Amethyst Clouds

Chapter 3 - Magic

The Master of the house made his way to the front room, a happy smile plastered on his face. He was happy his daughter was awake, ecstatic even. She was shaken, yes, but she seemed okay. For days he had been up worrying about her and Xiao-Shi; he barely got any sleep himself. Part of him wanted to shoo everyone away so he could be with his family in peace, however, he knew it would be best to have them be looked at beforehand, especially by the man he suspected was waiting for him.

Daiji could be said to be a practical man but he had seen a lot in his time, some of which that he could not explain he left others to explore, this man was one such person who he knew had knowledge on those kinds of things.

"Izan!" Daiji greeted as he stepped inside, meeting the equally older man with a friendly arm clasp and pat on the back. "It is good to see you."
"Aiya, If only it were not such a troubling time, I would have just visited for some tea," The man chuckled, stroking his short beard.

Both Diaji and Izangie were large men in size and height, while Daiji got his through the military many suspected Izangie was how he was naturally. The man was large however his smile and calming aura made many feel safe around him which was useful in his line of work.

"I only recently heard of what happened, how are the two of them? What happened, exactly?" Izan asked, starting to follow Daiji out but the other man suddenly stopped, looking around before shutting the door, causing Izan to raise his eyebrow in both amusement and curiosity.
"Six days ago, the twins planned to go to Wuzhane Temple to pray for their mother. It had been raining hard that day, we thought the rain would lighten once they got out of the city... I had asked if they wanted to postpone until the weather subsided but... but they were adamant on going on time..." Daiji's scarred face twisted into a grimace as he held back his emotions. He should have made them stay. Even for a day, even for an hour.

"They got about an hour outside the city when a wheel on their carriage broke. The men said the rain had lightened significantly by then, so the twins got out for some air while they did the repairs. Then it happened... I don't know exactly what, only Xiao-Shi really does. The men only said that they heard him yelling and turned to see him running to Fae-Fae... there was a flash of light and Shi'er was thrown back, hitting the side of the carriage... by the time they got to Fae-Fae they said she was on fire and unconscious."

Daiji took in a shaky breath, just thinking about it made his throat tighten. "Shi'er woke up on the way back, and Fae-Fae only just woke up not an hour ago.""She's awake?" Izan quickly asked, taking in all that was said.

"Yes, maybe half an hour ago."
"And how is she?"
"She..." He clenched his jaw, not knowing if he should say it or not.
"What?" Izan asked again, stepping forward.
"When she saw Shi'er and me... the only way I could describe it was as if it was a mother who saw her son alive again after he went missing on the battlefield. That sort of relief, disbelief, and overwhelming happiness. I want to say that it was because of her experience but it feels more to me and I don't know why."
"Hm.." Izan hummed in response, thinking about it seriously. "We will find answers in due time, friend." He patted Daiji on the back. "Lead the way, I want to see my two little patients." He mused, giving the worried father before him a calming smile.

☾⊰ — - — ⊱☽☪☾⊰ — - — ⊱☽

Xiao-Shi was still holding Xiao-Fae close to him, helping his sister drink some water. She felt so small in his arms and it felt wrong. It made him want to hold her closer and protect her with all his might. He was supposed to be the little brother and she the big sister, however at this moment he knew he had to step up for her.

Xiao-Xian watched the two silently, leaning to his side with his head resting on his fist. He finally turned his gaze away and looked out the door, his foot tapping as he tried to distract himself. It worried him, yes, but he did his best to pretend not to care. Only relaxing again when he saw his father return with Izangie in tow.

"Is this the Little Miss and Master?" Izan asked, looking at the twins on the bed then turning his head to Xiao-Xian, giving him a short nod before turning back and eying Xiao-Fae curiously.
"Yes, it is.." Daiji said, stepping off to the side and out of the way.
"Hello..." Shi'er said softly, pulling his sister closer on instinct even though this man did not make him feel uncomfortable.
"We can start this many ways, however I see she is in alot of pain. I can examine her first and then give her something to help with it, and then move onto you. Would that be alright?" Izan asked, looking at them both with a small smile.
"..." Shi'er hesitated, not knowing how to answer. He looked down at his sister, opening his mouth to ask her when she responded weakly.
"It's okay.."

The boy could only nod in agreement, looking up to Izan for instructions.

"Now, I have to look at your back, if you are comfortable with that we can proceed, however if you are not I can call one of my female apprentices to aid me."
"It's fine.."
"Are you fine with everyone else observing as well?"
Xiao-Fae only nodded this time.

With the help of others they got her hair tied back and her clothes undone. They did it in a way so only her back was exposed and slowly helped her down in the bed. It was more time consuming than it should have been, but because of the pain her body was going through, they had to take it slow else she might start crying again.

Everyone held their breath seeing the scar that splintered down her back, her father even having to choke down a cry seeing once again what had happened to his precious daughter. Xiao-Shi could barely look before he had to turn away, covering his mouth with his hand.

Izan inspected with his eyes first, mumbling to himself softly, low enough to where no one could make out what he said.

"I'm going to feel around your back, okay?" He stated, looking to the girl and getting a confirmation before he started. He was gentle however everywhere he touched seemed to put her in pain. He found it peculiar and took out his needles, placing each one on the edge of the scar branches. She shouldn't have felt them, or at least not to the extent she did, which only furthered his idea.

"Young Master Xiao-Shi," He started, the young man looking up at him. "Because you are the only one that witnessed it fully and were so close, can you tell me the color of the lightning?" He stopped and turned his head, looking at the boy who seemed to shrink at the question.
"Wh-what?" He asked weakly, his voice barely audible.
"The color."
Xiao-Shi looked at him, almost terrified of the question. He sat there like a statue, him and the doctor's eyes locked together. "I.. Um.."
"What's wrong Shi'er?" Daiji asked, looking at his son curiously. He was also confused about the question but his son's reaction made this whole thing feel as if he was involved in something he shouldn't be.
"I won't judge you on your answer, however it does affect my ability to treat your sister."
The poor boy got misty eyed as he recalled that day, hugging himself for some kind of comfort, sniffling softly. "Purple." He whispered, bringing his knees up to his chest.

Without another word Izangie turned and reached into his bag, pulling out a shimmering purple stone. He gently placed it on the center of her back, putting the rest of the needles in until he had one left.

"This may hurt a lot. You have to bear with it until the process is over else it may lead to lasting complications." He stated to his patient, being upfront however he did not know the severity it might turn out to be.
Izan then turned to the family present, his face serious. "I will tell the truth now, I suspect it was not a 'natural' strike that hit the Young Miss and the Third Young Master confirmed such."
"Not natural?" Daiji asked, skeptical about what Izan was going to say but keeping an open mind the best he could.

Izan didn't say much at first, looking at the open door which was quickly shut by Xiao-Xian, the open window shutting soon after. "Daiji you have seen bits of it on the battlefield, things you might not ever expect to see. Ikari is very... I do not wish to say closed off, but it is sheltered to the ways of which they might deem unnatural. This Empire is surprisingly void of magic however not at the same time. The people here do not know of it, or if they do they keep it to themselves, but the area is abundant in resources. Likewise those who are not used to the supernatural, it is as if they do not see it, or the world hides it from them. Many still do not know why that is, and only in Ikari and the Dohyai Plains. The Dohyai Plains is not as bad as Ikari, though I will not go into it now." He sighed, shaking his head.

"I will not know until I do this just what exactly caused the strike, however because it happened there is a possibility that your daughter has some connection to that side of the world. Even Xiao-Shi might because he saw it and was affected by it. Even the rest of your sons might. This ability could have been from Kimiko or it could have been from Madame Enna." Izan brought out the possibilities, talking about Daiji's late wife and his mother. While Kimiko could not be questioned since it had been so many years of her passing, they did know that Madame Enna was from the Dohyai plains and was eccentric at best. While she was very aloof she always had odd remedies that seemed to work against the odds, no one suspected her tales of fantastical beasts and places to possibly be true.

It was a lot for them to take in, both Daiji and Xiao-Shi, however Xiao-Xian seemed calm as ever, as if he had heard it all before. Daiji had at least some experiences to help him accept what happened but Xiao-Shi was, sadly, having it worse. The poor boy was so confused. He had thought he was crazy with what he saw and now it seemed he wasn't, and on top of that there was a whole part of life just outside his empire's borders that he didn't even know about? His imaginative mind was running with possibilities and ideas. Were the stories his mother told him true? Were there dragons? Demons? Fairies? Were there really spirits that roamed with the living and they just could not see it? His view on reality as a whole was quite literally breaking and being reshaped.

"I do not know the severity of which this might be, however because it was not a natural strike, instead of the lightning going down into the ground, it has stayed within her body, which is the culprit of her condition. It was why she was unconscious before and it is why she is in such pain now. I believe Xiao-Shi also had some splinter off into him, but because it was so little he was able to process it quickly. That is what Xia0-Fae's body is trying to do. However the amount that is present inside her is very dangerous which is why it is best to now transfer it into a different body." Izan says, holding up the purple stone to show what he meant.

With everyone one informed he turned back to the girl laying on the bed. He could tell by the look in her eyes she was not very present and he would have to explain it to her later but that would be for the best. He would need to go more into detail anyway so he would do it then.

Taking a breath he sprinkled some purple dust around the stone and held the last needle in his hand, making sure the girl was mentally ready before he pressed the last needle into the entrance point of the scar. It had been silent in the room cut off by a choked gasp coming from the young miss, her body already tensing involuntarily before Izan even started the spell. This gave the man insight that it may be best to grab a few more stones from his bag first, placing them on his lap before he mumbled a few words, symbols appearing around the stone before pressing down into the skin, a sharp fizzle and a flash of purple light erupting from one of the needles and then many at once.

Xiao-Xian quickly lunged forward, arm hooking around Xiao-Shi's waist and pulling him away from what was going on, the three men nearly huddled in the corner as they watched this happen, an ever silent scream contorted on Xiao-Fae's face.