By the time Noori stepped out her front door that night, her bitterness toward Toddrick was overshadowed by excitement. Her stomach fluttered and twisted with anticipation. A wide grin was plastered across her face. She wasn't sure why she felt this way, but she didn't mind it either.
As she sprinted into the darkened streets Noori's eyes scanned her surroundings for Luck's tell-tale golden glow. But she heard him before she saw him; his bright whistles echoed around her until she turned a corner and found him hovering at eye-level only a few paces away. The little hummingbird chirruped at if congratulating her for winning this round of hide-and-seek before darting off to start another. Noori ran after him and wondered with childlike excitement where she might find the studio's enchanted entrance this time.
Luck zipped down a particularly narrow alley and Noori squeezed in after him. Thankfully, her slower pace spared her from tripping over a door handle that reached from the ground like an upturned tree root. The moment Noori's eyes landed on it, the edges of the door began to glow.
"It's in the ground?" she laughed, tracing the golden frame with the toe of her boot. With an encouraging chirp from Luck, she tugged at the handle and hauled the door open. She peered in to find the the studio on its side.
Luck showed off, spinning a grand loop in the air before zipping through the doorway. Noori wasn't quite sure how to follow. Her palms grew clammy as she positioning herself at the threshold and closed her eyes before taking a cautious step forward. The world rushed passed her and, for a gut-churning split second she thought she was falling. But just as she started to fumble, her foot met the ground, finishing its step as though nothing strange had happened.
"Door please!" Keizsa's voice called from somewhere in the studio's clutter.
Blinking in disbelief, Noori turned and poked her head out the door. The smooth stones of the alley sat at eye level as if she was peering out from a trap door in the ground. The topsy-turvy entryway made her stomach turn, so Noori pulled the door shut and took a moment to catch her breath.
"Well?" came Keizsa's voice again, this time so close it made Noori jump. "Are you going to come in or would you rather play with the door all night?"
Noori spun, coming face to face with the grinning art witch. She was, somehow, even messier than usual. Her magic spectacles sat askew on her forehead and her smock, hands, and even her face were smudged and smeared with paint in hues of earthen shades.
"Am I early?" Noori asked, wondering if she had caught Keizsa in the middle of a spell.
"Not at all!" Keizsa replied. "Well, actually, perhaps a little sooner than I expected. But that's alright — you'll get to see me finish!"
"Finish wha—" Noori's words failed her as Keizsa stood aside and gestured with a flourish to a massive, lifelike painting of forest trail that opened into a tree-lined meadow. The witch had cleared a large section of wall space on which to paint. Her work stretched dozens of feet high and even spilled over onto the stone floor beneath it. The grassy pathway looked so real that Noori would have believed it to be so had she not already seen the wall it was painted on with her own eyes.
"What is this?" she asked, awestruck. "Is it a spell?"
"Sort of," Keizsa said. She gestured for Noori to follow her as she breezed back toward the wall. Her bare feet padded over the smooth stone, leaving little painted footprints wherever she stepped.
"Here," she motioned, picking up her pallet with one hand and giving the stool it had been resting on a pat with the other. "Come sit with me."
Still captivated by the mural, Noori found it difficult to pry her eyes away long enough to watch where she was going. She walked into the stool and nearly knocked it over, earning a laugh from Keizsa and splashing heat across Noori's cheeks.
"Thank you for agreeing to visit me," Keizsa said, turning back to her work.
"Thank you for the invitation," Noori replied politely. Her hands fidgeted awkwardly as folded and refolded them in her lap. To her surprise, Noori realized that all of her excitement from earlier had given way to nervousness, which wasn't something she was used to. She had spent hours looking forward to this evening, and yet she suddenly couldn't think of a thing to say.
But if Keizsa noticed the awkward silence, she didn't seem to mind. Her eyes didn't see the red flush of Noori's face. Instead, they were trained on the tip of her paintbrush. With thoughtful strokes from her careful hand, Keizsa turned smears of paint into tall grass and lush leaves in a way that made it look easy. Noori noticed the way the tip of Keizsa's tongue protruded from between her lips when she concentrated and was immediately charmed.
After a few minutes of this, Noori decided to break the silences. "Are you using those special paints for this?" she asked.
Keizsa tensed. "No," she replied slowly. "No, those are for... I need those for something else."
"Ah." Noori laughed awkwardly. "I see."
Why is this so hard? She wondered to herself. Conversation had never been difficult for her before. She was determined to make some headway. Mustering up her courage, she gave it another shot.
"I always wanted to draw on my walls when I was a girl," she said. "But my father would have been furious with me. You're living out my childhood dream right now."
At that, Keizsa laughed and Noori felt victorious.
"Is that so?" the art witch asked, smiling as she stood back to inspect her work. "And how is he doing by the way? Well, I hope."
"Oh, you've just reminded me!" Noori exclaimed. Pulling her satchel onto her lap, she rummaged around until she found what she was looking for. She produced a carefully wrapped parcel and presented it to Keizsa with both hands.
"What's this?" Keizsa asked, her eyes bright with curiosity.
Noori smiled. "It's for you."
Keizsa laughed again, this time looking flustered. "You don't owe me anything, Noori. What you did with Lourda... consider your debt paid."
For some reason, this news felt bittersweet to Noori. Yes, it was a relief to know that the magic that had saved her father was squared away. But still, with the spell cast and her debt repaid, Noori wondered ho much longer the art witch would put up with her now that there wasn't anything tying them to one another. The idea that she might never find Keizsa's magical doorway again made Noori inexplicably sad.
"It's a gift," Noori insisted, pressing the parcel into Keizsa's hands. "Consider it my way of saying thanks for inviting me back."
Beneath the paint on her cheeks, Noori could have sworn she saw the witch's face blush.
"That really isn't necessary," Keizsa mumbled, smiling sheepishly as she unwrapped the gift.
Noori held her breath, suddenly worried that Keizsa would find the offering pathetic. After all, the studio was already littered with paintbrushes, and Noori had nothing more than the merchant's word that the one she chose was any good.
"Oh, Noori!" Keizsa exclaimed, holding the paintbrush aloft. Luck perked up from his perch on one of the steps and cooed his approval. "It's lovely. How thoughtful of you!"
"The merchant said it's a versatile type of brush," Noori said nervously, wondering whether Keizsa was just humoring her. "I hope he was being honest with me."
"He was," Keizsa assured her as she ran her fingers across the brush's bristles. "Hog's hair?"
Noori nodded and Keizsa smiled at her, a tender look of gratitude on her face.
"Thank you, Noori," she said softly. "I can't remember the last time anyone gave me something without wanting something in return."
A small sadness pierced Noori's heart. "I'm glad you like it," was all she could think to say.
"I do," Keizsa agreed with a smile. Suddenly a peculiar look flashed across her eyes. "In fact," she grinned at Noori. "It's just what I needed!"
She turned back to the mural, this time using Noori's brush to put the finishing touches on her painting. Noori watched in breathless wonder, amazed by the precision of the Keizsa's vision.
"It's amazing," Noori whispered, rising to stand by Keiza's side. "I've never seen a talent like yours."
"You haven't seen anything yet," Keizsa said. With a sparkle in her eyes, she lowered her voice and asked, "Would you like to see some magic, Noori?"
In that moment, Noori felt like a child again. A girlish giggle of delight escaped her lips. "Yes, please!"
"Every witch's magic requires a conduit — a physical act that we pour our magical intent into so that it can be expressed in the world," Keizsa explained as she busied herself with her paints, mixing colors until she had a very specific shade of green. "I use painting as my conduit. When I paint a spell, I know every stroke I need to make in order to properly express the magic I need."
Keizsa paused, holding her brush so that its bristles hovered just above a single leaf. She looked back at Noori. "Are you ready?"
Electric with anticipation, Noori nodded. Keizsa touched the brush to the mural and made one last stroke. And she moved her hand, the witch closed her eyes and concentrated. For a moment, Noori wasn't sure what she was supposed to be seeing — she didn't even know what kind of spell Keizsa was casting.
And then, a subtle pulsing light flowed from Keizsa's outstretched arm, down her brush, and into the painting. The light spread throughout the image, filling the studio with so much brightness that Noori had to shield her eyes. When the light faded Noori blinked, and that's when she saw it: the painting was moving. The grass swayed in a gentle breeze that tousled Noori's curls. Clouds drifted across the open sky. The mural was alive.
The breeze carried with it the sweet scent of a spring day. Keizsa exhaled and rolled her shoulders. She gazed up at her work and smiled with satisfaction.
"What do you think?" she asked gleefully as she spun to face Noori.
"You brought it to life!" Noori exclaimed.
"I did more than that," Keizsa said, delicately placing the new paintbrush with the rest of her supplies. She wiped her hands down her smock and then undid its ties, tossing it aside. "Care to join me?"
Noori gave her a puzzled look.
"Where?" she asked. When Kiezsa nodded towards the meadow, Noori gaped. "You can't be serious!"
Keizsa reached out and took Noori by the hand. Stunned, Noori let the witch lead her forward. The ground beneath their feet changed — cold stone became lush grass that rustled with every step they took. They walked further, the air around them growing fresher with every breath. Noori craned her head this way and that, trying to take it all in.
"This is incredible!" she cried. "It's so real! How did you— No, never mind, that's a stupid question. I know how, but... Wow!"
It was like stepping into a dream. Noori crouched on the spot, running her fingers through the grass; it seemed as real as any she might find out in the country. Looking back in the direction from which they came, she could still see the studio framed through the trees.
"Do you like it?" Keizsa asked, her expression suddenly apprehensive.
"Like it?" Noori laughed. "I think it's one of the most amazing things I've ever seen!"
Keizsa seemed pleased with the answer. "I'm glad. I've never actually shown a human how my magic works before."
This took Noori by surprise.
"Really?" she marveled quietly. "Why did you decide to show me?"
Keizsa shrugged and settled herself on the ground, arranging her skirts around her like a fan. "Would you believe me if I told you you're the only person who had ever shown any interest in me outside of what I can do for them?"
Again, Noori's heart clenched with a pang of sadness. "I hope you're just exagerrating."
With a small smile, Keizsa plucked a clover from the ground. She pinched its stem between two fingers and watched as it danced in the gentle breeze. "People only come to see me when they want something."
Discomfort settled over Noori like a shadow, her stomach twisting with guilt. "That's why I came to you."
"True," Keizsa agreed. "But at least you treated me like a person. You noticed when I was upset." Her eyes flitted up to Noori, peering up at her bashfully through her lashes like she couldn't bring herself to look directly at her. "Perhaps my bar is set low, but I don't think you realize how much that meant to me."
Noori blushed. Unsure of how to respond to such a comment, she settled for joining Keizsa in the grass. They let the silence hang, Noori still glancing around at the magical world that surrounded them and Keizsa fiddling anxiously with her clover.
"You know," Noori mused, "I've never really been to a place like this in real life. My family has always been so busy taking care of the harbor that we've never left the city."
Keizsa looked up at the bluebird sky, shielding her eyes from the sun's brightness.
"It's been a very long time since I've been somewhere like this myself. Enchanted paintings are the best I can do these days."
Noori leaned back, laying in the grass. She smiled up at the sky and then looked to Keizsa.
"Thank you for sharing this with me," she said.
The witch returned her smile.
"Thanks for giving me the chance to."