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“So, glyphs draw in the magic around them in order to cast spells?”
“Yes. Er, well, that’s what I believe. It’s merely a theory.”
They’ve been in the living room at the Owl House all day discussing magic. Luz is hidden behind the couch, reading. Lilith is on the aforementioned couch, facing Hunter, who is sitting on the floor. Books are piled all around them, alongside cork boards, open notebooks, and pencils.
Hunter quirks one brow up at Lilith, staring at her oddly for a moment. “I wouldn’t call that just a theory. It requires magic of some kind to cast a spell, and for witches that magic comes from their bilesac. Glyphs themselves aren’t made of magic, they’re just the spell circle, and anyone can use them, so they have to get their magic from somewhere. It only makes sense they would command and use the naturally occurring magic around them in order to do that.”
“Excellent point!”
“Plus, glyphs don’t work in the human realm. So, there must not be any natural magic there” Luz pipes up from behind the couch, her head peeking just over the top to look at them, startling Lilith.
Hunter points at her, smirking. “See! Your ‘theory’ is more of a fact.”
“What about something that explains the lack of magic in the human realm?” Luz asks, moving to rest her head on her crossed arms. “I mean, some types of magic work there. Lilith cast a spell while we were there, and objects seem to retain…magical essence, or whatever.”
Lilith’s brow furrows as she thinks it over. Hunter only pauses for a moment, though, before he replies, “Well, the magic here comes from the Titan. That’s where all life on the Boiling Isles originated from. Since there’s no Titan, or any equivalent, in the human realm, that all life came from, there would be no magic. And with no natural magic, the glyphs have nothing to draw on. It’s like when a spell fizzles due to exhaustion.”
“Of course. And magical items retain their power because they were created or infused with magic from the beginning, originating from here. They wouldn’t just lose them,” Lilith states.
“Huh. Makes sense. I do wanna know more about that spell fizzling thing, though.”
“Well,” Hunter starts, taking a moment to think over what he wants to say. Flapjack flutters up to his head from his shoulder, perching in his hair and fussing with it. “You can only use so much magic before you get exhausted, because it takes energy and fluid from your bilesacs. If you run out of energy, or your fluids get too low, and you were to attempt to cast a spell, it would fizzle out. Depending on the spell you were trying to cast, it could lead to something dangerous or nothing at all, save for a weak spark.”
“Dangerous like…an explosion?”
“Yes. Like an explosion.”
“Good to know,” Luz says, her eyes narrowing as she slips back behind the couch.
Hunter decides he’s not going to ask about whatever it is she’s plotting.