Chapter 120

120 Sensing Magic

Skye’s arms were crossed on her chest; “Ima NOT taking ye! It will get Marie in trouble!”

“How so? It’s not like the king Said she was responsible for us. He escorted us here because he’d thought we’d like company while breaking our fast,” Maevis rebutted.

“And do you honestly think that You will be held accountable if discovered?! No! It will be me and Marie that get the brunt of Magnus’ ire! No! Not happening Mae!”

“We won’t be discovered,” Maevis fluttered up to Skye to whisper softer; “If you pipe down about it! Your husband’s ears are far too keen..”

“Oh, I know. I gave him the armor last night.. Don’t think ye don’t have a stern talkin’ to coming at ye for blabbing to Aero,” Skye squinted her eyes at the old Fae as she chided her.

Maevis shrugged; “He needed convincing of your dedication.. So I gave him an example.”

“Well, Yer Not gonna convince me to take ye, so just drop it,” Skye replied huffily.

Seeing herself losing the battle, Maevis remarked; “Fine then! I’ll just fly there myself and watch from the air or something..”

“That’s an even worse idea! Someone will Definitely see you then!” Skye nearly yelled indignantly.

.....

Nicolas sat quietly as the two women argued back and forth. He had no doubts that Maevis really would fly off to the Mage Trials by herself. She was always going off on her own over the centuries. But this particular situation was too familiar for him not to comment on.

“You won’t get caught, hmm? Like you wouldn’t get caught back when Tiberius competed?”

Maevis visibly flinched when Nicolas mentioned Tidas’ ancestor. She glared at her old friend for his big mouth, but that just made him smile. Sometimes she hated the fact that he knew everything about her, but it couldn’t be helped. Nicolas was her best friend, after all.

“Why, Nic?” Maevis threw her hands up out of frustration; “Just.. Why?”

“Because it’s true, and your reaction is hilarious,” Nicolas smirked like a cheeky demon before taking a sip of his tea.

“But, it Is true that she’ll go on her own if you don’t take her, lass.”

“Come on, Nic! Yer supposed to be helpin’ me to convince Her to Stay, not convince Me to Take her,” Skye stared helplessly at the old Fae as he played with his beard a moment.

Nicolas exhaled, exasperated; “I’m not trying to convince you of anything, just stating facts based upon previous circumstances. You may do with it what you will. I’m staying here, by the way. I don’t want to get in trouble with Our Queen and King.”

“Celestia would understand..”

Nicolas raised an eyebrow at Maevis; “Even if she did, which I doubt; what about Aero?”

Maevis scoffed as she rolled her eyes and said; “Celestia is Queen, Not Aero.”

Nicolas admonished his old friend as he leaned forward in his seat; “But he has her ear! Even if she sympathizes with you, he’ll still convince her to punish you. You’re a diplomat now. Which means you have a responsibility-”

“I told both you and the royals that I was only going along to help SKYE. This whole diplomatic thing was Your idea! I want to see the trials, I’m here, and I’m going!”

Nicolas reclined back in his seat in defeat. He knew that there’d be no changing her mind. He glanced over at the prince and Marie; they seemed too involved in their own conversation to pay any attention to theirs. Right as Maevis and Skye began to argue again, Tidas’ Guard Captain came in. It was time for them to leave, and the two were still arguing.

“Help me sneak in to watch, and I’ll never bring up the fact that I literally get nauseous from the smell of roasted chicken because of you; ever again.”

Skye huffed at Maevis before saying in a sarcastic tone; “Aye, Ima sure you won’t..”

Maevis fluttered up to Skye’s eye level before speaking seriously; “Please, Skye.. I haven’t seen it since Tiberius lived; I met him there. Please, allow me to go?”

Skye examined the old Fae as she’d spoken, and felt the truth in her emotional plea. She wondered if Maevis had felt more than friendship for Tidas’ ancestor, but brushed the thought aside for now. Tidas would want to leave any second, and Skye needed to make a decision now.

“Ye SWEAR to do all that I ask? No arguments, no going off on yer own? Only talk when I say it’s ok to?”

Maevis’ entire gate lit up at the princess’ words as she replied; “Aye! I swear! I swear! Thank you, my dear!”

After hushing her several times, Skye inquired; “Where, exactly, do ye think ye can hide? I don’t have me cloak with me yet, and I didn’t bring a bag.”

“Oh, I got this dearie! I just hope you’re not ticklish around your neck,” Maevis lightly chuckled as she finished.

Before Skye could ask about anything, Maevis ducked behind her neck; hiding herself within the princess’ hair. Mae was shifting around Skye ‘s shoulders when she heard Tidas say her name. In a bit of a panic, she whipped her head up and spoke hastily.

“What?! Ima here! Ima ready!”

As the three looked at her strangely, Skye could feel her cheeks flush. She whispered in a low voice about how bad of an idea it all was, and that if they got caught, she was going to pluck Maevis’ wings off. Hearing her empty threat, the old Fae attempted to reassure her.

“Oh, come on now! I bet we’ll have fun! Just avoid any situation that someone might touch your neck area,” Maevis patted the side of Skye’s head after she finished whispering.

Skye strained to keep he volume in check, but not her sarcasm; “Great! Because it’s not like me husband has a habit of doing that or anything..”

Right as Skye finished her jab, Tidas asked if she was sure she was ready. She smoothed out some non-existent wrinkles from her dress, then walked over to say goodbye to Marie. She was careful to put her arms up high, forcing Marie to hug her lower. It was a little awkward because she was taller than Skye, but neither said anything out loud.

When they said farewell to Nicolas, Tidas had asked where Maevis had gone off to. He’d instantly responded by saying the bathroom in a testy tone. He felt agitated that Maevis had put him on the spot like she had. Not noticing his tone, Tidas asked the elder Fae to bid her farewell for them, then shuffled his wife and Peggy out the door.

As they went down the hallway, Skye stopped Peggy and asked where she’d put Zazzy. She hadn’t paid attention to much once Karena had gotten ahold of her ear earlier. She didn’t want to tell the crowned couple at all, but they were bound to find out soon anyway. In truth; Skye would’ve been shocked if Marco didn’t know already. Magnus trusted him more than anyone Skye knew of; even Tidas. Although, she wasn’t sure about Marie.

As Skye became lost in her thoughts, Tidas watched her from the other side of the carriage. She’d been acting strangely since they’d left his aunt’s quarters. She was hesitant to lock arms with him, and had instantly putting her cloak on and mostly up. She also refused to sit next to him in the carriage. When he’d attempted it anyway, she’d moved to the other side.

They’d gone back and forth a few times before Skye had curtly said; “What are ye doing?! I just want to sit by me self for once!”

With confusion and a touch of hurt in his expression, Tidas asked; “I’m sorry, but did I anger you at some point? Or are you just sick of me already?”

Instantly feeling regret, Skye apologized; “Ima sorry, love.. I just don’t want ye touching me hair; Or! Or me dress.. I want to look presentable, when the king presents me to the people. And you, husband, tend to have roaming hands.”

Tidas dawned an inquisitive look before smirking; “Am I that obvious?”

Giggling, Skye retorted; “Aye, husband.. Plain as day.”

The two spent the rest of their ride chatting, throwing in innuendo at each other whenever they could. A few times, Tidas swore Skye was going to get up and come sit by him, but she always stayed seated. He was beginning to worry, so he tapped into his trait. He wanted to hear her heartbeat and listen to her breathing rhythm. When he heard a smaller, more rapid heartbeat, he’d nearly choked on air, thinking a moment that she was pregnant. But the pace and placement were wrong, and that’s when Tidas realized that there were two separate magics coming from Skye.

Already knowing which one it was, Tidas asked flatly; “So, are you and Maevis going to look around a bit, or just go straight to the balcony where my father is?”

Skye froze in place. ‘How the Bloody Hell did he know?! Ima sure Mae stayed out of sight!’

As Skye stared blankly at her husband, Maevis popped her head out; “Damn, laddie! How’d you know? Skye has similar magic to me.”

Tidas grinned; “Well, anyone else might not notice, but Skye is my wife. I’d know her magic anywhere.. Plus, it’s not as similar as you think. Skye’s first trait was water. Her magic has a.. coolness to it, I guess. It’s hard to describe.”

Skye quirked an eyebrow; “What do you mean? You sense other magic users?”

Maevis came out from behind Skye’s hair, sat on her shoulder, and answered; “Most can, just not specifics. Everyone senses magic differently, though.. If you’re in tune with magic enough, you can tell by focusing for a period of time. For me, different Magic’s have different smells. From how he spoke of it; Tidas senses magics through sensation. There’s even people that can communicate with magic. Well, if they have an empathic predisposition, like Aero.”

Skye thought for a minute about the mages she knew, and about her own powers. She recalled the feeling she’d gotten when trying to distinguish her powers back in Warrick Forest. The cool rush of her Water magic, and the warm pain from her Shaman trait. But when she’d used her Earth magic, she’d smelt it. When she asked what it meant to interpret the different magics in such a way, Maevis explained.

“Aero has a greater connection to the Source of all magic than anyone else I’ve ever met. How you just described sensing magic is akin to how he does it.. That means you have a strong link to the Source as well.. Which worries me.”

Concern written all over his face, Tidas asked; “Why? That’s a good thing, right? Maybe that explains why she has so many traits.. Maybe she’s not the Catalyst after all? Maybe a he’s just gifted like Aero?”

Rubbing her hands together in angst, Maevis replied; “I’m afraid it’s the opposite, dear.. I’ve Never heard of a human having such a connection before, only Fae. And that’s because that’s where we come from.. This is just further proof that Skye is the Catalyst..”