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A small flash of golden light has me turning my head to spot Margo, the woman who raised me, sitting next to me in the bright dress she wore to her funeral. She’s flickering in and out, and I narrow my eyes.
Is that because of the mishap with my magicae… or is it something else?
“You can’t forget, Zoe.” The urgency in her tone has me dismissing my original panic. “You can’t let him take your memories.”
“Forget what?” I ask quietly, biting my lip. Both Zohar and Mael are absorbed in their tasks, neither having noticed my conversation with a dead woman.
“You’ve forgotten,” Margo says, and she frowns. “I’m too late.”
“I don’t understand,” I whisper, trying to reach for her. “I’ve not forgotten anything, grandma.”
She smiles, but it’s a sad smile. I grasp her hand, but she disappears.
What have I forgotten, and why is it so important?
2
ELZORA
“Come on, Ellie,” Mael taunts, grinning at me with two fireballs dancing above his open palms. “You can do it.”
“I can’t,” I groan. Sweat is dripping down my forehead, strands of baby hairs clinging to me, and I’m absolutely wrecked. We’ve been at this for what feels like hours. “I can’t do it, Mal.”
“Yes, you can. You can do anything you put your mind to,” he says softly. “You need to learn to control your fire, Ellie.”
“It was a fluke.”
“The circumstances were different, yes, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t replicate the act.”
I try to distinguish his fire, but I can’t. I fail.Again.
Because this time, I actually am failing. Unlike what happened in Professor Byzatic’s class, I’m actively trying to do what I need, and I can’t do it.
Maybe I am hopeless.
“You’re thinking like a quitter.”
“I’m not a quitter,” I snap, fire lighting up my palm. I gasp, excited, but then it fizzles away. My sigh is long, and I can see the disappointment in Mael’s gaze before he hides it away, and smiles at me.
“You did great,” he says. “You managed to summon your fire, and hold it for a little bit.”
“But nowhere near good enough,” I say, looking down at my empty hands. “I hate that I’m not as—”
“Mael’s been at this a lot longer than you,” Eirik says, walking over to us. I look at him in surprise, not having seen him since the drama with Professor Byzatic. “You’re being too hard on yourself, love. Give yourself time.”
I nod, reaching up to tighten my ponytail. It’s easy enough to say that I need to be patient, that it’ll come… but every time I don’t master something, or even show promise at it, I look like a failure.
I need to blend in.
I need to appear normal.
Eirik takes my hands in his, and I look into his icy blue eyes. “You’re doing your best, Zoe, and that’s what is important.”
“You’re not worried?” I ask, biting my lip.
He falters, and Mael groans. He walks over to us and kicks Eirik before smiling at me.
“We’re going to be fine,” Mael reassures. “Nothing is going to happen to you.”
