Ethan frowned. “Onawilke, that’s dangerous. We know that grimoire isn’t always helpful. It’s filled with dark magic.” He sent a harsh glance to Kiara, who remained passive.
“Unseelie magic? Ooh, that sounds exciting,” Odette swooned. “I very much would like to see what it does.”
“Odette,” Theo moaned, but she bounced on the spot.
“Portals are dangerous,” Ethan said. “They’re only meant to transport one person at a time.”
“What if they’re not, though? I’m good at them. And what if we get into trouble again?” I asked him. “Wouldn’t this be helpful, if all of us needed a way out?”
Ethan huffed, but Kiara said, “Let’s try it. What else do we have to do?”
Ethan scowled. He hadn’t approved of what Kiara had done to Gabby, and I knew he didn’t like the thought of us tampering with dark magic further, even if it was for a good reason.
“If we’re going to practice this, we should go to the woods.” Stefan thumbed behind him. “You know, so nobody can see what we’re doing.”
He had a good point. We left the school grounds and entered the sanctuary of the trees. Ethan kept looking around for monsters, while I read the spell over and over. Like most Unseelie magic, this one required an incantation.
Theo was acting like a skittish horse. “Are you sure you know what you’re doing, Emma?”
“No,” I responded. “That’s half the fun, right?”
Theo mumbled something incoherent under his breath. When we were far enough into the woods, I found a clearing that was big enough for the portal to grow.
“Where are you transporting us?” Ethan asked as I shuffled through the pages.
“Just a few feet, to start,” I said, and I raised my hand. “Stand back, everyone.”
I took a deep breath. All eyes were on me as I began to recite the incantation. “Fae world present, future, prior, take me to my heart’s desire.”
Nothing happened. I scowled, and tried again, but no portal opened up. Everyone stared at me like they expected magic to happen.
“Well, that’s dumb,” I said. “The spell doesn’t work.”
“Disappointing,” Ethan said, though he didn’t sound disappointed at all. He strode forward and grabbed me by the arm. “Come on, Emma. Let’s go.”
We started on the way back to campus. I felt pretty sour about the whole thing. The grimoire’s spells always worked before. Why had this one failed?
Suddenly, Odette halted in place. Theo slammed into her behind her— which caused Stefan to stagger and fall on his face. Odette tilted her head strangely, while Stefan got up from the ground, cursing.
“Do you hear that?” Odette said lightly. “It’s a ringing sound. Like bells.”
None of us heard anything. I tried straining my ears, but there was no noise. “There’s nothing there, Odette.”
“Of course there is!” She spun in place. “I can hear singing now! Come on, follow me!”
Odette ran into the trees. My mouth dropped open— now where was she off to?
“Odette!” Theo cried. He changed into an alicorn and ran after her. The rest of us hurried to follow. I raced through the trees, jumping over logs and stones. Had Odette lost her mind? Where was she taking us?
Finally, the trees parted. I caught my breath as a familiar site came into view. Odette had led us to the faery fort, underneath the shade of the Willow Maiden. The ruins from the abandoned castle seemed to glisten in the sun as the monumental tree towered over the area.
Circling the clearing was a line of mushrooms. A fae circle. They’d been commonly used as portals to Edinmyre a long time ago, but I didn’t think they held any magic now.
As I came close to the willow, that’s when I heard it. Tinkling bells, and the sound of women harmonizing. It hadn’t been here before the last time I visited. This was so strange. By the mystified faces of my friends, they heard it now, too.
“Odette, wait up!” Delmare called, but Odette didn’t listen. She giggled as she came to the base of the Willow Maiden. She looked up at the great tree and let the strands brush against her face, before she put her hands against the tree bark—
And walked straight through.
