It has been a month and a half since Katarina was reincarnated into this world. It has also been a month and a half since she started practicing and honing her magic. Today however, she was in the library studying all that she could to enhance the power of her magic. It was Saturday, one of the days where she couldn't practice in order to rest her magic.
Even though the progress has been slow, it has also been steady. Before she could only do a small earth bump, now she can trail along the earth like a snake in varying sizes. She prides herself with the progress her magic has shown.
"But it's still not enough..."
"What's still not enough my Lady?" Ms. Ann asked as she set down a tray of peppermint tea and sweets on her table.
Katarina set aside the second volume for 'Earth Magic and Its Possible Branches' and stared happily at the tray of sweets.
"Oh, uhm... I was talking about my magic actually," Katarina answered.
"Well you've definitely improved since your first practice, the field slowly becoming barren is proof of that," Ms. Ann jokingly said.
"I wonder if I could make the grass grow a bit? Could that be possible? I mean, of course it IS possible but I'm curious if it's possible for ME to do it,"
"I have heard of powerful Earth Sorcerers who have been able to command nature at their will, however I'm not so sure how they came about with such skill,"
"I truly believe that it must be because of practice. I can conjure up a mountain now when I could barely scathed the earth on my first try." Katarina answered as she cheerfully sipped her tea.
"However, I'm not sure if practice is enough for me. I was born with weak magic,"
"But your magic grew stronger, did it not?"
"It did, but I wonder if I can make it grow stronger,"
"Lady Katarina, you are the most stubborn child I have had to face in quite a long time. I refuse to believe you won't even try," Ms. Ann stated cheekily at Katarina.
Katarina shot her back with a mischievous smile. Ms. Ann can't remember when it happened, but she's suddenly felt comfortable enough around Lady Katarina to joke about her predicament. Lady Katarina never seems to mind, and in fact she seems to enjoy her humor.
"You're right, I never stopped before and I won't stop now,"
"You can't go out to practice today however, we wouldn't want you to end up weakened now would we?"
"I know I know, I promise to take it easy today," Katarina answered.
Katarina did not in fact take it easy today. After afternoon tea with Ms. Ann, she immediately ran towards the almost barren field to test something.
| As an Earth Magician, you hold the power to communicate with nature itself. It only takes a few sessions of honing your magic to nature and letting it know that you wish to control it. However, you must remember that controlling nature is not an actual form of magic, for nature is not an element but a vital part of our physical world.|
While the first volume of the book she was reading talked about fundamentals and strengths in Earth magic only, the second volume teaches possibilities of commanding nature as well as Earth.
Katarina stood over the field with earth patches scattered around. She had learned to flatten earth back again to not make the fields not as messy as it was, however the damage was still apparent through the bald spots on the ground.
Katarina kneeled on the field, raising her awareness around. The wind was blowing softly, making a soft whistling noise you would never notice unless you really listen. The leaves on the trees swished around, making delicate sounds. As for the grass, it was swaying slightly along the wind.
Katarina took a deep breath, then channeled her magic with both hands.
"Nature, I plead to you. I am Katarina Claes, a small noblewoman of the Claes family. I wish to have the permission to control nature as I please. I promise to never use these powers for evil, only for protection.
. . .
And maybe to show off but that can be counted out if that's not allowed,"
The wind seemed to blow heavier by the minute. Katarina kept channeling her energy while being hyper aware of her surroundings. Suddenly, she felt the energy of her magic shift.
She took a deep breath, opened her eyes, then placed her palms on the barren part of the field.
The field glowed a bright color of emerald green, similarly tinted to the magic Katarina was channeling earlier. Before her very eyes, the field began growing grass at a fast rate.
It didn't take too long for the entire field to be covered in grass again. Katarina's eyes widened in surprise, taking in the reality of what she had just done.
Before she could stand, she felt her head ache as the world spun around her.
"What's.... wha..."
She tried to stand up, only to fall back on the ground again, her head still spinning. She kept trying to take deep breaths in order to help her body calm down, however everything went black after that.
*
Katarina slowly opened her eyes, before closing them again as she felt a painful twitch on her head.
"Ow..."
"You know when I said you were stubborn, I didn't mean you HAD to be more stubborn than you already were," She heard Ms. Ann say.
She then heard a tray being placed on the table next to her bed. Katarina tried to lift an arm, but she was too weak to even turn her head.
"Why do I feel so much pain." Katarina asked before groaning after trying to lift a leg.
Ms. Ann sighed.
"The field you were practicing on was suddenly covered in luscious grass again. Not only that, we found you passed out on the field as well. I have reason to believe that both circumstances must be connected to each other,"
"Wait... That wasn't a dream? That was real?'
"Ah, so you did have something to do with the grass,"
"I GREW GRASS-- ow..." Katarina groaned after her head twitched again.
"Please take a rest Lady Katarina. Your body will collapse in on itself if you keep pushing yourself too far,"
"I didn't mean to push myself too far, I was simply testing if what I read could have been real,"
"What did you read?"
"That if I kept channeling my magic on nature, then I could possibly command it. I wasn't expecting to grow an entire field's worth of grass." Katarina finished, successfully raising her hand this time and smiling brightly.
Ms. Ann sighed.
"I hope you're aware of how shaken the entire household becomes whenever something bad happens to you," Ms. Ann started.
"I know, I know... I promise I wasn't trying to push myself too far this time, I genuinely just wanted to test a theory. I didn't expect my magic to grow too strong." Katarina answered, successfully lifting herself up from the bed and sitting on the bed.
Ms. Ann wanted to commend her determination, but really that's the reason why she's bedridden in the first place. It was still admirable how she never gives up even when she's in pain.
"Lady Katarina, please promise me, us, the entire household, to take a rest." Ms. Ann said sternly as she handed her a plate of sweets and tea.
Katarina's mouth formed a thin line, before she nodded softly at Ms. Ann. She took the plate and began eating the sweets and drinking tea.
"Ms. Joana is so good at baking, maybe I can join--"
"No,"
"Fine..."
The entire room was silent again.
"Can I at least read a book while I rest?" Katarina asked, putting on a pout and puppy eyes.
Ms. Ann stared at her sternly, before sighing in defeat.
"What kind of book would you like to read my Lady?"
"I've been studying too much with Earth Magic, so I'm interested in reading about a book that details ALL the kinds of magic in our world,"
"You're quite curious, aren't you my Lady,"
"That's because I want to learn more about magic!" Katarina answered enthusiastically.
To be fair, if you had lived previously in a world without magic, you too would feel the desire to read about the magic of your new world.
Ms. Ann stared at her apprehensively, before standing up, bowing a curtsy, and walking out the room.
Katarina set her plate on the nightstand then stared outside the window. She feels like her awareness of nature began expanding after that. She breathed in the soft wind, smelling the greenery around her.
"This feels so strange," She said to herself.
Everything began being louder to her. She could hear the leaves on trees rustle along with the wind. She could smell the plants around her like a wonderful perfume. She could feel the energy of nature making itself visible to her.
"This is very strange,"
She snuggled back inside her bed, a plethora of thoughts running through her head.
"You know, I actually forgot what I was meant to do here when I first got here..." She said to herself.
It was true, she had been too busy with practicing magic that she forgot that this wasn't her first life. She could still remember her life prior to this, and she wishes to forget completely.
In an attempt to drag her thoughts away from her past, she remembered Keith Claes.
"Wait..." She started, sitting up from the bed.
"Why haven't I met Keith yet?" She asked out loud.
It's been a month. If she remembers correctly, Katarina from the anime and from the game met Keith the night of her engagement to Prince Gerald. The engagement (or rejection) has passed and yet there were no signs of Keith.
'How badly did I alter my timeline of this world?'
She began to worry. From what she remembers, Keith was, or still is in a toxic and abusive household. If she can guess, he's probably hiding in a corner, blaming himself for every bad thing that happens to his side of the family.
She began sweating profusely at the thought. Maybe she should bring it up with her parents? Maybe the reason why they never bothered is because of the incident with the proposal.
Her thoughts kept running in panic, not noticing that Ms. Ann had already entered the room with three books.
"I saw two more books that explains magic better, however I admit they're mostly fantasies rather than documentaries." Ms. Ann said as she placed the three medium sized books on the bed next to Katarina.
"Oh! Thank you!" Katarina answered, forcing a bright smile while Ms. Ann is non the wiser that the smile isn't sincere.
Katarina opened the first page of the book, pretending to be reading. In fact, her thoughts were still preoccupied with Keith's possible whereabouts.
She's decided to talk to her parents about the situation. Maybe asking them lightly on the subject of possible family members could bring Keith up. But that would be hard to accomplish, considering how her parents have been constantly busy for the past month or so. Speaking of...
"Ms. Ann? Why are my mother and father still busy?" Katarina asked innocently.
Ms. Ann flinched at the sudden question.
"Please Ann, we can't let Katarina know yet. This legal battle would devastate her, and we don't want her to worry so much. Let us accomplish this before you tell her anything," Duchess Millidiana pleaded.
"But my Lady, what would I explain to Lady Katarina in your absence? She's been asking more of you and the Duke's attention,"
"Yes I'm aware, and it breaks my heart knowing how much my daughter has missed us. But for now we need to keep the truth from her, we promise in time that we'll tell her,"
"As you wish my Lady,"
"They're busy with business with a distant relative of the Claes family,"
"Distant... relative...? Katarina asked.
"Right, I forget that you haven't met the other families yet." Ms. Ann stated as she turned to face Katarina.
"The Claes family spans between many generations, this means that naturally they will have many distant and close relatives. The distant relatives they're dealing business with are the Colemans,"
"But what kind of business takes a month to complete?"
"Very important business my Lady,"
"But why must they stay at another house overnight? You said I won't be able to meet them until the morning of Tuesday," Katarina asked, pouting at the end.
"My dear, I can't answer all those questions because I myself don't have an answer to them. I promise you that your family WILL come back soon, and once they do, you can have all the afternoon tea parties with them,"
"I hope so..." Katarina answered, trailing at the end.
A business with a distant relative of the Claes family? Could they be talking about Keith? Why is it taking so long then? What's going on.
She opted to continuing to read the book that was given to her. She'll find her answers soon enough.
*
"My dear boy, I hope you do enjoy your new life with us." Duke Luigi said, sitting back at the carriage chair.
The young boy with beautiful lavender eyes and strawberry blond hair stared at the Duke, as if he's unable to recognize him.
"And you'll finally meet your older sister! I promise you that she will be much, much, MUCH kinder than the brothers you used to have," Duchess Millidiana assured.
The young boy looked at both nobles with curiosity and skepticism.
"My dear, we will not force you to adjust to this new life so quick. We're aware of how shaken you must feel after a month's worth of those, bastards trying to rebuke your right to nobility--"
"Millidiana, don't use such crude words with him--"
"But I promise you that you will be safe, loved and taken care of in your new home. I will make sure of it," Duchess Millidiana stated.
"Thank... Thank you... Thank you Duchess--"
"My dear, you need not use formalities with us. If you feel like we've earned those titles, then you may call us 'Mother' and 'Father'," Millidiana encouraged.
The young boy looked at either of them, who were giving him fond and caring looks. The boy smiled lightly, feeling unfamiliar with the sudden care and attention he was receiving.
"Thank you... Mother... Father..." He thanked.
Duchess Millidiana visibly melted in her seat at the adorable utterance of words from his mouth, while Duke Luigi made a face at her.
"You'll have to excuse your mother Keith, she has a strong fondness when it comes to adorable children such as yourself,"
"Luigi, you mustn't embarrass me like that in front of our new son,"
"I only speak of the truth my dear wife," Duke Luigi joked.
Keith smiled to himself, still quite unsure of what to make of his new family.
It was already sundown at Tuesday when they finally arrived at the estate. Duchess Millidiana carefully carried Keith from the carriage then placed him softly on the ground.
"We're home now my dear," Duchess Millidiana said.
Keith looked at his new home, taking notice of the beautiful gardens and fountain at the front. He took a deep breath as he stared at the large estate. It was much more grand, much more well kept and much more beautiful than his old home.
"Where is my daughter?" Duchess Millidiana asked one of the maids who arrived to take their baggage.
"She's currently practicing her magic my Lady,"
"At this hour?! Surely she must take rest,"
"She seems to be... Taking a liking with her newly found skills,"
"What do you mean by that?"
"I feel as though it would be best if you followed me my Lady." Ms. Ann suddenly interjected as she walked towards the nobles.
Ms. Ann took notice of Keith, who started backing behind the Duchess and clutching her lower dress tightly.
Ms. Ann smiled lightly then kneeled in front of the small child.
"Hello my lord, you must be Keith?" Ms. Ann asked.
Keith nodded softly, making the Duchess melt once again.
'Oh dear, looks like the Duchess now has two children to fawn over,'
"Well then my lord, it seems like I will be your new caretaker now. I am also your new older sister's caretaker, so you will see much of her with me," Ms. Ann stated while smiling.
Keith smiled softly back at her, feeling more trusting at the kindness being shown at him.
Ms. Ann gave him one last smile, stood up then spoke.
"I hope the family will follow me please," Ms. Ann stated.
The Duke and Duchess looked at each other for a moment, before following Ms. Ann towards the field with Keith following closely behind, still clutching the Duchess's dress.
They walked in silence, with Ms. Ann refusing to answer any of their questions prior to arriving at the field.
"What could she possibly be hiding," Duchess Millidiana asked, worry beginning to seep through her.
"Let's have patience my dear, it must make sense once we arrive," The Duke answered.
They arrived at the field. Katarina was standing with her back turned from them.
"There Keith, that's your new older sister," The Duchess exclaimed excitedly.
Before she could yell for her daughter's name, Katarina suddenly conjured up a tall hill in front of her. The three nobles looked at the scene in surprise, but their eyes grow much wider after the next events.
Katarina seemed to have been calling to the wind, the emerald green light on her hands glowing brighter by the minute. Suddenly, the entire hill was covered in grass and small flowers.
"Ha... How...?" The Duchess asked, shock completely filling her body.
Before any of them could even begin to process what was happening, Katarina lowered her still glowing hands and made the tall hill retreat back on the ground. The field was flat once again and covered in grass.
Katarina took a few swings before instantly collapsing to the ground.
"Katarina!" Both parent shouted.
Duke Luigi began running towards her, while Duchess Millidiana picked Keith up and followed close behind along with Ms. Ann.
"What happened? How is she doing all of this? Oh goodness, will she be alright?" The Duke asked frantically, holding his unconscious daughter in his arms.
"We tried to beg her not to wear herself down, truly we did my Lord. But she was too stubborn to even consider our words," Ms. Ann started.
"This is the third time she's fainted this week, and it's only Tuesday,"
"When... When did this first happen?"
"On Saturday my Lord. As you know, the field had become barren due to Lady Katarina constantly conjuring up hills and earth trails. However, the other servants suddenly found that the field had miraculously regrown every inch of grass it once had. Alongside that discovery, was finding Lady Katarina unconscious on the field,"
"And you never stopped her?"
"We tried my Lord, we've even opted to locking her inside her own room due to the young Lady not listening to reason, but still she always found escape,"
"What have you been doing to deal with this?"
"We've found that placing a plethora of aromatic flowers in her room helps with her recovery process. She does wake up after every fainting spell, and they haven't lasted longer than an hour or two,"
"...I see," Duke Luigi finished.
"I'm very sorry for not doing more to stop her from constantly tiring herself,"
"It's quite alright, Katarina is a stubborn one. Not unlike her mother," The Duke joked, earning him a bored look from the Duchess.
Ms. Ann and the Duke began walking towards the estate, while the Duchess stayed behind for a bit to talk with Keith who she was still carrying.
"It looks like your introduction with your sister might take a while," The Duchess said.
"It's... It's fine mother, I'm looking forward to meeting her formally tomorrow," Keith answered softly.
Duchess Millidiana began walking towards the estate, Keith still in her arms.
Keith's thoughts were somewhere else however, still replaying the events in his head. Katarina, his new sister, managed to create a tall hill AND conjure up grass and flowers on in. Then managed to lower the hill down and return the field to its natural state.
It was an amazing sight, such control of her magic even at a young age. The kind of control Keith wishes to have.
"Do... Do you think that my new sister will like me?" Keith asked softly.
Duchess Millidiana stopped I'm her tracks, then caressed his left cheek.
"My dear, your older sister is a very caring and loving person. And she enjoys spoiling others, like me. I'm sure she will happily embrace you as her new brother, it won't even take long until she does it," The Duchess answered.
Keith nodded approvingly. If that's the case, then he wishes for Katarina to teach him how to control his magic. Now that he's found his new family, a hopefully better family than his first, he'll do whatever he can to ensure the safety of his family. But he can't do that if he can't even control his magic.
'I promise I will learn and keep my new family safe,'