Bargaining

Lady Judeca investigates the source of a disturbance in the Force, in an effort to finally obtain her perfect apprentice.

The Dark Lady would not have expected such a small village to have a space port, but here she was. It was more of just an assortment of basic landing pads, most of which were occupied with ships belonging to locals. Overall the town was modest and rustic, but it seemed to also attract a few moderately wealthy folks. Presumably looking for a home far away from, well, everything. The Lady, Judeca, could relate. If I ever have to move planets, she noted, I might just keep this one in mind.

Ludos was a practically unknown planet that was technically within the Sith Empire. Technically. It was within the borders, but so on the fringes, and host to nothing remarkable or particularly useful, that it was basically ignored. This town in particular, Kespas, more resembled some independent Outer Rim settlement, at first glance. Until you passed the occasional holoprojector, spouting imperial news reports; or spotted the odd military propaganda poster pasted to the side of a shop or apartment. Some of the wealthier homes were hung with Sith military banners. Likely veterans of the war who managed to retire, and found the quiet they were looking for. Though, unfortunately for them, that quiet had recently been quite dramatically disrupted.

Some few days ago, Judeca felt a disturbance in the Force. Wild, raw, emotional. As if a sudden outburst of pain and fury. And of most interest to her, it felt fresh. As if someone were newly coming into their power. Judeca had dropped everything , the moment she felt it, focusing in on that disturbance. She spent hours in meditation, coasting along those emanating waves in the Force, tracking them to their center. A lesser Sith might have given up, where she did not. But she was better. And she had found that center. On this planet. In this town. This is what the Lady had been waiting for. She had found her apprentice. Almost.

Asking around town, it was not long before Judeca learned what happened. Mostly, at least. The townsfolk were eager to gossip, it seemed. The details of what triggered the event were elusive, but the event itself was clear. A young Zeltron girl had some sort of tantrum at the market. Stalls had been scattered about in a burst of wind. Those nearby complained of a piercing scream that would not be shut out, no matter how one covered their ears. Judeca suspected some sort of kidnapping attempt, as the parents were not nearby when the outburst occurred, at the edge of the market area. Fortunately for them, as the two individuals closest to the girl, most likely the perpetrators, were dead at the scene. One, neck broken and skull fractured, after a rapid collision with a nearby wall. The other, shredded by the mangled debris of the market stall he was flung into. The girl had apparently passed out from the effort, and the parents were quick to scoop her up, and usher her back to their abode, outside of town. Where the family had been ever since the incident.

Judeca now stood amongst the wreckage of where the incident occurred. Observing the scene from the center, where the girl would have been standing. It had been mostly cleaned up by now, the loose debris all gone. But the heftier frames of broken stalls were still here, framing the blast radius. Nearly ten meters from the center. Impressive for such a small child. Apparently, she was about eight years old. Judeca could see the spots on the ground, nearest the center, where a couple stalls used to be. Squares of pavement the sun had not bleached. Those were likely blasted much more thoroughly than the others. Reduced to enough splinters they were carried off in the initial clean up. The visual display was impressive enough, but The Dark Lady wished to have a much deeper picture. Judeca opened up her senses to the Force. Basking in the energies, allowing the dark side to flow through her. There it was. The pain. The fear . The anger. The girl's scream echoed at the edges of her hearing. She could feel the waves of the Force crashing out around her. The shattering of the market stalls, and the assailant's bones. Excellent. She was perfect.

It was easy enough to acquire the location of the family's home. Just west of town. Less than a day's walk even. Judeca opted to travel by foot. She was in no rush. And she wanted to savor the moment.

The region around Kespas was dense, misty forests, butted against, and crawling over, small mountain ranges. The path to the outskirts was relatively, and thankfully, even. But only relatively. The road took frequent inclines, and passed over several chasms connected by bridges. The air was cool, if humid. And peaceful. A welcome respite from the stuffy confines of her ship the Dark Lady had been stuck in for the several days journey here. And the musty halls of her manor before that. She had not been going out lately, and she hadn't realized how cooped up she was feeling, until actually getting out into some real fresh air. Liberating. This really was what she needed. Had she really been in that much of a rut? How did she let herself end up like this? She was a sorceress! A sorceress, a Dark Lady, and a warrior ! Not some old hag, stuck in her ruddy woodland hut, stirring a cauldron of wretched soups! Oh, this would not do at all. It was fortunate this girl had revealed herself when she had. In more ways than Judeca had realized, it seemed.

The walk was getting to be more strenuous than the Lady had expected it to be. Fortunately, the sword she carried, sheathed at her side, also made a fine walking stick, when the need arose. The forests here seemed to lack any real dangers, at least to her, so the blade might as well find some sort of use. Though after several hours of walking, even that wasn't quite enough. A short break wouldn't hurt. She stepped just off to the side of the road, and cleared a small space of the uncomfortable sticks and unsightly rocks. The Lady knelt in meditation, on the damp underbrush, and contemplated her journey. This girl would be her apprentice. That much was certain. But that left the question of how to actually teach. Judeca had a master of her own, years ago, but most of the lessons she wished to teach this young one, she had learned on her own. Sorcery and alchemy were largely ignored fields in the modern Sith, the fools. The more elegant elements of the respective practices, anyway. You still saw some of the more brutish expressions of sorcery from time to time. Mostly more large scale rituals. Thuggish and meat-headed, if you asked Judeca. "Oh, look at you! You siphoned all the life from a planet to become a god! How impressive. I'm sure your mother is very proud of you." It was all very "pick-and-choose-y" when it came to modern Sith. Only engaging with sorcery when they heard of some "big swing" of a ritual to get ahead of their peers, that they would forget about the second it was done. No one immersed themselves in it anymore. No one cared to understand it. It was funny, she thought. Some of Judeca’s peers had called her "covetous" in her desire to collect old artifacts and knowledge. Very bantha calling the bothan hairy, of them. She sought them to analyze . To understand, and unlock. She wanted to know these items, these scrolls. Sure the Sith would turn over whole planets if they thought a powerful talisman that might advance their power was buried in its core, but not one of them gave a damn about studying the kriffing thing! Judeca had to "covet". Anyone else would do it wrong. 

And now she had to teach all of this to an eight year old? She could hardly just toss her a copy of Sorsus Syn's notes and say "Figure it out!"

No. No, she would do this right. There were basics. There were small things to start with. This girl would learn, and there would finally be a sith who understood as the Dark Lady did. The girl would study hard, and study right, and the galaxy would witness the rise of the greatest damned witch there has ever been.

But… There was also the matter of childcare. D****t! Judeca cursed at the realization. Am I really going to raise a child? She didn’t know the first thing about children. This was starting to sound like a worse and worse idea. Quick! What was it like when I was a child? Oh no, we are NOT going there! Perhaps the girl’s parents would be illuminating in that regard. Oh excellent idea, Judeca. “Hello, I am here to take your daughter. Do you have any tips?” Absolutely ridiculous. What the hell am I-

Someone was there. A presence in the Force. Watching. In a single, smooth motion, Judeca rose to her feet. She grasped tightly around her sword, sheathed in her left hand. Ready to draw at a moment’s notice. Another Sith was here, for the girl. D****t all! The Dark Lady had hoped she’d gotten here quick enough to beat out any competition. Fortunately, they seemed keen to make their presence known to her, rather than rush off to grab the girl for themselves. If they wished to simply present themselves to Judeca's blade, she was more than happy to indulge a death wish.

Pulling herself with the Force in a quick dash to the right, the Lady dodged the impact of a rotted log flying at her from amidst the trees. A dark figure flickered through the forest in the distance. Judeca held off on the attack for now, content to wait for an opening, rather than give one to the figure obviously toying with her. She focused her senses on anticipating danger, and adjusted her grip on her scabbard. The strike came from above. The mystery Sith leapt from the high branches, igniting their saber halfway down. Judeca brought her sword and scabbard up in both hands to block the coming overhead strike. The opponent's blade clashed and hissed against the sturdy sheath, as it would have another lightsaber. Judeca’s weapon, and its scabbard alike, were no ordinary weapon. Nor were they of cortosis make. They were the manifestation of the Lady’s studies and practices. Imbued with the Force as were the weapons of the ancient Force wielders, from before even the Jedi and Sith arose. And enhanced further through alchemical processes. They deflected lightsabers with ease. Judeca shifted to her left, parrying the assailant to her right. The figure tumbled in a roll to their knees, as Judeca backstepped a few paces to make some distance. As she backed off, the sorceress reached for the talisman that hung from her neck. A metal medallion, engraved with intricate magical symbols. 

There was, unfortunately, at least one valid reason that sorcery was a lost art, outside of the larger rituals. Focusing the Force into the complex workings of spells took considerably more concentration than raw force abilities, such as a simple kinetic push. Gestures and incantations helped to direct the focus of the mind, and form the necessary mental constructs that gave the spell shape. But these took time to perform, and were easily interrupted by any half-decent opponent. As loathe as Judeca might have been to admit it. But fortunately, there were some shortcuts. The first was, as with all things, practice. The easier the components became to perform, the faster one can perform them. And the more used to casting a particular spell one was, the less effort was needed to form the mental constructs. Theoretically, in time, one might eschew a particular spell's need for incantations and such altogether. Though Judeca had yet to reach that level of mastery for any but some very basic spells, which were of no obvious combat utility. Fortunately, the other shortcut was talismans. Enchanted items designed to augment sorcery. The more advanced ones had powerful abilities all their own, but most simply acted as a focusing tool for the dark side of the Force. Judeca pulled on her inner fury, and her annoyance at this interloper, and sent it through her medallion. Throwing her hand forward, shadows lept from the swirling black tattoos that tangled around her body, and swarmed the other Sith. Black tentacles wrapped around their limbs, anchoring their body in place. The medallion flared with blue light and vibrated against Judeca’s chest, maintaining the spell. Its light shifted to red, flaring brighter as she scowled and poured more of her will into the tendrils, locking the struggling figure down more firmly. They yelped, and their lightsaber fell inactive to the ground with a thud. The threat thoroughly abated, the Lady now had an opportunity to get a better look at this individual, and possibly identify them. They had a feminine figure, clad in low cut black robes, and fishnets hugging their legs. Black hair fell over their face in a silken sheet, which parted as they turned their head up, revealing purple eyes and matching lips.

Judeca knew exactly who this was. “Oh, of course you’re here.” She spat with contempt. 

“Hello, Judy.” The figure purred, face splitting into that obnoxious grin of hers. Lady Vexus. A former lover of Judeca’s, from her days in the Academy. They had their fun, but the scorching flame they burned flickered out shortly after graduation. And yet this cursed woman kept finding ways to continuously insert herself into Judeca’s life. And making it accordingly less pleasant for the time she was there. “You sensed the girl as well, I see?”

“Yes. And she’s mine, Vex. So if you would be so kind as to leave, I would appreciate it.”

“Well, sweetie, my ability to do so seems a touch restricted, at the moment.” Vexus tugged at the tentacles binding her. “Would you be so kind, love?”

Judeca released the spell holding her ex-lover. Reluctantly. Not hiding the displeasure on her face, as the shadowy tentacles dissolved.

Vexus rose to her feet again, rubbing at her limbs where the tentacles had wrapped around. “You’ve gotten rather good at that one, sweetie. Wish you’d learned that when we were dating.” she said, with a wink.

“Lovely. Now, on your way.” Judeca said flatly, as she moved to continue on her path.

Lady Vexus stepped in the way, as Judeca began to walk. “Oh, I don’t think so, my dear.” Vex countered. She gave a light sigh, though it was drenched in unseriousness. As was everything she said and did. “Still think everything is yours for the taking, do we?”

“That would be the basis of our philosophy, yes. Now out of my way, Vex.” the Lady demanded.

“I don’t think so, love. Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but I do believe the Code decrees that all goes to those who are strong enough to take it, yes? Not ‘all goes to the great Lady Judeca.” Somehow Vex’s face continued to redouble in its smugness, with each infuriating thing she said. And Judeca had just about enough.

The Dark Lady’s scowl deepened. “Really Vex, must you take THIS from me, as well? Finally my perfect apprentice appears, and you couldn’t just settle for some academy graduate? You simply MUST insert yourself into my domain?” Judeca shouted.

Vex put a hand to her chest, in a look of feigned hurt. “My love, I could not simply settle for any less than the best! What do you take me for?”

Lady Judeca thumbed the guard of her sword, popping it free of its sheath, and drew it with her right hand. The blade gleamed, even in the low light of the misty forest, and its runes burned blue with power. The Lady leveled it at her opponent. “An obstacle.”

***

The overcast sky was growing dark by the time Judeca arrived. Hopefully the family was not too tired yet. This would already be a hard enough conversation as it was, and the Dark Lady was already entirely over this day. But if her earlier encounter was any indication, she could not afford the risk of this taking any more time.

The family home was modest, but nice. Deceptively modest, even. Like it could belong to either a middle class family that got lucky with a good loan, or an upperclass family trying to appear middle class. It was large, but not opulent. Plenty of space for a child to explore, without getting too far away. The mother was apparently a nurse, but the father remained a mystery. Some of the locals had just chalked him up to being retired, but none could say from what, and so Judeca remained skeptical.

The Dark Lady approached the front door, and rang the doorbell. Oh, how very polite she was being. Judeca found herself relieved at how isolated she was at the moment. How embarrassing for a Dark Lady of the Sith. Come to claim her apprentice, as is her right, and here she was. Nervous to approach a pair of middle class parents. She could feel a tightness in her chest, with the building anticipation as the seconds passed before the door finally opened. Before her, appeared what must have been the mother. A Zeltron woman, clad in well worn nurse scrubs, that looked like they had been long retired from work duty, into the role of comfortable house wear. She had freckled pink skin, and jet black hair, done up in a messy bun. Her tired, crimson eyes were wide at the sight of the Sith Lady before her, it seemed.

“Hello, madame.” Judeca greeted with what she hoped was her best disarming smile. “I am Lady Judeca. You are Yana Dre’Kaeri, correct?”

 

“No… no, you cannot be here.” Yana declared. She had an accent that reminded Judeca vaguely of Dathomirian, though not quite. A little less thick. “Leave! You will get nothing from us, Sith!” Her voice trembled slightly, yet there was a strength there. She clearly knew why Judeca was here, and was not about to just give up her daughter. The Lady had to respect it. But unfortunately, she could not abide by it.

“Please, Madame Dre’Kaeri. If you would be so kind, I would like to just have a conversation. And I believe it to be in your best interest to indulge this offer.” Judeca kept her tone level, and did her best to suppress her usual smugness, and contempt. 

“Oh stow your colored words! Do not attempt to lie to me, and make me believe this will be a pleasant interaction!”

Another voice called out from further in the house. “Is something wrong, Yana? Who is it.” A deeper voice. Presumably the father. He came down the hall to join the two at the doorway, drying his hands on a dish towel, and draping it over his shoulder. He was a fit man, but nothing particularly remarkable. Of slightly redder skin, and bluer hair than the mother. "Ah. And who is this?" He asked in a casual, if slightly amused tone?

"It calls itself Lady Judeca, and was just leaving." The absolute venom pouring from this woman was impressive. 

"Ah. I see." He resigned, soberly. "We should have this conversation inside, then. Come in." He invited Judeca with a twitch of his head.

Yana whipped her head around, eyes wide, at her husband. "Vannick!" 

The man placed a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder. "Please, Yana. We will get nowhere, like this."

The fiery woman deflated a bit. Resigned, but still not about to drop the hostility, she glared back at Judeca. "Very well. Come, Sith . We will talk in the kitchen."

"Wonderful. My thanks." She gave a shallow nod, and followed the pair inside. They moved through a small entry hall, that lead directly into a rather nice kitchen. Two doorways lead to a stairway, and what appeared to be a living room, respectively. Judeca could sense the girl in the next room. She was moving something with the Force. Likely playing with some toys or such. She wondered how long the girl had known of her powers. She would be able to ask just that, in a moment. The Lady took a seat at a small table off to the side, propping her sword in front of her and resting her hands on the pommel. The father, Vannick, took the seat across from her. Yana remained standing, leaning against a countertop. Both parents seemed to have a firm grasp of the situation they were in. Both knowing full well why Judeca was here. She wondered if this would make the proceedings easier, or more difficult. "I suppose I will simply be out with it. Yes, I am here for your daughter. I wish to take her as my apprentice. And no, I do not expect you to just give her to me."

"Good, then we are done here before we have even started." Yana replied. "What, do you expect to convince us that taking our daughter will be good, actually?"

"No, I mean to inform you that it is in your best interests to do so." Judeca replied, plainly.

"Very well then. Say your piece, Dark Lady." Vannick said. Judeca sensed the man knew already what she was going to say, but was letting her speak regardless. This man understood well how things worked, even if he didn't like it. It was hard to sense, under the intense malice radiating off of the mother, but Vannick had a cold, controlled fury, somewhere deep down. Judeca found this very interesting. 

"First I would know a bit about her. How long have her powers been manifest? Was the market incident the first sign?" The Dark Lady asked.

"She began showing about a month ago." Yana answered. "We caught her outside playing catch with herself. She nearly knocked herself over every time she called the ball back, it was nearly twice her size." The mother caught herself smiling at the memory, before growing dark again when she looked back to Judeca. "We had hoped we were far enough away from everything. Maybe no one would notice. But then the market happened."

"Has she expressed any other abilities? Precognition? Telepathy?"

"If she has, I am not sure if we'd notice." Vannick answered. "She was always hard to keep up with, but hard to tell if it was just the energy of a child, or the Force."

"I see." Judeca pondered. It was hard to identify Force abilities in children, aside from the most overt. Telekinesis, mostly. But a little practice, a few lessons, and the girls talents would make themselves known. "So, how is she. After the incident. Quite harrowing, from what I've learned."

Yana looked over her shoulder, towards the living room where the girl was somewhere playing. "She doesn't remember it at all. She was unconscious when we got to her. Woke up later in bed, like nothing happened. She thinks she just got tired while we were out, and fell asleep. Normal, for her."

Judeca looked down at her sword, fiddling with it with her fingers. "Glad to hear. That is good."

"If you are so concerned for her well being, then you can leave her with us . Her parents."

"The best thing to do for her safety, and yours, is to send her with me." Judeca countered.

"And why is that, exactly?"

"Because I am not the only one who will come for her." Judeca stated, grimly. "I already encountered one other Sith on my way here, today. They are no longer a threat, do not worry. But, there will be others. And I can all but guarantee that they won't be as diplomatic as I am."

 

"So you are the least awful, got it. Well, you've sold me!" Yana sneered.

"Look, either I can leave, and you can wait for the next Lord to come, kill you, and take her anyway. Or you can save the girl a whole new world of trauma, and send her with me." Judeca said, firmly. She came off a little shorter in her tone than intended, but the point was made, regardless. As tense as the conversation was, this was actually the easy way. "If you want me to leave, then so be it. I will just wait for the next Sith to come, and kill them when they try to take her, and claim her for myself. The choice is yours now." She let that point hang in the air.

"Will you take care of her?" Vannick broke the silence.

The Dark Lady met his gaze. It felt like staring right down the barrel of a blaster. She was not expecting this. It was exhilarating, if she was honest. The man definitely had some sort of colored history, she was certain. This was not the demeanor of some backwoods farmer, or whatever. He had a thorough understanding of the situation at hand.

"She will be trained as a Sith." Judeca answered. "And you can expect her to experience all that such a thing entails, in accordance with our code. All the pain and hardship. And all the strength and power that comes with it. But I am not interested in the modern institutions of the Sith. She will not attend the academy, and she will not face the trials of ascension, as the Emperor and Lords of old have set them. She will receive the lessons that I will give her. And she will face the trials that I deem fit. And most importantly, she will not be shuffled off to fight in the Emperor's war. Something the next Sith to show up at your door is likely to do. I however have no desire to see her life, her potential, wasted in some filthy ditch, as I saw become of so many of my peers. She will practice, she will study, she will learn, and if it is any consolation, she will emerge from my care as the most powerful damned witch the galaxy has ever seen. And between the two of us, no one will be able to touch her." 

The parents sat with that for a moment. They did not seem particularly impressed with her speech, but the reality of the situation appeared to be setting in. The flames of the mother's hatred in particular had cooled to a level, simmering disdain, which opened up the space for her fear to rise to the forefront. They  were never going to be happy, or even okay, with what happened to their child after today. It was just as Yana had said earlier. Their only option was to choose what was least awful. The Lady couldn't hold it against them too hard. They weren't concerned with the Force, or the potential their daughter had. Their concerns were much smaller, and unfortunately for them, beneath those of Sith.

Yana moved over to her husband, placing a hand on his shoulder. They gazed at each other, in a silent communication that only they understood, before both turning to the Lady. "Very well, Lady Sith." The father said, soberly. "It seems we have little choice."

"But do not think we will simply take this, sitting down!" Yana declared, as she moved determinedly back to the counter. "If you are to be taking our daughter into your care, you will know how to properly administer that care!" She grabbed a notepad, as she began rattling off a cascade of childcare directions, with which Judeca could hardly keep up. "And that is every morning, you got it? And furthermore…"

Oh dear. The Lady thought. Well, I did in fact ask for this. 

***

Adaya pouted at the pile of wooden blocks in front of her. She was trying to lift them up, but just couldn't get more than one at a time. Not with her hands that is. She could do magic! She wasn't very good at it yet, but one day she would do magic shows for the whole village! But it wouldn't be very interesting if she could only move one block in the air. 

She held her hands out, and concentrated. That was really hard for her. She called it the Whoosh ! The feeling it made when she did magic and lifted things. She felt the Whoosh flow through her arms, and out of her hands, picking up under one of the blocks. The little block twirled and tumbled as it lifted up into the air. Adaya moved it closer so it floated between her hands. The thing wouldn't hold still. It kept spinning around, and rolling. That was another thing she couldn't do yet. Hold things still. The Whoosh was really tumbly.

Maybe she should try that first. If she could make it sit still, maybe then she could do more blocks! She tried to imagine the Whoosh like a string, or a little sheet. Kind of loose and flowing. If she pulled her hands apart, and made it tight, maybe-

Ow!

Okay. Maybe do it slower so it doesn't hit her in the face. She lifted up the block again, and let it roll around for a second. She slowly pulled on the Whoosh around it, slowing the block down a little bit. Trying to counter its spins. It was working! Now it was just kind of tilting back and forth. Just a little more… She did it! The block was staying still! Adaya almost jumped for joy, but she didn't want to drop it. She tried to spin the block a little bit, so the corner wasn't pointing down. It took a few tries, flipping it over a few times, but she got the flat parts to be even, as if the block was sitting on the floor. Awesome! Uhhhhhh… she thought to herself. Okay. Now what? Hmmmmmm…

She tried picking up a second block, but she felt the first one starting to slip. No, that wasn't going to work yet. Oh! I know! She could try stacking them! That would be good practice! If she could stack a bunch of them without knocking them over, then maybe she could do other tricks too! It took a little time. The blocks weren't all the same sizes and shapes. She found it was easier to make the rectangles sit still, than the cubes. She decided to put a rectangle on the bottom, after the first pile fell over. She got the stack to be five blocks high! Hmmmmm… she decided that was enough for now. Didn't want to knock it over. But it still didn't feel impressive enough. It needed something else, to really be a "trick".

 

Adaya held her hands out again. She sent the Whoosh out around the bottom block in the stack. This would take the most care Adaya had ever given to anything ever. If the block tumbled once, it was all over. Slowly, she nudged up on the blocks, with the Whoosh . At first the gap was so small, she wouldn't have been able to slide her finger underneath. But they were up! Technically. She pushed higher, trying to go slow, though it was a little jerky at first. But she was getting it! The blocks moved higher and higher, until they were above her head. She was doing it! They were staying still! This had been frustrating her for so long, she couldn't believe it! Maybe she could get good at magic, after all. It was just like Momma said. You just have to practice.

Momma!

She had to show Momma! And Papa too! She couldn't get up though. The blocks might fall over.

"Momma! Papa!" She shouted. "MOMMA! Come look!"

A moment later Momma came rushing into the room, with Papa close behind. "Adaya? What's wrong-" Momma stopped suddenly when she saw the floating tower of blocks.

"Look Momma! I did it! I did it, I did it, I did it!" 

Momma looked really surprised, with her mouth hanging open. Adaya felt very proud. "That's really good, sweetie. I'm… I'm very proud of you…"

"Thank you, Momma!" 

Papa was quiet, but he was always like that. She knew he was proud too. He would probably tell her later.

Suddenly, some woman in a black dress entered the room. She was blonde and had light skin. And had black markings all over her. And she had a sword! She was kind of scary, but also kind of cool. "Well well, that's very impressive, young one."

"Oh! Thank you!" Adaya didn't realize that she had stopped paying attention, before she heard the blocks clatter to the floor. "Uhhhhhh, oops…"

The woman chuckled. "Still need a little more practice, it seems."

"Yeah, I guess, haha…" Adaya laughed nervously. "Hello! I'm Adaya!" She waved, and gave a big smile, like Momma taught her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Adaya." The woman gave her a little bow. "I am Lady Judeca. I'm actually here to meet you."

"Me?" Adaya asked, surprised, pointing back at herself.

"Yes, of course! I've heard you have special powers. And it seems the rumors were true."

"Yeah! I can do magic!" Adaya threw her hands up suddenly, and the pile of blocks scattered everywhere. She giggled when the grown ups flinched.

"So you can, dear. And so can I." The woman lifted her hand, and all of the blocks, even the ones Adaya hadn't been stacking before, floated into the air. Adaya watched with wide eyes, as they did circles around the woman, coming together in a stack in front of her, mid air. The Judeca lady floated the stack over to Adaya, letting it hang in the air for a moment. The young girl reached out gingerly, to poke them with her finger. The stack collapsed suddenly to the ground, making her jump with a start. She and the woman shared a laugh, when she looked over.

"That was so cool! Can you teach me?" Adaya leaned forward, intently.

"I can absolutely teach you, Adaya. In fact, that is exactly why I'm here." The lady approached Adaya, and knelt down before her. "You are capable of so much more than you realize. And I can teach you to do things you couldn't possibly imagine."

Adaya made a shocked face, her hands clapping to her cheeks. "Oh my gosh, really!? Can I make things disappear? Can I fly?" She asked, jittering with excitement. 

"Well, I don't know about flying. But if you did figure that out, that would make you even more powerful than me."

"Wooooooah…" Adaya was stunned. She couldn't believe it! An actual magic teacher! "You're really going to teach me?" 

"Yes, Adaya." She answered with a smile. "I am going to teach you every last thing I know."

Adaya leapt up to her feet, bouncing up and down making excited noises, before tackling the Lady with a hug. "Thank you miss Judeca! I'm so excited!" 

The girl rushed over to her mother, hopping giddily up and down. "Momma! I'm gonna learn magic! This is the best day ever! Why do you look sad?"