“Yes, thanks to you. Sorry you ended up on the floor.” I give him a bleary-eyed, grateful smile.
—I’ll always watch over you—Lu takes a look around the space.—I’ll give you privacy now—
I’m still rubbing my eyes as he heads up the stairs and out. Did he get any sleep? Ludo always looks out for me; when do I get to look after him?
Catching my reflection in the mirror, I wince. I’d fallen asleep fully dressed, my hair hasn’t been washed in days, and I’m filthy with interdimensional grime.
A shower is first on the agenda. My personal shower, made for me by Ludo. Being under the hot water is blissful. I could stay here all day, but finally, reluctantly, I turn off the faucet.
Toweling off, I’m surprised by how energized my body is, given the state I was in last night.
I’m pulling on my brown socks when my phone buzzes. It’s Willow, saying she’s outside my door. I run up and pull the door open. “Gimme two minutes.”
“No rush, it’s early yet,” she replies, taking a seat. —Does she even want to hang out? Now she’s traveled to other realms—got all these guys around her—I’m just boring—
Shit, Wills.
One thing telepathy has taught me is that nearlyeveryoneis way more insecure than they let on. I really wish I wasn’t crashing in on her thoughts right now.
Maybe it’s time to tell Willow and Dunc about my secret ‘skill’.
After all, if I can trust Cosmo Drakeward with this secret, I can definitely trust my two friends.
“How are you feeling?” Willow asks. “Did you sleep? What did I miss after I left?”
“I slept great,” I tell her, rubbing the ends of my wet hair.
Wet hair?
Wait just a minute, I might have an answer to this. “Wills?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you know the air spell girls use for hair drying?”
She nods. “Sure, but I can’t help you. The amount of air I can produce is the equivalent of a mouse blowing out a birthday candle.”
I grin at the mental image. “But you know the steps of the spell?”
“Uh-huh, it’s pretty simple.”
“Great, can we try something then?” I hold out my hand. “It seems I can amplify other people's spellwork, as long as we are physically touching.”
Willow’s eyebrows raise so high they almost disappear into her hairline. “That's…wild. But if this is just an excuse to hold my hand, know that my heart still belongs to Naomi.” We link fingers. “Here we go,” she says, beginning to wave her fingers and recite the cast.
I’m watching, making a mental note of the process, as a powerful blast bursts from the fingertips of her right hand. It sends all the clothes on my hat stand flying. “What the!” she yelps. “Turn me down! Turn me down!”
I start getting the giggles, but manage to concentrate enough to reduce my power a notch. “Oops.”
Willow grins. “I want to make an inappropriate joke about finger-blasting, but I’m going to refrain.” She turns her hairdryer hand in my direction. Within a minute, I’ve got a full blowout. My hair is huge, kind of ridiculous, but silky and dry.
“Thanks, babe,” I say, releasing her hand and giving her a side hug.
“Um, you’re welcome? That was the craziest magic experience of my life. The surge of my spark was wild.”—Really wish my spark always felt like that—
Huh. Could there be a way for me to help grow Willow’s spark? There is so much I don’t know about my new abilities.
She looks at her phone as it beeps. “Dunc’s waiting for us.
