Page 35 of Board Games and Broomsticks

The hairs on Nyssa’s arms stood on end. She rushed to her feet, her heart thudding as she joined Nyx at the window. At this time of evening, Nighthaven was awash with shadows, and the normally bright, open town square was eerily still. Normally, there would be a gentle breeze through the bushes and trees, or the faint lights of pixies dancing through the square fountain. But tonight it was so still that when a flash of movement finally did catch Nyssa’s eye, she almost jumped out of her skin.

A large, white owl was perched on the roof of Madame Jeanne’s bakery, its wide, unblinking eyes staring directly at Nyssa. At first, she thought it was the same owl the coven had been sending to deliver her letters, but – no. There was something off about it. Its beak and talons were too long, too sharp, and the predatory tilt of its head made Nyssa’s spine tingle.

‘Nys, what is it?’

Alaric stood at her shoulder, his eyes narrowed as he squinted to see in the darkness.

‘There’s an owl,’ she said, hating how her voice shook, ‘up on Madame Jeanne’s roof. It looks … I don’t know, wrong, somehow?’

Nyx let out another hiss in agreement. The druid followed Nyssa’s line of sight, his lips pursing as he took in the creature that had Nyssa so rattled.

‘Mmm, it’s a little larger than usual,’ he agreed, ‘but the animals around Nighthaven can be a bit different. Something to do with all the magic here. I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about, but if it is, I shall endeavour to protect you and Nyx with my life.’

He stepped back and gave a dramatic bow as he said this, and despite her unease, Nyssa couldn’t help but laugh. You’re being paranoid, she told herself as he led her back to the table.

‘Now, how about another round of drinks?’ Alaric said as Nyssa sat back in her seat. ‘And when I get back from the bar, you must remind me to fill you in on the story I heard about an old friend of mine and their unfortunate incident with a wolf that took a liking to him when he shifted into lupine form to rescue her from a very angry bear.’

Nyssa forgot all about the owl over the next few hours, her thoughts instead filled with Alaric’s stories, Elowen’s quiet laughter and Liora’s beautiful, soothing voice as she gave in to the druid’s demands for an impromptu performance. The comfort of being surrounded by friends, combined with the subtle effects of one too many Spicy Gnomes, left Nyssa feeling pleasantly drowsy as she finally declared it was time for her and Nyx to head home for the night.

‘I’m going to head off, too,’ Elowen said. Alaric and Liora were still deep in a game of cards, with no sign of leaving any time in the foreseeable future. Elowen shook her head. ‘I suppose we’ll see you at the café tomorrow?’

‘Yep!’ Liora said, not looking up from her hand. Alaric let out a sound somewhere between a ‘sure’ and a ‘mmmhmm’, before slamming down a card with the illustration of a sceptre on it.

‘I win!’

Nyssa stepped closer to Elowen to be heard over Liora’s shouts of protest and tried to ignore the way her stomach flipped as their shoulders brushed. ‘We should get out of here before this gets ugly.’

‘Agreed.’

Elowen didn’t replace the distance between them as they walked together out of the tavern and into the dark, winter night. The cool kiss of air against Nyssa’s flushed skin was like a balm, and she shook off the returning weight of foreboding that came when she looked at the roof of Madame Jeanne’s shop. The owl she’d seen was gone, and above, the sky was filled with dozens of brightly shining stars.

‘The sky is so beautiful here.’ She sighed. ‘Back in London, you can barely see the stars through all the smog.’

Elowen didn’t respond, and Nyssa looked over at her to find the elf’s gaze not on the sky, but on her. The expression on her face was so soft, so … admiring, that it took everything in Nyssa not to pull Elowen into her arms and kiss her right there beneath the stars.

Because as much as she wanted to, it wouldn’t be fair to Elowen. Nyssa still hadn’t spoken about the trials with Elowen and how she was still hoping to return to her coven. She’d been too afraid of pushing her away entirely, but now, with the alcohol in her system and the guilt almost too much to bear, Nyssa said, ‘I heard from my coven. They want me to undertake three trials, to see if I’m worthy of being let back into the coven. And then there’s a final test, to determine if I should be reappointed as head mage.’

‘Oh …’ Elowen’s cheeks turned pink as she said sheepishly, ‘I actually …’ she hesitated, looking up at the sky, as if searching for the right way to say whatever she was thinking. ‘I may have overheard you talking about the trials to Liora, that day in the café when I was in the back room … but I didn’t want to pry if you weren’t ready to talk about them with me.’ Though her expression betrayed nothing, the pitch of her voice was a little too high to be considered natural as she went on, ‘I had just sort of assumed you weren’t actually doing the trials, since you hadn’t mentioned them since …’

‘Oh,’ Nyssa said softly, fiddling with a loose thread of fabric dangling from the sleeve of her coat. ‘I’ve … already passed two of the trials.’

‘That’s … wonderful news.’ This time, it was Elowen’s turn to study Nyssa’s expression, and her brows drew together when Nyssa couldn’t bring herself to smile. ‘Isn’t it?’

Nyssa sucked in a deep breath. Maybe it was the alcohol, or the hum in her veins from a night surrounded by friends, but … ‘It is, but … it also means I’m one step closer to returning to my old life, and … I don’t know, I guess the thought just doesn’t fill me with as much joy as I thought it would.’ She paused, looking up at the clear, starlit sky. ‘When I first arrived in Nighthaven, I was so sure it would be just a temporary refuge for me, but now … now I’m not sure I can see myself leaving here.’

Or you.

The words rose in Nyssa’s throat, surprising her somewhat. How had Elowen become such a crucial piece of the puzzle that made Nighthaven feel more like her home with each passing day? It was a feeling that felt too new to voice, and until she could, it would stay locked up safely inside her heart. Instead, she shook her head and let out a nervous laugh.

‘Anyway, that isn’t your problem, and right now, dealing with Morven is more important. Everything else can wait.’ She scooped up Nyx, and when Elowen still hadn’t responded, held back a disappointed sigh. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow, then. Goodnight.’

‘I’ll walk you home.’

It was so far from what Nyssa had been expecting the elf to say that for a moment she simply stared at her, her mouth slightly open. Elowen looked … nervous. Her eyes were fixed on her boots, and her fingers tugged at the frayed hem of her coat sleeves. If the offer itself hadn’t been a sign, her body language was.

Elowen wasn’t running away.

And even though Nyssa still wasn’t certain she’d be staying in Nighthaven, even though she should have declined Elowen’s offer and kept up the fragile boundary between them, she instead made an offer of her own.