First Chapter = disclaimers.
Hmm, my muse returned ever so shortly, hence I bring you the next chapter. Hopefully, it will return again soon with more goodies and less boring plot points :)
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Beth stared at Owen for a moment. Her mind whirled around in circles as she debated between telling the truth or lying. All she had had until this moment was a suspicion that she may have some magical ability. Now Owen's question seemed to have validated that suspicion. The true question was really what she should tell him.
Her own curiosity on the subject encouraged her to see how much information she could get out of Owen on it. But her logical side told her that this was the same man that stood by and let Derrick get turned into that horrible creature he currently was. On the other hand, Xanatos did seem to have become a somewhat neutral player in the grand scheme of things. While he and his company certainly could not be completely trusted, Beth could certainly use the information that Owen no doubt possessed on the subject of her magical abilities.
On the other, other hand, Elisa would not be happy if she found out about Beth discussing this sort of thing with Owen. But since when had Elisa told Beth everything? Beth was fairly certain that there was a very large amount of information that Elisa had withheld from her.
Finally, curiosity won out. "I don't know," Beth replied trying to see just how much information she could get from Owen.
Owen showed, as per usual, little emotion as he observed Beth. "Then you have absolutely no idea, or is it that you do not wish to share the information that you have?"
Beth tried not to let her surprise show at his fairly direct question. She had assumed that because Xanatos and, by association, Owen were sneaky in their dealings with Elisa, that they would be the same in any other situation.
"My line of questioning surprises you," Owen stated calmly.
"I... yes, it wasn't what I suspected," Beth forced herself to respond.
"I take the subject of magic very seriously, Ms Maza. It can be very dangerous around the sort of objects that you are dealing with. Especially in one so untrained as yourself. Your sister has no doubt informed you of some of her dealings with Mr. Xanatos. Understand that those dealings are Mr. Xanatos' personal business. This is his public business. I trust that you see the distinction."
Beth nodded her head mutedly. She did see a distinction, but she was not confident that seeing said distinction was a good thing.
"Perhaps, then, you would rather that I give you my own opinion?" Owen asked in his most business like tone.
"If you would like," Beth said as she tried to feign indifference.
Owen inclined his head to his left slightly while he observed her for a moment. Then he began to speak, "Ms. Maza, your family has had some rather close dealings with Coyote, have they not? It is then my assumption that you either had some sort of magic in your family that attracted him, or he somehow gifted a family member earlier in his existence. Either way, I'd say that you inherited a gift for magic."
"How could he have gifted the family? I mean, from what Elisa said, I thought that there were rules against that sort of thing."
"Rules are made, as they say, to be broken. There would have been ways around it. The most common would have been by birthright meaning he had conjugal relations with one of your ancestors the diluted genetics would have turned into a human magic favoring. Or there could have been any other number of ways it could have happened. Close association, a boon perhaps, or he could just have been attracted to a dormant talent that your family possessed. The point, however, is that you are obviously no longer dormant," Owen said as he picked up the artifact into his hand again.
Beth forced her eyes away from staring at the stone hand that Owen did not use. She knew that Elisa was right to be suspicious of this man and his employer, but she also knew that Owen's words were too true to be dismissed. She was not dormant and she really had no idea about how to control it. The options for help were few and far between that she knew of and searching for help could be a shot in the dark. She could end up with an unidentified threat instead of one she recognized.
"Suppose that I didn't do anything about this gifting, would I go back to being dormant?" Beth asked.
Owen shook his head negatively, "Your abilities would grow
to some extent and plateau there, but they would never go away. Should you at
any time be under great amounts of stress or perhaps lack self control, they
could come out quite forcefully. You would not care for the results."
Beth winced. "What would you do to me if I said 'no?'"
"We would, of course, have to let you go as we could not allow you to continue working with our artifacts. Beyond that, it really is not something that would concern Mr. Xanatos. He might, in fact, find the situation quite amusing."
Beth's face went into a frown. "I don't think Mr. Xanatos would be unconcerned if I did some damage to him personally."
"Do not even try to intimidate me, Ms. Maza. Your sister is much better at it, and your skill with magic is nowhere near the level it would need to be at to pose a serious threat to this company, my employer, or myself. I merely do not wish to deal with the annoyances that would occur should you have an accident while working for us."
Beth shifted uncomfortably for a moment. "Elisa didn't mention that you had magical abilities. I mean, you personally."
Own smiled inwardly. Apparently, Detective Maza was not the only one who possessed intelligence in the family. He had thought Derrick to be a touch foolhardy, but Elisa's sister had easily picked up on his hidden innuendos in the conversation.
"Your sister is a smart woman. Little could be accomplished by informing others of my abilities. Indeed, often times little is accomplished unless you reveal it to the right person."
Beth's frown got deeper. "You're suggesting that I hide this from Elisa?"
"Would she understand?"
Beth snorted. "She is dating a Gargoyle."
"A Gargoyle who has very little use for those who practice, I believe he would say, sorcery?"
"And having my enemies know would be better than telling my own sister?" Beth shot back.
"I am not your enemy, Ms. Maza. I am not even your sister's enemy. If you truly believed me or Mr. Xanatos to be your enemy, then you would not have allowed us to hire you."
"Yeah, well maybe I'm rethinking that decision. You people seemed to have turned around, but I don't like the way you're talking."
"I am merely speaking out of my own best interests. Magic users are feared now more than ever, those who have true talent anyway. As amusing as witch hunts are, I fear that I have little tolerance for the bloodshed. Do you really wish such problems upon yourself?"
"I trust Elisa to keep a secret, and I don't think that she would have a problem with it."
Owen nodded. "Detective Maza is very loyal. But tell me, who do you think would train you? I am as certain of your sister's dislike of me and my employer as I am of her loyalty. She would greatly object to you having anything to do with me."
Beth tilted her chin up. "You are assuming that I would ask for your help."
"You were perhaps, considering Demona? Or better yet, you were considering Macbeth and becoming a pawn in his game with Demona? You are nowhere near skilled enough to handle either of them." Owen's words were spoken imperiously, or as imperiously as a monotone voice could make them.
"This sounds suspiciously like a bad deal," Beth muttered.
"It sounds to me like a very good deal," Owen countered.
Beth looked at him shocked. "In what way?"
Owen shrugged. "I am a capable teacher… and I'm always kind to animals."
Beth felt her eyebrows creep upwards. Was that a joke? She laughed amazed at Owen's self-assuredness. "You and Xanatos know, but I don't tell my own family. Tell me how this is good."
"Ah, perhaps I should not to tell Mr. Xanatos. What would you say to it being our own secret?" Owen offered.
"I wouldn't believe it."
"My word is my word, Ms. Maza. I am not in the habit of breaking it."
"No, but you are in the habit of doing everything else."
Owen straightened his tie. "Life is vastly more interesting that way. And before you ask, what is in it for me is very simple. On the one hand, I happened to enjoy teaching. On a more professional level, I would rather there was someone I could trust when it comes to situations with human magical relics."
"You trust me?" Beth's voice was full of skepticism.
"I trust you as much as you trust me," Owen replied steadily.
"That isn't very much," Beth returned.
"I know, but it is significantly higher than how much I trust others. And to be honest, I cannot use certain artifacts myself."
"Can't?" Beth asked intrigued.
"You would find me an excellent teacher, but you will find that Owen Burnett is not in possession of intense magical skills, merely an intense knowledge of them."
"But you saw the writing…"
Owen cut Beth off, "I saw writing that an untrained woman could see. It is hardly special. What you see clearly in your form, I see only because of a faint sense that I get when I am near a magical object."
Beth sighed. "You really wouldn't tell Xanatos?"
Owen's smirk reached his lips this time. "I owe Mr. Xanatos my allegiance the same as you owe your sister yours. But the fun lies in deception without deceiving."
"You're insane," Beth whispered.
"Ah, then you agree to my plan?"
Beth groaned in defeat. "Did you ever doubt it? Or was all of this discussion just for my benefit?"
Owen shrugged as he moved towards the door. "That you will have to decide for yourself. In the mean time, we both have jobs to do. I will see you tomorrow for your first lesson."