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If I had ever considered telling anyone that I suspected magic was real, it would have been my best friend, Norah. Being Irish, it was natural to be raised on stories of the sióga and the little people—-Da telling me stories nearly every night, and Ma bringing home books from the library where she worked. Many think Ireland is a land full of fairies and leprechauns, but, while I enjoyed the stories, I never truly believed in these magical tales once I was old enough to know better.

I loved my Da’s stories so much that I recently completed a Master’s degree in Irish history and mythology at Trinity University—-that’s where I first learned the truth. Many early Irish writings spoke of magic and the sióga. The ancients spoke as if they truly believed and even claimed to have seen and interacted with magical beings. My work for school was scholarly and skeptical, but inside I was beginning to hope that world was real.

When I finally stumbled into the truth, I was in my last term of my Master of Philosophy in Medieval Language, Literature and Culture, after my undergrad in Ancient and Medieval History and Culture (I spent a lot of time reading).

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Chapter 1

I practically lived in the library at Trinity, reading nearly every book they had in my areas of study (and quite a few that weren’t). I had a table all but reserved in the research library, staking out my place in the morning and remaining most of the day in my little corner. It was rare that anyone beat me there, and only a new student would take my usual spot. I could generally tell that someone had taken my table by the glances I got from other regulars as I entered.

One morning, in the April of my final term, I found a book that changed my life. Hidden behind several medieval literature books, it was barely larger than my hand, several hundred years old and written in…modern Irish? That didn’t make sense. The book was ancient, probably over five hundred years old, so the language should not have been so easy to understand, but it looked original to the book. I took the small volume back to my study table to examine.

It didn’t take me long to realize that it was a book of spells. My excitement over reading this old text, though confounded by the modern language, was eclipsed by a strange feeling in my center. A shaft of sunlight fell over my shoulder and I felt a warmth in my chest as I read the first page:

Nuair a gheobhas iníon an draoi

A bealach féin léi

Is nuair a léifeas sí an leabhar i solas an lae,

Tiocfaidh méadú ar a cuid cumhachtaí

Go dtí go n-aithneofar í

Mar an bandraoi is láidre in Éirinn.

Weird. I didn’t know what it meant, but it had my interest. I spent most of the day reading and translating the book into English, when I should have been working on my thesis. I typed up my translations as I read: there were spells to make fireballs, to create water, to levitate objects and to repair things. Some of them required specific gestures, but most just consisted of a few words. Each page also had a description of the spell’s effects and looked something like this:

Solas A spell to create light. Hold your hand with palm up in front of you. Recite the incantation solas while concentrating on your palm. A small orb of light will appear, allowing the mage to see a distance of approximately 20 feet in the dark.

I hardly noticed the time going until a gangly, pimply library aide came by and told me it was time to close. And here I did something of which I wasn’t particularly proud. The book of spells obviously wasn’t part of the library’s collection—-it had no labels or call numbers and wasn’t listed in the library database—-so I quietly slipped it into my bag as I packed up.

I caught the bus back to the flat I shared with Norah, not too far from campus. We didn’t see each other much during the week. We both were in grad school and working more than one job, so I wasn’t surprised Norah wasn’t home. I went to bed, almost too excited to sleep, as I was eager to continue my research of the spell book.

~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning I attended my one class for the day, then decided to work on my thesis outside. It was actually warm; a rare occurrence in my homeland. I worked on my thesis (the transmission of early Irish writings from 1000-1500 C.E.) for a couple of hours before the lure of the magic book became too much. I chewed my lip as I flipped through the pages, finally stopping on one appropriate to the setting.

There was a flower stem right next to me from which the head had been plucked, so I cupped one hand over the stem, held the book in the other, and whispered, ‘Fás bláth.’

There was a brief green glow as warmth travelled out from my chest and to my hand. My eyes widened in shock to see a perfect daisy in full bloom when I lifted my hand. I also felt tired, like I’d been running, and decided I ought to head back to the flat. I needed to think—-even though I’d seen it with my own eyes, it was still difficult to believe that I’d just done magic.

++++++++++

The first thing the man noticed was a flash of red under a tree. A pretty, young woman with chin-length, red curls, a typically pale Irish complexion and a knee-length, brightly-colored dress was sitting on the ground with books, papers and a laptop computer scattered around her. The second thing the man noticed was a green glow around her hand.

He pulled up short, staring hard, then quickly walked off, yanking his mobile out of a pocket at the same time. His boss would be interested. The girl should not have been practicing magic in the open like that. It had also looked like a fairly elementary spell. Someone her age should be far beyond that level. Odd.

He was ordered to find her the next day and start keeping an eye on her.

++++++++++

To my surprise, when I returned home that evening, Norah was home and cooking dinner. A quick note about Norah and why we’re such good mates:

We became friends as children out of mutual defence at our gaelscoil in Clonmel, a small town about two hours from Dublin. Many of the children there were from wealthy families and not friendly to those of us whose parents were more middle class. Norah’s parents are accountants and mine are a farrier and a librarian—all respectable occupations, but the other families did not see them as particularly worthwhile, or worthy of sending their children to the exclusive school.

Norah’s a few inches taller and several shades darker than I am, with gorgeous chocolate eyes and even crazier curls than I have. She tended to favor dark jeans and nice blouses.

‘Hey, Norrie.’ I gave her a quick hug. ‘I’m wrecked. I need to take a nap.’

‘Kay. Food’ll be ready in about an hour. I’ll wake you.’

‘Thanks, a chara.’

‘Gwennie! Food’s on!’

Jerking awake, I noted it was just over an hour later. I hauled myself out of bed and to the table. As we chatted about the last few days, I didn’t mention the spell book or what had happened earlier, though I really wanted to unload, knowing Norah would help me figure out what to do, once I convinced her. However, I decided to hold my peace for the moment and do some more research. My suspicions that the supposed magic-users in my readings for school might have been actual magic-users seemed to be confirmed—I’d have to look at all my notes and research in an entirely different light.

After cleaning up, Norah turned on the television and I settled down in the living room with headphones to study (a.k.a. do more research on the spell book).

~~~~~~~~~~

Though I didn’t have class the next day, I did have to work. I loved both my jobs: grooming and exercising horses at a veterinary and shelving books at a public library.

I spent a happy morning with the horses, then shelved two carts worth of books at the library. As I paused several times in one aisle with my cart, I suddenly wondered if there was a magical way to accomplish this task. Then I wondered if maybe there was a way to communicate with animals. It would be amazing to be able to actually ask the horses at the veterinary what was wrong with them. Sometimes, diagnoses are little more than highly-educated guesses on the doctors’ parts.

After work, I headed to the research library and focused on my thesis for a couple of hours before allowing myself to return to the spell book. Those at the beginning of the book seemed relatively simple and, as so often happens in a training manual, the tasks and instructions seemed to gain complexity further into the book.

Glancing around, I flipped back to the front of the book. No one was near, so I whispered a spell from one of the first pages: ‘Solas.’

A small, green ball of light began glowing softly above my palm. I was beginning to understand that these spells were extremely literal—solas means light—and now I was holding a ball of light. I didn’t know what to do with it.

‘Oh!’ I whispered, realising what the very first spell in the book must be for. ‘Scoirfidh!’ The light disappeared. ‘That makes sense. Learn how to end a spell before learning how to cast one.’

Okay, I could deal with this. Magic is real, and I could perform it. I didn’t know what to do with myself, except that I needed to talk to someone. Maybe the magic was from the book, but maybe it was me. My mother would know if anyone in our family history claimed to have magic. She’d studied our genealogy back about a thousand years; but… I wanted to talk to Norah first. I sent her a quick text:

Me: Will you be home later?

Norah: Pick up dinner and I’ll meet you at the flat in an hour.

Me: <thumbs up>

I stopped at one of our favorite Chinese restaurants and got all of Norah’s favorites, beating her home and setting the table while mulling over what spell to show her. I didn’t want to scare her, but wanted it to be unmistakable.

A key scraped in the lock and Norah came in, dumping her bookbag on the sofa.

‘Hey! What’s the story?’ Norah asked as she came to the table and started opening Chinese containers.

‘Why don’t we eat first? I have something to tell you. It will be surprising, but it’s not bad. At least I don’t think so. I hope it’s not too crazy for you. I hope you don’t think I’m crazy…’

Norah held up a hand and raised one eyebrow. ‘You’re blathering. It’s making me nervous.’

‘Ack! Sorry, let’s just eat. How was your day?’

‘Same old: numbers. You?’

‘Pretty much the usual. You should see the palomino that came in to the vet today. Gorgeous! Fortunately, he only has a long, shallow cut down one leg. His owner freaked and thought it was far worse.’ Norah didn’t like horses. I was babbling again.

We fell silent for a few minutes as we ate. I couldn’t help fidgeting and Norah was obviously dying of curiosity, but she held it in check, mostly, as she shovelled food into her mouth. When we had both finished, I got up and started to clear the table.

That was it for Norah. ‘Gwennie! I swear if you don’t tell me what’s going on right now, I’m going to pummel you!’

‘Okay, okay.’ I set the plates back on the table. ‘Keep an open mind and try not to flip out or anything. I only just discovered this myself and didn’t know what to do.’

I stepped into the kitchen and grabbed a clear glass goblet, setting it on the table.

Pointing to the goblet, I said, ‘Líontar le huisce.’ The goblet slowly filled with water. Norah stared at it for a minute, then her eyes darted back and forth between me and the goblet a couple of times.

‘You’re learning magic tricks?’ she finally asked.

‘Not tricks.’ I retrieved the spell book from my bag and handed it to Norah. She sat at the table, still peering at the now full glass of water before looking at what she had in her hands.

The cover said Leabhar Draíochta, Magic Book. Norah stared at the cover for a moment, then looked at me incredulously.

‘For real?’

‘Apparently. It was at the Trinity library, behind some other books, but it’s not part of the library’s collection. And look what the first page says.’ I showed Norah the translation on my laptop so she wouldn’t have to decipher it herself. Even though we’d gone to the same school, Irish was never easy for her.

When mage’s daughter

Finds her way

And reads the book in light of day,

Her power will grow

Until she be known

As Eire’s most powerful mage.

‘I don’t really understand it, except those were the circumstances when I read it. The sun was shining on me when I read it and I have some kind of power now. I don’t know if it comes from the book, or if I have power that the book unlocked… You look a little shell-shocked.’

Norah stared at me, dazed, for a few more seconds before she finally blinked. ‘I think shocked is a bit of an understatement. Flabbergasted, gobsmacked, stupefied, thunderstruck—any of those might do. Magic isn’t real! This isn’t possible.’

‘Look at the goblet. It’s one of ours. Nothing special or tricky about it.’

Norah picked it up, tilted it, sniffed the contents, even took a sip—gutsy, considering.

‘I just can’t imagine how this is possible,’ she murmured.

‘I could show you another spell if you want. I’ve made a flower bloom and created a ball of light in my hand.’ I was excited to show off a little now that I’d told her.

‘Let me see the light. I don’t think you’d be able to do that with tricks. I half think you’re putting me on.’ She stood with her arms folded, eyeing me doubtfully.

‘I promise I’m not!’ Putting my hand out in front of me, I repeated the spell from earlier: ‘Solas,’ saying it clearly so Norah could hear. The light popped into existence above my hand, even faster than it had previously, but this time it was more difficult to maintain. It was my third spell for the day, and clearly too much for a novice spellcaster. Norah came closer and got a decent look at it before it fizzled out on its own. I was suddenly exhausted.

‘Is that all the time it lasts, then?’

‘No, earlier I had to end the spell, but each one takes a lot of energy. I’ve already cast two others today, so I just couldn’t hold it. I feel as if I’ve run a marathon. Are you okay? Do you believe me? Any questions? Not that I’ve any answers at the moment.’

‘I don’t know what to ask right now. Let me think about it tonight.’

We headed off to our respective rooms, and I fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow.

~~~~~~~~~~

When I woke in the morning, I knew I hadn’t moved at all—my right arm was completely numb. After shaking it out, I got ready for the day, throwing on barn clothes. As I followed the smell of coffee to the kitchen, I wondered how Norah was going to react to me. I carried my riding boots to the living room and dropped them by the door.

‘Morning.’ I was a bit tentative. Norah looked up from the eggs she was frying. I could see her exhaustion in the dark circles under her eyes and the flat line of her mouth.

‘Are you okay?’

‘I believe you, but I’m worried about you. We don’t know what kind of effect this could have on you. You already said that doing the spells makes you tired. What happens if you cast one for which you’re not strong enough? Will it kill you?’

‘I don’t know, but the power, or ability or whatever, must get stronger. The first spell I did was from close to the middle of the book and really wore me out. Yesterday, I cast three before I was tired. I think I’ll be safe enough if I stick to the first few spells for now. It seems like they’re arranged by difficulty.’

‘Okay, but please be careful. I don’t want anything to happen to you. And you don’t want anyone to catch you either.’

‘True. Maybe I should stick to practicing at home.’

‘You should. Then I can keep an eye on you.’

‘Love you too!’ I grinned at her. ‘Thanks for believing me.’ I hugged her from behind as she flipped the eggs in the pan.

Norah smiled over her shoulder, then drooped a bit.

‘Why don’t you go back to bed? I’m going to see Mr. Darcy before work.’

‘I think I will after I eat. You want some?’

‘Sure, and I’ll clean up.’

After we ate and I cleaned up, Norah headed for her room, pausing in her doorway. ‘Have fun at the barn. No more magic ‘til you get home!’

‘Yes, Ma.’ I stuck my tongue out at her.

Norah responded in kind as she bumped her door shut. I grinned to myself as I headed off to my favorite place in the world.

My parents have a bit o’ land, and my father works out of the barn on their property. I had my own pony (and the care of it) at the age of five, and my first horse at fifteen. A man had brought the tall black-and-white spotted Appaloosa to have new shoes fit before he was sold. I fell head over heels for him and begged Ma and Da for him. They agreed, and I named him after my favorite Jane Austen character. We competed in dressage when I was a teen, but I hadn’t had time since starting at university. I did spend as much time with him as my schedule allowed, but I still only made it a couple of times a week, paying for someone to care for him the rest of the time.

‘Hello, my handsome lad!’ Darcy put his head over the door of his stall when he heard my voice. ‘We’ll have to have a quick ride today. I’ve got work.’

As I put on Darcy’s halter and led him out, I heard an unwelcome male voice from down the aisle. ‘Still talking to your horse like he can answer back?’

I paused and sighed. Nobody in the barn really liked Duncan, as he took no responsibility for his own horse, only paid for the most expensive care. He owned the most valuable horse and gear in the stable and liked everyone to know it. For some reason, he’d decided I was worthy of dating him, despite his distaste in his perception of my low origins, and would not take the hint that I wasn’t interested.

‘He’s a better conversationalist than most people I know.’ I took Duncan in from his perfectly styled hair to his shiny boots.

‘Surely you’d rather have an intelligent conversation,’ he sneered.

‘Sure and you don’t fit the bill.’ I started grooming Darcy, pointedly turning my back on Duncan, silently begging him to go away.

I took Darcy to the large outdoor dressage arena. The stable was blessed with a huge acreage, allowing for jumping, dressage, and even a few western riders (rare in Ireland). I led him to a fence so I could mount. Sixteen-hand horse and five-foot-one woman is a challenging mix. I was thankful Darcy was patient and steady, because some of the things I’d had to climb on in order to mount would have sent lesser horses into paroxysms of bucking.

Once mounted, I guided Darcy through several simple dressage routines to warm up. As I finished the last one, I beamed as I heard the stable owner’s voice on the intercom. ‘Do you want to practice your music routine?’

‘Sure, Casey! Thanks.’ After a moment, Edvard Grieg’s ‘In the Hall of the Mountain King’ crackled through the speakers.

We waited for the right moment, then we danced. Of all the competing we’d done, freestyle was our favorite.

As we finished, I realised Duncan had been watching but ignored him as I brought Darcy back to the barn and put him up, kissing him on the nose before heading to the vet for more horse time.

I stopped for food on the way home from work, ravenous because I’d forgotten to eat lunch. I entered the flat quietly in case Norah was still asleep, but she was sitting on the floor in the sitting room, surrounded by accounting textbooks. I waved, but headed straight to the shower. Afterward, I grabbed my own books and laptop and joined Norah in the sitting room. We enjoyed studying together when we could.

‘Music?’ I asked.

‘Not today.’ Norah didn’t look up from her reading.

I nodded, put in my earbuds, brought up some classical music and settled in to do my own studying.

We worked for a couple of hours before Norah stood, stretched and left the room for a minute. She detoured to the kitchen on her way back and brought a plate of fruit and cheese back with her.

‘Have you not eaten today?’ I questioned severely. She only grabbed food like that when she hadn’t.

‘No,’ Norah answered guiltily. ‘I started studying as soon as I woke and haven’t stopped.’

‘Norrie!’ She’d done this once early on when we’d first moved into the flat. I did not want to repeat the experience of rushing her to hospital for extremely low blood sugar.

‘I know, I know.’

Norah sat on the floor again and held the plate toward me. I grabbed a grape and chunk of cheese and settled back again. We munched in silence for a few moments.

‘I’d like to try some more spells this afternoon. Do you need more study time?’

‘No, I think I’m set for now. What are you going to do?’

‘Er…’ I flipped through the front of the spell book and stopped on a page. ‘Ah! This one repairs small things. Let me see if I can fix that rip in the couch.’

I stood and turned to face our secondhand, blue couch, stretching my hand toward the 3-inch rip in the microfibre, and said, ‘A dheisiú.’

The tear knit itself together until it disappeared completely. We both stared for a minute, then looked at each other.

Norah grinned. ‘That is brilliant!’

‘I know! It was hard to believe it at first, even seeing the evidence.’ I paused for a moment, contemplating. ‘So, do you think I ought to talk to my ma? Or both parents?’

‘They were the ones telling you fairy stories all your life. How do you think they’d take it?’

‘I never thought they believed they were any more than just stories. Mostly, I’m just afraid that they’ll think I’m crazy.’

‘Well, you can always give them a demonstration. It’s pretty convincing.’ She chuckled wryly.

‘True. You know…I don’t have class on Monday. If I left this evening, I could spend tomorrow in Clonmel and head back Monday morning. The library’s pretty flexible about letting people off when needed.’

‘Go for it, then.’

My boss at the library had no problem with me taking off Monday, so I dialled my ma. She answered after the third ring.

‘Hello, sweetheart!’

‘Hi, Ma. Do you mind if I come down for the rest of the weekend?’

‘Of course not! We’re always happy to see you. Any particular reason? You don’t usually make unplanned trips.’

‘I need to talk to you and Da. It’s a bit odd, but nothing to worry about… I’m just going to pack a few things and head down this evening. I’ll come back Monday.’

‘Sounds mysterious. You sure nothing’s wrong?’

‘Nope, nothing wrong. I’ll explain when I get there.’

‘Okay, love.’

We signed off, and I hurried to my room to pack a small bag. Norah went into the toilet and came back with my toiletries bag.

‘Thanks, Norrie.’

‘Make sure I got everything. What else can I do?’

‘Grab my books from the sitting room? I might have time to do some work.’

Norah left the room again and returned with my books. I sorted which I wanted to take, including the spell book, and was soon headed out the door to our rented space near the flat where we kept my cute, green Beetle.