I’ll visit Clovicus before I head to Arcainia and tell him about the mirror. If I am lucky, Sybilla won’t be out on an assignment, and I can speak to her aswell.
The fairy godmother was a firecracker with an extensive knowledge of spells—she was trained to recognizealltypes of magic, as her main role was to search out children with it and invite them to Luxi-Domus.
Angelique was feeling better about the plan as she climbed the stairs and barged into her room, grabbing an enchanted satchel Stil had made for her long ago that could hold approximately a closet’s worth of items inside but remain light enough tocarry.
She approached her wardrobe, intending to grab one of her fancier dresses for meeting with the Arcainian princes (more out of respect for their deceased mother, as she had been an enchantress, than out of any social propriety) but paused when she saw the gown hanging from thedoor.
It was the one Evariste had been saving for her, the one the investigative team found when combing through the house once he wasgone.
The gown itself was beautiful, with fitted sleeves, an off-the-shoulder neckline, and a thick skirt, but what was most eye-catching about it was the way it changedcolors.
As Angelique stared at it, the dress changed from a pale pink to a deep red. Another minute, and the red mellowed out to a pumpkin orange that shifted intogold.
It was a dress worthy of a Lady Enchantress…something Angelique was most emphatically not. (Yet,anyway.)
Angelique hesitated, then brushed the skirts with her fingers, reveling in the softcloth.
I don’t deserve the kind of distinction Evariste tried to give me, she thought sadly. Softly, the memory of Evariste calling for her through the spell that broke her bracelet tugged ather.
She pressed her lips into a thin line, then nodded.So, I guess I had better become someone worthy ofit.
On an impulse, she tossed the satchel onto her bed and changed into the new gown. Her image in the mirror was lovely—clearly whoever had made the gown had worked with Evariste to create a style that perfectly suitedher.
Dressed like this, Angelique really did look like a LadyEnchantress.
She stared at the mirror, eventually raising her eyes so she gazed upon her face. “I’m not an enchantress yet, but I’ll need the power of one to find Evariste. And I’ll make whatever sacrifice is necessary to see himhome.”
* * *
Angelique furrowedher brow as she clung to Pegasus. The constellation was cantering—a less neck-breaking speed than he usually adopted—along the road that led to Castle Brandis, home of the Arcainian royalfamily.
Despite a (painful) week sojourn to the Veneno Conclave where she consulted both Clovicus and Sybilla, she had nothing to show forit.
Both the enchanter and the fairy godmother were overjoyed with the shred of information she had uncovered, but neither were knowledgeable about the kind of magic that would be required to seal a person inside amirror.
She had left Clovicus scouring the library, and Sybilla had promised to keep her ears open during her travels, but she had hoped for a greater step forward with thisfinding.
I should talk to Enchantress Lovelana and see if she has found anything—or if knowing he’s in a mirror changesanything.
Pegasus abruptly stopped, breaking into a rear ofanger.
Angelique clung to his back like a particularly determined squirrel, even as he took a few dancing steps sideways and snorted. “Pegasus, what’s wrong?” She patted his shoulder when he stilled, and that was when she feltit.
Darkmagic.
Evilmagic.
Angelique clenched her teeth as she started channeling her powers. “Think we can takeit?”
Pegasus snorted and pawed at the road with a hoof, making the groundshake.
“I think so, too,” Angelique agreed. “Let’sgo!”
Pegasus shot forward, galloping at full tilt. The wild magic that pulsed through his body rose to the surface, turning the world white and making his hooves sound like rumbles ofthunder.
Up ahead, Angelique could see the black magic spell that soured the air. It was a dark fog that crept through the forest like the fingers of a living creature. It was searching out something and smothering everything in itspath.
As Pegasus bore down upon it, Angelique braced herself. “Here we go!” she shouted as they plunged into the smoggymist.
