"Right," Makani said, taking another sip of tea. The true test here would be in how Kiri took his next few words. Makani was giving her ample opportunity to back out, just to play it safe. Besides, impulsive as he was, he did want to do this right. This was potent magic they were dealing with—the most powerful sort, in his opinion. There was no room for error.
"This is a binding spell," he started, and lifted the knife. "I'm going to cut your palm, and cut mine, and then we'll clasp hands and let our blood mingle. Er..." He paused, thinking of how best to phrase this. It sounded a lot stranger when he actually had to say it out loud.
"I'm going to, ah...we're going to exchange blood," he said, meeting Kiri's eyes. "Some of mine will flow into you, through the cut, and some of yours will flow into me. You'll feel hot all over, starting from your hand and traveling to your toes as it works through you, and it could feel...intense. We'll be connected, body, mind, and spirit. I'll be able to feel what you feel, and vice versa. Don't worry!" he added, holding up a finger. "We won't be able to know each others' thoughts. Just feelings, and intense sensations."
He cocked his head thoughtfully, turning the knife over in his hand. "My teacher did this with me, long ago. She explained it's to better monitor the student, make sure they're safe and not getting in over their head. It makes it easier to pull you out of a bad spot, too, if necessary. It's not a permanent thing, either. It fades with the flow of your blood, so you have to repeat it every week or so. But like I said, it can be intense, especially at first, and disorienting. And it's an advanced spell—my life will essentially be yours. As teacher, I will take the brunt of the binding. To be blunt, if you do something foolish and get yourself killed, I likely won't survive it, either."
He let that sink in a moment, expression somber, before he flashed her a smile. "Not that I'm concerned! We're perfectly safe here, and my teacher and I both came out fine! But just in case you felt like cliff diving anytime in the near future."
He held out his palm and hovered the blade just above it. "Still interested? Any questions?"