Conrad smiled, relieved.“All right.”
They worked steadily through the afternoon.Neither Roger nor Wyndham seemed remotely perturbed by the spells Conrad cast to demonstrate his preferred modulation sigil, even though the spells were rather basic.Quite frankly, the modulation was basic.
When they finally began cleaning up from their work, Roger commented on it.“It’s funny, I’m so accustomed to the way my family uses magic.They all approach it in a decidedly academic way, as do I, so we tend to use complicated and fiddly spells.You know, ones that are newer or…”
“Advanced?”Conrad supplied.
Roger made a face.“Yes?But I don’t wish to suggest that your magic is not advanced.”
“It isn’t, really.”
“But I rather like that about it,” Roger went on.“It’s…straightforward, the way you approach magic.Fewer frills.”
“As I like to say,” Wyndham added, “nature likes it when you keep things simple.I had a feeling the raw materials would work particularly well with your style of magic.”
A knock came at the door and Torquil poked their head in.“I’m stealing Conrad again.”
“Back from your walk already?”Roger asked.“Goodness, what time is it?”
“It’s time for you all to stop working,” Torquil said.
Wyndham looked at the clock.“We’d better change for dinner.”
“Come along, Conrad,” Torquil said, beckoning him over.
Conrad chuckled and followed them down the stairs and out into the garden.
“I thought I warned you not to overwork,” they said with a grin.
“My apologies,” Conrad replied with mock contrition.“We all got carried away.”
“Mm.And you are determined to make a good impression.”
He shrugged, not arguing the point.
“I spied some raw materials on the desk.Have you already progressed to Wyndham and Roger’s advanced lessons?”
“I suppose so,” Conrad said with a light laugh.“Although—” He broke off, unsure of how to voice his thoughts.
Torquil turned to look at him, their curiosity evident.“Yes?”
“I don’t know.I think my magic is rather common.Roger and Wyndham have assured me it isn’t, or that it isn’t a problem, at least.But it feels out of place a bit with the grand magic the rest of you do.”
Torquil shook their head.“My magic isn’t grand.It’s cobbled together and strange.I didn’t use it for years because I felt too self conscious about it.When I was younger, people were cruel—I spent too long taking their judgments to heart.It wasn’t until sharing my magic with Roger and Wyndham…and Emrys,” they added with a smile, “that I started to feel comfortable with my particular style.”
“I’m sorry people were cruel to you,” Conrad said softly.
They shrugged.“Fae-humans are not typically treated kindly by society.Silas will tell you the same.His magic might be considered common as well, by many.He uses his magic for masonry and other types of manual labor.”
“That’s true,” Conrad murmured.“I do remember him explaining that.”
He thought back to when he’d observed the other man performing magic.He’d worn a belt filled with pockets and vials, which he’d reached into for ingredients without even looking.It had been seamless, like some sort of well-memorized dance.Wyndham later explained that Silas’ magic essentially began before he’d even cast the spell.That had felt very grand to Conrad.
“I suppose I tend to think of fae magic being rather elegant,” he admitted.
“Were there no fae working on the docks?”
“Very few.Most of the fae I encountered before were merchants.”
