The Sun and the Clover

by BG9

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Magic

The moment Anon entered the room he dropped his rucksack to the floor. Felt like if he carried it a second more his spine would snap in two. The room was quite nice for a college dorm room. The carpet was blue and the walls white, a stain glass window at the end of the room overlooked the field towards the left of the house. The were two bunk beds on either side and beneath the window, a desk. A bit cramped, but not bad all things considered. Outside the rain began to pitter patter against the window, every now and again the sound of thunder cracked in the distance. Coloratura laid down on the bottom bunk on the right side.

"Well I think I'm going to nap a bit before going out to get my school supplies." she said with a yawn

"Works for me. I'll be here."

Anon took a seat at the desk and pulled the ruck sack and opened it to see just what was weighing it down so much. The first thing he found was a small scroll, inside it containing his schedule and a supply list for each class. Alchemy 403, Duel Etiquette, History: Magic Golden Age and Magic Silver Age, and Conjuration 401. Not really a bad grouping for first classes, except alchemy of course. That sounded incredibly boring. The supply list was quite extensive, especially for alchemy. At least two books for each class, three for history, beakers and other lab equipment for alchemy, a wand, a journal, a planner and much, much more. This was going to cost him an arm and a leg! He very much doubted the five dollars and fifty cents he brought for lunch was going to cover even a single item on the list.

Anon reached back in his bad to see what else was within. Five sets of yellow robes, with three matching pairs of black boots and white silk gloves, a large leather book and a medium sized wooden chest. No wonder this thing was so heavy. He took one of the robes and, being sure to be out of view of the now sleeping Coloratura, tried it on. It felt great, like wearing pajamas. The leather book was next for investigation. He opened it up only to find the pages completely blank. Was this a journal or another trick? He put the book to the side and in the time it took him to go through the list, Coloratura had woken up.

"Well that was the fastest nap I have ever seen. Did you ever get any sleep?"

"You didn't notice?" she asked "I altered time flow in my own body. I got close to five hours worth of sleep by running my mana through my body so thickly that it slowed my own internal time."

"Can you explain that to me like I'm an idiot?"

"Basically it's like this: I ran mana through my own brain and essentially fooling it into believing that time is going slower. So while I only got maybe fifteen minutes, I tricked my brain into believing it got more using a principal called magic dilation." she explained "Obviously it's not something you can use over and over, since eventually the actual lack of sleep will catch up to you, but it's good in a pinch."

"I'm just going to pretend that made any sense."

"For someone who comes from nobility you sure seem to know little about magic."

"I never said I came from a noble family."

"You're awfully lock and key aren't you?"

"A bit, yes."

"You want to go shopping for school supplies with me?"

"Sure. The problem is I don't have any money though."

There was a long pause

"You don't come from a magic family, do you Anon?"

Anon tensed up. What did he say that gave him away?

"How could you tell?"

"Any two-bit mage knows that transactions in the magus world do not occur with mortal money. We did away with it nearly forty years prior to the most famous age in history, the Magic Golden Age. Everyone is taught that in like grade school."

He leaned his back to the wall. No point in hiding things now.

"Well you caught me. I'm the first in my family to be a mage. Didn't even know I had the ability to preform magic."

Coloratura pauses a bit again, nodding and getting a smile

"Walk with me." she said "We'll go shopping and I'll tell you anything you want to know."

The two of them exit Generosity House, the rain starting to dissipate, and make their way to the town across from Canterlot High. It was quite the bustling area, full of all sorts of oddity. In the span of two minutes, Anon saw saw a monkey with two heads, a talking spear selling items at a booth, and a unicorn wearing a suit and tie while walking on two legs.

"Stay by me and let me do the talking." Coloratura said "They'll be able to tell you're a newbie and try to screw you."

Anon does as he's told, following closely as they walk through the cobblestone streets. It seemed more like a circus than an actual town. After walking for about five minutes, they come to a large, ornate steel building and walked inside. It seemed so out of place in a town where most architecture was made of stone. The inside was a bit musky, leaving barely any space to walk. There were tomes on the shelves that seemed thousands of years old, staffs of all shapes and sizes, even body parts in jars. Towards the back of the room sat a rather old man at a desk missing one of his eyes.

"Welcome to Jerry's General Supply." the man said in a jolly, welcoming voice "Here for school supplies I'm guessing?"

Coloratura nodded

"That's correct. We'd like some wands."

"Right this way young lady."

The man, with a bit of effort, got up and took them into another room. The entire wall was lined with all sorts of wands.

"Take your time. When you're ready to make your purchase, just see me at the front desk."

Coloratura tapped his shoulder

"This is a good time to go over the basics of wands. Not all wands are created equal. There are several categories: Short wands, medium wands, staffs, and specialty wands."

Coloratura picked up a small wand, no bigger than a small dagger

"Short wands come in lengths anywhere between a single inch, to five. These are most often use for projectiles, fighting, and, in some instances, alchemy." she picked up a slightly longer wand "Medium wands are what you might call all purpose. You can use them for just about anything however they won't be as ideal for things other wands are more suited for."

She set the two wands back down and continued

"Staffs are for advanced magic, things like changing weather patterns, powerful magic arrays, and other highly advanced spells. You most often see staffs in grades 10-12 and beyond. Finally, specialty wands are exactly how they sound. Wands made for specific purposes and conditions."

"Alright. Not too difficult to remember" he said "I'm guessing I'll get a medium and a short wand then?"

"Precisely. I'll teach you more basics of using wands when we return home. But one more thing to note: take a closer look at this wand."

She holds the wand close to his face and he noticed that it was full of grooves, almost like a circuit board.

"To create a wand you need three things: wood, circuit lines, and a heart string." she said "Wood will largely determine the flavor of the wand. If I were to use ceder for instance it will give my mana a energetic quailty. This is good for beginners or those with a calmer flow of mana. By contrast, if I were to use conifer wood it would give my mana a cool, relaxed property, lending it easier to control. Do you know what type of mana you have?"

"Not a clue."

"That's fine. It's really easy to find out. I'm going to teach you a little trick called threading."

Coloratura closes her eyes and places her arms on his shoulders, freezing in place

"My... god."

Anon felt his stomach turn in knots. Cat was out of the bag now.

"I'm guessing you know the reason I'm here then."

"Yes. That's absolutely... unfathomable. Don't worry though. Your secret is safe with me." she said "In the mean time, we shouldn't practice here."

Coloratura picks up a quite a few different wants, each with different wood and carvings. She then walks up to the shop keeper, shakes his hand and leaves.

"What was that just now?" he asked "you didn't pay, you just shook his hand."

"Like I said, Magus don't use money like mortals do. A more efficient way of exchange is with energy. But not just any sort of energy. You see mana is a special thing. It not only contains raw power, but information. Have you ever heard of something called the Greater Magic?"

"I haven't."

"It's something all mages strive for. The Greater Magic is the wellspring from which all mana, all life, and all information originates. It's what mortals mistake as God. Given enough mana, a mage can access this wellspring for a finite amount of time, usually only a few seconds."

"That's one insane goal."

"It's not just a goal. It's a necessity." she said "You see, having this great power comes at an immense cost. The Greater Magic constantly seeks to have what was stolen from it returned. If you do not have enough stored mana it will absorb your mana slowly over time until eventually it kills you. This is why it's not only a goal, but a necessity to exchange mana. Not doing so could prove fatal."

"How would you notice when you're magic is being siphoned?"

"With training you can store mana in your eyes and see it happen in real time. In general, if a mage does not exchange mana for a month they will slowly start to weaken. So the solution, quite cleverly, was to make this process monetary. The better the quality of the mana, the longer you can hold off the Greater Magic's influence."

"What is it exactly? The Great Magic?"

"I wish I could tell you. It's less of a physical thing, and more of a concept like that of gravity or inertia. It exists on its own plane of reality and even now the mage world at large understands almost nothing about it."

The two of them arrive at a musty old book shop. To Anon's surprise, Sunset Shimmer was also there.

"Hey, Sunset!"

Sunset turns and smiles

"Hey there. I see you've made a friend."

"Yeah. This is Coloratura, my roommate."

The two of them shake hands

"It's an honor to meet you Lady Shimmer." Coloratura says, doing a little bow

"Please, no need to be so formal."

"You're exactly as the rumors describe. So kind and laid back."

Shimmer turns back to Anon

"So how are things?"

"Good." he said "Coloratura was just running me through some magic basics. Wands, the Great Magic and such."

"Good. She's teaching you things every mage should know. You got your schedule I presume?"

"Yes I did. Alchemy, Duel Etiquette, History and Conjuration."

"We'll need to teach you how to properly control your magic before you take those classes, especially before Conjuration. Don't want your condition getting out."

Sunset turned to face Coloratura, as if reading her mind

"You taught him how to thread didn't you?"

Coloratura bows, as if prostrating

"Yes m'am. I deeply apologize. I am honor bound as a mage never to reveal the secret to anyone else."

Anon was surprised. He didn't realize Sunset carried so much weight and respect around her. It was as if she were talking to the president of a country.

"No need to apologize." Sunset said "Just tell no one of this. I assume you know the gravity of this situation."

"Yes m'am. You can even restrict my speech if you feel it necessary."

"That won't be required. Thank you."

Sunny again turns back to Anon

"Once you're done gathering your supplies I'd like to see you in Kindness House. Don't worry. I know all about the initiation and will have you returned to Generosity House before 9."

Sunset presses her wand against his temple and just like that he knew the exact directions to get to Kindness House down to the exact longitude and latitude.

"Thank you Sunset. I'll be there."

"Good. If I'm not there by the time you arrive just wait in the lobby."

The three go off to browse the various selection of books.

"She's pretty impressive. I had no idea her reputation carried so much weight behind it." he said

Coloratura smiles, as if thinking of an idol

"She's beyond amazing. She comes from the Shimmer Family, a family most well known for their role in the preservation of magic and mana. They often take the roles of doctors, healers, therapists and the like. They specialize in Solar magic. It's extremely versatile."

"You're saying they take mana from the sun?"

"No. In fact the Shimmer Family doesn't use mana at all. They draw their power directly from the sun. Will mana is the most wide spread and efficient way to use magic, it's not the only way."

"I was meaning to ask about that." Anon said, tapping his foot "Something about this doesn't add up: If the Greater Magic is constantly siphoning off magic, and a mage can only access it for mere seconds, how do you prevent all the magic in the world from slowly vanishing over time?"

"There are three ways in total: One is the way most mages do it, by using the magic granted from the Greater Magic and trading around with one another to maintain their level of magic. The other is through Sunset's and by Clover the Clever's way. I presume that's why Sunset is so fond of you."

Anon's face turns a deep shade of red

"F-fond?"

"Clover the Clever and the Shimmer family have history together. The Shimmer family uses a similar brand of magic that Clover invented, the magic of life itself. The Shimmer Family hasn't used actual mana in well over a thousand or so years. All of their power comes directly for the sun."

"How is that ever possible? The Sun is a ball of plasma, it's not living."

"You need to stop thinking like such a mortal Anon. Mortal laws of science are not present here. Life energy lives in all things. The trees, the grass, the rocks, even space itself. I only know the basics, as life magic is one of the most difficult schools of magic to master, but essentially the Shimmer family made a pact with the Sun. In exchange for the power they must give something in return. Life magic always demands a toll on the caster."

"What did they give up?"

"You'd have to ask Sunset, though I doubt she'd tell you. A Mage Family of her stature would be reluctant to reveal chinks in their armor. Though I can assure you the price was high. There is no way you could make a pact with a Celestial body and not pay an enormous price for it."

"That's insane."

"That's not even half of it. I don't know much of history but Clover the Clever is legendary for having a solution to this problem. She was able not only to use life magic without any cost, but she also used life magic to maintain her own mana indefinitely. The Shimmer Family was there with Clover during the entire affair. But then she vanished before revealing the trick of how it happened. Many a mage have tried to figure it out from Clover's own research notes, but to this day we still have no idea how she did it." she said "However, even since she disappeared, every one hundred years or so, a mass explosion of mana is released that replenishes the mana of nearly every mage, preventing mana from slowly petering out. It's hard to see a connection between the two. Whatever Clover did, many believe it had something to do with the Greater Magic."

"I feel so unworthy. I feel like I've been touched by a god."

Coloratura giggles

"Don't be so hard on yourself. You didn't choose to be given that crest. You'll figure it out piece by piece. Who knows? You may follow in her footsteps."

"I can only hope."

The two of the gather all the books they need and start to check out

"So what's the last method?" Anon asked

Coloratura became very serious all of a sudden

"There is one last method but it must never be used. Do you understand me?"

"I understand."

"The final method of obtaining magic power is through that of a curse. And it's something only the most evil of people do."

Comments

[catfire13]

Ooh! Storing magic in eyeballs seems pretty cool. . .
Though I wonder if you can store magic in you fingers or something. . .

[way2dawn]

This story, it intrigues me. I demand more. Please.

[Falx_of_Lume]

This feels like a genuine anime with both the cover and the way the story's progressing... and it's also an anime I'm enjoying, so double points all around!

[BG9]

10030106
Anime is a big influence on my work so that's probably why haha. Glad you're enjoying it so much though. Thank you for your comments.

[Genius4199]

"No. In fact the Shimmer Family doesn't use mana at all. They draw their power directly from the sun. Will mana is the most wide spread and efficient way to use magic, it's not the only way."

*While