Unknowing (A Yogscast Fanfic)

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

“Now it’s your turn,” Zoey seemed to hear Rythian say, breaking her from her train of thought. She turned to look at him, her eyes hopeful. She was ready to learn, that was for sure. Rythian grabbed her hand, and held it up. “The key is to bend your will. Imagine it happening.” He told her, “Want to do the flower trick?”

She nodded, and he continued, “Ok then, now, imagine your favorite color flowers are sprouting from the ground, and wrapping around your fingers.” She closed her eyes, and concentrated. Soon, a tiny plant with orange flowers came up from the grass. However, they never grew any more than that.

“What did I do wrong?” She asked, disappointed. What was it with her and not being able to do anything right?

“Nothing, you just aren’t strong enough yet,” he replied encouragingly. “Plus, you don’t have these.” Rythian grabbed the end of the wrap around his arms, and began unraveling them. Soon, his arms were exposed, and black runes were scattered across them. All different sizes and shapes, reaching up under his jacket, his forearms were plastered in them. “These,” he said, “Are magic runes. Using these’ll boost the spells you use. I’ve searched all over to get as many as I can.” He showed her his right arm, not as covered in the tattoos. “This arm’s not so filled with them, I still have room for more if I find any.” He looked to Zoey, and saw her smile. He could sense her longing to do magic, and wanted to help her in any way he could.

“Hey Zoey, would you like one of these runes?” He gestured to one that circled around his bicep. “This one’s for nature and plant growth, sounds like something you’d be interested in, hm?”

Her eyes widened in happiness. “Oh my gosh yes! That’d be awesome! But, Rythian? I’ve never had a tattoo before. Does it hurt? How long does it last? Am I going to-”

“Hold off on the questions,” He intervened, hushing the girl of her stream of queries. “It’s not so much a tattoo as permanent paint. Watch,” the Mage told her. Before she could get a word in, he ran into the house, and came out with a bottle of a black liquid and a brush. “Sit,” he told her, and she yielded. He sat down next to her, and uncorked the liquid. He quickly dipped the brush in the bottle, then swiftly moved the brush to her arm.

“Rythian, wait! You never told me if-”

“It’s not going to hurt, Zoey,” Rythian interrupted once more. “The brush will just tickle a bit.” And so, he slid the brush across her forearm. He made a line around her entire arm, then thickened it by adding more of the ink. Then, he drew a wave pattern on top of the line, and added dots above the waves. Finally, he repeated the line and wave again above the dot, leaving her with a marking on her arm perfectly alike to his. Zoey stayed quiet the entirety of the time, not wanting to mess him up.

He leaned back, and she examined her arm. “See?” He said. “Now, here’s the cool part.” He uttered an incantation in a language Zoey couldn’t understand, and soon the marking on her arm glowed bright, like embers in a fire. Her eyes widened and the marking hastily returned to its dark color. “Ta da,” Rythian exclaimed, chuckling. “Now, try the spell again.”

She and Rythian stood up once more, and Zoey closed her eyes another time. She concentrated on every detail; how the vines had tiny leaves on them, the color of every petal, growing darker towards the inside. She thought of the look on Rythian’s face as she completed the spell, and how delighted she would be. After opening her eyes, she looked and saw a vine with the gorgeous orange flowers climb their way up and around her wrists. She grinned, and picked a flower off of the vine, and then walked towards Rythian, and placed it in the top pocket of his jacket. “There,” she told him, satisfied. “To match the one in my hair.”

Rythian’s eyes squinted into a smile under the mask. He was proud of his apprentice. “Well done, Zoey. Absolutely well done.” Then, his face grew serious. “Now, are you ready to practice harder spells?” his face broke into a smile once more.