This Ascent to Divinity is Lewder Than Expected

They were both pretty hungry, so after lessons concluded, Zoey and Maddy got changed into daily wear, then headed into the city to find something to eat. Maddy had been in Treyhull for a bit now, so she knew her way around and had a few suggestions.

The restaurant Maddy brought her to was a cozy enough place, upbeat and well-lit with a comfortable atmosphere. It was fairly large, about three dozen tables and a smattering of booths, and most were filled. They were seated at the edge of the room.

“Should I put up a sound barrier?” Maddy asked after they had ordered. “I mean, just so we can have some privacy.”

“That’s probably smart.” Zoey didn’t intend to jump straight into heavy topics, and wanted to just chat with Maddy and learn a bit more about the girl—her likely fourth teammate—but she also knew sensitive subjects would arrive. Plus, sound barriers were just plain convenient. Why not make one? Perks of having an illusionist as a friend.

In a few swift movements, Maddy traced a magical diagram in the air, then activated the spell. The sound of the restaurant dimmed, though didn’t disappear. Outgoing noise would be blocked, but incoming only partially.

“There we go,” Maddy said.

“How hard is that to learn, anyway?”

“The sound barrier? Easy. Just a single Circle. But you don’t have the specialty for it, obviously. Illusions.”

It was a bit unfortunate that Zoey was restrained to learning spells within what her class offered. But if mages could learn anything, then the world would be a bit chaotic, she figured.

“What are your specialties, anyways?” Zoey asked. “If you want to tell me. Since I guess that stuff is pretty personal.”

“In my case, it’s obvious, so no problem. Illusions, and Mentality. Mental effects. I don’t have that much of an arsenal for doing damage.”

“When you can leave monsters spinning in circles, that doesn’t matter much.”

“Or turning on each other,” Maddy said with a grin. “I’m a bit of an unconventional mage, but still plenty use in a party.”

“We’re damage-heavy already. So it would especially work out with us.”

“Exactly.”

“You’re thinking about that, then? Joining?” Rosalie had already given away that Maddy probably would, but Zoey didn’t know if it came with any conditions. Rosalie had said Maddy needed to ‘talk’. Though, that might be about the whole ‘Bonding’ thing.

“I have,” Maddy said. “And, um, yeah. Teaming up with you three would definitely come with some … atypical wayfaring duties … but if you’re willing to have me, I think I’d like to give it a shot.”

“Of course,” Zoey said. “But the other stuff? You’ve decided you’re fine with it all?”

Maddy blushed. “I told you I was, didn’t I?” She shook her head. “But, hey. You told me this is a date. How about we talk about date stuff before we get to the weirder items.”

Zoey had intended to, but the conversation had naturally turned to the direction of Maddy joining. She shelved the topic. Besides, it was maybe something best discussed not in a busy restaurant, considering all the lewd aspects that were inextricably tied to her brand of wayfaring.

“Okay, date stuff. You said you had seven sisters?”

Maddy groaned.

“What?”

“Family questions just get messy fast.” She paused, then corrected herself: “Not because I dislike talking about them, though. My family is just ginormous. Seven sisters, two brothers. Eight aunts and uncles. Wanna guess how many cousins?”

“A lot?”

“A lot.”

“You’re on good terms with them?”

“Most.”

“Most?”

“I mean, I’m not like, excommunicated with any of them,” Maddy said. “But I guess I’m in a few ongoing spats. With a family that big, it’s inevitable.” She frowned. “Plus, I guess my family is really opinionated to begin with. We’ve got a lot of strong personalities.”

That was surprising, considering Maddy’s natural friendliness. “You broke the mold?”

Maddy crossed her arms. “Are you calling me timid?” She pouted. “My sisters are always getting on me about that, you know. And my mom, too.”

“Not timid,” Zoey said. “Just friendly. Easy to get along with. I guess I’ve heard ‘strong personality’ to mean … aggressive, I guess.” She thought of Rosalie. “If in a good way.” It was a phrase that could be both a compliment and insult, depending on how it was used.

“Yeah, aggressive. Forceful. That’s a lot of my family.”

“So you did break the mold.”

“A little bit.”

“Are they all mages?”

“All of who?”

“Direct family, I suppose. Siblings and parents.” Zoey paused, then shook her head. “Seven sisters, but only two brothers. How did that happen?”

Maddy shrugged. “Could be natural. Could also be not. I don’t think my parents wanted mostly girls, but if they did—well, the magic would hardly be impossible. Though I actually haven’t heard of anything like that. But no, they’re not all mages. Do you have any idea how insane that would be?”

“Not really?”

Maddy paused, then sheepishly said, “Your amnesia ruined my joke. You were supposed to say yes, then I would say only most of them are mages. Which is really crazy, just not as insane as all of us being mages. Mages are rare, much less so many in a single family. Bloodline and training affect classes, sure, but only to an extent.” She laughed. “Another bout of insane luck. Like how we got eight girls out of ten.”

Amused, Zoey said, “So who ended up not a mage? What’d they get instead? And does it mean anything in your family, not getting one?”

“Are they shunned, you mean?” Maddy asked, amused by the question. “No. Though there’s some teasing, I suppose. But even those of us who didn’t get a magic class, still got a magic class.”

“What do you mean?”

“Like Ophelia. She’s an anti-mage.”

“Anti-mage?”

“A fighter who’s nearly immune to spells. Her class is fascinating to experiment with. Spells slip right off her. Even my mom has to put in effort to make them stick.”

“Interesting.” As much for the class itself as because Zoey enjoyed learning more about Maddy. “Are you close with her? And your other sisters?”

Maddy wrinkled her nose. “The problem with a family that big is that it’s hard to be close to all of them. Like, actually close. I feel bad saying that, but it’s true.”

“I get it. Well, I don’t, my family is small, but I understand.”

“But yeah,” Maddy said. “Ophelia’s much older than me, so me and her never spent much time together. She was out wayfaring. I’m closer to my sisters who’re around my age.”

“I think you’ve only mentioned … Ophelia and Venus?”

“I did? When?”

“You said they’re both single, and hopeless. When we were talking about my date with Rosalie.”

Maddy laughed at the reminder. “Oh. Well, yeah, it’s true. They’re definitely hopeless when it comes to romance. Though, Venus might just not be interested. But Ophelia is, I think. But she’s way too serious. And tied to her work.” Maddy shook her head. “Classic wayfarer. But, uh. Back to the question. My older sisters I only saw on big occasions—they were usually out and about in the fractures. But Nixie and Juniper, I spent almost all my time with. Training, studying, or, you know, whatever.”

“I hope I can meet them someday. Where’s home, anyway?”

“We live in the Fractures, not Haven. I actually haven’t ever been up. And, um, as for home, I shouldn’t really talk about Sovereign-held territory. Not that I don’t trust you, it’s just—well, you know. Treason?” She laughed. “Against guild rules.”

“No problem.” Zoey’s interest had been piqued, though. She knew the Fractures were divvied up by the various factions, with the Sovereign holding the smallest amount—but having on average the highest advancement wayfarers. Small but powerful. Like Maddy herself, Zoey thought with amusement.

“But you might get the chance to meet them,” Maddy said. “They’re always out and about. It’d be a bit of a chance event, but I wouldn’t be too surprised to bump into someone at Mantle. It’s a big city. If not that, we meet up every once in a while for a family reunion.” Maddy shrugged. “Maybe you can come with, though that’s way down the line.”

“You miss home?”

“Of course. But I’m not homesick or anything. It’s kind of refreshing getting to be out and about, being my own person.”

“Your own person?”

“I wouldn’t say I’m defined by my name, not like—like some people,” Maddy stuttered, as if she’d been planning on saying something else, “but it definitely follows me around.”

“Pretty much everyone in the Sovereign is important,” Zoey said, stating the obvious.

“More accurately, is tied to someone important,” Maddy said. “I’m nobody, by myself.”

“But your mom isn’t.”

“Yeah.” She didn’t expand. Not that eager to talk about her family, just like Rosalie.

“A bit off-topic, but how’s all that work?” Zoey asked “The Sovereign and the different factions. Especially in Haven.”

“What do you mean?”

“It sounds like the highguilds run everything down in the Fractures. Is it the same up top?”

“No. Yes. Kind of.”

Zoey waited.

“Like you said, the highguilds are the dominant forces in the Fractures. And they are up top, too, but they’re paired with royal families.”

“Paired?”

“The highguilds have their own business to run in the Fractures, and oftentimes rarely go up to Haven to begin with. But when, for example, the Harrowgates do venture up top, they’re kings and queens. But there’s also literal kings and queens, distinct from the wayfaring family. Either appointed or allied by them. It’s a weird ecosystem. Royal families paired to wayfaring ones.”

“Huh.”

“Why do you ask?”

“Just curious. Where do the Sovereign fit in?”

“Not many of us go to Haven. And we don’t have territory there. The Sovereign generally just … like being left alone. And progressing. That’s the whole point. All the wars and politicking is for the highguilds. I guess you could call us wayfaring purists.”

Wars and politicking. Zoey assumed there was a lot of that, however much she hadn’t faced it directly. Pushing deeper into that topic felt a little heavy for a date, though, so she pivoted to something else.