Chapter Six: Training
"Never", she whispered, her voice hoarse with wonder, "never have I in my three hundred years ever had a student who after fifty attempts couldn't cast a simple luck charm!!" Sighing in frustration, she crossed the clearing to where Kagome dispiritedly stared at an innocuous-looking stone about the size of her palm. "Concentrate," the crone instructed Kagome, pressing her wrinkled, papery hands into Kagome's shoulders.
"I'm trying!" Kagome answered, her voice taut with strain. She directed a defeated look at the stone in front of her, feeling drained. Sweat drenched her forehead and her palms, dripping in sticky runnels down the back of her neck. Once again, she chanted the now familiar charm
Small stone
Fortune's home
To bearer luck
And peace.
Then, with the tip of her outstretched finger she traced a sign for prosperity on the round river stone.
"Did I do it?" Kagome asked the old lady, her teacher. No trace of enthusiasm was in her voice, it had all drained away hours ago. Now, there was only fatigue and frustration. "Is the enchantment there?" she asked again, but she already knew the answer. No, it wasn't there. Fifty-one times, by now the dratted thing should protect it's owner from getting wet in a rainstorm. Should. So far, it was just a rock. What was the matter with the girl? The crone wondered, frustration tightening her grip on Kagome's shoulders. The girl had talent, there's no way her reading could've been off, the crone thought as she tightened her grip even more. "Never", she whispered, "never have I in my three hundred years ever had a student who after fifty-one attempts couldn't cast a simple luck charm."
John grinned and stretched lazily. It was a cloudy day. The sky was gray and moody, but a warm finger of sunlight shone though the cloud curtain, a perfect place to meditate and watch Kagome and the crone. An out of season apple fell from the branch of a tree across the clearing, and rolled thirty feet, to stop right by John's hand. It hadn't a speck of dirt on it. John was very lucky today. John's grin widened, he was enjoying this. Thanks to the blood bond he'd made with Kagome, he could redirect her spells to another target, himself. It was fun watching the hag try to contain her frustration, not that that was the only reason he was doing this, entertaining though that was. The crone killed her students once they reached a certain level, draining their energy to increase her own. He had to find a way to prolong the training process, to give Kagome enough time to learn, to increase her power to where she had a chance at defeating the crone, or at least breaking the slave spell that bound him. He'd stalled the lessons as much as he could, so far the slave spell that bound him to the crone's will hadn't interfered with his manipulation of Kagome's magic through their blood bond and he'd successfully interfered with the scrying, runes of protection/shield, and illusion lessons that the crone had been instructing Kagome in for the past week. The girl was starting to give out though, her luck spells were getting weaker. The scent of clover filled the air, Kagome was casting again. This time, John didn't redirect it, he let it be cast on the pebble she was practicing with. He had to do this carefully, he dint want the crone getting too frustrated, giving up and just draining Kagome nor did he want her spending the entire time just teaching the girl novice spells, if Kagome was going to have a chance, she'd have to learn some offensive magic.
"Yatta!! I did it!!" Kagome jumped high into the air, making a weary victory sign and throwing her arms up.
"Yes, you did it." her teacher repeated in a flat voice. Fifty-two times, and the stone now held a weak luck spell. With use it wouldn't last more than an hour, if left alone it would dissipate naturally within a day or so. How could this be? The crone ground her teeth with frustration, the girl was ripe with power. How could she be so inept at its use? At this rate it would take months to get her to level, months before the girl'd be ready for harvest, months of this.
"Are you all right ma'am?" Kagome looked at her teacher in concern, there was a gray cast to her face, was she sick?
"I think I have a headache dear, keep practicing, I'll just take a little nap." The crone forced a reassuring smile, and walked slowly to her cottage, she was feeling her age, her bones creaked in protest as she slowly crossed the clearing to her hut. She was too old for this, too old to be training inept pupils. Her door squeaked on its un-oiled hinges as she swung it open, it was old, like her. Kneeling down, she reached under the bed, pulling out an old carved ivory box. It had no apparent lid or keyholes. Chanting a rhyme for opening, she sketched an entrance rune over the top of the box, it glowed a pallid green in the dark room, then smoothly the lid slid off, falling silently onto the earthen floor. The box held little, an embroidered silk bag of herbs, a gold ewer, and a jeweled knife. The knife's blade was crusted with old blood, dried and flaking. Grasping the knife by its wire-wrapped hilt, and carefully not touching the blade, the crone drew her thumb in a caress over the winking rubies that adorned the edges of the hilt. They glimmered a fiery red, hungry. Patience. The old woman replaced the knife in the box, sliding the lid back over the top and tracing the rune of entrance backwards, locking it. This girl would be the last, once she'd sacrificed her, she'd have enough energy for the ritual. The ritual that could restore her youth, smooth her wrinkled skin, firm her sagging flesh, straighten her crooked limbs, shine her dulled hair, restore her lagging energy. Just a little more time, a little more training, the girl wouldn't have to be trained to the level she normally taught them, she was strong enough that she could be sacrificed much sooner. Only a few weeks more, maybe if she really pushed the girl, she'd be ready in a few days, maybe. Gently, the crone slid the box back under the bed and let down the covers, hiding all objects beneath the bed from view.
Next Chapter: Alliances
"Never", she whispered, her voice hoarse with wonder, "never have I in my three hundred years ever had a student who after fifty attempts couldn't cast a simple luck charm!!" Sighing in frustration, she crossed the clearing to where Kagome dispiritedly stared at an innocuous-looking stone about the size of her palm. "Concentrate," the crone instructed Kagome, pressing her wrinkled, papery hands into Kagome's shoulders.
"I'm trying!" Kagome answered, her voice taut with strain. She directed a defeated look at the stone in front of her, feeling drained. Sweat drenched her forehead and her palms, dripping in sticky runnels down the back of her neck. Once again, she chanted the now familiar charm
Small stone
Fortune's home
To bearer luck
And peace.
Then, with the tip of her outstretched finger she traced a sign for prosperity on the round river stone.
"Did I do it?" Kagome asked the old lady, her teacher. No trace of enthusiasm was in her voice, it had all drained away hours ago. Now, there was only fatigue and frustration. "Is the enchantment there?" she asked again, but she already knew the answer. No, it wasn't there. Fifty-one times, by now the dratted thing should protect it's owner from getting wet in a rainstorm. Should. So far, it was just a rock. What was the matter with the girl? The crone wondered, frustration tightening her grip on Kagome's shoulders. The girl had talent, there's no way her reading could've been off, the crone thought as she tightened her grip even more. "Never", she whispered, "never have I in my three hundred years ever had a student who after fifty-one attempts couldn't cast a simple luck charm."
John grinned and stretched lazily. It was a cloudy day. The sky was gray and moody, but a warm finger of sunlight shone though the cloud curtain, a perfect place to meditate and watch Kagome and the crone. An out of season apple fell from the branch of a tree across the clearing, and rolled thirty feet, to stop right by John's hand. It hadn't a speck of dirt on it. John was very lucky today. John's grin widened, he was enjoying this. Thanks to the blood bond he'd made with Kagome, he could redirect her spells to another target, himself. It was fun watching the hag try to contain her frustration, not that that was the only reason he was doing this, entertaining though that was. The crone killed her students once they reached a certain level, draining their energy to increase her own. He had to find a way to prolong the training process, to give Kagome enough time to learn, to increase her power to where she had a chance at defeating the crone, or at least breaking the slave spell that bound him. He'd stalled the lessons as much as he could, so far the slave spell that bound him to the crone's will hadn't interfered with his manipulation of Kagome's magic through their blood bond and he'd successfully interfered with the scrying, runes of protection/shield, and illusion lessons that the crone had been instructing Kagome in for the past week. The girl was starting to give out though, her luck spells were getting weaker. The scent of clover filled the air, Kagome was casting again. This time, John didn't redirect it, he let it be cast on the pebble she was practicing with. He had to do this carefully, he dint want the crone getting too frustrated, giving up and just draining Kagome nor did he want her spending the entire time just teaching the girl novice spells, if Kagome was going to have a chance, she'd have to learn some offensive magic.
"Yatta!! I did it!!" Kagome jumped high into the air, making a weary victory sign and throwing her arms up.
"Yes, you did it." her teacher repeated in a flat voice. Fifty-two times, and the stone now held a weak luck spell. With use it wouldn't last more than an hour, if left alone it would dissipate naturally within a day or so. How could this be? The crone ground her teeth with frustration, the girl was ripe with power. How could she be so inept at its use? At this rate it would take months to get her to level, months before the girl'd be ready for harvest, months of this.
"Are you all right ma'am?" Kagome looked at her teacher in concern, there was a gray cast to her face, was she sick?
"I think I have a headache dear, keep practicing, I'll just take a little nap." The crone forced a reassuring smile, and walked slowly to her cottage, she was feeling her age, her bones creaked in protest as she slowly crossed the clearing to her hut. She was too old for this, too old to be training inept pupils. Her door squeaked on its un-oiled hinges as she swung it open, it was old, like her. Kneeling down, she reached under the bed, pulling out an old carved ivory box. It had no apparent lid or keyholes. Chanting a rhyme for opening, she sketched an entrance rune over the top of the box, it glowed a pallid green in the dark room, then smoothly the lid slid off, falling silently onto the earthen floor. The box held little, an embroidered silk bag of herbs, a gold ewer, and a jeweled knife. The knife's blade was crusted with old blood, dried and flaking. Grasping the knife by its wire-wrapped hilt, and carefully not touching the blade, the crone drew her thumb in a caress over the winking rubies that adorned the edges of the hilt. They glimmered a fiery red, hungry. Patience. The old woman replaced the knife in the box, sliding the lid back over the top and tracing the rune of entrance backwards, locking it. This girl would be the last, once she'd sacrificed her, she'd have enough energy for the ritual. The ritual that could restore her youth, smooth her wrinkled skin, firm her sagging flesh, straighten her crooked limbs, shine her dulled hair, restore her lagging energy. Just a little more time, a little more training, the girl wouldn't have to be trained to the level she normally taught them, she was strong enough that she could be sacrificed much sooner. Only a few weeks more, maybe if she really pushed the girl, she'd be ready in a few days, maybe. Gently, the crone slid the box back under the bed and let down the covers, hiding all objects beneath the bed from view.
Next Chapter: Alliances