Fire Emblem: Before Awakening

Knowing My Limits

Anna
Five Months Later...

"Hrya!"

Heat danced through my body, traveling down my arm and eagerly leaped from my palm. A bright ball of flames erupted from my outstretched fingers and hit the carefully placed log. The wood stayed in its place, no signs of knock-back. However, the flames stuck, slowly eating away at the bark.

"Well, it may not have done immediate damage, but at least I hit it," I chuckled, closing my fire tome and placing it back on its holster. Like all magical fire, the flames died down on their own, leaving a slightly charred husk of wood.

"You're making great progress," Mom said, walking over to replace the log with another. "For a mage your age, you're magical abilities surpass most."

Time felt like it was nothing the older I got. Last month, I reached my sixteenth year; my fifteenth still felt like yesterday! In this time, I was better able to hone my skills in swordsmanship, strategy, magic, and miscellaneous other things. Recently, I decided to take on new spells. I loved using lightning magic, but I wanted to expand my understanding of different spells.

A few days ago, Mom and I came upon a stone quarry with a river nearby. It was the perfect spot to practice lightning and fire magic. After all, someone new to those kinds of spells would not be able very good for a heavily wooded area.

I pulled out my thunder tome as Mom backed away. I've gotten comfortable with this certain spell, only needing small glances at the pages before I cast. I raised my arm, rune energy already beginning to surround me. Sparks built up in my soul, prepared to jump out at any moment.

"Thunder!" 

The bolt of sparks flew out of my hand and smacked the log; this time, the log was knocked back a few feet. I stood up straight, pride resonating throughout me. "There. That's the result I was hoping for."

A few sparks ran along the wood before dying down. After it was still, Mom pushed it away with a long stick. "Indeed. You're understanding of lightning magic is truly phenomenal."

Hope began to bubble within me. "Does that mean I'm ready to use Elthunder?" Elthunder was the step up from basic Thunder. I was able to understand the runes in Thunder almost fluently, so reading those of Elthunder shouldn't be too hard to learn, right?

However, she shook her head. "You need to be 100% comfortable with Thunder before you can start learning Elthunder."

My mouth gaped open, a noise of dismay escaping. "But I am comfortable with Thunder! At least let me try it!" I protested.

"It also requires almost double the energy needed for Thunder spells," she continued. "You, my dear, truly are amazing with everything you do. Almost on a prodigy level. However, I don't want you jumping into something you're not ready for."

I chewed on my lower lip, understanding her words but also disappointed. "I know, but..."

"While it's true that most fifteen and sixteen-year-olds - as long as they've been training - do have enough energy for even expert spells," she said, "but you must be wary about pushing yourself."

Before I could say anything else, she strolled over to me, pulling an Elthunder tome from her bag. She was always careful to keep her tomes as safe as possible so I didn't mess with any of them (not that I ever would but I totally wanted to). "Just look at the runes in this spell and tell me if you can cast it."

I drew in a breath as she opened the book. It can't be that bad! This should be easy! I can totally-

I only looked at the page for maybe three seconds and I already felt a migraine coming on. Every rune on the page was unrecognizable. The only ones I could read were the most advanced runes found in normal Thunder tomes. "I...er..."

Mom quickly shut the book, putting it away. "You see? That's why I want you to become 100% proficient with basic spells before you move on." She placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Don't make this out as me not believing in you. I do, I truly do. I just don't want you to push yourself to the brink with advanced spells and then get upset over how difficult they are. I know you'll be able to cast them with ease but in due time. Maybe another year or two?"

I sighed, lowering my head. "I know... I have my limits..." I shook her off, straightening myself. "That just means I need to work even harder." I grinned with pride, preparing my tome. "Go set up another log. I'm not finished training."

Mom laughed silently, her eyes alight. "That's my girl."

*****

Whoop. All Anna chapters are just filler fluff at this point. Chrom is here all the plot it. XD So Anna and I are finally the same age! (Which will probably last for like five minutes then she age again idk where my own story is going). Yeet. I have to go cuz my phone didn't charge last night. T_T Thank you so much for reading and look forward to reading more! Happy New Year!