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Ivy hovered over Thessa, shaking her shoulders. “Breathe! I said breathe!”
“Vy, let me.”
Beatrix came into view next. “Tess, can you look into my eyes?”
Swirls of brown, green, and blue made up the warm hue. She’d lined her eyes in charcoal, adding a diagonal line along the outer corner. When she blinked, a heap of brown lashes sparkled with stardust.
“We’re with you. Just take a deep breath.”
She tried.
“A little slower …”
Thessa exhaled, slower this time.
“Good. Like that.”
I. Will. Not. Succumb. To. This.
Closing her eyes, Thessa reached for her magic. Not to conjure it, but to be with it. The sea of blackness that was once her enemy, had become her friend. So, she shared her relentless pain, ceaseless worries, and incessant thoughts to the current, letting them drift away.
She couldn’t carry it all, not anymore.
When Thessa’s eyes finally opened, the ones her birth mother had given her, Beatrix said, “I’m not going to pretend that I know anything about what you’re going through, but if there’s anything we can do to make it easier …”
After a few steadying breaths, Thessa sat up. “You’ve both been more than helpful.” She rubbed the blood-crusted star off her chest and tossed her tunic back on. “And thank you for the clothing, my bag ended up burned with everything else.” She didn’t want to think about her Cheltz. She had nothing tangible to call her own, except Hades and her dagger.
“That’s what friends are for.”
Ivy nodded in agreement. “So, what’s going to happen tomorrow? The matron said we have to leave by first light.”
After a sigh, Thessa began. “The plan is to split. In the morning you’ll travel to Greenshire with Wayland, Emiel, and Leora. Soren said Wayland has set up countless camps and you’ll be safe staying together. You should arrive at the Temple of Three Moons by the third day. You’ll use your Celestial grace to spread our message there. Then you’ll trek another day north until you breach the forest. Soren said there’s an encampment that requires warning.”
“We can do that,” Ivy declared, squeezing Beatrix’s thigh in either nervousness or excitement.
Beatrix asked, “But where are you going?”
“Back south. Soren and I will leave tonight, it’s safer for us that way. You have to tell Leora goodbye for me, and that it’s not forever. Promise me you’ll say that?”
“We promise across the stars,” they proclaimed in unison.
Ivy and Beatrix eyed each other before sharing a small kiss. “Our adventure awaits.”
Thessa had one last favor to ask, “Do either of you have a spare cloak?”
Beatrix, the same size as her, sprang to her feet. After sweeping through the wardrobe, she pulled out a wad of black satin before unfurling it. “I have this under-cloak. Will it work?”
“It’s perfect.” Thessa stood, swinging it around her shoulders and tying it under her chin.
Ivy smiled. “It shines like your hair.”
Thessa took Ivy’s compliment with a slight bow, thanked them both for all their support, and left under the privacy of her new cloak.
33
LECTURE NOTES FROM REALM RULES & METHODOLOGY:
Blood Moon rituals are held at the Central Divinity Solarium to honor the Blood Sacrifices of our fallen Supremes. The Blood Moon rises two-to-four times annually and all students are encouraged to attend.