I let him pull me to my feet, his presence the only thing keeping my knees from buckling.
We left our uneaten food, the crisp air of the mountain we climbed filling my lungs while the little I’d eaten turned in my stomach.
Zaicha’s words ofmorecircled inside my head. Could thatmoremean healer?
My steps were heavy and leaden. My magic churned beneath the surface, building and restless with each bubbling wave. I held on to Brenton harder, fisting my other hand just as tight.
Willing to have the control that seemed out of reach. Panic surged, and just as I was getting ready to call for Hoshiko and ask him to take me away, Everly touched my shoulder.
“Finley.” Her voice was quiet but firm. “The vial.”
I exhaled, grabbing the vial from the inner pocket of my magic while my magic began to burn beneath my skin. I clasped the vial.
“Breathe,” she reminded me. “Let it out slowly.”
With my eyes stinging, I wanted to shut them, but instead, I watched the small waves that formed in the vial as I released my magic into it.
“Don’t hold it in,” she continued, her tone gentle yet firm.
Death’s pulse rode with my exhale, sliding into the vial in a small haze of red that disappeared into the clear water. My chest loosened, but fear still clung to me.
“Look at how amazing you are, Lolli,” Brenton said, his eyes on the vial I continued to fill slowly. “This is you. Not your magic.You.You get to choose how it leaves you.”
My magic snarled in answer, but I clung to his words. Another slow exhale. Another trickle into the glass.
“That’s it,” he whispered, his hand tightening around mine. “Steady. Controlled.”
The pressure inside built stronger, sharper, trying to rip free of me. My hand trembled around the vial as the red threads of my magic streamed faster. More frantic. Trying to claw out.
A choked sob escaped me.
“Easy, Lolli,” Brenton murmured. “You’re doing it. You’re bending it to your will.”
Tears blurred my vision as I fought against the swell, the part of me that only knew how to unleash and turn everything into ruin. But I pressed on, forcing my magic to trickle rather than flood. Breath after breath.
“That’s it,” he whispered, his tone bleeding with pride. “You’re doing this. Not the magic. Only you.”
The vial grew heavier, filling with the red threads of my magic that unraveled into it, vanishing one by one as the roar inside began to lessen. My shoulders straightened. My fingers still trembled, my magic still burned.
But I was doing it. Steady. Controlled.
When the last curl of my magic slipped into the glass, the storm relented, leaving me raw but unbroken.
Brenton’s eyes found mine, pride burning from them like the sun breaking free of the clouds. He leaned closer, his words only for me to hear.
“That’s my girl. My brave dragon. You can conquer anything.”
My breath hitched at his words. At the fierce pride that twined through them.
My brave dragon.
My hand trembled as I put away the vial, my eyes never leaving his face. I leaned into him, into the warmth he provided.
“YourLolli,” I said, just as low.
His eyes filled with emotion and love. His love for me. “My Lolli.”
How wrong I’d been in thinking I couldn’t be strong at his side.
