Author's Note:(): thinking to themselves
In the city of Chammur Briar Moss and his teacher Dedicate Rosethorn of Winding Circle Temple in Emelean are unloading their tools from their mounts, and are moving them inside of the house next to the Earth Temple. "So let me get this straight we're going to say here while you work on the farms in the east south and west?" asks Briar Moss. "Yes,that and we're going to meet an old friends pupil who is just like you and the girls, but more like you I think."Rosethorn replies. "Like me?And the girls?Like how?"Briar questioned doubting that anyone could be like him let alone his foster-sisters. "He's a recognized mage just like you four, he didn't know that he had magic just like you four, and he has a past very similar to yours but unlike you he refuses to tell anyone where he is from."Rosethorn replies a bit annoyed. "Sounds familiar," Briar said amused, "Whats his name?" "Mashu ,and he calls himself a mizu mage whatever that is." she replied handing him the last plant from their load. "Mashu wake up!" calls a voice that had the gruffness of age. "Reiki,I've been up since dawn." Mashu calls back walking down the stairs to greet his teacher. "Then can you please make some of your oishii food we're expecting guests and you know I can't cook." Reiki replies just alittle frantic. "Zasu don't go mental on me ok I'll just make a quick and easy meal"says Mashu walking to the kitchenBesides cooking makes me feel more at home back at the Manor with my sisters. Just then Reiki hears knocking on the door and opens it to find Rosethorn and her pupil on his door step smily warmly at him. "Hello Reiki you look well." Rosethorn says warmly. "You too," Reiki replies noticing Briar,"and this must be your student." "Yes sir." Briar replie putting those four years worth of manners trainning to good use."Please no need to be so formal I want to get to know the real you." says Reiki chuckling softly. "I smell something good, whose working the kitchen?" Briar asks. "Ask nicely."says Rosethorn chiding him. "That would be my student,Mashu can you come out here for a minute."Reiki calls. "If that food burns your a dead man."Mashu says walking out of the kitchen to greet their guest,"Hi I'm Mashu and you must be Briar and Rosthorn.I'm glad that you came instead of that baka Crane, we have a bit of a arguement going on between us." "Thats an understatement you froze him to the ground."Reiki said trying to hide his amusement at the memory. "Oh really thanks for that little bit of information we could use the next time he gets too big for his breeches." Rosethorn replies amused.
"How did you freeze him to the ground?"Briar asks. "I'm a mizu mage,I work with water its a really great help in a fight I could use it for attacking and defending." Mashu replies sniffing the air."The food is done.If it taste bad its Reiki's fault for calling me away." and with that he gets up and heads to the kitchen to fetch the food. "I like him reminds me of Briar." says Rosethorn approvingly. "I'm impressed anyone who can do that to Crane has to be good."Briar said imagining Crane frozen to the ground."Yes he's a good boy, but I assume you felt it too?"Reiki asked. "Yes, He has a lot more power then he's letting on. "Rosethorn replies."I think he can see magic.Did you see he reaction when he walked in?He was stunned and just stood there for a second." said Briar getting up and walking to the kitchen,"I'm going to go help him." Maybe I can get him to open up to me? Mashu is in the kitchen making sure that the honey didn't offset the tea's natural flavor when he senses someone coming realizing it was Briar he went to to putting the finishing touches on their meal. "You sure know your way around a kitchen."Briar said from the door way. "Yeah my sister Piper.." Mashu falls silent suddenly hurt and homesick. "You have sisters?" Briar asked. "Yeah, I have three sisters I miss them but cooking helps me feel closer to them." Mashu replies pulling out two food trays. "I have three sisters too they can be a handful can't they?" Briar asked testing him to see if he would answer. "Yeah, but they were all I had and then Zan...um I really should get this food out there."Mashu replies nervously picking up the trays and heading out to the living area.I have to be more careful that was way two close.Why do I feel comfortable around him? Reiki smells Mashu's cooking coming his way and his mouth starts to water. "Is the boys cooking that good?" Rosethorn asks surprised. "Yes, especially what he made today he calls it..."Reiki starts to say but is cut off by Mashu. "Kim-bob, jasmine tea with honey, and sweet dumplings." says Mashu setting down the two trays. "Kim-bob?" Rosethorn and Briar ask skeptically. "Its cooked seaweed wrapped around rice, vegetables and beef, and its good for you." Mashu says picking up one and putting it in his mouth. "Briar you first." Rosethorn says nervously. "Why does Lakik hate me?" Briar asked picking up one and taking a bite and his mouth explodes with flavor."And the trickster loses cause this tastes great." "I told you." Mashu says in a sing-song voice. "You should have seen Reiki the first time he tried it he used all his strength to remain consciousness and to not eat the whole plate." "I vaguely re-call that." Reiki said with dignity. "You almost passed out?Well, I can't say that this would be the first time." Rosethorn said amused.Reiki the clears his throat to end the conversation. "Mashu why don't you show Briar around Chammur." he says. "If you want us gone then just so I just need to get something first." Mashu said going upstairs to grab his potions, kunai, and his mother's triqetra amulet as he touched the amulet he had a premonition of his mother putting it on him with her last breath and saying,"Blessed be my darling and be good for Grams and your sisters." and then Briar's voice snapped Mashu back to the real world ."Mashu, you ready?" Briar asked. "Uh..yeah I'm coming." Mashu says with a sigh of sorrow while wiping the tears from his eyes and walking down stairs."We'll be back later bye."Briar calls as he and Mashu walk out the door. "So how many weapons do you have?" Mashu asked Briar quietly. "Nine so you were getting weapons upstairs?"Briar asked only noticing to oddly shaped knives. "Yeah among other things."Mashu replies stopping at a vendor to get a water pouch and then after he buys it he dips it in a fountain so it'll have plenty of water.
When they got to the entrance to of Golden House the guards stopped them and after only briefly checking Briar's hands because of the vines on them they were sent on their way.After walking half-way through Golden House they noticed a glow a magic coming from a stone vendor's booth where a scruffy-looking girl was picking through a bowl of tiger-eye, as she rubbed the stone silver light flowered, then faded to ember-strength. "Say kid how do you do it?" Briar asked his curiosity getting the better of him,"Make their magic light up like that?". The girl turned to face them and looked at them quizitivly. "It's alright we're mages too.So what do you call to the magic already in them orjust lay a charm on them." Mashu aksed while he and Briar smile warmly trying to show the girl that they mean her no harm.The girl looks at them both and returns theirs smiles but then takes off."Evvy is no thief."snapped the shopkeeper angrily."We never said she was."Mashu said in their defense."Then what did you say to her cause she ran off and she'd barely started." The shopkeeper said glaring at the two of them."They said she had magic Nahim."calls a neighboring vendor. "Shut up women!If she was a mage then she would be living like she is shining stones for a few coppers." Nahim calls back."The only reason you keep her around is because you realized that the stones that she shines sell faster." the woman replies."So she doesn't know that she has magic?"Mashu asked Nahim ending the arguement. "I guess not all I know is that the stones that she shines sell faster and I can asks a higher price for them." Nahim replied."The only reason people pay so much for them is because the have magic in them." Briar said."Well then maybe you should come back tomorrow after shes done shining the stones to talk to her." Nahim said turning away from them and tending to a costumer ending the conversation."Well isn't that great we go out for a stroll and find a new mage who doesn't know that she has magic this sounds very familiar." Briar says alittle annoyed. "We'll just have to find her and teach her the basics before we find her a stone mage teacher." Mashu replies. "Eknubs!" a voice calls from behind them.They turn around to find the source of the voice and see a black youth a little older then themselves walking toward them with a girl at his side, they both wore a bronze-colored nose-ring with a garnet drop."We want to talk to you about somethings." says a short female on their right also wearing the nose-ring with a garnet drop."This could be bad."Mashu says."Yeah we might not be able to talk our way out of this one."Briar replies as they both let the hilts of the wrist knive fall into their palms. "Who are you and what business have you in viper territory?" asks the black youth that stopped them. "No business just taking a walk through the souk seeing the wares that they offer." Briar replied cooly. "Really from looks of things your just a dog looks for somethings to take,and we don't appreciate that."he replied taking a step closer as the other vipers followed his example. "Who are you I know the gangs of Chammur and your not wearing any of those marks?" Mashu asked wondering if they were really a gang or just thieves. "We are the Vipers the new power rising in the streets of Chammur." said the short female on his right,"And we're gonna teach you to respect us.".As she says this all the vipers look as if their about to strike pulling out knives from their belt-loops. "Fine you wanna dance?"Mashu asks as he and Briar set their weapons up right and get ready to defend themselves."Try to keep up." and with that the battle is begun.Mashu and Briar are fight with all their might to fend off the vipers attacks and end up knocking-out a few when Mashu gets grabbed from behind and has a knife press to his throat."Drop your weapons or he dies." say the viper that grabbed him. "Ok I''ll dop them."Briar replies looking at Mashu who looks like he's knocked-out."Idiot,how did he get himself...huh?"Briar sees the viper that grabbed Mashu getting beat over the head by Mashu! "GHOST!"yells the viper as he runs off and Mashu wakes up. "Thats what you get for grabbing me you idiot."Mashu says as he turns to face Briar."You didn't see anything did you?" "What the hell is going on here?"Briar asks surprised."Not here lets go someone else where we can talk in private."Mashu says looking around making sure no one else saw him astral project. "Why should I go anywhere with you you lied to me and said that your a water mage so how can I trust you?"Briar asked stepping away from him.
"Look just follow me and I'll explain everything but we can't stay here the watch might be here any second and how are we going to explian how we beat all these people?"Mashu asked walking away. Briar thinks about this for awhile.(He does have a point and I don't really feel like dealing with the watch anyway, besides if he does anything to try and hurt me I'm most likely fatser then he is.)"Fine I'll go but you better have a good explaination for this."Briar replied following him.The walk to one of the many alleys in Chammur where they would be safe from the listening ears of the street."Start talking."Briar demands. "Ok fine the true of the matter is that I'm not a mage I'm a witch with alt more powers then bending water, wht you saw me do back there was called astral projecting it allows me to be two places at once."Mashu says. "Yeah right and I can make the sky go black now what's really going on here?"Briar asked again not believing a word he had said. "You need a demonstration, fine.Knives!"Mashu calls and all nine of Briar's knives appear in a swirl of white lights in the palms of Mashu's hands,"Return!" The knives are surrounded by another swirl of white lights in to the hidden places Briar had kept them. "How did you know where I hid my knives?" Briar asked dumbstruck. "I didn't I just visualize knives and call for them and they appear into my outstretched hands."Mashu says looking at him, "Is that enough proof for you?" "Almost can you really freeze things or was that another lie?"Briar asked not sure that Mashu was even a water mage. "I can freeze things thats easy."Mashu replies bending the water from his pouch onto the ground and freezing it then re-calling it back into his pouch. "Ok so your not a water mage because I watched you and there was no magic coming from you when you did that,so what are you?"Briar asked. "You sure are noisy aren't you? I already told you that I'm a witch."Mashu replied."So your not a mage but you have magic?"Briar asked trying to figure everything out."Yeah I guess you can say that but I can do magic."Mashu replies twirling his kunai on his finger."So are those all your powers?"Briar asked. "No I have alot of other power but they can wait for another time right now lets go home and get something to eat."Mashu says tucking his kunai back into it's place and getting up to walk home."Yeah ok lets go home.Rosethorn is going to flip when I tell her about this."he replied. "You can't tell her."Mashu says."Why not she has a right to know she should have you stripped of your certification and send you back school."Briar replied heatedly."Listen here I may not be a mage like I said I was but that doesn't change the fact that I passed the certification exam I know how to control my emotions along with my powers so I have earned my certification."Mashu said cooly with fire in his eyes.
"I wonder when their going to come home?" Reiki wonders outloud."Their close they'll be here any minute." Rosethorn sensing them coming toward the house.Surely enough Reiki soon heard Mashu's voice coming closer but he sounded angry about something."Oh no Mashu is angry about something I wonder what happened?" Reiki asks. "It's mostly a disagree between boys well you can ask him yourself he's at the door." Rosethorn opening the door to let the boys in."I told you I'm not going to do it your not even suppose to know but, I thought they had you so it was safe look just drop it I need to cook dinner." Mashu says walking toward the kitchen. "Mashu,Rosethorn already made dinner." Reiki says."Yes,I made lamb and dumplings." Rosethorn says looking at Briar with a look asking what happened? "Thanks Rosethorn but, I'm not really hungry.I'll just go up to my room and make some room for Briar and clear out the spare room for you." Mashu says walking up stairs. "Thank you but Reiki did that already." Rosethorn said setting a place for him at the table. "Who are Piper, Phoebe,Paige,and Prue?" Reiki asked. "People that I used to know.They were like my...wait.How do you know about them?"Mashu asked. "I found this book in the work room and it had those names in it along with yours." he replied hold out a little black book.(The mini Books of Shadows). "Yeah its mine its a book of potion ingredients." Mashu said taking the book."Rosethorn is there such a thing as stone mage?" Briar asks changing the subject."Yes there are stone mages like we are plant mages.Why do you ask?" Rosethorn replies. "We think that we found one in the souk."Briar replies and then he and Mashu tell the story of how they found the girl and saw her magic the stones.Meanwhile three of the vipers that had attacked Briar and Mashu arrive at an elegant home and are led through a servant's entrance and knelt with palms and heads to the floor while wait for Lady Zenadia doa Attaneh the viper's takameri or rich female to arrive so they may report that days activities.The lady walks out and is the perfect picture of wealth with a gold nose ring and a diamond drop with a chain connecting in with her earrings on one side.She wore gold colored cloth made of the finest material with the shoes to match and she had a green gem in-between her eye showing that she was a widow which is why she wore a veil in front of her male guests."Well, its nice to see my vipers with good news I trust." said they lady walking toward the couch set out for her. "No my lady I'm said to report bad news." the tall youth replied.This boy was dark in skin color and he had the built of a farmer's son tall for his fifteen years he was the leader or tesku of the vipers. "Come now Ikrum it can't be that bad so please tell me." the lady said cooly.Ikrum told the lady of the two pahan or mages that labeled the street girl as one of them and how they had been defeated by them both and how he saw Mashu astral project at this the lady interrupted, "Ikrum you wouldn't lie to me would you?" she asked. "No my lady of course not."Ikrum replied."So you are quite certain that you saw this boy in two places at once?" she asked. "Yes my lady I'm certain."he replied."Well, this is good news you were wise to report this to me.I have no interest in the other one but the girl and this boy you say can be in two places at once they may prove to be great assets to the Vipers.Tell my vipers to watch them both and seize the girl when they get the chance and send a message to the boy tomorrow that I wish to speak with him." the lady says her lip curling into a smile."They could be the people that take the vipers to the top make sure that they come here so I may offer them my services."