"Are you alright, Meir?" Braelin asked.

"Ah, yes, just… surprised," Meir'ril replied – now being towed about as Gakke took more people's hands. He cleared his throat and added, "Gakke said he can see better holding my hand? And I… I think I feel celestial energy when they see something, so I want to keep focusing on that."

As they released another soldier's hand, Gakke said, "I don't usually see visions that happen only seconds after – those kinds are usually more instructional. I didn't know kissing someone without asking can make them feel bad."

"Gakke doesn't have much experience with courtship," Mame said, which was not surprising, given their history.

"Strangers, mostly," Souar clarified, clasping his hands behind his neck, "Some people don't like kissing at all, and if it's someone you know likes you kissing them, you don't usually need to ask. Unless they want you to ask. Like, some people only like being kissed sometimes, so want you to ask even if they mostly like kissing with you."

Gakke hummed, then nodded.

"I like kissing almost anyone," the dragon added, "So whenever that vision moment you saw comes up, you can just go for it. I'll be good."

Braelin gave the dragon an amused look before he asked, "Immediate visions are instructional?"

"Most visions are only glimpses of how the future may come to be," Gakke replied, "I think that… the more ways the paths of the future can branch, the more abstract my vision becomes. So when I see something that's about to happen, it's more…"

They all waited for Gakke to continue, but the petty prince merely tilted their head, appearing thoughtful.

As the silence stretched, Mame cleared her throat and said, "My brother usually says that it is Mahen's hand guiding him down the best path forward. I think he forgot he wanted to ask cer if that was the case."

Gakke nodded with a hum.

Jurao considered and said, "Maenscul once said that Mahen might not remember granting a mortal the gift of prophecy, so it is likely not so direct."

Gakke's brows rose as they nodded again, still appearing thoughtful.

"So," Meir'ril scratched at his chin, glancing down at the hand Gakke still held and asked, "Is there a difference between divine Gifts and divine Blessings?"

"Oh, yeah," Souar nodded, "You can't control Gifts. But they can't be taken back, either – Grandpa said a divine Gift is like adding just a drop of celestial energy to a mortal soul. That's why mortals can't control them – our souls aren't built for it. Blessings are more like a blanket of celestial energy. It's the same energy, but it doesn't become part of a mortal soul like a Gift does."

Meir smiled as he asked, "Did Maukul ask him about that?"

Souar scoffed, putting a hand to his chest, "You think I wouldn't be curious about that?"

Meir snorted.

Souar laughed, mock offense immediately abandoned as he said, "Maukul is a descendant of the pod Archmage Rubert joined when he came to the Dragon Realm. It's why they had one of his journals – they've been wanting to pass it on to someone that can actually do magic and appreciate it. So they're pretty pleased it went to you."

Meir blushed and cleared his throat.

"Do you know why a deity would choose to give a mortal a Gift?" Braelin asked.

"Grandpa said it was an instinctual thing," Souar replied with a shrug, "Like. If a mortal soul can handle a Gift, the deity that notices feels compelled to give them one."

"Gakke was born under Mahen's gaze," Mame said, "So ce would be the first deity to notice."

Gakke nodded in agreement.

"What makes a mortal soul able to handle a Gift," Jurao asked – curious how that differed with his own Greater Blessing.

Souar scrunched up his face as he thought, and said, "I think Grandpa said it was just random chance? Like, he had some bigger explanation Maukul definitely remembers, but the gist was just chance."

Jurao thought that made sense. It was not as though the deities knew everything – if they did, the pursuit of knowledge by deities of wisdom would be rather pointless.

"What is an archmage?" Gakke asked.

"Archmages are the most powerful of all mages," Meir'ril replied, eyes shining as he added, "They can use all kinds of magic – and even celestial energy for spells! There have only been three in all known history – and Rubert was the only human archmage. There hasn't been another since!"

Braelin hummed, then said, "You can do all magic, Meir."

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"Yes?" Meir'ril agreed uncertainly.

"And you can use celestial energy," Braelin said.

"Oh, yeah!" Souar said, "Maenscul let you take some!"

Meir frowned, then shook his head and chuckled as he said, "As much as I'd like to be, my spells are far too weak for me to be an archmage. And I'm sure Mom would tell me if she thought I was one."

"And you did tell her about the celestial energy?" Braelin asked.

"I…" Meir paused, frowning again as he considered. He blushed before he added, "Oh, goodness. I was about to when Goyl asked Prince Ergirri and Lordis Vallen about why they didn't join Maenscul's orgy and His Highness talked about attending with our parents. I completely forgot after that."

Jurao recalled – Eweylona and Ebener had proceeded to tease their embarrassed children about being more adventurous than said children expected, and Ayelma had made a joke about how now they knew where Malson had gotten his promiscuous tenancies.

"She would probably know better than anyone," Braelin said, "I asked because I learned about it from Jurao, and didn't remember you mentioning it before."

"You can go ask now if you want," the soldier that had followed after Souar when the dragon carried Meir across the field said. Fos flicked hair over fos shoulder as fos added, "I think all training has been rather disrupted."

"I think I probably should," Meir said, gently taking his hand out of Gakke's. Then he flinched and said, "Oh – this is Cogaes, she's been teaching me light magic."

Cogaes bowed and said, "Your Highness."

Jurao nodded and said, "If you do not mind, Meir, I would be interested to know more about archmages as well."

"Of course," Meir said, "Mom should be at the cottage – uh, did you…?"

"My brother and I should see about getting settled in a room," Mame said diplomatically – and added, "Are you tired after the ride, Gakke?"

Gakke considered – then nodded, yawning as if to confirm the point.

They politely parted ways – Gakke and Mame going back to where a staff member was waiting near their luggage, Souar bidding them farewell to return home, and Jurao and Braelin accompanying Meir'ril to the cottage.

"Mom?" Meir called out as he walked through the door.

"In the back!"

They found Eweylona in a back room on the bottom level, and Jurao chose to sit on the floor at the entrance rather than crouch to walk inside. The space had been made into a craft room for the former queen, with beads neatly organized into small woven baskets along the usual inset wall shelves. Eweylona herself was carving new beads from a large piece of bone, and she smiled as she looked up from her work to say, "Welcome back, Jurao. How was your search?"

"Very successful, thank you," Jurao replied.

"Um, Mom," Meir'ril said, "I… forgot to tell you something."

"Oh?" Eweylona asked – carefully setting her work aside.

"During the Golden Sun Feast, I… was able to take some celestial energy from Maenscul," Meir replied, shifting his weight between his feet, "They were fine with it! But, uh…"

"Have you been able to shape it?" Eweylona asked, eyes suddenly sharp.

Meir nodded, "Not that I've been able to cast any spells with it, but-"

Eweylona surged up, purring fiercely as she pulled her youngest son into a hug and said, "An archmage! My son, the next archmage!"

"That's what we came to ask about," Braelin said with a chuckle.

"Am I… really?" Meir asked, voice soft with cautious wonder.

"Yes, my son!" Eweylona replied – kissing his forehead as she pulled back, "Oh, if we were in the Elven Realm, they would have checked – there are a few artifacts that produce celestial energy, and the disaffinitied are always welcome to see if they are able to shape it. I'll have to ask Halvern for help in finding more of Archmage Rubert's records – the older archmages did not write much about their powers, to keep others from countering them in a more dangerous time, but Rubert was quite prolific!"

"Maybe Maukul has more?" Meir'ril suggested, "Souar said they're descended from the… pod Rubert joined."

Eweylona chuckled, "They say he left the Elven Realm because he tired of the endless challenges of other mages, instead wishing for a peaceful life of study. As a human, Maukul could not be his descendant by blood, but it would be lovely if they had more of his later writings."

"But I still can't cast high-level spells," Meir said.

Eweylona chuckled, "Neither can your sister – mid-tier is as high as she's managed. That is rather common, for your age – and you have both advanced very quickly after lacking a teacher for over a decade."

"Mid-tier spells stopped Jurao?" Meir asked – then amended, "Temporarily, at least."

"In extended combat, most mages either use many low-tier spells with more power added to them, or a single mid-tier spell they've crafted for that purpose," Eweylona said, putting away her materials for now, "High-level combat spells simply drain too much magicka to be practical unless one expects to defeat their opposition in a single blow. My highest level frost aura is an almost impenetrable defense – and if I use all of my magicka, I can maintain it for roughly twenty minutes."

Braelin's brows rose as he asked, "Only twenty?"

While it was certainly a significant amount of time, Jurao agreed that it seemed rather short for a powerful mage like Eweylona.

"I focused on learning how to make my aura as cold as possible – not for combat, but for a religious ceremony to Eleamera, where one walks over the ocean to a small island. It is not a long walk, so duration was not as important as keeping the surface cold enough to be frozen. It is certainly effective in freezing any opponents in my vicinity – but it has other limitations.

"I cannot shield another from my aura, so it is only effective if I am beset alone," she explained, "And I can only have it radiate out from myself. Ice-focused spell knights do often learn how to cast a frost aura from a distance – but often at the cost of power. High-level spells are tailored to specific applications, which does make them powerful – but also limiting.

"Archmages can cast powerful magic," Eweylona said, nodding in satisfaction at her tidying before turning back to them, "but their true power lies in versatility. Even the average disaffinitied mage or magician is highly regarded for having a wider variety of spells available to them. The more options one has, the more obstacles one can overcome through careful thought and ingenuity."

"You told me that before," Meir said, smiling.

Eweylona's tail flicked as she grinned and said, "And it is just as true now as it was then. Do you wish to come with me to ask Halvern to look for more of Archmage Rubert's academic writings?"

"Oh, right now?" Meir asked, then cleared his throat and said, "I mean, yes! Let's do that."

Eweylona chuckled and said, "And would you rather I did not join you in asking Maukul if they have more of Rubert's writings?"

"Why wouldn't I want you to come?"

Jurao rose to make it easier for the other three to depart, tail swaying as Braelin took his hand again.

"In case you wished to visit your partner privately," Eweylona teased.

Meir'ril tilted his head – then blushed and said, "No – uh, you can come with me."

Eweylona laughed, waving as she and her youngest son departed.

Braelin chuckled after them and said, "Would you like to spend some private time together, my heart?"

"I could use a nap from the flight before the evening meal," Jurao said.

"That sounds lovely."

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