Chapter 49 - Mission Impossible

I waited with bated breath for Alexandra's reaction. She didn't answer immediately, and each second passed in silence made me more and more anxious.

Finally, her voice sounded from the dynamics of my smartphone again. "Forty-two, you said, Diana?"

"Yes, Alexandra. I counted. But this is good, right? You wrote that the bigger the well, the better it is, and if I can 'see' so many aspects, that just means that I have a huge well, right?"

I was rambling nervously, and I knew it, but couldn't stop myself until I finished the entire thought and had to wait for Alexandra's answer again. It took her a while again.

"Yes. Yes, of course. Your well is bigger than average, that's it. You don't need to worry, Diana. The spellcasting can be harder for you, since you will have a difficult time to navigate the aspects, but the primary principles I wrote in the manual are still applied. You will just have to generalise the aspects you see."

I exhaled. Alright, I will have a harder time to do magic, but I still could do it. That was good. "Thank you, Alexandra."

"I'm glad to hear that you progressed so well in such a short time. Many people used to the rush of the city life can't pause for long enough to meditate and see within themselves. Diana, it's good that you had called me before you tried to channel magic. I'd like to meet with you and be present for your first attempts. I don't think there will be any danger involved, but it's always better to learn from a living teacher."

I hummed in agreement. I'd like to have Alexandra to give me advice when it came to it. On the other hand, I was impatient to try. Not today—it was too late, and I was too tired after my acid trip to the magic land—but tomorrow. Before Friday, when I will have to meet WaitingForMyHeart's servant.

"Can you do it tomorrow, Alexandra?"

"My workday ends at six, so I will be home at seven. If this isn't too late for you, we can meet then."

It was so-so, but since I had other obligations as well, I decided it worked. "That's fine. Can you send me the address through VKontakte?"

"Sure. Please, don't be in a hurry to channel auras, Diana. Take your time exploring them, especially with your perception oddity. I think that maybe tomorrow might be a little too early for you…"

"I want to try, at least," I hurried to say. I took a deep breath and reminded myself that in the end, Alexandra didn't have any authority over me. She was only giving advice. I just had to be careful.

"Very well, then. I will write to you. Have a good night."

"You too, Alexandra. Goodbye."

⠀⠀ ⠀

Next day was Panda's day off, which meant that JJ manned the shop counter from opening hours till closing. JJ's days always were more profitable than Panda's, but this wasn't the cause of my good mood that day.

No, I was giddy from my newfound powers and jittery with anticipation about using them for real magic. Though, as I analysed my experience with seeing auras, I realised it was a powerful tool as well. I didn't use it again, but I knew I could learn a lot about things from it.

And about people, too.

My mood dimmed a little only when I remembered my intention to hide my discoveries from JJ. How I will manage that, I had no idea, but I was determined to try. As I walked down the stairs, I forced my involuntary smile away and tried to act normal.

JJ had been mopping the floor when I came inside the store's hall. Such a mundane action, yet he made even it look casually alluring. He rolled up the sleeves of his shirt and I could see the movement of the muscles in his hands when he moved the mop over the floor. He had gathered his luxurious golden hair on the nape of his neck. I knew he only did when he mopped and only because otherwise it fell into his eyes, but I liked that look on him. It made JJ's face look sharper, more dangerous.

The knowledge that now I could run my hands through his hair and over his muscles like I wanted for a while and JJ won't stop me was a great temptation. It was like having a box of cookies waiting to eat them. So hard to resist, but I had to.

I only got out of my daze when JJ stopped his actions and turned towards me with a knowing smile. His cat-like eyes glinted with mischief.

"Good morning, ma chèrie. Admiring the view?"

I blushed and walked towards the counter, pulling the keys from the cashbox out of my pocket. "Good morning to you too, JJ. Well, I just had to look, hadn't I? I wasn't a snowman the last I checked. That was you."

He chuckled, the warm sound sending shivers down my spine. "I think you should check again, ma chèrie, whether I'm a snowman. The results will be different this time, won't they?"

I froze with the key half-turned in the cashbox. "Wait, how do you know?!" I blurted without thinking, only to regret it instantly. I hid my face in my palms. Damn, now he just had to say something like "I didn't know until you said it" and my shame will be complete.

Instead, JJ laughed. "You don't have to act this way, ma chèrie. I overheard your call to Alexandra yesterday, and while I usually try to avoid intruding in your privacy this way, I was curious. Congratulations. Somehow, I just knew that you will be a special one, my not-so-ignorant witch."

I looked up at him to see JJ smiling at me with… warmth? There was certainly some amount of it in his expression. I beamed back, finally free to share my excitement.

I was still beaming when I said cheerfully, "Thank you, JJ! Now why the hell you were listening to my calls?"