create the lead frame for a bird and insert the stained glass panels that made it a scarlet bird or a yellow-but the windows, in the end, would be identical except for color. Thanks to Jason, she knew what the framework was, and more importantly, why one did things thus-and-so. She knew the details of the Magick of Fire, and as importantly, she knew the reasons why, had she tried any of these Magicks alone, they would have worked poorly, if at all.
There is no Water in my Nature to negate the Fire Magick, but there is so little of Fire compared to Air that I doubt I would get very far.
Just as electricity would not flow through wire made of lead, the Magician's Nature had to be suited to carrying the 'current' of the particular Element with which he was trying to Work. The purer the Nature, the better the Magick would flow.
She knew the theory, she knew some of the practice, and she had been learning the details of the Element of Air. But the time had come for her to stop simple study, and begin her real Apprenticeship and that meant that the time had come for her to confess to Jason her 'divided loyalties.'
She always waited for him to call her by means of the speaking-tube before going down to his suite for the day. He was extremely sensitive about his appearance and the difficulties his changed form caused him, and she would not for the world embarrass him by bursting in on him before he was fully and correctly clothed and prepared to meet with her. This time, though, when she descended the staircase, she brought with her a basket of those things she would need that were not part of the Work Room of a Firemaster. I might as well hang for a sheep as a lamb; if I am going to 'tell all,' I'm going to ask for permission to use the Work Room for my first conjuration of a Sylph.
She was so used to his appearance by now that seeing her own face in a mirror sometimes gave her a little shock, because she did not have upstanding, pointed ears, nor a muzzle full of the sharp teeth of a carnivore, nor fur. He was so completely himself in any form, that the outward appearance was hardly worth noting. But today, she paused after her greeting to search his face intently, and acknowledged for the first time that not only did she not find him monstrous or repulsive-she found him remarkably handsome, in and of himself. He might consider his current form warped, but there was nothing misshapen about it to her.
'Rose-' he touched her shoulder to awaken her out of the little daze she had fallen into. 'Are you quite all right?'
She shook herself mentally, and smiled at him. 'Perfectly, Jason. But I have something of a confession to make-'
But before she could say it, he had taken the basket from her hands, and replied with a laugh, 'You wish to tell me that you have been studying Air Magick in your free hours. And, I would guess, given this little burden of yours, that you wish to undertake your first Elemental Conjuration.'
She froze with shock. 'How-how did you know?'
He shrugged, as if it should have been obvious how he knew. 'It was inevitable, my lady. Once you had a taste of Apprenticeship, once your need for Magick was awakened, you would never be able to deny the craving. And since your Nature is that of Air, even though there is no Master available to you, you would find a way to study it.'
She stared at him, and he laughed teasingly, holding the basket just out of her reach. 'Shall I continue to amaze you with my sagacity? Today, of course, you wish to undertake your first attempt at raising a Sylph, and you felt that you had to confess your activities but were afraid I would be offended that you 'stole' time from my researches for your own.'
'But-' she spluttered, indignantly, her whole, carefully-rehearsed speech having gone up in smoke as he spoke. 'But-'
Taking pity on her, he gave her back the basket, and placed one hand atop hers as she took it. 'My dear lady, you could not help it, and I knew you could not help it. I have been attempting to guide your efforts as best I could without betraying that I knew your little secret. And since the first attempt at Conjury is best done in the presence of a Master, if not a Master of your own element, I was planning on overseeing you from the beginning.'
Her indignation vanished; how could she be offended at such generosity? She had no reason to expect such understanding from him! 'You were?' she said, astonished and relieved beyond measure. 'But your own work-'
'Can wait, my lady.' He offered her his arm, and she took it. 'To be quite selfish, it is entirely possible that our combined work will proceed much faster with the devotees of two Disciplines pursuing it. I will be the first to admit that my own Mastery may blind me to possibilities obvious to those of another. And-'
He hesitated, then shrugged. 'Never mind,' he ended. 'It was not important.'
But his expression said otherwise, and she raised a skeptical eyebrow at him. 'You never look that way unless something is important, Jason,' she chided, as they came to the door of the Work Room. 'Now, out with it! Else I'll ask your Salamander to ferret it out for me!'
'You would,' he growled, but not as if he was really displeased. 'Well enough. I am perfectly pleased that you are not pursuing Fire. It is not possible for two Firemasters to remain together in the same area. That was why I had to leave my home and my Master when my Magickal education was complete. However, it is possible for a Firemaster and a Master of either Earth or Air to remain in close proximity. Even-' Was it her imagination, or did his voice grow just a trifle hoarse? '-even in the same dwelling.' She cast a sharp glance at him, but his expression was opaque, and she was not certain just what to make of that statement. But he gave her no chance to think about it.
