“You can call me whatever you’d prefer,” I say simply even though I do have a preference of my own. I’ve grown to like the name Liv. And I have a feeling it has a large part to do with the way it sounds from his mouth. Not that I’d ever admit that to anyone.
He hums thoughtfully. “I guess if we’re being honest, I should probably tell you mine is Sebastian.”
I let a smirk cross my lips as I answer. “I know.”
“Ah, right. You’re an excellent eavesdropper and Robin’s too much of a loudmouth,” he says with an eye roll, but I can see theamusement written all over his face. “If it’s alright with you, I’m going to stick with Liv.”
The smile that spreads across my face must be practically blinding. “Only if I can keep calling you Bastian.”
“Nothing would please me more. Everyone calls me Sebastian and it feels so stuffy.” He shakes his head as if shaking away wherever his thoughts were heading. His eyes drift over my face before landing on my ears and holding there. “I still can’t believe you were glamoured this long.”
“Do you think that’s why we were drawn to each other? Not the Fates, but because I’m Fae, not human?” It’s a thought that has been swirling in my head since the night before.
His head tilts, considering this. “The glamour covered any trace you were Fae, but I suppose it’s possible. Maybe we unconsciously sensed the magic in each other.”
“I have magic?” I gasp. I don’t know why I didn’t think about it until now.
He chuckles. “I’d be incredibly surprised if you didn’t.”
Hope and intrigue blossoming at the thought of having my own magic. “Will you teach me?”
“No,” he says simply.
I scoff.Whatever.“Then tell me, how does it work?”
He’s quiet for a few moments as he thinks about the question. “It’s hard to explain. But it’s a part of you. Flowing through your body, your veins. It’s almost like your life force in a way.”
I gape. “Can you die if you lose your magic?”
He shakes his head. “No, nothing like that. I mean that it’s so ingrained in who we are as beings that to be without your magic would feel as if a large part of your soul was missing.” He must see my stricken face because he scrambles to say something. “It’s incredibly rare that anyone ever loses their magic. In fact, I’venever heard of such a thing happening. The only real concern with our magic is burning out.”
“Burning out? What does that mean?”
“It’s when you use too much of your magic too quickly. We all have a limit on the magic we have flowing through us. Some more than others. But we all have a ceiling on what we can use. If we blast through that ceiling too quickly, it can kill us.” His face is solemn, staring straight ahead as he walks, as if he’s seen it happen and it’s not a fate he would wish on anyone.
“Oh…” I don’t really know how else to respond to that. “So back to me having magic,” I say, trying to steer the conversation away from the depressing route we ended up on. “What can I do?” I hold my hands out in front of me, flipping them over and inspecting them from all angles as if I could see the magic.
He gratefully accepts my conversation change. “Well, that’s all dependent on what court you hail from.”
“What does that mean?”
“Let me start with the basics. Fae magic is linked to the five natural elements?—”
“Five? I thought there were only four?” I cut in.
He shoots me an irritated glance at the interruption, but I can feel there’s no real heat behind it. “What four elements do you know of?”
“Water, air, earth, and fire,” I say, ticking them all off on my fingers. “How is there another?” I ask, puzzled.
“Those are the first four, yes. The last is aether.”
“What’s that?”
“You’re so full of questions today,” he says with an eye roll and a smirk.
“You try finding out you’re some sort of magical creature you never thought was real,” I grumble, crossing my arms across my chest. I’m not sorry for all the questions. I’ve been so shut outwith Fleur that I’ve always tempered my questions. I can’t help but let them all tumble out without constraint.
With a shake of his head, he continues. “Aether is what remains once the other four are removed. It’s invisible and intangible, but it exists in the form of energies around us. It can manifest in each person differently, regardless of court. It’s more like a raw power that can be drawn on. Glamours fall within the scope of aether.”
