1 Working Man's Misconceptions

"Baxter, come help your father!"

At the sound of this energetic... suggestion, a young boy stirs beneath a set of threadbare covers.

'Another day working. I wish I could relax for once.'

He gets up, making his way to the only door in the house. As it opens, the smells of mud and dirt fill his nostrils, as another day starts.

"Morning, son. Let's just finish this patch, your mother should be finished making breakfast by then."

"Sure thing, dad!"

Skillfully, Baxter starts carefully removing small sprouts surrounding a strange plant. Barely bigger than a desktop cactus, a small mint green plant reminiscent of an aloe sits among the fertile soil. Every now and again, a small change of colour shoots from the center, an almost luminous wave.

Catching Baxter's eye, he goes to ask his father.

Sighing, his father replies "Plants don't glow. Never have, I reckon. Must be the morning sun again."

As the last of the invasive weeds gets torn from the ground, a bell is rung.

"Food! Come and get it!"

Making their way into the small house, the plain smell of porridge hits their nose.

With Baxter immediately digging in, his parents stay outside.

"He asked about that glow again. How far are we from seeing a healer?"

"I don't know, Hank. Things are already tight as it is, and at this rate we might need to sell the house."

"We'll have to do something, Helen, he's just not normal. He talks different from the other kids, and barely interacts with anyone his age. At this rate, he'll grow up alone."

Drops of water hit the bowl as Baxter listens in.

'Sell the house? No way, I'm not letting them do that.'

Finishing his meal, he looses track of his parents conversation.

'If they sell the house, we'll have nowhere to live!'

Jumping outside, he interrupts.

"I don't need healing! I'll just work with you!"

Clasping Baxters hands, Helen chokes out "It's okay Baxter. Mom will make things better."

She leads him forcefully towards the gate, barely holding in tears.

"Where are we going mom?"

"We're going to get you fixed, Baxter. You can be normal soon."

They walk hurriedly through the street, passing progressively better houses. It is not long before they reach a large stone building.

"Healer, you have to help my child! He's ill in the head!"

"In short, there's nothing wrong with him. Everything looks normal from what I can tell."

"But he hardly interacts with the other children! He just stays at home and helps with the plants!"

"While unusual, there's nothing wrong with him. He simply has no desire to interact with the other children. What would be concerning would be if he started seeing lights. Then we would have a problem."

"What's wrong with seeing lights?"

"Your child could be one of two things. The first and most common is a condition affecting the brain. It makes people see things that aren't real."

"And the other?"

"There's no way that your child has the other condition. Noone has had that condition in decades, not in these parts."

"But what is it?"

"Magic."