“Hmm…” she hummed. “Maybe. So you transferred it, huh?”
“Yes.”
“That's not how I do it.”
“It's not?”
“No.”
“What's your theory?”
“It's hard to explain. I never even feel the magic. I don't summon it in myself first. I summon it straight into you. Like... if I were you, or part of you. Or vice versa, I guess.”
Everyone contemplated this as they stared at her. Then Quin looked at Serafin. “What do you think? Has she figured out how to manipulate other people's magic?”
“It's hard to say,” Serafin answered, “but I doubt it. It sounds like she's combining… or incorporating, I should say, herself into others. She's not manipulating their magic. Like you said, it's definitely hers. She's just giving them the short-term ability to possess what's hers, the power and the body to handle it. I can't say for sure, but I imagine she can cast any spell she wants using a foreign body. She's working her magic through others.”
“Have you heard of another magician doing the same?” Quin asked, ever intrigued by his angel.
“No,” Serafin answered, “and here's why. All of us, with practice, can bend, break, heal and manipulate a body and its physical functions, inside and out. And we can negatively affect another's spells by magically tweaking the brain with corporeal force, which scrambles the senses. We can even boost another's magic with emotional encouragement and physical contact, which is simply a manipulation of the psyche, a stimulation of soul and personality. But we can't make a person do what they're not meant to do. We can't make their magic and body surpass what they were made to handle. We can't create within them something that wasn't there to begin with. We can speed up a heart, but if we pump it faster than it was made to withstand, it's going to bust. If we provide a body with magic it's not built for, it's going to break or burn or freeze or explode. I have a feeling Layla can prevent those consequences. Now keep in mind this is all speculation, but from what little information we have, I’d say that, with a touch, she gains... an equal of sorts, and somehow, while that equal remains cognizant, in control of their mind and body, she's in there, too, molding their bodies to meet her requirements while mentally operating from within. She's, in a sense, living inside them, raising them to her level.”
Quin found Layla's face and smiled. “Does that sound right?”
“Kind of,” she answered, “but I never really thought of it like that. I didn't put that much consideration into it.”
“Thinking up and performing that kind of magic is probably as natural to you as hovering is to everyone else.” He paused and ran a forefinger down the bridge of her nose. “No wonder it feels so good when you share your magic. You become part of me, and I can't think of anything more pleasing than that. You're incredible.”
“Thank you, but it sounds kind of creepy – living in someone else. Not you of course. I could live in you forever. But others.”
“You're not, though. You're doing it with a touch. It's wonderful magic, Layla.”
“I guess.”
“I know,” he countered. Then he kissed the tip of her nose and looked at Serafin. “I'm not working the magic like she is. Does that mean I shouldn't fill people with a full dose of heat?”
“I wouldn't try it yet,” Serafin advised. “With some experimentation, you might be able to do what she's doing. Or you might be able to adjust your own theory to compensate. It's undiscovered territory, so it's going to take trial and error to get it right. We'll need to figure out a way for you to safely test yourself.”
“And we will,” Kemble cut in, giving Quin’s shoulder a proud slap before returning to his chair. “Have you experimented with Layla's trick?”
Layla and Quin grinned and answered in unison. “Yes.”
Layla laughed as she turned her face into his neck, and his smile stretched as he drifted his lips across her hair. “It was fantastic,” he recalled. “I don't think you guys will believe it until you see it. If the media reports a meteor landed off the coast of Oregon last night, don't buy into it.” He paused, remembering they were even stronger now. “I can't imagine what we can do now. It might be difficult to figure out. We’ll need a huge testing area.”
“How large was your combined fireball before?” Caitrin asked.
“I can’t say for sure,” Quin answered, “but it was unlike anything I've seen or heard about. I wouldn't feel comfortable trying it on our lawn.”
Everyone's foreheads wrinkled, and Quin laughed as he shook his head. “Just wait. You'll believe it when you see it. We'll have to figure out a safe place to play. Then we'll test our new abilities.”