Sorcerer on the Street

Case 3. Breaking Barriers

I had waited for three days after the first time I saw John. Each day, I hoped that he would walk into the museum again. But I knew that all I could do now was wait.

This time, I didn't have any doubts. I knew he was there as soon as he pushed open the door. I waited while he talked to Marten, who was manning the reception desk today. I did my best not to listen in on a conversation that should have been private, but I couldn't help picking up a few details. Once they had finished chatting he walked straight to exhibition hall 3, and over to the corner where I was waiting.

"Are you ready to speak to me now?" I asked.

"I spoke to a medium," he said, reducing his answer to the absolute basics. "She said she would tell me the future and then turned over some cards. Said I'll have to choose between success in love and in business at some point, which seems general enough that it could apply to anyone. If they had immediate prospects in either. And she gave me a whole bunch of platitudes."

"Magic is real," I told him. "I told you that before. But I believe I also suggested that the great majority of those who claim to practise it are either the victims of wishful thinking, or prey on those who are." And he nodded.

"That's what I thought. But when I went to leave, she said she'll try something different. I was half convinced by that point that she couldn't tell me anything real. But she stared into a glass ball, told me that would show her the mists of time or something. And I don't know why, but something felt doifferent about that. I watched it too, and I could swear I saw something, right on the edge of vision. Not her reflection, but something that wasn't in the room. It was like the wall behind her was... like a bar? People drinking. I know it sounds crazy, but it just felt important to me. And there was a... a bird, I think. I don't know why that matters."

"Scrying is hard," I told him. "Understanding the images is harder. But if you try to see what they mean, they'll go out of focus. It's something I've tried before." I didn't mention that I'd never been successful with seeing the future in that way. Even pinpointing an item that was already connected to me was a real challenge.

"I felt like I had to touch it," he continued, barely acknowledging the contribution. "I tried to pet the bird, which I guess would have been pretty dumb if it had been real. But I touched the glass instead. That broke the moment. I thought she was going to be angry, you see. But her whole attitude changed. She told me I've got some talent. Said if I want to know my future, I should learn to see it myself and I'll be able to see better than I can. I mean, what she was saying before that, it was so vague it could apply to anyone. But the instant I touched the ball, it was like she wasn't pretending anymore. Not trying to see the future, but seeing me like I really am. Or something like that, that's what she said."

"Guess she's got some talent then," I admitted. "There's a lot of people who do. But they mostly don't develop it. Maybe she found that she can see things that are beyond sight at times. See things as they are, instead of what she expects. It's not hard for someone to build a reputation even with fairly limited abilities. But more often than not, she won't see anything that matters, so she uses the lies that would make her customers believe here. Crystal balls are usually a tool to impress the public, but I've known those who can have real results with them. And if there's something special about the glass, there's a good chance it would have reacted to your touch."

"So how does this work then?" He was a very direct guy, I thought. He kept going straight for the big questions. "I mean, you said I'm a wizard. Does that mean I can cast spells or something? But then, that's like three times now you mentioned an object having power. A ball of glass can't work magic, can it?"

"There's a lot to explain. In my day, it would take at least seven years to train an apprentice before you trust him to use these skills out in the world. But I don't think we have the luxury of a private space to train. So, you believe me now?"