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Stardust motioned back to the folder. “Check the last page, it’s the most important.”
This one was also submitted by Darius, but rather than containing his findings and observations, it was a page torn from a book, one sentence underlined: “Although Mortals are incapable of possessing magic, legends hypothesize that a child born from a union between a Weaver and a Mortal could possess unusual powers, though outside of legend, there have been no verified instances of such a feat, due to Mortals’ inability to see Weavers.”
My name was written in all caps at the top of the page, and beneath the legend Darius had scribbled:Half-Mortal, Half-Dreamer? Requires additional research.
I strokedHalf-Mortal, Half-Dreamerover and over. “Is this what I am?” I expected to be more affected by this revelation, but I only felt empty.
Stardust eyed my indifferent expression. “Aren’t you surprised?”
“Not really,” I said. “Somehow, I think a part of me already knew.”
“If you examine all the clues surrounding you, his conclusions make sense. I just can’t believe Spiderweb is the one who realized it first.” She pouted.
“He often reads a book of legends while waiting for me to finish weaving; he probably stumbled upon this one by chance and connected the dots.”
Stardust’s pout only deepened. “What bothers me the most about all of this is not the fact that several groups of advanced Weavers couldn’t create a dream for you, but that Spiderwebcould. Half-Mortal or not, magical beings of any kind can’t receive dreams. Are you sure it wasyourdream you saw?”
The memory of every creepy detail from Darius’s nightmare bombarded my mind. I shivered. “Positive.”
Stardust frowned. “I snuck a peek at Spiderweb’s file while borrowing yours. He only graduated from the Academy a few years ago, but already he’s ranked in the top ten percentile of all Weavers. His talent is undeniable, and I suspect he’ll only get better as he gets more practice.”
“Thanks for the great news,” I muttered.
“Still, talented or not, he shouldn’t be able to achieve the impossible by giving you a dream. So how did he manage it? This mystery sure is perplexing.” But rather than seeming daunted by such an unusual case, she only quivered with excitement.
She took flight again, rising higher until we were swallowed by swirls of clouds. We entered the Dream World next to the Rosewood Forest, whose sweet perfume washed over us in the gentle spring breeze. Stardust flew past the path leading to Angel and Iris’s home.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
She paused. “I need to visit the Dream Library to research possibilities for how Spiderweb gave you that nightmare, in addition to reading more about this Half-Mortal, Half-Dreamer legend to see if I can fill in some missing pieces. While I sleuth, you should study. It’s ridiculous how much you’re losing, and your streak is starting to affect more than you; I have a reputation to maintain amongst the other clouds, so I can’t have you continuing to lose Weavings or receive unsolicited help from Nightmares.”
I didn’t argue, for she was right. And it wasn’t just Weaving I wanted to study—Darius’s investigations had invited on onslaught of questions about myself, ones I was determined to find answers to.
The vast Dream Library was comprised of rows upon rows of floating, woven moonbeam shelves, laden with shimmery books made from silk, satin, or leather and etched in silver or gold. Older volumes waited patiently on their shelves for someone to peruse them, whereas the newer books floated restlessly around the library, often taking up residence in the wrong section.
Stardust flew past books on history, magic technique, Weather Shaping, and Nature Artistry. She paused in the Cultivating section, her gaze flickering across the books planted in the shelves like a miniature garden. What kind of mystery would require her to research Cultivating? It must have something to do with Mother. I was torn between wanting to learn more about her and needing to spend the time learning more about weaving.
“Before you begin investigating, can you help me find books to improve my skills?” I tugged her frothy body upward, where the shelves of weaving books resided.
Stardust obediently flew to the weaving section. I hopped onto the floating cobblestone path that twisted through the shelves. Stardust trailed several yards behind as I browsed, her nose buried in her notes. Whenever I tried stealing a glimpse of them, she tipped her notebook away with a dark look.
“I have multiple mysteries I’m investigating, all top-secret; the ones that don’t have anything to do with you are none of your business.”
“Do any of your investigations have to do with where my mother might be?”
Stardust softened. “I’ve spent hours searching, but so far I haven’t found anything. I’m sorry, Eden.”
I sighed and turned away to scan the shelves, a difficult task when the books kept wandering. As much as I needed to study weaving, I found my gaze skipping over those books in search of books specifically about dreams. Darius’s findings had only escalated my curiosity about my own powers…as well as my origins. If I was truly Half-Mortal, could that part of myself be the reason I could see others’ dreams? Or did my abilities originate from somewhere else?
I couldn’t find anything useful in this section, which was unsurprising since it was highly unlikely I’d find anything more than Darius had been able to with his experience and efforts, so I reluctantly returned my attention to searching for books on technique.
“How to Juggle Multiple Mortals;Recycling your Weaving Images;Eleven Easy Steps to Improved Stitchery…aha!Weaving Unbeatable Dreams.” I tugged the thick volume out, which was an inviting sunny yellow.
Stardust looked up from her notes and frowned at the title. “Isn’t that too advanced for you?”
I hesitated. “Do you really think so?” But even after her nod I didn’t return the book, for although she was undoubtedly correct about the level of my abilities, I was interested in more than improving my technique.
The scent of daisies wafted from the pages as I lightly stroked the book’s spine and it quivered open. After a quick scan of the index, I turned the shimmery pages to a section on a Mortal’s connections to their dreams. Perhaps if I could better understandwhyMortals could see the dreams we created for them, I’d learn more about not only my own powers, but the reason Darius had defied the impossible and successfully woven a dream for me. But the information was rudimentary at best, yielding me no information.
