"Hey mom?" Ahylino asked as they were getting ready for school.

"Yes?" Dee responded.

"Magic and stuff is new, right? Like, what we learn in school."

"Yes it is," Dee answered.

"Then how did you learn magic?" Ahylino asked.

"Well, at first, it was mostly trial and error," Dee said, standing up after tying her shoes. "Magic was new to everyone, so there wasn't anyone to really learn from. So, I didn't have a choice except to study and experiment with it. I was the only one of our group who was comfortable with doing so in the beginning, since I had practice with witchcraft. Probably because my grandma was Shinto, so I had an idea of what not to mess with. That's probably what also led me to Wicca, now that I think about it." Dee waved away the memory before she lost track. "Anyways. We started thinking about how different religions used to practice magic and started to look into that. That helped us get our footing really fast."

"I thought magic was new," Ahylino questioned as they tied their shoes.

"It is," Dee explained. "But there were old groups of people who used to practice their own kind of magic. Some people in the present even looked into those old practices and brought them to the modern world, like what we did. That sort of magic is nothing like what we have now though. It was more personal and far less powerful. For example, they couldn't heal wounds, but they could influence the body's energy to help it in its natural process. Up until ten years ago, that's the kind of magic people like me, and probably your great-grandma, used."

"That sounds cool," Ahylino said, finishing their knot. "But if people used magic before, why didn't everyone know the stuff you said?"

Dee sighed, "That's complicated. Honestly, I'm abridging a lot of the important stuff. You'll learn about it when you're older. But, basically, people didn't like magic back then. Witches, what people who used that kind of magic were called, were thought of as monsters and hunted down. Even in my time, while no one was hunting witches, witchcraft, magic, and anything Pagan in general was frowned upon."

"What? Why?" Ahylino asked.

Dee just shrugged, "Honestly, there wasn't a good reason. It was just something some people didn't understand, so they hated it. Luckily, after whatever happened ten years ago, everyone has magic. New, more powerful magic even. So, people are forced to understand it."

"That's still so dumb," Ahylino shook their head. "Magic is so cool."

"It is," Dee smiled. "Now, you're going to be late for school. Let's get going."

Ahylino nodded. They finished getting ready, stuffing whatever they needed into their hair. The two of them made their way to the school, arriving in no time at all.

"Have a great day, little one," Dee hugged her child.

"Thanks mom. I will," Ahylino hugged her back.

Dee smiled and watched her child disappear into the building, starting their second day of school. She stared at the building for a minute, thinking of how her child is growing, before making her way to the library to start her shift.

---

In the library, Dee was putting books from the return back on the shelves. As she finished, Amy walked up to her.

"Hey, Dee," Amy waved.

"Hey Amy. What's up?" Dee responded.

"Nothing much," Amy said with a shrug. "Just thought I'd let you know that someone came in asking about potions. She felt a little weird, honestly. The magic coming off of her was definitely something I'm not familiar with. Probably just a tourist looking for local recipes."

"So?" Dee asked, continuing to put away the books.

"I recommended a few books," Amy answered. "She didn't look too satisfied. So, don't be surprised if she comes to talk to you."

Dee stopped her work and turned to Amy. "Why would she come to me?"

"Um, because the horns, extra limbs, and tails scream magic more than anyone else working here." Amy answered with a bored tone.

"Kevin's a demon. What's more magic than that?" Dee retorted.

Amy just rolled her eyes, "Kevin isn't here yet. Probably slept in again. Just be ready."

"Fine, fine," Dee sighed. "Thanks for the heads up."

"No problem," Amy gave a two finger salute before heading off to another part of the library.

Dee finished putting the books away and went back to her desk to put them into the system. As she did, she saw the woman Amy had mentioned. Dee wasn't good at remembering what people looked like, and with so many people coming in and out there was no point in trying. That being said, this woman indeed had a weird feeling to her. The magic was familiar to Dee, but she couldn't place it. Either way, it wasn't anything to be worried about. Amy was probably right about her being a tourist.

Deciding to rip the bandage off, Dee approached her. "Hello. Can I help you?" Dee asked.

"Yes. I need to know what you know about potions." The woman replied.

"Well," Dee started, "we have plenty of books on potions. Is there anything specific you're looking for?"

"Anything that would let me speak with the dead," The woman said.

That was a red flag. Most people don't want to speak to the dead for good reasons. It usually ends up with a few undead, at least. "And why would you need to know that?" Dee asked, giving her best 'customer service' smile.

She shifted on her feet. "My family is trying to sue our landlord. I need to get statements from some of the people who died there."

Dee relaxed a bit. Nothing wrong with screwing over a landlord, in her opinion. "Using a potion would be overly complicated," Dee explained. "You'll have better luck with just looking into necromancy spells."

"Necromancy?" The woman looked confused.

"It sounds worse than it is," Dee reassured her. "Necromancy is just magic that affects the body. Like, healing magic is necromancy."

"I did not know that," the woman said.

"Most people don't," Dee's expression didn't change as she examined the woman. Yes, she didn't care what happened to the landlord, but she didn't want to be directly responsible if there's a small zombie outbreak. The woman didn't seem dangerous, but Dee could feel desperation rolling off of her. "Just know, this kind of spell can be dangerous. If you do it wrong, you could get possessed or make a feral zombie."

The woman frowned and looked a lot more skittish. "Is there any way to do it safely?"

Dee thought for a moment, "Maybe. It depends on the information you want."

The woman tensed up a bit now. Seems she was hiding something. "It's just a few questions."

"Right," Dee didn't believe that for a second.

The woman seemed to sense her suspicion. "Look, I don't want to hurt anyone. I just need some answers. Our situation is... complicated."

Dee hesitated. She wasn't sure if she should get involved in whatever this was. But if she didn't, and the woman went somewhere else...

"Let me get some books," Dee finally said. "You can look through them. Maybe you'll find what you're looking for." Dee turned and went back to her desk. She got on the computer and started to search for any books on the subject. Luckily, she found exactly what she was looking for. She got up and went to the back and grabbed the book. She walked back over to the woman and presented the book. "This is a book about different healing magics. Both physical and mental. Healing magic is technically necromancy, like I said. So, there is a section about a very basic spell to speak with the dead. Just make sure to follow the instructions."

The woman looked surprised. "Really? That's all it takes?"

"Well, it's not perfect. You can only ask 3 questions. And the responses won't be long or complicated. One or two sentences at most. But, it is safer to use than any other spell to communicate with the dead." Dee handed the book to the woman.

The woman took the book and looked relieved. "Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me."

Dee smiled. "It's my pleasure. But please be careful. Magic is still magic. Use it wrong and you can hurt yourself, or the spell could go wild."

The woman nodded. "I understand."

"Oh, and you may need a focus. Something personal or significant to the person you're trying to contact."

The woman pulled out a necklace. "That, I was already prepared for."

Dee gave a nod of approval. "Good luck." She said. The woman nodded back and left. When she was gone, Dee groaned. "I feel like an NPC handing out key items."

"I mean, isn't that basically our job anyway?" Amy said, walking up next to Dee. "Come on. We both have breaks at the same time today. I'll treat you."

"Since when did we have a break together?" Dee questioned.

"Since Kevin finally got his ass to work," Amy pointed behind her at a very guilty looking demon. "Told him covering me when I went on an early lunch was the least he could do. Just didn't tell him it was also your lunch break," Amy gave a shit eating grin.

Dee smiled. "Sounds good. Let's go." Kevin just stared with an open mouth as the two women left him to go on break. Sorry not sorry.