Chapter 3: Chapter Three: Learning Magic
It took another year before Lumere and Bella and the other parents agreed to let the children, particularly Celeste, start learning magic. While they couldn't do element specific magic until they attended the coming of age ceremony held at 10 years old at the temple, they could learn non-element generic magic such as household magic before then. Celeste was a little jealous that most of the boys only had another year to go before they could attend the coming of age ceremony. Well, Chris had two years since he was a year younger than the others. Although that also meant she only had another year or two of tolerating them before they had to attend school as well.
The first several lessons on magic had involved the children learning to gather and release the mana inside themselves. The idea behind it was to get the children used to the feel of their magic, learn to gather it quickly and in gathering only the specific amount of mana needed for each spell without using too much of their magic.
Today's lesson involved actual household magic. The first actual spell they would be taught. Celeste and the boys were currently learning a cleanliness spell. The spell was usually used to clean clothing or a person's body when travelling or in a situation where there was no access to water for bathing. They were currently focusing on cleaning a pile of dirty laundry hanging on the washing line that George had requested from the maids.
Celeste could already imagine different applications for it such as after her morning runs around the outside of the mansion that she'd resumed a couple of months ago. Her mother and the maids had appeared scandalised at it, although her father seemed to approve of it. Chris was happy enough to join her in them so the pair could often be seen racing laps around the mansion before breakfast.
Celeste had already discussed with her father about the possibility of starting weapons training as a form of self-defence and Lumere viewed her running as a way of establishing stamina and strength in her body to prepare for it. He had also assigned her a suitable work out to help her in preparing for her coming weapons training.
Focusing on the dirty bed sheet hanging in front of her, Celeste gathered a small amount of her mana quickly and aimed it at the sheet. She imagined what she wanted done with her magic. 'Spotless bright white as if it were new. Fresh with the scent of lavender. Soft. Warm from the sun. Dry. Just like mum's sheets fresh from the line on washing day.' Celeste smiled at the memory from her old life.
"Cleanse."
A wave of shimmery silver mana swarmed over the bed sheet in front of her. The once dirty bed sheet now looked fresh and clean and practically like new. A soft lavender scent drifted from it in the gentle breeze.
The boys had stopped focusing on their own bed sheets the minute her spell had activated and looked on in wonder. Celeste was the first of them to get the spell to work. George inspected Celeste's sheet. 'Amazing. It looks brand new... And what is this scent? Lavender? How'd she imbue a scent into a cleanliness spell? It's warm? And soft? Much softer than they would have been brand new.'
George waved for a maid to collect the sheet and change it for the next one. "Well done Celeste. Excellent work."
The maid, Betty, reached up to pull the sheet off the line only to let go and grasp her mouth in surprise. "Oh my goodness miss! This is even better than when it was first brought and it smells so nice!"
Celeste tilted her head in confusion. "Is that not how the spell usually works?"
"Not usually miss! But this is even better. Can you tell me how you imagined it cleaning? I'd like to learn it myself so I can teach the other maids."
"Um, OK? I just imagined what the sheet's colour would be like new. Then what the effect would be like if it had been washed with a lavender soap and a fabric softener and dried in the sun?"
The boys who were listening to Betty and Celeste's conversation tried to imagine what she did, gathered their mana and activated the spell on their own sheets.
" " " "Cleanse." " " "
Waves of gold, blue, red and green mana flowed over the bed sheets leaving fresh, warm, dry sheets with a faint lavender scent drifting from them. They looked back to George, Celeste and Betty with pride on their faces. Celeste and Betty clapped for them.
"Well done boys. Now let's keep practicing with the rest of the sheets." George praised them and quickly set them back to work.
Betty quickly took the clean sheets and set up the next ones for them to practice. Soon, George had to request the aid of other maids to keep up with the demand as the five children got faster at activating the spell as they practised.
Eventually, Celeste got bored of doing the spell one sheet at a time and turned to the basket full of dirty next to her, putting up a hand to stop Betty from swapping the now clean sheet for another dirty one. She imagined the spell doing the same thing to the basket full of dirty sheets as it did to the single one on the line.
"Cleanse."
Her silver mana flowed through the basket and left clean lavender scented sheets in it's place. Betty and George were quick to examine the basket.
"It's all clean. All exactly like the individual sheets." Betty confirmed.
"Well done Celeste. How do you feel? Are you feeling tired or drained? How does your mana feel?"
Celeste shrugged her shoulders. "I feel fine. Plenty of mana left. This spell doesn't exactly use a lot."
The boys who had been watching tried to copy Celeste and clean their baskets all at once. As their mana flowed over their baskets, the maids each confirmed the success of their spell.
George nodded and clapped his hands once. " Very well then. We'll end the lesson here. Take some time to rest and let your mana recover. Have lunch and we'll get on with your other lessons this afternoon. We'll learn a new spell tomorrow."
The boys cheered before dragging Celeste off to the flower garden that was usually set up for lunch. Prince Theodore stopping only long enough to pull Celeste hands out of Peter's and Hughes' and lift her in a princess carry before running off with her. The other two boys yelling "unfair" along with Chris yelling "stupid bug" behind them.
"I can run by myself, Theo." Celeste's sulky voice snarked into his ear.
The combination of her breath and his name sent a wave of light pink across his cheeks and he tightened his arms around her. It had taken him several months of teasing, blackmail and begging to get her to drop his title and call him Theo like the others.
"Where's the fun in that?" Prince Theodore replied. He was the fastest boy of the four of them, even when carrying Celeste. He enjoyed the few minutes of extra time he got with her to himself before the others came. While he tolerated the others flirting with her, as far as he was concerned, she belonged to him. Sitting down in a chair at the garden table with Celeste across his lap, he refused to release her.
"This is not appropriate behaviour to someone who is not your fiance." Celeste glared at him. Her arms were folded across her chest.
"Yet." Prince Theodore replied.
"What?" Celeste asked shocked, dropping her arms into her lap.
"My parents are negotiating with yours about a formal engagement between us."
"Why? Surely there are other more suitable girls for your highness to engage to?"
"Because I asked them to. I don't want to marry any other girl but you. So when they asked if I had preference of who they should engage me to, I requested you."
Prince Theodore raised a hand to stroke a loose strand of her hair. It was styled very similar to how it was the first time they had met although it was half way down her back now and not across her shoulders. He lifted it up to his lips, placing a soft kiss on it as he stared into Celeste's confused eyes.
"You're a Duke's daughter, so your status is sufficient. You're intelligent, beautiful, witty and capable. I have never been bored in your presence unlike the other girls that I've had to socialise with. You get along well with my friends, even if I have to tolerate them flirting with you. Most of all, being with you makes me happy." '... and because I'm in love with you.' Although Prince Theodore couldn't tell Celeste of that particular reason just yet.
Celeste could only stare back at Prince Theodore. "I see... Then... If my parents agree to it, I won't contest the engagement."
Prince Theodore smiled back at her in happiness. He had all the time in the world to make her fall in love with him though he wanted this engagement settled before Celeste had to debut into society at the age of 8. He planned to stake his claim on her before the other bugs could learn of her existence.
"Hey, no fair! Share! You've had plenty of time with Celeste. It's our turn now!" Peter's voice huffed from the side.
A pair of bronze arms pulled Celeste off of Prince Theodore's lap, despite his reluctance to let go, and on to his own lap. Peter's long red hair tickled Celeste's neck as he held her. He nuzzled his face into her hair while Prince Theodore looked on resigned.
Celeste gave up fighting it when a pale pair of arms stole her again from him and placed her on Hughes lap. Hughes long white hair was thankfully tied back although his emerald green eyes glinted in amusement at Peter's pouting face as he wrapped his arms tightly around Celeste's waist.
"Brother, help me please." Celeste pleaded to her grumpy looking brother. Chris was quick to pull her out of Hughes arms and into his own. Only then did he smile.
" " "Sis-con!" " " The other three boys teased.
Chris merely smirked back at them. "What of it?"
They all laughed. The joke was nothing new.
Celeste looked back at Prince Theodore as she finally sat in her own chair. "Do the others know?"
"Know what?" Hughes replied as he grabbed a soft roll from a plate on the table that the maids had just placed down
"About the discussions for my engagement to Celeste." Prince Theodore answered as he bit into a biscuit.
"Ah... Yeah, we know. Theo discussed it with us ages ago. We're only allowing it because he's a prince though." Peter acknowledged picking up a slice of fruit.
"If it has to be anyone then only Theo would suffice. We'd fight anyone else who tried." Chris confirmed.
"So, in other words, you four discussed my engagement amongst yourselves without asking the opinion of the girl in question?" Celeste's voice was icy. She wasn't amused at being treated like an object. The boys all shivered at her tone.
"Sorry, little sister, but you are important to us and we can't let just anyone have you." Chris tried to soothe her. He stroked her head gently.
Celeste looked into the eyes of each of the boys one by one. Lilac, gold, emerald and bronze eyes stared back at her in turn. She sighed and picked up a small sandwich. "I understand. Does this mean that Peter and Hughes will stop teasing me now?"
"Heck no!" Hughes laughed. "Even if you are engaged to Theo, he still needs to share you with us. That was the agreement."
"Urgh!" Celeste gave up and concentrated on her lunch instead.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone