She blinked at Lexie when she said her name, her head going to the side so she could see past Terry. “Do I know you, little one?”
“Lexie,” Lexie said. “You came to my school that one time.”
“Ah of course! Sorry, I didn't recognize you through the um….hold on, how on earth are you doing this?” She pointed to Terry.
“That’s what I want to know,” one of the sheriffs said. “You got super-strength, little lady?”
“No,” Lexie responded as she placed Terry down. Good thing too because the timer had just ticked down to zero indicating that the card effect was over. “I used card magic.”
“Cards can do that?” The other officer murmured to his partner who shrugged.
“What deck?” Elvira asked.
“Party Planner’s Deck.”
Elvira’s frown deepened. “There are no cards in that deck that can help you lift a ninety-kilogram woman.”
“Excuse you, I’m only eighty-five,” Terry protested and then scowled at her sister as though daring her to disagree.
“Well, I could only manage it because I…” Lexie instantly paused, coming to a swift realization. It probably wasn’t a smart idea to reveal to this group of people that she’d been able to combine two card skills into one. While it wasn’t explicitly illegal, dealing with pathways like that was likely viewed as dangerous and Aiden could get in trouble for showing her all those tricks.
Especially since most people in the town still viewed him with a layer of suspicion, despite how hard he tried.
Everyone stared at Lexie waiting for her to finish the sentence. So she just said lamely, “...I tried really, really hard.”
They all blinked at her. Elvira especially did not look convinced.
“That’s not possible,” she repeated and Lexie swallowed.
“I have to go,” she said. “I have homework. Plus I’m not supposed to be out too long.”
“Aw, I understand," Terry said. “Thank you so much again for all your help."
"It was nothing,” Lexie grinned at the warm lady who reminded her of one of her favorite teachers in elementary school.
“Oh, how adorable you are. I’m staying at Bright Hope, near where you live I think. You're welcome anytime for dinner or dessert. We usually have brownies!”
“They’ll be disgusting and vegan,” Glinda warned.
"Thanks, I’ll come over some time," Lexie said and waved at them ready to make her escape. But she hadn't gone more than a few steps when the sheriff called out behind her, “Actually since you’re headed home you might as well take this nice lady there with you.”
Lexie paused and half-turned as he continued, “Apparently, she’s looking for your father.”
“She is?”
“I am?” Elvira looked similarly confused.
“Yeah. You said you came to town to find the Archmage, didn’t you?”
Elvira turned back to Lexie with widened eyes. “The Archmage is your father?”
“Yeah.”
“Ah.” Understanding dawned on the woman's features. “And suddenly it all makes sense.”
What makes sense? Lexie was instantly nervous. Did she figure out that Aiden had taught her some mildly illegal or at least fairly unethical pathway practices? What was she going to do about it? Report to the authorities? She was partially Fae too so maybe she could get Aiden in trouble with the Fae police too, if they had such a thing. Lexie didn't know if that was how it worked, but it would be terrible if it was.
“Why do you want to see my dad?" Lexie was immediately on the defensive. Suspicious thoughts flipped through her mind as she regarded Elvira. Was she coming on behalf of the Hero Association? But she wasn’t a hero. She was a scholar at the Arcadian Research College.
So what did they need Aiden for?
Lexie's heart began pounding in fear as she considered one horrible situation after another. Did they somehow find out about the fissure in his neckbands?
But Elvira didn't go in that direction.
Instead, she said, “I’m to see him on behalf of the Arcadian Research College. They would like to offer him a job.”
Lexie blinked. “For real?”
“For real.” Elvira nodded. “Seeing as how it’s official business, I can’t exactly go into the particulars with you but I would be more than grateful if you lead me to him in a timely manner and facilitate our introduction. I could even offer a favor in return. Or perhaps a minor blood oath to that effect.”
“Um no, that’s fine.” At the blood oath thing, onlookers had switched from staring at Lexie to staring at Elvira like she was crazy. Lexie took a split second to make her decision.
"Okay, I guess we can go then." Even if she didn't take Elvira to see her dad, the sheriff would do so anyway, since he knew where they lived. At least this way, Lexie had more control over the situation.
Besides, she wanted to know if it was true, If Elvira was really trying to offer her dad a job.
She thought Aiden couldn’t work on account of him being an ex-[Villain]. Why would they want him at a research university where he would be in charge of impressionable young minds? Granted she didn't know how good a school it was, but surely they could get another professor whose prior villainy wasn’t a disqualifying factor.
Lexie considered it as Elvira fell in step beside her. If it was a legitimate job offer, then Aiden would surely be over the moon. Lexie saw how much he loved to teach, both her and even those grumpy grandpas at the retirement home. He loved to show people how to do things and watch them blossom. He would love a position at the university.
Which was another reason why Lexie had to be careful and discover Elvira's true intentions. She would hate for Elvira to offer Aiden a job and have him get excited, only to cruelly dash his hopes when she discovered his criminal record.
“You’re aware that my father is a [Villain] right?” Lexie inquired as they walked.
Elvira nodded. “I have a limited yet somewhat accurate understanding of his criminal record.”
What a way to answer it. “So you know he’s a [Villain] and you want to offer him the job anyway?”
“I’m not the one offering him the job. The college is.”
“Why?”
“That’s not for me to speculate, but I can only imagine it’s due to his well-renowned knowledge and understanding of magical elements.”
Lexie narrowed her eyes like she wanted to look into the woman’s skull. “I mean yeah, he’s a generational genius, but they know he’s a [Villain] right?”
Elvira shrugged, quite elegantly actually. She had narrow graceful shoulders, Lexie noted, and a slim bone structure despite her above-average height.
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
“Magical elements? Is that a topic they want him to teach?”
“I’m not at liberty to discuss the particulars of his potential employment.”
“Right.” Lexie took the hint and fell silent next to the woman who didn’t seem inclined to fill the air with chatter. And there was nothing to make up for the quiet too. No bird chirping for whatever reason and not so much as a wind gust. It made Lexie feel uncomfortable and she was suddenly hyper-aware of the crunch of gravel underneath her feet. She even started wondering if she was walking weirdly, in a way that would tip Elvira off to what she had done.
To calm herself, and give her something to do with the anxious energy, she took the sad-looking sandwich out of her pouch and began eating it. She anticipated finishing the trip in uncomfortable silence when Elvira suddenly said, “You combined two cards for that skill, didn’t you?”
Lexie choked on her sandwich.
She sprayed chunks and crumbs everywhere as she coughed to dislodge the piece of bread stuck in her airways. And then once that was done she gave her feet a glare at the betrayal before she turned to Elvira with what she hoped was a normal look. “Whaaat? That’s crazy. Why would you think that?”
Elvira didn't react to Lexie’s choking and simply stared at her as though observing a monkey do tricks. “It’s the only explanation I have for that. I’m very familiar with the Party Planner’s deck. It was one of the first decks I used when I was young, and I also used it again on my sixteenth birthday in anticipation of entertaining my guests for a minor get-together I was throwing. Of course, they didn’t find it all that entertaining and the party was a disaster due to being robbed by a gang of Eldritch creatures, but all in all, I’m familiar with all the particulars of that deck, and the only way to achieve the effect that you just showed is to combine the light foot ability from
“I mean,” Lexie sputtered. “Maybe I got the deck wrong. I think I used a card from a different deck. But I definitely did not combine the cards.”
“I think you did. I’ve done extensive deck research for most of my life. There’s no single card in any deck actually that can do that, with the exception of the bodybuilder deck but that is an ability not an effect, and it doesn’t work quite like how yours did. Also, your heartbeat is elevated and you’re avoiding eye contact. It suggests you’re being dishonest with me when you tell me I’m wrong. ”
Darn the human nervous system.
“Alright, fine.” Lexie sighed. “So what if I combined two cards? What about it?”
Elvira didn’t seem to notice animosity in Lexie's tone because she nodded. “Then it would mean you're an exceptionally talented young lady. I mean it’s to be expected considering who your father is, but this is beyond even my expectations of an Archmage’s daughter. To do such a thing would suggest a level of mana control that I have never witnessed in any of my classmates, much less a child.”
“Oh.” Lexie's defenses lowered a little, as she internally preened under the compliment, She tried to be humble though. “Thanks. But I'm hardly that young. I’ll be eleven in a few weeks."
“Regardless. Even most adult mages don’t have that level of mana control. I’m guessing your father has been teaching you mana shaping and pathway processes for a while now. Did you pre-awaken last year?”
"No, this year.” Although, she had no idea how long she’d been practicing mana shaping. Of course, Aiden may have taught the previous Lexie about it but he’d never said anything to suggest he had. “But my dad says I may have a natural talent at it.”
“Of course. There are quite a few mages like that, with a natural talent for pathway control. One of them is an Arcadian hero called Monty Ward. But that’s a true lucky thing indeed to have.”
“Yeah,” Lexie responded, and then out of curiosity she asked, “Have you ever combined two cards before?”
“Me? No,” Elvira said. “I’m only a level 4 C-Rank Mage so I’m not all that talented with magic. I know how card combinations work in theory but I could never pull it off in practice.”
“I see. But others could?”
She nodded. “I’ve heard it done once or twice. Although it’s not all that common.”
“Why not?”
“Cards are not made to be combined like that. They’re made for simplicity and to do exactly what they say they do in the description. The fact that they can be combined or adjusted to create different effects is a glitch in their design and not always a glitch that should be exploited.”
“Why not?” Lexie asked again.
“Well, you’ve combined two relatively simple, weaker cards to create an effect. That's usually fine. But if you try that with more complex cards and you’re not extremely careful with your pathways, you could destroy the card for good, and leave your deck one card short, or you could permanently damage or twist one of the pathways if security measures fail. That’s not a good thing. So it’s smart that you're only doing this under the strict supervision of a well-trained mage.”
“Right.” Lexie gulped. “Strict supervision.”
“So I suppose that you’ve read the recent textbooks on the card pathway.”
“Yeah,” she said. “I used Hesiman’s formula and Kleinfelter's notes.”
"Hmm. Heisman’s formula is good, but there are other more accurate ways to calculate the gate distance."
"Gates? What gates? Heisman spoke about notches and valves".
"Yes, that was the more archaic way of creating and studying cards. But that's out of date now, and now all the recent textbooks use gates. Heisman's theory would still work for very simple cards but they would fall apart for the complex ones."
"So what would I need to use?"
"Sovetsky is better. So is Amarilla. I have a few of their textbooks but they might be too complicated for you to understand."
"Oh." Lexie was disappointed.
"But I could teach you."
Lexie’s eyes widened. "You would do that?"
"I suppose. Summer break is approaching and I should have more time then. Not to mention that I’ll be a fourth year after that so I will no longer have to do things like speaking engagements at elementary schools and hunting down professors in remote towns."
"Speaking of which, why did they send you to find him? You’re a student right? Shouldn't they have sent staff? Also they could have just mailed him probably."
Elvira sighed. “It was the guidance counselor, Rowena Romney’s, idea. She believes sending me on petty errands is good for my personal development.” She stared at the sky. “I’m starting to think she just derives a sick humor from my discomfort.”
Lexie had some experience with a pushy guidance counselor like that who kept encouraging her to take more extracurriculars to get a more well-rounded high school experience. But she knew it was to pad her application.
“Bummer,” Lexie said. “But if you’re serious about your offer, I would love to take you up on it. We could exchange numbers and text if you’d like.”
Elvira gave her an odd look and Lexie almost felt shy about extending the invitation.
“What?” Lexie asked.
“You do not find discussion with me…off-putting?”
Lexie thought about it. “Slightly, but I have a bunch of weird friends so I guess I have a high tolerance for off-putting conversation.” Lexie shrugged. “Some might say I attract the type.”
“I see.” Elvira nodded. “That bodes well for our partnership then.”
“I guess it does.”
The two ladies, kindred souls, smiled at each other and then continued on their way home in significantly more comfortable silence. Lexie even decided to give her sandwich another try, biting into it. She scowled. Still disgusting.
"So, these lessons you're offering," Lexie broached when they were getting close to the home. "Do they also include card crafting?"
Elvira glanced at Lexie. "I think you're still a bit young to think about crafting cards."
"Yes but I'm just curious," Lexie lied. "I would just like to know how it works."
Elvira stared at her but didn't seem suspicious. She shrugged. "Sure. I suppose I could teach you how it works in theory."
Yes! Lexie internally crowed even though she merely smiled externally. She felt bad for doing this behind Aiden's back but her dad was dragging his feet about teaching her crafting. Since she was getting so good at activation now, she'd brought it up a few times but he'd always said she needed more time and more lessons.
But given that he was busy, and was likely going to be busier, it was good to have another teacher on board.
Lexie continued the talks with Elvira as they went home. Once there, she offered Elvira a hot or cold beverage, Elvira turned both down and they both sat on the porch and waited while still talking.
It took a while but as the sun began to descend in the sky, Aiden finally approached her home.
“Hi Dad,” she called out.
“Hello.” He seemed confused at Elvira’s presence. “Make a new friend, Lexie?”
“Sort of,” Lexie said. “This is Elvira. She’s from the Arcadian Research College and she’s here to offer you a job.”
Aiden paused. His face froze. “Really?”
“Yes.” Elvira stood and executed a formal curtsy. “I’m pleased to make your acquaintance, sir. And sorry to show up unannounced but we had no other way of reaching you and had no contact information for you except a general address. Fortunately, I met your daughter in the process of her executing a lifesaving rescue and she kindly agreed to introduce us even in the absence of a blood oath.”
“Hang on, life-saving rescue?” Aiden asked and then suddenly Lexie remembered something very important she’d forgotten to mention to Elvira–that under no circumstance was she to tell Aiden that Lexie had combined two cards at once.
She desperately rushed now to send signals to Elvira through a widened gaze and a slight shake of the head. Even though Elvira met her eyes and saw her subtle motions, the woman merely frowned and forged on anyway.
“Yes,” she said. “Your daughter managed to carry an eighty-five to ninety kilogram woman all the way to the roadside today, by brilliantly combining two cards from her deck to turn an ability into an effect. It’s quite an amazing feat and a true testament to the depth of your tutelage I’m sure.”
"She did what?!”
Lexie winced. She’d never heard Aiden's voice go that high before nor had she seen him look that shocked and angry.
“A card combination, Lexie?”
Lexie steadily avoided his gaze, looking at her feet and scuffing them.
In the ensuing silence, Elvira said tentatively, “Did I say something wrong?”
Yup, Lexie though regretfully.
And if they were indeed going to continue this partnership, then she had to teach Elvira Ernest the subtle yet necessary art of concealing or otherwise embellishing the truth.