7 Chapter 6: an elemental with no element

"Today, you're going to learn about your elements." Mammy announced, leading Shaianah and Christine to the garden where it was more spacious and where they can use their magic freely. "You'll both be learning more about your magic in the academy, but it's always great to have a headstart considering the fact that you've only just discovered about this."

The twins, Jillian and Joseph, was left to explore the other parts of the castle with Pops. Since they were still at the age of seven, it would be much easier for them to access their magic, which meant that they don't need the headstart. For Christine and Shaianah, however, they still have to learn how to activate it before they learn how to use it.

The girls both gasp in awe as soon as they stepped onto the rectangular lawn that were surrounded with bushes and trees. At the edge of it stood all kinds and colors of flowers, and a huge pond that had a small wooden bridge at the center. The other side of the bridge led to what seems to be a greenhouse.

Butterflies danced across the air, some brushing off against delicate petals. They have made the place more vibrant than it already is. "This is beautiful." Shaianah whispers.

Shaianah suddenly notices a lady standing on the other side of the bridge controlling weeds and vines with her magic—an earth elemental. She was surrounded with birds and they seemed to become her friends. When she notices their presence, she stops from what she was doing to wave at them.

"Mammy!" The woman screams in excitement as she approaches them, pulling Mammy into a tight and warm hug as soon as she got closer.

"How are you, my darling? Thank you for accepting my invitation to come here."

"Everything's going well so far and of course I'd accept your invitation. I'm actually excited to bere again. Well, I hope you're taking good care of yourself, Mammy." The lady brushed off the excess hair that covered her face. She almost looked like a doll with her porcelain skin, dark brown locks and strawberry lips. Her aura was too welcoming that you would instantly want to become friends with her after your first meeting.

"Of course, I am! You don't have to worry about me, Veera. Oh! By the way, these are my grandchildren, Shaianah and Christine." Mammy pauses to let the three shake hands. "This is Miss Veera Locke, she's only nineteen years old yet she's become an expert trainer and definitely one of the best here in Cassiopeia."

"Mammy, that's already an exaggeration." Veera awkwardly smiles.

Mammy had met Veera a few years back at a marketplace where the latter had been selling all kinds of plants and flowers. It was later then that Mammy found out that Veera trains young elementals who couldn't control their magic. On top of that, she was an excellent earth elemental. She'd developed her own tricks and her magic seemed to be at its full potential even at a young age.

Mammy then helped Veera by giving her permission to make the castle garden her training grounds. She'd bring her students here, mostly of ages 9 to 15, and Mammy would enjoy watching them train from afar. Their bond was that of a mother and a daughter.

"Why, dear it's true! But please don't be too hard on my grandchildren. They're all new to this."

"Don't worry. I'll take care of them." Veera winked. She was ecstatic that she'd be able to teach again after months of not being able to. Her mother got ill, so she had to stop teaching to tend to her.

After the small introduction, Mammy left the three of them at the garden so they could get comfortable with each other. It was a piece of cake for Veera since she was good at interacting with people.

"So! Let's start with some facts about elementals, shall we?" Veera began, clasping her palms together and cheerfully hopping towards the bridge. Shaianah and Christine follows from behind.

"Elementals are magical creatures that appeared on earth the same time as humans did. And oh, so did other magical things on earth most don't even know about.

"People like us have strong connections with the elements— we can feel them more than normal humans can. Say for example, as an earth elemental, I can feel mother nature breathe. I have a connection to the plants, the animals—all the living and breathing things on earth. My personality is even connected with my element, but that's not true to all.

"Children usually discovers their elements on their own at the ages of four to eight. As for the two of you, you may encounter some troubles since yours has been inactive for a long time. Unless, of course, you've already activated it once when you were a child. And that's about it. Do you have any questions?"

The three of them stopped in the middle of the wooden bridge as Veera leans her back on it while waiting for the two to respond.

"But how do we actually activate it?" Christine raises her question.

"Hmm... Have you heard of telekinesis? Controlling your elements is actually like telekinesis, it's being able to move something without touching it. Your mind does the work. It activates the magic first and then channels it to your entire body. This means that the only way to activity it is to focus your mind on actually doing it, if that makes sense."

Shaianah and Christine were still a bit puzzled, but nevertheless followed through all of Veera's instructions. Their first activity was meditating. They were told to reconnect with their spirits since it is only through calmness that their minds could focus well.

They were also told to feel through the elements that surrounds them and were asked what they could "feel" the most. Is it the water on the pond? The plants that surrounded them? The air that embraced them? And if it isn't, it will all come down to either fire and ice.

After an hour, Christine had already learned her element.

"I think I've always known about magic since I was little, but I don't remember so much of it. It feels like I've used it once before."

"That's great! You can now practice your magic on your own. Try creating something using your air magic, like an air bubble. Anything you can think of!" Veera encourages, telling Christine more of the things she could create with her element.

Shaianah, on the other hand, kept herself far from them. She'd been trying to feel the things that surrounded her but she couldn't exactly grasp on what Veera was meaning to say. There was just no connection at all. Could it be possible that she was a defect since she was half human? She couldn't stop her mind from thinking all those negativities.

The day ended with Shaianah's element still unknown. Christine was too engaged on her own magic to notice how gloomy Shaianah felt, but Veera approaches her and taps on her shoulder. "Hey there."

"Hey."

"Don't worry. Maybe you just need to rest for today. Your magic will eventually come out. There's no pressure." The gentleness on Veera's voice calmed Shaianah a bit, but it never erased her doubts.

But of course, Veera was right. There was still time to figure out her magic, and hopefully she would.