[Harry]

After a bit of research, Rhys nailed down where most of the journals are. He’s going to purchase two of them from the same guy he got his other books from, and one can be seen in a museum. However, the last two are missing. They were discovered before the apocalypse, but they were quickly stolen. All we can really do now is wait for the books to get here, and then we can leave to track the other two down. 

I don’t know what to do, so I sit down in the guest room and watch Rufus. He’s just a couple of days old, so I can’t do much other than feed him and watch him sleep. As I watch him sleep quietly, Devon comes into the room and sits beside me.

“Hey,” he mutters, “so, I’ve been thinking about... us. Like, us as a couple. We haven't been on a real date yet and... I want to change that. Do want to go somewhere with me at some point?” 

“I'm okay with that. If we stay away from the eyes of the media, we should be fine.” 

Before Devon can respond, Rhys knocks on the door with Heath next to him.

“Hey, Harry... can I do something with you quick? There's something I'm curious about.”

“Sure...” I mutter. 

I stand up and he comes over. 

“I did a quick spell on your brother when I first met him, one that could determine whether or not he could do magic and I want to test you to see if you’re the same or not.” 

“Go right ahead.” 

He grabs my wrist and puts his hand above it. A pink glow emits from his hand, and my wrist glows in response. His eyes widen when he sees it.

“Holy shit...” he mutters.

“What is it?” Devon asks. 

“Heath is an Incapable.... but Harry is different. He can do magic. I thought that since the two of you were conjoined twins it would be the same for both of you since you were technically one being...” 

“So, something happened after the separation that made one of us capable, and one of us not?” 

“Could it be genetics?” I ask. “Perhaps magic is a genetic thing, and when we were separated, the magic in our DNA had to make a choice?”

“Well, no. The only point that you two shared blood was at the leg. Most of Harry’s DNA stayed in his body, and most of Heath’s stayed in his, I guess. my theory about you two being the same since you once shared a leg has been proven wrong.”

“Yeah, but this also means that Harry can learn, right?” Devon asks.

“If he wants, yes, he can. Do you want to, Harry?” Rhys responds. 

“I won't be opposed to trying. If dad ever comes around, it’ll be better than carrying a gun.”

“So... you’re saying once you’ve learned to use magic, you’re not using the gun?” Heath asks. 

I already know where this is going, “Yes, Heath, you can use it once I’ve got the hang of it.”

“Well, I can start you off with some basic stuff for now. When do you want to start?” Rhys asks. 

“As soon as possible,” I answer. 

“Come with me, then,” he says. 

I follow him to a room with bookshelves lining the walls, and his potions clutter in the corner. 

He goes over to one of the shelves and takes out a book, opening it up. 

“Okay, you can start with this book right here. It’s basic stuff. There's one potion I need to make, though. One needs to drink it to deepen their connection with magic. It’s a good safeguard against anyone just randomly learning how.” Rhys explains. 

He goes over to his potions area and puts together several ingredients, and then pours it out into a small glass. 

“Here. Drink it.”

“How does it taste?” 

“It's fine. Just drink it before you think about it too much. The whole thing.”

I give him a sceptical look before downing the glowing pink liquid. It tastes worse than anything I've ever had before. One that makes me want to throw up and upset that I can't.

“YOU SAID IT WAS FINE!” I shout, the horrid taste still in my mouth.

“Yep. It's bad. It has a cascade of weird side effects such as mood swings, muscle weakness... glowing eyes.” he says calmly. 

I collapse onto the floor as I feel the potion take effect. 

“Oh, and it will make you feel like you’re burning alive from the inside out! I forgot about that one.” Rhys says, sounding way too cheerful. 

He wasn’t lying. Every part of me was burning and somehow chilled at the same time. 

“How long will this last?” I ask him. 

“Not much longer. It's the last seconds that really hurt, though.” 

My body aches as I lay down. The only part that didn’t hurt was my bionic right leg. 

The sensations slowly die away, and I get back up once they’re fully gone. 

“That was horrible,” I say. 

“Yep. Yet another safeguard to prevent the wrong people from learning magic.” Rhys says.

He hands me the book he picked out, “Your connection to magic has successfully strengthened. The first thing you can learn is how to summon fire.” 

I open the book to the first page and read it. With it, I can create balls of fire or an endless stream of it. 

“Okay, put the book down and try it. Using your magic is basically a bodily instinct. What you want will form with barely any thought. With fire summoning, two forms I use are a stream and a ball. Since we're in a closed space, I suggest a ball of it. And don’t worry about the fire alarms, they won't create any smoke unless you set something on fire.” Rhys explains. 

I set the book down on a cluttered table in the middle of the room and look at my hand. It was just as easy as he said. A triangle appeared above my palm and then disappeared as my hand lit up with a red-orange colour, my whole hand lighting up with fire. 

Rhys laughs as I stare at it, “You let your mind wander too much. It's normal.” 

He picks up a pot and uses his magic to fill it with water, “Go ahead and relax and put your hand in to cool it off.” I

I do as he says and dip my hand in. The flames dissipate and some steam comes out of the pot as my hand cools down. 

“I mean, your other hand didn’t catch fire. I guess that’s a good thing.” Rhys says. “It shows you have at least enough control to only use one hand. Give yourself a second and when you’re ready, go ahead and try again.”

I take a deep breath, clear my mind, and then try again. My hand lights up again with a baseball-sized ball of fire resting in my palm. 

“There you go. I'm not going to make you fire that off inside, but you can make it disappear easily.” Rhys says happily. 

As he said, it went away easily. It's all in feeling your magic and letting it manifest what you want. 

“Eventually, you’ll be able to use it fluently and it’ll take less effort to use. For now, you just need to practice and get used to it.” Rhys says. “Keep the book and start looking at it. You’ll need to know the symbols to manifest the elements they’re associated with.”

“Okay. I will. I’ll continue looking at it tonight.” 

“Cool. I’ll stop torturing you for today. Go... do whatever it is you do.” 

I leave the room, close the door behind me and go back to the guest room, sit down at the desk next to where the bots are keeping Rufus. “Penthouse, holo-monitor, please. I need to do some research.” 

The monitor pops up above the desk, I move it to my liking, and then start my research,