Spellbound

Chapter Seventeen

           

Their day started early the next morning. Sakura was up before dawn and had packed away the medicines in a basket with Akiho while Yuna prepared breakfast for the three of them. After eating and cleaning up the dishes, they headed out to begin their day.
Yuna came to a stop not far from the village. "Do you remember where each of the houses are?" he asked Sakura.
Sakura nodded. "I made a few little reminders to help me remember."
"Alright. Why don't we meet up in the town square when we're done?" he suggested.
"Sure."
"See you a bit later then," he smiled, and then headed off.

Akiho smiled cheerfully, "How about I take the route along the riverbank?"
"Alright, I'll do the houses around the wheat fields." Sakura agreed.
The blonde nodded. "I'll see you later then! I think we'll probably end up eating lunch while we're in town again."
Akiho then took off in the direction towards the river, leaving Sakura on her own. She looked to her basket and smiled, moving to deliver the medicines.

Sakura finished her task quickly and made her way to the market, finding the stall she needed and purchasing what she needed before Heading to the town square to meet with Yuna and Akiho.
She spotted the pair at the edge of the fountain and walked over, "I hope you weren't waiting too long."
"It's fine. How did you go?" Yuna replied.
"I think I did alright. I was a little nervous." She confessed.
"You'll get used to it with time. Were they kind?" he then asked.
Sakura nodded, "Yes, no one was rude. Here's the money, by the way."
Yuna shook his head. "You've earned that money yourself. Keep it."
Sakura looked surprised. "Thank you..."
"Shall we eat lunch and then head back?" Akiho suggested.
Sakura nodded, "Sure. I'm starving."
"It is tiring work." Akiho agreed, "Here."

Lunch consisted of simple sandwiches and some hot herbal tea. After allowing it to settle, the three headed back to the cottage, and Sakura returned to her magic training where she once again attempted to piece the shattered flower back together.
She pictured the flower and focused her magic into the crystal, focusing on the image in her mind.
Sakura remembered what Yuna had said about applying her knowledge from previous lessons and tried to think of what she had learnt.
She sighed irritably as she couldn't think of anything.
"What's bothering you?" Yuna asked. Akiho was once again sitting on a nearby rock, reading Alice in Wonderland.
"I was thinking about what you said yesterday, about applying the knowledge from my other lessons. But I keep coming up blank." Sakura said.
He smiled, "What did I have you do last time?"
She frowned, "create a flower from a crystal."
"And what did you do to achieve your goal?" he prompted her.
"I had to picture the flower I wanted."
"Yes, but just picturing it didn't give you the perfect result, did it?" Yuna reminded her.
She shook her head. "No, it wasn't until I pictured it very clearly... oh."
"You seem to have figured out one part. What about the control of your magic?"
"I tried to use the amount of magic I thought would suit the task..." she murmured.
"Well, now that you've thought about it, have another go." He smiled.

Sakura nodded and returned her attention to the crystal shards in her hand, keeping the information in her mind.
She pictured the flower, detail for detail, piecing itself back together as she focused her magic.
The shards flew together, recreating the flower and the cracks disappearing.

"Well done." He praised her. "Each night before bed I want you to practice this exercise until it requires no effort at all. To others, this is a fairly simple task, but for you it's still quite difficult." He added.
Sakura looked at the flower. "Alright..."
"I'll have you do some more reading as well, it will help to know the theory behind what you're doing. I'll also start you on drawing magic from the spirits of the world around you."
"As in from the forest and water or animals?" Sakura asked curiously.
"Yes. If you so desired, you could ask the animals for help in a desperate situation or you could draw on the power of nature. You even more so as you are a vessel." Yuna explained.
Sakura was curious about her magic and just how far she could go with it. She still didn't fully understand what it meant to be a vessel.
"I see..."
"Are you worried?" he asked.
Sakura shook her head, "No, I guess I'm still getting used to it...the magic, I mean."
He smiled, "I understand."
"Should I keep practicing with this for now?" she asked.
Yuna nodded, "See if you can shatter it yourself, this time."
"Alright." Sakura smiled, and set herself to work.