A Familiar's Guide to Magic

a unfortuitous telegram

Willow and I spent every moment of the last several days, when we weren't in her classes, in the library. Today was no different, except for the fact that Willow was called to Master Kenji's office during her Potions class. Since then she was acting strange, well stranger than what I had grown accustomed to in the short time that I had known her.

I had asked what Kenji wanted and she had promptly told me I talk too much and if I didn't learn the art of being quiet that she'd find a spell to do the trick. And so I decided it was better to not bother her about that business, if it were about returning me home I'm sure she would tell me.

"I think I should tell you now before we get any deeper into this that I've never been much of a student," I said, trailing after Willow as she turned down another aisle in the library. My arms were starting to tremble under the weight of the books I was carrying. Apparently, I needed to find more ways to be useful to her. I shifted my arms when one of the books in the stack started to slip.

"Then I guess it's a good thing that I didn't summon you here to learn, isn't it?"

I frowned at her response. I didn't know how much longer I could stand to be stuck with this girl. She was a real terror when she wanted to be. I watched as she pulled another book from the shelf and set it on the top of the stack, adding more weight.

I grunted as I shifted my arms. "Be honest. You're punishing me aren't you?"

Willow snorted, casting a sidelong glance in my direction before turning her back to me entirely. "Give me some credit. I do have more imagination than that."

I glared at her back, trying to shift the weight of the books, hoping it would do something for the ache in my arms and shoulders. It didn't.

"Do you really need all of these?"

"Probably not, but you never know. There might be something in one of these that could help us figure out your magical potential."

"I don't see how reading a bunch of books is the way to do this."

"Which is why you're the familiar and I'm the witch," she replied.

Willow pushed her hat back out of her face, grabbing another book from the shelf and setting it atop the pile. I strained against the added weight, nearing my physical limit. She didn't seem concerned, making her way further down the aisle. With a groan, I followed after her, having trouble seeing over the stack of books in my aching arms.

"Just to clarify, you do know I am a person and not a pack mule, right?"

I was sorry for myself and every other familiar at Espora Academy. The fact that they were ripped away from whatever dimension or home they'd been in and forced into a life of servitude for the rest of their lives. It seemed like a crappy deal. I mean, what did familiars get out of the situation?

Willow hummed at my comment. "I doubt anyone would know the difference from all the noises you make. You'll have to excuse the confusion..."

"Okay, that's it." I dropped the books, not caring about the mess that I made. Even I had limits to what I was willing to put up with. "What is your problem? You've been acting even...witchier...since you got back from meeting with Old man Kenji."

"It's Master Kenji," she corrected me. "And I'm not acting witchy. I am a witch."

I wanted to reach out and strangle her. I fisted my hands at my side to quell the impulse.

"Ha. ha. You know what I meant."

She sighed, "My problem is that I am trying to focus on the task at hand and your constant stream of whining and chattering is distracting."