Ah,I see. Angelique’s spirit sank.They don’t want me to come with them. Out of fear.It was a jab to her heart, but a pain she was exhaustively accustomto.
Angelique was the first war mage to ever be trained as an enchantress. While she hadn’t made the position yet—she was only an apprentice—the amount of power she had at her disposal and the particular strain of her war magic—the ability to control anything with a sharpened edge—made her feared among mostmages.
In fact, if Lord Enchanter Evariste hadn’t stepped in and taken on Angelique as his apprentice, her magic would have been sealed yearsago.
The thought of Evariste produced a pang in her chest, but it was the way both Blanche and Rein uncomfortably held themselves and refused to meet her gaze that made her droop in hersaddle.
Given that her power was really only good for bloodshed, and that she had a massive amount of this unsettling magic, Angelique couldn’t blame the mages for theirapprehension.
But it still hurts to face near-constant rejection and to be a person fellow mages fear. When I last met them, Blanche and Rein didn’t seem afraid of me, but I suppose it’s one thing to speak to me within the walls of the Veneno Conclave and another to journey across the continent withme.
“That is to say, we appreciate the offer, really. However, we have no need of aid,” Blanche said, having regained some of herequilibrium.
“Yes,” Rein piped in. “We’ll have to sit around and observe the storms for a while before we even start to use ourmagic.”
That is not why they don’t want me coming withthem.
“I see,” Angelique slowly said. “If that is so…is there any other way I can thankyou?”
“Nah,” Rein was quick tosay.
Blanche’s posture eased with the threat of Angelique’s presence fading. “We are weather mages, Apprentice Angelique. It is our honor to help Ringsted in this time of need.” She offered her a slightsmile.
Angelique nodded once, then twice. “I understand. In that case, my well-wishes go with you, and I look forward to hearing of your success.” Though her tone was cheerful, the words tasted like dirt in hermouth.
They won’t let me do anything at all tohelp?
Rein’s flashed a grin. “Yep. We’ll show that sea witch you heard about who therealmasters of the wind and rainare!”
Blanche slightly shook her head, amused with her friend’s antics. “Take care, ApprenticeAngelique.”
“Thank you.” Angelique raised her hand in farewell and watched the mages and their mounts marchout.
She rapidly blinked when she finally lowered her hand. “I suppose this is what I deserve,” she told Pegasus. “Forshoutingat the Council and bucking rules.” She sighed deeply. “But…something tells me even if I hadn’t done that, they still wouldn’t want mealong.”
As she watched, Blanche and Rein reached the bottom of the hill. Rein said something to Blanche that made her laugh, and they turned their poniessouth.
More than their rejection, that sight made Angelique cringe in pain. For before he had been captured, Angelique and her master—the young and handsome Lord Enchanter Evariste—had traveled the continenttogether.
Pegasus stretched his neck and bared his teeth, making a clacking sound when he ground his molars. He tossed his head and pranced a fewsteps.
“Easy,” Angelique soothed the constellation. “I know it’s been a frustrating few years, and you miss Evariste,too.”
Pegasus stopped his carrying on and instead tucked his head and twisted so he could clamp his teeth over hershoe.
He didn’t bite her through the slipper, but he did squeeze a little to voice hisdiscontent.
Angelique patted his shoulder. “I know,” she said. “I know.” She fussed with the reins, trying to distractherself.
Lately, it seemed like everything in the world was working together to remind Angelique of her missing master. Though he had been captured years ago, Angelique still found herself turning around to say something to him, only to remember he was gone and she wasalone.
Evariste had been taken by black mages. He had used his magic to send Angelique off to safety while he was hit with a spell that was originally aimed at her. In the scuffle that followed, the mages managed to overpower and takehim.
Though Angelique had spent the last few years combing the continent in her search for him, she had very little to show for it. A one-use-only spell revealed he was being kept in a magic mirror, but she did not knowwhere.
It was her search for Evariste that had taken her south to Ringsted, where she met the SelkiePrincess.
Angelique tipped forward until she was splayed across the crest of Pegasus’ neck. “Why can’t anything be simple,Pegasus?”