“I’m sure she’s not mad at you,” Sebastian said quietly.“If anything, she’s probably mad at the situation or mad at Frost, which is where her anger should rightly lie.You haven’t lost your sister, she just needs time.”
“I know,” she said, sighing.“I just hate that she’s pulled away from me.It sucks.”
“I wish I could fix it for you.”
She sent one last text to her sister, letting her know she was there for her whenever and however she needed and that she loved her and wanted to talk.Then, she tucked her phone into her pocket and met him in the doorway.
“Let’s go see Santa about my magic.If I can’t heal what’s going on with my sister, at least I can be useful for Northernmost.”
* * *
Talia stood by the edge of the waterfall that she and Emberlin had healed just days earlier.She could feel the magic in the land underneath her boots, but she couldn’t do anything with it.It was hell to feel the magic but not be touched by it.
She’d never felt so empty and powerless.
Cold air slithered around her neck like a bony hand and she shivered.
“Another grieving magical person, like myself,” a voice murmured.
She whipped around with a gasp and saw a man step from behind a tree covered with snowy icicles.He wore a pale blue coat with the collar turned up, and his hair was covered with the falling snow.
“Who are you?”
“A warlock who understands your pain.”He moved close to her and she picked up the scent of pine trees and snow, and something inside her echoed in commiseration with him.“I once held great magic, just like you.But it was taken from me, and I’ve searched for years to find a way to reclaim it.”
Talia’s stomach twisted.“Frost stole your magic?”
He nodded.“Indeed.But Frost is not the enemy, it’s Santa.He allows the Well of Magic to hoard magic, choosing who is worthy and who is not worthy to have it.Like me, you were deemed unworthy, and Santa didn’t even give you a chance to touch the Well and restore what was taken.”
She flinched at his words, because that’s what she’d feared.That she’d been purposely kept from the Well because Santa controlled it.“But Frost took my magic.”
“Frost is powerful,” he said with a sage nod, “but when he took your magic from you, the Well would have been able to return it to you in spades, but since you can’t get into Northernmost without magic, you can’t get your magic back.”
Talia frowned.“I don’t understand.”
The warlock pulled a small, dark crystal from his pocket that gleamed like onyx with pale white swirls on the surface.“This is a Shadow Crystal.If you place it in the Well, the perimeter around Northernmost will weaken and the flow of magic will be returned to those who’ve lost it unjustly.Like you.And me.Your power could be back, Talia.”He put the stone in her hand and she was shocked by how cold it was.He closed her hand around the stone and she felt the cold seep into her skin and to her bones.
“How do you know my name?”
“Because I’ve been searching for others like me—like us.I know what you lost.I know you wonder what your life will be like without magic.But the Well can return your magic to you.You just have to put the Shadow Crystal in it.”
Everything inside her was screaming that something was off about this whole scenario, but whenever she looked into his eyes, those voices dulled until she couldn’t hear them.Was she being tricked?Or was this the answer to her cries of grief?
“What do I do?”
“Go to Northernmost, drop this in the Well.The magic will do the rest.”
Her heart pounded as she squeezed the cold stone.Was it really that simple?
The warlock patted her fist.“You deserve to have your magic back.”
“How can I get to Northernmost?”
“You’ll figure it out, I’m sure, but hurry before Santa decides to make the perimeter even stronger.You don’t want to lose the chance to get your power back, right?”
She shook her head.He gave her a benevolent smile and waved and then disappeared into the trees.
Now, how to get to Northernmost.She’d have to find someone to take her.
