Angela could barely contain her excitement as father led her up the short path that led to Emillia’s house. Even her mother and brother’s reluctance to acknowledge Emillia couldn’t bring the young girl's mood down as she all but skipped behind her father, after all it was now clear to her they simply did not understand just how amazing her sister was.

When Angela had told them about Emillia’s house mom and Jonathan had all but refused to believe her and though they had said mean things about Emillia, she knew the truth Emillia was special, she just had to be. Angela had seen plenty of other noble houses, even the castle, and none of them were like her sister’s home. The enchanted walls were a testament to just how amazing Emillia was, and if she could just get them to see that. And the bracelet she was about to pick up today was the first step.

Her eldest brother Johnathen had been… upset with her when he learned she had gone to Emillia to get a bracelet, but even he had to admit the one he got her wasn’t even comparable to the ones Emillia made. And it’s not like I’m not thankful for the one he got me.  She thought looking down at the uncomfortable stone bracelet she wore. It was a gift from her brother so of course it was special to her, but Angela could have more than one piece of jewelry… right? Its not like she would never wear this one, and she would still wear it at her ball but… 

“Lord McGrave,” a soft woman’s voice called out, causing the two to stop. Well, dad stopped, Angela walked into his back having been lost in thought. Angela rubbed her nose as she looked around her father who hadn’t even moved when she walked into him. “What a pleasant surprise running into you here, is there anything I can assist you with?” Riley, Emillia’s maid, stood in the path with her head bowed to them. 

Angela immediately noticed several odd things about the woman. First of all, she didn’t seem to bow as deeply as the other maids and butlers, instead she inclined her head much the same way other nobles did when greeting them. That and she didn’t seem to be in her uniform she normally wore, instead she wore a very casual dress with heavy walking boots on, she looked… Well, Riley was very pretty. Even in commoner clothing she still stood out with her bright red hair and soft features, though dressed like that she might be able to blend into a crowd in town. Though that’s also not what caught the young girls eyes.

On both of Riley’s arms were the bracelets! Even not glowing Angela couldn’t mistake the intricately carved pieces of wood that gave off a faintly magical feeling, and though she couldn’t be positive, Angela was sure the metal ring the woman wore was also enchanted; even from here she could see a thin red line that webbed across the metal in an enthralling pattern. 

As she inspected the ring, Angela saw another odd… item. Strapped to her waist on a thick leather belt was a bag with strange… Symbols on it, almost like writing but Angela had never seen script like that before. The symbols flowed into one another in an almost… childish way, even Angela could tell the stitching was not great. Then again, if she could have read the words, she would have known that it was Riley’s name spelled out in cursive… in English. 

It wasn’t just the strange rune-like word on the bag. Angela could feel it, in her gut she knew that bag was enchanted. Not only that, its enchantment was… stronger than the bracelets. It was hard to describe since everyone perceived magic differently but to her it was like a faint tingling in her gut. Like looking at Riley, Angela could feel the woman had magic, like a faint pressure in her stomach almost as if she was just starting to get full; that feeling you get before the last bite of a big meal. 

If she looked at dad when he wasn’t holding his magic back it would feel like someone was standing on her stomach was the best way she could describe it.

So that bag was… odd. When Angela focused on it, it felt like someone was patting her stomach when she was full. Which was really strange since normally enchantments wouldn’t feel like anything or if they did, it would be faint, even the table with a dozen magical stones had only been a slight tingle to her. but that unassuming leather bag had more magic in it than even Riley had in her whole body…

Before dad could speak Angela blurted out, “Did Emillia make that bag for you?” Her excitement was clear in her voice as she ran past her father to the woman who looked momentarily surprised by the young girl’s exuberance. 

“And a good morning to you as well, Lady Angela,” Riley said, her shocked expression quickly giving way to a smile as she greeted the young girl. Her tone was soft, almost musical, but the way she said it Angela couldn’t help but feel embarrassed; she had been taught proper etiquette after all and rushing at someone and blurting things out wasn’t it, and it was clear in her almost motherly tone Riley knew that as well.

“Sorry,” Angela stopped and inclined her head in greeting, careful to not bow since it would be improper for a noble to bow to anyone beneath their status. “Good morning, Miss Riley.” 

Riley laughed, just a faint giggle as she covered her mouth with her hand. “There is no need for formalities Lady Angela, I am just a maid after all.” 

That only slightly confused Angela, Riley was a mage, sure not an overly powerful one but mom always told Angela that she should address mages properly… was she wrong on Riley’s magical power? It was possible, Angela had learned that since all people had to go on most of the time was vague feelings of someone’s power, but she had never been wrong before; and she was positive Riley had more magic than most commoners who only gave her slight tingles. She would need to ask dad about that later, but for now.

“And yes,” Riley patted the bag warmly, “Emillia had made this for me when for when I go into town.” She sighed softly, “Despite my protest that it was too much for me she still insisted.” That last part was clearly not meant to be heard.

“A spatial storage?” Dad interjected, his brow furrowing as he looked down at the bag as if finally noticing it. His eyes widened slightly as he added, “And she made it herself?”

Riley smiled, “yes.”

“That’s really impressive,” Angela turned to her father, “Isn’t it?”

“Yes, yes, it is.” Dad patted her head, “So much so it is used as the standard for a master’s title in the enchanter’s guild in the capital, even our own branch in town cannot create them.” Dad would never admit that he had been researching enchanters since our last visit, but Angela knew he had gone to the guild hall yesterday to try and get a better feeling for just how impressive Emillia was. “May I?” he asked, gesturing to the bag.

Angela smiled to her dad as Riley handed him the bag, “This… just how much can this hold?” he asked as he opened the bag only to pause. “It's full of bandages?”

Riley coughed, “Well… Lady Emillia is prone to injuring herself, so I try to keep bandages and salves on me at all times. I may have forgotten to empty it on my way out this morning.” The faint blush on Riley’s cheeks was wasted on the two who didn’t even notice her cuteness. 

“That is…” dad sighed, “Alarming.” He closed the bag and handed it back to her. “Thank you for keeping an eye on her, Riley.” 

This time Riley actually bowed, “Please, my lord, do not mention it. It is truly an honor.” Clutching the bag to her chest, Angela could feel the sincerity in her voice before she stood back up. “May I ask what brings you both out here today?'' Riley changed the subject, just a little relieved Lord McGrave hadn’t taken the bag as it was a very real possibility given the cost and rarity of it. Riley knew exactly how expensive one was as she had struggled to buy Emillia a small one years ago; the one Riley bought could only hold a backpack worth of goods where this one was… significantly larger. Infact Riley knew she hadn’t forgotten to take the bandages out, why would she? After all this bag could hold those and all her shopping for the week and still have room to spare, it wouldn’t even crush the bread.

“Emillia invited us.” Angela interjected, “To pick up my bracelets?”

There was a flash of confusion on Riley’s face before she narrowed her eyes slightly. “Really… it must have slipped my mind that it was today. Please, forgive me for not preparing a proper greeting.” her smile seemed… strained as she spoke through clenched teeth. 

Angela didn’t quite catch the implications of her words, but she could feel Riley’s magic spike just like mom’s when she was mad about something. Reinhart however knew that look well, after all it has slipped his mind to tell people important things in the past and… well his daughter’s odd relationship with her maid wasn’t any of his business. Clearing his throat he quickly attempted to move the conversation along. “It's not important.” He matched her strained smile with one of his own, “Besides, we hardly need to stand on formality among family, Riley. I prefer this to a stiff lunch meeting after all.”

Angela could feel Riley’s magic subside slightly as she nodded along with dad’s words. “Still,” Riley turned on her heels as if to lead them, “It would be my pleasure to accompany you. I would be remiss to not at least offer our guests at least that amount of hospitality, family or no.”

“Of course.” Dad placed his hand on his confused daughter’s shoulder and gently nudged her forward to follow Riley. Angela could help but feel that her sister was in trouble somehow.