Chapter Text
Coco curled up in the nest that was long ago formed by the branches of the Silverwood tree. Coco had always chosen to believe that it was Master Qifrey’s final gift to his students and his lover, a way to feel like he was still wrapping his arms around them in a comforting embrace when they needed it. The soft whisper of the leaves in the breeze sounded like his voice comforting and encouraging you if you listened closely enough to them.
Coco was the last of Master Qifrey’s apprentices that was still alive. It had been over a century since they had lost him when she was fifteen, one hundred and fifteen years to the day. Coco only knew how old she was, one hundred and thirty, because she knew exactly how long it had been since that day she had been alone with her beloved Master Qifrey as he had finally lost to the Silverwood, despite Coco’s desperate efforts to keep him from leaving them behind.
It was somewhat surprising, at least to Coco herself, that Coco herself had lived this long; she had always been so busy, both teaching her own apprentices as well as assisting in governing the new world that she and her friends had created to regulate the use of permitted magic, as well as deciding what was considered forbidden. What magic was considered ethical rather than an inflexible and black and white idea of good and evil.
The second pact had given her an endless amount of extra work to drown herself and her grief in, although it was of her own volition, she had decided to work in the public eye, both as a Master to countless apprentices over the years and as one of the (now four after she had taken her place among them) Wise.
Coco’s final group of apprentices had graduated six months prior and she had decided not to take any more after them, she knew that she was reaching the end of her life and she wasn’t going to subject apprentices to what she had been subjected to as a child. She wasn’t going to take apprentices just to die on them, she knew just how much that hurt.
Coco was completely alone in the world now.
Olruggio had shattered when Qifrey became a Silverwood, he had shattered without Qifrey there to catch him. He had barely survived losing the man he loved, then again, none of them handled losing him well.
Olruggio had affixed the ribbon that had been on Qifrey’s hat to Coco’s the day she graduated with shaking fingers, telling her that she was in charge of whatever vow Qifrey had made on that ribbon, even if he didn’t remember what it was. And Coco, who did know what that vow had been, had only attempted to betray that vow once.
Coco knew that the only reason Olruggio had survived as long as he had was the girls. He had supported them as well as he could, taking his fifth test so that he could stand as their Master alongside Coco instead of someone they didn’t know. But he had also vanished even more than usual into his work, leaving Coco to do a fair bit of the teaching when she had the time between her work in the Great Hall and the mildly infuriating and entirely unending meetings.
Olruggio had passed away eighty-nine years ago, and Coco had always assumed that his grief had finally overwhelmed him and he had let it since the girls were self-sufficient.
Beldaruit had died seventy-six years prior, someone who had taught her much, someone who had eventually earned her respect, her trust, and her fondness.
He had given her so much help over the years, he had arranged for her to take the fourth and fifth tests the day after she had lost her Master, absolutely refusing to be taken as anyone else’s apprentice and knowing that she was going to have to help teach the others in Qifrey’s absence, as well as with Olruggio’s mental state right after the loss of Qifrey.
He had supported her and her collaborators as they built the second pact and he had vouched for Coco to step up as the first Wise of Ethics, stating that she had one of the best perspectives due to being both a witch and an Unknowing in her life, as well as having a desire to save people with magic, and she had been questioning what was considered forbidden magic practically since the day she became a witch.
Beldaruit had guided her through the world of Great Hall and general witch politics, the world that she had so willingly thrown herself into without truly knowing what she was doing. He had become a close confidant, and another person who had been deeply hurt by Qifrey’s death.
Easthies had passed ten years prior and Coco had never been given another Watchful Eye, she was trusted alone even so far out in the countryside. She was in the Great Hall along with her apprentices often enough that her being so isolated with her apprentices on occasion wasn’t a concern in their eyes, as well as her being well respected and being the Wise of Ethics, she was incredibly trusted.
Easthies had been a dear friend as she grew older, he had grown up, matured far more and Coco would have used his title if it hadn’t felt odd to use a title by the time he deserved it, they had been close friends by then and Easthies didn’t really use Coco’s own title all that often either.
Easthies had become the Captain of the Knights Moralis and the Wise of Principles around the same time as the second pact was put in place and Coco had stepped up as the Wise of Ethics. They had become friends because they had to work together, no matter how much they had originally disliked each other.
And eventually he had become her Watchful Eye while still doing his job as the Captain of the Knights and he had lived out in the country with her and her family (and became a part of her family in reality) for the rest of his life.
Coco couldn’t really remember how many years that had lasted, she had grown used to it and she had stopped counting the years, just started taking his presence for granted, and she shouldn’t have done that, she shouldn’t have taken anything for granted.
It had been quite an adjustment to not have him there anymore, she was alone when the kids came to wake her up at night because they had nightmares, when Agott was gone she was the only adult in the Atelier, she was almost always alone when she cooked breakfast, he had always been the one joining her when she cooked, and she didn’t have someone to talk to as easily during meetings.
When Coco herself had nightmares she made tea and went to the Silverwood tree to stare absently at the stars alone, her steps no longer woke Easthies, who was an incredibly light sleeper, to come talk to her. She had never tried to wake Agott to sit with her, she didn’t want to wake her when she didn’t have to.
Tetia had passed seven years prior. She had been well known in her own right as a travelling witch who did all she could to help anyone she encountered. She had been incredibly happy, she had heard thank you in every language before the end of her life.
She had had an incredibly happy marriage as well, always coming home to her wife’s shop between her travels. Her wife’s shop was always, without fail, her favourite place to be no matter how beautiful the rest of the world was. Tetia always came home to Richeh with excitement and a warm smile.
Richeh had run a magic shop in Ezrest with her inventions helping the world, selling to both the Unknowing and other witches. She also ran a popular stall at Silver Eve.
Richeh had grown warmer as she got older, slowly coming out of her shell and greeted every single one of her customers with a warm smile and greeting. She had always smiled the most warmly when her wife came home to the shop after a long trip away, bringing home trinkets and souvenirs from her travels.
Tetia had helped at the shop when Richeh let her and she was home. Richeh had passed on the shop to one of Coco’s former apprentices before she passed away seven years ago, not outliving her wife by much.
Agott had passed five years ago, and that had hurt more than Coco had thought it would, more than she had thought was possible after she had bottled up so much grief regarding Qifrey, she didn’t think it could get much worse, but she was the last of Coco’s support system and all she had after Agott’s passing was her apprentices.
Agott had been an extremely well respected Head Librarian of the Tower of Tomes and a member of the group that had written the second pact, although she wasn’t in the public eye as much as Coco was, none of them were.
Coco was the only one who had graduated by the time the second pact was put into place, so she had taken on the most responsibility for it, she was still balancing teaching her friends and taking care of Olruggio when she had become the fourth of the Wise.
Agott had been Coco’s everything for years and years, a bright light and a flash of colour in the silvery world of her grief and guilt over Qifrey, and Coco hadn’t known what to do without that after she had died.
Agott had done so much for the second pact, she had helped write it, all four of them had, thinking of countless things that Coco never would have thought about.
But the most important thing she was and ever would be in Coco’s eyes was her beloved wife.
Olruggio, Tetia, Richeh, and Agott were all buried at the foot of the Silverwood tree. Their gravestones were protected by Qifrey’s tree, three apprentices and a lover protected for eternity by the man who would have given his life to protect them. Coco had to hope that someone would bury her along with them at the foot of the Silverwood, remaining close to her Beloved Master and her family for the rest of eternity.
There was someone in Coco’s place as the Wise of Ethics, someone Coco truly trusted to take the role seriously. Coco trusted the current four Wise with the world she had helped to create, she had helped train all four of them, she knew all of them well enough to trust them.
Coco pulled her pen from her belt and held it tightly in shaking fingers.
It was made from Silverwood, which wasn’t a wood anyone used for pens, it was incredibly light and most people found that it grew toxic quite quickly once separated from the main tree. But Coco’s never had, it had stayed a brilliant silver the whole time she had it, and that had been over a century now.
Her pen was made with wood from Qifrey’s tree, it was sentimental, something she treated as her graduation gift from him despite the fact that he hadn’t been there to give it to her.
Coco had been so strong for so many people for the last one hundred and fifteen years.
There had always been someone who relied on her to be the strong one, her friends, her family, the Unknowing, the witches, her apprentices. She had always been the strong one, she had never properly cried for her Master, she had never had time or energy to give herself the space to do such a thing, and that still weighed heavy on her shoulders all these years later.
Coco’s hands were shaking and her eyesight was failing her more than it usually did, perhaps she would finally get to rest, perhaps she would finally get to join her loved ones in sleep in a way she had been denied one hundred and fifteen years before.
Coco took a slow deep breath in before letting it out just as slowly and closed her eyes.
~
Coco blinked rapidly as she adjusted to her new surroundings, her vision better than it had been in years, although it felt as if she wasn’t wearing her glasses, everything was a little bit fuzzy.
Something had changed, she wasn’t sitting in the Silverwood tree, she was at a busy festival. She wasn’t sure what had happened, but she knew that there was something incredibly different.
And then she recognised exactly when and where she was, she recognised this festival.
This was the Silver Eve festival where she had gotten the magic picture book from Iguin, the only Silver Eve festival she had gone to as a little girl. She hadn’t gone again until she was Qifrey’s apprentice, she hadn’t even known that it was a Silver Eve festival until they had arrived that first day.
The question was more so if this was a memory fueling a dream or if this was some form of time magic. Time magic seemed more likely based on how real this seemed to be and her Silverwood pen still clutched tightly in her hand. The fact that she was certain that she had just died also made the idea of this being a dream feel unlikely.
Coco’s eye was caught by a glowing butterfly, a very familiar butterfly. Coco started to follow it, knowing exactly what it would lead her to, knowing exactly who it would lead her to.
Coco hid her pen in her sleeve which was thankfully long and loose enough to hide it well. Her pen was, especially to someone like Iguin, the mark of a witch, especially because it was made out of Silverwood. That wasn’t something she needed to display right now, especially not while she was going to meet with Iguin.
Iguin was sitting exactly where Coco expected them to be, exactly where Coco remembered them being all those years ago. Although it was now, wasn’t it? Despite it being so long ago in her memory.
The box with the forbidden magic picture books sat on the ground beside Iguin. Coco realised that she had never properly gotten her hands on any of them, she had so often forgotten that there was more than one, she would perhaps want to see if she could track down the others this time, since she had no intention to lose her own book this time.
Coco started walking down the stairs and almost stumbled, she had forgotten that, memory or real, she was in the body of her five year old self. She was so much shorter than she had been for most of her remembered life, she was also slightly more uncoordinated than she was used to.
She would have to do some work to get her hands used to drawing again, she was going to have to build up her calluses once more while also trying to keep ink off her fingers, or find an excuse to have a lot of regular ink that would stain her fingers.
Perhaps she would get into drawing outfits earlier than she had originally, since she could do that with regular ink and it would result in similar calluses and ink stains.
“You there, child. Would you like to buy a magic picture book?” Iguin asked as Coco came to stand in front of the Brimmed Cap.
And Coco decided to play along with how this had once gone. She remembered this night as clearly as someone over a century old remembers something from when they were five years old. Coco slipped into childish mannerisms as much as she could, as much as she could remember them, it had been a very long time ago.
“Magic?” Coco asked with a curious tilt of her head. “I love picture books, but I’ve never heard of magic.”
“Why, magic is a miracle that makes this world vibrant. A Pegasus carriage in the sky, a spring with waters ever crystal clear.” Iguin said, and then they gestured to the ground below Coco’s feet, which was glowing by virtue of them being glowstone tiles. She remembered that the ground had only started glowing when Iguin brought her attention to it, but she figured that it had already been glowing and she hadn’t noticed in the way little kids didn’t notice things until they were pointed out to them. “Even the cobblestones underfoot, glowing brightly with each step. All of these things are magic.” Iguin said.
Coco’s eyes prickled with tears that she refused to let fall as she spun around on the glowstone tiles that Master Olruggio had once designed. Her love of magic was always bolstered by something so simple, just glowing tiles underfoot, but they had always been so important to her.
“So pretty! Wow, magic is the best! Thank you, I love magic!” Coco said. She wished she was saying that to Master Olruggio, but she simply imagined she did instead of saying it to Iguin, who didn’t deserve any of the credit for Coco’s love of magic.
“Buy the book and get this wand for free.” Iguin said, holding out a book and wand.
Coco handed the Brimmed Cap money and took the book and wand. She practically sprinted up the stairs, ostensibly to return to her mother, but the reality was that she couldn’t stand being so close to Iguin any longer. She ran a bit farther than she really needed to before coming to a stop and leaned against a wall.
A strange unfamiliar voice filled her mind, and it was as if she could see words floating in front of her but there was nothing there, the reality was that the words were behind her eyes, although she couldn’t really tell how she knew that, she just did and that was good enough.
[System acclimation complete. User 001 is now registered within the system and will have to comply with several set story events. The OOC function has been disabled by default due to age and knowledge of Users. The User’s goal is to prevent the Silverwood host’s death in this version. You have been returned to the past in a universe that, without your interference, will end up in exactly the same place as your original universe. Make changes to achieve the goal.]
[Joining the chat with other Users that have acclimated properly.]
System 001: User has joined chat. User 001 will be able to communicate with the other users.
System 002: User has joined chat. User 002 will be able to communicate with the other users.
System 003: User has joined chat. User 003 will be able to communicate with the other users.
System 004: System acclimation not complete. Acclimation will complete upon first interaction with user 001 according to the story. User 004 will not be able to communicate with others until system acclimation is completed.
System 005: System acclimation not complete. Acclimation will complete upon first interaction with user 001 according to the story. User 005 will not be able to communicate with others until system acclimation is completed.
User 001: So, who are you two?
User 002: Mind introducing yourself first?
[User 001 has changed their username to Coco.]
Coco: I’m Coco. And you two?
[User 002 has changed their username to Easthies.]
[User 003 has changed their username to Beldaruit.]
Easthies: I’m Easthies. It’s a pleasure to know that you’re here, Lady Coco.
Beldaruit: I’m Beldaruit.
Coco: Easthies, I’m five years old right now, don’t call me Lady Coco, it’s not true anymore, or… well… not true yet I suppose.
Easthies: Oh my stars, where are you? I wanna see the Great Lady Coco as a little baby.
Coco sighed as she looked around to see where she was. If she could summon Easthies to her she could probably get her hands on some trustworthy casting ink, she didn’t particularly trust the ink Iguin had given her, it was probably tainted and wouldn’t behave properly.
As she looked around she realised that she was leaning against a wall at the edge of the main plaza, and the exhibitions were going to start somewhat shortly assuming they started on time. She would stay to watch them, her mother wouldn’t mind, Coco knew where to find her. She had told Coco to explore some while Coco’s mother chatted with some friends.
Her mother trusted Coco more than she should have, but Coco had always been fond of vanishing into crowds, but had an uncanny knack for finding her way back to her mother completely safe. So Coco had been allowed to roam, and she was going to take advantage of it.
She didn’t remember watching the exhibitions before and she was curious as to what had been presented that year. Would be presented this year. She really needed to adjust her internal tense for time, she was in the past, so she should stop thinking about the events she was taking part in in the past tense, since now they were her present.
At least she would be easy to find here, the main plaza was easy to find, and as long as she stayed near the edge she was unlikely to vanish into the growing crowd. Coco sighed and turned her attention back to the chat to let Easthies know where she was.
Coco: I’m at Silver Eve. I’m in the main plaza to watch the exhibitions. I’m standing along one of the outside walls.
Easthies: I’ll come find you. And I’ll stop by Mr Nolnoa’s stall and bring you casting materials and a bag.
Coco: That would be lovely, I actually have my pen still, so I don’t need a new one.
Easthies: Alright. See you in a moment.
Coco leaned against the wall while she waited for Easthies to join her. More and more people, witches and Unknowing alike, filled the plaza to wait for the exhibitions to start. Coco was offered a flag and she took it without hesitation, she could still show her support by waving her flag even if she was just a little Unknowing girl at present.
Coco truly enjoyed Silver Eve. She hadn’t participated in the festival by performing an exhibition during the procession in many years, not since she had become one of the four Wise, the last one she had participated in had been shortly after they had lost Qifrey, and she had only done so because Qifrey had praised her for her idea. Maybe Coco could perform an exhibition once she became an apprentice.
Finally Coco caught a glimpse of a scarlet cloak drawing closer overhead. She had seen quite a few scarlet cloaks in the sky, the Knights Moralis were buzzing around the festival, supposedly keeping everyone safe, and they probably were, she didn’t think anything had gone horrifically wrong at Silver Eve until her very first Silver Eve as a witch.
This particular scarlet cloak came closer than all the others, nearing the ground in front of her. It was Easthies under the cloak and cap, although that was quite unsurprising since he was coming to meet her, and he was the only Knight who would come to see a little girl instead of doing his job. And honestly he wouldn’t have done such a thing before she was fifteen, he would never have thought it was worth his time.
He landed beside her with a smile that was most certainly uncharacteristic of him at this point in time, but was quite familiar to Coco, it was a smile she had lived and worked beside for nigh on a century. It was the smile of a close friend who she hadn’t seen in ten years. Easthies leaned against the wall beside her and Coco shifted to stand a little closer to him, more comfortable closer to someone she knew than the crowd of strangers.
“Hello Easthies, how has your Silver Eve been so far?” Coco asked. Such a normal question that had so much weight behind it that really shouldn’t have had. Coco didn’t know what to do really, she couldn’t exactly broach the subject of having lost him as if it was small talk, and so she said nothing about it.
Just put weight behind a question.
“Better now that I’ve seen you, it feels like it’s been a while.” Easthies said. One of his hands came to rest lightly on her shoulder. A simple response to a simple question, but there was equal weight behind the response as there had been behind the initial question. “But otherwise, thankfully, uneventful. Here you go.” Easthies said as he held out a bag on a belt with the hand that wasn’t resting on her shoulder.
Coco took the bag from him and opened it. It was a magical one that she could put a lot of stuff in, more than the bag looked like it held. She was grateful for that, it would make her life a lot easier, and it would make hiding the things she required to cast magic much easier, since the bag was relatively small.
There was a small notebook, a Palm Quire, and a bottle of ink already in it. Coco slid the picture book into the bag, along with the wand Iguin gave her, as well as her own pen after pulling it from her sleeve. She would have to let Easthies see the picture book at some point, but not tonight, tonight she wanted to pretend she had never touched that book in her life, either of them.
She tied the belt around her waist in a practised motion, only fumbling slightly due to her unpracticed child’s fingers, despite the fact that she had done it countless times in the past, or in the future. “Thank you Easthies, this will make a lot of things a lot easier.” Coco said.
“Of course. I know you, you would lose your mind without the ability to do at least a little bit of magic, you’re a workaholic.” Easthies said. He reached down and ruffled Coco’s hair, knocking her flower crown askew but not off. “You’re absolutely adorable right now by the way.”
Coco sighed and fixed her hair, setting her flower crown straight as she did so. “I’m glad you think so Easth, glad you think so. Do you want to stay and watch the exhibitions with me?” Coco asked.
“I can’t. I’m on my break and I need to get back. I’m unfortunately working tonight, I would stay with you otherwise.” Easthies said apologetically. He looked like he felt guilty, and Coco imagined that he was somewhat guilty. “I’ll make sure to take Silver Eve off next year so I can bring you though.” Easthies said.
“Alright. You’ll have to come see me at the shop sometimes, I’ll make you some plainclothes if you ask for it. Mom will want to get to know you, especially if you’re kidnapping me for the festival next year.” Coco said.
“Of course I’ll come to see you. I’ll find a way to take you to Kalhn and the Great Hall on occasion as well, you’ll need casting materials and I imagine you’ll want to see Beldaruit at some point soon.” Easthies said.
“Yeah, and he’ll want to see me as well. And I want to see if I can catch a glimpse of Master Qifrey, just to see him once in the next five years to ensure that he’s really alive. But I would also like to get materials to make myself a uniform at some point, I’d rather wear my regular one.” Coco said.
“You’re not really meant for the life of an Unknowing anymore, are you?” Easthies asked.
Coco’s smile slipped from her face and she looked somewhat absently over the crowd, her thoughts slipping back to that Silverwood, the moment that she could no longer live as an Unknowing, even if her memories were wiped. “No, I don’t think I am.” Coco said softly, her voice slipping into something older, not quite the voice of a five year old.
“I’ll see you soon Coco. Have a good Silver Eve.” Easthies said.
“You as well.” Coco said, her voice returning to that of a little girl in an instant. Her smile returned as she said goodbye to her friend, it always would. It was genuine, not the practiced smile she often used to mask her true emotions, Easthies didn’t see that smile much when it was just them.
Easthies left then, leaving Coco alone once more.
But now she wasn’t alone, not truly, not like she had been before she was sent back.
The people she loved were within reach, and were no longer deaf to her love. They were no longer sleeping beneath the Silverwood tree while she alone remained endlessly and unwillingly awake above. There was no longer a Silverwood tree for them to sleep under, just the man who protected them in the same way the Silverwood had protected them in their sleep.
Coco quietly watched the people in the plaza while she waited for the exhibitions to start. They were laughing with friends and family, hoisting kids up onto shoulders so they could see better when the procession started. Even those standing on their own were smiling. No one seemed lonely in the way she felt lonely. The hollow remnants of the loneliness that came from everyone she loved having left her behind were slowly fading, she would be alright soon, she would be alright.
And then as she watched the crowd she saw a flash of painfully familiar smoke grey fabric and sparkling white hair, and Coco’s heart stopped.
Coco started to force her way through the crowd, she wanted to see him, even if he wouldn’t know what this meant to her, what he meant to her, she had to see him.
Coco: Master Qifrey is here. I’m going to go see him.
Beldaruit: Should you do that? Won’t it cause problems if he sees you?
Coco: Even if he remembers me after tonight, he likely won’t see me again for five years. Besides that fact I don’t think the system will let this damage what’s supposed to happen.
Easthies: I’m glad you get to see him again.
The flower crown in Coco’s hair was knocked to the ground and trampled but she didn’t care, just pushed through the crowd towards her beloved Master Qifrey. She was apologising as she crashed into people but she didn’t linger in any one spot.
Coco stumbled hard when someone bumped into her from behind, she would have fallen to the ground if she hadn’t been caught. A pair of hands came to grasp her shoulders tightly as she stumbled, keeping her from falling to the ground.
The hands on her shoulders were absolutely frigid, a painfully familiar feeling that had slowly started to slip away from her as time went on. The icy chill was strong even through her dress, although that shouldn’t be a surprise since the fabric was thin, but the grip was incredibly steadying and it easily kept Coco off the ground.
“You should be careful, you wouldn’t want to fall.” A voice that Coco hasn’t heard in over a century told her.
Coco looked up and was faced with Qifrey smiling at her warmly. It took everything Coco had to refrain from turning around and clinging to him as she sobbed, she truly wished to do so.
But she just put another brick into the dam to keep her grief in check, she had never let that dam break, she had built it the moment she watched her beloved Master Qifrey turn into a tree and there was nothing she could do about it.
Because she couldn’t cry in front of him, she couldn’t let that be the last thing he saw, his apprentice sobbing because she couldn’t help him in the least. And then as everyone joined her and broke down because there was nothing any of them could do, she stayed strong for them because someone had to.
She had to stay strong for the others as she took over a majority of the teaching in the wake of Qifrey’s death while also working with the others to draw up a new version of the pact that might have prevented the tragic fate of Qifrey. Olruggio had joined her in the teaching after a few months, after the second pact had been enacted, when Coco started to drown her grief in her work and had nearly disappeared into the Great Hall and meetings. Olruggio had dragged her back to the Atelier and told her she needed to take a break.
Coco had to stay strong for everyone who relied on her as the Wise of Ethics, who relied on her to be level headed and collected. For everyone who relied on her judgement to adjust the pact to keep magic ethical and for that to be a correct judgement.
Coco had to stay strong for her own apprentices once she started taking them. They couldn’t see their Mistress break down at something so trivial as them tilting their head at her as they smiled at her.
She had never let herself properly grieve her Master, and here she was, his icy hands on her shoulders, his smile warm, and he was keeping her on her feet.
It was almost as if time had frozen for a moment.
Coco wanted to collapse into his arms and let herself break down for the very first time since she lost her beloved Master Qifrey.
Instead Coco took a deep breath and righted herself, a practiced smile crossing her face, hoping it would fool Qifrey, despite him being the very person who taught her how to do it better than she already had. She hoped that it would fool him well enough just the same as it had fooled everyone else for one hundred and fifteen years.
“I’m sorry sir, I’ll be more careful.” Coco said.
Qifrey’s hands were still on her shoulders. “Where are your parents?” Qifrey asked.
“My mom is talking to her friends, she told me that I could come see the magic so long as I came right back once it was done.” Coco said, doing her best to keep a childish tone of voice.
“Why don’t you join me then? I’m going to be watching the magic as well.” Qifrey said.
“Are you sure I won’t be bothering you?” Coco asked.
“Of course not. Magic is meant to be shared anyway.” Qifrey said. His hands slipped from her shoulders and vanished under his cloak so Coco couldn’t see them. “I would be delighted to share some magic with you.” Qifrey told her as he produced a crown of flowers that were the same brilliant blue of his eye from beneath his cloak. He must have drawn something to make it while his hands were hidden from her.
Qifrey smiled brightly as he placed the flower crown atop Coco’s head. One of Coco’s hands drifted up to the flowers.
“They won’t fade any time soon, they’re magical flowers.” Qifrey told her.
Coco heard herself gasp and she knew her eyes went wide at that, once more letting that deep love of magic completely fill her voice. “You can do magic sir!?” Coco asked quietly, excitement filling her voice.
“I can. I’m a witch.” Qifrey told her.
Coco was about to say something more but stopped when a voice echoed over the plaza. “The Silver Eve procession of witches shall now begin! Wave your flags and throw your flowers! The lights come on and the darkness retreats, for the witches’ procession is coming.”
Coco looked up in an attempt to see the people on the platforms but she couldn’t see, she was too short, that was going to be incredibly frustrating for a number of years. She had once been taller than Qifrey. Coco put her feet together out of habit before remembering that she doesn’t have Sylph shoes anymore.
But her feet left the ground anyway, and Coco squeaked in surprise as she was lifted off the ground. Qifrey had picked her up like she weighed nothing at all. Coco squeaked in surprise once more as Qifrey effortlessly placed her on his shoulders.
“Can you see now?” Qifrey asked as his hands shifted to wrap around Coco’s ankles so she was a touch more stable and less likely to fall.
“Yes, thank you sir. You didn’t have to do this.” Coco said as she let her hands settle in Qifrey’s hair to steady herself.
Qifrey looked up at her as best he could with her hands in his hair and smiled warmly. “You wanted to see the magic, you’ll be able to see it from up there.”
Qifrey truly was too sweet, even to a little girl that he didn’t know and had no reason to be so sweet to. Coco smiled down at him as she blinked back tears, she had truly missed this the most, the simple kindness of her beloved Master.
“Thank you Sir witch, truly thank you.” Coco said.
“My name is Qifrey.”
Coco hesitated for an instant before deciding to tell him her name, it couldn’t hurt, it was nothing more than a name, and that couldn’t have too much of a butterfly effect. “It’s lovely to meet you Qifrey, I’m Coco.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Coco. Now, enjoy the procession, wave the flag for any magic you like.” Qifrey said.
And the procession truly began. Coco looked up and watched the witches presenting their magic with rapt attention, taking in the magic that had been presented that year, this year, she supposed.
It was all beautiful magic and Coco spent the whole time smiling and waving her flag, showing her support for every witch who got up on one of those platforms.
And then Olruggio stepped out onto a platform in front of them to perform his exhibition. Both Coco and Qifrey were waving their flags harder than they did for any other witch.
Olruggio looked down at the crowd and seemed to find Coco and Qifrey amongst them all. There was a moment of surprise in his eyes, perhaps at Coco’s unexpected presence on Qifrey’s shoulders, before he smiled down at them, his smile brighter than the flames of his magic.
It was a smile Coco hadn’t seen from him since Qifrey died, not even the day he died. She didn’t think she would ever see it again.
Coco loved this world, it was bright and filled with colour once more. The silver tinge over everything fell away, that wash of silver that had tainted her world ever since she had watched silver take away her guiding star, faded and everything filled with bright colour.
The two men who had given her the deep love of magic she still held close to her heart countless years later were with her again, were smiling at her. They knew she existed and thought she was worth smiling at even if they didn’t know her.
Even if it was all just for one single stolen instant on a Silver Eve festival night…
If that was all this ever was…
It was still an instant that she would treasure for the rest of her life, no matter how short that was.
~
Qifrey picked her up from his shoulders and set her down on the ground once the procession was finished, his hands staying on her shoulders until he was sure that she had her feet all the way under her. The plaza was emptying as people returned to walking around the rest of the festival.
Qifrey took a knee in front of Coco, meeting her eyes. “Don’t lose that love of magic you have, never lose it. It’s a valuable tool that will brighten your world someday, more than you can imagine now.” Qifrey said.
“I won’t! I promise! I’ll become a witch that uses her magic to make the whole world vibrant!” Coco said.
Qifrey smiled brightly at Coco’s words. “I look forward to seeing you show off your magic up on one of the Silver Eve platforms one day Coco.”
“I promise you’ll see me there one day! I won’t let you down!” Coco said.
Qifrey stood up and slightly ruffled her hair without dislodging the flower crown on her head. “I’ll see you around, Coco.” And then Qifrey vanished into the crowd.
Coco took a slow deep breath and pulled the magic picture book from her bag, along with the wand from Iguin, holding both close to her chest, no matter how disgusted with that book she was.
It was time to go find her mother and go back to somewhere she hadn’t called home in more than a century.
~
Coco: I’m going to do an exhibition at Silver Eve as soon as I become an apprentice.
Easthies: Why?
Beldaruit: You did before, I’m certain you can do it again.
Coco: Because Master Qifrey told me that he looked forward to seeing me present my magic up on one of the Silver Eve platforms someday. I refuse to let him down.
Beldarut: Did you tell him that you were a witch?
Coco: Actually no, I would assume that he thinks that I’m just a little Unknowing girl who was thrilled to see magic. Perhaps he just wanted to give me some joy.
Easthies: Perhaps, it sounds like something he would do, doesn’t it?
Coco: It does. But I refuse to let him down, even if that’s all he was doing.
Easthies: Well, you have five years to create something to present.
Coco: I do. And it will be something beautiful.
~
“Really? That’s what you spent the money on? I thought you wanted to get some roasted strawberries.” Coco’s mother said when Coco excitedly showed her the book and explained where she got it.
“I did! But then I followed a butterfly, and I found a person wearing a pointed hat!” Coco said, letting excitement fill her voice, acting as much like her five year old self as she could, her mother would likely be the first to notice a change in her personality.
“Yes, so you told me once already.” Her mother reminded her with a sigh.
“And now, I have a magic picture book! And a wand too!” Coco said, doing an excited little twirl.
“All right, then. It’s getting late, Coco, we should start heading home.” Her mother told her, turning to leave.
“Mommy!” Coco said, causing her mother to turn around once more. “When I grow up, I’m going to become a witch and use my magic to make the whole world vibrant, just you wait!” Coco told her. This time her mother would get to see her daughter become a witch who did exactly what she had wished to do many years ago when she had first learned about magic.
“You can’t.” Coco’s mother told her simply.
Coco froze and tilted her head as she looked at her mother. “But why not?”
“Darling, you can’t simply decide to become a witch and use magic. It’s a power that you have to be born with. Unfortunately it’s not something normal people are capable of. You would have to have been born a witch’s daughter.”
Coco started jumping from foot to foot, causing the glowstone pavers under her feet to glow brightly. “But look! The ground shines wherever I step!”
Coco’s mother reached out a hand to her daughter. “Well, let’s see if it keeps shining all the way home. If so, maybe you can use magic.”
Coco ran to her mother and grabbed her hand, letting her mother begin to lead her back towards the shop that Coco would call home for the next five years.
Five years of hiding from her mother.
Five years until she could become a witches apprentice.
Five years until she could return to the Atelier she had called home for over a century.
Five years.
Coco could survive five years without openly using magic.
Coco could survive five years until she became Master Qifrey’s apprentice.
After all, she had survived it before.
~
Coco set the picture book on her desk along with the wand. She wouldn’t use them, she didn’t trust them. They would both be turned over to Easthies next time she saw him, they belonged in the custody of the Knights Moralis.
She also gingerly set the candle she was holding on the desk. Coco would have to find a way to fashion a floatlamp, or just draw a light seal to set on the desk. Candles made her nervous now after so many years of magical light and fire contained in a way that it couldn’t set fire to the paper she was working with.
Coco untied the belt from her waist and set it on the desk as well. The only thing that she pulled from it was her Silverwood pen and she began to twirl it in her fingers, a habit she couldn’t even remember forming anymore she had been doing it for so long.
Coco sat down on the edge of her bed and closed her eyes. It had been a long night, and she was going to have a lot of adjusting to do, returning to a place she hadn’t been inside of for over a century.
Beldaruit: Coco, what’s your plan for now?
Coco: Try and sleep for tonight, but after that I’m going to try and work on a solution for the Silverwood curse. I have five years before I will be taken as Master Qifrey’s apprentice, so I have five years to figure out some kind of solution.
Easthies: *Sigh* I’m going to need to visit you quite a bit aren’t I?
Coco: Unless you can get me a Silverwood tree and an endless supply of paper, yes, I think you might. Also, did you just sigh in writing?
Easthies: Well it’s not like you can see me.
Beldaruit: You’re also going to have to bring her to the Great Hall, I want to see baby Coco, and also I need to send a smoke clone home with her so I can visit on my own.
Coco: I would also appreciate going to Kalhn, and I promise that I’ll keep out of trouble as much as I can while I’m in either place. I would quite appreciate going to see Sinocia because I would like to get my glasses soon, at least to wear while drawing.
Easthies: Yes, yes, you’re blind as all hell and need your precious spectacles to see properly.
Coco: Oh shut up, I like being able to see properly. I’m glad you don’t need assistance to see.
Easthies: I’ll take you to Sinocia soon. But for tonight, you should rest.
Coco: Indeed, good night Easthies, Beldaruit.
Beldaruit: Good night Coco.
Easthies: Good night Coco, sleep well and sweet dreams.
Coco smiled and set her pen on her desk with a soft click. She rose to her feet and changed into nightclothes, neatly folding her dress on a stool beside the wardrobe. She had never done that when she was younger, it was a habit that had come from living with Qifrey, it made bringing down the laundry easier, she had never stopped.
As she changed she glanced down at her wrists, an old habit that she knew where it came from but she tried not to think about that. She paused and looked at the scars on her wrists, those shouldn’t be on this body, she hadn’t gotten them until she was fifteen and that had been the worst of one of her lowest moments.
Coco lightly brushed her fingers across the scar across her right wrist, knowing that there was a matching one on her left wrist. She would have to do the same thing she had done before, just keep her sleeves long and not say a word about it, and it would be no problem whatsoever, not anymore, not since that night.
Coco took a deep breath and shook her head, it was all fine now, there wasn’t any concern about it anymore. She was perfectly fine.
As Coco walked back to her bed she removed the flower crown Qifrey had given her. She would hold onto that flower crown as long as she could. Any gift from her beloved Master Qifrey would be truly treasured, even more so now than before. Coco gently laid the flowers onto the desk, worried that she would damage them.
Coco leaned down and blew out the candle on her desk, it was time for her to go to sleep.