Chapter 09 - A Banquet with Family

  Judging from the look of both my grandparents, they were not expecting us to make an appearance. Hell, it almost looked as if they would’ve preferred it that way. Before noticing us, the two of them were laughing and smiling with the other council families, enjoying their drinks and eating dinner. But upon seeing us, their faces hardened. All their happiness hidden away as if it was something we were not allowed to be a part of. The other mages looked toward us at their sudden behavior change. Some of them nodded in understanding, while others just looked annoyed.

  “We don’t have to stay long,” my mom comforted. “Just enjoy the food, answer a few questions, and then we’ll leave. As soon as we wake up we’ll get in the car and head home. How’s that sound?”

  “It sounds wonderful,” I muttered under my breath. I was looking forward to spending time with my real friends more than staying here any longer. Hell, even the idea of starting school sounded better. What was wrong with me?

  Mom took the lead, stepping in front of us and up the stairs onto the stage. Other than my grandparents, everyone else returned to their conversations. Despite the horrible company, I couldn’t help but admit that the spread on the table looked amazing. Set on top of a red table cloth were plates and plates of food. A large ham was carved up in neat spirals, steam floating above it, and the smell of brown sugar and pineapple filled my nose. There were mashed potatoes, an assortment of vegetables, as well as the ubiquitous turkey. The only thing I noticed that was missing was the Maine seafood which I loved.

  “How nice of you to finally join us, Lorraine,” my grandfather said when we all took our seats. Mom sat next to her parents, dad beside her, leaving me on the end. Fortunately the chair at the head of the table beside me was empty. I would’ve taken it for myself, but, despite having a view of everyone, it would draw too much attention on me. That was the last thing I wanted in this place.

  “Good to see you, grandfather. Grandmother,” I said, trying my best to be polite.

  He gave me a stiff nod along with narrowed eyes, before returning to his drink. Alright, jerk. Be that way. Dad tried to take some of the food from the table for himself and placed a few of the good pieces of meat onto my plate. I gave him an appreciative smile, though my eyes shifted to the jeering from the other end of the table. As if to make a point, another mage across the table used their magic to serve themselves another heaping of mashed potatoes.

  Fuck off, I thought. It’s not like my dad has magic.

  What a tough crowd.

  I really wished I could communicate with Bleddyn right now, because being able to complain to at least someone would’ve been wonderful. And despite my parents sitting near me, I still felt incredibly alone amongst everyone. I watched the two of them, seeing how nervous Mom peered at her parents and then the other mages, while Dad cautiously took bites to eat and acted invisible. This was not a way to be with family. At least, that was what I thought.

  We sure make the ideal Hallmark family dinner, don’t we?

  There was a sudden burst of laughter coming from the others and I did my best to piece together what they were talking about. Apparently the pyro from earlier was one of the top students at the guild academy and they had high hopes for him. I was reminded of how he shared his goal to the other kids of becoming the head of the guild defense division, but I didn’t hear any mention of that. Instead, it seemed that the higher ups were focusing on putting him into other leadership roles as it would be better for the guild.

  But then my ears picked up on something I didn’t expect.

  “It does seem like the wolves of this area are trying to make a name for themselves. Can you imagine that? Mangey mutts trying to act civilized?”

  “And what do they expect to do? Create a new school? Can they even learn anything?”

  Laughter erupted once more all around me. Even Mom covered her mouth with a napkin to hide her own chuckles.

  “My neighbor said there are wolves in our woods at home,” I said without realizing it. Suddenly, there were multiple eyes on me and I felt like sinking into my seat.

  “Well that isn’t much of any surprise,” said another mage. “Greywood is by a convergence of magical leylines. All types of supernatural creatures gather here. If you’re not careful you’ll probably encounter one without realizing it. Maybe even a witch!”

  At the mention of witch I heard Bleddyn growling at the back of my mind. I’ll have to ask him about that later.

  “Who told you about the wolves?” asked Grandmother.

  “Our neighbor is just some nosey woman,” shrugged Mom. “Likes to get into everyone’s business. What she says isn’t worth a grain of salt. She seems to be a bit of the town crazy lady.”

  “She seemed pretty serious about it when I saw her the other day,” I muttered. Mom gave me a strong look, urging me to stop.

  “Is she a mundane woman, your neighbor?” Grandmother asked with a raised brow.

  “Yes,” I replied.

  “Well, if there are wolves about and a mundane has seen them, then we may need to investigate the town at some point. We can’t have the mutts running rampant and alerting others to supernatural presence.”

  “You do not need to worry about the Greywood Pack,” said a deep voice at the center of the table. We all looked toward the Archmagus as he wiped his mouth with a fancy napkin. “They have agreed to the committee’s and Supernatural Council’s laws and are aware such infractions will not look good on them. They’ll be on their best behavior if they know what is good for them.”

  A werewolf pack in Greywood!? That was news to me. I looked at mom for verification but she was focused more on eating her food now than me or the conversation. I would have to inquire about it later.

  “Well hopefully they don’t overstep. It’s one thing that they’ve finally opened up their pack to relations, but I wouldn’t have high expectations from that group,” said Grandfather. “You do know what happened the last time we sent mages to talk with their previous alpha.”

  “They slaughtered them and returned their heads to us,” cried out another mage. “Such savagery. Is it wise to give them a chance now?”

  A lot of words went flying by that I had a hard time picking up all of it.

  “I heard the old alpha was killed because of his cruelty within the pack.”

  “Supposedly the new alpha is trying to modernize the wolves. Imagine... intellectual werewolves? What absurdity!”

  “I say we just wipe them out and keep the leylines to ourselves. Why should the wolves territory be so close to it. And to think we have to ask for permission to use the cabins! Our cabins!”

  A hand slammed down on the table and I jumped from my seat. “Enough,” echoed the Archmagus. All eyes were on him as he glared from each person at the table. “I’ve already decided to give the wolves a chance. If they break the terms to our agreement...”

  That sounds rather ominous, I thought. Looking at Grandmother, I saw her try to hide a smile by taking a long drink of her wine. Something about that unsettled me, but I did my best to put it out of my mind and eat the rest of the ham on my plate.

  I was hungrier than I had thought. My eyes glanced around at the spread on the table, but I was not finding any of the vegetable platters appetizing. A servant made his way from behind the stage curtains and my eyes immediately zeroed in on the platter of steaks he was holding. He gestured for a few empty plates to lift from the table and replaced them with the fresh meat. Even from my distance I could smell the aroma of it and the butter and rosemary seasoning. I waited a moment for others to serve themselves and, seeing no one take the opportunity, I waved two fingers toward me, beckoning two steaks to float onto my plate.

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  “I see we have a new adult mage at the table.”

  The voice had to speak up the moment I had stuffed a huge cut of meat into my mouth. Looking up, I saw everyone’s attention was suddenly on me. The urge to look behind me, as if to pass off their gazes to someone else was strong, but I knew that no one was there. I tried my best to ignore their curious looks, chewing quickly. God, I didn’t know steak would taste this good. If only I could have enjoyed the moment in peace. Nonchalantly, I sawed off another piece of my steak, hoping they would quickly lose interest in me.

  “Yes,” began Grandmother. “My grandson is the only council child to attend the coming of age ceremony this year. Our patron goddess has given him talents in the school of warding.”

  I paused mid-cut and looked around the table. I saw a few faces look at me with pity, but it was seeing the same expression on my mother that set me off. My hands went back to sawing off my meat and I popped it into my mouth before I could say something I’d regret.

  “Well, protection spells are kind of useful,” said another mage. “Should there be a need for shields I’m sure it would be nice to know a mage is available.”

  “We haven’t had a school of warding mage in a long time.”

  “So much better than enchanting. That school took a nose dive with the advent of technology.”

  “You could say the same with warding! At least restoration would’ve been more useful to the guild.”

  I swallowed hard. “Well it’s not like I have a second focus to change myself, so fuck off!”

  The table went silent. Mom and Dad were looking at me with wide eyes. Oh shit. I said that out loud. My eyes jumped from person to person. From the disapproving looks from my grandparents and the amusement of the other council families. I finished my first steak.

  “A second focus, you say?”

  Attention drifted from me to the Archmagus who was fiddling with his grey beard. His eyes lingered to the air in front of him before he turned to me. The intensity of his gaze hit me hard and I once again felt like shrinking back into my seat.

  “Where did you hear about a second focus, boy?”

  Again not calling me by my name...

  “Answer the Archmagus promptly, Kyle,” hissed Grandmother when I hesitated.

  I took a quick swig of water before answering. “I, uh, was thinking it would be cool. If mages could have a second focus. If say, their gift wasn’t good... you know?”

  A few chuckles came from the other mages. I didn’t miss my mother wincing in her seat and took another long gulp from her wine glass. But the Archmagus kept his attention on just me, his expression not giving away his thoughts. Or anything, actually. I had no idea what his goal was in questioning me.

  “It has happened before,” he said after a while. “A powerful mage from the past, gifted in the school of evocation and summoning. He was able to use his abilities to keep other mages safe against other supernaturals and hunters alike.”

  The silence that came next was short. Within seconds, cries of disbelief spread throughout the table. How could such a notable mage not be in our own history books? And even then, if someone could have a second focus, why was this not shared with other guild members? And most of all, how could some boy from a leftover family know of such a thing.

  Leftover family? Ouch. These guys suck, dude. Why are we even here?

  “So you merely thinking about having a second focus was just a wish you had spur of the moment?” the Archmagus asked me.

  This time, the feeling in my gut alerted me that there was danger. Almost as if what I said had suddenly painted a large target on my back. And if this feeling of danger was coming from the Archmagus himself... Had I placed myself in the crosshairs of something? I mean, I disliked the guy, but I knew just how dangerous and stupid I would be to have him completely against me. So far he had just been passive since Mom was an outcast and I was just... well... leftovers.

  Lie, Ky. Don’t tell him the truth.

  “Yeah,” I said. I looked down at my hands, doing my best to sell the fact that I was just some stupid young teen with an absurd fantasy. “I just wanted to have a focus the guild would be proud of.”

  Grandmother rolled her eyes at my admission, but my answer seemed to have pleased the Archmagus. He gave me a stiff nod and then returned back to another of the council families conversation, as if I had become boring and no longer required attention.

  “Such a foolish dream,” Grandmother hissed under her breath. No one else was able to hear her but me and my family. Her face had contorted somehow, and her rather pleasant expression looked both horrific and monstrous. “Don’t say such nonsense in front of the Archmagus about foci and dreams. They mean nothing. You are nothing. You’re just some worthless mage from a worthless mother. A stain on our family!” She scoffed and looked at mom one last time before turning away. “If only your brothers were my only children. How much easier things would be.”

  With each word she spat out it felt like knives had pierced into my heart. I was nothing. Worthless. My magic and focus were unwanted. Once again, I looked down at my plate, my eyes burning with impending tears. I did my best to fight them off. I couldn’t cry here. Not in front of all these other mages. Not in front of both Mom and Dad.

  I heard a quiet grunt and looked to see that Dad had his fists balled on the table. A drop of blood landed onto his white sleeves and I saw it had come from his mouth from biting his tongue too hard. Mom finally pushed her plate aside and got up.

  “We’ll be going now. It was nice to see everyone once more.”

  As if, I thought, taking the opportunity to lead the way down the stairs and off the stage. What a waste of time. The only thing worth the torture were the steaks. My mouth watered once more, yearning for the meat. Oh how I’ll miss thee, delicious steak.

  But Grandmother’s words were still in my head. They lingered like a poison, clawing away at my thoughts and seeping deep into my already fragile insecurities. I had no one I could talk to about my feelings. Mom and Dad were there for each other, but not so much for me in this. They’d just tell me things were alright and to just rely on them, like they always did. But it wasn’t the same as having friends who could hear me out. Get frustrated with me. Get angry. And perhaps even give me actual advice that wasn’t, “Just wait. It’ll get better.”

  I plopped promptly in bed when I got home. Mom was drunk from all her alcohol so I was lucky she didn’t give me a lecture about speaking up like I did. That was at least one good thing that came from tonight. And the steaks. Jeez, I really was craving meat so much.

  Well, that was fun.

  My heart stopped a moment at hearing Bleddyn’s voice in my head again. Wait. I did have a friend now that I could rant to. My familiar!

  “They’re all assholes.”

  I’ll say! Your grandmother is a piece of work. If I could, I’d chew up her shoes so she would have to get her delicate feet dirty on the ground. She looks like someone who doesn’t go barefoot anywhere.

  This did make me laugh. “Yeah. If you did that she’d think someone is pranking her and would go to no end to find out who did it.”

  I could, you know? And she wouldn’t even know any better.

  “Really?”

  Yeah. I could just sneak into her cabin and do it if you really wanted me to.

  I did. I really really did. But I frowned and thought about the consequences. “She’d trace it to me somehow, wouldn’t she?”

  I don’t know how I knew, but I could feel Bleddyn just shrug. Perhaps. She is a proficient mage. But she doesn’t hold a candle to someone with two blessings.

  Again, I froze. My mind raced back to what the Archmagus said. And then to Grandmother’s harsh words. There was no way someone like me could have two foci. Not with my school of warding blessing. And historically, being the son of an enchanter would’ve doomed me to a similar school anyway. Mix in that Dad is a mundane, and, logistically, I understood why everyone didn’t think too highly of my chances in the guild and mage world.

  But what if what Bleddyn said was true? What if I actually did have two foci? What if the second one was one of the more prominent schools. Heck, even with warding, any addition would be welcome. Though if I had it my way, I’d want elements since most mages tended to look at it more fondly. Being able to go on the offensive by conjuring up spells like fire, ice bolts, and even chucking earth spikes... mixed with the defensive nature of warding... and I’d be pretty unstoppable. Powerful.

  No one would look down on me again.

  “Bleddyn. How are you sure that I have two foci?”

  There was a moment of hesitation on his part. As if he was considering his words carefully here. Perhaps it’d be best to show you your blessing tonight.

  “Tonight!? But it’s so late. It’s...” I looked at my phone and saw that it was already a bit past midnight.

  It’s also the night of the full moon. If we delay any longer you will not get the second blessing.

  My heart sank at his words. “I’d miss out on it entirely?”

  Again there was that hesitation. Yes.

  I couldn’t miss this opportunity. It would be foolish to do so. “Tell me what we need to do.”