“Girls! Go prepare the big room, hurry!"

“Would you be needing anything else my Lady? Eh, the young man... you need another room for him?"

“No, that is my servant, and he will be staying with me. I am quite lost without his services" Fiona replied smiling. "I will need a bathtub with hot water brought up as soon as the room is ready. In a few hours we will be coming down for dinner."

“Mistress, I will go out to take care of horses and the carriage"

Magnus said, turning to go.

“Just bring them to my stable master and he will take care of them, lad" the innkeeper said.

“Can I offer you my best wine while you wait my lady?"

“I don't have the greatest memories about your best wine, but it will have to do. Thank you.”

Half an hour later, Fiona was sitting on the bed, while Magnus was bringing the last of her bags up to the room. He didn't seem out of breath, even if she possessed so many bags, and he had to go up and down many times. She watched him, admiring his strong and handsome frame. Magic could make one younger and prolong their Life significantly, but it couldn't make one more beautiful, or physically stronger than one was. That is why Magnus was so fascinating to her. He was a full package. Well, if Fiona was being honest so was she. She was gifted with great physical beauty, on top of her magical talent. She was given so much. She always felt that she should, therefore, use her gifts for acts of kindness here and there. To try to balance out the scales of universe. Otherwise, she might become a dung beetle in her next life, if what some religions preached is true. She was not sure that many of her fellow mages felt the same way.

“Apprentice. Time for the next lesson."

“I am ready" Magnus replied enthusiastically. Learning about magic was the highlight of his day.

“No more theory for now. It is time for the next step"

“I will learn how to cast a spell?" Magnus asked with excitement.

“Not a chance. There is one important step before we tackle casting itself."

“What step is that?"

“Meditation.”

“Meditation?”

“Yes, meditation. I already told you that remaining calm and focused is the only way to cast a spell with proper control, and the only way to avoid injuring yourself or others. In time, you will be trained enough to cast spells even when you are in the grip of emotions, but there is a long way to get there. You need to learn to be calm and focused. It is one of the most important things when doing magic. To achieve that,

I will teach you to empty your mind, to reach state of calm easily, and to shield yourself from distractions of any type.”

Magnus nodded. It made sense.