Oh, Deja Vu

"Magic is a life force that flows through every single person. Most people don't tend to notice their connection to magic. A bit of luck and good fortune is considered normal, but in actuality, magic influences most of our lives as we know them to occur."

You blankly stare at Dami before blinking.

"Cool speech, Dami, but how does any of that relate to what I just did?"

Dami blushes while scratching her neck.

"Sorry, I got a bit off-topic. It's been so long since I've had someone to talk to about this stuff."

You reach over and squeeze Dami's free hand.

"It's alright. You don't need to apologize to me. I think it's really attractive when you passionately explain things that I don't understand."

Dami pulls her hand away from her neck and smiles.

"I guess I should do this more often, then."

You lean into Dami before mirroring her smile.

"You always can talk to me, but right now, we need to focus on my magic."

Dami slightly shakes her head.

"You're right, Y/N." Dami takes a deep breath before intertwining her fingers with yours. "Magic and emotions are tied to each other in ways that research cannot explain. Most magicians learn to channel their magic through the emotion that causes the strongest magical reaction. For you, Y/N, it appears to be anger, but a more controlled and justified version of it."

"So... I have a stronger magical connection when I'm pissed?"

"That's a less-than-elegant way to say it, but sure. As I said, Y/N, your anger wasn't pure wrath, and it wasn't malicious. You were rightly upset by the conditions that surrounded you, and you somehow managed to channel your anger into a magical force."

"Can I learn to control it?"

"With time, yes." Dami looks away from you before heavily sighing. "I'm afraid, however, that we won't have much of it soon."

You try to trace where Dami's eyes are as you start speaking.

"What do you mean?"

"It's hard to explain, but some magical force has been telling me that Yoohyeon's growing impatient with every moment. She's filled with rage and anticipation about something, but I can't place my finger on it. She's already rash, and I'm afraid of what magical aids she may have."

"How strong do you think she is, Dami?"

"It's... hard to tell. She shouldn't be that strong for a beginning magician, but it depends on what sort of magic she's been dabbling in."

"There are different forms of magic, huh." You mumble as Dami's eyes return to you. "What I did, would that be considered-"

"Child's play, to put it politely. Illusionary magic is considered to be the weakest, followed by mental magic, like fortune telling and mind reading. Elemental magic is technically the strongest, but it's been proven that more forms of stronger magic have existed in the past. For our sake, I hope they're lost to time."

You give Dami a concerned look.

"Are we going to be okay?"

"I made a promise to you, your parents, your kingdom, and myself to protect you until I take my last breath, and I won't break that promise any time soon."

~

You hum a familiar melody from a childhood tune as you open the doors to the castle library. You've spent many days here since your arrival, and you're sure that your time here has yet to end.

I'm not sure if I naturally have a love of reading, or if I picked it up from Dami. Either way, it's become a useful tool and escape for me.

Yoohyeon didn't often wander into the library, so you were mostly safe from her clutches. Dami, on the other hand, had made this place her "home away from home" just like it was before everything happened.

Right, less thinking about her and more reading. Snap out of it, Y/N!

You let your hands touch the spine of every single book as you wander through a row of books. You were never quite sure what book you would end up reading, but that was the fun of it.

Dami always hated that. She always was, and still is, very methodical to everything she does. I guess that's a habit Dami'll learn to abandon with me.

Y/N-ah ~

You rapidly turn around as you try to discover the location of the voice.

"Hello?!? Who's there?"

Don't worry about me, my dear. You need to be considered about yourself. Do you trust me?

That's an odd question for a weird voice to ask.

It's a necessary one. Once again, Y/N, do you trust me?

Ah... Sure, I guess? My intuition is telling me yes, so yes seems like the way to go!

Excellent. Head to the bookshelf that contains the magical books, and select the one that you're drawn to. You'll find the key to salvation in there.

Key to salvation? Is that a way of saying that I'll be free if I discover what's in there?

That's for you to find out, and for me to know. You can do this, Y/N.

You nervously walk forward as you search for the magical books. Usually, you'd be able to find these sections without much trouble, but your encounter with the voice has shaken up your memory.

You stumble a bit more before finding what you were looking for. You immediately scan the bookshelf until a book with a golden spine attracts your eyes.

That must be the book they were talking about! I wonder what's inside of it?

You grab the book before searching for a place to sit. You carefully sit in a nearby chair as you set the book on the table. You read the title aloud, but it doesn't make any sense to you.

"'The History of Magical Objects, And Their Afflictions Onto Society'... What does any of this have to do with me?"

Chop, chop, Y/N! Time's a-ticking away. You have until midnight to figure out what to do. Good luck, and don't mess this up. Everyone's counting on you.

You nervously gulp as you glance outside at the church clock tower.

It's noon which means I have twelve hours. I better get to it if I meant to figure out what to do with this book and the information it contains.

Without anymore hesitations, you crack open the book before beginning to read the first chapter.

"Chapter 1: The Anatomy of Magical Objects. When one magical object exists, it..."