Avatar essentials helped Ramsey to speak and understand their language, but grasping the meaning of words was another issue.
He assumed "bloom" meant a magical awakening, but he hadn't felt anything substantial yet. "Muse," as he knew it, meant an inspiration, but it could mean anything in the context of magic.
"Sorry, I actually don't know much about magic," Ramsey laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "That's why I was looking for someone to teach me.
Treya's smile turned into a baffling look of confusion, as if Ramsey had spoken a different language. For a moment, he was afraid that the system had failed him and he had spoken English.
"You don't know what bloom or muse mean? …How? Everyone learns that once they're old enough to attend school", she struggled to comprehend.
"Like I said, I'm not from around here," Ramsey affirmed. "But, you seem to know a great deal about magic. Before pointing me toward the nearest town, would you mind sharing with me what you know?"
As if presented with the greatest opportunity, it seemed Treya had waited her entire life to be asked that question. Years of reading, studying, hoping, and fantasizing about magic, held back by the most fragile of dams, was set free with Ramsey's request.
"Come with me." Treya grabbed his arm in hers and led him around the long stone wall of the forge to a small cabin behind it. She stopped at a table just beside the entryway.
"Wait here," she ordered as she ran inside.
Ramsey was a bit taken aback by Treya's forwardness with strangers, but he sat at the picnic-like table as instructed.
'I guess this is going well …but also, this is the strangest girl. I wonder if everyone is like this.'
Treya returned outside with her face wiped clean. She was quite beautiful, of course Ramsey could see that through the sweat and soot before. But despite how he looked, Ramsey was twice her age, which was not acceptable.
That thought sent Ramsey spiraling for a moment. If he continued to be an avatar in other worlds for 5 or 20 years at a time, what was acceptable? If he wanted to find love, would he need to find someone 60, 80 or 100+ years old, when he appeared only 22?
'I wonder if they have Elves here.'
Treya carried an oversized book under her arm, its dark blue leather cover was ornately carved with symbols. Placing it on the table, she opened it to reveal exquisitely drawn pictures and surprisingly large print.
'...It's a children's book.'
Treya must have seen a look on Ramsey's face because she quickly defended, "Hey, if you want to start at the beginning, this is it."
"Please continue," he pleaded.
"My father bought me this book even before I attended school. Back then I thought the work he did in the forge was magic, but he said he wasn't blessed by the gods. That there were many people in the world who could do far more spectacular things with just a wave of their hand, than he could with fire and metal."
Treya opened the book revealing the title page. At first Ramsey couldn't make sense of the letters, but after blinking a couple times it became perfectly clear - Myra's Muse.
"This is the story of our Queen Myra, who I'm sure you know."
Ramsey nodded to continue.
"It's about her early life, her experiences with magic, and her muse. I loved the story when I was little because I was never around magic-folk, and I wished so much to be like Myra.'
Treya seemed to have gotten a little choked up on the last bit, but quickly continued. "Even though it's meant for children - no offense - it covers the basics."
As Treya flipped the pages of the fanciful tome, it told the story of a young girl raised on a farm by a father who was blessed with magic and a mother who was not.
Her father would use his magic to bring a bountiful harvest, while her mother made the most beautiful clothes with only her skilled hands. They were happy and content despite their differences.
Myra understood that not everyone was blessed with magic and it was important to learn a skill that she enjoyed like her mother. However, Myra's interest in magic only grew as she did. She loved seeing magic at work. Each day she would run to her father with a seed in hand, "Please show me again, Dad," Treya read that line aloud. Ramsey could sense the nostalgia in her voice.
Her father would place his hand above hers and a slight yellow glow would appear, accompanied by a tingling and warmth. The seed cracked and a small sprout emerged. Brimming with joy, Myra would spin around and race off to find a place to plant the new seedling.
One day just before sunset, Myra's father asked if she would like to go on a walk and talk about magic. They walked up a footpath to the top of a hill that overlooked their farmland and neighboring homes.
They felt the setting sun warm their faces as they sat atop the grassy hillside. A cool breeze rushed over them as the sun dipped below the horizon and the moon began to brighten the night sky.
Myra asked when they were going to talk about magic. Her father smiled and said, "We already are, but nature is the one speaking. You see, magic comes from nature and if you're blessed with it, one part of nature will speak louder to you than the rest.
It may be the Moon in the night sky, the Unseen air that carries the clouds, the Sun which gives us warmth, or Elorr beneath our feet.
When some people become adults, something inside them continues growing, waiting to bloom. It doesn't happen at the same time for everyone, and it may even take a few years beyond their 20th nameday. But for those that are blessed with it, it's an unmistakable experience.
If one's muse is the Moon, when they bloom they'll begin to feel all the water around them as an extension of their body, like they are the moon itself pulling the tides.
If their muse is the Unseen, they'll feel a rushing air current, swirling outside, swelling inside and finally flowing through them.
The muse of the Sun is similar to the moon, but with fire. They'll begin to feel like the source of every flame, as if the coals feeding it are within them.
And finally, my own muse, Elorr. I remember my bloom very well. It was strange at first, as if I could feel the weight of my own body on the soil below it. Then those feelings extended to the grass and plant life around me. They felt vibrant and connected, so full of life, and I felt one with them."
Ramsey finally understood - muse was what they called the different foundations - and also and a clever acronym.
Treya closed the book abruptly, snapping Ramsey out of his thought. "So, have you bloomed? And what is your muse?"
Ramsey had chosen his foundation to be Elorr, so he was tempted to answer with that. However, he had clearly not bloomed yet and it seemed one learned their muse during their bloom.Concerned that he was waiting to long to answer, Ramsey defeatedly admitted, "I haven't bloomed."
Treya sighed disappointedly and hunched over the closed book. "Welcome to the club. It's been almost a year since my 21st nameday and I've spent every day hoping today is the day."
Treya stood up and started back toward the front of the forge, leaving Ramsey staring at the closed book.
"Wait!" Ramsey shifted to face her. "How does it end?"
Treya stopped and half looked back, "Oh you know… Myra becomes the first person to have two muses, outshines her peers, unites the kingdom and becomes queen."
Looking back at the book, Ramsey was tempted to keep reading it, but with Treya out of sight, he chose not to.
'Two muses?'
Ramsey jumped up from the table and darted in Treya's direction. Rounding the stone wall, he found her preparing to get back to work.
"Is that it? Is there anything else you can tell me?"
"You seem like a nice guy, and you're welcome to stay and chat, but I'm behind on a job and running out of daylight.
If you'd prefer the nearest town, it's about an hour walk downstream," she pointed with her hammer.
"If it's all the same, I'll stay for a bit." Ramsey said as he found a bench to sit on inside the shop.
"And thank you for sharing your book with me, and for not being scared of a stranger."
"What's there to be scared of? You're not carrying any weapons and don't know magic. While I make weapons with weapons," she raised her tightly gripped hammer.
"Good point."
Treya pulled a blazing hot steel billet from the forge and placed it on her anvil. Her gaze was focused on her work… but she glanced up briefly at the boy making himself comfortable and smiled, before raising her hammer once again.