Notes: There are a few more references to past fics of mine. Additionally, Voudini's New Zealand tower home is 100% based off of Orthanc in Isengard, from Lord of the Rings (New Zealand being where the trilogy was filmed); I've mentioned before that I've more or less written Voudini as the "good" version of Saruman (as I'm pretty sure he's based off of Christopher Lee, who played Saruman). Since Saruman was obsessed with industry and mechanics, I had the "good" version of Orthanc be in a Steampunk style, with the surrounding forest left pristine and untouched.
Additionally, as before when mentioned in my fic 'verse, Fa'Diel refers to the same Fa'Diel from the Square-Enix Mana series.
The next morning, the gang found themselves surprised when Vincent announced that Voudini would be hosting them for breakfast; nevertheless, they were eager to see how another warlock lived, and they weren't disappointed.
Vincent had teleported them to Voudini's home, a tall tower surrounded by a vast forest in the heart of New Zealand. The other warlock greeted them warmly, and they were soon gathered for breakfast, unable to keep their eyes off of the Steampunk décor that Voudini had styled his tower in.
"This place is incredible," Daphne commented.
"Thank you, Miss Blake," Voudini replied, humbly. "I imagine you might have been expecting something rather like Vincent's?"
"A little bit," she admitted.
"The Gothic look is my unique choice," Vincent replied. "The six of us have our different styles; Boris went with the mortal glamor of Hollywood, and you've seen Byron's place—he opted for something Labyrinthine."
"So Labyrinthine that he sometimes ends up getting lost on his own manor," Voudini deadpanned.
Shaggy snarked quietly into his plate of potatoes; indeed, Byron had gotten completely lost when trying to lead them out of his manor when Morbidia had been pursuing them through it.
"If I've told him once, I've told him a thousand times…" Voudini continued. "Either make it less convoluted, or keep your teleportation skills up to snuff. The dear fellow has done neither, though that new Shadow Demon of his seems to help with navigation."
"Teleportation isn't easy?" Daphne asked.
"My goodness, no," Voudini said. "Perhaps you were under the impression that it was since Vincent makes it look easy—but he's a grand master at just about every branch of magic, Forbidden Arts notwithstanding, of course. And with myself being second-best, I can keep up fairly well. But teleportation is something that requires constant practice to be able to perform reliably. Byron always seemed to struggle with it—it was why he didn't accompany us on that fateful journey that Vincent, Boris, and I took all those years ago."
Vincent looked away; it was fortunate that Byron hadn't accompanied them on that journey, for he probably wouldn't have been able to teleport away as Boris and Voudini had when Vincent had lost control of his Ultima spell on that mountaintop.
"Boris used to be quite good at teleportation, but a lack of practice has left him finding it difficult," Voudini added. "I imagine Vincent will be teaching you eventually, Miss Blake—I hope you keep up with it."
"I'm sure I will—it'll make it easy to drop in on Fred and Velma," she mused. Her face fell after a moment. "…That is, if I can ever get to that point. I'm not doing as well as I'd hoped."
"Yes, Vincent has told me of your situation," Voudini replied, with a nod. "From what he's told me, your progress will be significant in time, but your concern is wanting to be competent for when Asmodeus will next strike—so you wish to improve more quickly, since he could strike at any time."
Daphne nodded.
"That's why we're here now," Vincent added. "Voudini and I have been trying to come up with a way to make your learning experiences more immersive, which will make it easier for you to cast more advanced spells."
"You have a more immersive training room?" Flim-Flam asked.
"Not a training room—the forest around my tower," Voudini said. "Vincent's foremost concern was for your safety, of course—he didn't want you training somewhere that could house a danger you were unprepared to face."
"Just as my presence on the mountain dissuades most dangerous creatures from dwelling on it, so does Voudini's presence discourage similar creatures from this forest," Vincent said. "The chances of there being something dangerous in this forest are very slim—but, in the event that something does come up, Voudini and I shall both be there."
"Rhat's good," Scooby commented.
"So it's not an enchanted forest?" Scrappy asked, sounding disappointed.
"That's a matter of opinion," Voudini mused. "You may find a few things in the forest that you wouldn't find in ordinary ones—the Ents, mainly… That reminds me—Miss Blake, you are free to practice most elemental spells in the forest, but I must ask you to refrain from casting fire and lightning spells for obvious reasons."
"Oh, of course!" she said. "When can I start?"
"Whenever you're ready," Vincent said. "You can head out now, if you like; Voudini and I will join you in a few minutes."
Eager to try, Daphne got up from the table and headed out into the path that led into the forest with the others right behind her (Shaggy still carrying a plate full of food with him). Vincent watched them leave, sighing quietly as he finished his morning tea.
"I hope this will help her, but the knowledge that there's no danger is still might still be an inhibition—it's so quiet here," Vincent said. "I don't know how else to make it real without bringing in some danger."
"No, you can't, but there is the other idea we discussed last evening," Voudini reminded him. "There is far more mana in the environment in Fa'Diel for her to resonate with."
Vincent frowned.
"But anything can happen in Fa'Diel," Vincent reminded him. "From the benign to the annoying to the all-out dangerous. We know this firsthand, after all…"
"I know what you're thinking—you're thinking about those fairies we came across when you snuck into Dean Cesare's office and led us through the gate to Fa'Diel," Voudini said. "We were teenagers and on our own—you would be with Miss Blake and able to protect her if need be. It would be exactly what she would need—something real, but still under some amount of control."
"Yes…" Vincent admitted. "And I should remind myself that she and the others have dealt with worse—without magic. I know Daphne would be able to handle it, and I also know that, between the two of us, we could look after the others. And yet… I still find myself slightly resistant to the idea."
"Paternal instincts," Voudini said, knowingly.
"You think so?"
"…You're drinking your tea from that mug they gave you."
Vincent glanced at the #1 Dad mug in his hand; he tended to carry it in his cape pocket wherever he went, and had automatically brought it out when Voudini had been offering tea earlier.
"…So I am," he mused.
"If you wish for myself and the others to accompany you and the youngsters, I am certain they would be willing—I know I am," Voudini added.
"I don't think that will be necessary," Vincent replied. "Though I appreciate the offer. But we'll be fine."
"I have no doubts that you will be," Voudini said. "If anything, your biggest challenge upon arriving in Fa'Diel will be to keep Miss Blake's impulsiveness under control—she is remarkably like you were at that age."
"Yes, that is one of the things I've been meaning to address with her…" Vincent trailed off and gave his old friend an indignant look as his words sunk in—not that it wasn't true, of course…
"Anyway," Voudini said, hiding his amusement as he got to his feet. "Shall we join them?"
Vincent said nothing, but also got up from the table, mug of tea still in hand as he followed Voudini into the forest. The further they went in, they noticed a light frost upon the ground and trees; a disgruntled tuatara, which had been trying to bask in a ray of sunlight that had filtered through the trees, was now trying to find a warmer spot. Voudini offered an arm to the reptile, which willingly crawled into the crook of his arm, enjoying the free ride and the warmth.
"She's been trying to cast Blizzard," Vincent noted, seeing a few snow flurries begin to fill the air. "…With slightly better results than yesterday's attempt to cast Aero, but it's as I thought…"
"This still was not immersive enough," Voudini finished. "She really is pushing herself, isn't she?"
"Yes," Vincent admitted. "And her motivations are largely selfless."
"Also another thing you two have in common," Voudini added. "…As I've often said to you, don't let it become a weakness when compassion is meant to be your strength."
Vincent merely responded with a sigh.
They soon arrived in a clearing where Daphne was with the others, attempting to cast Blizzard again with her staff as the others cheered her on. Her next attempt created a slightly larger amount of snow, coating the clearing in a half-inch of snow.
"You're getting better with every try, Daphne!" Shaggy encouraged.
"Rheah, rheah!" Scooby agreed.
"I know, but it's not enough to be useful…" she lamented.
"I think that parrot would disagree," Scrappy commented, looking pointedly at a playful kea that had flown down from a nearby tree to start to rolling the snow into a snowball.
"It's not useful yet," Vincent corrected. "But you've noticed the improvement since yesterday? When you tried casting Aero yesterday, it was barely noticeable. This, on the other hand, is definitely noticeable. The improvement is quite significant."
"I quite agree," Voudini added. "Is this your first attempt at casting Blizzard?"
"Yes, it is," Daphne admitted.
Voudini glanced at Vincent with a knowing look.
"So a change of scene was helpful," he said.
"It was," Vincent sighed. He contemplated his choices for a moment before speaking up again. "Daphne, would you consider yet another change of scene for tomorrow's lesson—one that would, once and for all, remove that inhibition of things still not being real enough?"
She blinked.
"You know somewhere else? Where?"
"It's not in this world," Vincent said. "And for this place, I can assure you that everything will be quite real."
"There is a realm called Fa'Diel which has far more mana in its environment than this world does—it serves as a hub for numerous other worlds, including our own," Voudini explained. "Even at Terror Tech, students from all class levels go there on regular trips for their training—albeit under the supervision of their instructor." He paused and glanced at Vincent. "…Usually."
"You're not letting that one go, hmm?" Vincent asked, rolling his eyes.
"Not at all. And you brought it up earlier."
"Oh, for pity's sake—I was only just sixteen when that happened!" Vincent defended himself.
"And I'm going to want to hear the full story later," Flim-Flam smirked.
Daphne kept her expression neutral, though she was curious, as well; having encountered a younger Vincent after unintentionally using the Time Scepter to bring him to 2016, she could easily imagine the kind of trouble he'd gotten himself into in those days.
"Nevermind that," Vincent said, looking slightly embarrassed. "The point of the matter is that just about anything can happen in Fa'Diel—that's why beginning mages go there to train. The increased mana in the environment and the endless possibilities make for valuable training situations. And I, of course, would be there to ensure that things don't get out of hand. Assuming you would like to go—"
"Yes!" she exclaimed. "That sounds like it would be perfect for me!"
"I think so, too," Voudini said, with a nod. "Based on what I've seen just now, I wouldn't be at all surprised if you find yourself casting elemental spells by the end of your first lesson in Fa'Diel."
"…Yes, and I agree," Vincent admitted. He looked to the others. "The rest of you will be welcome to join us—on the stipulation that you won't wander off and will stay with us the whole time."
"We'll think on that one for a bit," Shaggy said, sounding a little unsure if he was ready for it. Scooby nodded in agreement, though Flim-Flam and Scrappy seemed as eager as they always were. "We'll get back to you on it, Mr. V."
"Very well," Vincent acknowledged. He turned back to Daphne. "As long as we're here, would you be interested in trying a levitation spell?"
"Sure," she said. "What should I try it on?"
"Let's try a simple yet moving target—that snowball over there," Vincent replied, indicating the snowball being rolled by the kea. "Just like you've done before—focus and follow through."
She nodded, concentrating as she aimed the staff at the snowball, slowly moving the staff as the snowball moved.
"Levitate!"
The snowball slowly rose into the air, prompting an annoyed squawk from the kea before the bird decided that this had its opportunity for fun, as well. The kea now flapped up and around the snowball, playing with it in midair as Daphne continued to move it around, the grin growing on her face as the others cheered and giggled at the scene.
"She's ready, Vincent," Voudini noted, quietly. "Try not to worry too much—under your wing, she'll do just fine."
And Vincent merely sighed, but nodded in agreement. He knew she would, too.