As I walk home the air of the graveyard changed. It felt not as dead as normal. Like someone could actually breathe, which unsettles me more than a graveyard should. I look up at the shining sun to try to get a read on what time of day it is. The sun shines brightly above me. It's about midday. The time doesn’t really explain the air in the graveyard but I don’t want to be here any longer.

As I make my way to the graveyard I saw some patches of snow begin to build up in the forest. Winter is coming soon, and with winter comes the festival. The streets of noctius were bustling with joy and excitement. Everyone was getting ready for The Starlight Festival. It is a time when everyone is gathered in the town square and the surrounding areas, there are foreign and local venters selling trade goods, there is drinking, and my favorite the dancing. Then later at night everyone would gather by the docks and see all the stars in the sky. At this time of year here it is the only time to see the stars to clear, stars have a special meaning to everyone here. As they and the constellations are the avatars of the gods. Which is something I haven’t really paid attention to, but hey everyone has to believe in something. 

But when all is said and done, to end the night with a bang. Almost every mage in Noctius comes together to create a firework show. Which along with the drinking and dancing are my all-time favorites here. I used to make a trip to Noctius every year just for this festival. Sometimes I would take the three dummies with me if our schedules aligned. But if they didn’t I would make the trip by myself and meet up with Sizen. He always makes a trip here. He needs to either check up on the shop with Asher and he will either sell or buy random rare herbs.

As much as I want to walk over to the setup area, I am going over to Asher for a check-up. Everything has been acting weird again. And I also want tea, he has the good stuff that you can’t get anywhere. Much to my annoyance and asking. He won’t tell me.

Thankfully the clinic isn’t too far away from where I am. The alleyways do twist and turn a bit. Other than that I am at Asher's place in about five minutes. I can see from the windows that the place isn’t too busy, only one person in there getting a check-up. I decide to just walk in. 

The little bell over the door rings, announcing my presence. The overwhelming smells of herbs fill my nose. 

“Be right there!” Asher shouts from the examination room.

I don’t really care how long he takes. But a new book on the bookshelf does catch my eye for the time being. It’s a book about mages and their biology. I read it for about five more minutes until I see Asher open the door letting a patient out, he sounds like he is batting them for smoking and he is handing them some medication.

When he turns to my general area he jumps, “Ah Jessica I wasn’t expecting you today.”

“Yeah and I wasn’t expecting to come here today but you are on my way home, so wanna take lunch and while I talk about what’s been going on?” I ask him.

“Yeah sure come on back Jessica,” he waves his hand, signaling me to come with him.

“I like the new book you have here Asher, but fair warning you left out one of the fun books on the waiting room coffee table,” I teased at him.

He stops dead in his tracks and turns towards me, his face a beet red. “Where did you find it and which one,” he speed walks over to the coffee table. Eyes wide when he sees the book. 

“Wow, you didn’t even need my help, naughty boy you knew which one,” I laugh at him.

“Hey don’t laugh at me, besides this is just ‘pot calling the kettle black’ you leave all you fun books everywhere for everyone to see,” he jokingly hits me with a book.

I grab the book in mid-air and lean into him, “You know that’s not enough to hurt me, little one.”

“I know what will though, perks of being a doctor Jessica,” he rips the book from my grasp and goes back to his kitchen.

I end up being seated at his couch with some snacks on the coffee table, “So, have you found any new information you’d like to share with me? I saw you with Andromeda this morning. What’s up with that?” I ask him with a smirk.

He chokes on his coffee and responds, “It's nothing she asked for some help and I was just being friendly.”

“That’s a lame excuse, she knows this town like the back of her hand. She’s been coming here since she was 15, and I would know because I lead her here,” I grin, his face turns a light red.

“I’m changing the subject here, Jessica has anything that requires medical attention happened to you?” Asher slams his cup of tea on the coffee table and just looks at me dead in the face.

I shift in my seat, “Uh yes but you aren’t gonna like it. I did a veilsight.”

“You what.” Asher's face did not change but his voice sure did. “You performed a VEILSIGHT?!” He runs to get his medical equipment. “You rejoin the force and on the first damn day, you do something as taxing as that! Jessica, you know the consequences of veilsights,” Asher continues ranting. He does a quick exhumation of me, with magic this time. He hates using his magic for medical proposes unless he needs to, I just this time I’m special. When he lets out a sigh and looks up to me with a grumpy look.

“What’s the diagnosis doc? Am I dying? I can take it just tell me,” I put my arm over my head and lean back in my chair.

Asher rolls his eyes, “Thankfully nothing happened this time, but who knows what will happen the next. If you want to have used that again you need to get back into shape Jess because right now you are a mess,” he gestures to my entire being. “But other than intense pain did anything else happen to you?”

I think for a moment, I don’t think I’m ready to share about my dream visitors yet, “Not nothing much, just the normal magic bullshit,” I respond.

His eyes light up, “Ah now that you mention it I have finally gotten enough information on what could be happening with you,” Asher springs up from his seat and brings me a notebook containing what I assume is a bunch of things about magic.

“It really took you five years to get all this?”

“Well yeah, the medical world is so vague and there were so many letters going back and forth to get a single page of information. The magical scholar world wasn’t much help either because of the censorship laws. I had to get Sizen at one point to help me out,” Asher rambles on with extreme annoyance. “and with Arilius moving in town I at least now have a guinea pig-”

“Wait what does the commissioner have to do with this?” I cut him off.

“Oh uh, I plead for doctor-patient confidentiality on this one Jessica.”

“Boring but continue,” I wave my hand for him to keep talking.

“Well I need to keep this short or else it would take all day, but your magic is not just because of your cracked mana core like we thought. It is actually just a damaged and amped-up version of psionic magic-”

“So where does the ‘damaged’ part come in?” I cut him off, again.

He rolls his eyes, “I was getting to that. But the damaged part is because of your emotion. I know it sounds stupid but I am serious, magic can go haywire if the user's emotions become out of control. Which is why with the slightest hint of anger or sadness your marks, er cracks in your case, show through on your skin and the surrounding area.”

“So I just have fucked up psionic magic?”

“Pretty much, but fun fact you aren’t the only one suffering from these kinds of problems. I mean it's still rare to even have psionic magic, and let alone rarer to have these issues. It mostly just caused by extreme trauma, but I think being an Acer is traumatizing on the body enough.”

I get up from my seat, book in hand, and say, “I mean its nice to know what’s going on in the present but it doesn’t explain what caused me to even have magic in the first place. But this is good enough for now so I must say my goodbyes and ill read this later.”

“Yes yes, I am still working out a theory for what happened but for now I am glad to be of help Jessica,” Asher gets out of his seat and gives me a small hug while leading me out of his house and to the door. “Till then, I will see you later Jessica, at the festival maybe?”

“I have a feeling I might get roped into working that night, so goodbye Asher.”

With the notebook in hand, I turn to leave the clinic. It is still only the afternoon but I don’t feel like going to the office so I turn myself in the direction of The Levithan.