Lily’s eyes went wide with surprise. She went to speak, but no words came out, only an elated laugh. A second time she searched for what to say, yet still came up speechless. She put a hand to her mouth and then went to her Mage-Matron and hugged her fiercely.

  “No words needed, girl. No words needed,” Marigold said kindly, embracing her and patting her back. “But enough sentimentality, Journeyer-Mage Lily. We still have some lessons to get to, don’t we? Don’t think I forgot. There’ll be no idling the day away cuddling with your beau on the couch. Not while I have anything to say about it!”

  Lily snorted a laugh and acted as if she were pushing her way out of the embrace. “Such a harsh task-master of a teacher I have.”

  Chuckling, Marigold rejoined with, “If you thought I was harsh when you were an apprentice, then you’ll be in for a real surprise soon. Hm, now what sort of challenging lesson would be appropriate for the new Journeyer? ...” She snapped her fingers. “I know. Since we already went over the theory of it, would you like to have a go at casting a Barrier with Intent?”

  “Could I?” Lily asked in excitement.

  Marigold shrugged her stooped shoulders. “I don’t see why not. We’ve got nothin’ but time.” She lowered her hood and her silvery hair was blown across her craggy face by a mild spring breeze. “As always, when we try a new technique, we’ll start very small. I’ll demonstrate first, so you can get a feel for how it happens. Then, you’ll have a try.”

  The old mage’s eyes settled upon a little patch of blue-violet wildflowers. “Those will do nicely. Now, concentrate on what you feel as I cast this spell,” she instructed. “I will be choosing an action I think you would take—that’s the Intent part—at the same time as I am casting a Barrier imbued with my own emotion based on that action. If done correctly, the spell will function like a lock and key. If you try to perform the intended action, the Barrier will permit you through. Any other intention, and you’ll be locked out. Now, concentrate and observe.”

  Marigold placed her hand on Fae’s flank and Lily felt how she drew magical strength from the great charge-beast. When Marigold cast the Barrier, it was small—a little shimmering oval of gold no bigger than Lily’s fist—but the sense of magic Lily felt from it was far more complex than from any other Barrier she’d felt before.

  Marigold lowered her hand and took a measured breath. “There you have it. How that Barrier applies to you now depends on what you intend to do with those flowers. Go on. Think about just touching one, then try it.”

  Lily stepped to the patch of little flowers and crouched to touch one. She was not surprised when her fingers were stopped by the Barrier.

  “Now, think about picking one of the flowers for yourself,” Marigold said. “Intend to perform that action specifically, then try it.”

  As instructed, Lily thought about picking one of the flowers. She went to reach through the little Barrier to do so. Yet again, her fingers couldn’t pass through. She pushed her hood back and looked up at Marigold with her brow knit. “Was I supposed to be able to pick the flower?”

  “Did you make sure to intend to pick it for yourself?”

  Lily nodded. Her teacher showed her a wry grin.

  “Then, this time,” began Marigold, with a knowing quirk of her brow. “Try to pick the flower with the intention of giving it to me.”

  Lily giggled to herself at the cleverness. But could it actually work that way, she wondered. Could a Barrier be made to apply to such a specific circumstance? She reached again for a flower, this time intending to pluck it to give to Marigold. Her fingers passed through the Barrier. It was just as her teacher had described, like a key opening a lock. Lily neatly plucked the little bluish flower and stood. She twirled it in her long fingers as she carried it to Marigold and presented it to her.

  Grinning, Marigold accepted the flower and tucked it behind her ear. “There you have it. Intent.”

  “I’ve never felt a Barrier as amazing as this,” said Lily. “I don’t think even the town Barrier compares.”

  Marigold chuckled. “Thank you, girl. It’s certainly more complex by far. Took me many, many years to be able to do that. But every mage has to start somewhere. So, now, it’s your turn.” With a wave of her hand, Marigold dispelled the little ovoid Barrier. “Draw strength from Fae, same as I did, because we don’t want you Slumbering the entire week away. Make your Barrier smaller, too. No bigger than a coin. As for the Intent ... allow me to pass through the Barrier only if I intend to touch a flower with my pinky finger. Remember what you felt from my Casting, then focus yourself, and give it a try.”

  Lily took a breath and touched Fae’s pantherine back. Now that she’d done it once before on purpose, it was easy to find her charge-beast’s well of magical strength and utilize it. She felt her ability to focus and direct her magic growing from the contact. As she cultivated that pool of strength, she set her shoulders, slackened her muscles, lidded her eyes. When she felt entirely relaxed and focused, she lifted her hand. With a finger, she defined a little golden circle in the air before the flowers, a Barrier resembling one of the gold coins she and Vetch had found in the forest. While giving shape to it, she intertwined her thoughts and emotions with the magic. It came into being, shimmering and solid, a thing both physical and not.

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  The Barrier cast, Lily opened her eyes fully and staggered a step. She discovered she was breathing hard. She felt light and unsteady on her feet. Marigold’s creaking voice startled her.

  “Intent is challenging, no mistake. Keep your hand on Fae while I test how you did.” While Lily watched, Marigold bent down before the little Barrier and rapped the knuckle of her index finger on it. It was solid. She pressed on it with her thumb, murmuring, “Good, good ...” Next, she tried her pinky finger. The Barrier stopped it from passing through. “The other one, maybe?” she said, and tried to touch a flower with her other pinky. But, again, the Barrier rebuffed her.

  Lily frowned in disappointment. She knew better than to expect a brand new spell to work as planned on the first attempt, but there was always the little bit of hope it would. Even as she recovered herself, she considered how she might approach trying it again.

  Marigold straightened back up with a grunt and said, “Not quite, not quite. But I sensed your effort in that. You’re on the right track, Lily. We’ll return to this another time. Let’s head back now.”

  “One more try,” Lily suggested.

  Her teacher gave her an appraising look. “Are you sure? You’re already looking at a couple days in Slumber ...”

  “I’m sure. Just one more try. I felt very close to getting it.” This was one of the most exciting spells Lily had ever attempted to cast. She’d already decided that learning a little bit more about it right now, rather than having to wait, was worth the extra time in Slumber.

  “One more try,” Marigold said, holding up a single crooked finger to emphasize. “Then we head back. Understand?”

  “Yes, Mage-Matron.”

  Marigold dispelled Lily’s first attempt and said, “Alright. Same spell as before. Remember how that felt, but make sure to emphasize what you want your Barrier to do based on your own feelings about the action you expect I will perform. Got it? Now, cast the spell, girl.”

  Lily allowed Fae’s strength to suffuse her once more. The physical contact with her charge-beast helped her to realign her focus and prepare herself for another attempt. Though she looked at the flowers, she didn’t see them. All her inward attention was focused on the complex things she needed to consider for the difficult spell. It required multiple techniques to be fused into one Casting. Along with that, there was the puzzle of balancing concentration with foresight, and interweaving both of those with her own emotions, and—

  “Gonna try the spell or did ya change your mind?” Marigold asked abruptly.

  The prompt startled Lily. She realized she had been standing there preparing herself for much longer than usual. She exhaled, took another breath, and made the precise motion with her hand. Again, a little coin-shaped Barrier manifested before the flowers. In appearance, it was identical to the first, but Lily could tell right away that this spell was even less correct than the first. This Barrier felt jumbled, like her thoughts had been. It was no surprise that the magic she sensed from it was weak and inaccurate.

  “Too much spice in the soup,” commented Marigold, summing up Lily’s feelings before she could say anything. Marigold bent and tapped her pinky finger against the Barrier. She shook her head as she straightened. “It’s a tough technique to get a feel for. When you get there, it’ll seem almost effortless, even compared to some easier Barriers.”

  “I don’t think I’m grasping it,” said Lily, leaning unsteadily against Fae.

  “We’ll work on it,” said Marigold kindly. “But another day. Come on now, let’s head back before I have to go get Vetch to carry you back.” A small wave of her hand dispelled the second little Barrier.

  Lily was grateful to take Marigold’s arm when it was offered her. Together they set off back along the wooded path. “I’m not sure how it’s supposed to feel,” she commented.

  Marigold chuckled under her breath. “What d’ya expect? It’s only day one of your bein’ a Journeyer-Mage. You’ve a long road ahead of you. But, while you were concentratin’ so hard on one of the most advanced spells us Barrier-Casters are capable of, did you notice you shaped the Barriers into circles without even a second thought? Rounded shapes had been a challenge for you only recently. Not anymore, evidently.”

  Having this pointed out caused Lily’s consternation to dissolve. Marigold did have a certain way of bringing to her attention little milestones she had failed to mark herself. It was pleasing to realize she was actively improving. On top of that, she was a Journeyer-Mage, now. Soon, she would be learning aspects of her magic that had once seemed far out of reach.

  They ducked underneath a low branch, treading a narrow game trail back to town. Again, Lily spied Black Crux Manor through the trees, imposing upon its hill. Curious, she concentrated and attempted to sense Lady Iris—Gilliana—behind those thick walls. It was as Marigold had said. The woman was there, but Slumbering deeply. Her magic was nearly imperceptible now ... almost dormant. That was a great relief. At the same time, the idea that a mage would cast magic so recklessly as to condemn herself to such a fate was deeply disturbing. Lily recalled that the woman had referred to herself as an apprentice—that she had been Marigold’s apprentice. That was hard to imagine, considering the way the two mages had spoken to one another as Iris was trying to destroy them—and in the process had destroyed herself.

  “Why did she do all those things?” Lily asked. “What happened between you and her?”

  “Hm?” Marigold looked at Lily, then to where she was looking. “Ah. I don’t want to talk about Gilliana,” the old mage stated. Then, in a softer voice, she said, “But I will, for your sake. In time.” She left it at that.

  Lily considered pressing the subject now, then thought better of it. Marigold would tell her more when she chose to. As curious as Lily was about this new aspect of her teacher’s past, it could wait. Slumber was calling her name. It had been only hours since she had last woken from the magical state and now it required her again.

  Such was the price mages paid. But, for what she had learned this day, she paid it gladly. When next she woke, she would get to learn more, and Vetch would be a few days healthier. The town of Black Crux would perhaps have completely forgotten about them. They could slip safely away and return home. Yes, there were still difficulties to face. Soon, she and Vetch would have to reveal to Marigold the full extent of how bad the attack on Moonfane Forge had been. Then, there would be the work of rebuilding their lives. But they would manage it all. It felt possible now.

  Lily imagined riding into Moonfane Forge with Vetch and Marigold, and a kind of peace settled over her. A Slumber or two more and they would be on their way.