer feel even the slightest spark from her broom.
Marian sighed, smoothing the tape over again. What had been released couldn't ever be fixed, her grandmother had taught her that. But it could be remade, maybe even more powerful than the last. She smirked at this, imagining a flaming broom that was so powerful, she could give shots to everyone in the town at once, making her studies go twice as fast!
Of course, grandmother would need ingredients to fill the cauldron for the spell to remake the broom. It would be no good expecting her grandmother to go off and hurt her back. She'd just have to do it herself!
And by herself, she meant dragging Colette along as well.
*
The thing was, she hadn't thought Colette not showing up that morning too odd. Sometimes she had to help clean up for the morning crowd, which was usually just Sherman and herself, but between them, they could out eat the entire town. Sometimes she
She showed up almost every day, even if just to bring Marian some lunch she'd made, practicing for her cooking exam, or just to talk.
"Is Colette around?" Marian asked.
Rusk looked up from the cup he was drying. He had pastry dust across his apron, and even dipped on his sleeves."I thought she was with you."
"No, I haven't seen her all morning," Marian said, disappointment filling her voice.
Person after person repeated the same—if they didn't suddenly have other things to do right that minute.
Marian let out a sigh. She couldn't even cast up a seeking spell at this rate, with her broom broken.
—or could she?
Technically, witches weren't supposed to work without their brooms, though for the life of her, Marian couldn't remember why. It was something her grandmother had warned many times—and always to her alone. Now, Marian. Don't go forgetting your broom when you go out.
Marian looked at her hands. Desperate times called for desperate measures.
She focused on the space between her palms, and mouthed words of the language of magic. Energy crackled between her fingertips, so powerful that it hurt deep under her skin. But, Marian barely noticed the pain, only the thrilling freedom of the power. The spell had come out far more intense than any other she had tried. A ball of flickering light rose up and floated above.
"Wow!"
She chased after it, barely able to keep up. The light wove through the paths of Sharance, whizzing around higher than she could reach. Even at this long, it hadn't burnt out like all her other attempts at finding spells had.
It went over the beach and over the waters. Colette was swimming? Or....
No, she wouldn't have. She never went alone. Marian clung to that hope. If she was dead, the spell wouldn't have found her—it was a spell for life, not death.
It lingered at the doors of the ruins, still burning bright. Marian followed the light until she was thigh-deep in water. A fish nipped at her heels, and she jerked back. Carlos was always talking about the king of fishes down in the deep. While it'd be wonderful to have his scales for her experiments, she didn't have Colette here, and she wouldn't fight a fish that big without her favorite guinea pig to slice whatever monster they took on with her axe.
She kicked the water. Now, what was the spell again? She supposed she could just freeze the whole lake. She was sure the fishes wouldn't mind too much.
She had a mental image of Pia and Carlos teaming up to take her down with a righteous fish-related fury. That certainly wouldn't work. She rested on the beach. The waves lapped up around her feet.
Just last summer, she and Colette had stayed out late in their swimsuits, the fishing poles bobbing in the lake. She'd talked about....what was it? Shara's magic beans looking so delicious, she could eat them.
Magic beans?
Marian took off at a run towards the flower shop.
*
Monica let out a hiss and went running to the stairs as soon as Marian came in the door. She didn't take it personally; Monica did it to plenty of people, it was just her way.
"Welcome," Shara said. Her usually bright smile wavered a bit as Marian came closer.
Monica huddled on the stairs, hissing and spitting and growling as Maria.
"Monica, be good," Shara said. She crossed her arms.
"You wouldn't happen to have any magical beans I can ride, would you?" Marian said. "I'm on a quick errand."
"Actually, I do," Shara said brightly. She dug beneath the counter and pulled out large seed infused with magic. Marian handed over the money, which was the last she had in her wallet. She tossed the seed on the floor and it sprung up green and large.
She didn't even wait for the water before she stepped onto the leaf, which was so large that it easily took her weight. Of course, everything could always use a little more magic. "Onwards, leafy steed!" She lifted her arm as a she let out a battle cry, leaving Monica and Shara in her leafy wake.
*
She powered through the waters, salty spray splashing up from the force of the Lily Pad. She should really buy more magic seeds—just think of what wonderful plant monsters she could enchant! She had a mental image of a giant octopus-like thorny vine which snagged up potential patients and people who didn't pay.
A silvery fish flopped away as she pushed through the still lake.
"Take that, fishes! You're delicious!"
Had Colette been here, the wouldn't laughed and turned it to a whole theme song, and then probably taken a really long lunch break. As she wasn't, Marian just filed it away for when she actually did find Colette. All day had been marked my Colette—missing Colette, remembering anecdotes to tell her, and of magic seeds to convince her not to eat.
The light still burned bright at the front of the ruins. Marian studied it as she stepped off of the lily pad.
"Honestly, what is she doing in a place like this? How'd she even get in there...?"
The doors were shut tight. She pushed at them, but they didn't even creak. It was like pushing at a wall.
"Hmmmmmm."
The door was covered in runes she couldn't read. There was no key hidden under the mat, not spell she could discern, and yet, the seeking light definitely said that Colette was there.
She traced her fingers over the lines.
"Open Sesame?" Marian said hopefully.
No such luck.
"Open, or I'll blow you to smithereens?" Marian said, with a slightly maniacal grin.
Still nothing.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to do this the hard way...." Marian said.
She gathered up energy in her palms, feeling the draw of magic deep into every meridian of her body. A glow surrounded her as she let loose a simple fireball spell.
"Hiiiyaaah!"
Flames hit the door with a sickening force. For a moment, they turned black with smoke and ash, but a light within them shone, and the door returned to just as it had before.
Of course it wouldn't be that easy.
She slammed her hands against the door. The metal was filled with a sort of energy she'd never felt before, new and exciting testing ideas filled her mind. If only she could turn it in on itself—and then capture it in a bottle to make really good potions out of.
"See, door. You're not keeping me from Colette. I'm not going to leeet you," she said in a sing-song voice.
She focused on the world around her. The clear sky above, the gentle wind tousling her hair, the trees at the shore, the gritty sand beneath her feet, and the lake which lapped at these island ruins.
She closed her eyes as she called up the force around her, especially to the lake. Crack the rocks. A single drop goes in, and the rock cracks, cracks!
She swayed as she called up the spell, collared it as her own. Eyes open, she saw a massive storm of water and sand surrounding her. Torrential rains beat upon the door, the entire force of an ocean deep, a storm conjured up straight from the ocean by her newly revealed magic.
Still not enough.
She dug deep to memories of Colette. Flour over her nose like freckles, in her hair, a constant stain on her apron. She went deeper, drawing to the energy of the trees, and even the whole desert beyond.
"I don't care who you are, you can't have Colette!"
With one final burst, the doors flew open. Marian stood in a daze as she stared inside. She took tentative steps in, and no magic forcefield pushed her back any longer.
Inside, lesser demons marched across the stone paths, which cris-crossed across pools of water.
She'd never seen one outside of her grandmother's books. They had a special quality in their horns which not only made for great potions, but also were good in crafting. Lifeforce would be sapped back to the person who attacked with this. And she could just imagine what would happen if her broom was mended with magic like this.
She couldn't fight every monster here, but she wasn't going home without at least some souvenirs for her spells.
One noticed her, and let out a keening sound, as all of them turned. Pitchforks raised, they rushed towards her.
She thought of Colette, of the color of her hair and her smile as she called up the force of spinning light barriers around her. The magic seemed to come from deep inside her, a place deeper than she had ever known, as the spell went wild. It wasn't merely tiny circles of energy, easily broken though. No, these were giant diamonds of white light that spun so quickly about her, no demon could get through. Even through the onslaught, none pushed through.
She stomped her foot, focusing on the ground as the floor split beneath her feet. Spikes of earth flew in every direction, cutting through monster flesh and destroying the portal at the far left.
In flashes of light, each demon diapered back to the Forest of Beginnings. And quite a few of them had left their horns in the process. She whistled to herself as she bent to put them in the pouch at her waist. She'd spelled it to hold quite a bit, and be as light as a cloud.
Runic carvings of dragons were all over the golden-hued wall, with two large statues of dragons were right between them. As she tried to go to the right, wind blew her back. She pushed against it, but the wind only push her back further, slamming her against the wall. Not even her power could make a dent in it.
Left door it was.
*
A statue of a Racoon filled the interior of the room. A plot of earth was in the middle, as more monsters roamed about. She focused on the space between her hands, where a little square of earth was. Up from the earth she called up the energy, the thick rocks that splintered out around her in an explosion. Demons fell back, cut and bleeding. She'd never known she could do something like this. She'd always been a little unpredictable, her magic far below her grandmother's. For some reason, today had been her awakening.
A racoon statue stood in the middle, its arms up and its jaw gaping.
"Hungry?" Marian said.
She pushed the rocks dredged up into the mouth of the raccoon. It shuddered, glowing faintly.
"There's plenty more where that came from," she said.
Magic seeped into the rocks, bringing more and more sharp stones that cut the statue from the inside. There was a sound of a roar as the statue burst into pieces like a rain of smooth ash.
Marian dusted off her hands and walked deeper into the ruins.
The next room was a twisting path was surrounded by water. There was no railing, no bushes to catch her fall this time. She would have to tread carefully, lest she slip. Red panthers prowled, along with big minotaurs. She'd never faced off with monsters of this caliber before, but for the first time, her spells weren't going wrong.
It was like becoming a god—commanding the elements to her control. And through it all, she felt a perfect calm. Whatever creature had stolen away Colette would pay, god-beast, dragon or sea king alike.
She walked in, gathering the magic almost casually. Stone and water and ice came to her call and surrounded her, turning each monster into.
Her heart beat so fast, with a giddy, manic light. Where there once had been fear and anxiety for Colette's sake, now there was nothing but the huge well of power, and the knowledge that whatever had taken Colette would be soup before the night was out.
*
Spears of ice lined the walls. The floor beneath her feet was slippery, as dark faeries and demons pushed out from between the frozen stakes. Marian drew a line around her, and ice gathered where she touched. She frowned. Not enough, not nearly enough.
She scraped her nail, a forceful gesture as ice burst up around her. A spiky wall hovered around her as the demons charged. Wind blasted into her from the faeries, pitchfork spikes sunk into the shield, but nothing broke. Just as each and every monster surrounded her, she pushed outwards, and the shield followed. Spikes thrust and burst like a rain of spears. Cut up, dredged and undone, they ascended back to their world just as the spinning blue portal was destroyed.
Stone statue after statue fell through each room. The monsters were nothing compared to the powers she'd gained. Nothing was. She could reach out and take anything she wanted, anything she needed. Even the air she breathed could be turned into a weapon.
Magic tingled around her, under her skin. Everything was ready for her, like a country waiting for its rightful queen. Marian was only too happy to take that offered crown.
*
Four orbs surrounded a dark room. Four dragons held up the circles of glass with ethereal light. Marian stepped into the middle circle of light, even as a deep voice rung through her mind.
What do you fear, Sealed One?
"Nothing," she said.
Losing her, her heart said.
"Then face your fears, and see if you are worthy."
She was drawn into a vortex of shifting water. Marian was dragged deep to an islet of coral and stone beneath the waves. Somehow, she could still breathe. In the darkness of the other side, a large shadow loomed.
Colette appeared before her in a bubble. She was crying big, ugly tears as her face reddened from rubbing at it. She sniffed noisily.
"Colette! What are you doing here?!"
"I can't do it anymore. I'm going to move on from that dream, and get married."
"What?! What are you talking about! You can't go have babies, you have cakes to make! You were going to be so good that even Rusk would like your vegetables! You'd be so good that anyone who ate your food would be happy!"
Images of world flashed in front of her. Colette carrying around someone else's child, smiling at him. Colette in her wedding dress, walking down the aisle to marry someone else.
And she'd be an afterthought. Maybe after Colette had finished spending time with her husband, she'd be able to spare a minute to talk. But she'd be gone all too soon, until it was just Marian and her dreams which somehow, she'd always thought Colette would share. Colette had her own dreams of being a chef, of course, but being a great chef and being a great guinea pig went hand in hand! Because one of these days, Marian was bound to get her super tastebud-improving spell working and make Colette win every award a chef could get. Never mind that last time she'd nearly burned Colette's tastebuds off.
Marian thrust her hand out in an irritated gesture. The water bubbled around her. "You can't get married, I won't allow it! Listen up, you can't give up your dreams! In fact, I won't let you! I'll fight for your dreams, and mine, too....Do you hear me, Colette? You aren't going to move on without me!"
The shadow floated above her and came into focus.Tendrils of filmy fins fluttered in the water. She could breathe, somehow, and it wasn't even her magic. Rough coral was beneath her feet on this little island of a world.
The bubble disappeared into nothing. In a second, Colette was gone. The feeling of being queen of the elements was replaced by a sudden weakness. Like a punch to the gut, and the feeling of losing her breath.
She let out a cry into the deep.
Colette! Colette!
No response came.
Prepare yourself, Sealed One."
"You should be the one to prepare yourself!"
She focused on the water, pushing him back with the force of his own world. He shook his long neck, unhurt by the onslaught of his own element.
Of course. Any witch worth her salt knew that magic creatures absorbed their own elements. But there was nothing else here to work with. No fire or air, and the stone beneath her was too necessary to take. If she tried to work with it, the entire islet might collapse.
She pushed herself further as a deep ache settled in her mind. She reached past the stone walls, past the kingdom of the dragon. Up to the clouds and sun and sky, and wind beyond.
The magic rained down uncontrolled, a burst of flame and wind and stone, curled together and growing deeper by the second. She lost herself in the power, as the pain in her head became splitting. The magic came to her, eager at the chance to be sprung free. She could hear roars of pain, but it was so distant over the roaring in her head. Like an ocean of waves in her mind, magic vibrated through the room. Rocks rained everywhere around her, collapsed in as the light flickered out, until it was just her. Only her power that filled the darkness, outshining even the ancient blue light of the dragon above.
With a large cry, a surge of water pushed her back. He was far from defeated yet. With all his ancient power, he pushed the water back, crushing rocks about her barrier, pushing in until the pain was so intense that she could barely breathe.
The cold grew as she felt herself frosted in. Snowflake walls of ice froze about her.
Colette was waiting for her somewhere. An anger pushed through the pain, as hot as a flame. How dare he take Colette from her—how dare he think he was even worthy to touch her!
Power burst forth more than before, searing away the ice. She pushed on, breath and force past the ache until she was just before him.
"This is for Colette," she said as she reached for more magic than she had ever used before. The whole room was filled with the light of stone, flame and wind. The dragon was lost to her, brilliant blue scales obscured by rocks.
She fell to the ground as she heard the final stones fall, and the dragon fall with it.
Marian gasped for breath as the dragon rose again. She'd just keep fighting and fighting, until one of them could no longer fight. Then—
His voice echoed through her mind again.
You have proven yourself worthy. What will you use this power for, Sealed One?
"I'm going to find a cure for all disease! Even if I have to make everyone sick in the process, I'll definitely save them! But it's not just everyone I'm going to save....it's her."
Without uniting the people, the tree will wither and the land will die. You wish to heal the world? Heal your own country, first. Then you will find the power for your panacea."
"You mean, the Univir?" Marian said.
The dragon nodded slowly. His tendrils floated like seaweed in the water above her. She could feel an ancient power that had only grown stronger by the centuries.
Do you understand the meaning of true power now?
"I will, once I get some of your scales," she said. She grinned with just a little bit of manic glee. The dragon's face twisted in fear as she came closer. She couldn't help but torture him a little, after all. He had taken Colette, and she couldn't just leave that unpunished.
Magic clung to her, begging for her touch. If she could just sap the power from this dragon, she'd be like a living goddess. Even though she was so weary, the magic called her in desperate stops and starts.
The crown awaited her to take it.
She lassoed a bit of lightning and caught him tight. In his weakened state, he couldn't even fight. Before she could touch him, a bubble reappeared. The bubble popped, and Collette burst free. She gasped through the water, and realized she could breathe.
She had a choice: take the powerful magic ingredients, or take Colette before the dragon changed his mind.
She turned her back on the dragon and bent to help Colette up.
There never was a choice when it came to Colette.
"Magic water is pretty neat, huh?" Marian said.
"You really saved me," Colette said.
"Of course, where would I be without my best guinea pig?"
"Marian!"
Marian laughed. "Come on, our families will be worried."
She attempted to lift Colette up, then remembered there was a reason she used magic and willing (and sometimes unwilling) assistants for all her heavy lifting.
They floated up on a boat of bubbles which Marian cast into being. Up from the sea-dragon's lair, and above Sharance. Her world, her home.
"You have sticks in your hair," Collette said. She reached into Marian's mismatched
blue braids.
"And blood, and a bunch of other stuff. I can't wait to go to the inn and take a bath, and then sleep for a week," Marian said.
"Me too, I'm exhausted. I could eat the entire pantry," Colette said.
"I'm really glad you came for me."
"No running off and getting married, or it'll be you I'm lassoing and talking some sense into," Marian said. She smiled tiredly. Still, the magic called at the edge of her senses. Even as Sharance came closer, and they saw just what had become of it. It was spring, but the leaves looked tinted golden, even down to the plants. Crops were gone in a dusty haze.
"Was I gone that long a time? It looks like cider making time," Colette said. Her expression grew worried as she touched the side of the bubble.
"I don't think so," Marian said.
She willed herself to land, and aimed straight for the flower field near Privera. They came at a harsh drop as she saw the field. Withered stems and brown petals were all that was left of a field of eternally growing flowers.
They could only stare as they walked into the monochrome dullness of Sharance. Near the end of the ruins, she thought she'd come back a hero. Now, she could only wonder if she was too late.
The streets of Sharance were empty as they walked on, which only accelerated her anxiety. Had the dragon been willing to destroy that much? Colette pulled away.
"I have to go check on my family—meet you back in front in a few?"
"I'll be there," Marian called back as she rounded the bend towards the Witch's Cauldron. She opened up, and felt a true sinking of relief as she saw her grandmother seated behind the table.
"I found the pieces of your broom," Marjorie said in lieu of a greeting. Her lined face was drawn in concern. She held up the pieces of her specially made trumpet syringe.
"I'm sorry, it broke on me, and I couldn't fix it at all—But that's not the important thing—my magic works now! It's so powerful and amazing! I'll definitely be able to make a panacea now!"
"Marian, I have a confession," Marjorie said. For once, there was no mischievous gleam in her grandmother's eyes. She was all sternness and worry. Marian's last bit of enthusiasm withered down to brown leaves and dead stems.
"Grandma?"
"True power can only be achieved with control. The broom was your stabilizer; it kept your magic from going wild."
Marian reeled from this. She'd thought her magic had lain mostly dormant, like a clumsy teen girl who had suddenly bloomed into a beauty. But all this power, it had been hers for the taking all along.
"Perhaps I put you on too tight a leash. If you'd known, this wouldn't have happened."
"But, I took down an ancient dragon—"
Marjorie's gaze hardened. "When you use magic without thought, other people are hurt. To take that water, you may have dried up rivers, made droughts fall on the countries around us. Just look at the fields around us, they're as broken and lifeless as your broom."
She'd been so close to her cure-all medicine. For one giddy moment, she'd held the world in her hands. And now, she was facing the consequences. Marian hung her head.
But she never let herself fall into despair. Potions that exploded were just another bit of learning experience towards her goal. This was the closest she'd ever come, and the magic weighed down inside her like a growing mania. She craved the spicy taste of it, the electric feel of power in her hands.
Even now, she wanted to draw a storm just to see the lightning, with no heed of what would happen to the people caught in the downpour.
"Grandma, get the extra nurse uniform, Colette and I will go and check on everything. And I'll give the magic back, or rearrange it, or something. I broke it, so it's my job to fix it."
"First, let me make you another broom," Marjorie said. "I'll make it just enough so you don't destroy the world in the process, my little doom-bringer," Marjorie said.
"Are you angry at me?"
"No, I'm angry at myself for not trusting you more," Marjorie said.
"Grandma—the dragon said the Sharance tree will die if we don't unite with the Univir."
"The sins of our past are catching up to us," Marjorie said.
"I have to do something. I don't know what, but I'll...figure out something. Even if I have to kidnap them and drag them to all our festivals to fix the tree."
Marjorie chuckled. "I don't think that's the way to work it, Marian." She bent down underneath the counter and brought up a broom almost identical to her last one.
"I made a back up, in case this ever happened," Marjorie said.
As she touched the broom, the world around her seemed to flatten. No longer could she feel the energy of each tree and stone. No longer was even the air above a deadly weapon for her command.
The crown was gone. She could no longer be a god-queen of elements, drawn to the edge with need. Even as the magic called her, she resisted and held tight. The magic within her bucked at the control, exploding out for one fiery moment, but the broom did not break.
It was one thing to accidentally paralyze someone in the process of finding a cure—Colette didn't mind that much, anyways—but it was another thing to leave Sharance an empty husk. For the first time in her life, the power in her grasp left her with a healthy fear of just what she could do.
She could hear the dragon's voice, a refrain in her mind: Do you understand the meaning of true power now?
She wasn't sure she really knew, but she was getting closer.
*
"Leaving already?" Rusk said.
"For the inn," Marian said.
"You might see dad there when you go, he was making a delivery," Rusk said.
Colette came down from the stairs, golden and thin as always. Her hair was like two golden buns—she'd always joked that one day, Colette would try and eat them when she was too tired to know any better.
"Hey, Colette, will you be my partner?"
"Wh-what?" Colette blushed furiously.
"Turns out I messed up, so I'm going to fix it. We're going into the desert until we figure out a way to save the Sharance tree, so stock up enough lunch."
"I'll be right on it!" Colette said. She disappeared behind the large counter. The sound of food being gobbled could be clearly heard over the sound of rattling pans and packing.
"Aren't you afraid of the desert?" Rusk said.
Marian scoffed. "Between Colette and me, the monsters will be so afraid, they'll have to be friends with us."
"I'm not sure that's how friendship works," Rusk said dryly. He brushed flour off his hat, and took a step back. "But if anyone can do it, it's you two."
Colette had already started to munch on the food overflowing from the large duffel bag over her shoulder. Despite her diminutive size, she could hoist a whole lot.
"Come on, Colette. We've got a whole new adventure—right after we take a nice soak at the inn and rest."
"It's okay, I only packed enough for about an hour, anyways," Colette said with a laugh.
Colette tried to say something else, but her mouth was full of a bun, so it came out garbled. Marian smiled, feeling the same weakness and happiness in her chest. If anyone laid a hand on her, she'd break the broom herself, and make them wish they'd never met either of them.
