Bryan clutched the wand, completely unsure as to what he should do. Here was this tiny man, who had absolutely no power in the world, and yet Bryan was feeling very pursuaded to do what he said. Who was this man? He said they'd been neighbors, but Bryan had never seen him before in his life. And still, Bryan found himself believing every word he said. Though Jim did not even reach the height of his knee and was technically his slave, Bryan felt extremely comfortable and trusting in his company.
"You would really do all that for me?" he asked. "You'd teach me how to use magic without the penalty?"
"Of course," said Jim, who was still compelled to tell the truth. "I see that I should have started Matt earlier, too, before he stole the wand and destroyed so many lives. Then again, he never seemed smart enough or a good enough person to really handle it."
"Hey!" yelled Matt. "Don't tell me I'm not a good person after all of those bad secrets you just told me about your life! I never did anything as bad as that!"
Jim blushed. "I didn't mean to say that, son. I'm sorry."
"But you did! You'll do anything for this giant idiot, but not for your own kid!"
Bryan had had enough. "Don't talk to your father like that," he ordered, and of course, Matt immediately stopped. "You don't know how lucky you are, having a father who is so nice," Bryan went on, thinking about his father's recent behavior. "Hell, I wish he were MY father, instead of . . ."
And that was as far as he got before the wand went to work.