Over the next few days, Amelia regularly visited "Mr. Statue-man," and urged her parents to tell her more about him. The mysterious Red Priest reminded the young princess of a storybook hero, and would make up and enact her visions of her own "quests for justice" alongside him. Of course, however, she would claim that the bestest hero in the world was Daddy when asked.
Today was special; Rezo the Red Priest would be arriving this afternoon. Gracia wore her priestess-in-training robes, and Amelia fidgeted anxiously in her white jumper. Amelia tugged at Gracia's trailing bell sleeves while her older sister busied herself in the mirror, trying to look older. Maybe if she fixed her hair just so, she could look twelve, maybe even thirteen.
"Don't get excited," Gracia complained. "You probably won't even get to see him. He won't make it to the palace until after your bed time."
Amelia's face contorted into a full pout, tears sparkling at the edges of her half-lidded eyes. A small whine began to issue from the back of her throat.
"Oh don't do that," Gracia complained. "Will a birdie make you feel better?" The common practice of lifting someone in the air and spinning them in circles was commonly referred to as a "birdie" by many parents, despite the fact that birds seldom if ever spin around in circles at speeds which would make them ill and unfit to navigate themselves out of a barn. Nevertheless, Amelia's eyes widened, and she nodded vigorously to accept the offer. Gracia then lifted her younger sister from under her shoulders. "Ready?"
Amelia nodded.
Gracia took a moment and a breath to remember her lessons. Her magic had promise, but according to her teacher, was "unpolished."
Gracia, of course, thought that was nonsense. "Levitation!"
The two princesses rapidly rose in the air, and Gracia worried that they might hit the ceiling. She closed her eyes and grit her teeth, mustering up control techniques that she hadn't paid attention to in class.
They didn't work.
Gracia's head met the ceiling with a painful, hollow sound. It sent her spiraling back toward the floor, while Amelia giggled all the way. Neither of them were seriously hurt, but Gracia wasn't pleased with her reflection when she got to her feet.
"My hair!"
Thus distracted, she failed to notice Amelia scamper out the door, unnoticed by the tired guards.
Something had caught the young princess' eye: a tiny glowing orb that drifted through the window and out to the garden. It hung on the breeze like a dandelion puff or a feather, but shone like a star. Amelia was enchanted. She followed the sparkling thing into the rear garden, past more unobservant guards, and into the hedgemaze. The fairy soul led her on a rapid chase through the leafy labyrinth that got her quite lost. The average adult could se well over the maze's walls, but little Amelia could see only massive green barriers on all sides of her. Frustrated and lost, she began to cry.
"What should 'Mewia do," she asked herself miserably. If only she were up higher, then she could find her way back to the palace. She bit her lip hard and tried to remember the spell Mommy had taught her. Gracia had just done it…now if only she could remember the method! Mother said it was like…making friends with the wind…And so, at the tender age of four, Amelia wil Tesla de Saillune cast her very first spell.
"Webbitation!"
Elsewhere, Rezo pulled yet another child onto his lap. People had poured into the city's walls, bringing with them their ailments, wishes, and most of all, children they'd like blessed. The Red Priest could sense the sea of humanity around him, but could not see the incredible amount of people around him. From her place beside him, Eris looked over the thousands of bobbing heads and immediately felt weary.
"My Lord Rezo, the streets are packed from here to outside the city walls. If this keeps up, we'll be here for two days just blessing newborns." She swatted an errant strand of black hair from her eyes and adjusted her long silky white robes. Being only fifteen years old, she had only recently earned her status as a priestess and felt daunted by the task of being Rezo's personal aide—after all, he was a respected man! For whatever reason, Rezo had taken her under his wing, and she felt determined to serve him well.
"Don't be impatient," he said with a warm smile as he laid his hands upon a little boy with a skin condition that the local clerics were at a loss to treat. "We will have plenty of time to visit Saillune's white magic libraries this evening, I'd say."
"Do you think little Zel is bored?"
Rezo hadn't expected her to inquire after his great-grandson. Zelgadis never took much interest in his public work; like most children would, he found it tedious and boring. In Rezo's absence, his care was left to that of Rodimus and Zolf, whose families had always been loyal to the Greywords. "He's an eager boy, I suspect he's practicing his spells or swordsmanship with his wards right now."
At that moment, Zelgadis actually neither practiced sword or magic; he played chess with Zolf. His sharp blue eyes scanned the board, trying to find the right move. Across the table, Zolf grinned smugly. Zel began to move one of his pieces, but Rodimus interrupted.
"Zolf look: fairy souls!"
Zelgadis and Zolf paused their game and looked into the sky to see hundreds of sparkling fairy souls drifting on the breeze.
"I thought they only come out on spring evenings," Zelgadis breathed, watching the ethereal lights dance in the afternoon sky.
"It must be a portent of something," Rodimus surmised.
"But of what?" Zolf asked, squinting.
Zelgadis noticed that something in the sky distinctly wasn't a fairy soul—or a cloud, the sun, or a bird. "Falling girl!" he cried in a near panic. Indeed there was a falling girl; she was right above him and closing fast. He noticed that her white jumper had a magic circle embroidered in blue on the front.
THUMP!
The world blurred around him, and he stumbled onto his back, carrying the girl.
"Woah boy! Nice catch," Zolf chuckled. "You okay?"
Once Zelgadis got his breath back, he grumbled to the girl: "Would you mind getting off me?"
"S-sowwy," she pouted. "Messed up Mommy's spell."
"You were casting magic?!" Zelgadis exclaimed. "You can't be older than five!"
The girl held up four little fingers.
"FOUR?! I'm eight and I have trouble with levitation and ray wing! Who are you anyway?"
"Master Zelgadis, that's a bit harsh," Rodimus chided. "She's a small child."
"M-my name is 'Mewia 'an I'm wost. Wanted to see Wezo."
Zolf gave Zel a nudge in the back. Resignedly, Zelgadis introduced himself. "I'm Zel. Nice to meet you, Miwan."
"It's 'Mewia."
"Close enough."
"Okay, Zuwu."
"It's Zel!"
"Cwose enough," Amelia giggled. Zelgadis sighed resignedly with a slight grin.
"Come on, I'll take you home. Beats waiting around here for the Old Man."
