4 – We’re not in Canada

Jonny was 90% sure he wasn’t in Canada. He didn’t really pay attention to politics, but he was pretty sure that if the Canadians could use magic, he would have heard about it. He definitely would have heard if the Americans could use magic, and since those were the only two countries with American-sounding accents, that could only mean he was somewhere else.

Where the hell am I?

He didn’t know anywhere in the world that people used magic. Not real magic at least. Jonny had believed in magic when he was younger after one of the older kids on the street showed him some card tricks, but when he figured out how to do them himself, the magic disappeared. That firework thing his father had done though… Now that was real magic. Unless he had a firework launcher prosthetic finger. But Jonny had grabbed that finger a few times, and it felt like a regular finger to him.

Will I be able to learn magic too?

“Oh, did you like that?” asked his father. “Would you like to see it again?”

Jonny realized that he had been subconsciously smiling, but he didn’t mind. That just made it more likely that he would get what he wanted.

“Archie, no,” said Melinda.

Archie, yes!

Jonny babbled and waved his arms, hoping to appear like a happy baby, and it seemed to have worked. His father reached his hand back out and shot off three more in quick succession. Jonny couldn’t help but laugh, and his laughter made his father laugh, and a moment later, even his mother started chuckling.

Soon after that though, Jonny started to get drowsy again. He cursed internally at his weak infant body, but there was nothing he could do. Crawling had taken a lot of energy out of him. He drifted off in his mother’s arms, and dreamt of nonsense, as usual, but there was an anticipation that hadn’t been there before.

The following months passed peacefully and before long, Jonny’s first birthday had arrived. During the preceding months, he had figured out how to stand up (mostly), walk (five steps unaided was his record), hold a spoon (he couldn’t use it properly yet), and best of all talk. He could only say a few words, but every time his parents smiled when he said “Mama” or “Dada,” he felt a strange warmth in his heart.

I never had a Mama or Dada before, but this is pretty nice, he thought.

During that time, he had also seen quite a bit more magic. Or maybe it was just that his vision was clearer and he knew what to look for. The maids used casual magic all the time to help them clean or lift heavy things, while his father liked to put on light shows for him. He had yet to see his mother doing any, but he was pretty sure she could do it too. Unfortunately, Jonny could not.

He heard his parents talking, and he saw the disappointment in their eyes with every week that passed where he didn’t show any magical signs, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t do it. And he tried hard. He had actually taken an emergency trip to Arnold after passing out from holding his breath too long while concentrating.

Because of this, his first birthday party was rather subdued. A few months before, his father Archie had talked about throwing a party big enough that the whole kingdom would talk about it, but the closer it drew to the time, the smaller the occasion got. Now that it was the actual day, it had just become a simple, single-day ball. Jonny still thought this was far too extravagant for a baby’s birthday party, especially when he couldn’t actually enjoy any of it, but whatever.

He napped through most of it, only fully waking up and engaging near the end as people were leaving. With everyone gone, his parents visibly relaxed, though they remained nervous. Jonny could tell something was up, but at first, he couldn’t figure out what it was. Then, he thought back to the conversation they had had months ago about getting him tested. Jonny had never liked being tested, so he started to share in some of his parents’ nervousness.

They brought him to a room in a remote part of the castle that he had never been to, and there waiting for them was Arnold. They closed a heavy, vault-like door, and then his father walked around the room waving his hands like a maniac for a few minutes before returning to the center with a grim expression.

“Let’s begin,” he said.

Jonny was placed on a stone pedestal in the center of the room, and was gently forced into lying on his back. Archie stood on one side with Arnold on the other, and Melinda watched from in front with concern. Archie reached out and placed a hand on Jonny’s chest, making him shiver.

“Dada?” he asked.

“It’s okay, buddy,” said Archie with a smile. “This isn’t gonna hurt a bit.”

Archie lied. It did hurt. It started as just a bit of warmth in his chest, emanating from his father’s hand, but soon, it spread throughout his entire body and began to intensify to the point it felt like his body was on fire. It wasn’t more than Jonny could handle, but it was more than his infant body could handle, and he started crying.

Archie pulled his hand back and the warmth immediately started to fade, and Melinda snatched him up and started rocking him in her arms to help soothe him. None of the adults said a word at first. Then, Archie spoke.

“Fuck!” he shouted, slamming his fist down on the pedestal.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Is he really…?” started Melinda.

“Yes,” said Arnold, nodding gravely. “Complete blockage. He will never be able to use magic.”

Jonny started crying again, this time for real.

The next few days were tense. The maids didn’t seem any different, but both Archie and Melinda were unusually grim. Even when playing with Jonny, they would only smile briefly before going back to brooding. They tended to avoid talking about anything serious when he was around and awake, but he still caught snippets.

“…can’t announce this,” Melinda was saying as Jonny woke up from his nap.

He stayed perfectly still, hoping they wouldn’t notice he was awake.

“We can’t keep it hidden either,” said Archie. “We need to do something.”

“As soon as they know he can’t use magic, he’ll be an outcast! They’ll never let him inherit!”

“They don’t have a choice. He’s my son, so he will get my inheritance.”

“You know that’s not what I meant.”

“If they try to lay a hand on him-”

“You can’t protect him all the time!”

“I can, and I will.”

“But what if you can’t?”