Rakel’s fist stops inches from my face. My mana rushes in, forming a wall between it and me. But the blow doesn’t come.
I tilt my head, looking past the fist at Rakel.
“You’re supposed to strike me,” I say.
“Sorry,” Rakel mumbles. “You’re just…”
“I feel it!” Pepper pipes up nearby. “That’s weird, it flows so strangely!” She and Lloyd are sitting on the sand. One of Pepper’s arms ends in a stump. Lloyd’s wings are stretched out and flexing in the air behind them. Suella is on the front steps of the house, chewing on a bit of bread.
The hand is inside me with her odd, incorporeal magic. She’s monitoring the flow of my mana so she can learn how to replicate it. I hate that I don’t feel any sign of it. I watched Pepper put her hand on mine. I watched her hand dissolve. But there’s no physical tell. Nothing feels wrong.
“You’re worried about hurting Olexandrya?” I ask, letting the wall of mana loosen. “I’m blocking. You’ll see. Neither of us will feel it, not really.”
Olexandrya didn’t come downstairs. She made a lot of noise up there, though. I imagine she’s made a mess of her room. I ended up sleeping on Rakel’s floor.
“I have no problem hitting Drya,” Rakel snaps.
“Then, what’s the problem?” I demand.
Her face softens as she meets my eyes.
For goodness’ sake. She’s too attached to me.
“Hit her!” Pepper yells. “With your fist!”
“What she said,” I add. “You’re wasting time.”
Rakel raises her fist.
I could start tapping a foot.
“Rakel,” I say, extending my leg and stepping on her foot. “What has come over you? I thought you were serious about this.”
“I am.”
“Then quit—”
Her fist blurs, slamming into my cheek. All at once, I’m landing hard on the sand. I stare at the bright blue sky, working my aching jaw.
“You didn’t use your mana!” Pepper calls. “You were supposed to block it!”
I take a slow breath. Of course. She attacks when I’m not ready.
“That was a cheap shot!” I snap, pushing off the sand.
“You said you would block it!” Rakel yells.
“I wasn’t ready!”
“That’s on you,” Pepper says. “If you can’t block a punch, how can we expect you to block a spell?”
Lloyd nods along, his wings waving slowly.
I get up, shaking my head.
“Again.”
Rakel rushes me with a clearly telegraphed left hook.
I gather mana to block, but she feints with the left and goes for a jab with her right.
I turn, pulling the mana as I duck under her swing. Then, I plant my elbow in her ribs. The mana rushes in, hitting her like a breeze.
Rakel stumbles back a step.
“What did you do?” She asks.
“I would’ve blown you away,” I say, straightening.
“It’s like wind!” Pepper calls. “That’s incredible!”
Rakel taps her ribs and her brow furrows.
“Like wind,” she echoes.
“How do you cast spells?” I ask, taking a step back. “Explain it to me.” I hop on one foot and then the other, feeling the energy flowing through me.
“I just gather mana,” Rakel says as I charge at her. “Wait!”
I drop and slam both hands into the sand and twist, throwing my foot up at her face.
Rakel catches the foot, but she doesn’t do anything.
I compress mana at my hands and propel myself upward, folding my torso and slamming an open palm against the side of her head.
“Ow,” Rakel says.
“Fight back!” I hiss. I grab her hair and hook my leg around her shoulder. I drop backwards, pulling on her with my entire body. I dangle for a moment. She doesn’t budge.
“She’s so weak!” Lloyd laughs. “What’s she doing?”
I meet Rakel’s eyes. She cracks a smile. So I level a hand at her face and compress my mana between it and her. It explodes between us, knocking her to the sand.
I land and roll onto my hands and feet.
Rakel is on her back, brushing sand off her face. She stands slowly, eyeing me.
“That didn’t hurt,” she says.
Pepper says nothing. Her face has gotten more serious.
“Spells,” I say again. “Explain your process.”
“Like I said,” Rakel says. “I gather mana…”
I kick sand at her, and she scowls.
“How?”
Rakel holds out a hand.
“Hollow Core.” Green light blooms in her palm, swirling into the shape of a ball. “See?”
I shrug.
“It just comes,” Rakel says. The ball vanishes into a puff of brown smoke.
“What if you didn’t cast a spell,” I say, breaking into a run. “You need to find that halfway point.”
“Halfway—”
I stomp on her foot and spin, driving my knee into her hip.
Rakel hisses and staggers.
I hop, catching her tunic and driving my fist into her chin. It’s like punching a rock. It just hurts my hand.
I land, shaking the hand and cringing.
“The halfway point,” Rakel says. She looks down at me. “What’s your halfway point?”
I stand, trying not to be obvious with my hurt hand.
“Completely different from yours,” I say.
“Tell me anyway.”
“My mana is fueled by my soul,” I say. “To cast proper spells, I have to open up my soul with Moonlight Tranquillity.”
She stares at me. She looks lost.
I huff.
“My mana is like a herd of sheep in a pen,” I say. “If I want to cast a spell. I have to open the gates. That’s Moonlight Tranquillity.”
“A bit of an odd name for… Isn’t your magic fire?”
“Whatever.” I level my still aching hand at her. “Doing this.” I create a rush of mana that washes over her. “Is sort of like a sheep jumping the fence. It’s not a full spell.”
Rakel nods, looking down at her hand.
“So,” she says. “Since I draw mana from the world… it’d be like having to catch a sheep.”
“What?” I lower my hand, processing that. “I mean… I guess.”
“Or.” Rakel flexes her hand. “If casting a spell burns mana. Maybe casting the spell is eating the sheep. And the halfway point is catching the sheep.”
I purse my lips.
“Alright. Forget the sheep.”
“No.” Rakel turns her hand, and I feel the mana moving in the air. “If I…” Green light flickers on her palm.
“You’re casting that spell,” I chide.
“Shut up for a second,” she snaps.
I narrow my eyes, but I’m too curious to snap back. I just watch as she struggles.
“Catch that sheep!” Lloyd cheers.
Rakel closes her hand into a fist.
“Halfway,” she says again, her face tightening. “Not the spell. Just mana.”
I walk up to her, watching her hand. As I do, I gather mana around my own hand.
“Half—”
I drive my coated hand into her gut. She doubles over, letting loose a sharp cry. She felt that one. She grabs her gut, falling to a knee.
“You weren’t paying attention,” I say.
Lloyd laughs.
Rakel looks up at me, eyes glistening with anger. The air has changed.
Oh. Was that too far?
“I think I get it!” Pepper stands, her stump hand reappearing.
Rakel shoots up, swiping at me with an open hand. I step back, leaning just out of her reach. But her foot juts out, slamming into my chest.
I hardly register the blow before I’m landing on my back. The sand sinks around me, forming a crater.
Again, I’m staring at the blue sky. I massage my aching chest with a groan.
“I deserved that,” I grumble. “Ow.”
“I’m sorry!” Rakel’s apology is muffled in my ringing ears. She appears at the edge of the crater she put me in, eyes wide. “Are you alright?”
I groan as I sit up.
“Spells,” I say. “Halfway point.”
“Why don’t we take a break?” Rakel asks, offering me a hand.
Pepper appears beside her.
“I understand it,” she announces. “I can do it!”
Rakel and I share a look.
“What?”
“I want a bath,” Pepper says. “I’ll explain on the way.”
Rakel pulls me to my feet and we follow Pepper inside.
Suella says nothing.
Lloyd stays outside. I glimpse him taking flight. His wings flap desperately as he hovers a few feet off the ground.
Olexandrya is waiting for us in the front room. Her eyes are ringed with dark.
“You feel that?” I ask, brushing sand out of my hair. “Rakel beat me up.”
Olexandrya nods slightly.
“Basically,” Pepper says, leading Rakel up a hall by the stairs. “It’s like casting a blank spell.” Her voice fades as they go.
“Listen,” Olexandrya says. “We don’t have to do this. You don’t have to do this.”
I shake my head at her.
“I do,” I say. “We do.” I feel I should say more. But I can’t find the words. Instead, I follow the others.
I find Pepper and Rakel at a set of stairs that leads underground. Of course, the moving house has a basement. Why wouldn’t it?
“And then, you just move it,” Pepper says. She wiggles her fingers, twisting the mana in the air. “See?”
Rakel stares at Pepper’s fingers. She has that lost look on her face again.
“Is that where the bath is?” I ask, looking past them at the stairs.
“Yeah,” Pepper says. “You joining us?”
“Might as well.”
“I still don’t get it,” Rakel says. “You’ve made it sound more confusing.”
“Huh?” Pepper gawks at her. “I just explained it!”
I step past them and head down the creaky steps. It gets darker the further I go.
“I was getting there with Aerida,” Rakel says as they follow me. “I just need to keep trying.”
“My explanation was perfect,” Pepper mumbles.
My foot lands on cold stone. I pause and raise a hand.
“Moonlight Tranquility.” Golden light blooms on my palm. It bubbles into a small flare, lighting up a small stone room. The floor is built around a small pool of moving water.
Why is the water moving? How does the house move to begin with? I stare at the water as it flows side to side. That’s it. I’m sick of not knowing.
“How does this house work?” I demand, turning to Pepper and Rakel.
Rakel shrugs.
“It’s magic,” Pepper says, stepping past me.
I glare at the back of her head as she drops at the edge of the pool.
“I don’t think any of them know,” Rakel says, pulling her tunic over her head. “Don’t worry too much about it.”
I toss the ball of burning mana. It hovers over the pool, casting Pepper and Rakel in its light.
“I’m not worried,” I say as they strip out of their clothes. “I’m annoyed.”
Pepper laughs, tossing her tunic aside and dropping into the pool. Rakel joins her a moment later.
I peel my blouse over my head and fold it up while they seem to just swim around in the water. Then, I pick at the bandages on my chest.
I probably should’ve had them changed out. They’re all but fused to the gash on my chest. I pull and yank, feeling skin tear as they come off. I shudder, squeeze my eyes shut, and leave them in a pile on the floor.
The gash feels nasty, so I don’t look at it. I move onto my trousers, taking them off and folding them as well.
“Are you coming or not?” Pepper asks, popping up and clinging to the side. Her purple curls seem longer now that they’re wet, framing her face.
“Where’s the soap?” I ask, scanning the dark room. It’s cold down here for some reason. Maybe it has to do with my lack of clothes.
“Wow, you’re messed up.” Pepper squints at my chest. “I can fix that up for you later. Don’t let me forget.”
“Soap,” I insist. “Where?”
“The water is enchanted,” Pepper says. “You don’t need soap.”
I stare at her as the cold settles into my bones.
“Soap. Where?”
“Get in the water,” Rakel says, joining Pepper. Her black hair sticks to her face. “Trust me.”
“Soap,” I say again, walking slowly to the pool. “Is soap too much to ask for?”
“The water is—”
“I don’t care!” I snap. “I just want…” I trail off, sitting on the edge of the pool. “I want something normal.”
“Oh,” Rakel’s voice is small. “That’s sort of heartbreaking.”
“Don’t coddle her,” Pepper says. “She wants you to feel bad.”
“Does the house have legs?” I ask, stretching my own legs over the side and into the warm water. “How’s it move?”
Pepper laughs.
“It’s more like teleportation,” she says.
The water feels like it clings to my legs. Pressure on all sides vibrating against my skin. I squint at my legs.
“How’s it feel?” Rakel asks, sinking until only her head is visible. Her hair floats around her.
“Like it isn’t soap,” I mumble.
Both of them laugh.
I move my legs, watching the light pulse above us.
Pepper rests her head on the stone, her curls falling over her face. The shape of her slackens, as if she’s melting slightly. I wonder if it’s her slime form coming undone.
“You aren’t going to get in, are you?” Rakel asks, coming up next to me.
“The truth is.” I place my hands on my thighs. “I don’t swim.”
Rakel’s mouth drops open.
“You don’t like it?”
“No, I can’t swim.”
She stares up at me.
“I never learned how,” I say, kicking water at her.
“Well,” Rakel looks down. “The water isn’t that deep.”
“You’re up to your chin in there.”
She cracks a smile and reaches out to me. Water drips from her arm, splashing on the surface.
“It’s easy,” she says. “I’ll show you.”
I look from her hand to her face. Then, I stand and gather my clothes.
“I’ll see if Suella has any soap upstairs,” I say, pulling on my trousers and my blouse.
Rakel says nothing as I climb the stairs.
Olexandrya is standing in the doorway when I get to ground level.
“Who are you?” She calls.
A male voice replies:
“Aerida! Pappen… Peppen… Pippin… I don’t how to pronounce the other name! I’m here to meet my teammates!”
“Teammates?” I mumble. I cross the front room and join Olexandrya at the door.
“Who is this guy?” Olexandrya asks. I’m pretty sure she hasn’t noticed me.
“I don’t know,” Suella grumbles, still on the front steps.
Lloyd is standing on the back of a man with thick black and brown robes. Lloyd’s wings fold slowly behind him. He looks up at us with a crooked grin.
“He tried to fight Lloyd,” Suella says. “Lloyd made quick work of him.”
The man is doing everything he can to keep his face out of the sand. He’s got thick black hair like a cloud around his head. Nearby, a metallic staff lies on the sand.
“Please!” the man wails. “Get this kid off of me!”