Lady Ava finished the letter she was writing in her study. Folding it into an envelope she quickly melted wax over the opening and stamped it with her personal seal. She looked around the room again to ensure no one was watching and then moved with a candle and the letter in her hands to the window. She set the candle and the letter down, opened the window, and began muttering a chant under her breath, waving her hands over the candle. In a moment the flame turned blue and then an ethereal green. With her chant over, she held the letter over the green flame and watched it quickly dissipate turning into sparks of green flame and ash. With a breath she ushered the green flames out the window where it quickly flew up over the manor and away on the breeze. She watched it go for a moment, and then shut the window and returned to her other tasks.
In the sky a kilometer or so away from the manor, a hand suddenly reached out of the ether. Green sparks suddenly materialized around it into a letter. The hand grasped the letter and then slipped silently back into the ether.
A little two year old girl dressed in a lovely spring-blue dress walked over to her maid carrying a simple yellow flower. "Emee what's this one called?" the toddler asked, eagerly rushing the flower into the maid's lap.
"That's called a Spring Rose, Miss Fiona, It's not actually a rose, but they come up all over the place in spring."
"Eihehe," Fiona giggled. This is surprisingly fun! "Can they be used for potions and stuff?"
"No, Spring Roses ain't have any medicinal qualities. But you see those orange ones poking up out of the grass?"
"Where!" Fiona ran over to where the maid she had called Emee had pointed. "Is this it?" She pulled a stringent orange plant out of the ground, holding it up for her maid to see.
"Come over, let me see." Fiona rushed over again. Eihihi running feels so good! I'm a kid! I'm free. I'm two years old and no one can weigh me down! "Yeah, that's Dragonweed alright. You only really got the stalk, but if you pull 'em up by the roots, cut them off from the stem and boil 'em down, they make part of the ingredients for linweed paste. It's what we put on your cuts to stop the burning."
"This is the stuff they put on my cuts?" Fiona asked looking at the dragonweed anew. "I don't like that stuff, it smells funny."
"But it works wonders don't it? Without linweed paste, I reckon you'd be plastered all over at the moment with all the scrapes and scuffles you get into."
"I can't help it! The bushes don't like me." Fiona looked at her arms and legs searching for more cuts, but didn't find any. "So is there magic in the dragonweed then? How do the cuts heal so fast?"
"Ay, everything has a little bit of magic in them, even the rocks and the sea." Emee picked up Fiona and put her on her lap.
"Rocks?" Fiona asked, crinkling her nose.
"Ay. Every little thing. Magic is what makes us exist. If you had no magic in you—poof! There she goes. Fiona's gone."
"Ahhh!" Fiona scream laughed. "But what is magic?" Fiona asked again curiously.
"Hmm," the maid scratched her head. "I'm not quite sure how to answer that to be honest, it just… is, I suppose. It's kind of like an energy that people can learn to tap into. It's kinda like… hmm. You know how Mr. Drake uses all kinds of tools to help in the garden, right?"
"Yeah." Fiona replied eager for the rest of the explanation.
"Well just like people learned to use wood and metal to make tools for Mr. Drake to prune the garden with. People also learned to use magic for all sorts of things. And if I asked you, what is wood? What would you say?"
"Uhh…" Fiona pondered. "A tree!" She beamed.
"Alright," Emee laughed. "Now, what's a tree?"
"A plant!" Fiona eagerly responded.
"And what's a plant?"
Fiona pondered again. "Uhh, like a living thing that doesn't move?"
"Ooh, look who's the smart one! But did you know that some plants move?"
"What? No they don't! If they move then they're not a plant!"
"Eh? Maybe you're right about that, I can't say for sure, but there are creatures out there that look like trees only to trip you up with their roots, or sing songs to lure you to sleep so that they can eat up your body while you're sleeping. And there are leafy plant-like things that move their vines faster than you or I can move our arms! Call 'em monsters if you will, but cut 'em up and inside you'll find they're not much different from the rest of our plants."
"Fiona!" A male voice resounded across the garden.
"Oh, look. Mr. Alfred's calling for you."
"Ahh! No! I don't want to go to lessons!" Fiona got up and bolted from her maid's lap, running further into the garden.
"Fiona!" Mr. Alfred called again before stumbling across Emee. "Ah Ms. Emily there you are. Where's Fiona gone off to."
"She's just behind that bush over there, Mr. Alfred."
"Eee!" Fiona screamed and bolted again.
"Better catch her quick!" Emee laughed, as Fiona began sprinting across the yard. Then suddenly she froze as gray smoke curled up from Alfred's eyes.
"No fair! Magic's not allowed in games of catch." Fiona whined as Alfred caught up to her and grabbed her up in his arms.
"And since when were we playing a game?" Alfred replied. "You should know it's dangerous to go off on your own even on the grounds. Don't you remember the snake that bit you?"
"Plllb" Fiona stuck out her tongue.
"Now, Fiona, mind your manners!" he said sternly. "You are the daughter of an Earl and you must comport yourself as such."
"Comfport?" Fiona asked.
Alfred sighed. "It means you must behave yourself. Now, let's get back inside, so you can prepare to meet your new tutor."
"I don't wanna have a tutor," Fiona grumbled, leaning her head back against Alfred's shoulder. "I'm just a little baby, what am I supposed to learn?"
"You're two years old now, and you've already mastered Kinder. It's time you began learning how to read and being introduced to other languages. The earlier you start, the easier it will be."
"But I don't want to grow up," Fiona grumbled again.
"Too bad," Alfred chuckled a little as they reached the house. "It happens to us all sooner or later."