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I don’t see where the wine bottles land. Since I hear no smashing, the waves must have devoured them.
Eliya lowers the layers of mud back into the hole. When the earth is returned to its rightful place, the emerald glow fades. There is no seam in the grass to show where Eliya dug it up. It looks like it was never disturbed.
“All done,” she declares, brushing her hands together. “Time for us to head back, then. Will you be fine teleporting yourself home?”
“You definitely drank more than me tonight. It should be me asking you that question.”
“We both know I can handle my wine better than you,” she says with a wink.“But anyway, I don’t want to leave you here by yourself if you’re not feeling well.”
“I feel fine.”
“You know what I mean.”
“It’s been three years. I can handle it.”
“All right,” she says. “Make sure you don’t study too much in the morning.”
I breathe a laugh. “I promise I won’t.”
She draws aether into her hands. “Night then, Reyna. Sleep well.”
“You too,” I reply, just as she mutterslaxusand disappears into violet light.
Aether dust scatters through the wind and swirls with the snowflakes.
With a deep breath, I gaze up at the crescent moon. My fingers play with the silver locket hanging around my neck.
Eliya is right. If Arluin is alive, it’s probably best he never returns. Because I fear I would forsake my future, my father, just to be with him.
I know I must put the past behind me. I can’t spend the rest of my life wallowing over what happened three years ago. But I don’t know how to banish the grief which haunts my heart.
I draw out a sigh. Standing out here all night will do me no good.
Closing my eyes, I gather aether into my fingers and picture the towering gates outside my manor. I imagine them so clearly that I can almost see the two lions roaring at each other on our family crest.
When the image is concrete, I whisperlaxusand unleash my magic. I fade away into the night, leaving behind a cloud of glittering purple light.
Yet when I emerge from the teleportation spell, brine wafts into my nose.
I open my eyes. The tall gates of my manor are nowhere to be seen.
I let out a groan and blink several times, praying that I’m not actually looking at the ships anchored in the harbor. But no matter how much I rub my eyes, the piers don’t morph into my home.
Fantastic.
I slap my forehead. It seems I mis-targeted my teleportation spell, no doubt because of the wine. The only consolation is that my mistake hasn’t meant a trip deep into the sea. That has apparently happened to a few magi before.
Not daring to try teleporting again in case it lands me beneath the waves, I break into a sprint and hurry through the Lower City.
The streets are almost empty at this late hour. A few drunken sailors stumble out of taverns and call over to me. I ignore them all and keep my attention fixed on the road ahead. Fortunately, they don’t bother me with anything more than a few slurred shouts.
Since my manor is located at the far end of the Upper City, my journey home is a long one. The streets are shadowed, and only the radiance of the floating aether crystals stops me from tripping over the uneven stones. The buildings seem to sway as I run. I grimace. If only I’d targeted the spell more carefully. I was certain that the image was clear enough in my mind, but apparently not.
It takes me a long while to reach the steps leading up to the Upper City. By then, my pace has slowed to a jog. With everything spinning around me, I’m not sure whether I’ll manage the rest of the way home. Not wanting to spend the night sleeping in an alleyway, I force myself onward.
But it seems Vetia, the Goddess of Luck, really isn’t on my side tonight.
A force slams into me. It sends me flying back onto the cobblestones. The impact bruises my limbs, and I graze my palms from trying to break my fall.
