“Don’t worry about him. He can’t do anything to you.” Arielle rolled her eyes and motioned for me to sit. “Wolfe would have his head.”
I took the closest chair, while she lowered into the one next to me.
“I just don’t like the unpleasantness. But I’ll deal with it. And him.” I bit the inside of my lip, wondering what tonight was going to be like. How many others would there be like Dreynthor who would have preferred Wolfe marry someone else? Someone who was at least Fae.
“Just remember to pretend you know him.” Arielle pulled me out of my worries. “He doesn’t know about the curse.”
“Sure. I’ve got plenty notes on him to act like I know him.”
“The same goes for Hyxian. We’ll be spending the day with Archmage Magdalena. She’s wonderful. You adored her.”
I smiled at that, recalling what I’d written about the archmage. I’d taken to her as if I’d known her my whole life. “I’m excited. I can’t wait to go to the academy.”
“You love the place. It’s good you’ll get to experience falling in love with it a second time.”
“I didn’t think of that.” I reached for a muffin from the stack and nibbled on it. “There’s so much…so much I want to do.”
“I know. And we can do as much as we can while we plan for the…I guess the bigger picture.”
I set down the muffin and focused on her. There were things I needed to say before we continued.
“I’m sorry I tried to escape, Arielle.” I placed my hands on the table, palms down as if I was showing her I had nothing left to hide, not even the tangled mess of my emotions.
She shook her head and tapped the space next to my hand. “It’s okay. I told you I understood. I meant it.”
“I know. But, I still… got things wrong.Really wrong. Even though it worked out in the end.” I slumped against the chair and thought back to my pathetic attempt to escape. “When I left, I didn’t realize how hard it would be. I didn’t even make it far. I foolishly thought I could phase myself across all kingdoms of Vaelthorne, to get to the Borderlands.”
An exasperated sigh fell from her lips. “I think none of us even suspected you’d attempt it because weknowthe dangers. It’s in the very air we breathe. The same beautiful things can be just as deadly. But we know that, you didn’t. Which was exactly why you thought you could do it. Add in the pressure of worrying about your family, and escaping was a no brainer.”
She couldn’t have summed it up any better. “I was terrified for them. I didn’t know how we’d find a solution.”
She bit the inside of her lip. “Technically, you found the solution. Just in a twisted, roundabout way.”
“My soul.” I frowned. “I thought I was going to die. And just before the demon got me, I was nearly attacked by a group of assholes.”
She straightened. “Gods, I didn’t know that happened.”
“I didn’t tell anyone. I never got the chance to. Everything happened so fast and then it seemed like the least of my worries.”
“It was still serious.”
I nodded. “Yes, all of it was serious. There was the group, the shitty trials the demon made me do, and Thayden. All of them made me realize how weak I was.”
“Please do not say that.” Her face hardened. “You are not weak.”
I let out a soft, humorless laugh. “I am. I know I am.”
“I’ve seen the magic you can do. You learned to phase on your own and you used time magic.”
“That’s magic. And I’m not even that good. Without magic… I’m useless. And I don’t want to be weak like that anymore. Or rely on magic. You can use a sword, right?”
“Yes, but I’m a royal mage. Ihaveto.”
“Given everything that’s happened and what’s likely to happen I need to be able to defend myself with or without magic. I don’t want to be afraid anymore.”
“What do you want to do?”
I thought for a moment, but knew what I wanted. “I want to train. I want to be able to use a sword. I was hoping that—if it doesn’t take too much time—maybe I could do some lessons. Something outside my magical training.”
