On the grass field behind the school, John quietly sat under the shadow of a tree on the border of the field, near the entrance to the forest.
He was in his usual clothes, a simple black shorts, blue t-shirt and a pair of flip-flops.
One of his hands was raised in front of him, palm facing the crown of the tree and with two metallic spheres above it.
The spheres floated just a little bit over his palm, barely a few centimeters. They were also separated from each other by an insignificant distance, moving in circles as they were after the other.
However, from time to time, one of the spheres would suddenly change its movements and hit the other, resulting in a high metallic snap echoing shortly over the field while both magnets flew to opposite distances and far from the young man's reach.
"Shit." John cursed under his breath, exerting his ability more outwards to reach where the magnets had fallen and pull them back to him.
"Controlling them through EM waves is way harder than using telekinesis." John muttered, holding the magnets.
The intent behind it was simple. Instead of manipulating the magnets with his telekinesis, which worked more as an extension from him, John was using his manipulation over energy to control the electromagnetic fields around the magnets. Which, as he was experiencing right now, was a bit harder than he expected.
When he used his telekinesis, the finesse and precision he had with it was innate. To do minimal movements, it was similar to moving your finger by millimeters.
The difference to controlling EM waves was that he needed to have the correct amount of influence in them and be aware of how even his minimal inputs would influence the electromagnetic fields of the magnets. Similar to simply using the telekinesis from a certain point of view, but with an extra step along the way and with John needing to be more aware of things.
"But at least I can do interesting things that work better with it."
Aligning one of the magnets right in front of him, John intensely stared at the space ahead of the small sphere. It was like a tunnel opened in front of the magnet, with something in the end of the tunnel calling the magnet while something behind it tried to constantly push it away.
And what was the result?
The magnet went flying through the air, a sharp sound briefly echoing out on the field.
Crack!
Still sitting down under the shade of the tree, John could see the small magnet stuck in the tree's bark.
"Yeah, okay. This is at least funnier than using pure telekinesis." John was having some fun while creating similar effects of a coilgun using his abilities. "Maybe I could also copy a railgun this way. That would be awesome."
"What exactly would be?" A distant voice reached John's ears.
Looking up, John noticed a couple silhouettes approaching him.
Side by side, John finally noticed that despite the age difference between them, Josiel was almost surpassing Hope's height.
"A small use of my abilities." John sent his voice through the air, not wishing for Josie to feel out of the conversation between those with enhanced hearing.
But his worry wasn't long as they quickly closed the distance between them. And just when they were a couple meters from him, John reached his hand out and the magnet stuck in the bark of the tree came flying back.
A thudding sound surged when the metal impacted his skin, but John felt nothing and simply rose up to his feet to greet the two young women.
"I didn't see you during lunch. Where were you?" Josie asked after a quick greeting hug between them.
"A few personal tasks." John replied, giving a quick peck on Hope's cheek. "Since I slept earlier, I ended up waking up in the middle of the night yesterday. So, I decided to do a few things such as writing down some ideas and thinking a little more about how I should help you to see if you two can resonate with magic."
"I see." Josie replied.
Then, John looked at the direction where both of them came from before looking back at Josie. "So… Lizzie is not coming?"
"Actually, she said she would appear." Josie replied, taking a look at her phone's screen to look at the time. "I told her to be here at this hour."
"Maybe she forgot?"
But Josie snorted at Hope's idea. "I doubt that. She seemed quite thrilled to partake in this small gathering of us." With a small sigh escaping between her lips, Josie shook her head. "Well, I am sure she will appear. If you want us to start already, I have no problem with it."
"I have no problem with it either, so…" John clapped his hands. "Let's start."
"Did you need the clap?" Hope asked.
"Yes." John simply answered before focusing on Josie. "Do you remember what I told you what all this exercise would be about?"
"Hm… you staring at my body for hours?"
"Correct." John said, ignoring the weak pinch Hope was giving on his arm. "Though the hours part wasn't precise. It will only take a few minutes, I think. What I want is to have a better comprehension of how your ability works and such. So…" He turned to Hope. "Mind help?"
"What do I have to do?" She asked, looking between him and Josie.
"It's simple. You just have to be a magic battery for Josie to use her ability while I observe her." John explained. "Easy, right?"
"I guess so." Hope turned to face Josie.
The gemini witch did the same in response, with both of them staring at each other.
When Hope reached out her hand for Josie to touch, since it was common knowledge Siphoners were more used to siphon using their palms, Josie stared at it and for a moment, a weak crimson hue took over her cheeks before quickly dispersing.
However, since he was observing her the entire time, John noticed it and couldn't help but smirk.
Right, she had a crush on Hope, or maybe still have. He looked at Hope, the girl completely unaware. Her cuteness makes it hard not to fall.
Quickly dispersing his thoughts, John's pupils shrunk exaggeratedly. The golden hue of his iris intensified while the blood vessels in his sclera pulsed with a bit more vigor.
"You may start, Josie." John's tone had changed, from his casual to a more serious voice.
Following his words, Josie started right away the process of siphoning magic from others, with the entire procedure unfolding before his eyes.
Now, with him up close and slightly stronger than a few days ago, John could see everything with greater detail.
From how the process initiated and how Josie's skin behaved to absorb the magic from Hope to how the magic flowed inside her veins and almost understand how Hope's magic seemingly belonged and obeyed her will now.
Okay… this is interesting. John held up his chin with one hand and used the other to cross his chest and hold the first arm.
"What are you seeing?" Hope was the first to ask, a little bit curious as well when seeing the slight shift in her boyfriend's expression.
John took a second to mull over his thoughts before replying to her. "I think I am seeing what I suppose to be almost the entire process?"
"Almost?"
"I feel like I am missing something." John replied, his head waving from one side to another a few times. "What are you feeling by having your magic siphoned?"
"A slight tickle where Josie and I are sharing contact." Hope commented, looking at a very weak hue of orange light coming from where they were holding hands. It was almost imperceivable even for her. "And slightly hot as well."
To not laugh at Josie's stronger shade of red, John had to fully exert his will. "I think that makes a bit of sense since what you are basically doing is transferring energy. It may not follow physics' principles to its core, but maybe magic behaves or mimics it in some way."
"Are you trying to explain magic with science?" Josie spoke out, trying to ignore her burning cheeks. "As strange as it may sound, half of the witches in the world would burn you in a bonfire for it."
"Are there still that many traditionalists that think magic is not something to be explained by a system created by mankind?" John asked, tracing his eyes along Josie's arm.
"Apparently." Josie said. "Every time mom came back from one of her trips to South America, she talked about their covens' traditions and ways. It seems that when compared to the standard witch from the US, the practitioners there are more… connected to their roots? She said it reminded her of druidism and animism." She explained.
"Well, as someone who lived in that land, I can imagine that considering how our culture is extremely valued in some places." John commented, a tinge of warmth finding its way in his voice.
Hope lifted up her eyes at him, noticing the bit of emotion in his tone. "Do you miss your home?"
"I do. How could I not?" John replied, his lips stretching a little bit. "But, I am also extremely happy here, so it helps tone down the longing."
"Do you plan to go back to visit some day?"
That question brought John to a halt. Not because he was surprised by it or that he had some revelation by hearing it. No, he was more aware than anyone about the intricacies of his incoming answer.
With a sigh escaping between his lips, John couldn't help but try to hold back his emotions some more. "Probably. But then, it will be only in a faraway and unknown future."
"Why not sooner?" It was Josie's turn to ask.
Although he made sure to not show it, John still felt melancholic saying it. "Because I know that if I go there, no one will greet me. For there is no one there to greet me."
An awkward silence followed his words, with both girls looking at the boy with some sadness in their eyes.
But John, not wishing for them to feel pity for him, didn't stay silent for long.
"No need to look at me like this. It might sound sad, but it is also my parents' gift for me."
"How is that a gift?" Josie asked, less aware of John's situation than Hope.
"Well, basically, my parents' lack of presence in my life now is basically them giving me something I always wanted: Freedom." John replied, not once stopping from observing Josie's siphoning process. "I know it might sound absurd when you think they are not present in my life for who knows how long because of a simple wish of mine. But I know them, better than anyone. So, although it may look like parents who simply left their son on his own because he 'wants to be alone', believe me when I say it's not. I just… can't fully explain the reasons behind it yet. Maybe in the future."
"Maybe?" Josie raised her right eyebrow.
"We never know the day of tomorrow." John finally looked up and gave her a gentle smile.
Meanwhile, Hope quietly reached out her free hand and pulled on John's right arm. Her own way of her saying she was there for him without using words.
Obviously, John wasn't one to ignore it and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.
After the conversation ended, a comfortable mood prevailed among the three teenagers, with them – mostly Josie and Hope – changing a few words between them while John continued to observe how Josie's physiology worked.
It was only a few minutes later that she saw herself forced to interrupt John's concentration. "Not wanting to be the one to interrupt it, but I am reaching the point I can't siphon more."
"I can see that. Just half a minute, please." John said, his eyes narrowing. "How are you faring, Hope?"
"No problem on my part." Hope calmly said.
Taking a quick glance at her, John humorously snorted. Yeah, with that much magic, I doubt she would feel any change even if Josie siphoned her for hours.
After a few more seconds and seeing that Josie was already flinching from how much magic flowed in her veins, John nodded. "Okay, Josie. You can stop."
The girl didn't even wait for the end of the phrase before pulling back her hand, taking a few deep breaths while that.
"You okay?" Hope asked, slightly worried.
"Yeah, it's just that I am not used to holding this much magic." Josie replied, turning around. "I will release some of it with some spells. I can't simply wait for it to disperse."
"Disperse?" John muttered. "You can't keep the magic you siphoned?"
"No." Josie shook her head. "After some time, it simply disperses. Obviously, the more I siphon, the longer it takes for the magic to disperse. And if I don't do anything, I will feel like I ate an entire steakhouse for the next few days." She explained, quickly walking to the middle of the grass field to cast some spells for her to feel better.
While Josie distanced herself more and more from the couple, John stood in place with a puzzled look, his eyes glued to the witch's figure.
"You seem thoughtful." Hope commented when seeing the look on his face.
The young man nodded."That's because I am." Turning around to go back to sit under the tree's shadow, John kept taking glances at Josie.
"It's because of what she just said?" Hope followed him.
"Yes." John slowly sat down and leaned his back on the tree's trunk. "I find it strange that she says the magic she siphoned disperses with time, but I don't see any of it leaking out of her."
"Which makes you ask where it is going, right?" Hope sat down by John's side and leaned herself against him.
"Yeah." John nodded.
Hope also kept her eyes on Josie, thinking of options that could help her boyfriend solve the problem they were facing. "What happens to the magic you absorb?"
"I can simply let it stays inside my energy system. But as time passes, it doesn't stay idle. My body just naturally absorbs it to strengthen itself and get stronger." John calmly explained, his arm going over Hope's back and resting on her right shoulder.
"Couldn't this be happening to her?"
"I don't think so considering what I saw. There is still the chance and I just can't see it clearly yet. But if that was the case, I think we would be seeing Josie shattering boulders with her bare hands." John chuckled. "There is even the chance the magic could abate her hunger and thirst. To confirm that, we would need to observe her for a longer period of time."
"I see." Hope muttered, going silent for a couple moments before her lips opened again. "Maybe it has something to do with… you know."
"I thought the same." John understood the vague words. "But I can't confirm anything." He whispered back.
"It would be good to learn something about it. Since that day with Dr. Saltzman, I've been trying my best to find anything at all in the books I have and some more I got from Aunt Freya. But there is nothing in them as well." Hope whispered, a bit frustrated with her results.
"Same here." John said. "But you don't need to feel bad for it. We started our searches only a few days ago. Dr. Saltzman and the former headmistress have been doing it for years and still found nothing. But with our resources and abilities, it's just a matter of time until we find anything."
"I hope so." Hope sighed, her head falling on his shoulder. "Putting that aside, did you learn about Josie's condition from staring at her body?" She poked his ribs in a playful way, but her tone was far from sharing the sentiment.
With a few cold drops of sweat on his forehead, John dryly chuckled. "Yes, I did, my jealous girlfriend."
"Hmph. Then share it."
"Firstly, I confirmed that the system that permeates Josie's hands which allows her to siphon others' magic is everywhere under her skin. Basically, that means she can siphon from anywhere over her body as long as it is in contact with someone."
"I sense there is but in there."
"Your sense is correct." John smirked. "Most of this system spread under her skin is atrophied, possibly due to its lack of use. After all, it would be weird for her to siphon someone through her shoulder if she can use her hands."
"So, what do we do?"
"We have to exercise it somehow and make it active again. I'm just thinking of a way to do it."
"Maybe infuse these locations with our magic or even her own? We only need to direct it and let it do its work."
"We can try." John said, his eyes moving to a faraway location. "Thankfully, there are now two of them for us to test this idea of yours."
Following John's line of sight, Hope could see an approaching figure, with her moving decently fast since she was running.
Her blond hair swung in the air with her every step and a bright smile stamped her face as she approached Josie.
"Perfect…" Hope dryly said, holding back a sigh.
John chuckled at his girlfriend's reaction. "Try to be good to her, okay?"
"I can try."
"Remember, behind all that mean act of her, she is just a girl trying to understand herself." John stood up, offering one hand to help Hope. "And you are the all-powerful Tribrid, so it wouldn't be good for your image to be seen bickering with a teenage witch."
"If you don't ever call me that again, I promise to not argue with her again." Hope took his hand and stood up as well.
"Deal." John said, knowing well none of them would probably keep their promises.
Meanwhile, Josie and Lizzie were chatting between them, with the blonde's joy slowly infecting the brunette.
"Did she say exactly when she will come back?"
"Next friday." Lizzie said, her smile still wide. "It's been so long since mom came back. I can't wait for it!" She joyfully said, jumping from pure happiness.
————————————————
A/N
If you wish to support me, give me your power stones and if you want to read 3 chapters ahead, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n
patreon . com / Endless Phoenix 186 (remove the spaces)