A Wizard's Window to the Soul

The window into her soul was broken. No matter what he tried to do, all he could see was the light refracting off the pieces of glass. They would cut her from the inside out if he wasn't able to fix this. It was a typical Monday. He went looking for one problem and found a completely different one altogether and the sun hadn't even gone down yet. 

This was fascinating though in how unusual it was. The glass floated around like it was suspended even to the smallest piece. If he could find the right spell he could bind them all together again and fuse them into the right mirror. Mirror of the soul, window, toma-toe, tomat-o. He couldn't see anything through any of the fragments either.

Suddenly he pulled his head back away from her and closed his eyes. Finish memorizing the pieces before you get lost. Anyone could get lost in the mirror of someone's soul but it was much harder to get out if they were broken. 

It was like a light bulb went off in his head. Harder to get out but not impossible. He could fix it easier from the inside out but it would bring much more risk to him mostly. 

He peered at the friend who was beside the girl. She was short and quiet and didn't look any older than a child. 

"Did something happen? Did you notice anything odd or do you think there was something that brought this on?"

She shyly met his gaze and shook her head from side to side. 

He looked quickly back to his patient at her brown eyes that were quickly turning to silver. 

One one thousand. Two one thousand. And look away. 

It was enough to give him some answers. 

The only way to fix this was through and by through him going through the mirror of her soul. There was a hint of another colour in the silver and he would have to rely on his instincts for this one. 

"Right," he muttered under his breath. His attention returned to the girl beside his patient. "I will need you to wait outside for this next part." Not surprising she nodded and left the room without so much as a squeak. 

"Right," this time he said with much more enthusiasm. "My dear, this next part is going to hurt me a lot more than it is going to hurt you." He patted her hand and began the spell to bring him through her broken mirror. If he was lucky it would be minor cuts from the glass shards. Extremely lucky to have nothing. And he didn't have time to think of the alternative. It was a level of focus that took years of study to obtain. Silence. No breath. No movement. Everything fades and then swallowed by black. He was no longer in his study with a patient. He was in an abyss staring at a huge wall of a curved mirror in a million pieces. 

"This will hurt me more than you." He repeated. Assurance mattered in these instances. "You shouldn't feel a thing." He spoke into the darkness. He took a moment to get himself motivated and then slowly walked through the broken glass. Slow and steady like a turtle was the only way to do it if you wanted to come out of it with two eyes. Ironically he couldn't close his eyes to shield them and he had forgotten his glasses at home again. 

The glass started to thin until it was small like snowflakes. With one breath out they moved away from him gently like particles in space. He didn't count the steps. This had to all be by feel. The glass had no gravity but he did and as he walked on he could feel the air around him start to chill. All at once a painful sting of cold went through him. This is where the mirror had broke. 

Gently he took a seat and sat down in the dark. "I am not here to hurt you." His voice was soft and sincere. 

He pulled out a tea cup from his left pocket. 

"Would you like to join me?"

He could feel eyes watching him but he kept his focus on the cup. Touching the side it filled up with a warm liquid and stopped when he removed his finger. He placed the cup in front of him and looked down. 

The mirror into one's soul was fascinating to him but it was extremely delicate to fix. 

If the mirror was working you would see one's hopes, dreams, magic abilities, their capabilities of good and evil. 

But if they were broken he was greeted by a wounded child and showing how truly vulnerable on was after taking the damage. Humans were never meant to be hurt on this level but they did it to themselves consistently. 

He spotted a little orange and he felt a sigh of relief. 

"I also get very anxious." He pulled another teacup out of his pocket and filled it. 

He let his words sit there while he sipped his tea. 

"Please don't be afraid."

When someone was vulnerable they needed to feel safe. They needed to feel invited and welcomed by any small gesture. 

"I am sorry for all the hurt you have endured."

As he sipped his tea he could feel a small girl sit across from him. And then he heard a ting of a cup and a small sip. 

"I want to apologize for all of the people who hurt you and never apologized to you."

The girl didn't answer him. 

"I need you to help me put the pieces back together."

Another sip of the tea. 

"I know that you are magic. And I know you struggle with anxiety like I do. It impacts us differently." That was why the pieces were so small. Overthinking mulled them down finer as he had walked through. 

"I will help you heal it. I can force it back together but if it breaks again I cannot fix it again."

Those were the terms. Healing for the soul had to be done within that person. 

He could almost hear the question how. 

"Can you come hold my hand?"

It wasn't quick but slowly she made his way to her hand. 

"Thank you."

Once she knew she wasn't alone in her pain or her vulnerability the small pieces started to clump together. 

"I will keep you safe."

He could hear the word promise hanging in the darkness but without a voice. 

"I promise." He squeezed her hand. "Now I want you to close your eyes and repeat these words after me..."

He spoke them clearly and she repeated. "Make sure to keep your eyes closed. There are still small pieces". 

Once more. 

Twice more. 

And he felt the sun on his skin. 

He opened his eyes and examined his patient. 

Within a moment she was back in her body and he could see her eyes turn their emerald green colour again. He stared into his eyes at the mirror of her soul that was now repaired. 

He smiled and squeezed her hand.