CRYSTALLO
“ P ulse,” Nora said.
A burst of wind came out of nowhere, catching the flames and spiraling them up into a mini tornado of flame. I grinned with delight. I hadn’t even thought to suggest that and she took her familiar’s wind power and combined it with the flame spell without a second thought.
"You're a natural," I said, kissing the top of Nora's head.
She grinned at me as the flames danced in a mini whirlwind upwards out of the circle of stones, fed by her magic and the spell she had just learned to cast.
"Being a natural is about effort plus time," she said. "I could have learned this years ago if that damn school had been willing to teach me anything."
"They can't teach this," I said, smiling as I watched the fire dance. "Chaos magic requires being true to yourself, to your feelings."
“What if my feelings are dark and full of rage?” she asked.
I didn’t have to think twice to find the right words. “Then I will teach you to burn the world.”
"Crystallo," Nora said, and I looked down to see that unspilt tears glimmered on the edges of her eyes as she stared up at me.
"Nora," I replied, waiting to see what surprising thing she would say.
Every day with her was a joy. I didn't know when the final battle would arrive, and even though my people rushed about with last-minute preparations, the wheels had been set in motion for long enough that my days had enough time in them to spend hours with Nora, teaching her and delighting in her company.
I found myself coming back to her, over and over again, wanting to be near her, wanting to spend every moment of my free time with her.
"Thank you," she said, blinking as a single tear rolled down her cheek. "For saving me."
"Thank you," I repeated back to her, smiling with all the warmth that radiated from me.
"For what?" she asked, wiping the tear away just as quickly as it arrived.
"For existing," I told her. "For staying. For giving me a taste of pure happiness in a world where such things are bogged down in complication and fear for the future. Being around you is an utter and complete joy. Being inside of you is a heaven I had been denied for so long."
"You're welcome," she said, smiling back up at me. Then she looked back at the flames. “Now how do I make this bigger?”