Enchantments are not like ordinary spells. Illusions and the like may be physically anchored to other objects, but an Enchantment is tied into an object magically, and draws the power to maintain itself from the wild magic that fills the land around it. Enchantments do not fail because they are weakened, like Illusions, but because the wild magic that powers them has interfered* with the very structure of the spell; it is for this reason that Enchantments should be regularly inspected and corrected, before their effects begin to stray too far from their intended purpose.
—from A Treatise on the Differences Between the Schools of Magic
To be in the Headmistress’ office again was unsettling, to say the least. Maria hadn’t known any student who had been in here in such quick succession—even the most notorious troublemakers hadn’t managed to get themselves back in here so quickly. She had to constantly remind herself that today, at least, she wasn’t being called in for purposes of discipline.
Maria sat on a cushion, barely making eye contact with the Professor and Headmistress across from her. The silence was awkward and heavy, but there was little she could do until the serving-mare returned with her telescope. If only she hadn’t overslept, and had remembered to pack it in her bag! This meeting would have been over in a couple of minutes, as the Professor and Headmistress found whatever it was that was wrong with her telescope, and she would be able to get back to lunch.
“You had your first detention with Deputy Headmaster Whitetail last night, didn’t you?”
The Headmistress’ voice was gentle, almost friendly. Is that what she calls small talk? Professor Fenglade clearly shared Maria’s disapproval of the subject matter, or at the very least her cousin’s handling of it, judging by the soft shaking of her head, and her short, quiet snort. Maria tried to keep her face neutral, but appreciated that at least someone had been there to react.
“Yes, Headmistress,” Maria said softly, casting her eyes downward so that she could better hide the slight, fond smile on her face. It wouldn’t do for the Headmistress to think that she had enjoyed her punishment.
“I hope that he is making sure you understand how much trouble you have caused for the school,” the Headmistress continued, her voice still friendly and conversational. It was an odd dissonance. Maria would have expected some anger, in those words. “It really has been a bit of a headache. Still, not wholly your fault.”
A knock at the door was accompanied by an audible sigh of relief from Professor Fenglade. The Headmistress smiled softly and opened the door, her horn flickering out almost as quickly as it had lit. On the other side of the door stood a young serving-mare, who placed the bag she had been carrying on the floor, curtseyed to the Headmistress and the Professor, nodded to Maria, and left.
Almost immediately the Headmistress’ hornglow was surrounding the bag, flicking open the cover and filling it. Mere moments later, Maria’s telescope was flying across the room, landing on the Headmistress’ desk without a sound. For a while, the Headmistress merely stared at the telescope, her eyes devouring it like a fire blazes through the forest.
And then, suddenly, she looked up at Maria.
“I’ve been told that you have Enchanted this telescope to play back things that it has previously seen?”
“Yes, Headmistress,” Maria replied. “Would you like me to demonstrate?”
The Headmistress nodded eagerly, and Maria reached out with her hornglow to raise the telescope to head height. She couldn’t help but notice that Professor Fenglade, though she was feigning disinterest, seemed to be stealing brief, fascinated glances at the telescope.
Marai cast the thought out from her mind, and focused on setting the many dials and switches around the telescope to their correct positions. She had made sure to make a copy of the telescope’s recording last night, in case anything were lost during the various tests it would likely be put through, but she would still be able to find the memory…
Maria floated the telescope over to her face, and glanced down it. It showed the stars as she had seen them last night, which was a good start. It only took her a minute more to narrow down the right settings, and all of a sudden the flash of purple streaked across the sky before her once more. A few more twists, to rewind the viewer, and she passed the telescope back into the waiting hornglow of the Headmistress.
“It should be ready to replay, now,” Maria said, as the Headmistress lifted the telescope to her own eye and peered down it. It seemed funny, watching a unicorn stare down a telescope indoors. She hoped that she had not looked quite as silly as the Headmistress now did. “It was quite a few hours ago, now, so it took me a while to find. Turn the furthest dial from you clockwise to play the recording—”
“By Starswirl’s beard,” the Headmistress whispered. “Andi, have you seen this?”
“I have,” Professor Fenglade replied, her voice dry. “I’m sure that it is just a malfunction that none of us have seen before. It wouldn’t be all that surprising, with so many experimental charms on this telescope… cast by a third-year neophyte, a year ago.”
“I haven’t seen anything like this before,” the Headmistress said. “It could be interference, of course, but I want to assume nothing until we have examined the Enchantments for ourselves.” Professor Fenglade rolled her eyes, and Maria got the distinct impression that she was angry that this investigation was even being taken seriously. Maria allowed herself to feel a faint swelling of pride, though, that the Headmistress was not dismissing her Enchantments without thorough inspection.
It took a lot of will not to smirk at the Professor’s frustration.
“Maria.” The Headmistress had torn her eyes away from the telescope for the first time since she had pulled it from the bag, and was now staring directly at her with a strange look on her face. “As you know, we’ve summoned you here to inspect this telescope’s Enchantments. This may take… some time. You are, I believe, scheduled for double Enchanting after lunch, correct?”
“Y-yes, Headmistress,” Maria answered, suddenly feeling rather uncertain of herself.
“I will send Doctor Whitetail a note excusing you from the lesson,” the Headmistress said, earning herself yet another disapproving glance from the Professor. “I imagine you’ll learn just as much helping us with this. Besides,” she added, almost as an afterthought, “you’re the one who enchanted it. If anyone can know what these charms do better than you, I’d be thoroughly impressed.”
* Interference in magic is a well-documented and ill-studied field. Two offensive spells cast directly into each other’s path, for example, will interact with a near-unpredictable effect (though it is likely to be incredibly destructive.) Indeed, Enchantments may interfere with each other, as well as wild magic, if they are placed in too close proximity without the appropriate charms to keep them isolated from each other.