I smiled at Amelia and nodded. She was really starting to shine in her role as a teacher. Perhaps if we met up with Katlyn again at some point, Amelia might be able to explain Mana manipulation to her as well. I had a strong suspicion that Katlyn could do the same thing Amelia and the Mistress could do, since I had given her a tattoo and I suspected she also had the Fire affinity.
Veronica concentrated hard, her eyes boring into the dirt floor below us, her nose scrunching up from the effort. She looked cute when she did that.
“I think I can feel it,” she said. “I can feel a chunk of Mana. It kind of seems slippery and smooth, like it will pop out of my hands if I try to squeeze it.”
Amelia and I chuckled at this. I could understand from experience the sensations she was describing, even if the words were inadequate. It was hard to explain what it was like grasping something with the mind.
“That’s good,” I said. “Now you need to push it into the tattoo. Don’t worry if it gets away from you a few times, just grab it again and keep going. You should be able to tell when it goes in properly; it will just feel right.”
“And we should see the tattoo glowing as well,” Amelia added.
Veronica nodded and began to concentrate again. She sighed a couple of times, and I could tell she’d lost grip of the mana, causing it to shoot back into her Mana pool again. But her face was determined, and it was clear that she wouldn’t give up.
At last, she smiled. “I can feel it. It’s in.”
We all waited.
Veronica looked at us. “What’s the matter? Is the tattoo glowing? Did I do it right?”
“The tattoo’s not glowing,” I said. “At least, I can’t see any part of it glowing.” A couple of bolts of lightning stuck out at the nape of Veronica’s neck, but they were a dull purple, just as they’d been moments before. Nothing had changed.
“What have I done wrong?” Veronica asked.
“I’m not sure,” I said. “I don’t have a lot of experience with this, but if it felt to you like the Mana went into the rune properly, then it should have lit up.”
“Could something be different this time?” Amelia asked. “It’s hard to say, since the tattoo is mostly covered up by Veronica’s tunic.”
Veronica reddened slightly. “And I’d like to keep it that way, if possible.”
I could tell she was feeling quite self-conscious from being observed.
What might the difference be? I looked at the runes on my arms, unobscured by my short-sleeve tunic. They’d always lit up as soon as I fed Mana into them. The same with Amelia’s, which I could see on her right wrist. Even the Mistress’s tattoo, clearly visible since she wore her skirt low on her hips, had lit up on the first attempt.
Maybe that was it.
“Could it be that the tattoo needs to be visible,” I said. “Maybe you need to take the tunic off.”
Jacques snorted. “Sounds like a fine excuse to me.”
“Perhaps William should take his trousers off?” the Mistress added.
Amelia looked at her, puzzled. “How would that help?” She pondered it for a moment. “Are you suggesting that William’s Mana is connected to Veronica’s? I’ve never heard of such a thing before.” Amelia’s voice was in awe. She was learning so many new things tonight.
“Not at all.” Mistress Blossom waved her hand. “I just wanted to see William without any pants on. It would make the evening quite memorable.”
Jacques burst out laughing. I was unable to repress a smile at the Mistress’s sense of humor. Amelia huffed. She could be a bit gullible sometimes.
“Let me try something,” I said. I walked to the table where we’d done the tattooing and picked up one of the towels which lay there. Picking it up, I wrapped it around my Fire rune tattoo and held up my arm so everyone could see. Then I concentrated, moving Mana from my pool down to the tattoo, and attempting to conjure a flame on the palm of my hand. Nothing happened.
“That’s it! The tattoos don’t work if they are covered up!” I exclaimed. Then I dropped the towel and tried again. Immediately, flames leaped up from my hand. I withdrew the Mana, killing the flames, then looked around at the others.
“All right,” said Veronica. “I’ll take off the tunic. I just want this rune to work.”
Veronica turned sideways, and with my help, she removed the tunic again. She looked down at her breasts. The leather garment that Mistress Blossom had given Veronica covered everything up in all the right places, but though more modest than her old undergarment, it was still sexy.
“That’s definitely better,” Jacques said, nodding approvingly. Veronica glared at him.
“Hey.” He put his hands up. “It’s not about trying to get you naked. I’ve got no skin in this game, remember? The little fellow down there doesn’t get excited anymore.”
I chuckled at this. Veronica glared suspiciously at Jacques again, not entirely convinced that he was telling the truth.
“Did you want me to prove it?” Jacques offered, reaching for his belt.
“No,” Veronica almost shouted. “No, that will be fine, thank you. I suppose you’re right.”
She looked around at us, arms, belly, and shoulders and back all bared.
“It’s a bit harder to concentrate now,” she complained, then laughed. “I’m not used to having this much skin on display.”
“Close your eyes if it helps,” Amelia suggested. “Don’t worry, there’s nothing to be afraid of with us.”
Veronica smiled at Amelia’s reassuring words, then closed her eyes, concentrating once more. After a moment, I could see from her face that she had succeeded again. She was learning quickly; she’d already pushed Mana into the rune again.
This time it worked.
The whole design lit up, flooding the room with purple
