Kenan, now 13 years old, jumped out of his bed. By the dismal light outside, and the eerie feeling nothing is moving, he woke before anyone else in the house. He knew he would, he had been for the last week. His birthday was today. It wasn’t like any other birthday mind you.

Today, he would learn magic.

Every child, whether you be male or female. Orc, Dwarf, or elvish. At the age of 13 would be the day your body could handle controlled magic. His mother had gone down the path of water, his father was earth. Uncle Doco was telekinesis and Lucy was nature. What he would be, he didn’t know. He could’ve chosen ages ago, but he simply couldn’t.

From his understanding, things his uncle had taught him, everyone had the possibility of learning magic. All it took was time, patience, and wisdom. You can learn in one of three ways. The first, a tome. Something he was getting today. The second was a master or teacher. Lastly, the least common. Experimentation. Feeling the world’s mana and testing what one could. However, people only did that in legends. The entirety of his family had used tomes.

As he was getting dressed, a whirlwind of movement underneath the blankets distracted Kenan from his rapid thoughts. With his shirt half on, he stood in a combat stance, ready for any movement. The beast had awoken.

The movement stopped. Kenan drew in his breath.

The sheets flew off his bed! Tracking the movement, he realized it was all a ploy. Before he could properly react, he saw a black and white blur as he was struck in the chest. He fell to the ground with his breath forcefully ripped out. He saw the muzzle of the beast, and it’s row of sharp teeth. It opened.

Then it licked.

The fox he had adopted six years ago had sensed the energy of it’s master, and reciprocated. It danced and softly howled as it licked it’s best friend. Kenan in turn scratched the furry fuzz ball aggressively.

“You and Dion really make a lot of noise.” A voice from the door. Both fox and boy jumped. Dion, the fox, landed on the bed, ears back, spine low and tail tucked into the body. Kenan merely backed up to the wall. The two quickly realized it was just Doco. Kenan got up, Dion ran over and nipped at Doco’s feet to voice it’s annoyance.

“You make no noise.” Kenan said, rubbing his head.

“You made it for me.” Doco was now playing with Dion and letting him think the fox had tackled it’s foe. “Have you chosen yet?”

Kenan had continued to get dressed. “No. I have no idea. I have thought about it over a thousand times. Nothing sounds better than the other or worse. Everything has a downside, and a good side. I just can’t choose.”

“Hmpf.” Doco lightly kicked Dion, who pounced back with just as much ferocity. “A 12 year-old…”

“Thirteen!”

“A thirteen year old has just stumbled on the basic principle of magic combat.” Either Dion was getting tired or he realized his owner was done getting dressed, because he ditched Doco. Sprang up to Kenan and perched on his shoulder. “I have told you this and, your father, and mother, probably Lucy too have told you. You do not need, nor do we want you to, to pick a magic that you think will be the most useful around here. If something draws you in, pick it. Besides, you can always learn more and different magic. in the future.”

“I know, just… my mind is so jumbled.”

“We all were, kid. Except for Lucy, who walked in and walked out. That's beside the point. Whatever you pick we will support you. As the best we can, anyway.”

“Thank you…” Kenan sucked in his breath rapidly. “May.. I ask a question.”

“You're almost a man, Kenan. You no longer need to ask to question.”

“Why is it, you, mother and father have only learned one form of magic? You can learn more, right?”

“Good question.” He lifted his hand and the fox lifted too. It squealed in an annoyed manner. That was enough. Another stream of conscience went into tying Kenan's shoes together. “There are a few answers. One, we don’t really need to. Even if I wasn’t here, your mother and father would have an easy time farming. Most people who learn multiple forms are nobles, adventures and wizards. Two, it takes time, and filling your head with another magic is hard. Imagine, your mother, a water user, wants to learn fire. The way fire and water are formed from magic are polar opposites. Therefore she would have to go completely against her muscle memory. It is difficult, but can be done.”

“But weren’t you an adventurer?”

“Ha.” Doco laughed. “A soldier, not an adventurer. Two very different things. A soldier is beholden to their country. An adventurer is only beholden to their own convictions.” He then lightly dropped Dion back on top of Kenan. “Well, I’ll be waiting outside. You're going with me today. Your father has to tend the crop.” With that he left.

Kenan sighed in relief. While he loved his father, his uncle gave off an air of ease. It made his nerves calm a little bit more. He took a step forward. Thunk! Hitting the hard ground. Dion jumped off and gave a fox laugh. Kenan grimaced, flipped over and untied, then retired his shoes. While normally his primary function at this point would go into getting back at his uncle. All thought currently went into what his choice of magic he would be taking.

He then tip-toed his way out of the room. Painfully aware that his mother and father were sleeping in the room across from him. Dion at his heels, not making any noise. He successfully made his way outside. Where he saw his Uncle, with two horses. The first, his uncles, a large female that was slightly red. Then his own, a large black male. He got the beast just a year ago on his twelfth birthday.

Doco, who had already put the saddles on both horses. Looked at Kenan. “You ready?”