She nudged the toad gently with her finger. “He’s not… suffering. Is he?”
I considered the question honestly. “No. Not physically. But this isn’t who he is. Not fully, anyway.”
She snickered and nodded slowly. “I don’t want to be someone who leaves people like this.”
My chest ached with pride. “You won’t be.”
The fire crackled softly between us. My ex stretched a leg, then hopped into Celeste’s lap, curling there like a particularly ugly cat.
She sighed. “I’ll do it,” she said. “I’ll help reverse it before I go back.”
Relief flooded me so fast it made my eyes sting. “Thank you.”
“But,” she added, meeting my gaze, “I want guidance and someone to step in, if needed.”
“You’ll have both,” I promised.
She smiled, small but sure. “Okay.”
The toad ribbited again, quieter this time.
I leaned back, letting the moment settle, the fire warm and steady beside us. This wasn’t the ending I wanted, but it was a step toward one.
And for now, that was enough.
The fire had settled into a steady, comforting rhythm, while Celeste traced the edge of the rug with her finger. A thoughtful crease between her brows had replaced her earlier laughter. The toad sat squarely in her lap, his squat body surprisingly solid, his throat pulsing weakly as if he were gearing up to voice another opinion.
She didn’t look at me when she spoke.
“Will he remember any of this?”
I took a moment before answering, not because I didn’t know, but because I did.
“No,” I said gently. “Not if we do this the safest way. We will have to figure out a way to ensure he doesn’t.”
She finally glanced up, eyes searching my face. “Safest for who?”
“For you,” I said without hesitation. “And for everyone else.”
The toad ribbited.
I ignored him and continued. “Nova will need to do a memory spell. Just the parts connected to the Academy, the magic, Stonewick as it truly is. He’ll remember… leaving. He’ll remember normal things. But not this.”
Celeste’s fingers curled slightly in the rug. “That feels… big.”
“It is,” I admitted. “It’s not something we take lightly. Ardetia and Bella are both against it, but we don’t have another logical option.”
She nodded, quiet again, then frowned. “What if it changed him?”
I blinked. “Changed him how?”
She hesitated, clearly choosing her words. “What if seeing magic, real magic, did something to him? What if it made him… kinder?”
The word hit me harder than I expected.
Kinder.
I stared at her, as my chest tightened. “You think your father is unkind?”
