"An important thing to remember about magic is that it exists, whether you want it to or not. Magic exists everywhere, and your thoughts and words have the capability to change the world.
That's why you should avoid self-deprecating talk and thoughts whenever you can. Because your thoughts and words literally shape the world around you. You don't need to be a witch to know this and use it to your advantage.
Be kind, always.”
(From Finn’s first grimoire)
The room was dark aside from the crystal he had made glow while he started lighting up the candles around the chalk circle. It was a cloudy and dark night, but he was fairly sure it wouldn’t interfere with the ritual. He had reviewed the spell and the components again before starting the ritual and he was fairly sure where he had made the mistake last time.
Which coincidentally meant he knew where to make it this time as well. The sigils he had copied wrong last time were only the ones meant to trap the demon in the circle until given direction to leave it. In Dantalion’s case, he was fairly sure it was unneeded now. His eyes drifted over to the desk where he had left his mint plant, before he focused on the candles again.
Once all five were lit, he put the crystal away and allowed its light to fade. The spell was easier to speak out this time, as if it had been branded to his memory and in a bright flicker of black flames, Dantalion stood - or floated - in front of him again. He had a mildly surprised expression on his face when he spotted Finn, but it faded so quickly Finn wasn’t sure if he had imagined it.
“So we meet again,” the demon greeted him cheerfully, stepping down from the air to the ground as if descending stairs. “Did you miss me already?” Finn rolled his eyes at the sharp grin Dantalion flashed at him and watched as he made his way around Finn’s room curiously. Or started to, but as he headed for the desk, Finn saw him wrinkle his nose and stop as if he had smelled something unpleasant.
His eyes landed on the vibrant green mint plant and his tail swung behind him in an offended manner. His eyes were burning when he turned to look at Finn, frowning. Finn bit his lip and looked back at Dantalion steadily.
It did seem like mint’s properties in repelling evil were not exaggerated, he noted to himself. With the offended way Dantalion was looking at him though, he wondered if the experiment had been worth it.
Then he remembered what Leif and his mother had told him about demons and banished the thought from his mind. He did turn to push the plant farther back on the desk and away from the bed though.
Dantalion’s tail was still swishing behind him angrily as he all but dove for the bed, now on the opposite side of the room from the mint plant.
Again Finn wondered about the etiquette of greeting a demon, but at the lack of knowledge on that front, he decided to go straight to business.
“I want to learn more magic,” he stated and Dantalion raised his eyebrows, while his smile turned into a knowing one.
“Oh? Don’t you have your crystals and grimoires and herbs for that?” His voice was pointed and sharp, and his eyes glared fiercely where the mint was standing. Finn shifted restlessly and made his way to the bed to sit beside Dantalion. It seemed to do a little to tide his mood for better: curiosity flashed behind his eyes and his tail stilled to rest against the mattress.
“Obviously I am prepared to pay for it,” he notes and Dantalion tilted his head curiously. “If you have any suggestions what might be a fitting price for it.” Dantalion let out a thoughtful sound
“Depends what type of magic you’d be interested in,” he mused, looking at Finn searchingly, interest now overtaking what remained of the anger and annoyance. Finn fell into thoughtful silence as well. He had not given much consideration to what kind of magic he wanted to learn. Just the tingling feeling in his fingers, the thrill and excitement of being able to do something.
“Say,” Dantalion started then, before Finn could form a more coherent response. “I read your grimoire. Very meticulous and detailed for someone as young as you. It did leave me with the impression that you’re trying very hard to impress someone.” His eyes bore into Finn’s, orange and red flickering in the gold and Finn imagined the glass walls around him instinctively. It did not prevent him from feeling like Dantalion was seeing right into his mind and thoughts and he felt a cold shiver run through him.
“Who could that have been? Your teacher? Parents? Perhaps this sibling of yours.” Despite his effort of staying still, a knowing smile spread to Dantalion’s lips at the latter part.
“So I wonder, have you ever dreamt of being someone or something else than you are now?” he finished and Finn couldn’t deny the way his interest piqued. He straightened his back slightly, wondering if it was just the thought of learning new magic, or the way his mind flashed back to the dinner table and Lucas’s smug smile and condescending words.
But it wasn’t as if Finn wanted to be him. He just wanted to show he was better.
Still, the suggestion sounded interesting and Dantalion seemed to notice his interest as well.
“Since I’ve taught you how to create light, glamours are quite a bit step up from those, but not all that different from it,” he straightened his own back and brought his hand to his face, trailing his claw over his cheek.
Where the claw touched his skin, Finn saw the skin change tone to a lighter tone, the scales and black markings on his face disappearing, his eye turning brown instead of flickering gold. His horns were the next to disappear, until the rippling effect had run over all of his form and Finn could only stare.
“Here,” Dantalion, who looked nothing like Dantalion, reached to take his hand and brought it up to where his horns had been previously. Finn’s fingers brushed against the bone-like texture and Dantalion released his hand as Finn started tracing the horn as if to make sure it was really there. In honesty, he was more curious about the odd texture, wondering if it indeed was bone or something else. Wouldn’t bone horns be heavy?
“It’s an illusion,” he observed out loud when he pulled his hand back and Dantalion grinned at him.
“Glamour,” he corrected him. “It is likely you cannot create ones as strong as this. The less changes you make, the easier it is. If you can make a glamour of what people are expecting to see, it’s more likely to pass. Keen eyes might still catch something to be off about you though and some witches and priests know ways to see through things like this, given they have their components.” Finn nodded along to the words, knowing he’d have to write them down once Dantalion would leave, or the adrenaline would take the memory with it when it would leave.
“So if I wanted to make myself seem younger or older, it would pass more reliably?” he asked and Dantalion nodded, smiling.
“I knew you’re a capable one,” he praised him and winked, “and young enough to not be stuck on the same patterns as most witches.” Finn did his best to hide the way he preened at the compliment and averted his eyes briefly.
“So, how do I do it?” He asked instead.
Just like for most other spells and magic, the answer seemed to be visualization.
Dantalion escorted him to the mirror next to the bed, casting an upset glare at the mint plant sitting innocently at the desk as he did. He repeated his glamour gestures, slower this time, letting Finn see the ripple over his features that almost looked like scales unfolding over his skin now that it was slower.
Finn wondered if his preference for Dantalion’s demon form over the more human one was because of having expected the demon form or because it was unnerving to see him mask his being so easily.
His eyes trailed over Dantalion’s horns to his eyes and lips in the mirror image where Dantalion was standing behind him and he dismissed the thought from his mind as irrelevant.
“Can you glamour someone else?” Finn asked to distract himself and Dantalion shrugged at him, tilting his head as if the thought had never occurred to him.
“Not sure,” he mused, “I haven’t tried. Maybe you can try once you master it.” Finn frowned at the response and turned back to the mirror, staring himself in the eyes as he tried to focus.
How could you not try out everything when you had real magic? Finn was itching to test the magic’s limits, barely holding himself back, because he knew how dangerous exploring unknown magic could be when you don’t know what you’re doing. And despite his enthusiasm, Finn wouldn't say being able to make things glow counted as knowing what you were doing.
Perhaps it was different for demons for whom the magic came as naturally as breathing - as Dantalion had put it. It wasn’t as if Finn felt a great desire to master football and all the different instruments even when he had the capability to do so. He just wanted to learn magic.
WIth a deep breath, he closed his eyes and focused on what he wanted. After Dantalion had taught him to make light, he had been unable to forget what it felt like to cast magic. As if it was an instinct he had never known existed until it was shown to him. He imagined the same feeling now and thought back to Dantalion’s instructions. Visualize. Start with something small.
He thought of changing his eye color, but what if it would not change back by the time Erica and Henry would come back home? Or worse yet, Lucas. The last one was the most likely one to see through any insistence that it was a contact lens.
So instead he imagined himself slightly younger, his hair a bit longer. Something small. His cheeks had been a bit chubbier, cheekbones less prominent. He imagined the sensation casting magic had left behind and opened his eyes.
There was barely any difference in his mirror image. The length difference in his hair could barely be noticed even as he ran his fingers through it, the roundness of his cheeks made it look a bit like he was doing it purposefully. But that was good, he decided, an excited thrill overtaking him again.
He was still trailing his fingers over his cheeks, enchanted by the bizarre sight of his fingers not meeting his skin, when his attention was drawn to Dantalion shifting and stretching behind him.
“Satisfied?” he asked, a pleased smirk on his lips as he made his way to the bed again, patting on the spot beside him in an invitation. Finn followed after him without a second thought, still tugging on the strands of his hair in slight awe. He stopped when he noticed an amusement glinting in Dantalion’s eyes, forcibly lowering his hand against the sheets.
“Very,” he agreed and nodded, before turning to look at Dantalion again. Seeing the expectant look in his eyes and his tail twitching behind him like he was getting ready to pounce reminded Finn that they had not agreed on a price yet, before Dantalion had taught him the glamour. An oversight he shouldn’t have made. He should have established the price and confirmed the trade they would be making before accepting the magic.
Too late for that now.
“So did you establish a price for the magic yet?” he asked, feigning a casual tone as if his heart wasn’t suddenly beating a bit heavier, not just because of the thrill from the magic anymore. Dantalion grinned at him, his fangs glinting in the dim light as he leant back on his arms.
“I did,” he admitted and turned his burning eyes to meet Finn’s. “You wanted to impress someone. Who is that?” Finn frowned at him, or scowled, would have perhaps been more accurate, despite his attempts.
Lucas was the last person he wanted to talk about with Dantalion.
“Is that the price you’re asking?” he asked, watching as Dantalion’s expression gained a mischievous undertone.
“No, but it is related,” he stated, tail thumping against the mattress behind him. He looked at Finn expectantly and Finn considered just letting the silence stretch until the demon would name the price, but...
Why couldn’t he tell Dantalion? It wasn’t as if he would ever meet Lucas.
“My older brother,” he admitted sourly, “he’s the prodigal child of the family.” Dantalion looked at him curiously at the response.
“Prodigal witch?” he inquired and Finn shook his head.
“Priest,” he clarified and he could see Dantalion’s expression shifting to distaste. Finn couldn't blame him: priests summoned demons only with the purpose of exorcising them for practice. He couldn’t imagine it to be a pleasant experience.
“I see,” Dantalion nodded slowly. “And you wish to show him you can do better with witchcraft than he does with his ‘prodigal’ faith.” Finn shifted a bit uncomfortably, but nodded.
“Well! Then you have nothing to worry about. With my help, you’re bound to surpass him,” Dantalion reassured Finn and for a moment he wondered how it would be possible to attain the kind of confidence Dantalion had. Or what it would feel like.
Finn pinched a few strands of hair between his fingers again.
“So about the price,” Dantalion finally stated, pulling Finn from his thoughts. The piercing gaze from the fiery eyes made a shiver run down his spine and he thought back to Dantalion’s price for the first spell had been.
“Your firstborn child, your first kiss.” Dantalion could ask for anything since they had not set the price before he had filled his part of the bargain. One of the first and most important lessons a witch could learn was to never owe a debt to a demon.
He wondered briefly what it would be like to kiss Dantalion. Wondered if Dantalion would ask for more than that.
“Tell me your deepest and darkest secret,” Dantalion told him, his voice lowered as he leaned closer to Finn. It reminded him of the way the girls at the school would hunch together when they were gossiping or exchanging secrets. Finn could feel Dantalion’s hot breath against his face. It smelled like fire and burning charcoal mixed with a spice he couldn’t name.
“The kind you have and never would never tell anyone. The most shameful thing you’ve ever done,” Dantalion continued and Finn bit his lip, his heart starting to race as he thought.
It wasn’t the worst thing Dantalion could ask for, but in a way it was. What could Dantalion do with a thing like that?
But it wasn’t like he had a choice if he didn’t want to owe a debt.
The most shameful secret he had? He thought back to the pranks he had done to his classmates when he’d been younger. The time the guys from his class had stolen a girl’s clothes while she’d been dressing in the school’s locker rooms after gym and she had been stuck in there for ages before a teacher had intervened.
It hadn’t been Finn though, he had just remained silent in the background, but having never spoken out about it still lingered in the back of his mind as a shameful memory.
But the most shameful one?
“I once started a rumor,” he started hesitantly and bit his lip again when he saw Dantalion’s eyes turn just a bit more disinterested. “That ended up ruining my brother’s reputation and pretty much got him expelled from school.”
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