In the next several days, despite her best efforts, Clara found neither Yukiya, his wolf, nor the strange beast. Inquiries around town were met with confused and sometimes sly looks.
"Is he your boyfriend?" Fran, the baker's daughter, asked eagerly.
"N-no!" Clara gasped, face flaming, and then she didn't ask any more people. Animals would be more understanding – or so she thought.
"Is it like that?" Nellie the cow mused, her calf dozing at her side. "Are you finding someone to have a little one with?"
"There there…it's okay if you can't find him. You can still do it without the man!" a hen encouraged, while Clara shook her head furiously.
"Boyfriend! Boyfriend!" a robin sang.
"Boyfriend! Boyfriend!" a cuckoo imitated.
Clara hoped beyond hope that Yukiya didn't share her ability to understand animals, because it seemed the entire animal kingdom had decided that she was spoken for.
It still gave her no real leads on finding him, but the dogs she asked claimed that his scent lingered strongly, which made her wonder if he were closer than she thought.
Mildred the golden retriever licked her chops. "I always visit the people that leave me treats," she said, looking hopeful. Clara took the hint and gave her an extra biscuit. The dog had a point. Yukiya had looked rather thin…if he was traveling, he must not be eating too well, though it was clearly not from his lack of cooking skill.
So Clara began to leave wrapped sandwiches outside her back door, along with the occasional bone for Wolfy. And sweets – her lime white chocolate chip cookies, or blueberry muffins, or a little box of homemade macarons in assorted colors. She left them on her back doorstep each evening, and each morning they were gone. It made her smile.
On the fourth night she decided to stay up and wait for him. She sat outside on her back porch as the night grew darker, talking to an owl until the bird flew away to look for mice, and then lay, half-dozing, half-imagining shapes in the stars. Suddenly a shooting star appeared, fleet and bright, and Clara gasped, jolting awake. Closing her eyes, she wished, very hard – I wish Yukiya would appear again!
And when she opened her eyes again, there he was.
"Yukiya," she called, and her heart was suffused by such sudden gladness that she was momentarily confused by her own reaction.
"Why aren't you in bed?"
"Cause I was waiting for you." Clara yawned. "I knew you'd come! I made you some mushroom stew." She held out the bowl, which she'd wrapped in thick cloth to keep warm.
Yukiya hesitated for a moment, and then accepted the bowl. He began to eat the stew, slowly, as if thinking through each bite.
"How is it?" Clara asked.
"…Good."
Clara beamed.
She sat in silence as he ate, feeling utterly content. He was expressionless as usual, but she could tell that he enjoyed the food, the way he breathed deeply between spoonfuls to savor the aroma, and how he scraped at the bottom of the bowl with his spoon to capture every drop. Finally, he set the bowl aside.
"Where's Wolfy?"
"I don't know."
"Oh." They didn't seem to have a typical wizard-familiar relationship. Without thinking, she blurted out, "Where do you sleep at night, Yukiya?"
Yukiya gazed at her quizzically, and suddenly Clara flushed. "I-I didn't mean…I just wondered…" she trailed off, her ears hot.
"…there's a cave." Yukiya shrugged. "Not far away."
"Oh!" Clara instantly knew the one he was referring to. In fact she'd hidden there often as a child. Of course, she thought to herself. Why didn't I look there? But why is he staying there? Didn't he say he was traveling?
"It can't be comfortable in the cave," Clara murmured. "Is there a bed inside?"
"…No."
Clara frowned. "Are you sleeping on the ground?"
"It's okay." Yukiya turned away from her. "Stop worrying about it."
"B-But…" Clara trailed off. "Why won't you let me help?"
He sat silently, not answering. Clara was about to speak again when Yukiya suddenly turned about. "Why?"
"H-huh?"
"Why are you trying to help me? I told you, I'm bad news."
Clara frowned indignantly. "Yukiya, you're a nice person! You saved me, and made me soup. Bad people don't do that."
"It's…" Yukiya hesitated. "I'm…cursed."
Cursed… Clara blinked. Someone had cursed Yukiya? I knew he wasn't a bad person, she thought triumphantly. It's something out of his control. But then, why does he avoid people?
"That doesn't matter to me," she replied, confused.
"If you stay around me…you might be cursed too."
"W-what?" Clara blinked. Were curses contagious? She'd never heard of such a thing, and she frowned. "No way!"
Yukiya said nothing, looking down at the ground. Clara thought she saw his fists clench.
"I don't believe it," Clara declared. "Have you ever cursed anyone else?"
"You fell into the river," he reminded her.
"W-well, that had nothing to do with you! You weren't even there!" Yukiya opened his mouth, as if to protest – but then suddenly seemed to stop himself. Clara continued triumphantly. "And anyway, you saved me, and I'm okay, right? I'm tough! I can take it."
"Clara…"
"I haven't gotten sick in years!" She grinned cheekily. "I'm not scared of your curse, Yukiya."
"You're the first person that's ever said that to me," he muttered, and this time she could hear the disbelief in every word.
Her heart clenched. Had it really been this way for Yukiya? Had no one accepted him for that reason? How terrible…
"Well you're stuck with me now," Clara declared. "So don't just disappear again, okay?"
Yukiya stared at her, his one visible eye wide with surprise. Clara let herself gaze back at him. He was really very handsome, she thought, his even features illuminated by the moon. And very tall and broad and… Feeling very small and shy, Clara blushed and glanced away, looking for another topic.
"I need your help anyway," she added. "I still need you to help me with magic."
Yukiya let out a nearly inaudible sigh, but she could sense the tension return to his body. "You want to get into Gedonelune Royal Magic Academy that bad, huh."
"Yeah. I've always wanted to, ever since I realized I could use magic," Clara recalled. "That way, I can be a really great wizardess."
"Magic isn't always used for good."
"H-huh?" Clara's head swiveled, and she stared back at Yukiya. He was looking away again, but his voice… It had taken on an even flatter quality, and she knew he was unhappy.
"Magic can be used to hurt people. Magic is…a curse."
"W-what – " Clara gasped. It was something she'd never even considered, that someone should use their gift for harm. After a moment, she ventured in a small voice, "I don't want to hurt people with magic." She looked back towards the road that led down to the village, smiling wistfully. "I just want to make people happy. To put smiles on their faces. That's all."
In the uncomfortable silence that followed, it was as if Clara could feel her heartbeat in her ears, louder and louder. What did he mean? Magic is a curse? She'd never thought about it that way before. Magic was a blessing. It allowed her to do something that others couldn't, even if she was a pathetic novice wizardess who couldn't even levitate a jug of water.
She wondered what she sounded like to Yukiya, who'd clearly been trained, and who'd probably seen more in his wanderings than she had in an entire lifetime of living in this town. Probably foolish and idealistic. And she wondered if that was the way she sounded on her applications, too – offering nothing of value, no real talent, just a little girl's stubborn and undying dreams.
Maybe, she thought with a sinking heart, that was why she'd never gotten in.
"Fine."
Clara jolted. "H-Huh?"
"I'll help." He turned to her.
"What…" she blinked. Does he mean… "Y-You…you will?"
"I'll try."
She stared at him as it slowly sank in. "Y-Yukiya…" Suddenly, her heart felt as light and joyful as a bird, and she laughed aloud. Jumping up, she moved over to grab his hands. "Thank you Yukiya!" She squeezed them. "Thank you! I'm so happy right now!"
Yukiya glanced downwards, and then looked back up at her.
"Hmm? Is there something wrong?" she asked.
"…Your hands."
"Oh!" Blushing fiercely, she let go of him. "S-sorry!" But her embarrassment did nothing to dampen her elation, and she couldn't help but skip in a circle on the grass, still grinning in joy.
Then she came back and grabbed his hand again, beginning to tug him towards the house.
"Come on!" she giggled. "I made more cookies. We can eat them. And then…we can start!"
"Clara." His calm, steady voice finally penetrated the haze of her joy. "It's nearly midnight."
"…Oh."
"We'll start with your magic tomorrow. You need to rest." Then he hesitated. "I'd like a cookie though."
Clara beamed. "Of course!"
Between the two of them, they shared the whole batch.
The next day, Yukiya knocked softly on her door, and they sat down together to begin magic lessons. Clara felt halfway between eagerness and trepidation. She knew her magic was a failure – but to demonstrate it to him meant that she had to fail in front of him, just so that she could help her.
"Why don't you try to levitate that water jug?" Yukiya gestured, and Clara winced.
"Um, I'll try..." She took a breath, pointed her wand, and chanted. "O power that resides within, lift that water jug and bring it to me. Levis Pullma!" To her surprise, a beam of light burst forth from her wand and encircled the jug. Clara's concentration faltered. "Did it….work?"
Immediately the beam of light disappeared, and the jug sprouted butterfly wings, and lifted off. Clara groaned, and began to chase after it, grateful that at least this time, it wasn't laughing at her.
It was embarrassing. It was one thing to chase a water jug come to life when she was alone, but in front of Yukiya…
He quickly spared her further mortification, once it was clear that the jug was not going to cooperate. "I command thee to return to thine true form! Supasaman Mundi!"
With a zap, the jug reverted to its nonliving form and dropped into Clara's waiting arms. Simultaneously, Yukiya flinched, his hand instinctively moving towards his covered eye. Clara blinked. What's wrong with his eye?
But in a moment, Yukiya had shaken it off, and was gesturing for her to return. "Why don't you try to summon water into the jug instead?"
"Ummm… okay." Again, Clara closed her eyes and pointed her wand. As she spoke the words hesitantly, she began to wonder if this had been a bad idea after all. It's too embarrassing to have him watch me. And then her wand glowed blue with the water spell, and the magical energy poured into the jug.
They peered into it at the same time. And then suddenly…
"Ribbit!" The beady eyes of a fat green frog peeked out at them.
"Ugh!" Clara's cheek's flamed. Utterly humiliated, she felt tears start to prickle in her eyes. She peeked over at Yukiya, expecting to see some form of frustration, or disgust.
Instead, Yukiya put his palm out to the frog. Clara blinked. Was he…smiling? It was almost nothing…but she swore she saw a tiny hint of a smile.
The frog hopped trustingly into Yukiya's hand with a chirp. "Wow," Clara murmured. "You like him?"
Yukiya shrugged. "You made him." Clara blinked, wondering what he meant by that, when Yukiya stood up. "Let's take him over to the river."
The happy frog gave a chirrup of thanks before splashing off into the water. Yukiya sat down by the riverbank, in a patch of grass, laying down in the shade of a tree.
"Um, Y-Yukiya?"
"Hmm?"
"What about the lesson?"
"Lesson?"
Clara stared. Had he already forgotten? Yukiya…sometimes it's like you're off in another world… For some reason, instead of feeling offended, she only felt a mild bemusement.
"The magic lesson," she reminded him gently.
"Oh. Right." Yukiya sat up. "When you're casting a spell…what are you thinking about?"
"T-thinking about?" Clara frowned. "Nothing at all, really." Most of the time she just cast, and then hoped.
Yukiya reached down and plucked a dandelion flower from the ground. He held it out to her.
"Try to visualize the result of the spell when you cast," he instructed quietly as she took the flower. "Close your eyes, concentrate, and visualize what you want to happen…and then cast the spell."
"O-okay…" Clara gave the flower's tiny yellow petals a nervous stroke before she took out her wand. Laying the flower down on the grass, she pointed the wand at it.
Then she closed her eyes, and began to picture it gently wafting in the breeze. It was a beautiful day, the grass soft and vibrant, the river babbling kindly in the background, and the occasional breeze settling warm upon her skin. On this type of day, she imagined, the dandelion would float gently in the wind, like a feather on the water. Effortlessly. Peacefully.
And she as spoke the words of the incantation, she felt suffused with that peace, here under the warm sun, on a beautiful day, with Yukiya by her side.
"Look," Yukiya prompted.
She opened her eyes. And the flower was floating before her, wavering slightly in the air, just as she'd imagined.
"I did it!" she cheered, and it promptly fell to the ground. "Aww…"
"It's a good start," Yukiya said, eyes narrowing approvingly. "I knew you could do it."
"Thanks, Yukiya. I…um…" Clara turned to face him, and suddenly was at a loss for words. He was watching at her intently, gaze focused on her face. As she watched, the focus of his gaze drifted, from her eyes to her nose to her mouth, where it stayed for a few moments. Coloring, she dropped her gaze and looked away, unsettled by how she suddenly felt. Her heart was suddenly beating so hard and quickly that she wondered if he could hear it.
To her relief, Yukiya recovered first and stood, gesturing back in the direction of her home. "We'll practice more when we're back," he said, and she could do nothing but nod in acquiescence and follow.
In the days that followed, they continued. Yukiya would come in the morning and share breakfast, sometimes bringing gifts that he'd collected in the wild. A little satchel filled with wild berries that Clara had sprinkled over pancakes, or a few yams that they later mashed and roasted with marshmallows. Wolfy would accompany him, and watch them judgmentally from the corner while he enjoyed gnawing on a bone.
Then Clara would see her morning patients, and Yukiya would return, and they'd work on magic together in the afternoons. He'd guide her for a while, and then leave her to practice while he busied himself outside. She'd emerge from her work to find that her garden had been newly weeded, or that a broken section of the fence had suddenly been fixed. One day she saw him installing a hummingbird feeder, carefully piping in sugar water, and she laughed in delight later that afternoon when the first jewel-toned visitors arrived, wings buzzing with excitement.
As the little birds cheerfully partook of the sugary offering, their voices high in excitement, Clara threw her arms around Yukiya and hugged him. And then, realizing what she was doing, she jerked back, blushing hotly and apologizing. Turned away bashfully, she didn't see the longing in Yukiya's eyes, and perhaps she would not have recognized it.
All she knew was that she was inexplicably, wonderfully, helplessly drawn to him. And she was terrified of the day he would disappear.
