Calm down, it's not all over yet. Just think, and breathe.

I have to convince Jin and Mary of two things. First and foremost, those barriers are my only strong suit. That's the lie and I need to stick with it, based on what I've heard and seen in these last two years, a person can be born with a predisposition towards one specific type of magic, so if I can convince them of that, I can safely hide the rest.

Second, I don't understand the method or significance of that spell. A talented, curious child playing with magic they don't understand, is better than a monster in human skin.

Also, I want to seem just naturally talented enough to warrant more training tools, but dumb and childish enough to not get any more active teaching than they already give me.

"Look! A bowl!" I said with a giggle, making a weak dome-shaped barrier encompassing myself and my father. At this point, from the barrier around the would-be intruder, and this barrier, I can start to feel myself running out of mana. Weird, I don't think I've had enough mana to experience the feeling before.

"It's so big! How long did it take you to make this?" He said looking at me with pride. "I knew my son was a genius, but to think you did this with minimal training!" He said, picking me up and hugging me. "You're just like me when I was your age, but less dangerous!"

Huh.

"Huh?" I air my true feelings, giving Jin a quizzical look.

"What's with that look for!" Jin says in a faux-hurt voice. "I swear Mary's sarcasm is rubbing off on you. My little Barrier-Saint"

Okay, now I'm officially lost.

"Saint?" I ask, hoping to move away from the idea of my dad being reborn like me.

Also, hopefully, it's not a religious thing, I already met God, don't really wanna worship something besides that. I mean, I don't wanna worship her, let alone something I know is false.

"It's a title given by the Crown, it means your the best in one branch of magic, don't worry, I'll tell you about it all when you're older," Jin said, putting me down and rubbing my hair.

At least my worst fears are over, there's nothing I want less than being forced to follow some holy scripture just to be able to practice magic. With a yawn from me and a groan from the stirring away Gary, I think it's time I head back into my bed and sleep. No need to stay up when they've just gotten home.

"Night night," I say, breaking away from my father and heading towards my room. Time for a bit of meditation for mana regen, and a good night's rest.

Ha, as if.

As soon as Jin and Mary finish putting me to bed, it's go time.

Erasing my presence, I shot myself out of bed, and creep out the door. C'mon, you think I can't sneak in and out of place, with no cameras, no fingerprints, and completely unsuspecting people? It's as easy as breathing.

Creeping my way down the hallway, I go to the edge where I could the entire conversation, I then Catapult myself into the kitchen, hiding in the cabinets beneath the half-wall separating the kitchen and the living room where they currently were chatting. Finally, it's about time I listen in...

"...it was startling, to say the least, I haven't encountered a suffocation barrier in quite some time, since my last job actually. He's a barrier genius, to say the least. That or a monster. I can barely make a protection dome in a second, let alone around someone else in a heartbeat, and to make it non-air solvent? On instinct alone? You're breeding a monster Jin." Gary said, in a groggy, slightly irritated voice.

"The apple doesn't fall far, after all, I was almost worried for a second that he didn't gain any of my proficiency, that or it was a branch we couldn't teach him yet," Jin said, as I can almost hear the shit-eating grin. "Still, to think he'd be born with an affinity that both me and Mary don't have, it's gonna be weird to actually train him. At least Vinny has a high barrier affinity, he could probably parse some knowledge."

"I don't know, have you heard the rumors?" Mary said, a hint of voice in her tone. "Apparently Vincent was caught running with a bad group, and apparently he was behind Teresa and her family's ambush."

"Honey, please, not this again. Vincent is a good man and took me in when dad died, those are just rumors probably spread for political reasons." Jin said with a sigh, as I could hear the squeak of the couch, people moving probably.

"I know I know, just worried is all," Mary said, as the couch squeaking stopped.

"Why are you guys so down in the dumps? You've got a genius kid, stop moping over other people's problems." Nezu said with a relaxed tone.

"He's got the makings of the next Barrier Saint, but when it comes to what we're best at, Fire and Earth, it's like we're trying to teach an inept. I know we can't touch Gravity, Spatial, or Lightning yet, and I know I shouldn't look my gift horse in the mouth, and just accept it that he'll be a barrier caster, but I just feel useless trying to teach him." Mary says with a deep sigh. "I mean, I've tried to teach him with daggers but it looks like he can barely hold one. I just hope that once we can teach him a more advanced branch, his strength will be a little closer to home."

After Mary's rant, a spitting sound was heard from where I'm pretty sure Nezu and Rolia were sitting. Did someone drink at a bad time?

"You gotta be retarded or something," Rolia said, the spitter being identified. "Fire? Inept? We were gonna save this story until tomorrow when you guys were rested but nah, not anymore."

"He found Nezu, with fire."As Rolia said that, the entire house seemed to go eerily quiet.

Huh.

"What?" Jin said, taking an audible gulp.

"Yeah, Nezu was shrouded and watching him train, and apparently the kid must have felt something watching him, so he sent a nova of fire through his room and hit Nezu. He tried to trap him in a barrier, probably scared the kid shitless." Rolia said as I felt the world begin to fall out from under me.

They've been watching me? They knew I was hiding my magic?

"WOOHOO!" Mary said, getting to her feet, and taking a quick step in a particular direction. "Even if it's not his strongest card, he still takes after me." She said, he voice dripping with satisfaction, yet taking another step in a horrible direction.

"I just have to wake him up and see it! I wonder what color it is? Did it burn anything? Could he control it?" Mary continued, her voice bouncing off the walls and forcing me back to reality.

Mary is heading towards my room, the room I'm supposed to be in, whilst I'm not in it.

Nice move, genius.