Rocking back and forth on her heels, Gretta beamed. “That will be one of your first lessons as a witch!”

They all still winced at the term, though Linh kept staring at her necklace in wonder. Little stars sketched themselves on her face, though Linh didn’t notice. Gretta and Seymour, however, did, and the sight made Gretta beam brighter while Seymour stared suspiciously at the witch.

“You have a lot of wild magic, as an untrained potential. It has to be channeled somewhere, so it doesn’t overload and manifest in crazy ways like your shoes,” Gretta gestured.

Nervously, Ella unsuccessfully tried to pull her dress down to hide them from sight. Linh could swear she could hear the shoes whisper that they wanted to see the lesson too…

“One way of keeping yourself safe from overloading with too much magic is to put your magic into objects… like these sunstones,” Gretta gestured to the strings and strings of multi-coloured gem-like stones hanging from the ceiling. “With enough intent and the proper rituals, you can make charms to keep people warm, make them generally safe… the strength of the charm depends on how much magic you put into it, and how powerful you are.”

“You act like the magic is a living thing,” Seymour narrows his eyes.

“Well, isn’t it?” Gretta asked. “Magic is in the air all around us, in everything. Why wouldn’t it be alive?”

“That’s like saying the blood in our veins has a consciousness. It’s not true,” Seymour glowered.

“Maybe that’s what they teach you in the Cleric Academy, but it’s false. You saw the proof yourself last night. Our Miss Ella’s shoes came to life and tried to return to its source when she denied it for too long.”

“But this implies that all magic, when separated from its source, can come to life and will want to return to its source. If that’s true, then why haven’t your ‘charms’ decided to hop back towards you, witch, like that glass woman wanted to return to Lady Ella?”

“…Do you have any idea what they’re talking about?” Ella whispered to Linh.

She could only shrug and try to keep track of the conversation. Sometimes she forgot how smart Seymour was. It felt so long since he left the academy…

“Oh… no. Absolutely not. Nope,” Gretta crossed her arms in an ‘x’, “Just what did they teach you as a cleric? All magic is alive, yes, therefore different kinds of magic have different kinds of will. The magic that exists in the air and nature wants to maintain the earth, the magic that exists in fire wants to burn forever despite what it consumes, the magic in water wants to return to the most stable state. But the magic that comes from human beings, potentials that have magic bursting from their souls? That magic wants to be used for the witch’s purpose.”

Seymour’s eyes widened. “So you’re saying witches… their magic doesn’t come from the goddesses, like clerics do, but their own souls?”

“Exactly,” Gretta grinned. “Not just a brooding giant, are you?”

“Um, excuse me, Monsieur Seymour and Madame Gretta,” Ella raised her hand, “but what do you mean by magic from the soul?”

“You know that clerics gain access to magic by making sacrifices to their patron goddesses, yes?” Gretta started.

Linh and Ella nodded. When Seymour had been a practising cleric, his patron goddess was the warrior protector Freya. Her patrons usually sacrificed tokens made for their loved ones, or other items that symbolized they were active protectors. Things like shields or weapons worked as long as they were used to defend. In return, Freya made them stronger and wiser. Freya’s clerics were blessed with the ability to make strong defense spells and fortifications.

But Seymour didn’t pray to her anymore. Nowadays, Linh wasn’t sure if he was still technically a cleric.

“And foreigners like you two,” Gretta indicated to Ella and Linh, “from the East used a different form of magic, practitioning magic where you can see the flow of magic and find chaotic spots in the flow to manipulate. Thus, Eastern practitioners can reseal wounds, repair buildings after disasters, manipulate the flow of water with their thoughts and more. They work with the magic flow around them.”

Again, Linh knew this.

But Ella regarded Linh in surprise. “You’re an Easterner too? There aren’t many of us in the Circled City.”

[We’ll have to exchange stories sometime,] Linh suggested.

“Both of these groups manipulate magic from outside sources. But witches? We use our souls because we were born with souls that have a greater output of magical energy then the average person. And that magic always wants to be used. If it doesn’t get channeled into other objects, you can overload. We are like jugs of water that need to be constantly emptied, if not, we overflow.”

“That makes sense I suppose…” Ella nodded, “Does this mean everyone has magic?”

“Yes. But not enough to make them witches like you and me.”

Interesting.

“Now, in the case of your shoes,” Gretta continued, “Miss Ella you subconsciously wanted to reject who you were and channeled almost all your magic into physical form. You tried to reject that makes you, well, you. Of course, your magic wanted to return to you in that case. But when you begin using your magic without rejecting it, then it will fulfill its purpose. It’s only a matter of willpower.”

Staring down at her shoes, Ella whispered, “Willpower…” She frowned and crumpled up her skirts in her fists. “Do you think I’ll have enough willpower to control it?”

Gretta hesitated. “That depends on you.”

Ella nodded. “Then, I’d like to begin lessons as soon as it’s convenient for you.”

“…Alright. I need to sort out that dragon fang I got the other day, but take an hour to sort yourself out, and I’ll meet you here for your first lesson. Miss Page,” Gretta looked to her, “you and your bodyguard sit in too. This will help you with your new duties.”

Linh and Seymour had no choice but to agree.

::

[So… what DOES the academy say about magic?] Linh asked Seymour, as they helped Ella organize her new room—another floor conjured up by Gretta. Linh still marvelled at how she could pick up a bag of clothing without toppling over.

Seymour’s grip on Ella’s luggage faltered.

“Nothing useful.”

Linh glared at him. Normally, she wouldn’t press, but she felt this was important.

“Fine,” Seymour sighed. “They teach us that magic is a blessing from the goddesses, that only those who are faithful and worthy can have its blessings. Those who are cursed by magic must be the unfaithful, the cast-offs. Only the worthy will enter the realm of the goddesses, are you happy?”

[Oh…] was all Linh had to say.

The academy sounded more like a cult than anything that Xuan taught.

[…Is that why you left?]

Seymour dropped Ella’s luggage in the middle of the room.

“…I wish I could say yes, but no. That’s not why I left.”

[Then why—]

“Linh,” he so rarely called her by name, “please don’t ask.”

She couldn’t see his face, when his ragged hair covered his eyes. But Linh recognized that tone.

[…Alright.]

She had not heard that tone since the day Quang left the Circled City.