Wany dawzy,je vixi razim.
“What does that phrase mean?”I asked. I couldn’t read Malovian.
“It’s an old saying.Buried twice, but lived once.Some people believe that if we’ve truly lived noble lives, the Seven Gods give us another chance, and return us to the land to be born again as a new person. The best souls reincarnate dozens of times. The phrase itself—buried twice, but lived once— means no matter how many times the gods choose to send us back to this earth, all the lives we’ve lived are connected. Therefore, we only have one existence, and one soul.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Seems like an odd thing to put on Lord Lucien’s grave. I never heard him mention such a thing.”
“Don’t think much of it. It’s a common saying to put on the gravestones of Circle members.”
I wondered if the gods thought Lord Lucien so noble, they’d already decided to send him back to Earth, to reincarnate as a new child and live another life. He deserved it.
This felt like a repeat of visiting my own father’s grave. It was just as somber, and even more sad. How many more people were going to die on behalf of my destiny as the Worldweaver?
After we’d stood there for a moment, I checked my watch. “I have to go. Enchanting starts soon,” I told Ethan.
“Don’t be late.”
“Do you want me to stay?”
“No. I need some time alone. I’ll be fine.”
I worried about leaving him, but through our bond, I sensed he wanted solitude. Perhaps he needed a moment to say his own goodbyes. There hadn’t been a funeral— Elijah had ordered whoever lost the trial-by-combat was to be forgotten about, and therefore, no ceremonies had taken place after he died. We only had a headstone because Lady Magdalina had paid for the monument, in respect to her friend. This was the only farewell Ethan was going to get.
I gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Okay. See you later.”
I glanced back before I left the courtyard, and saw Ethan sitting at the foot of the grave. His face was wet, and I longed to comfort him, but I talked myself out of it. Ethan needed to feel the pain to get through this, and as much as I wanted to, I couldn’t help him through it. He had to do that himself.
I was the last to slip into Professor Calliope’s classroom. I took my familiar seat beside Kiara at our small round table.
“Girls, I understand this semester is going to be very different from the one before,” Calliope started as everyone settled in their seats. “However, know that the school is doing everything in their power to be here for you.”
She was talking about Lucien’s death. He’d taught a lot of classes here at the university. Nearly everyone had him at least once. Most people’s schedules, including mine, had to be rearranged or replaced with different classes.
Calliope rapped the board. “However, I find that hard work can sometimes be the best remedy for sadness. Today’s lesson should provide an excellent distraction from certain… events. Today, we’ll be working on a protective enchantment for objects. If this enchantment is successful, no one will be able to touch your object, save for yourself. It’s an excellent safeguard if you wish to protect something you own, by providing your own magical signature the object can identify with. The weaker the object, the longer the spell will hold, though if something is particularly magically powerful, the enchantment soon wears off. Experiment with various objects, and see what you can get to hold.”
Calliope rattled on for a half-hour on how to perform the enchantment before she set us loose to work on casting the spell ourselves. I tried casting the spell on a teapot set in front of me, but I didn’t have it in me. It wasn’t that I couldn’t do magic— I just didn’t feel like it.
Kiara cast the spell on a feather in front of her and said, “Try picking it up.”
I reached out and grabbed the feather, but it immediately scalded my fingers. I gasped and withdrew my hand as I dropped the feather on the table. Blisters were forming on my fingertips. “Ouch!”
“Looks like the spell took.” Kiara picked up her feather and turned it around. It didn’t appear to hurt her.
“Do you think we can cast this spell on the stones?” I whispered. That way, Gabby and Elijah couldn’t get their literal hands on them, even if they fell into their possession.
“Maybe. But it won’t work long with something of that power. A few minutes, at most,” Kiara said. “The energy of the Crystals will eat the enchantment up.”
Damn. It was a good try, anyway. Kiara leaned in. “Hey, Em. Open mic is tonight atThe Faerie Bean. Delmare’s going to be reading some original work. We really want you and Ethan to come.”
Class was normal. Hanging out with our friends was normal. Ethan and I desperately needed normalcy, after everything that had happened.
“We’ll be there,” I told her. “Save us two seats at the front.”
That night, the lights were dimmed down low atThe Faerie Bean, except for a spotlight on the stage, which had a singular microphone and stool. Ethan and I grabbed our drinks, then joined our friends at a table near the front. It was packed in here— every seat was taken. I didn’t know poetry slams atThe Faerie Beanwere so popular.
My mouth dropped open, and I let out a laugh when I saw Odette and Theo. “Oh my gods, guys.”
They were wearing matching shirts. Odette’s read,I’m His Cupcake, and Theo’s read,I’m Her Studmuffin.They were the same color of pink, and had designs of a cupcake and a muffin holding hands.
