"I've found it so," she agrees. "And it means that if you tell me what kind of tea you like I can often have it ready in the morning when you come down."

"And ... it's not that people resent wizards, exactly," she says to the self-identified potential wizard. "It's that your special talent is, you know, special. It's the one thing that you can do that nobody else in the world can do. Except wizards. And dragons, but it's hard to resent dragons because they don't really get involved and also they're all ancient, deeply magical, and have very pointy teeth."

Oh... the talent works through walls that would make it more useful.

"I can understand that. I don't actually have a special talent like that but I could get one if I decided to. Do people just know what their talent is immediately or do they need to figure it out over time?"

"People usually have a hunch," she replies. "Or they use it by accident, or can't help but notice it. But sometimes people do go a long time before figuring them out. Are you sure that you don't just have a subtle one, like resistance to disease?"

"That would be a bit redundant but it's possible. I guess the only way to know for sure is to try to get one and see if it works. And even then I might not know if I already had it and just hadn't noticed unless it's really obvious."

Well, the girl doesn't really know much about wizardry. So ... sure?

"I guess maybe your special talent could be whatever is making you so sure that you could be a wizard even though you haven't tried it?" she suggests. "Although 'feel as though I ought to be able to be a wizard' is a pretty specialized talent."

"Oh, that isn't a feeling. I know what powers I have because I picked them. I have them all written down. I think I'm curious enough to try out this one." She reaches inside herself in the same way she controlled her shape shifting but instead of a new shape she focuses on getting a special talent.

A new sense unfolds within her. The proprietress of the Silver Boar would do well in a relationship with someone who shares her dedication and tenacity, especially someone who enjoys gardening.

Acquiring a special talent in this way makes her a Wizard; ripples of her presence spread out through the paths of magic that flow through and around the planet.

In a high tower to the northeast, a delicately carven runestone activates for the first time in two years, tying her into the permission set.

A fast-moving, high-flying object to the south-south-east makes her aware that she can redirect its path anytime in the next fifteen minutes before it passes out of range to the south.

"Well that definitely did something." What sorts of changes can she make to this object? Does the music have any hints on whether she should divert it?

She can bring this object to her location. She can cause this object to urgently return to Kingsport.

The music has swept into a bold, orchestral piece that conjures feelings of exploration. But it doesn't sound particularly ominous or urgent.

Well it's a limited time thing and the music doesn't seem to have a strong option so she'll try to bring the thing to her and see what it is. She's a little surprised that moving obscure fast moving objects is her special talent but if it is she wants to understand it better.

"Well, that definitely did something."

The fast-moving object makes a wide turn in her direction and starts heading north. It will reach her in about an hour.

"So what do you think your special talent is?" the girl questions. It's not every day you see someone do bizarre wizardry.

"I guess I'll find out in about an hour. That's when the strange fast moving thing I just felt will get here. It was going somewhere else originally but I asked it to come to me."

"Huh. That really doesn't sound like a typical special talent," the proprietress, who, it now seems clear, could eventually be decent-but-not-best friends with Sapphire, responds. "I think usually people have smaller ranges than that."

"Okay... now I think that my special talent is about friendship. I can feel that we could be friends but probably not particularly close ones. That fits better with how I thought special talents worked so maybe the fast moving thing is wizardry related or something else that's reacting to me using my powers."

She really doesn't know what to think, at this point. At least she'll have another story to tell, no matter what happens.

"Is that something you want?" she finds herself asking. "To be friends with me?"

"You seem nice, but I don't want to impose. I don't know how much it applies here but back home people who worked at inns and restaurants had a lot of pressure to be nice to customers and I don't want to pressure you into being friends."

She chuckles ruefully.

"Yes, there's definitely an expectation that I greet customers with a smile," she admits. "That plus the long hours makes it ... difficult to make friends."

She shakes her head.

"Well, I'm glad I could answer your questions about special talents, at least."

She'll take that as an answer. "I appreciate it. It was good talking with you. I'll get out of your hair for the moment and be back this evening."

The girl gives her a customer service smile.

"It was my pleasure. Please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything during your stay."

"I'll do that," she agrees. Then she walks back out. Does her directory have enough information about restaurants to give her a sense of what they serve?

A sense, yes. For the restaurants where the fare is not obvious from the name ("Mench's Meats"), there is a short description. Her options include "Traditional mountain cuisine, made fresh each day with wild greens", "Rich stews, served in a bread bowl and with your choice of milks", "Water-walker-style salt dumplings, seaweed chips, and sea wine", and various similar offerings.

Soup in a bread bowl sounds reasonably predictable. She'll go have that.

The restaurant is a little ways back toward Terrance's spine. It's tucked into the corner of a building shared with a tailor's shop, but the soup smells good.