By Sky Alton
Sky rocked back on her heels and tried to ease the ache in her shoulders. It was amazing how often her creative ideas always landed her feeling tired, uncomfortable and cross. She really ought to know better by now.
“And you’re not getting the students to finish this why?” Jasper asked from where he was sitting on the teacher’s desk.
“They did the borders in class today,” Sky sighed. “I promised I’d finish up so they could all see it tomorrow.”
The mosaic was looking a treat. The lines of alternating red and gold, silver and green, blue and bronze and yellow and black twinkled in the candlelight. The purple H at the centre was about halfway done. With a wince, she leaned forward and glued another tile into place.
When she’d found the odd nonogram-like number puzzle at the back of a drawer in one of the disused dungeons, she hadn’t had any clue that it was actually a blueprint for this beautiful piece of art. Even now, she wasn’t entirely sure that the pattern the kid’s had found in it was actually the true purpose behind the strange grid with its alternating numbers and characters. She couldn’t deny though, the result was absolutely beautiful. They’d had a blast decoding the strange message and trying to speculate on what a muggle number puzzle was doing in Hogwarts too.
“And why,” Jasper said, swinging his legs energetically, “Aren’t you using your wand?”
“This is the muggle studies classroom. It’s meant to be a muggle art project,” Sky said, pulling a face.
“So?” Jasper asked.
“It would be cheating. This is meant to be to prove how you can make beautiful things without magic. I wouldn’t be able to look the students in the eye.”
“Mhmmm,” Jasper said.
“You’re judging me, aren’t you?” Sky asked, grimacing as her wrist began to throb.
“Not at all, not at all…”
Sky grunted and slotted another tile into place. It would all be worth it once the pattern came together.
By Gail Allen
Dairis had chosen the tower room for his study despite the long walk up seemingly countless stairs that he had to undertake each time he wanted to pore over one of his books or tinker with a new artefact because the same was true for anyone who wanted to disturb him. Hopefully it would make them think twice before they decided to come here and he’d get some more time to himself. That and the fact that it was far enough away from the main hall that he could practice some of the noisier aspects of his craft without causing alarm or rousing suspicion – and of course so he wouldn’t have to listen to the noisier parts of court life that were centered around that part of the castle.
Today was just such an occasion and Dairis was glad to be left to himself while music played below as people danced and made merry. He was happiest with his papers and the one he was working on at the moment was particularly fascinating. Not for it’s content, but because he did not yet know what secrets it held, though he could feel the echo of great magic embedded in the parchment. Once he managed to reveal its secret, he knew that what would be revealed would be worth the time he spent on it now.
He’d already tried a number of ciphers of course as well as spells of revelation, but so far it had revealed nothing, simply staying still and impervious to his efforts.
“Why is it so dark?” a young voice asked and Dairis spun around, shocked that someone was there. It appeared he’d been so absorbed in his reading that he hadn’t even heard anyone approach.
“Who are you?” he asked.
“I’m Imant,” he replied.
“How did you get here? Aren’t people worried about you?” Dairis asked, now knowing that it wasn’t just any visitor who had joined him here in his tower, but the young son of the count of Malmor.
“No,” the boy replied. “The nurse put me to bed already, but I am not at all tired, so I decided to go look around the castle. I left my pillow under the covers so it looks like I’m still there. She never notices the difference.”
Clever boy, Dairis thought, too clever for his nurse it seemed, or perhaps she did know, but allowed the boy his adventures. Either way, here he was and Dairis couldn’t very well get rid of him without risking offending the count.
“I don’t need much light,” he answered his initial question just as he lit one of the candles he didn’t need himself, but the boy would surely need them.
Imant didn’t comment further on that, but came forward instead and pointed at the strange document. “What’s that?” he asked.
Dairis began to explain, but before he could get more than a few words out Imant had picked it up, holding it closer to the flame to inspect the faint writing.
Dairis was just about to stop him, tearing his hand away from the flame lest he set fire to the document and destroy it, when suddenly another text began to become apparent. A text that had a strange glow to it; the glow of magic, visible only to those who understood the true nature of it.
He laughed.
It wasn’t a very sophisticated way of encoding something, but very effective against those who used magic; they would never have thought to have a candle this close to something this precious, especially since they did not need light to read, their eyesight being part of the price for their magical abilities.
“Would you like to help me figure it out?” he asked the boy who eagerly sat down beside him and began to work on the lines, slowly teasing out their meaning.
In time, these two would work together often and together they made great discoveries in many fields of magic.