Sin on a Dark Knight

Chapter 17 - Jasmine

I arrive at the bookstore early for my meeting with Helen. I wander around the shelves immersed in the titles available. I am so distracted that when Helen steps into the aisle and calls my name it startles me and I jump. She chuckles, "I understand. Books make me happy too. Come, let's go to the back."

I follow her as she winds her way through shelves and tables through a door marked Employees Only. It looks very official but I don't pause as I follow her through. The back area is huge. There are boxes everywhere in various stages of unpack. She leads me past those and down a hall to the right. The third door we come to she opens and walks in. I ask if she wants the door open or closed and she says "Close it. That activates the spell to keep any wayward magic within these walls."

Curious, I watch closely as I close the door to see if I can tell. I see a faint ripple around the edges but nothing more. Helen is watching me from where she sits at a table across the room. As I walk over she asks, "What did you see?"

I tell her about the ripple and she nods, "Good. Good. Come sit. Did you read any of the book?"

"I did. I was mostly confused by it. Why do I need to still my mind? And it said nothing about how to access my magic at all."

"We start slow with the accessing magic. Though I have a feeling you will need to go a bit faster than most." She sniffs at the air around me, "You smell like a whole lot of trouble coming your way." When I look confused she says, "As you become more adept with the magic you will develop your own ways of intuiting things. For me, it is smells. Some people see auras or visions. Others hear things on the wind. What matters now is that you learn how to access your magic. We will start small, but as you do have an awful lot of magic in you I am going to enclose you in a bubble. You will be able to walk out of it, but it will keep things from spreading. Now, I need you to center yourself. However that looks, if it is deep breathing or chants or whatever. Once you feel centered I want you to light this candle." She flicks her fingers and I see a transparent bubble appear around me. Then she pushes a tea light candle into the space.

I close my eyes and just try to collect myself. To let go of the nerves eating at me as I wait to find out whether or not Leonidas has gained anything from drinking my blood. The worry about what Mikael will do if he finds out I let anyone, let alone Leonidas, drink my blood. But mercy, it felt so damn good. I shake my head, focus Jasmine. Two slow deep breaths as I reach for the core of me. Its strange, but I feel like I found the power inside myself. I open my eyes and focus on lighting the candle. I begin to see a flame on the wick in my mind so I just work on making that picture as strong as I can. I hear a little pop and I see the entire candle is on fire. I frown, "A little too much."

Helen grins and near shouts, "Excellent work! Not many even get a flame on their first try. You set the whole candle on fire! Oh, you are going to be so fun when you get trained!" She grabs an empty glass and flips it over, putting the brim on the table so the candle is enclosed within the cup. The flames quickly die leaving the cup smoke-filled and sooty.

"I did well? Even though I set the whole candle on fire?"

"Yes, you did. You did magic on your first try and that is sort of amazing. It does happen but rarely enough that it thrills me when I get to see it."

We spend the next few hours with me practicing doing various small tasks. By the time we quit for the night I can reliably light candles, call a breeze, shield myself, and shield someone else. Though my shielding of someone else needs work.

I trapped Helen inside a shield while practicing. She couldn't leave it and I couldn't get in. She was just so amazing the whole time. Never got mad and was so patient while I figured it out. By the end we were laughing and giggling like old friends. I had the best time with her. Now she is walking me out of the bookstore telling me, "Most magic comes from a place of love and happiness. And that is a good thing. Sometimes there is no love or laughter to be had, only fear and anger. Whatever comes from those last two will be harsh and unforgiving. I know you are old enough to know this but some things cannot be taken back and that is doubly true for magic. Your magic can't hurt you but it can hurt the ones you love if you cast in anger. Keep that in mind."

I nod, "I will. I don't want to hurt anyone by accident."

Helen eyes me, "Don't think I didn't notice the distinction, and appreciate it. I know very well that some people won't allow you to be without a lesson that costs them dearly. Always be sure you intend what you do."

"I will. When do you want me to come by again?"

"Are Wednesday nights good for you? They are reliably a good time for me."

"I can make it work."

"Ok then. I will see you Wednesday."

I wave good bye as I step out into the night air.