Cadmus was late. Benni and Syliph sat in a booth at Uncle Jeffy’s Speed Burger, the fluorescent lights buzzing faintly above them. The scent of greasy fries and over-salted burgers filled the air, a stark contrast to the anticipation hanging between them.
Benni was slouched in the worn vinyl seat, idly playing Candy Crush, while Syliph sat upright, hands neatly folded, exuding an almost ceremonial patience as he waited for their magic lesson to begin.
Benni glanced up from their game, raising an eyebrow at Syliph’s attire. “Why did you dress up for this?” they asked, popping a fry into their mouth. “It’s just Cadmus. And he asked us to meet here of all places. It can’t be that important of a lesson if we’re doing it in public.”
Syliph adjusted the lapels of his neatly pressed coat and smiled. “It’s a magic lesson. I always dress up for these.”
Benni shrugged. “Fair enough. But that’s when Dad teaches. You never know what lesson he’s gonna throw at you, so you have to dress for anything.” Their eyes flicked to Syliph’s face. “But you look kinda daft wearing safety goggles in a burger joint.”
Before Syliph could respond, the door swung open, and Cadmus finally strolled in, pulling off his sunglasses. In his other hand, he held a Black Star Frappe—a caramel mocha from the café next door, its whipped cream still intact despite the walk over.
The cashier behind the counter opened their mouth, probably about to recite the usual no outside food or drink policy, but Cadmus shot them a withering look. The kind that said, mind your business, you don’t get paid enough to care. After a beat, the cashier just shrugged and went back to the fryer.
Cadmus turned toward his younger siblings, flashing a tired but warm smile. “There you two are! Forces, what a day. I just had to sit through an excruciating amount of political nonsense—all that just to be told which of my businesses to sell off so I don’t get slapped with a monopoly charge. Can you believe it? Really.”
He took a sip of his frappe, exasperation rolling off him in waves as he slid into the booth across from them.
“So,” he continued, setting his drink down, “Dad wanted me to teach you two the importance of wands and…” He glanced at his phone. “And how they direct magic to a point. Plus, how other magical foci work as well.”
He reached toward Benni’s tray, aiming for a fry, only to be met with a sharp slap on the back of his hand.
"Unlike you," Benni huffed, pulling their tray closer, "we don’t have jobs and infinite money for fries."
Cadmus gave a dramatic sigh, looking momentarily wounded. "Fair point." Without missing a beat, he turned toward the counter. “Hey, you. Two fries to the table, quick as you can.”
The cashier, who had already decided not to bother arguing with him, gave a resigned nod and dropped two more baskets into the fryer.
Turning back to his siblings, Cadmus finally noticed Syliph’s eyewear and frowned. "Syliph… you’re blind. Why are you wearing safety goggles? Take ’em off."
Syliph hesitated. “Oh… well, I just wanted to be safe in case anything explodes?”
Cadmus rolled his eyes. “Nothing’s gonna explode today. Relax.”
He spun around, reaching back toward the condiment station. With a quick swipe, he grabbed a handful of straws and turned back to the table. “Now—wands,” he announced, stripping the paper off a couple with dramatic flair. He held one up between his fingers. “These… are wands, right?”
“Wrong. Those are straws,” Benni deadpanned.
Cadmus smirked, letting out a low chuckle. “Nope. These are wands. Watch.”
He pointed one of the straws toward a garbage can outside the restaurant, took a deep breath, and—rather than an incantation—let out a loud, exaggerated burp.
The lid of the garbage can rattled, popped off, then shot straight into the air before landing back in place with a clank.
Benni tried to remain unimpressed, but the sheer absurdity of Cadmus burping a trash can lid into the air was objectively hilarious. Despite their best efforts, a chuckle slipped out.
"Okay, sure… straws can be wands."
Cadmus grinned, victorious. "Yes… but in this case—" He held up the straw, and they all immediately noticed that it hadn’t survived its encounter with his burp magic. The plastic was bubbling and curling back, as if it had been scorched from the inside out.
Benni blinked. "Uh. That feels like a design flaw."
Syliph, still wearing his safety goggles, nodded sagely. "This is why I prepare for explosions."
"The point is," Cadmus continued, shaking the ruined straw for emphasis, "anything can be used as a magical focus. This straw, that fry, my frappe—" He gave his drink a protective glance. "But I like my frappe."
He leaned forward, tapping the table. "If you're ever in a bind, keep that in mind. If you wanna get fancy, though, a proper wand—wood, crystal, metal—will last a lot longer than some random object. In a pinch, even a pencil will do, but those tend to burn at the tip if you push too much power through them."
Benni looked at the melted straw again. "Yeah, no kidding."
"What we call wands is just a general term for anything that helps focus magic to a point—kind of like a laser pointer." Cadmus scanned the room for another example, his eyes landing on a gumball machine near the counter. A thought struck him, and he pulled two quarters from his pocket, flicking them across the table toward Syliph.
"Syliph, get me two gumballs."
Syliph caught the coins with ease and, despite still wearing his safety goggles, moved toward the machine without question.
Benni caught on quickly. "Okay, gumballs are spherical… so that would make the magic… the same?"
Cadmus grinned. "Very good. Not as dumb as you look with your shoes untied."
Benni instinctively glanced down—only to regret it immediately when Cadmus flicked them on the nose.
"And mad gullible, too," Cadmus added with a smirk.
Benni scowled, rubbing their nose. "Every time," they muttered.
Syliph returned, placing the gumballs in Cadmus’s hand.
Cadmus popped one into his mouth and set the other on the tray. Without hesitation, he tore open a salt packet and poured a little ring of salt around the gumball. Then, for good measure, he added a smear of ketchup beside it.
"Alright," he said, leaning back. "It's small, but I want you to clean up that mess—focusing through the gumball."
Benni stared at the tray. "Wait, why did you add ketchup?"
Cadmus shrugged, chewing his own gumball. "Chaos. Now get to it."
Benni rolled their eyes but did as instructed, taking a deep breath and closing their eyes.
They visualized a pristine metal countertop at the candy store—the kind that was polished to a mirror shine, perfect for pouring freshly melted sugar. Holding that image steady, they focused on the gumball, willing the mess to vanish.
And suddenly, the salt and ketchup were gone.
Cadmus nodded approvingly. "Very good, Benni. Have yourself a taste."
Feeling triumphant, Benni popped the gumball into their mouth—only to immediately gag and spit it back out.
"I hate you," they choked out, grabbing their Coke and taking a desperate gulp.
Cadmus gave a chesire grin, propping his chin on his hand. Tastes like Ketchup and salt huh." Soon the fries arrived and Cadmus began to dig in. "I'm sure you'll get your revenge on me. But until then have some fries curtesy of my infinite money."
