"One broom coming up!" Jacob said with a grin, already imagining what kind of rune could make cleaning feel like less of a chore.
It didn't take long. He found an old broom that had seen better days in the corner of the kitchen, and quickly etched the strengthening rune along the wooden handle.
Arthur showed him how the cleaning rune was shaped, and he etched the rest of them with the thought of a wet-vac in mind. Something that could basically automatically clean the house with minimal effort.
The array of runes pulsed once, then faded into the wood. He didn't use too much power this time as he was getting used to controlling his output. He just wanted something to help his mom, not make her obsolete.
May tried it a few minutes later.
She gave the broom a gentle push, and it glided across the floor like it had a mind of its own. It was not fast or jerky, just smooth. Each stroke took less effort than lifting a spoon.
"Well now," she said, eyebrows lifting. "If all your magic turns out to be this useful, I may never let you leave the farm."
Jacob beamed, his chest puffing up just a little.
The rest of the day passed in a blur of chores and small projects. Arthur kept them busy until dinner, checking tools, walking the fence line, and making sure Jacob played with the chickens.
After a quick wash and another hearty meal, the boys followed their father back out to the barn, ready for another round of enchanting practice under the soft light of the evening lamps.
"I noticed yesterday, but the days are already getting shorter. I guess that means your birthday is coming up, Jacob."
Jacob was taken by surprise. 'Oh, yeah. I was born in late fall, around this time. I guess the final harvest is coming up. . . oh damnit, that means the festival is also coming up.'
"Oh no," he muttered under his breath.
Caleb gave him a confused look. "What?"
Jacob sighed. "That means the festival is coming too."
Arthur raised an eyebrow. "You say that like it's a bad thing."
"I just . . . forgot how loud and crowded it gets."
Arthur chuckled as he set a small spade and a garden hoe on the bench. "You'll live. Besides, it might be a good time to show off a few enchanted items, maybe some sturdy and self-cleaning clothes. Could be useful."
Jacob perked up at that.
"We can make the clothes clean themselves?"
Arthur chuckled a bit.
"I think you should be able to. I can show you the rune we used on the water barrel in the house that keeps the water clean. I bet it works for clothes, too. I have just never been able to get it to work myself."
Jacob was smiling big at the idea of learning even more practical enchantments, and possibly showing them off at the festival.
"Now, no promises," Arthur added, "but if you do manage to get the enchantment working, I don't see why you shouldn't bring it with us."
Caleb was already poking at the new tools. "I want to do the spade this time."
"You got it," Arthur said, passing him the inscription tool.
Jacob looked at the hoe and began tracing runes in the air, mentally testing out ideas. Something about the harvest, the rhythm of it, the weight of each swing. There was magic in that, too. He could feel it.
"Hey, Dad, why do we only use two runes for most enchantments? Only the boots have had three. Is there a reason for that?"
Arthur kept at inscribing his runes as he answered.
"We just don't know the patterns for other enchantments with more than two runes. Your grandfather is the one who found the enchantment for boots, and we have not figured out anything more since then. Maybe you will be able to figure it out when you learn all of the runes and patterns. Then you can start experimenting like your grandfather did."
Jacob decided to make the hoe stronger and sharper, since it was often used for getting pesky roots.
While he was enchanting, Arthur had finished his enchantment and went out to the house. Caleb was still intently focused on getting his spade enchanted. When Jacob finished the hoe, Arthur had returned with one of Jacob's freshly cleaned shirts.
"Alright, Jacob, let's get started on this self-cleaning enchantment. This will actually be the first enchantment that takes two inscriptions, so we can't put the strengthening rune on it."
Caleb silently finished his spade and put it with the other enchanted spades before leaving, clearly tired from the effort it took to make his enchantment.
Jacob watched his older brother leave before focusing his attention on his father.
"Ok, Dad, let's see what's going on here. I thought the strengthening rune was the base rune?"
"That," Arthur replied, "is actually not what I meant by calling the strengthening rune a base rune. A base rune is actually the rune that can be laid down as the foundation for the enchantment, regardless of the pattern."
Jacob nodded his head as he started putting more pieces of the inscription puzzle together in his mind.
"Ok, so this enchantment uses a different base than the other enchantments?"
Arthur replied. "Yes, this enchantment uses what we have identified as the 'self-actualization' rune in conjunction with the cleaning rune you already used for the broom to create a self-cleaning item."
Jacob thought about how this worked, then asked: "Since you already said we only have one enchantment with three different runes, I am going to guess that this enchantment never worked with the strengthening rune."
"Yes," Arthur nodded in agreement, "we have not been able to combine this enchantment with any other enchantment, so far."
Jacob smiled.
"Well, let's see how it's done, Dad! I want to master this enchantment tonight!"
Arthur chuckled at his son's enthusiasm.
"Ok, but I only have enough magic left to show you the rune once. If you can't get it tonight, then we will have to wait until tomorrow."