Chapter 292: 292 - little pearls
292
~Lisa’s POV
"One of you..." I repeated, my voice barely a whisper.
Lira smiled warmly. "Yes, Lisa. And from today, the path of spell mastering begins for you."
I stared at the book again, feeling something deep inside me stir. For so long, I had felt lost, torn between pain, love, anger, and confusion. But now, for the first time, I felt like I belonged somewhere.
I smiled faintly, holding the book close to my chest. "Then I’ll make you proud, Lira."
"I know you will," she said softly. "Now... let’s begin."
I opened the book again and let my fingers rest on the warm leather.
"Are you ready?" she asked.
"Yes," I said. My voice shook a little with nerves and excitement. "I’m ready."
She nodded. "Good. Now, open to the first page."
I did. The letters glowed faintly as the words appeared. It felt almost like they were breathing.
"’Step one: know your element,’" I read out loud. "What does that mean?"
"Every witch has an element that responds to her heart," Lira explained. "It could be fire, water, air, or earth. You can learn to control all, but one will always listen faster than the others. Now you know how to move things and yourself, the next step is to find an element of the world that listens to you."
I blinked. "So... how do I know which one listens to me?"
She smiled faintly. "That’s what we’ll find out."
She stood and motioned for me to follow her outside. The sun was high now, and the air felt warm against my skin. She pointed to the open space in front of the hut. "Stand there."
I did. "Now what?"
"Close your eyes," she said. "Don’t force anything. Just breathe. Feel the world around you."
I obeyed, inhaling deeply. The wind brushed over my face. I could feel the soft ground beneath my feet, smell the faint smoke from our morning fire, and hear the rustle of leaves.
"Good," she whispered. "Now, call on them one by one. Whisper to them in your heart. Ask them to show themselves."
"Like... talk to the wind?" I asked with a little laugh.
"Yes," she said, smiling. "But mean it."
I nodded and closed my eyes again.
"Wind," I whispered inside my mind, "if you can hear me, come to me."
Nothing.
I tried again. This time, I focused harder. "Wind, come to me."
A faint breeze moved past me, and I opened my eyes quickly. "Did you see that?"
Lira’s lips curved into a smile. "I did. Try again."
I closed my eyes once more and whispered again, and this time, the wind grew stronger, brushing against my hair. My heart jumped. "It’s listening," I said breathlessly.
"Good," Lira said softly. "But don’t lose focus. You called it, now you must calm it."
"How?"
"Ask it to rest."
"Wind, rest," I whispered. The air softened, and the world went still again.
I opened my eyes, smiling wide. "It worked!"
Lira nodded proudly. "You just made your first connection. Your heart listens to air."
"So, my element is air?"
"For now," she said. "But that doesn’t mean others will ignore you."
I grinned. "Can I try another?"
She laughed softly. "You never stop, do you?"
"No," I said honestly. "Not when it feels this good."
She sighed in mock defeat. "Fine. Try fire next."
I turned toward the small campfire still smoldering near the hut. I held my palm toward it and whispered, "Fire... come to me."
The flame flickered, then steadied. Nothing more.
"Again," Lira said. "But mean it. Fire listens to confidence."
I straightened my shoulders. "Fire, come to me."
The flame suddenly rose higher, burning bright orange. I gasped, stepping back. "Oh! It listened too!"
Lira nodded approvingly. "You have strong energy. You called two elements easily."
I stared at the flame, fascinated. "Can I make it dance?"
She smiled knowingly. "Try."
I moved my fingers slightly, just imagining the fire swirling, and it did. It moved in small circles like a tiny whirlwind of light. I laughed in delight. "Lira, look!"
"I see you," she said proudly. "You’re learning faster than I thought."
My chest swelled with joy. "So... what’s next?"
She took a deep breath and sat down on a nearby rock. "Next, you’ll learn to combine what you feel with what you speak."
I frowned a little. "What do you mean?"
"Spells," she said simply. "Words that hold energy. Without the right heart, words are just sounds. But with focus... they become power."
I nodded slowly, understanding. "So, I need to speak what I want while focusing?"
"Yes. But remember, your energy decides if the spell lives or dies."
I bit my lip, nervous. "Can we try one?"
She looked at me carefully, then nodded. "A small one."
"Okay."
She pointed to a small stone near my feet. "We’ll start with that. Say this: Aris ven talam. It means ’rise and rest.’ Focus on the fire as you speak it."
"Aris ven talam," I repeated softly. Nothing happened.
"Again," Lira said.
I closed my eyes, focused on the stone, and imagined it floating. "Aris ven talam."
This time, the fire danced slightly before dropping back. I gasped. "It moved!"
"Yes," she said with a proud smile. "Do it again."
I did. Over and over. Each time, it rose higher. Sweat trickled down my neck, but I didn’t stop.
Finally, it flamed perfectly. I grinned like a child. "I did it!"
Lira clapped lightly. "You did. You’re learning control now."
I sat down, panting. "This is... amazing. It feels alive inside me."
"That’s because it is," she said softly. "Magic is part of you. It listens to your feelings more than your words."
"So if I’m angry?"
"It can burn everything around you."
I nodded slowly, feeling the weight of that truth. "Then I need to stay calm."
"Always," she said.
We spent hours going through other small spells, such as calling water from the air, making a breeze stronger, and lighting a small fire without touching it. I failed many times, and sometimes the energy would snap back, causing my skin to sting. But Lira’s calm voice guided me through it all.
At one point, I groaned and threw my hands up. "I can’t do this one! The water won’t listen!"
She chuckled. "It will, when you stop fighting it. Water isn’t like fire; it doesn’t respond to force. It listens to peace."
I sighed deeply, closed my eyes, and softened my heart. Slowly, droplets formed in the air, small and glittering. They floated between my hands like little pearls.
I smiled through tears. "It worked..."