Just a quick little blurb. First, I am so sorry for the delay in updates. This chapter and I had some trouble, but we made it! Second, we are...knocking on some new doors here. If this chapter throws any of you off, please please please stick around. I swear I've got a plan that isn't completely batshit crazy or mary/gary sue. Third, a gigantic thank you for the continued support. You are all so awesome, and I'm so grateful for it.

As always,

Enjoy

~GhostDoor

"Don't be ashamed to weep; 'tis right to grieve. Tears are only water, and flowers, trees, and fruit cannot grow without water. But there must be sunlight also. A wounded heart will heal in time, and when it does, the memory and love of our lost ones is sealed inside to comfort us." Brian Jacques, Taggerung

Chapter 21

Life

August 1989

Ugh.

Monday.

Such a drag of a day.

Judy Wood sighed deeply, flicking a piece of crumpled parchment through her decorative quidditch goal posts, a late birthday gift from her kid brother. She was just so bored. When she had taken this position, a 'promotion' from her previous job in the mail room, she'd been under the impression she'd actually be doing something. The Meta-physical ward was supposed to see some of the most interesting cases in St. Mungo's.

Yet all she did was schedule appointments.

'Ten O'clock, on the Third. Yes, Miss Swan, Healer Wolff will be on time.'

'Healer Wolff is running a bit late today, Mr. Caldwell. I'm so sorry for the inconvenience.'

'You have to reschedule? Our only opening is three weeks out, will that be alright? O-of course, Mrs. Longbottom, I'll check for a closer date.'

"So lame," she muttered, fighting off yet another yawn. She should have taken her friend's advice and gone for the job in that muggle pub. At least then, she'd have some interesting things to talk about. Ripping another corner from the appointment log for today, she rolled it, and lined the little ball up for another score through the hoops.

"MMMRRRRAOOOOOO"

"Miss Delacroix!"

Judy wasn't even granted a second to actually wonder about the cacophonous clip-clopping echoing from within the office on the other side of the wall. A shriek of surprise tore from her lips when the door was smashed to bits beside her desk. "Mmmrrrrooo."

The bull-A Freaking Bull!- huffed from its trapped position, head having smashed a hole through the wooden door. "O-oh." Its soft brown ears flipped to-and-fro in irritation as it struggled with its predicament. Heaving great huffs and puffs, the bull shook its head in clear distress. Great long horns gouged the walls, plaster and paint crumbling to the floor. Gobsmacked, Judy held her breath when wide brown eyes zeroed in on her angrily, a snort of rage flaring at its nostrils. Then, it was gone, one of Healer Wolff's books falling to the floor with a quiet thump.

"Are we done now?" Judy gulped, wide eyes catching sight of Miss Delacroix through the hole in the door. Her bright blue eyes squinted through the splintered hole, an awkward smile tugging at her lips when she saw the secretary gaping back. "My bad." Then she waved her left hand, wand flick neat and precise, and the door was good as new. Only the book, Finding The Core Of The Core, remained as the only evidence that anything extraordinary had even occurred.

"Childish." He paced a few steps before abruptly turning.

"Ungrateful." Turning the opposite direction, he once again took two steps.

"Selfish." He'd started pointing now, face reddening in the wake of his growing anger.

Healer Wolff took another step before stopping, whirling around with another stern accusatory jab of his finger. "Reckless."

Jo let him go, knowing full well she deserved it, just a bit, for that stunt she had pulled. It was rather immature, she could admit it. Although, in her defense, she had proven her point exquisitely.

"Stubborn." He paused once again, a thoughtful look overtaking his irritation. "Impressive."

"Thank you." She coughed, scratching at a pesky itch on her neck from the test node pulling at her skin. "It was pretty good, wasn't it?"

"Arrogant!" Sighing, she once again found herself a victim to his pointing. "Vhat-" She knew he was ruffled when his accent truly bled through. "Were you thinking? This is a hospital, Miss Delacroix!"

She let out a little groan, really playing the part of an immature brat. "Because I'm damn tired of all these tests. You want me to turn a match into a needle. Right, done. A cockroach into an inkwell. Check. A book into a chair. Voila. I get it, but come on, I'm more than capable. That didn't even affect me. My magic is nearly as strong as it ever was. I'm using it for even the most insignificant tasks, all day, every day." Sighing, she tugged at one of the many testing nodes he had stuck all over her skin. "You can see it, my core is fine."

"You should be taking it slowly-"

"I'm taking it as 'slowly' as my body can handle-"

"You're going to injure yourself-"

"I haven't yet."

Healer Wolff had begun to turn red again, those manically large eyes widening sickeningly more so as he glared from the other side of the room. "And what will you do when your core finally has enough, eh? What then? You are advancing much faster than my calculations found to be healthy. Will you come crawling back to me, core quite possibly damaged beyond repair, expecting me to work some-some miracle?" He exhaled, the puff in his chest deflating. "Nein, I vill not. You wish to kill yourself, and I will not assist you."

"Wait-"

"Nein." With a flick of his wrist, the reader nodes ripped themselves from her skin, arranging in neat rows atop a medical tray. "This is where we part ways, Miss Delacroix. I hope to never see you in this office again, but only your arrogance will tell."

"Healer Wolff, wait." Jo hadn't meant for this to happen. Yes, she'd acted rashly, but she'd only wanted to prove her growth. She just needed him to see that he was working chapters behind her. "Please, I apologize."

"Thank you," he said, tone flippant and wand already flicking and swishing her right out of the room. "And goodbye, Miss Delacroix." Another flick, and the door was shut right in her face. Of course, she instantly tried the knob, unlocking charms falling from her lips to no avail.

"Shit." She let her forehead rest against the door, releasing a sharp exhale through her nose. "Fucking shit. Just had to go and be a gigantic arse, didn't you?" Sighing, she finally pulled away from the door, avoiding the curious eyes of the receptionist, to make her walk of shame to the lifts.

She'd like to be optimistic, to think that if she gave him some time, she could possibly grovel her way back, but even she knew when something was best left alone. Healer Wolff had taken her actions as a slight against his clearly higher understanding. Her gut was telling her this was a grudge that would be held for a long while.

"Shit." She really is an idiot. Sighing, she just pressed the down button, wanting nothing more than to curl up in her bed and pretend she wasn't such a massive arrogant immature reckless cock.

"Well, good morning! If it isn't my favorite patient." Healer Nyaga, the embodiment of sunshine and cheer, smiled brightly at her from inside the lift. She couldn't even work up a fake smile, instead grimacing with a grumble of a response. "Ah, what has Healer Wolff done to upset you today, Miss Josephine?"

"Nothing," she sighed, stepping into the lift. "I went and cocked it all up on my own."

She didn't explain any further, and Gabriel didn't press. Instead, he observed her, taking in her deep guilty frown and overall agitation. Glancing at the healer, she only raised an eyebrow, squinting slightly when she realized he wasn't interrogating her. Instead, he asked something rather unexpected.

"Would you care to join me for a cup of tea?"

"Excuse me?"

Gabriel smiled that stupid bright smile, white teeth nearly blinding her, as he handed her a to-go cup of coffee. "Two sugars, a slight dash of cream." She nodded, frowning slightly when he held the door open as well, leading them into Diagon Alley. He followed happily, a cup of tea held gingerly in his own hand as they set off on a sedated walk.

Dressed in casual clothing, healer robes hung in his locker, Gabriel felt like a regular person for once in this new interaction with Josephine. He had just gotten off shift, and instead of rushing home for any shut eye he could manage, he'd decided to take the rare chance of spending time with the woman who still plagued his thoughts.

"I see you are not wearing your glasses," he chastised her playfully, laughter bubbling out of his throat when she scowled and refused to look at him. Really, it was an adorable pout that he found ridiculously funny.

" 'M not that blind. I can see you just fine, doc." She took a sip from her steaming cup, pleasantly surprised to find he had actually gotten it nearly right. Perhaps a touch more sugar, and it would have been perfect.

"I believe, seeing as I'm off the clock, you may call me Gabriel. If you wish." He paused to let a mother and child walk by, oblivious to yet another suspicious glance from his walking partner. She watched as he offered the small toddler a bright smile and wave, to which the tired little girl responded with a clumsy flail of her own hand. "Look at that, absolutely tuckered out, the little dear." He chuckled and started off again, rather happy to be out in the sunshine and fresh air, even though he was ridiculously tired.

They were mostly silent, Gabriel pointing out this and that as they strolled through the surprisingly peaceful alley. It was the perfect time of day to visit the shopping district. Mid-afternoon, when most witches and wizards had already completed their shopping, and the shop keepers began taking their lunches or wiping down displays.

"I am terribly curious about what happened today, you know." Gabriel kept his tone light, smiling kindly at Josephine, who was still subdued and had a gloomy air about her. "I don't believe I've ever heard you take blame for a bad appointment with Healer Wolff."

"Ehm…yeah. Well, that's probably because I never caused him to levitate me out of the room and lock the door in my face. I…" She sighed, brushing a loose hair behind her ear. "I really fucked up."

Once again, he didn't press her any further, but he wasn't very good at hiding the immense curiosity written all over his face. Before she could stop herself, the words began tumbling from her mouth.

"So, it started out like normal. He had me running the drills; charms, defense spells, easy home spells, transfiguration. I just…I was frustrated. He was having me do first year spells, at the most third year, and we've done them over and over and over. He knows I'm well beyond these things, that they're not even exerting in any way now, but we're still doing the same mediocre shit as three months ago. And well…I went and turned his book into a stampeding bull because I'm a great cocking child."

"Y-you-" He didn't even get to finish, astonished laughter breaking through. "In a hospital!" He was equal parts appalled yet amused by the vision in his own head. Her deep frown lifted into just a touch of a smile at his guffaws. "Oh, Josephine, you can't-" He had to stop again, trying very hard to stifle the giggles still tickling his throat. "You cannot transfigure a stampeding bull inside of a hospital. That is quite possibly the worst thing someone could ever do."

"Yes, well, we've already covered the fact that I fucked up." She shook her head, but that little tilt of a smile remained in the wake of his struggling to keep a stern face. "Regardless, Healer Wolff has, obviously, ended our arrangement."

"He didn't really?"

"As I said, I transfigured a stampeding bull in a hospital. I believe he was quite serious." She shrugged, glancing through the window of a book shop. She actually felt, well, stupid, now that she'd said it all out loud. She really was a child, wasn't she? No mature person would go and pull a stunt like that.

Gabriel hummed to himself, finding it hard to think of a solution for the ash-haired woman. Healer Wolff did not forgive easily, and if he had been in the man's shoes, even he would have reacted rather angrily. What she had done was rash and potentially dangerous. She could have hurt staff and patients or even herself. However, someone else could still be interested in helping the witch with her core. Someone who would be much more inclined to push her abilities like she wanted. Someone who was not located in a hospital.

"Tell me, Josephine," he began, pausing to wet his lips as he tried to word this properly. "Have you given any thought to Master Daljeet's offer?" Previous encounters had the man preparing himself for her scowl and instant dismissal, but she surprised him, only frowning slightly with a thoughtful look in her eyes. "He seemed quite open to working one-on-one with you. Perhaps his practices would better suit you."

"Maybe…" She refused to commit without giving this some serious thought. The man had, quite honestly, been completely forgotten in the past few months. His beliefs about magic and this 'Mother' business still made her uncomfortable. But, he is considered a master, she thought, frowning into her coffee. "I'll think about it."

"That's all I can ask for." He smiled again, letting the topic drop easily. It would put his mind at ease, for now, to know she would at least seriously consider it. If it was the best choice, he was fully confident she would make it. Eyes catching on a sun-faded sign well above her head, he gave a slight 'ah'. "You've lived here your whole life, yes?"

"Unfortunately." She quipped dryly, following his gaze with a sinking stomach to the closed and dusty shop near the end of the alley. The Man With Many Hats.

"In all of my time since coming here, I have never seen that shop open. I've always wondered what it was? Why it's still here?" He led them right up to the dusty cobwebbed windows, peeking through to the shadow covered clustered interior. "Everything is still here, yet I've never seen a soul inside."

Jo frowned deeply from behind him, her stomach twisting uncomfortably. Her heart broke at the state of the old place. Her father and grandfather were probably rolling in their graves.

"The owner probably doesn't know what to do with it. It was shut down during the war." Her voice cracked a bit, throat constricting painfully. She had to fight the urge to look up, to find the little window hidden behind the silhouette man donning his hats.

It didn't work.

Bleak, sun bleached yellow curtains were still hung behind the glass, a kitchen hidden behind them. She could see their tattered burned edges from here. A lump formed in her throat, horribly fresh feeling memories burning through her mind.

Cole washing the dishes, peering through that very curtain as witches and wizards passed below.

Herself, nodding off in the rocking chair with Lucy snuggled to her breast. Cole watching over them from his recliner, reading about the history of magic.

Lucy, wobbling around, gripping the coffee table for dear life as she chased after levitating toys.

Fire. An explosive spell fired in through the bedroom window. An attack in the middle of the night. Cole frantically gathering Lucy and what they needed as she and Katie provided cover, firing spells through the windows. Poppy rushing her family through the floo to safety, screaming for Jo and Katie to get out.

Shrieking laughter. A green light exploding into the wall just above their heads.

Fucking Merlin. She needed to leave.

She needed to get the fuck away from this place.

Now.

"...-sephine. Josephine!" Frantic, panicked blue eyes finally focused, finding dark brown eyes blocking her view of the past. "Josephine, what's wrong?" Gabriel had a gentle hold of her wrist, mentally tracking her extremely accelerated heart rate. She'd gone pale, breathing nearing hyperventilation. He'd seen enough patients go into a panic to recognize the signs, he just didn't understand the cause. "Come on, Josephine, look atme. Everything is going to be alright. I need you to listen to me, can you do that?"

She nodded, trying to focus on his words, but her heartbeat was so loud. It was vibrating through her entire body, making everything else fade away.

Except it was too loud, explosively loud. Her skull was filled with static, such loud and blinding static.

And It felt hot, unbearably sweltering hot. But inside was cold, as if someone had dumped arctic water down the center of her spine.

Everything felt like too much, entirely too much going on. Why couldn't she catch her breath? Why did her chest hurt so much? Was someone shouting or was it just in her head?

What was even real?

All of it feels too real, but she knows it's not.

But someone is screaming. There's fire. She can feel the smoke burning inside of her lungs.

But it's not real.

"Can you feel my breathing, Josephine? Do you think you can match it?" Using the hand he already had control of, he pressed the palm of her hand against the center of his chest. She started to shake her head, still breathing much too fast. "Listen to me, Josephine? You hear me, yes?" His voice was smooth and deep, each word kept at an even tone. "Just listen to me, Josephine. We can go over to that bench and sit down. Would you like to sit down?"

"Y-yeah." Slowly, he led her across the vacant cobblestone to the bench. She followed easily, her eyes trying to glance around frantically, but Gabriel kept talking to her, keeping her attention solely on him.

"The bench is red, do you see it? It's right under that green and black awning. Only a few more steps, Josephine. Can you see the apothecary?" He kept pointing things out, words low and steady, the deep vibrations overtaking her heart's echoing Th-thump-Th-thump.

"Is this better, Josephine? Sitting down?" Thankfully, her breathing had started to settle, but even as they sat, he kept that gentle hold on her wrist. He didn't dare break the physical contact until her heartbeat had slowed.

"Yeah, yeah…" She gave her head a shake, trying to clear this strange fog from her mind. Everything felt imbalanced, like her brain had gone to sleep, tingling and buzzing as she tried to get a grip on herself. What was happening?

"Yeah, I'm alright. I'm fucking alright," she said forcibly. She wasn't talking to Gabriel, though, and he could see the anger churning beneath the confusion in her eyes. "What the fuck is wrong with me?"

"I believe you just experienced something very distressing that caused your body to enter a panicked state." She glared at the ground, hands clenching and releasing as she tried to make them feel right again. Everything felt wrong, so incredibly broken. "I'm sorry, Josephine. I didn't realize coming here could-"

"It shouldn't have," she spat, raising her eyes to glare at the building that had caused this. "It's been nearly ten years, it fucking shouldn't have caused shit." She sucked in another deep breath, her lungs still burning from that episode. Merlin, what the fuck was wrong with her?

Shaking her head again, she finally took notice of the weight on her wrist. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, she found Gabriel's hand wrapped lightly around the limb, his dark skin contrasting with hers. She let herself focus on it, the weight, the warmth, the contrast in colors; and finally, the ringing in her ears began to fade.

Silence engulfed the pair, a conscious focus of matching their breathing as they stared at the small connection between them. The tinkling of a shop door caught Jo's attention, her eyes lifting to watch as a little old wizard offered a cheery farewell to the proprietor. He shuffled a few steps before turning with a crack, disapparating from the alley. Gabriel shifted beside her, moving into a more comfortable position instead of the hunched over arrangement he'd initially had. He didn't let go of her arm, and she couldn't find a reason to move it.

"C-can I tell you something?" She let her head hang, hair falling in a curtain to hide behind.

"Of course." He kept his eyes ahead, granting her a small amount of privacy.

"That's my shop." She gulped in a breath as silently as she could, forcing her voice to remain steady as her eyes refused to stay dry. "I lived above it, with m-my…husband and daughter." She didn't think she had to tell him they were gone, it was fairly obvious. "A-and I have a lot of memories, so many damn memories. They were supposed to be happy memories, but now?"

Gabriel understood now, he understood why someone so young had found the bottle so appealing. Swallowing thickly, he gripped her arm in a squeeze to show his understanding of the words she didn't speak.

"I wanted to forget all of it. I wasted all these years just trying to make those memories disappear, and you know what's funny?" She huffed out a slight chuckle that was anything but humorous. "Actually, it's pretty sad. All those memories are still there, fresh as the day they were made. It was me that I forgot. And it took damn near losing every last piece of myself to realize."

Gabriel didn't say anything in response, and she appreciated it. He simply held her wrist a little tighter, his warmth offering more comfort than any words ever would.

Harry and Abigail were bored, wholly and completely bored. They were sitting outside of the arcade, pockets now empty, and barely any tickets between them for even a stupid pencil from the prize stand. Taffy sat beside them, tongue lolling as she panted away in the suffocating heat.

"We could… go… to the-"

"Park? Can't. Remember? They've shut it down for repairs."

Abigail huffed, pouting deeply. "Right. Okay…we could…"

Harry smirked slightly when she just finished with another huff. Neither of them had a clue on what to do, so they remained right where they were, sprawled on the sidewalk hoping for the tiniest breeze.

They only had a few weeks left before school started back up, and they'd run out of anything to do. They usually avoided the arcade, seeing as it was the teenagers' hole. However, they lucked out in their boredom, finding the place nearly empty today. Unfortunately, they'd only had a few coins between them, leading to a very short experience. Now they were broke on top of bored.

"What about your house? My Mum and the baby are sick, so we can't go there." Harry nearly sputtered, already shaking his head before she had finished speaking. "Why not?"

"Ah. Um." Taffy and Abigail both stared at him curiously as he struggled to think of an excuse. "Exterminators. Yeah, whole house is being cleaned out because of…bugs." Abigail did not look like she believed a single word. "Sorry." Shrugging, he ruffled his hair in hopes of hiding the heat in his cheeks.

"O-kay. Well then, what do you suggest?" She let out yet another little huff, obviously put out by his avoidance of letting her see his house. He already knew she wouldn't let be letting this go anytime soon. He'd need to talk to Jo about it.

"We could go to the comic store?" He knew she absolutely hated the comic book store, but the level of boredom they had reached called for drastic measures.

"Ugh, fine." Huffing and puffing the whole way, Abigail pulled herself up and started in the direction of the little shop. Taffy happily trotted after the children, always walking between them and incoming strangers. Tail curled high with her nose stuck up even higher, Harry thought she looked much too uppity to be a normal dog. He'd been thinking so since their visit to Diagon Alley. It was just another thing he needed to ask Jo about.

The World Room cracked and grated, rotating round and round for a long moment. Jo and Harry stood in the center, duffel bags at their feet, s Poppy frantically checked her own bags behind them. The humans were dressed in light clothing, short sleeves and ball caps. Jo had a pair of sun glasses hanging from the neckline of her T-shirt, fingers playing with frames in nervousness as the doorway carved of white marble settled before them.

"Alright, everyone ready then?" She tried to keep her fidgeting at a minimum, knowing she was probably the only one filled with anxiousness over their 'vacation'.

"Poppy be needing to return home in a few days. Anything forgotten will be easily picked up then. Does Young Harry have his toothbrush?" Poppy clucked when Harry fidgeted guiltily, and snapped her fingers. A toothbrush whizzed through the air a second later, tucking itself into his awaiting bag. "My Mistress has her home-key?"

"Yeah, got it." Jo gave her pocket a light slap where the small portkey was stored. It was a literal house key that her father had found on the sidewalk years ago. "Ready, kid?"

"Of course. Never thought I'd visit India before." He shuffled around, smiling brightly at her in obvious excitement. She returned the grin, trying to absorb some of that excitement for herself. Stomach threatening to re-introduce her breakfast, Jo gave a quick nod for the others to start moving. Better to get it over with before she could find a reason to cancel their 'excursion'.

"Right, let's go."

She and Harry picked up their feather-light bags as Poppy continued tutting behind them, her own bags levitating easily behind her. The three made their way through the glowing doorway. Harry had to shield his eyes from the mid-afternoon sun blazing bright and hot from the center of the sky. Jo slipped her sunglasses over her nose, looking back and forth for any sign of civilization. All she could see for miles were sandy dunes and desert shrubs. Heat waves rolled in the distance as her skin began instantly beading with sweat. Poppy tutted once more, ears flopping in the sudden heat.

"Mistress, perhaps this be the wrong place?" She sounded unbelievably hopeful, the poor British elf seriously unaccustomed to such heat.

"Daljeet believes you are right where you are destined to be. Isn't that right, Miss Jo?" A cheerful voice sounded from behind the, laughter following as the three jumped. They turned in varying states of surprise, Jo being the least yet the most nervous. This was a reunion she had not adequately prepared herself for, it seems. She cleared her throat, intent on apologizing immediately for her previous meeting with the old Master. "Ah, it is good to see you. Daljeet knew you only needed time, yes?"

His gold teeth flashed in the sunlight, wrinkled cheeks lifting in a kind and welcoming smile. She really couldn't help but respond in kind, placing her hands together and offering a slight bow. "Hello, Master Daljeet. I'm…grateful for your acceptance of our visit. It's…good to see you again."

Harry and Poppy fumbled to imitate her greeting, Poppy nearly planting her head into the sand in her haste. Daljeet chuckled, waving lazily for them to stand before offering his own slight bow and clasped hands. "As I said before, Miss Jo. Daljeet is master to no one and of nothing, he is only the servant. Come now, we have some distance to travel."

The small group followed the old man as he crested the dune they stood on. Down below, three large magnificently colored birds huddled near one another, clicking and honking. As the humans and elf neared, Jo could only stare in awe at the creatures. Tails nearly as long as her entire body arced gracefully into the air. Lengthy, dangerously sharp beaks dug through the sand in search of food. She'd never seen anything like them before.

"They're beautiful," she breathed, stopping a few steps away from the towering birds.

"What are they?," Harry asked, voice equally filled with awe.

"These are sarabs, they are wonderful desert crawlers and very fast." Daljeet informed them brightly. Approaching the largest bird, he hitched a sandal-clad foot onto the saddle, and with a litheness well beyond that of an old man, hoisted himself onto the sarabs' back. "This is Raja, he is the herd leader. That-" he pointed to the mainly green bird closest to Jo. "Is Sumati, she is his little sister. And that one, that is Nila." He smiled crookedly, placing a hand near his mouth as if he was going to tell them a great secret. "That's his girlfriend."

Raja clicked loudly, turning his head away in the most regally upturned nose Jo had ever witnessed.

The three foreigners turned back to their designated means of travel, looking up at the sarabs uncertainly. The sarabs stared back, heads turning in confusion when the humans and elf hesitated in approaching them.

"It be safe?" Poppy stared up at the towering creature nervously, taking a quick leap backwards when it clicked its beak in agitation. "They not be eating elves, do they?"

"The safest!" Daljeet seemed entirely too amused by their hesitation. "Daljeet promises, they are very safe and very friendly, and they most certainly do not eat elves. They much more prefer snakes and lizards. Nila would be best for the child and elf. Sumati does not do as well with small ones, unfortunately. She is too wild in the heart, and needs a firm rider."

"Right," Jo finally said, hoisting her duffel onto the sumati's back. With a wave of her right wand, she produced some ropes and fastened the bag down. Approaching Harry and Poppy, she repeated the action before helping the two onto the large bird's back. "Just keep a hold of the leads. It's an adventure after all, right?"

"Right," Harry responded firmly, but he still glanced nervously at the bird when it gave a great honk of impatience. "And if we fall off?"

Chuckling, Jo reached up to ruffle his hair. "I'll help you back on, you too Poppy. Keep a good grip, alright?" Poppy squeaked and nodded stiffly, long fingers already gripping the saddle as tightly as she could. Jo gave them each a pat and a smile before returning to her own ride. Reaching up to get a good hold of the saddle, she gave the bird a firm nod. "No bucking me off, yeah? Can't be embarrassing myself just yet." She thought it looked slightly amused by her, softly clicking its beak in a birdly imitation of laughter. "Right, onto the giant beautiful magical bird I go."

Once he was certain they were all settled, Daljeet gave an odd sort of whistle, clicking his tongue twice at the end. Then they were off.

Jo could hear Poppy's muffled scream and Harry's bright laugh of surprise from behind her, snorting even as her own heart lobbed its way up her throat. Daljeet hadn't been exaggerating when he said they were very fast. It appeared that none of them had taken that to mean the speed of a snitch, though.

The vast expanse of dunes and sky raced past them, the sarabs devouring the distance in minutes. Soon enough, the three found themselves awed by something much greater than the sarabs' speed. There in the quickly diminishing distance, cresting out of the dunes, a growing city of stone began to paint the horizon.

A wall, covered in nearly every space with bright colors and tapestries, enclosed the entire city, a pair of giant red wooden doors directly in its center. Over the wall, spiking towers and roofs could be seen. Flat buildings covered in sprawling gardens and trees. A mountain closed in on the East, its peak disappearing in the clouds. A gushing waterfall fell from its face, a rainbow shimmering in its mist.

On the West, a long building with a twisting, notched and rounded spire. The flat roof of the building stretched for as far as their eyes could see. People filled the city, they could hear their voices carried by the wind and see their many outlines moving along the rooftops. And the smell, oh Merlin, their mouths were already watering by the delicious scents of unknown food dishes hidden behind the wall.

When the wall finally towered well above their heads, the sarabs slowed their pace, sedately covering the final meters of their journey. Daljeet fell back between them, smiling brightly as they stared at the city with wonder. He spread his arms out wide, laughing brightly when the large red doors swung open, welcoming them within.

"Welcome to Bachchon Ke Shahar, 'The City of Children'."

Harry peeked nervously through the curtain, watching from the window as people ambled past. He couldn't understand a word of what they said to one another, their language completely foreign to his ears. Children ran to and fro, laughing and shouting as they played freely in the streets. He saw a great many animals as well, some normal, like dogs and cats, some not so ordinary.

A winged and scaly 'cat' groomed itself on the neighboring roof, stopping only to watch as a rat ran along the road. A horse with eight legs stamped its hooves impatiently as a man fumbled for another apple in his sack. There was even a puppy with the legs and tail of a deer, nubs of future antlers poking out of his fur.

When a teenager walking past the window stopped and met his stare, Harry hastily closed the curtain with a gasp. This was not what he had been expecting when Jo had told him they were going to India. Turning away from the window, he quickly made his way back into the living area. Jo was seated on a large cushion, flipping through a book with a look of concentration.

"Jo."

"One sec, I've almost found it."

Harry sighed, flopping into another cushion as she continued flipping through many pages. After another minute, Jo gave a little 'ah-ha', marking the page before turning her attention on him. "What's up?"

"Why are we here?" After their initial meeting with that Daljeet fellow, Harry had the sudden realization that this wasn't just a 'vacation'. "This isn't really a vacation, is it?"

"Eh, it's hard to…" Jo cut off with a sigh, offering him an apologetic smile. "It's a vacation for you and Poppy. I've come here for some help with my magic. Let's call it 50/50. I'm sorry, kid."

Harry felt some disappointment, but he wasn't really surprised. He'd already guessed this was something to do with her and Healer Wolff's falling out. " 'S alright. What are we going to do, though? I can't understand a word of what they're saying."

"Now, that I have an answer to." She gave the book she had been reading a small shake. "Had to figure out the exact dialect, but I've found a translation spell. It'll make it so we can understand what they're saying, and they'll be able to understand us. Nifty little spell, actually."

Releasing the red wand into her left hand, she waved it in a strange motion, muttering the spell under her breath. There was a shot of orange light straight into her torso. Harry watched curiously as she shot up from the cushion, racing for the window before throwing nearly her whole upper body through it. She started talking to someone outside, strange foreign words falling from her lips. Whoever she had found answered her with a laugh which she returned. Falling back into the room, she shot him a little smirk before quickly hitting him with the same spell.

"Alright, now that we can understand the people, what say you to some exploration? This is your vacation after all."

They'd quickly found that the area they would be staying in was essentially the residential area. People crowded the streets, constantly popping in and out of each others' homes, children underfoot and animals lazing about. The literal heart of the city. However, once they had ventured outside of the crowded center, they discovered a much different atmosphere.

The city was split into at least five different 'zones', so to say. The residential area directly in the center. A food and shopping district outside of that. To the East stood the mountain, its base surrounded by a babbling stream and lush vegetation. To the West, the temple for the Mother, a place of meditation and learning. Along the North wall were sectioned off open areas, each space occupied by varying age groups doing strange magical exercises.

"What are they doing?" Harry and Jo were watching a group of young teenagers, all of which were dressed in matching loose tunic-like shirts and flexible pants. Unsure if they were even supposed to witness the happenings in this area, Jo and Harry had snuck onto some crates, peeking over the wall from behind the leaves of a tree branch.

Many of the teens were stretching or doing similar physical exercises, however, in the center, a boy and girl were facing one another in a duel the likes of which Jo had never seen before.

Their eyes widened when the boy produced a small sphere of water in his hand, throwing it with impressive speed and accuracy at the girl facing him.

"I've no fucking idea." Her eyebrows somehow found room to raise even higher when the girl created a thin whip of water, slashing the boy's growing water-ball into a spray of droplets. "I seriously have no idea," she muttered with a dumbstruck shake of her head.

"I want to do that. Do you think I can do it, too?" He was mesmerized, mouth dropping open just a bit when the girl turned the whip into a shield against an oncoming barrage of water bullets. What kind of magic was this that even Jo didn't recognize it? It looked so cool.

"Perhaps you could ask Daljeet?" The old man laughed openly as the two jumped away from the wall, Jo barely catching Harry as he nearly tumbled from the stack of crates. The foreigners gave him remarkably guilty faces as they crawled down from their snooping area. He was delighted, though. They were so curious, and he felt pure giddiness in the face of new minds to fill.

"Come, Daljeet will teach you in the temple. That is why you are here, yes?"

Gowri giggled, her mind completely distracted from chopping vegetables as two floppy large ears wiggled outside of the window. Peering over her shoulder, she looked for her mother, hoping she hadn't been caught yet. Her mother was singing quietly, hovering over a simmering pan with her back to her youngest daughter.

Perhaps if she just touched them, she could find out what sort of creature had taken residence outside their kitchen. Fingers, covered in onion and garlic, tentatively reached through the window to gently taking hold of the two large ears.

They were soft, surprisingly so, and slightly fuzzy, like the skin of a peach. She giggled again, rolling the tips between her fingers.

"Pardon me!" A high pitched voice squeaked from below, surprising the small girl inside the kitchen. "Those be Poppy's ears!"

Gowri instantly released them, the strange words meaning nothing to her. Checking for her mother's attention once again, she turned back to the window and hauled herself up enough to look down. There, under the windowsill, stood an odd little creature, clutching at the base of its ears with a distressed face.

"What are you?," Gowri asked, fingers itching to grab those ears again.

"Poppy be sorry, Miss. Poppy does not understand what Miss be saying."

"What, I don't know what you're saying?"

The little girl and elf stared at one another for a long moment, neither speaking. Finally, Poppy just smiled and opened her basket. The little girl watched curiously as the creature snapped its long fingers, summoning a chocolate covered pastry. Levitating it to the window, Poppy smiled even brighter when the girl took it without hesitation, her own smile blooming at the gift. She was missing a tooth on the bottom, barely older than six if Poppy had to guess. The little girl said something in her own language again, but Poppy understood it well enough as an expression of gratitude.

"You's be welcome, Miss. Poppy be going now."

Gowri watched as the little creature waved and walked away, that overly large picnic basket swinging easily on its arm. Turning her attention back to the sweet in her hand, she quickly stuffed it in her mouth. Eyes widening, she nearly screeched at the explosion of amazing flavor and sweetness on her tongue. She'd never had something so delicious before!

"Gowri, why aren't you chopping the vegetables? Do you wish for your mother to die before you are finished?!" Chewing as quickly and sneakily as she could, Gowri finally returned to the task she should have been doing all along. Perhaps she would run into the funny little creature later.

"In our first meeting, you did not understand, or perhaps, you did, but you did not find it rational. Even now, I do not think you agree with what it is we believe. What we know. This is alright. I knew, from the moment I laid eyes on you, that one day you would step foot in this place. You were destined to take this journey, just as we all had been, to seek out understanding."

Daljeet paused, smiling kindly back at her as he led them further into the great round room. She raised an eyebrow curiously, eyes becoming distracted by the many tapestries and murals on the walls. There were crude, childish drawings in chalk all along the floor. Clearly, this was a space open to everyone in the city. It was not how she had imagined a temple to look.

"The Mother, she is not some deity or idol. It is just the most fitting name for such an awesome entity. She is everything, from the tiniest speck of dirt to the stars in the universe. She is life. She is that which connects even the most advanced species to that tiny speck of dirt." He waved her further along, stopping in the middle of the room beside a long stone alter, a tightly bound tapestry laying in the center.

"We believe that the Mother brought forth magic into the existence of life. That she gifted us with only a sliver of her essence, so that we could be more than just beings living next to others. We believe she entrusted the world with this gift so that we may live with one another. Tell me, Miss Jo, why would a child save a small ant from the rain?"

"Because he doesn't want it to die?" Stuffing her hands into her pockets, she offered a shrug when he continued staring at her, clearly expecting more.

"But why? Why would a human, a different much more advanced species care that a creature incapable of inventing an umbrella care what happens to the ant?" He urged her with a small uplifting of his hands, still smiling kindly.

"That child thinks its life is worth saving." She answered easily, unsure where these questions were leading. It was just basic innocent kindness, not magic.

"Yes. More so, the child feels a connection with the ant, an indescribable feeling of familial duty to ensure that the ant lives to see another day. That is the Mother. It is why we feel such an ache, deep in our beings, when nature is destroyed by the hands of people. It is why we cry when a stranger dies in an unfortunate circumstance. It is why we are sad when a bouquet of roses wilt and die. It is also why we find such joy in new life. Why we find peace in the jungles or by the sea. It is why we are capable of finding the tiniest reflections of ourselves in the eyes of a another. Deep inside our souls, there is a connection with everything around us. That is magic."

Jo frowned, watching as he unraveled the long tapestry. It was clearly very old, the fabric creaking softly as he gently revealed the story told in thread. It was the earth, surrounded by a glowing shield of golden energy. An ethereal eye blinked slowly from the core of the earth, the energy flowing from its tear ducts. Creatures of varying sizes swayed in the golden light, small orbs pulsing from inside of their bodies. Some creatures, even the human ones, had very small lights inside, while others had light pulsing from their very centers throughout their entire bodies.

"So," Jo started, voice cracking slightly as an overwhelming feeling she couldn't describe filled her chest. The feeling of realizing she was looking at something much more important, significant, than a pretty picture. "Why are some people incapable of magic? Why are there so many mundane creatures and muggles if she gave the entire world magic?"

"This is the same as asking why some people can write with their left hand. There are many people who are born with small cores, and there are many born with a core capable of producing usable magic. Have you ever wondered why these mundane people and animals can sense danger? This sixth sense, as they call it, what is it? Why do the mundane animals run in droves for mountains when a tsunami is on its way? Why does a person avoid a certain person or place simply because their instincts feel it is dangerous? Or contrarily, how does an animal or person just know that someone is trustworthy? Does that not sound like magic to you?"

"In a roundabout way, I suppose you could say that." Sighing, she really tried to quiet the little voice in her head grumbling bullshit. She knew she'd have to keep an open mind when she decided to make this journey. "So…it's really as simple as being born with a body different from mine?"

"Precisely." He smiled happily, excited by her willingness to learn. "It is also why one witch or wizard is more inclined to, say, defense magic while another cast offensive spells on the first try. We are all different, yes."

Humming in response, Jo let her eyes roam, exploring the many other tapestries hung along the large walls. They all depicted vastly different scenes, but they each contained one common detail: the eye. "You know, this doesn't answer my real question. How were those children controlling water? Neither of them had a wand or staff, it was all done wandless and wordless. That's advanced stuff back home."

"It's funny, no? How differently people assess things based on our upbringing. The magic your people can do with wands? This is seen as very advanced to my people. We first learn to use our raw magic without an enhancer such as a wand or staff. We teach our people to learn control and how to listen to the magic they were born with. You remember, yes?"

"The cube thing?"

"Yes, the Brahmaan Aankh. Those children you saw, just as each of us has done, discovered their magic's identity, and are now learning to control and use their magic properly. The session you witnessed was for our water class." He pointed towards a tapestry containing a man and woman splitting the water of a lake. "The next training area over held our fire identities." A tapestry of a boy holding a ball of flames in each hand. "The next, the air identities." Yet another tapestry, a man sending a wave of air to meet an incoming sandstorm. "Those are the most common identities found here, though we do have a mix of earth and ice identities as well. Naturally, you will be meeting our earth identities in your time here."

They stopped in front of the last two tapestries on the wall. A large man with a stern face raised a boulder with his magic, levitating it beside his head. It suddenly broke into seven smaller rocks, dancing around the man in the shape of tiny birds. The final tapestry held a woman, standing in the center of a lake. The surface of the water turned to ice beneath her feet, spreading rapidly for the sandy shoreline.

"So…wait, hold on. I'm lost now. You're saying that each and every magic user is capable of doing that type of magic, and what, we just all forgot?" Bullshit, that doesn't make any sense. The old man didn't respond, only hummed and shrugged, clearly amused as he led her from the room full of tapestries. "There's no way a whole society simply forgot. C'mon, you offered me answers."

She watched the earth man repeat his sequence again, turning just in time to watch as Daljeet started up a set of stone stairs. Once again, the little old man discarded his age's limitations, walking so quickly up the stairs Jo had to jog just to keep him in view.

"Daljeet is answering questions, but some questions are best answered by your own mind. Come, this way!" He was running now, he had to be, Jo thought as her legs began to burn.

"You are young, why are you so far behind?"

His voice rang from above, laughter clearly echoing down the spiraling stairwell. Craning her neck, she tried to find any sign of the man above, but he was gone. Scowling, she tried to keep a fast pace and push through her body's discomfort in the face of exercise. Higher and higher she climbed, glancing in every opening, but Daljeet was never there. Only his laughter, echoing from far above her head.

Reaching the final step, she leaned heavily against a stone wall, forehead sweaty and lungs desperate for breath. She whipped her head around, frowning deeply at the dead end. There was nothing to be found, no doorways or Daljeet. Groaning, just a tad, she let her head fall against the stone, trying desperately not to completely lose her shit. Why had she even come here? Was this all just a game to the old man? Everything he told her sounded like bullshit, and now he'd gone and abandoned her. Why did Gabriel even suggest this?

"What are you doing? This is no place to nap, come!"

"Oh, what the fuck."

Daljeet's little balding head was sticking out of the wall, no shoulders or body to be seen, just a floating head on the stone. His gold teeth flashed in a big grin, nodding for her to follow as his head disappeared back through the stone wall. Approaching, she reached out a hand to touch where his head had been. Her fingers slid through the stone like water.

What the fuck, she thought, irritated by the games. Inhaling deeply, she released the exhale quickly through her nose, plowing through the stone wall with a scowl. Then she stopped, half her body still inside the wall as her eyes fell on the sight stretched before her.

Every rooftop below could be seen, the gardens full of specks of bright color. People and animals, little blobs in the distance and far below, were crawling all over the place. In the far distance sat the mountain, an eye carved into its face crying a gushing waterfall. It wasn't just the city, though, it was the desert. From left to right, sandy dunes stretched into the horizon. Dots of trees and shrubs broke up the dizzying gold, large birds lounging in the sparsely provided shade.

"It is beautiful, yes? Life. It must be protected, always, this life we see." Daljeet laid a wrinkled hand on her arm, gently guiding her to step out of the wall.

"Perhaps you do not know, but there was a time when the mundane of my land detested those of your land. My people desired independence, and they had to fight for it. At this time, the magical government was distant from the mundane, however, they were not separate. The magical government of your land refused to take a stance, but this did not keep them from profiting off of us. We demanded they separate from the mundane government or use their connection to grant our people their independence. They refused either option, so we took our own steps to protect our people. We pulled all support from the Ministry of Magic, taking our teachings with us. Perhaps, it was a rash move, but it was the chosen foot to stand on."

He looked incredibly sad and old, brown eyes turning to the distance as his lips turned down in a rare frown. She didn't know what he was speaking of, she'd never even heard any of this history before. Quite honestly, she didn't know much of anything that had happened outside of her own time and society.

"As Daljeet said, this is now considered the 'Old Way' to your people. It is also our own fault, for stubbornly hiding for all these years, locking ourselves behind our walls. I said it was your destiny to step foot on this land, to understand, but it could also be my own hope to see magic respected and understood as it once was. There are flaws to be found in every society, magical or mundane. Our secrecy and stubborn refusal of friendship is one of ours. The wrongs of our pasts cannot rule our future. Magic depends on life to bond together, to see each other as something worth living alongside."

He gave her a small smile, a hopeful smile, and it was something Jo wasn't sure she could return. Instead, she turned her eyes back on the thriving city and sun baked sand. Why was he placing this on her shoulders? This wasn't her intention, to act as some link between their people. She was here for her own well being, her own troubles. Not the bloody world's.

Her eyes caught sight of a small head full of messy black hair, scurrying along the pathway below, trailing an old man. Wasn't this the burden of a parent? To create a world she wanted her child to live in? To create a better and happier place than she had known? Wasn't that why she had come here, to find the help and knowledge to save him from history repeating itself?

Sighing deeply, Jo just nodded, stepping back through the wall with the old man only a step behind. He placed a warm hand against her arm, squeezing it gently as he stepped past.

"Come, let Daljeet teach you the way of the children. The way of the mountain."

Harry trailed the ancient looking man, ruffling his hair uncertainly as the distance between himself and Jo grew. The old man's gnarled cane tapped along, searching for any obstacles his milky eyes could no longer see. Harry wished he could refer to him as anything but 'Old Man', however, the old man had yet to make even a peep. He'd only tapped Harry, who had been exploring the temple curiously, with the cane before nodding his head for the boy to follow. Harry hadn't at first, confused by what the strange man wanted. After the old man had repeated the tapping and nodding, he'd hesitantly obeyed.

"Where are we going?" The old man slowly lifted a shaky arm, pointing forward with a toothless smile. Ruffling his hair once again, Harry just sighed and bit his tongue. Obviously,the old man would not be answering any of his questions. He continued to follow the man through an alley, stumbling a bit to avoid the many creatures sunbathing on the sand. Somehow, the old man managed to step over or around every single one.

He knocked his cane against a small wooden door hidden in an alcove, a burst of magic lighting up the doorway. Through the door was darkness, only a few small windows and cracks providing light from the outside. Harry tripped and stumbled after the man some more, apprehensive, yet terribly curious. They descended a skinny staircase, through an even smaller door, and then they were in a narrow hallway. At least this one was lit up with large square windows. Harry squinted at the sudden brightness, finding the hallway made of stone and covered in spider webs.

The old man stopped in the center, his cane tapping seven times against the wall where an eye was carved into the stone. The eye shimmered, an electric purple burning to life along its grooves. Then the eye blinked. The wall separated with the lids, disappearing into the floor and ceiling.

"Holy sh-"

The old man frowned fiercely at the boy, the curse being swallowed back up by the blushing nine year old. Nodding curtly, the old man led them inside the opening, his cane no longer tapping along the ground. Harry peeked through the doorway, a nervousness curling inside his stomach at the small circular room. In the very center sat a small table, a pure white cloth covering the top. On the table, directly in the sunlight filtering in from a hole in the ceiling, sat a small wooden cube.

Taking a tentative step inside the room, Harry watched curiously as the old man lit a candle with his cane. He pointed to the cube, smiling toothlessly at the boy. Not understanding, Harry also pointed at the cube, face scrunching when the man began to nod. Slowly, he took a couple steps toward the cube then stopped. He wondered if Jo was looking for him.

The old man made a rasping noise, pointing towards the cube with a bit more vigor. He pointed to Harry then the cube again, tapping his cane against the ground twice. Once again, Harry pointed towards the cube, only managing another two steps before stopping. The old man's milky eyes stared into his, his old shaky finger still pointing towards the eerie block. Harry could feel the hair on his neck begin to stand as the unnerving certainty that the blind man could see him coiled in his stomach.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly extended his hand, gingerly wrapping his fingers around the small wooden cube.

Jo swore under her breath when her foot slipped out from under her, again. Harry tried to stifle a giggle, failing when she turned her miserable sweat soaked face towards him. He was faring much better than her, even with the little backpack he'd insisted on carrying. She stuck her tongue out, pulling herself out of the mud, again, to follow Daljeet who was much further ahead of them.

After a few days in the crazy city, Daljeet had offered to take them up the mountain. "A site all should see at least once in life!" He'd said quite cheerfully. At five in the morning. "Exercise is good for the soul!"

Well, her soul disagreed.

Harry had been immensely pleased with the experience so far, his camera being put to great use at the multitude of colorful plants and animals, both magical and mundane. Jo, so far, hadn't found much appeal in the adventure. Which had nothing at all to do with how terribly out of shape she was, or that she'd been forbidden her wands.

"Jo, look at that! What're those?!" Harry pointed enthusiastically at a swarm of little red humanoid creatures with tiny feathers.

"Look a bit like pixies. Though, I've never seen red ones before," Jo rasped before chugging water, an obnoxious amount spilling onto her neck and face.

"Those would be Jaipur pixies. Very playful," Dlajeet answered, chuckling when one pixie jumped up and swung on the end of his beard. It began trying desperately to untie a bell from his ribbon. "Very mischievous." The pixie clicked loudly at him, raising a tiny fist in defiance before returning, obviously insulted, to his swarm. Harry and Daljeet both giggled, already starting off again. Jo just groaned, stumbling along after the happy pair.

By mid-morning, after many more meetings between her knees and the dirt, Jo finally breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of the waterfall. Behind the magnificent eye sat a small pond, nestled beneath shady trees and blooming flowers. Harry happily dropped the pack and his shoes and shirt, wading into the picturesque blue water with a happy sigh. Jo excitedly undid the laces on her shoes, kicking them. Ripping off her socks, she moved the fastest she had all day towards the refreshing looking water.

However.

"This is the best place for meditation. Many of the rock identities find it most calming to be on the mountain." Daljeet smiled quite happily from his position on an outcropped rock.

"...but…really?" She really thought she might cry, honest to Merlin cry when the old man just nodded, either oblivious or uncaring of her disappointment. Sighing deeply, she cast another longing gaze on the water Harry was splashing about in. Settling onto the rock beside Daljeet, she tried not to glare, but found herself unsuccessful, especially when he looked at her and burst into giggles.

"Daljeet is only helping. The earth identities have claimed this is the spot they had most found their successful breakthroughs. Once we are done, you may join the boy in his fun. Daljeet promises." He smiled kindly, taking her hand gently as he had done since their first meditation. "Come, let us clear our minds."

Nodding reluctantly, Jo inhaled deeply, slowly releasing the breath through her nose as she closed her eyes. She had found, in their last few sessions, that to properly empty her mind she first had to focus on each sense. t had at least worked the last two times, so she decided to start there. She had the tendency to do it in a checklist starting with hearing, next smell, and finally, touch.

Of course, the first thing she took notice of was Harry, splashing and sputtering in the water. She could hear him laugh a bit, her name cutting short when he noticed their meditation. She could hear birds, too. They were chirping and singing, flying between branches and shaking the leaves. There was a fly or mosquito buzzing around her sweaty skin. The water of the falls, rushing out of the eye in immense pressure. The slight breeze, pushing leaves and flowers in new directions. Daljeet's long steady breaths, the slight whistle his nose made when he inhaled.

She could smell the dirt. Rich earthy dirt covered in lush plant and animal life. She could smell the pond, the scent of perfectly hydrated flowers and grass at its edges. Unfortunately, she could also smell her own sweat, the stink a sure sign she had climbed a mountain today. There was something else, a crisp smell that lightly burned her nose and throat. Mountain air. It made her head feel fuzzy the longer the inhaled it, a tingling cleansing fire coursing in her veins from the high altitude.

Finally, touch. The feeling of Daljeet's wrinkled yet soft warm hand in her own. She could feel his pulse in his fingertips, the tempo healthy and constant, never faltering or softening. The warmth of the sun, heating her from the top of her head all the way down to the tips of her exposed toes. Her hair gently danced in the light breeze causing goosebumps to race down her spine. The beat of her own heart echoing into her limbs, creating a harmony with the tempo of her magic. She could feel the hard warm rock beneath her, unyielding and strong.

Her eyebrows scrunched in confusion, the feeling of another beat echoing from the base of her spine all the way up to her skull. She laid her free hand on the rock, subconsciously reaching with her magic for the unknown tempo.

"The mountain," she whispered, mouth twisting into a tiny half smile as her heart and the mountain matched tempos. "I can feel the mountain."

"Good," Daljeet's whispered. "Feel the mountain until it is all you know. Forget the life of Miss Jo. Find the life of a mountain."

She could feel her forehead and eyebrows scrunching in confusion, unsure of what she was to do. Her magic reached out again, tentative and uncertain of what it would find. She imagined it was in a cavern of sorts, labyrinth like with twists and turns as her magic chased the pulse within the mountain. Deeper she went, searching and searching for anything. She was certain her magic would falter, but she pressed on, hoping the next turn would find the heart of the mountain.

But it wasn't.

The turn led to another.

That turn led into another.

And another.

And another.

And finally, her magic couldn't go any farther. It tried, it desperately reached and reached, but it merely fizzled away with every attempt.

She couldn't do it.

Daljeet felt her magic begin its journey back, retracting slowly in defeat to its home. He gave her hand a gentle pat, smiling kindly when she opened disappointed eyes.

"It is no easy feat, to find the heart of the mountain. Your magic is still small, but this is alright, yes? It is why you are here. We shall make you stronger, the strength of a mountain, yes?" She snorted a bit, still finding the old man just a tad mad, but nodded, trying desperately to grasp onto something positive. Daljeet felt pride for her will. It would lead her to great success. "Go, play and family are also very good for the soul."

He watched as she jumped into the pond, dunking and splashing her boy with a raspy laugh. She would need some time, but Daljeet believed she had the pure stubbornness of an earth identity to power through until the end. Even on her worst of days, she would still stumble up this mountain if she believed it would help her heal.

Therefore, Daljeet planned to do just that. Even if she begged to never set foot on the mountain again, he would walk her up every day. It is the way of the Mother, and he is her servant.

Harry and Poppy watched in awe as the teenagers of the fire pit trained. Great spiraling flames of gold roared above their heads, circling around the pit to crash into a giant wall of dark red fire. Bright purple flaming balls danced around a girl like a hula-hoop, exploding at random towards her opponent. His own whip of orange split them into nothing, snakelike in its strikes. It was wickedly terrifying.

Jo and Daljeet were another pit over, meeting the few other earth identities in the city. She'd told them to enjoy themselves and explore the city, but they'd gotten distracted by the spectacular show of magic.

Poppy released many sighs and squeaks at the dauntingly close flames, but she remained resolutely by Harry's side. She was concerned by the look of fearless awe on the boy's face, by the way he barely blinked as he observed their skillful movements. The boy, rightfully so, was always quite taken by magic. However, she was hesitant for him to get such ideas as this in his head. This was not the magic of their home, and she worried for his safety if he were to replicate anything he had seen without proper instruction.

"Young Harry, shall we find somewhere to sit? Poppy be feeling quite hungry and too hot." He agreed, reluctantly staring at the pit of fire users until they were well out of sight. Poppy's shoulder relaxed with every step they took away from it. She must talk to her Mistress about this.

"So…you are the foreigner Daljeet wants us to train, eh?"

Rustam had a face that might as well have been carved from the stone he stood on, craggly scars and lines included, with hazel golden eyes buried beneath great bushy eyebrows. Jo had a feeling, especially by the extremely grumpy face she was receiving, that Rustam felt a certain way about her presence in his home. She also had the distinct feeling her looking down on him wasn't helping her case any. Literally, seeing as the top of his head came to her chest.

"It appears so, yeah."

He crossed his arms, piercing her with a glare as he gave her a once over. Then he spit on the ground, saliva splashing onto her shoes.

"We don't wear shoes in the pit." He scowled at her, neck craning to effectively glare down the bridge of his nose up at her.

Jo frowned at the man, gaze being met by a stubborn challenge in his own eyes. She glanced over his shoulders, noting the other earth identities also walked around with bare feet. Sighing, she knelt down to undo the laces of her boots and kick the offensive outerwear away.

"Better?"

"Hm," he grumbled something unintelligible, spitting once again, thankfully not at her feet. She wasn't sure her patience would withstand that a second time. He suddenly turned, stalking away from her with loud thumping footfalls, dust clouds kicking around him with each step. She turned a raised brow on Daljeet, the useless old man who just stood there in silence, smiling serenely.

"Rustam is cranky before lunch. He is the greatest earth identity in the city. You will learn all there is to learn from him." Gold teeth flashing in a bright smile, he nodded to the three others occupying the pit before ambling away. "Daljeet will see you after. Good luck, Miss Jo."

Good luck my fucking foot, she thought sourly, turning to find her 'mentor' with a frown. The little man had found his way on top of a large boulder on the edge of the pit, leaning across the top with an arm thrown over his eyes. Sighing, sure that the action would be a regular occurrence for the day, she started towards him.

Tiny rocks and sand dug into the soft skin on the bottoms of her feet, and her teeth clenched slightly, more so in irritation than pain. It bloody did hurt though. The type of pain to make your eyes see red, like biting the inside of your cheek. The closer she came, the lower her patience dropped.

"Oy, are you fucking napping?"

"Yep. Go sit on the sides, and stay out of the way. We're not babysitting you for that fool of a man." He didn't even glance at her, merely waving her away lazily.

Oh. Now she understood why she'd been told to leave her wands behind. It's because she would have fucking murdered this cuck.

"Are you having a go? He told me you were the only earth identities in the city, who else am I supposed to learn from?" She glared up at him, hoping her could at least feel it since he refused to look at her.

He just shrugged, shifting himself into a more comfortable position. "Sounds like a you problem."

Eyebrows lifting in disbelief, her lips quirked up just the slightest. Was this fucking real life? She couldn't help it, not really. A rasp of a laugh left her mouth, body relaxing as she rocked onto the heels of her feet, sharp stones embedding themselves into the skin.

She traveled all this way for this? She wasted her time and energy, her fucking brain cells, learning about these people and their fucking beliefs; for this?!

"What the fuck," she muttered, shaking her head slightly as she turned away from the lump on the rock. "Ah, what the fuck."

Rustam peered out from beneath his arm, watching as the woman walked away, shaking her head and mumbling angrily. He shrugged his shoulders again, returning his arm to truly settle in for a nap. She clearly wasn't worth his time.

WHUMP

Bolting upright in surprise and irritation, he found a well-worn dragon hide boot tumbling back down his boulder.

"Little girl-"

Whump

He scowled darkly when her other boot whacked him in the chest. She was glaring at him fiercely from below, shoulders set and arms lightly flexed, clearly ready for a fight.

"Fuck you. Fuck you, fuck this place, and fuck your shitty attitude." She stalked closer to the rock, glaring up at him with blue eyes as hard as sapphires. "You think I just, what, wandered my way in here out of curiosity? Just wanted to see the local sights and try my hand at some 'foreign' magic? That it, you cock? Because let me tell you something."

He grimaced at the feeling of her raw magic washed against his skin. He hates when people do that.

"I'm here because I need to be. My fucking magic needs me to be. My boy needs me to be. Maybe you don't give a shit, and there's nothing I can do about that, but you don't have to give a shit to at least point me in the right direction. Whether or not you like me doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that I fix all this broken stupid shit inside of me. And guess what, your shit attitude isn't going to stop me-"

"Ugh, shut up." Flicking a finger, he backed her up by at least three steps with some elevated rocks. "Mother's mercy, have you ever heard of just saying please?"

"You ever heard of not being a jackass?" She was still glaring spectacularly at him, nostrils flaring as she huffed like a bull.

It was funny.

"No?" Sliding down from his rock, he gave her another once over. "Yeah, alright, this'll work. Come on then, little girl."

She suddenly didn't know what to do with herself, skin still buzzing with all of that anger, as he started walking in the opposite direction. Looking around, she found the three others watching her in clear amusement, and that horrible realization that she'd made a giant ass of herself forced yet another sigh out of her. Anger disappearing under the heaving wave of embarrassment, she quietly trailed after her new mentor.

"Alright, foreigner." He stopped at the outskirts of the pit, cracking his neck slightly before turning his stocky body to face her. "Why don't you tell me what all you can do? What am I working with here?"

"Ehm…I destroyed my house almost a year ago when my core exploded. That's 'bout it." She shrugged, giving him a little smirk when he started glaring again.

"Mother's mercy. You're worse than a child." He waved her off when she opened her mouth in obvious protest. "No, all ribbing aside for the moment, you are less skilled than the smallest child in this city. You really haven't done anything?" She shrugged again, grimacing as a new wave of embarrassment overtook her. He grumbled under his breath, scratching at his head. This was going to be rough. Where does he even start with that?

She had a sinking feeling when he started glancing around with clear agitation. Was she not able to learn?

He grumbled at her to stay put, stalking away heavily. She turned, watching curiously as he approached that boulder again. He lifted both arms, bringing them down in jerky motions causing the boulder to break in thin cracks. Tiny rocks rained down on the ground at his feet, which he scooped up before stalking back towards her.

"Sit down." He dropped the tiny rocks into a pile in front of her. "Try and move those. Once you can do that, we'll have something to work with."

"How am I supposed to do that?" She poked at the small pile, turning a questioning glance on him.

"That's a you problem. Let me know when you've got it." He responded with a shrug and a yawn. With that insightful bit of advice, he turned away and returned to his boulder. She glared after him, exhaling sharply through her nose before turning her glare on the rocks.

"What. The. Fuck."

"Any luck?" He didn't even try to keep the laughter out of his voice.

"Fuck off."

"Master those rocks yet?"

She waved two fingers at him, a sharp breath leaving her nose like a rampaging bull.

"How's it-"

She threw a handful of those damn pebbles at him, scowling darkly when he only laughed and walked away.

Four days.

Four.

DAYS.

She continued to glare at the pile of stones, magic ricocheting violently inside and around her as anger finally overtook her.

She'd tried moving the rocks with her magic. That did nothing but exhaust her.

She tried meditating, reaching for the stones as she had with the mountain. That exhausted her even faster. It just felt like her magic was passing through, well, a pile of rocks. There was nothing for the magic to interact with.

She didn't know what to fucking do. Merlin, how was she supposed to do this?!

"Hey, jackass." He looked entirely too comfortable sprawled across that rock. Once again, he didn't even look at her, just hummed. "Will you please teach me how to move these fucking rocks?"

"Yeah, alright." He sat up with a stretch, yawning as if she had woken him from a perfect little nap. A lazy smile spread across his awfully smug face. Somewhere in the back of her mind, the part of her that descended from that side of the family, knew she was going to bash his head with every single one of those rocks. Once she learned how to, of course.

"Right, so stay standing this time. Do you know how to reach out your magic? Watch." Raising a hand, he released a tiny, nearly translucent stream of dark green. She felt her eyebrows rise in true surprise. Is that what it looked like when she did it? "It's not the same as that energy thing you seem to do. It's an intentional search, where you are physically connecting your magic with the element."

"Like what I do with a wand?" He hummed noncommittally, shrugging and nodding at the same time. She could only watch in fascination as the stones absorbed his magic like sponges. The little pile stacked themselves into a tower, perfectly balanced even after his magic had receded. "Wait, what do you mean 'energy thing'?"

"It's nothing weird, we just all noticed it is all. I know a handful of people here that do the same thing. Some people just have a second skin, almost, of their magic. I don't think any of them notice it. Obviously, you don't." He snickered slightly. "I don't know why you do it, but I always thought of it as a defensive skin." He shrugged again before pointing towards the rocks. "Ready to give it a try?"

Rustam took a step back to observe her. She took a hesitant step closer, and he sighed. "No. You need conviction, no hesitation or else they won't listen. The earth is very stubborn. You have to be more so. What happened to that crazy woman who threw her shoes at me?"

Nodding curtly, Jo took a second to breathe and settle her mind. This was just like she'd taught Harry when teaching him to fly. It was just like any spell she'd ever learned. Conviction, conviction, conviction. Staring down the tower of rocks, she took a firm step towards them, nearly a stomp, and released her magic. A flare of yellow escaped her outstretched hand, and…

"Mother's mercy," he groaned and laughed, not in the least surprised by the result after the explosion of magic she'd just expelled.

A column of dirt and rock towered over them, tilting dangerously to the left.

"Cock," Jo mumbled, turning wide eyes on her mentor.

"That's a you problem, little girl!" He was laughing, great bellowing guffaws at her distress.

She turned to stare at the monstrous tower, a terrible creaking and cracking noise breaking through his laughter as it started to lean even more. "Cock."

Shaking herself a bit, she took another stomp, and released a little less of her magic. If she told it to go back, it should, right? There wasn't a magic word for this. All she had was the conviction of what she wanted it to do, and she wanted it back in the hole it came from.

"Go back, go back, go back." Wide eyed, she watched as it absorbed her magic, the leaning and terrible creaking coming to a stop. With bated breath, she shouted at it in her mind for a long horrible minute. Go back in the fucking hole!

Ever so slowly, to more than her own surprise, the ground began to shake and grumble as it began to recede, bit by bit, back into the chasm it had exploded from. Rustam felt his mouth drop open in shock. The hand outstretched, to fix it for her, falling to his side uselessly.

When the column had finally settled, only the cracks left as evidence, he snapped his mouth shut just in time for his 'apprentice' to turn her eyes on him. She opened her mouth, but stopped. Eyes squeezing shut and hand coming to her head, she swayed suddenly. He moved to catch her, but once again, she took care of it, stomping a foot out to catch herself.

"My bad," she rasped, giggling slightly in a clearly delirious state. "I fucked up." She burst into laughter, falling onto her bum as she just giggled and snorted. He knew she had really exhausted herself, body and core completely unaccustomed to such exertion, but he couldn't help join in on the laughter.

"That was definitely something, little girl." He wasn't one for touching, but he felt she deserved at least one pat on the back. Setting aside how dangerous and stupid that it had been, he was officially impressed. Waving over the only teenager in their pit, he barked at her to help him with his mess of an apprentice. "Let's get you home. You'll need at least a day to recover from that. Idiot."

"Jackass." She sounded much less giggly, exhaustion clearly pulling her down from that little high. She was sound asleep before they'd even left the pit.

Rustam considered the English woman, dropping her sideways on her bed without concern. She flopped uselessly onto her stomach, drool already running from her mouth. She looked a right mess, covered head to toe in dirt and dust with her hair in a tangled mess.

She had a long way to go, and he had only a month to teach her. Impressed or not, he knew the limitations of her body much better than she did, obviously. She had potential at least. More importantly, she had a will, that stubbornness their kind were known for. He had a feeling she'd be back in the morning, borderline useless and exhausted, but she'd be there.

They needed a lot more time than a month.

Huffing, he threw a blanket somewhat over her before stomping out of the residence. He'd have to really push her, disregarding all the boundaries to really make any headway. She needed to be at least capable of holding her own against their youngest before he could trust her to train on her own back in her country. It would be an interesting month, for the both of them.

"So."

Jo stomped her right foot, releasing a tiny burst of magic as Rustam had shown her this morning. A small boulder, no bigger than her head, lifted itself from the ground. She fumbled a bit, the boulder dropping suddenly as she switched control to her hand. Releasing a breath of relief when it stopped a few centimeters before the ground, she raised it back up with her left hand.

"What." Over the last few days, she'd discovered he had an extreme dislike of answering questions. He didn't find making conversation of any sort enjoyable, only barking an order and receiving an answer. It was rather funny. Actually, he reminded her slightly of Cole. Just a touch grumpier and more grumbly.

"Why do you talk so different from the others?" She had three small boulders now, each of them levitating almost waist high in a row before her. Sweat was already dripping down her forehead and back, the weight of three boulders pulling heavily on her magic. Gritting her teeth, she started to lift them higher, arms shaking in the exertion as the rocks wobbled about.

"Watch it, you're losing-"

All three boulders crashed into the dirt, two of them cracking and splintering into multiple pieces. Rustam sighed, but he couldn't say he was disappointed. She was doing very well for only a little over a week of training. His apprentice, on the other hand, scowled and exhaled sharply through her nose, clearly irritated with her 'failure'.

"Calm down, little girl. You're not going to get it on the first try. Give your magic some time to strengthen up before you start throwing a fit." He snorted when she scrunched her face in what was undeniably a pout.

"Right," she sighed, wiping the sweat from her forehead as she sat in a meditation pose. He had advised her to take a break after every give out, meditation being a key tool for relaxing and replenishing her core. Closing her eyes, she tried to settle her breathing and relax the frazzled magic crashing around inside.

After another hour of trial and ultimate failure, Rustam suggested they stop for the day. As apparently was their new custom, he left with her and walked near her back to her residence. He adamantly refused to admit he was walking her back to keep an eye on her.

"I was raised in America." He didn't look at her, intent on picking a few sharp rocks from under his thumb nail. "I figured you had noticed by now that I was speaking English."

"Ah. No, actually. Put a translator spell on us, so everyone sounds like they're speaking English. You just, ehm, sound different. From the others." She gave him a tired little smile. "What brought you here then?"

"My father died in a car crash when I was eleven. He was a mundane, and my mother left here to live a mundane life with him. When he died, though, she returned. They think his blood is the reason I'm an Earth identity. All of us who are have a parent from outside of the city. Same with the ice-holes, too." Finally, he looked at her, squinting like he was looking for something. Perhaps he expected her to pity him or scorn him. She knew what that was like, to be looked at as an outsider in her own home. It seems that their cultures share some similarities after all.

"Right, the infamous ice-holes. Still have yet to meet one, I believe. You talked them up as some gang of bastards, always picking fights. I'm starting to think you made that up." She snorted when he only gave her a dry look.

"Don't you worry, little girl. They'll make their usual rounds before you leave, I can guarantee that." He gave a gruff little chuckle, a smirk that looked just a touch too violent to be pleasant. "You'll see what I'm talking about then."

She just hummed in response, exhaustion starting to pull her brain into baseline operation.

"Get some rest. Got a long day ahead of us tomorrow." As per his new usual, he waved her off in front of her residence, scuffing a barefoot back and forth in the dirt as he waited for her to open the door.

Harry was waiting just inside, face peeling of sunburn. He smiled brightly, instantly launching into a tale about the day he'd had. A tired smile stretched at her mouth, a yawn bubbling up her throat as she let him pull her into the living area. She collapsed onto the couch, brain pleasantly content to just listen as he told her about some four armed fire breathing monkey that he had found.

Poppy and Harry had decided today would be a family day. Jo had somehow earned a day of reprieve from her training, and the two were prepared to take full advantage of it. Jo had made it clear that this vacation was for them, and she wanted them to do whatever they could to enjoy it. Well, they wanted a day with her.

Although, they were merciful enough to grant her a lie-in. Considering she hadn't slept through a sunrise in nearly three weeks.

"Oh, wow." Jo's surprised voice made the boy and elf share a smug smile. They'd stumbled on this surprise some days ago, and it seemed perfect for their 'family day'.

Jo hadn't a clue what the two were up to when they drug her out of the house that morning and loaded onto a couple of sarabs. Truthfully, she'd wanted to spend the day lounging around and resting her sore body. However, she was damn happy she hadn't.

The oasis was beautiful. It was just on the other side of the mountain, only a half hour journey for the quick birds. Hidden beneath the shade of a cluster of trees sat a small pool of the most pure blue. Quite a few animals, magical and mundane, lazed around the edges. She had a feeling this was a man-made attraction, if the small fountain in the center was anything to go by. Perhaps it was the stone benches in the water that gave it away. Either way, she didn't much care as the three quickly jumped in and breathed great sighs of content.

"Alright then," the witch flicked some water at the boy. "Go on and tell me. How'd you two even find this place?"

"Well, it was Poppy, actually."

"Yes, Poppy be seeing people leave during the hot times." The elf nodded along, ears wrapped up in a bright pink swimmers cap with a set of goggles strapped over her eyes. "They come back with wet hair and clothes, so Poppy follow them. The family was very nice, although Poppy couldn't understand a word they be saying. They be showing Poppy how to find the pool, and Poppy brought Young Harry the next day."

"Yeah, I even met some of the children that live near us. They were fun, but they had to go train the rest of the week. I know one of them was in the water training area. His name was Poppan-"

"Ponnappan," Poppy corrected mildly.

"Right, Ponnappan. He was fun. He could make the water into waves and make these little water spouts in the air." His eyes widened with clear admiration of the other boy's magic. Jo had a feeling he was rather taken by it.

As he told her more and more about all of the 'cool' things he'd seen the water identities do, she began to wonder if she should be thinking about his ability with this style of magic. It would be radically different from what he would learn in Hogwarts, but if he started now, before learning how to use a wand, would it be easier? They had two more years until he would go off to school, would that be enough time?

She should discuss it was Daljeet.

"Poppy, you know I could have performed a translation spell for you if you had asked."

Harry and Jo stared in equal perplexity as the elf blushed a deep purple.

"Poppy did not think of that, Mistress."

After the oasis, Harry and Poppy drug Jo all over the city. She was finally able to sample all of the wonderful and strange cuisine from the street vendors. Poppy, now able to communicate with the people, grilled the poor workers endlessly about recipes, cookware, and where to find the best ingredients. She also requested permission to join them the next day and be taught properly. Polite as she may be, the cooks found the small creature just a tad too intimidating to decline her.

Next, they visited the temple. Daljeet found them exploring the large room full of tapestries. He happily told the story behind each one. Just like the portraits at home, their tapestries were a depiction of real people, but they were limited with their interaction. The subject could not speak and their scene was very short before resetting. Jo was curious if they had ever switched to paintings. The old man and witch wound up in a long discussion about the process and differences between the two.

India, after the separation, had indeed closed themselves away from the modern world. Many spells had been forgotten or lost, just as their elemental magic had been for her people. In the end, she promised to send him a book with the spellwork once home, plus any others he desired. It felt like a small gift in comparison for everything he has done for her.

After leaving the temple, Harry suggested going to the mountain. Jo had, unsurprisingly, put her foot down against that idea. She'd had quite enough of the mountain, and knowing the next morning she'd hike its muddy trails, had little desire for it on her day off. Somehow, they ended up at the training pits instead.

Jo watched in amusement as Harry greeted at least one person in the three main pits, realizing he spent a lot more time here than she had anticipated. They ate a late lunch on a raised piece of stone, something Jo felt quite proud of, overlooking the wall of the air identities. They watched as a group of young teens, probably around twelve or thirteen, trained and sparred one another. It was particularly interesting for the witch to watch another identity, especially with how differently they interacted with their element.

Once the air identities were done with their training, the three took their leave of the training pits. Poppy, quite done with being in the sun, chose to return to the residence and begin preparing dinner. Harry and Jo decided to take a slow walk around the city, exploring the nooks and crannies they had missed that first day.

Harry led the way, walking her down cramped alleys and over low walls. She was amused, though slightly concerned thinking about what exactly he had been up to while she was busy. He showed her alcoves that had been turned into shrines to the Mother, covered in preserved flowers and bright paints. There was a shop that sold exclusively non-electrical muggle items that he had discovered. Another shop sold flying carpets, in which Jo had to deliver the disappointing fact that they were banned in Britain to the puppy dog eyed boy and cashier. She did, however, let him buy an animated elephant that shot water out of its trunk.

Finally, they returned to their home away from home. The whole house was full of black smoke and the terrible stench of burnt food. Clearing the air, they found Poppy wailing in despair at the only dish she had ever ruined in her entire life. "Poppy followed the recipe!" Once they'd calmed the distressed elf down, she relented to allowing Jo to take them out for dinner as well.

That night, the only night since she had began training, Jo stared at the ceiling as her mind refused to quiet down. Physically, she was exhausted. Mentally and magically, however, she was still chalk-full of it all. Images, memories, danced behind her eyes, agitation causing her teeth to clench. She'd gone almost their entire stay without even a single dream. Every day, she'd return home with just enough energy to eat and listen to Harry and Poppy tell her about their days, then hit the pillow with her eyes already shut.

Deep down, she knew the nightmares and thinking hadn't gone. No, she knew, she'd just hoped they would stay away. Is this the only way she was to get rid of them? By exhausting herself so completely she couldn't function enough to even dream. Her magic and core may be better than she had ever hoped for, but inside of her own head? Merlin, she's a fucking wreck. Could she ever fix it?

"Is it even fixable?," she mumbled to the dark ceiling, eyes stinging as uncertainty gripped her.

Oh dear, are we talking to ourselves now?

Jo squeezed her eyes shut. It had been so long since she'd heard it. Months of nightmares and sleepless nights, but no voice chilling her from within. Why now?

You can't ignore me, sweetheart. You can't ignore yourself.

Well, yes. Yes she bloody well could. Nearly a decade of drinking herself to death proved she could very well ignore herself.

But this thing wasn't her. She wouldn't accept that.

You will. One day. You'll see. I'm always here, always have been.

Throwing the covers off, she started pulling on clothes and boots, intent on getting out of this room. If the voice is here, she would go somewhere else.

Isn't that dull. You can't run away from yourself, dear. It's physically impossible.

"Shut up."

Harry woke suddenly to the sound of boots stomping against the floor. He could hear Jo's low voice mumbling, tone harsh. Suddenly, she walked past his bedroom door, fully clothed and face set. He heard the door creak open and shut, her footsteps crunching farther and farther away. Where was she going? Intent on following her, Harry jumped out of his own bed. However, Poppy appeared next in his doorway. She smiled gently, holding a mug of steaming coco.

"Mistress be alright. She will be back soon, Poppy knows it."

Jo cursed, knees hitting the dirt as she stumbled on the rocky terrain. The sky was clear and the waning moot bright, but under the thick foliage of the mountain's trees, it was nearly black. She could hear the voice mocking her, scorning her for this stupidity, but she didn't care. She knew where she needed to go. What she needed to do. And through the thick curtain of vines and leaves, she could see the smooth rock illuminated by the moonlight.

Gingerly, she climbed on top of the rock Daljeet usually joined her on, legs folding naturally into her meditation position. Closing her eyes, she let out a slow exhale before inhaling the burning cleansing mountain air.

What do you think this will accomplish? Nothing, and you damn well know it.

"Be quiet." Her magic flared, wrapping itself around her in the gentlest embrace. Silence engulfed her. There was no voice. There was no wind. Not even the rushing water of the falls.

Pure wonderful silence.

Under the light of the moon, surrounded by the strength of the mountain, she finally let the tears fall. She let the memories flood and drown her mind. This thing inside of her wanted her to remember, to see it all every night.

Fine, she would.

She would remember every last detail. Every moment of love and happiness tainted by the war. The burning anger and thirst for justice. The pain and absolute wonder of bringing another life into this world. The suffocating grief of losing this precious person she created and the man she brought into a warring world he didn't belong to. The shock of her family being wiped away in the blink of an eye. The agony of watching all of her friends and allies being picked off like flies.

The sick pleasure she felt when they returned the favor. That dark twisted part of her that sought out to end the lives of those who had supported her loved ones' murders.

Once all of those memories had beaten and bloodied her mind, each wracking sob partnered to a moment in the past, did she finally feel tired. Tired and empty. Apparently, her brain knew what she needed, though.

Her exhausted and torn mind thought of Harry, giggling quietly as he mouthed the words to the funnies section. It thought of Poppy, always the strong anchor, caring for Jo with all of her being. It thought of Katie and her three wonderful children, invading her home with their laughter and tantrums and love. It thought of Ted and Andromeda, a helping hand and ready ear whenever she may need. It even thought of Healer Nyaga and his brilliant smile.

Slowly, she opened her eyes. A tiny smile pulled at her lips when she saw a strange dog, with the legs of a deer and small antler nubs, watching her curiously from below. Its stubby deer tail began to wag, a peculiar whining bark leaving its mouth.

"Right. I've got to move on, don't I?" It made the strange bark again, body beginning to wiggle with the force of its wagging. "Don't have to forget, just have to start living for now. I've got a family, you know? It's not the one I imagined, back then, but it's a family I love. That's better than drinking myself into the grave, yeah?"

Sighing, she felt herself smile a little more even as her heart broke at the thought. It was time to put this all back in the past, where it belongs. Even her Lucy and Cole. Her heart could remember them on its own. It wasn't a betrayal, no matter how much she felt it was. It wasn't a betrayal to live. She wasn't doing Harry or Poppy any favors by keeping so much of herself locked in the past with the dead.

They needed her now, and now is where she needed to be.

"So."

She glanced up curiously, more than surprised by his easy tone. Slowly, she turned, five thin stone slabs circling with her. "…So."

Rustam stared down at her from atop his boulder, great fuzzy eyebrows raised in curiosity. He seemed to be thinking a great deal about how to say whatever it is he wanted to ask, chin wagging left-to-right beneath his hand. She raised her eyebrows in response, trying to keep her concentration from breaking as she pushed the stones higher in the air. He essentially had her magically bench pressing the slabs, adding a new slab for each successful set of ten.

"What…why are you here? What brought an English woman to the hidden city to learn about our ways?" He beat a fist against the boulder, releasing yet another sliver of stone to add to her set. She nearly lost it, though, concentration faltering at his sudden question. Once she'd regained control, the strain of six slabs weighing heavily on her magic, her mind wondered how to even answer.

"...There was a war, it started when I was a teenager. A dark magic user rose to power, amassing a large following. They had a lot of elitist beliefs they wanted to see instated into our society, and they wanted anyone in their way to die. My family died, many of my school friends as well. Two people, the final two to fall to the leader of the movement, were my boy's parents." She paused, looking for any recognition on his face, but all she found was his usual stone-carved expression, patiently waiting for her to continue. "Anyways, I didn't cope very well with the end of the war. I was alone…angry…. I gave up magic and drank my days away. In case you're wondering, that is the number one way, I've discovered, to completely erode and weaken your core to a nearly nonexistent state."

"So, after eight years of that depressing bullshit, here comes my boy, just appearing in my life. One thing leads to another, I start using my magic again, and now I've got a kid living under my roof and family's name. Go on and have a bad night, boom goes my magic. Some months later, Daljeet appears in my healers office spouting on and on about this Mother and hands me this strange little cube. Says to me that the Mother blocked my magic, that I needed to…"

"Hit rock bottom?" He added another stone to her set, mouth setting in a firm line as she shrugged. She couldn't speak under the new weight, only completing three lifts before her magic released the overload. Rustam gave her a moment to rest, scrutinizing the woman as she sank to the dirt on shaky legs. "So Daljeet brought you here?"

She shrugged again before shaking her head. "No, that was months ago when he came. He offered to help me, but I refused. Actually, I'd hit a bit of a wall with my healer back home, and it was 'suggested' that I should explore a more unconventional path. I…did not anticipate this shit." She gave a dry chuckle, rubbing a hand aggressively against her forehead. He noticed that about her quickly, she always seemed to have a headache.

"Lavender."

"What?"

"On the mountain, there's a small valley full of moon lavender. Make it into tea. It's good for headaches." He scratched at the scruff on his chin again, shrugging when she looked at him as if he had grown a second head. "My wife would make me fetch it every time she was pregnant." She hummed in response, shooting him a small smile in thanks.

"Come on, sun's getting low. Might as well call it a day."

It was their final day in India. Naturally, that meant Daljeet would wake her an hour earlier than usual for their hike up the mountain. He smiled brightly at her, watching in amusement as she tried to find the energy to glare. She slowly sipped a mug of coffee, awareness gradually entering her eyes as Poppy served them breakfast.

"Today is your last day, Miss Jo. Daljeet is sad to see you and your family go." She hummed and nodded in response, eyes passing him over to watch as Harry stumbled into the kitchen area. "There is a festival tonight, our greatest festival of the year. It is the 'Mother's Blessing'. We would be honored if you and your family would attend before you depart."

"Of course we be going. Master has welcomed us, it be the polite thing to do," Poppy answered quickly, waving a wooden spoon at her Mistress when she opened her mouth full of food. "Mistress does not speak with a mouth full of food!" Jo made an obnoxious show of chewing and swallowing, earning a tired giggle from Harry, who's face was flat against the table.

"Like the dictator said, of course we'll come. It would be an honor." Daljeet smiled happily in response, promising it would be the likes of which they had never seen. Really, everything about this place had already fulfilled that promise. Jo had a hard time imagining what that meant for this festival.

Once Poppy had forced some food down Harry's half asleep throat, the three set out for their daily hike. The sky had just begun to lighten with the rising sun, the soft glows of pinks and purples gently waking the English pair as they ambled through the city. A lizard with three heads scurried along ahead of them, one head turned to hiss and spit at them as they walked. Daljeet shooed it away with a chuckle, ducking through large leaves to lead them onto the worn trail.

"Even mundane creatures with little magic end up here. As you can see." The old man was rambling about the mountain being home to many creatures. The ley lines running below it acting as a call for wayward or lost beings. He pointed towards a tree packed with birds along every branch. "The mountain is an oasis, a place of peace for all those in need of a home." Harry eagerly clicked away on his camera, asking the old man about every species.

"Is that a firebird?" Jo interrupted, pointing to a small bird with great swooping feathers of orange and gold on its head.

"Ah, yes. That would be a hoo-hoo, very rare. He must have been incredibly lost to end up here." Daljeet offered an arm, whistling and clicking to try and coax it closer. The adolescent bird peered down on the human curiously, releasing a high sing-song chatter before turning its head away with disinterest. "Oh well, perhaps next time." He smiled easily before turning and resuming their trek.

"So…is that why the dogs come to our house, Jo? Is it on a ley line?" Harry missed her grimace, too busy keeping an eye out for more interesting animals.

"Oh? Miss Jo, you did not tell me! However did you build a house on a ley line? That must have taken an incredible amount of magic." Daljeet turned back to face her with interest, walking backwards through the thick foliage.

"Ehm, yeah. I mean, no, it's not built on a ley line." She tried not to squirm under the old man's intensely curious stare. Unfortunately, he had this terrible habit of being impressively patient and capable of very limited blinking, staring her down until she finally answered. "It's built on all of them."

Daljeet paused in his walking, staring at her with an unreadable expression. She kept her face passive, shrugging when he didn't speak. Harry watched the two stare at one another, ruffling his hair when the silence dragged on. Suddenly, Daljeet burst into laughter, shaking a finger at the witch, who smiled awkwardly in response.

"That was a good one. You almost had Daljeet fooled." He snorted a bit, still giggling as he finally turned away to continue the trek. " 'All of them' she says, pfft."

Releasing a small breath of relief, Jo continued walking, giving Harry an exasperated look. She thought he knew better than to bring up their house in front of others. He ruffled his hair again, shrugging in confusion at her distress.

"But, is that why the dogs come to the house?" He had the decency to at least ask quietly this time.

"That's my guess. All of the dogs with a noticeable amount of magic, at least. They'd have to be magical to find the house. Poppy thinks they come in through the World Room, even though the entrances are warded." Honestly, it was a mystery, one her parents and grandfather had puzzled over endlessly. She'd just accepted it. What little girl wouldn't want a mob of pups sneaking into her room every night to cuddle and play? She'd seen a great many other animals too; cats, snakes, birds, a few nifflers, even a hippogriff once, but the dogs were the only ones to seek out human interaction.

"So Taffy…"

"Has enough magic to have sniffed out the house, yes."A little smile pulled at Harry's lips, obviously pleased with the confirmation. He knew she wasn't an ordinary dog.

"Unfortunately," Jo continued, frowning as she watched Daljeet's head tilt in a way that had her thinking he was trying to eavesdrop. "Dogs aren't recognized as magical familiars for Hogwarts, which means-"

"Taffy can't go with me?" Quick as a snap, his little smile dropped into a pout, disappointment clear for all to see.

"Sorry, kid. Unless they change the century old rules in two years, Taffy's gonna have to stay home with me." He let out a little whine, arms waving just a bit in frustration before he heaved a great big sigh. His pout slowly disappeared, resignation in his eyes as he slowly nodded. "No worries, I like to think I am rather good with dogs. She'll be okay."

"I know, I just love her. She's the only dog I've ever…and she always listens and you can tell she understands." He gave her another little pout. "She's my best friend."

Aw, Jo couldn't help the thought, smiling sadly. "She'll be your best friend no matter what, I promise." She ruffled his hair, earning herself a playful glare and a swat, but it coaxed a little smile out of him.

Their moment came to a close, though. Daljeet had already seated himself on the rock by the pond, waiting patiently for Jo to join him. She gave Harry's shoulder a squeeze, sending him off to explore before climbing up to meditate. As they joined hands, eyes closing to the outside world, Jo already knew she wouldn't find the heart of the mountain today either.

Daljeet trailed after the ash haired witch with a tiny smile, watching as she searched high and low for her boy. He had wandered further than usual today, but Daljeet was not worried. He was a smart boy, and the man had confidence he would not have done something too dangerous.

Thankfully, the boy's disappearance offered Jo a distraction for the unsurprising but still disappointing feeling of failure. She had not reached the mountain, but her magic had extended much farther than the first day. Daljeet thought that she had come a long way in a very short amount of time. Perhaps it was not something she had realized, the gradual growth she had made, but he could recognize the differences. She no longer wheezed and stumbled up the mountain, but instead, she confidently walked without shoes all the way up and back down. After the mountain, she would go directly to the pits to train. He had not seen her growth there, but Rustam had given his reports on her advancements.

Actually, he'd only given one. 'Yeah, the little girl's alright.'

Daljeet was of the opinion that this was high praise from the surly man.

"What the fu-"

Daljeet looked up in surprise when the woman cut off with sputters and coughs. He could hear Harry, apologizing profusely, feet obviously splashing through water. Wandering towards the noise, he found the woman, soaked head to toe, sat on the ground staring wide eyed at the nervous and blushing boy hidden behind large leaves.

"Y-you were…when did you even…" She opened and shut her mouth a couple more times, just staring in shock at Harry. "And you didn't bloody tell me?" Harry looked down, face turning guilty and feet beginning to shuffle. He didn't want her to be angry with him. "That is so damn cool. How could you not tell me?"

"Wait." he looked up with a confused frown. "You're not mad at me?"

"I mean," Jo finally stood back up, waving her right wand to quickly dry herself. "I'm a little disappointed I had to find out this way." She flashed him a little smirk, and he relaxed even more at the sight of it. "Why would I be mad? Make me a damn hypocrite, wouldn't it?"

Daljeet watched the two go back and forth, still dearly confused by the whole situation. "Excuse me, but what exactly is happening right now? Daljeet is very curious."

Jo just shook her head, smiling encouragingly at Harry. "Well go on then, show us."

Ruffling his hair, Harry looked between the two nervously. Jo waved him on with a nod. He returned it, and led them back into the forest. Daljeet and Jo quickly followed, only stopping once he started wading into an ankle high stream. He peeked back at them, stomach feeling unusually twisty as they stared with anticipation. Taking a deep breath, he turned his attention towards the slowly moving water.

Harry slowly raised both arms, a small pale blue stream of energy leaving his hands to shakily meeting the water. The old man let out a little laugh when a wriggling unrefined glob of water gradually separated from the stream. With unsteady, amateur movements, the boy kept his right arm extended while drawing the left close to his chest. Turning slowly, he pulled the water around towards them. Once he had completed the turn, the water remained in the air for only a second longer before the weight became too strong, and he lost control. It fell with a splash back into the stream, Harry nervously smiling while Jo let out a raspy laugh and clapped.

"Mother's breath, he's a water identity." The two were not listening to him, though. She was too busy interrogating him of 'when, how, why didn't you tell me?' Daljeet was mostly curious of the how.

"It was the old blind man, at the temple. The first day? He led me into some strange room, and he had me pick up some small wooden block. It turned into water, just poof, a little block of water. It was so strange, almost like jello! I thought it would splash all over me at first." Harry spoke quickly, looking between the adults for their reactions. Jo's face had turned strange, as if she was forcing her smile to stay on her face while her eyebrows crinkled with worry.

"That would be Master Jum. He is the keeper of the Brahmaan Aankh." Reading the clear worry on Jo's face, he laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "He would never harm a child. Daljeet believes he felt Harry's magic, and sought to show him his identity. Children are given a ceremony on their fifth birthday here, and they are introduced to their magic's identity. Being the keeper of the Brahmaan Aankh, he has an incredible sense of finding those who have not undergone the ceremony."

"Right. Okay, brilliant." Exhaling sharply through her nose, Jo gave Harry a soft yet stern look. "Probably best if you don't go off with strangers anymore." Harry nodded quickly, understanding in his eyes that Jo was serious and worried. "Okay, now tell me how you even learned to do that."

As they trekked back down the mountain, Harry told them of how he and Poppy would watch the training pits every morning. When Poppy had returned home for a few days, Harry had plucked up the courage to approach the youngest of the water identities. He'd watched them for days, but didn't understand how they did any of it.

The girl had almost brushed him off until he'd told her about the old man and the cube. Still reluctant, she'd promised to show him the basics if he met her by the pit at dawn the next morning. It wasn't until the third day that he'd been able to even lift a drop of water. After that, she'd merely dumped a scroll into his lap and wished him luck. He'd practiced every chance he had, reading the scroll every night and watching the water pit every morning.

He thought it best not to mention his begging Poppy not to tell when she'd found him practicing in the bath.

"First form." Rustam barked the command from his usual place, lounging on top of the giant boulder.

Jo aggressively stomped her right foot, releasing a careful amount of magic through the sole. A short jagged pillar of rock burst from the ground. Flexing left her arm into a 90 degree angle, she lifted the rock until it hung suspended in the air at eye level.

"Third form."

She stomped her foot again, erecting a second pillar behind her. Flexing her right arm, the pillar copied its brother as it lifted into the air.

"Fifth form."

Drawing both arms close, the two pillars closed in on her, slowing spinning in a circle.

"Sixth."

She crossed her arms into an X, her teeth beginning to clench as the strain of the rocks weight pulled on her magic. The spinning began to accelerate, growing faster and faster until the pillars blurred together as a continuous rock tornado.

"Eighth form!"

Releasing a slow breath, she extended both arms to her side with force. The pillars crumbled instantly, a wall of dust spinning around her.

"Good. You know what to do." He had sat up straight now, observing her with a critical eye, ever vigilant for any dangerous mishaps.

Nodding once, she suddenly pivoted, swinging her arms in an arc over her head. The wall of dust quickly followed, transforming into a tubal current as she directed it. Down, up, left, right; she widened and shortened it, created separate currents then brought them back together. It never faltered.

Finally, eyeing the smooth slab of rock standing as a target, she extended her left arm. The dust spiraled, clumping closer and closer together into a spear of tiny rocks. The ricochet of sharp pebbles digging into the surface of the stone echoed like fireworks across the pit.

She relaxed her stance quickly, trying to hide the deep gulping breaths she was taking. Sweat soaked hair to her neck and the shirt to her back. The muscles in her arms shook from the exertion, but she smiled. She'd done it, perfectly, and that felt pretty fucking fantastic, right now.

"Great. Now fix the slab." Her ever inspiring mentor gave her a thumbs up, sliding down the boulder at a sloth's pace. Groaning, Jo gave an easy stomp, the small pebbles pulling out of the stone before dropping to the ground with quiet pitter patters.

Refusing to let him see how shaky her legs were, she walked slowly towards the slab. {lacing her hands flat against its gouged surface, she slowly released a wave of magic. The holes filled with the shards and slivers that had been released by the impact. It took nearly ten minutes for the slab to return to its smooth and immaculate state.

"Missed a spot."

"No I didn't. Stop being a jackass."

"Yes you did. See, right there."

"That's just a shadow."

"Uh huh, and I'm a professional seeker for Oasaka Axolotls."

"I didn't know jackasses could fly a broom."

As per usual, he walked her all the way back to her residence. As per usual, she got to smirk and laugh to herself as she watched him get pummeled by eight children two doors down. Unusually, she had a small ache at the realization today would be the last day with the hard faced unpleasant jackass. Laughter dying rather quickly, her smile turned sad as she watched him grumble and grizzle as children laughed and climbed all over him. His wife easily cleared a path through the mayhem, laying a hand against his cheek with a loving smile. The old grump melted right into it, smiling only for her as they fought through their offspring into the house.

Stepping inside, she found Harry and Poppy right inside, both wearing flowers and colorful clothing. She just raised an eyebrow when Poppy held up a bright orange shirt clearly intended for her.

"It be for the festival, Mistress."

"Yeah, everyone's dressed like this." Harry tugged at the collar of his bright red shirt, smirking at her grimace.

"Right. The festival." She'd nearly forgotten about the festival. She desperately just wanted to bathe and rest, body aching after a rough day of training.

"Come, Mistress. We don't have much time before the festival begins!"Poppy clucked and tutted the witch into the house, a filled bathtub and levitating sponge waiting for her.

Harry pulled Jo along excitedly, completely oblivious to her frown as they quickly approached the overflowing throng of people. The entire city was here, packed tightly together as they approached the mountain. A large arch had been constructed, marking the entrance to the festival. There had to be an expansion charm of some sort at work because she was positive there was no way all of these people could fit inside that small space. Sighing quietly, Jo tried to settle her twisting and tightening stomach as they joined the many people.

Poppy held onto her Mistress's other hand, staring in wonder at the many colors and stands. Drums and flutes filled the air, the music enticing the people to sway and stamp their feet. There were many children running about, laughing and shouting as they weaved between legs. A sudden bang echoed through the area, laughter following as men chased young teens away from the fireworks tent. A wayward firework suddenly sparkled above their heads, the colors nearly invisible in the sunset. Grey eyes watching with curiosity as the flares fell back to the earth, the little elf found something much more interesting in the sky.

"Oh my…" Harry and Jo turned curiously at Poppy's breathless words, the elf's wide eyes turned far from the festival and high above their heads. Their eyes followed her gaze, up up up, and even further still. High above their heads, just barely breaking the cover of clouds, flew a creature of the likes none of them had ever seen in person.

"Holy-"

"Shit." Harry didn't even flinch at the light cuff around his ears, too mesmerized by the beast in the sky.

The sound of mighty wings beating echoed over them, thunder booms of air breaking holes through the clouds. Scales of the brightest blue, no they're green- no wait, they've turned purple- shimmered in the dying sun as the beast elegantly danced through the wind, slowly descending over the hundreds of heads upturned to watch. Its great tail swished quickly along making the great creature appear as if it was swimming through the sky instead of flying.

Finally, to the complete silent awe of the crowd below, it came to a graceful landing, remaining high above their heads, on the eye of the mountain. Fearsome jaws split apart, showcasing hundreds if not thousands of deadly sharp fangs, the glow of fire emitting from the depths of its belly into its throat.

"It's a bloody dragon," Jo whispered, still unsure if this was even real.

The great beast finished yawning, bright violet eyes lazily sweeping over the crowd of people before it simply lowered its head. Like a great big house cat, it flopped onto its side, still maintaining an air of self-importance. Stretching all four claws and tail, an air piercing whine-near-purr of content rumbled through the air.

"The Mother's Eyes have arrived! IT IS TIME!"

The cry came from somewhere far in the front of the crowd, and the reaction was instantaneous. The beat of drums and whistling of flutes started once again, cheering and shouts of excitement filled the air. People began stamping their feet and clapping their hands as they pressed closer to the mountain. Jo kept a strong grip of Poppy and Harry, the three being carried along easily by the exuberant crowd. There was a chant starting, growing louder by the second as the energy surrounding them began to take on a more magical feel.

"The Mother watches. The Mother watches. The Mother watches."

Jo found her mouth suddenly forming the words, the sudden urge to add her voice to the many becoming overpowering. Her body felt light, as if her flesh had disappeared so her spirit could celebrate unencumbered. Somewhere, in the back of her high-flying mind, she wondered if this was wrong. Unnatural.

But it felt so…free. Her mind felt light and happy, soul connecting with the hundreds around her. She couldn't shake the rightness engulfing her.

She felt a tug on her hand, instantly turning to find Harry smiling brightly at her. Was he glowing? His bright green eyes glittered at her like two little stars. His face and arms had a shine to them, a bright dazzling blue dancing along his skin. He was shouting something at her, but she couldn't hear him over the chanting surrounding them. "What?!"

"Y-re…-ing!" He laughed, pointing at her chest.

Looking to Poppy, she found the elf in a similar state as the kid. She was smiling just the same, pearl skin sparkling under the darkening skies and grey eyes shimmering pools of moonlight.

"Mistress be glowing!"

Jo quickly looked at her own skin, finding a faint yellow sparkling along her arms and legs. Glancing around, the three found every person and creature near them in the same state. Varying colors sparkling along their skin, causing the crowd to light up the darkness of dusk.

She should find something wrong with this, it wasn't normal, but she couldn't stop smiling. It all felt so magical.

After the last few weeks, this was perhaps just expected. Nothing about this place was normal, and if the smiles on Harry and Poppy's faces were anything to go by, perhaps abnormal wasn't so bad.

Quite suddenly, the chanting stopped, Jo and Harry finding their mouths shutting to an unknown cue. The flutes had stopped, but the drums kept going. The beat matched their heartbeats perfectly, the magic and blood in their veins pumping in time with the bone jarring rhythm. Daljeet stepped onto a the raised platform, barely visible over the crowd between them. He held both hands out to his sides, flames erupting in each palm as he smiled over the people.

"The Mother watches us. Her eyes see all of her children, watching as we celebrate our own children. Tonight shall be glorious, the marvelous and beautiful sights of watching our children step into adulthood! Young ones, shall you show the Mother all you have learned? Show her the wonderful abilities her gift has granted us?"

A swelling current of shouts rose from the front of the crowd. All of the teenagers, ranged fifteen to eighteen stood there, covered from head to toe in ceremonial flowers and paints. Tonight would be their chance to drop the title of apprentice and child, instead gaining the tattoos of a mentor and the respect of adulthood. They were rowdy, filled with adrenaline and magic, and surrounded by the support of their community. Jo could see, even from behind the crowd, they were all glowing; the brightest stars in this sea of people.

"Then we shall begin!" Daljeet brought his hands together, the flames erupting into a great eye of fire over their heads. The heat bore down on the cheering crowd as smaller balls of fire, water, air, rock, and ice shot into the air beside it.

The three foreigners watched in awe, nearly swept away by the overflowing magic surging around them. The great dragon lifted its head, violet eyes reflecting the dazzling shine of the people down below. Deep inside, something no human word could describe, each and every person understood they were under the watchful eyes of something much greater than they could ever conceive.

The Mother was watching.

Jo, Harry and Poppy followed the example of the others in the back of the crowd, climbing onto rock piles and crates to better see the performances in the front. Each teenager would walk through an archway designated to their element identity. If they could successfully pass through, they would advance onto a platform beneath the dragon's perch. It looked like the youngest went first, more than half of the apprentices being turned away under the arches by some magic unknown to the foreigners. Only three advanced through the arches of the group: an air identity, a fire identity, and an ice identity.

The first to approach the dragon was air identity, his face and arms glowing silver. He bowed to the dragon, a great burst of air exploding around him as he stood and began his test. The air swept around him, circling into a tornado that lifted him into the air.

His movements were so very different from anything Jo had learned, his body relaxed and actions seeming random. His right arm would raise languidly, a great spiraling ball of compressed air shooting out like a cannon. He kicked his left leg sharply, a teasing gust of air swooping from behind to flip him backwards. Graceful and unhampered, his displays always a surprise and incapable of guessing. His finishing move, a beautiful swan formed of compressed air, gliding over their heads to disappear into the clouds.

Harry sucked in a breath, watching in earnest hope to witness the boy gain his tattoo. Jo had to force herself not to scream when the dragon opened those lethal jaws, releasing a stream of blue and white flames onto the boy. The crowd released a mighty cheer, chanting the boy's name as he emerged unscathed with a brilliant smile. He held up both hands for all to see, a glowing blue symbol burned into the palms. He quickly left the platform, many hands clapping his shoulders and rubbing his head in congratulations as he joined the mentors.

The fire identity, a girl, took his place, and bowed to the great dragon. Just like the boy, Jo was struck by the difference in her form. She straightened from her bow, jumping and twisting in the air with a striking kick. A great ball of purple flame erupted from the sole of her foot, circling up her body. She quickly grabbed it above her head, separating it into two orbs of fire.

The flames licked up her arms, creating an eruption of fiery breath behind her. She moved quickly, fluidly, and with the precision of a predator. The fire never left the platform, always circling around her, over her, consuming her entire body. She finished with a move reminiscent of fire breathers in the circus. Holding a small flame between her hands, she blew into it, releasing a blazing purple rose over the crowd.

The spectators held their breath as the dragon loomed over her. However, Its jaws stayed firmly shut. It merely nodded to the girl. She did not pass.

The crowd cheered again, words of encouragement floating through the air to wash over the disappointed girl. They promised her it was not a disgrace. The Mother saw more potential within her, she had been granted another year to grow. Her fellow teenagers clapped her on the shoulders, embracing her with comforting smiles. Jo and Harry joined the others in applause and cheers of reassurances.

Soon enough, the people quieted, returning their eyes to the final test. The ice identity, the oldest of the three, stood stoically before the dragon. She bowed. A murmur grew in the crowd when she did not immediately rise. A fine white mist collected around her bent form, shielding her from view as it thickened.

Loud cracking and shattering filled the air as the mist exploded. Shimmering ice crystals surrounded the girl, a frozen wave extending well above her head. She moved slowly, deliberately, gracefully swinging her arms around her waist. The ice wave cracked and groaned, reshaping itself into a snow horse galloping across the ledge. Suddenly, she raised her arms and threw them down, destroying the horse into another frozen wave with lethal edges. Even from here, Jo could see the girl take a deep breath, pausing for only a second. Then, she was a blur.

Hands high up above her head, left arm striking down while the right extended out, twirling on a toe, leaping, crouching; the lead in a dance of ice and snow. Her wave turned to snow, following her dutifully as it transformed into a spear of ice. The spear swooped back around, shattering into fine crystals that froze everything in their wake. She finished with one final deliberate spin, the ice encompassing her within a sphere. Her silhouette within crouched low, and the ice rained down on her in harmless snow flurries.

Once again, the crowd watched in palpable anticipation as the dragon issued its final decision. Flames lit the air. The cheers and clapping of hundreds of people met the girl as she displayed wrists with glowing white symbols.

Harry pulled on her arm, tearing her attention away from the growing excitement of the crowd. He pointed above their heads, Jo just catching the tail of the dragon as it disappeared back into the clouds. They shared bright smiles, hands clasping tighter as the people's magic swept over them again.

"Should we join the fun?"

"Definitely!"

She led Harry and Poppy into the celebration, all three laughing as their magic danced freely with the others'.

Looking back on it, none of the three would ever be able to describe the blur of delicious food, singing and dancing, or the inebriating happiness that overtook the final hours of that night. All they would say is it was unlike anything they had seen before.

It was well into the night when Daljeet delivered them back to where they had first met. The desert air stung their skin, breaths visible in the chill. Harry, the poor kid, was fast asleep between Jo's arms. Poppy was barely any better, slumped against the neck of her sarab as her eyes fluttered. Dismounting as easily as she could, Jo maneuvered Harry onto her back before rousing Poppy. She handed the lethargic elf the portkey, reminding her she had to open the door for them. Yawning, the elf nodded and bid Daljeet a tired farewell.

"It is sad to say goodbye to you and your family. Daljeet has enjoyed your presence immensely." The old man had a tear in his, smiling sadly as he joined her. Clasping his hands, he bowed slightly. When he straightened, he wiped the tear from his eye with a little chuckle. "Look at Daljeet, crying when this has given him such good memories. It was a true gift watching you grow. You will come back, yes?"

"I imagine so." Smiling, Jo offered a bow of her head. "It was an honor and true gift to be here. Thank you. For Everything. You…I believe you saved me. I will miss you and the city as well."

A shimmer appeared then, the doorway home popping open before them. She could see Poppy waiting tiredly inside, the dogs circled around her in barely contained excitement.

"Until next time, then?" Her throat felt suspiciously thick. She was truly sad to be leaving. Of course, she missed home, but this had been an amazing experience. The people had been kind and so very different from the society she had grown up in. The magic of the city and the people had felt light and clean, untarnished by the ravages of war and prejudice. She was very much going to miss it.

"Until next time, yes. Daljeet will be waiting, Little Mountain." He smiled brightly, those gold teeth shining even in the darkness. "May The Mother watch you wherever you go."

She paused, lips curling into a smile. "She watches all of us, right? We're her children."

He knew she only said it for his sake, that she still didn't believe it, but he appreciated the sentiment. Daljeet watched as they disappeared, another tear collecting in his eye. Hopefully, this would be the beginning for a future their ancestors had hoped to destroy. No more hiding. No more secrets. A future of friendship and peace. Just as The Mother designed it.