“Come have a chat with me.” She gestured to a seat beside the one where she had put down her bag.
I obliged, curious as to what she wanted to talk about. I set downThe Wizened Navigatoron a nearby desk and gave her all my attention.
Talia pulled up a chair in front of my desk, and with a smile said, “How’d your homework go last night?”
“Not well,” I confided, disappointment sneaking into my words. I had been hoping for something to shed light on why my magic was so unpredictable. The work I had done hadn’t made me grow or learn anything. Trying to connect with my magic just made me flustered.
“Why’s that?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I just couldn’t do it.”
“Hmm. It does take practice. Do not be discouraged.” She sat forward with her hands linked together on the starlight-infused desk between us. “If you’re willing, I’d love to know what your current relationship is with your magic.”
I raised my brows with a mocking smile. “Not a good one.”
“Tell me more.”
Out came a stream of word vomit that stemmed from a desperate hope that she could pin-point what the hell was wrong with me. I left nothing out. I explained how I had never been able to depend on my magic. I confided in her about stealing Fletcher Darkly’s magic when I was just four. I even told her how I had grown up thinking the only way to suppress my magic’s unpredictability was to let my mother bleed me dry every few days. I knew that was wrongnow, but I was told over and over again that my magic wasn’t safe and couldn’t be trusted. And, finally, in a rush of a breath, I told her that my mother had punished me the moment I used my magic. I was never allowed to.
I thought Talia would be surprised by my confessions, but her facial expression remained unwavering. She quietly sat there listening, letting me say all I had on my mind without interrupting.
Amidst that beat of silence, her thin brows turned up. “I’m sorry to hear about your troubles.”
I gave another shrug.
“Now that I know more, I think we are ready for the next step.” She held out her hand. “I can read your magic if you’ll allow me to.”
I tilted my head. “Read my magic?”
“Yes. I have the ability to read Elizian magic. It means I can see its essence.” She smiled. “We might have a better idea of where I can start supporting you.”
I held out my hand, eager for the clarity she was offering. “Yes. Please. I want to know everything. Help me.”
Talia gently cleared her throat and extended her hand toward me. When I placed mine in her palm, shelightly curled her slender fingers around it. Her electric cerulean magic swirled down her arms in paper-thin lines of glowing iridescence. As it pooled in her hand, mine responded with jagged, thick lines that looked clumsy and disjointed next to her precision.
She took a deep breath and gently rubbed my hand. With closed eyes, she smiled. I carefully watched Talia’s face for any subtle change that could let me know her ability was working. Could she really give me the answers I’d been searching for? My hand ignited with aqua against Talia’s cerulean, two shades of blue so similar but with magic immeasurably different. She hummed something so quietly I couldn’t quite tell what the melody was. No matter how close I leaned in. My heartbeat raced toward my throat in waiting.
“I see your magic,” she whispered.
Giddy butterflies exploded throughout my system as a gentle breeze passed between us.
“It’s bright and bold and beautiful.”
Though everything in me was bursting with excitement, I held back and remained quiet so she could concentrate. This was it. Answers. This was whyI had come to Elizy. This was why I had put my relationship with Fletcher on the line.
“Wow,” she breathed out, “so heavenly beautiful.”
“Thank you,” I whispered back while scootching closer to the edge of my seat.
“Oh, isn’t that lovely?” Her smile broadened as she stuck her tongue to the back of her teeth and raised her shoulders like she had just seen something adorable. “It just told me itlovesFletcher’s magic.Somuch.”
Pride burst through me, and suddenly, I saw the way my magic treated his in a whole new light. It had always dragged Fletcher’s magic below the surface, drowning it, never letting it show itself. I had always thought it was because Fletcher’s magic didn’t belong, like it was an intrusion and my magic was trying to exert dominance. But that wasn’t the case at all. Instead, my magic was protecting his, embracing it. Loving it as fiercely as I was loving him.
“Phenomenal,” she breathed. “They both live in such beautiful harmony. They breathe together. They move together.” She cleared her throat, rubbing my hand again and allowing her magic to explode with more vibrancy that emanated under her skin. “They speak to each other at all hours of the day.” She took adeep breath and exhaled a refreshing sigh. “Absolutely astounding.” She squeezed my hand, my magic scattering in all directions like ants searching for the trail that would lead them home. “Okay, let’s see what else we can find.” Her touch floated up my forearm to my elbow and back down before her calm face suddenly crinkled into something of disgust. With a tilt of her head and a furrow of her brow, she continued to rub my hand in a circle.
Fear struck me. Her face was significantly more serious than what it had just been. “What?”
“There’s something…” she huffed, “hmm… one second.” She was quiet for a long minute as she continued to mumble incoherent words under her breath like she was coaxing my magic. “It’s like your magic is—oh, darling.”
