Mab
March 23, 2023 12:54 AM
Full circle by Mab
Mab’s first introduction to the magical world had been getting arrested by aurors when she was eleven. It had been confusing at first, finding herself abruptly in a world where ‘underage magic’ and ‘magic against muggles’ were the main crimes she was accused of, and eventually found guilty of, and ‘stealing from muggles’ had been something of an afterthought, tacked on more because that had been the spell she’d been using than because they seemed at all concerned about it.When the dust settled, and Mab found herself living in Bel’s house, the auror fostering her had obviously been entirely clear that stealing was not appropriate and Mab wasn’t allowed to do it, but Bel also took away all of Mab’s need to steal. Bel wasn’t quite wealthy but she was upper middle class, and there was enough food, enough money to pay the family’s bills, and enough to buy basically anything Mab would dare ask for. Even if Bel didn’t buy whatever Mab wanted straight out, she had always given Mab a way to earn it.
There’d been no reason to steal.
There still wasn’t. Mab’s situation was comfortable these days. She’d graduated most of a year ago, and was now done with her first semester at Boston University majoring in Behavior and Health.
She’d turned nineteen a few weeks ago and she had a good school-home balance. She’d done the living at school thing before and was entirely happy to skip it and save on housing costs now. She had gotten along well enough with Leonor but she had no desire to try the roommate lottery again, thank you very much. She got her own soundproof and private room at home and the chance to be a family with all five of them for more than just a couple months at a time. It was good.
She maybe hadn’t made any friends yet, but she was okay with that, too. She was here to learn, and she had Alexander at home, and she’d never been great and finding people she liked anyway.
But.
That junior had just been entirely out of line with that sophomore and . . . well, it was an old instinct, one that came back as easily as riding a bike, and now she had his wallet in her pocket. She palmed the bills, then sent the wallet back, slipping it back into his pocket as unnoticed as it had come out, though this was not a skill she had perfected as a child. Still, she was a witch and quite good at this sort of manipulation now that she’d learned how to merge her childhood ‘fairies’ with wandless, nonverbal spellcasting.
Some things came easier to her than others but this? This was exactly what she was best at: subtle misdirection and relocation.
As he walked away, she added a mild clumsy jinx in the hopes that he’d stub his toe on the way back to the dorms, because Mab was vindictive and he more than deserved it. Then she moved toward the heavyset sophomore. “Hey,” she called to the slightly older student, stepping quicker to fall into stride with them. “Don’t listen to that bastard. He’s an a-hole. He’s the one wasting space, and your clothes are fine.” Nothing fancy. Shapeless. Boring. Cheap. But comfortable looking. Mab liked them. “Look, it’s lunch time, I just got paid, and there’s a waffle shop around the corner I want to try. You in? My treat.”
She didn’t know exactly how much she had stolen yet, but by his preppy clothes and better-than-you attitude, she’d guess there were at least a couple twenties in the handful of bills she’d taken. More than enough to pay for maple syrup therapy for his victim.
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Mab
Full circle
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