Chapter 7 - Explanations

“Just where have you two been?” Ilise exclaimed as Krista opened the back door and slipped inside, letting Jinx jump out of her arms and transform back into a human as she did so.

“Out at my fort training,” she replied calmly, unperturbed by the fact that night had fallen given what had just happened.

Julius gave his daughter a stern look, arms crossed in front of him. “Do you realize what time it is, young lady?” he scolded her.

Krista shrugged. “Not a clue. I know it’s dark,” she replied, the now silvery birthmark still glowing slightly under her t-shirt.

Julius sighed. “Your mother and I have been worried sick. Why were you out so late?”Krista looked sideways at Jinx unsure, and he nodded slightly at her.

he told her.

Krista nodded and turned around, moving her hair over her shoulder and pulling the neck of her t-shirt to the side to expose the silvery moon on her shoulder. Both her mother and father gasped at the change to the mark that had become nothing more than a quirk, barely visible. Now here it was, a silvery-white colour, slightly raised (yet rounded) and glowing ever so slightly.

Julius reached out a hand to touch the mark, making Krista wince as it still burned slightly, before pulling his hand back and looking instead to Jinx as he pulled his daughter into his arms. “What does this mean?” he asked. “It was so innocuous before. Why has it changed?”

Jinx shrugged, scratching at his nose. “I’m not sure. Mine has changed as well.” He stepped forward, folding his ear over and showing his own mark, equally silver and glowing just as much as Krista’s.

Julius’ brow furrowed as he inspected both, pulling the collar of his daughter’s t-shirt aside to inspect hers again.

“This is very... interesting. Perhaps the Witches’ Council will have insight?”

Jinx twisted up his face. “I was thinking of asking Chase when we meet with him actually. We have many questions for him and Sy... his familiar.” He paused for a moment thinking. “I sense Krista and I have more in common with Chase and his familiar than anyone realizes.”

Julius looked curiously at him going back to hugging his daughter close from behind. “What do you mean?”

Anxiously, Jinx swallowed the saliva accumulating in his mouth. “His... intrusion upon our link the first afternoon. It felt… familiar.” He shook his head, causing his hair to fall down over his silvery-marked ear. “It’s all so... strange. This,” he gestured at his ear and Krista’s shoulder, “happened while we were practicing when the moon came out, and - ”

Krista interrupted him turning her head sideways toward her father, “- and I could feel the power the moon gave me, Pa. It made my magick flow almost effortlessly.”

Julius kissed his daughter on the forehead. “Well, it is normal for the celestial body under which you are born to give you strength magickally.” When they looked at him, stunned about his knowledge, he chuckled. “I do know things. My mother was a witch remember. Just because I did not inherit her gifts does not mean I have not educated myself on such matters.” He paused looking at Krista before adding, “Particularly when Krista was born, and it was clear she was magickal.”

Jinx smirked at Julius’ words before he laughed. “How accepting of you, Julius.” He nodded in sincerity at the older man.

Julius chuckled. “Of course! Besides if you are correct about your connection with Chase and his familiar - Sylas, if I remember correctly - then I had to lack magickal prowess or ability in order for Krista to possess the kind of power required of her; correct?” he summarized, looking at Jinx for confirmation - there was an oddly inventive tone to his voice that Jinx filed away in a corner of his mind.

Jinx nodded. “If that is indeed the truth, then yes.”

Krista pouted, looking at her father again. “But why? If you had been magickal then we could have practiced together, and I wouldn’t be so far behind.”

Julius kissed his daughter’s forehead in a fatherly way. “You are too special and potentially too important for something so trivial to matter, darling.”

“Besides,” Jinx added, “I don’t think you are as behind as we originally presumed. Not if today was any indication. From what I can tell, it was as if the presence of the moonlight, and training in it, released some sort of block against your magick - against your powers. Go ahead, levitate me.” He spread his arms wide at this, gesturing for her to try.

Krista shifted slightly where she leaned against her father, then extended a hand palm up toward Jinx, concentrating on lifting him into the air. She lifted her hand towards the ceiling, and almost immediately his feet left the floor as he hovered a couple of feet above it. Ilise gasped in surprise, her hands coming up to cover her mouth. Krista’s eyes widened in surprise, and she slowly lowered her hand, lowering him harmlessly back to the floor.

“See,” he told her, “you had it in you all along. We just had to remove your - our block.”

Krista nodded in a thoughtful way, clearly processing the information. “I still want to ask Chase about all of this when we go to meet him,” she stated matter-of-factly, a serious expression on her slender face. She looked first at Jinx then at her father.

Jinx nodded. “Oh definitely, we will. All of this is a bundle of theories at this point in time,” he assured her pausing for a moment, “I also want to go through those books we found out at your fort as well.”

Julius also nodded. “Precisely. You will definitely need to have a lengthy discussion with him since he is so keen on the meeting. Books? What books?”

Jinx smiled softly even as Krista blushed and extracted the books from under her arm, “We found some old books on magick out at Krista’s fort.”

Julius nudged his glasses up on his nose as he reached out for one of the books and turned it over in his hands, “Well… this has seen better days, hasn’t it?” He looked over his glasses at his daughter as she blushed further.

“I didn’t mean to, Pa. I forgot them out there one day, years ago, and since I hadn’t been back since they kind of… were still there.” Krista mumbled.

Julius shook his head but laughed nonetheless as he flicked through the one he held for a moment before snapping it shut, “well, it appears to be still in relatively good condition - minus the cover of course.”

Suddenly, Krista yawned widely and visibly, and Julius chuckled. “I think someone needs to crawl into bed and have a nice long sleep.”

Ilise spoke up. “You haven’t eaten all day! You should at least have a light supper before bed!” She looked worried as she spoke.

Jinx looked at Krista before they both looked back at Ilise. “All right, Mum, maybe something small then.” she replied for the both of them. The pair of them sat down at the kitchen table as Ilise clapped her hands together and hurried off to whip up a pair of sandwiches.

She had soon returned with two plates bearing a grilled salami and cheddar cheese sandwich a piece. The kind woman quickly slid a plate in front of each of them and returned with two glasses of milk before they had even taken a bite.

Once the sleepy pair had finished eating, and Ilise had cleared their plates and glasses away, Julius smiled. “Alright. Now you will both sleep well tonight, I should think.”

Krista nodded, looking rather sleepy, as Jinx transformed himself back into a cat. Krista then turned to give her father and mother a hug, bidding them both goodnight.