Feel the Magic

Aunt Carol was proud that Peggy had chosen to join her mother's old coven where she was positive that she would be in good hands. Evelyn has never forgotten how her aunt had betrayed her by taking her away when her powers had awoken, but after that incident, she still didn't stop pressuring her to join their coven. Her efforts towards Evelyn were for not, but after she was satisfied with Peggy's growth and she made her societal debut, their Aunt Carol came by less frequently and only arrived when Peggy had an important event or meeting with a suitor. Once she noticed that Peggy was disinterested in being a part of the social scene, Aunt Carol stopped coming around for quite some time. When it was finally time for Evelyn to make her debut, Aunt Carol arrived three days beforehand and left just as quickly as she had arrived, leaving Evelyn alone to make most of the decisions herself with Charlotte and Peggy's help. While she lacked her aunt's support during the season and the various social events that followed, Peggy stepped in to help make sure that Evelyn always looked the part.

Evelyn gently opened the door to the bathroom and saw that Peggy was still enjoying her scented soak. She sat down on the small settee that was on the other side of the small divider that blocked the view of the large tub.

"Would you believe me that the very first thing Lacey did was try to arrange for one of her brothers to escort me to the ball?" Evelyn asked.

"Yes, I do believe that is something Lacey would do," Peggy chuckled.

"She said she is worried that we will steal the attention of the gentlemen from her, but if I am escorted by one of her brothers, then no other gentlemen would dare even look my way!" Evelyn exclaimed.

"Why are they so against the idea?" Peggy asked. "Both of them are highly intelligent and even study at Onslow and that is not an easy place to get accepted into. I heard that the entrance exam alone has over 400 questions ranging from mathematics all the way to being able to speak and read multiple languages. Being escorted by either one of them would be an honor for anyone."

"Yes, I understand all of that, but I am trying to enjoy my time doing other things while I'm here," Evelyn said in a suggestive tone. "How am I meant to enjoy myself while being subjected to lectures the entire night?"

Peggy chose to ignore her sister's subtle hint; she knew what her sister was getting, and it wouldn't surprise her one bit to find out that Evelyn had snuck off to practice her magic in the forest beyond the estate. Instead, she retorted, "just because they attend a prestigious institution does not mean that they are unable to enjoy themselves."

"I understand your point, but who is to say that that would be the case when I could very well be correct, and he turns out to be a total bore?"

Peggy ignored her remark, "why don't you go and ask one of the maids to bring fresh bath water and clean up before dinner?"

Evelyn sighed as she got up off the settee and headed out to fetch a maid.

***

After they were both bathed and dressed, the two girls set off to tour the garden at the back of the estate. Evelyn knew that Peggy was itching to practice some elemental magic, which she struggled with, and decided to take advantage of her previous complaints. As they strode deeper into the back garden, past the lush hedges, Evelyn pulled Peggy through a small gap between the bushes and entered the forest that sat behind them. They didn't go too far, just enough that they couldn't be easily seen from the estate. After Evelyn was certain that they were not followed, nor could they be easily seen, she sat down on the forest floor and looked up at Peggy.

"Let's see what you can do!" Evelyn exclaimed.

"What?" Peggy shouted. "We cannot be doing magic here!"

"Don't worry about it. I know for a fact that we were not followed, and no one would think to look for us here, well besides father that is," she winked.

Peggy looked around nervously before she let out a deep sigh, "I still don't know about this."

"What's there to worry about? It's not like we are going to set anything on fire or shoot some magic in the air," she laughed. "I know you are struggling with your elemental magic and wind magic is the best place to start. It's all about becoming one with nature and your surroundings and besides, no one will notice if the wind suddenly picks up or slightly changes directions."

Peggy let out another deep sigh and finally gave in. Evelyn watched as Peggy began to spread her arms open to her sides and closed her eyes to concentrate. After about a minute had passed, a slight gust of wind began to circle in front of Peggy. While it wasn't much, it was still progress.

She turned to Evelyn and frowned. "I am not sure how else to go about this. So far, that was the best that I have been able to do. How do you do this?"

Evelyn had taken note of how her sister had struggled to concentrate and feel the flow of her magic and the wind. Unlike healing magic, manipulating the elements required one to be perfectly in tune with nature and it was evident that her coven had prioritized her healing magic and neglected her elemental magic because she had shown little interest in it before, and her coven mostly used their powers for healing.

"Well, elemental magic is much different than healing magic. The wind magic you are trying to use is something that is not that difficult to learn once you understand and become attuned with nature." Evelyn tapped the place next to her, signaling Peggy to sit down.

"Must I do that? I just put this dress on, I can't sit on the ground and soil it already."

"Well, you asked for my help, and this is how I learned how to harness the elements. But it's up to you," she shrugged her shoulders. "If you truly want my help, I can only show you the way that I learned how to do this on my own."

Peggy smoothed out the back of her dress and sat on the ground facing her sister and copied the way Evelyn was sitting with her legs folded in front of her.

"Now, place your hands on your knees with your palms facing up," she demonstrated, and Peggy mimicked her movements.

"Now, to begin, close your eyes lightly and breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth and steady your breathing." She watched as Peggy did as she was told.

"Now, clear your mind and focus on the sounds around you, pay attention to the wind, and try to feel its movement." She carefully watched Peggy and remained silent for a minute or two before she instructed her once more. "Now, try focusing on the sounds of the forest that are being affected by the wind; it's easiest if you take note of the sound of the leaves while the wind blows." She remained quiet and kept her eyes open as she began to do so herself.

"Okay, now try to pull your magic into the palms of your hands while still focusing on the sounds of the wind. You should start to feel your magic resting in your fingertips now." Evelyn watched as her sister seemed to be in a trance, exactly how she wanted her to be.

"Now, carefully use the magic you have gathered at the tips of your fingers. Focus on the sound

of the wind and release your magic slowly in sync with what you are hearing. Try to imagine the wind creating a spiral between your hands." Evelyn studied her sister, watching carefully to see if she would be able to achieve her goal. After a few seconds had passed, she watched as her sister slowly began to release her magic, and a small ball of wind formed just above her upward-facing palms.

She watched with bated breath, "Perfect! Now, keep focusing and try to imagine the ball expanding." Slowly the small ball began to stretch, and it hovered just above the ground in front of Peggy.

"Okay. Try and imagine gathering the pine needles that are on the ground in front of you and have them flow with the wind you have created." She could see Peggy slowly losing focus as she tried to envision this.

"Carefully, open your eyes while still breathing and focusing on the wind in front of you. This should help you see what you are trying to achieve," she suggested.

Peggy slowly opened her eyes, but in her excitement, she lost her focus and the ball of wind disappeared from in front of her. She let out a sigh and frowned.

"No! Don't do that! You were able to sustain that ball of wind and manipulate it for several minutes!" Evelyn exclaimed.

"I know, but I know you can do much more than me and it is frustrating. You have not once been to the coven since everything happened and yet you can use elemental magic better than any member of the coven that I am aware of. I feel as though I have wasted a lot of time focusing on just one thing when I should have sought out more."

Evelyn stood up and brushed off the debris from the back of her dress, "well, it is getting late and while I am sure father knows exactly what we are up to and he will not be happy, we should head back before others start to look for us."