He knocks on the shabby wooden door, the sound of Lizzie's slow shuffling feet audible through the door.
"YES YES, I'M COMING," The high pitched voice says through the door.
"What the hell are you doing here this late?". She asks, sighing heavily, gesturing for him to come in.
"I was heading home but thought I'd stop by for a quick visit," He says casually, walking inside. He sits down on a tattered and worn couch. Its age clearly visible. He leans forwards, resting on his knee's in thought.
"Here you go, child, now what really brings you here," Lizzie says, passing the hot tea over to Issac. She sits down on a small chair opposite Issac. He runs his hand through his white hair, thinking for a moment. Letting out a sigh as he looks into the tea.
"Lizzie. I'm a bit lost, I've awakened to magic, but I've hit a wall with my magic. I've tried on my own and only managed to create a small flame. But it faded instantly. What should I do?" He asks her in a severe tone.
"This is what has you so worked up, child? Magic is a complex thing. No wonder you haven't quite figured it out yet." She says in a surprised voice, never had she expected the mature Issac to ask her for help.
"It's obvious that you're a well adept mage. Is there any advice you could give me?" He asks, leaning forward, looking at her in the eyes. She sits up straight, resting her wrinkled hands under her jaw, contemplating.
"Issac, your a smart child, frightening so. But I'm not young anymore. Do you at least have something to make it worth my time?" She says, a sly smile on her face. Issac lets out a small chuckle.
"I have an interesting theory about magic. If you like the theory, you can teach me more about what you know. Deal?". He says, a slight grin appearing on his face. Without missing a beat, Lizzie stands up. She grabs a pile of writing materials from a nearby shelf, dropping them in front of Issac.
"Alright. Show me whatever the hell kind of stupid theory a child can come up with," Lizzie says in a loud voice. Her eyes narrow as she stares down at the pages.
"Well, from what I can tell. Magic comes from our cores. It holds all our mana. Sure, you can draw more mana from around you to use a catalyst to hold more or replenish your mana, but I think there's another way. I that right so far," Issac blurts out, look up at Lizzie as he speaks rapidly.
"That's quite a lot of knowledge for a child, but your mother is a teacher. You'd have to be pretty stupid not to know that much." Lizzie says in, loud tone.
"What if there were other ways to use mana and your core." He says, smiling. Issac grabs the Quill in his hand, stabbing it down into his Palm. A trickle of blood runs down his hand. Lizzie's hair stands on its ends as she watches the blood show. The grin on Issac's face gets wider and wider. Nostalgia takes over. He lets out a laugh, drawing lines in his blood, going from his fingertips to his wrist. Lizzie's heart begins to beat faster. What the hell was she even watching.
"What the hell kind of blood show is this, Issac!" Lizzie Screams out, Issac completely ignoring her. His blood begins to glow a bright red. A Heavy atmosphere filling the room as he lets out a cackle. Flame surrounds his hand, coating his hand like a glove. Lizzie's eyes widen, a shiver running down her spine.
"Amazing, isn't it. With this, you can substitute mana with the price of blood. A small price for power, isn't it, Ahaha" Issac says with a sinister cackle, clenching his flaming fist tight. Lizzie steps back, sitting her self down on her chair.
"Issac... Where the hell did you learn something like that...?" She says in a slow, unsteady voice. 'Was this the power of a devil... ?' She thinks to herself, trying to understand the power.
"It's something I came up with my self. Now you've seen this, how can I advance my regular magic." He says in a diplomatic tone. With a click of his fingers, the flames vanish.
"I knew it. Your not Issac..." She stammers out in a jittery voice, taking a step back in disbelief. Her wrinkled hands shake erratically. "I knew it. The way Issac Magically healed was too unnatural...". She murmurs under her breath.
"That's right. I'm not Issac, well, for the most part anyway. His emotions and feelings have somewhat carved their way into my soul. But I can assure you I'm definitely not Issac. Take a seat, and let's talk," Issac says in a confident voice, gesturing for her to sit down. Lizzie stand's frozen stiff, thinking hard. With a long inhale, she slowly sits down.
"Alright. Let's talk," Lizzie says with her newfound confidence.
"Well, firstly. I'm not a devil or anything nefarious like that. I'm just some poor sap that died a miserable death. Although from what I've seen so far, I don't think this is my world or dimension." Issac says nonchalantly, sitting straight as he speaks.
"Hmm... That doesn't make a lick of sense. How could you dying to lead you here as Issac? What nonsense are you spewing?" Lizzie says, void of any filter or fear. She continues to stare down, Issac out of sheer curiosity.
"I'm quite sure how either, but this isn't my world. What I just showed you was a technique I used in my world to overcome my lack of magic. But here, magic and mana are so plentiful. It's no wonder this technique never came about". Issac says with a smirk. "Back home, magic was fairly weak. Most user's of magic had practically nonexistent pools of mana, forcing the only usable type of magic to be enhancements." Lizzie's eye's open wide as she begins to piece everything together.
"So by changing blood for mana, you were able to overcome your limitations. That's impressive." Lizzie says, contemplating the potential of this technique.
"It goes without saying, but this stays in this room. We'll have to continue this conversation another time. It's getting late, and I'm sure my parents are worried". Issac says, stretching his arms as he prepares to leave.
"Ugh, You really are a damn child. Fine, but don't think we're done with this discussion!" She says, walking over to the door. Even with the loud and obnoxious tone, an unmistakable smile covers her face as she waits for the child to walk over.
"I'll see you tomorrow Lizzie, good night," He says, in a polite tone, giving a wave from behind as he walks out of the house. She shuts the shabby door behind him before, sitting alone in an eerie quiet room, her mind racing as she goes over everything countless times. "That child is going to be the death of me... haha," She says in a soft voice to herself, still trying to understand his strange magic.
A brisk cold night air billow's through an open window. Ignorant to the night's air, Willow sits cross-legged on a blood-red carpet surrounding the base of a large double bed. Her eyes closed while desperately trying to take the strange boy's advice. 'gather the little things floating around inside you'. She repeated the words he said to her.
"Argh. How the hell do I do this? Every time I think I find these 'floaty things', I keep losing them when I get too excited." She says to herself in frustration, struggling to find the 'floaty things', let alone gather them. Outside her beautifully furnished room, a tall, blond man walks past her door. Confidence in his stride her strolls down the hall to a large ornate door. With one hand, he knocks on the hardwood door, the sound echoing down the hallway.
"Come in," A firm voice says from behind the doorway. He opens the large door, revealing a large office. A large desk with papers looks towards the door from the back wall.
"Father. I've just finished up with some training. And heard you wanted to speak with me." The blond man says in a formal voice, giving a mild bow as he enters the room. He stands firm, waiting for his father's response.
"I did indeed. Now Albert, I'll be needing to go away for business up north. I need you to remain here in my sted". The man's father says in a stiff voice, glancing up with a burning gaze, putting his pen down as he stands up tall.
"Of course, father! I'll do all I can in your sted," Albert says in a confident voice, struggling to keep a grin off his face.
"Let me down, and you'll regret it, now child, don't forget. You'll be representing the entire Dusk family name." He says, giving his child a stern warning.
"Of course, father. I'll ensure everything goes smoothly in your absence." He says, giddy with excitement. Finally, he could show his father his worth.
"That's good to hear. Now, I've got some work to do before I leave in the morning. Don't expect to see me at dinner. That's all. You can go now." He says, waving his hand sideways, gesturing for his son to leave. He returns to his paperwork. Immediately, ignoring his son's presence entirely.
Not wishing to disturb his father, Albert walks out of the room, silently closing the door behind him.
'ugh, why can't we have more servant's like we used to. Why should I have to close doors myself'. Albert thinks to himself, scrunching his face in disgust.