"Are you going to stand there all night?" Hanna asked without looking over.

I frowned at myself. I was acting like a junior high student. I knew Hanna was good with weapons and a great asset to us with her magic, but I never gave it much thought.

I sat down on the blanket myself and eyed the cemetary. The old darkened headstones looked like broken, rotted teeth sticking up out of the ground. It wasn't exactly the best place to relax but I didn't feel as if we were in any danger.

After a few moments of silence I glanced at Hanna, who was still staring at the stars, and asked, "What was the spell you cast?"

She "hmmm'd?" quietly and rolled her head to look at me. "Just a..." her face scrunched up in thought, "Hard to describe. I basically ran a finger over everything in the cemetary, looking for anything out of the ordinary."

My eyebrows went up slightly, "Oh? You scanned the whole area already?"

She nodded, "Scan, that's a good word for it... yeah."

I smiled unconsciously.

She continued, "I set up a perimeter so that if anything comes in I'll know about it. I guess you could think of it as if I had a web of fishing lines cast out everywhere and they were all attached to my pinky."

She held her hand up and wiggled her pinky at me.

I laughed quietly, "It looked pretty impressive."

She shrugged. "As long as it works, I'll be happy."

My smile fell, "You're not sure if it will work?"

It was her turn to smile. She giggled softly and said, "Noone ever knows if magic will work one hundred percent of the time." She paused a moment, then continued, "I'm pretty confident. I felt your presence, some mundane animals, there were a few... blue? things out further, but nothing we should have to worry about."

I caught her hesitation, "Blue?" I asked.

"Well, when I sense something it sometimes comes in colors. I can visualize it that way. I suppose you can call it auras. It really doesn't come as colors but that's the only way I know how to acknowledge it. Ghosts and supernaturals to me are blue, no reason, I just visualize it that way... monsters and more substantial things are red."

She looked pensive.

I thought about it a little and said, "Why those particular colors?"

She smiled slightly, "I was just wondering that myself. No reason I guess. Blue for ghosts because that's how they normally appear... to me anyway... bluish tint, floaty... As for the monsters, they have blood... it's not always red but blood and red go together for me."

I nodded, understanding. "I see."

"In my mind though, they're not colors. They're notions."

While she was talking I had taken it upon myself to open the cooler and extract two glasses. I began filling them.

"Was it hard for you to learn magic?" I asked, handing her a glass of wine.

I watched her look at the glass in thought, then turn back to me. "Not too much. Almost anyone can learn magic..." again she looked thoughtful, pensive. "but not everyone can become adept at it's use. Does that make sense?"

I nodded, thinking I did.

"Do you think I could?" I didn't really have any intention of it, frankly it all kind of weirded me out... but I was curious what her assessment of me was.

She nodded and said, "Sure. I'm sure you'd do well. You could probably use a few beginner level spells anyway. Small things like finding supernatural things, targeting, haze, meditation..."

I smiled a bit, "Well, thanks... I don't know if I'd want to, really but..."

She nodded, "It's ok, sometimes this stuff weirds people out."

I froze at her stating what I had thought to myself moments before.

"You know," I said, "that's the second time tonight you spoke what was on my mind." I thought about it and added, "Kind of..."

Hanna grinned, "Oh? Magic weirds you out?"

I leaned away from her, "Well, not really... I just wouldn't trust myself with the power I guess."

She thought about that and said, "You trust yourself with your sword, with your guns."

I frowned, "Swords and guns are easy to control. You said yourself noone can say if magic will be one hundred percent effective."

Hanna took a sip of her faux-wine and said, "Not everyone can control swords and guns... and I said noone knew if magic would work one hundred percent of the time."

The symantics of it were lost on me until she finally clarified, "You could give someone all the training you have, but you might not trust them with a sword or a gun. They might not even be able to control it as well as you. I would trust you with magic just as I would trust you with a gun. Your spell might fail you, but I trust you would not use it for malice."

She noticed I was still skeptical and just shrugged. "If you do ever decide to learn... there's a secret no teacher will ever tell you."

I raised an eyebrow.

Hanna took another sip of her wine and held her glass cupped in both her hands.

"Most people who use magic, who have learned it and want to control it go about it the wrong way. Even most teachers haven't really caught on."

I noticed I was neglecting my own drink and took a sip.

"Most people dip into magic like a falling stream of water. They try to cup their hands under it, catch it, then throw it in the direction they want it to go. When they use magic that way it's not as effective, or as efficient, as if they would just help guide it."

After another sip she continued. I noticed her glass getting low so I filled it for her, still intent on her lecture.

"Thanks. If magic, or water, or whatever wants to fall down... let it fall, but aim it in the direction you want. That's all there really is to it. Work with it, not against it... or think that you're it's 'master.'"

I nodded, comprehending what she was saying, "And you say the teachers don't even understand that?"

She shook her head, "I have only met a couple who have... and they don't teach it to their students. I believe it's something they want everyone to learn on their own."

I grinned at her, "Then why are you telling me?"

She blushed suddenly, her face reddening in the moonlight, "Are you sure this isn't alcoholic? My face feels warm."

I smirked, but let it drop.