Usually in this circumstance he'd give her permission to hold his cane and see how it reacted, and judge from there. If a youth had any aptitude in Necromancy, a Necromantic item would reveal how much. Unfortunately, that wasn't an option here, which meant he would have to use alternate means.

"Emotion tends to interfere with magic-use," he said with an indulgent smile. "The main thing is to make sure you're calm."

He clasped his hands and summoned a ball of shadows between his palms, small and compact. It looked like obsidian, except that it was too smooth and round to be natural. Solomon held it out for Hayley to take. "It may take some work, but if you can get a reaction out of this, we'll know whether you've any inclination toward my world's magic at all--let alone Necromancy itself." He tilted his head and added with simmering amusement, "You may wish to be seated again."