Chapter Ten:
“A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down!”
-L. BORGIA
“JUST let the energy flow.”
“That’s easy for you to say!”
“Did I stutter?”
“You know, Hot Stuff, maybe it would be better if I…”
“Quit talking and concentrate, Massha.”
“You started it.”
“And I’m finishing it. Focus on the candle!”
If some of that sounds vaguely familiar, it should. It’s the old ‘light the candle’ game. Theoretically, it builds a student’s confidence. In actuality, it’s a pain in the butt.
Apprentices hate the candle drill. I did when I was an apprentice. It’s a lot more fun when you’re on the teaching end.
“Come on, Skeeve. I’m getting too old to learn this stuff.”
“And you’re getting older the longer you stall, apprentice. Remember, you came to me to learn magic. Just because we’ve gotten distracted from time to time doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten completely. Now light the candle.”
She turned her attention to the exercise again with a mutter I chose to ignore.
I had been thinking hard about my conversations with Aahz and Chumley. The whole question of what to do about the challenge from the Kid was touchy enough that for once I decided to seek the counsel of my advisors before making a commitment I might later regret.
Wiser heads than mine were addressing the dilemma at this very moment. Unfortunately, aforesaid wiser heads were in total disagreement as to what course of action to follow.
Aahz was in favor of refusing the match, while Chumley insisted that a refusal would only inflame the situation. He maintained that the only sane way out would be to face the Kid and lose (no one seriously thought I would have a chance in such a game), thereby getting me off the hot seat once and for all. The main problem with that solution was that it involved voluntarily giving up a substantial amount of money . . . and Aahz wouldn’t hear of it.