Page 83 of Disenchanted

She wasn’t sure how long they were there in the labyrinth for, but when Sage dragged her eyes open again, barely daring to believe that a wish might have come true, he really was still there. Breathing steadily and stroking her thigh while he half slept in an exhausted daze. Her magic gave a reassuring tingle at the tips of her fingers to promise that it was still there too.

“You’re awake?” Casimir whispered, leaning in to leave a gentle kiss on the top of her ear. She nodded shyly, still rather baffled as to how they’d found themselves at this point. “Specs, I think it’s time.”

“Time?”

He gestured his head with a slight wince towards the opposite wall of the labyrinth. “We have quite the clean-up operation to begin. We’re going to need some assistance.”

She frowned up at him, confused, but now the rose petals had finished falling from the clouds and they’d finished being lovesick fools (for the moment, at least), Sage noticed what had appeared before them.

A door had revealed itself, pressed into the side of the labyrinth, dark oak and strapped with metal hinges. She was certain it had not been there before.

“Can you stand?” she asked him as she rose to her feet.

Casimir nodded and moved slowly to follow her. “Just about. But I am going to need you to draw me a very hot, very bubbly bath when we get home. And maybe join me in it. It’s the least you can do, really, Specs. After I saved you and everything.”

Sage scowled. “Casimir, I hope for your sake that you are joking.”

“Joking? What would I be joking about? I literally tamed a bloody dragon for you, Specs. This whole town would have been burned to the ground if I hadn’t—”

“Need I remind you that the dragon was already tame? And I only sent said dragon to make sure that you didn’t decapitate me with that blasted sword of yours so that I could finish up vanquishing the terrible echo spirit of twisted dark magic that—”

Casimir gasped. “You sent the dragon? And then me after it? You sacrificed me! That thing could have killed me!”

Sage waved a hand at him. “Oh, don’t be such a baby, Casimir. I knew what I was doing. Shame you didn’t, just for a change.”

“Honestly, you come this close to decapitating someone, and suddenly they want you barbecued and served on a skewer. We’re supposed to be in love, Specs. This is hardly a fairy-tale first date, is it?”

“Oh, will you be—”

So busy bickering, the pair of them had forgotten all about the door, but when Casimir coughed in its direction, Sage swallowed hard.

After helping Casimir to his feet, Sage took a few cautious steps towards the door. There was a knocker shaped like a crescent moon. She stretched out her knuckles to knock and saw that twinkles of magic encased her hand, as though the blasted stuff could barely keep itself contained within her anymore. It glittered proudly, so delighted to be reunited with its holder, the deepest, most comforting of dreams wrapped around her skin in watery, translucent clouds of pink dawn and purple dusk. It was so, so beautiful. How could she ever have left such joy behind? She had been so cruel to keep it from herself. She never would again.

The knocker was within arm’s reach. She could see the intricate carvings of stars in the wood grain. And there were words, too, wrapped around the moon-shaped brass knocker: Tonitru, Fulgur, Pluvia.

The coven had found her.

“Perhaps it was inevitable; one’s greatest fears always catch up with them sooner or later,” she said quietly.

“Oh, I don’t know. What’s a mysterious, menacing coven after everything we’ve been through?” Casimir said beside her. He turned to her, uncharacteristically sincere again. “I’m by your side, Specs.” He slid his hand into hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.

Sage was not afraid of magic anymore.

Besides, she had to do this for her life to return to its full, beautiful self. She had to do this for Casimir, her siblings, Maggie and Mal, as well as everyone else that she had become so fond of within her community.

And she had to do this for herself. For once, she had to ask for help. More than that, she found she was ready to; she wanted to.

Sage knocked three times and the coven door opened.

35

Beyond the Archway

An earthy, sooty scent was noticeable as soon as they made their way through the door, and Sage was struck by how familiar it was. Past the fragrant, herbal perfume of brewing potion, it smelled just like the morning after the autumn festival bonfire.

Sage and Casimir found themselves in what seemed to be the foyer, with towering stone walls and richly coloured rugs underfoot. After so much time inside the darkness of the labyrinth, the torches fastened at intervals along the walls gave such a warm, inviting light that Sage had to squint against them while her eyes adjusted.

“Hello?” she called shyly, clearing her throat. There was no one around. Casimir clicked the door shut quietly behind them as she took a couple more cautious steps further into the hall.