[Lilani]

She pushed back her worried feeling and approached one of the stands with a black spell-training orb on it. She ran her hand across it slowly, becoming swept away in another flood of memory. Ajido-Marujido watched her slowly circle the orb, wondering what she was doing.

Then, she walked to the other side of the room. She turned around and faced the orb in the exact place a student would stand if they were going to cast spells. Ajido was absolutely puzzled as he watched her position her hands to cast a spell.

“It’s not going to work...what are you thinking...” he asked in his mind, as if she were able to hear him.

Chykisasa did all in her power to remember what she had been taught all those years ago. She remembered what to chant, but she worked on how to chant it...

In that moment, Ajido-Marujido saw the most amazing thing in all of his living years. Bubbles and light beams shot out from around Chykisasa. He looked at her mouth, but her lips weren’t moving; she was not chanting–or so he thought. After a few short seconds, she raised up her right arm, focusing with all her might, and released the energy she had been building.

An ornate and shining circle surrounded the orb and herself and some glowing rocks appeared, but she jumped completely in the air and put her hands over her mouth when she saw a third circle up on the stage. The light from the spell faded, and only the dim lamplight and the now glowing red orb lit the room.

Ajido-Marujido himself was startled by the spell. He was so focused on the fact that she had used magic that he let down his guard and didn’t think about whether or not he was in range of the spell. When saw Chykisasa slowly backing away from the stage with her hands over her mouth, he knew she saw the spell on him too.

“Weren’taru expecting that, now were you,” he scoffed as he let his invisible and sneak spells fade away. “And, to tell you the truth, neither was I.” He pointed a finger at the shivering girl. “I have a lot of questions for you, missie, and you aren’t leaving until you’ve answered them–truthfully,” he emphasized the last word as he gestured her to follow him.

Chykisasa herself was near tears. Not only was she going to have to reveal what she had done at Shantotto’s, but her secret she had solemnly promised to keep. She was frozen in place, not sure of what to do. She was quite used to Ministers and how to behave in front of the, but Ajido-Marujido was different. He wasn’t afraid to use his power and authority to get what he wanted from others, and she felt that he wouldn’t hesitate on her either.

“Did you bind yourself or what?” Ajido called from the stage, still waiting for her. “I’m not going to hurt you, unless you decide to make a run for it.” And with that Chykisasa unfroze herself, nodded very nervously, ran to the stairs, and followed the minister to his study.

After they were in the room, Ajido closed the door behind him. He then walked over to his recently cluttered desk, and pulled out some blank paper. He also grabbed a bottle of ink, and moved some papers around until he found a quill. He turned them towards Chykisasa.

“First, tell me why you are here,” he said, pointing to the paper. Chykisasa nodded, and grabbed the quill. Her hand was shaking so much that it was making the feathery end of it quiver violently. Regardless, she dipped it in the ink, but paused abruptly. She just stood there for a few moments, quill tip still partially in the bottle, contemplating on where to begin. “Well?” He asked, already beginning to grow impatient. She then decided and began to write on the paper. Ajido-Marujido walked around to her angle and silently read what she was writing:

“I am here because I almost grew up in this place. When Lady Shantotto was minister, she took me in whenever my parents had to go on music tours and didn’t want me to come along and be in possible danger.Both my father and my mother graduated from the Orastery, at different times of course, but both of their hearts were in music. Shantotto knew it and introduced them, and when they had me she wanted to do everything she could to help. She treated me like a daughter, but was embarrassed to admit it to anyone else. I understood and did all I could to keep it a secret. And a secret it was; if I wasn’t at the Orastery I was at her home.

She quickly noticed that I was very interested in magic, but at the same time pitied me because I would never be able to do it. So she began to develop very special spell scrolls that would allow me to chant in my mind, rather than aloud. After a long time she showed me, and after a few trials, we finally got them to work. She started out with simple white and black magic spells, and began to create higher level spells as well. However, for me to have been able to use them, I would have had to get proper training, which she didn’t have the time to do in secret. I was nine then, and just a few weeks later my parents wanted me to come on a tour with them, and that was the tour that I never returned from.”

Ajido-Marujido was silent for a long time. The story was nothing like he had expected. For the first time in his life, he did not know how to react or respond to what he had just heard. All he could do was stand there and think, putting the pieces together.

After a while, he looked at Chykisasa, who was confused by his sudden silence, and spoke, “Shantotto...of all people!” he said, as he put his hand over his face, thinking of what to think next. “I think I saw you once, here...but I’m not sure. Eight years ago I was taking some equipmentaru to this room for Shantotto, and I saw a small child with a red head pop in and out of the doorway. I went in and searched the room to the best of my ability-wility, but I couldn’t find the figure anywhere. Do you remember anything like this?” he asked.

Chykisasa closed her eyes in thought for a moment, but quickly remembered and began to write:

“Yes, I think I do remember. Shantotto had gone to make more spells that night, but I wanted to stay in her study and read some books on magic, so that I might better prepare myself to cast spells. I fell asleep in a book, but I woke up from a sound and rushed to the door to see what it was. I saw someone coming and I panicked, so I ran back into the room and got under a special sheet that she had developed. It blocked all magic; the ultimate spell shield. But a strange side effect was invisibility. She made sure it was the right size for me, so that if I ever got into such trouble I would be able to hide and wait it out.”

“I thought you seemed familiaru...but I never would have expected that you, of all people, were that small figure in the doorway...” Ajido said, with his voice trailing off. “And I guess that explains how you got in here as well. Shantotto showed you how to unlock the door, didn’t she?” he asked. Chykisasa nodded.

After a few more moments of thinking, he looked at her nightclothes, and it hit him. “Oi! You didn’taru go to the House of the Hero last night, did you! I saw a lump in your pocket yesterday, there’s no way you could have picked up anything from there. Where did you go?” he asked, once again pointing to the paper. Chykisasa dipped the quill in the ink once again and wrote:

“No, I didn’t. I went to Lady Shantotto’s residence. I couldn’t stop myself. I tried to be careful about it, but I sat down on her couch, got sleepy again, and fell asleep. When I woke up it was very late in the morning, almost noon. Also, she still had some of the instruments my parents gave me as gifts when I was young. Before I fell asleep I picked it up to look at it, and I guess I never put it down. I accidently put it in my pocket in the morning, I guess.”

“I knew it! You lied!” Ajido-Marujido said to her, almost shouting. “You lied to the Star Sibyl, and five ministers!” Chykisasa felt a tear roll down her cheek as she heard his words. “I’m afraid tears and pity-witty aren’t going to get you out of this one!” Chykisasa began to write more:

“I was too afraid to tell anyone. When Shantotto told me to keep it a secret, she told me that something like spells that didn’t have to be chanted aloud would turn the entire magical world upside down! So many theorems would be proven either right or wrong, and neither me nor her would ever be left alone. She knew I already had problems with that, and didn’t want it to happen again.”

“Yes...there’s thataru too then...” Ajido whispered, his voice trailing off. He thought for a few moments, and spoke, “No matter the excuse, you’re going to have to tell the Star Sibyl about this. There’s no way I can stand here and let you live a lie.

“But magic scrolls that let you cast magic withoutaru chanting aloud...simply amazing!” he said. “I must ask Shantotto about this. Hmph! A fine time for to be away...” he said, his voice trailing off again. Chykisasa jumped, and her mouth opened wide, trying to say something. She quickly grabbed the quill and wrote some more:

“Shantotto is away? You mean she is not dead?”

“Of course she’s not dead!” Ajido cried, almost laughing out loud. “Whataru would make you think that! A chocobo stampede couldn’t do her in.”

“The Yagudo told me that she was dead just about a year after I was imprisoned. I can’t see why they would lie about such a thing unless they actually knew what was going on.”

Ajido thought about this for a while. Why would the Yagudo have her such a thing, except if they knew what was going on between them. Even so, how could they have found it out in the first place? And why would they even bother? His thinking was cut off by the scratching of quill on paper:

“You said Shantotto was away, where did she go? She’s never been one to travel, from what I’ve seen of her.”

“She said she was going to tour some of Vana’diel, to see ‘how the other half lives’ or something like that. I believe she brought up Jeuno and the areas around it, Tahrongi Canyon and...” he let his voice trail off for a moment, “and Meriphataud Mountains...”

Chykisasa closed her eyes in thought for a moment, as did Ajido-Marujido. They were thinking the same thing, and they knew it. Shantotto had gone out in search of some sign of Chykisasa, at least some remains.

“It all makes sense now...she’s looking for you, Chykisasa. I kept asking her why she was suddenly so anxious to travel-wavel, but she simply laughed it off and gave excuses, as usual. But I wonder why she was suddenly so inspired now, of all times...” He put his left arm to his face in thought, and supported it with his right arm. Chykisasa dipped the quill in the ink and wrote again:

“Do you know when she is coming back?”

“She should be back in aboutaru five days, maybe a week.” He looked at the clock hanging on the wall. “But for now, I’m afraid you are going to have to return to Heavens Tower. And when the Star Sibyl is awake you are going to tell her the truth. Understood?” Chykisasa nodded and quickly bowed, and headed to the door.

Ajido-Marujido watched Chykisasa leave, and a few moments later heard the outside door open and close. He sat down in the chair in front of his desk and sighed, rubbing his temples. He had been up for so long he was getting a terrible headache, but now he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep. "Amazing...simply amazing..." he whispered to himself, still rubbing his head. "Shantotto was right aboutaru that magic, if anything gets out about it the magical world is going to be turned completely upside down. I guess this is what happens when history is in the making..." he said, as he leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. In a few seconds, he was asleep.

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You know, I added it up, and this chapter is about as long as all the others combined, LOL. I'll try to come out with 5 soon, but I have driver's ed now so it might be a bit difficult ; ;