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I gave Tuggy a good scratch under the chin before she went back to grooming Angel again, which earned another disdained glare from Fen. He really wasn’t going to let up on this.
“So, how do I finish making Angel a familiar?” I asked Aya.
“When we get a better hold on your magic, I’ll show you. Then we can go over what that bond will entail.”
I liked that idea. “So, the first goal is to get me caught up on my magic skills.”
“And train you in the ways of a Valkyrie,” Kirby said. “You’re going to need to understand how that works, now that you are one.”
I nodded. “We also have the festival next weekend that we need to prep for.”
Aya waved a hand. “I’ve got that all covered. All the supposed prep-work I’ve been having us do was just to keep the façade up. Now that you two know the truth, don’t worry.”
“Wait, so was your insistence for this year’s theme all an elaborate plan because of Astrid’s memories?” Diego asked.
She nodded. “My hope is if we immerse her into something that is similar to her past, she’ll remember quicker. Originally, I thought it’d help her remember at all, but that happened on its own. If Astrid can remember all of her past, we might figure out who insists she needs to stay dead.”
He nodded, his jaw setting with determination. I was grateful for his support. I knew this whole situation was fucked up and difficult to wrap one’s head around. If it weren’t for the memories and all the magic flying around, I’d probably think this was some weird, fevered dream I’d wake up from any moment now. I could only imagine what Diego was going through as an ordinary person.
And it made me that much happier he wanted to stay by my side.I’ll need to figure out my guy issue eventually. But for now, saving the world takes precedence over my love life.
Chapter Eighteen
Tyr
A fly buzzedby my ear. My training helped me ignore the annoying pest, but between it and this unusually hot summer heat for the area, even my patience was put to the test. I didn’t know how Astrid could act like the heat didn’t bother her as I watched her face Aya, both sitting on some patio furniture on the deck. Sure, she was sweating, even in the distractingly short shorts and low-cut tank top she wore, but the way she focused on her hands, trying to create a ball of light per Aya’s instructions, it was as if she wasn’t aware of anything around her.
“Breathe, Astrid,” Aya said. “Don’t hold your breath.”
Astrid sucked in a tight breath without looking up from her hands. Kirby couldn’t come by to train Astrid in Valkyrie-related skills, or in healing, so Aya took the chance to train her instead.
I had paid little attention in the past when she trained Astrid. I’d always used that time to spar with Fen and Baldur. And back then, Astrid had prior experience with magic before Aya had started training her, making her lessons far easier than what Astrid experienced now.
But I paid attention now. Not only because the instructions were fascinating, but I suspected that understanding how magic worked would help me synergize with Astrid in a fight.We’d done well in the past, but there’s always room for improvement.
Fen swatted at the flies buzzing around him, unable to handle their annoyance.Some things never change.I still felt some animosity with him, but I was working on that. He came over daily, and Astrid even insisted on us having therapy sessions with Diego. I wasn’t sure why she didn’t want to, but to my surprise, Diego handled our conversations incredibly well for someone who’d been thrust into the truth of the world so recently.
Astrid let out a frustrated breath. She dropped her hands into her lap. “It’s not working.”
Aya tapped her lips with a finger. “This is so strange. You shouldn’t be having this much trouble learning magic of any kind.”
Astrid hadn’t been doing well on the healing training, either, which surprised us all, given she’d been so adept at it before. It was like there was something holding her back. But what could it be?
“We all saw her use it against Tyr the other day,” Fen said. “Sure, she was pissed, but if she could use it then, what’s so different now?”
Astrid frowned. “I wish I knew. I hadn’t even thought about using magic against him. It just happened. Just like when you all told me about Baldur. And it was the same with Ben. I was angry and then power exploded out of me, sending both flying with the power of the force.”
The force?I ignored the comment while Aya and Fen snickered, as if they understood something I didn’t, and instead focused on something specific she mentioned.She was angry…
I’d hardly ever seen her angry since showing up here. The last few days were the highest in frustration levels, and only around her training. Once that ended, and she did something else, it was like no negative bone existed in her. And maybe that was the problem.
I’d heard her rage the day after I’d come here. It was a powerful response to something, but I’d stayed away, as advised by Raeni. She had said it was something that happened every once in a while with Astrid, and we were to never discuss the situation with her. Only Diego and her father helped her through those.
How much did she suppress something like rage? How natural was it for her to be so happy all the time?
And then there was her distress after the news of Baldur.It was like her powerful emotions had opened up whatever blocked her.
My eyes flicked around to assess the area we had to work with.The deck should be large enough.I pushed off the wall and gestured for Astrid to rise. “Let’s try something. Stand up.”
