Page 37 of Charmed

Until this moment I hadn’t given much thought to the skills of the other competitors…or their motives; all undoubtedly had a compelling reason for entering, and would do all within their power to achieve their ends.

The competition had just become more complicated. Not only would Alden have to compete against magical wielders of exceptional talent, but his struggle would be compounded as he also was forced to fight against his own self-doubts…which might prove a greater foe than even a king from a kingdom of eternal night, the potential threat he’d alluded to, and the skills of those fighting for such a prestigious award as a seat on the council.

CHAPTER12

The night stretched around us, yet no matter how many minutes trickled away sleep couldn’t lure me from my whirling thoughts. I sensed Alden’s own worry choke the night as he too lay awake, forming into twisting shapes much as King Ciaran had manipulated the darkness, as if remnants of his power lingered along with the effects brought by his presence.

This lurking darkness reached inside my subconsciousness like sentient shadows to twist my worry into tangible forms—all of Corbin. During the day I’d been able to placate my frantic fears, but now there was nothing to distract me, giving them full reign.

The darkness breathed life into all my worst imaginings—that I would remain trapped as a frog forever, leaving my family without support; how in my absence Mother struggled to care for Corbin and manage the house alone; Corbin’s current illness leaving him weak with fever and crying from the relentless pain. Helplessness entangled my small body like seaweed chaining me to the pond’s dark depths where there was no escape.

My eyes snapped open with a breathlessribbit. Daybreak had finally arrived to push away the suffocating darkness. Slants of early morning dawn caressed the water, yet its rays did little to warm my all-encompassing chill, the icy fear paralyzing my limbs no match for my body’s ability to adapt its temperature to its surroundings.

Shudders rippled over me, shaking the lily pad where I perched to create extending ripples across the pond. My first inclination was to find Alden, but there was no sign of him. Panic, already so near the surface after the nightmare that had haunted my sleep, surged through me. I hopped along the lily pads to reach the shore where the remnants of his fire remained along with his tangle of unfolded blankets, evidence he’d left in a hurry.

I struggled to still my frantic breaths enough to focus on my heightened awareness so I could search the forest. After a moment of concentration, I was able to carefully peel back the magical layers filling the air with its gentle hum to detect soft footsteps not far from where we’d encountered the dark king.

The sound guided each of my hurried hops until I found Alden amongst the pines, crouching to search not only with his eyes but with the glistening pinprick of magic against his fingertips that combed the forest floor.

“Alden!” My voice was weak with relief yet sharp enough to be scolding. He glanced up, brows furrowed in surprise.

“Good morning, Mae. Did you sleep well?” The dark circles beneath his eyes testified of his own difficult night.

“Of course not,” I snapped. “My horrible night was made worse when I woke up to find you missing.”

“Were you worried?” He blinked in clear surprise at the conclusion.

Worry…the intensity of the emotion shocked me. With the constant struggle to survive brought by my common birth and Corbin’s continuous precarious health, worry had been my constant companion. Yet though I recognized the feeling, it now felt…different.

I’d never expected to harbor such an emotion towards a wizard whose magic made him perfectly capable of protecting himself. Such feelings seemed unproductive when I considered how much more my helpless little brother or exhausted, overworked mother were in need of my concern. The feelings were not only thoroughly perplexing, but brought a sense of guilt, as if worrying about someone outside my family somehow betrayed them.

I was tempted to bury my concern deep enough it’d be impossible to unearth and examine…only to still at Alden’s softening expression that caused my insides to flutter in a way that was both alarming and pleasing.

“Forgive me for worrying you. While I’m accustomed to receiving concern from my family, guards, and on occasion from my subjects, it’s not often I receive it from a friend. Thank you, Mae.”

Heat swarmed to prickle every wart marring my skin, a contrast to the misty morning’s chill. In my embarrassment I tried to avoid his endearing expression…but my circular vision made it impossible to fully look away. My new abilities could be quite the inconvenience.

I cleared my throat with a rumblycroak. “I should have known you wouldn’t waste a moment you could be spending on the competition.” I hopped closer to study the section of ground he searched, which appeared entirely ordinary to my untrained observation. “Have you found what you’re looking for?”

He shook his head. “I’m undoubtedly wasting precious time best spent on coming up with an idea for a new kind of elemental magic, while the part of me that is afraid my creativity isn’t up to the task is finding any excuse to stall. Though deep down I’m only sabotaging myself, I still hold out the hope that whatever clue is hidden within this forest will grant me what I feel I lack in order to compete with advanced magical wielders.”

I felt a swell of protectiveness at his deepening look of dejection. “Not only are you not approaching the task with your own abilities and strengths, but you’re likely giving the other competitors too much credit by assuming they’re strong in all the areas you feel you’re lacking. If you approach the competition by attempting to emulate King Ciaran, the judges won’t be able to adequately measure whetheryou, Prince Alden, are fit for a council position.”

He considered my words a moment before slowly nodding. “You’re right. I should spend my time and efforts focusing onmymagic.”

He ceased searching for whatever clue the king had alluded to last night and returned to the clearing to practice his magic, but I lingered. There was little I could do as a silent bystander; I yearned to support him in ways beyond encouragement. King Ciaran’s hint had been important enough to Alden for him to expend so much focus on it; perhaps I could dedicate my own attention and my enhanced animal senses to the abandoned task.

This new sense of purpose served as an antidote to some of my suffocating helplessness and guided me deeper into the forest. Hop by hop I carefully investigated the undergrowth. Morning hadn’t illuminated the uncertainty that had marred my search last night, but I hoped it’d make whatever I was looking for easier to recognize should I stumble upon it.

Discovering that I’d spent my entire life living in an enchanted forest without recognizing the magic that filled the trees left me feeling insecure in my powers of observation, but since beginning my training I’d become more familiar with the power that touched every living thing.

I hoped that even my rudimentary knowledge would be enough to detect something outside my realm of experience, though in truth I possessed little hope of being able to discover something Alden had missed. Yet while I couldn’t access my powers in my cursed form, they manifested themselves in unique ways that would provide an advantage he didn’t possess.

My enhanced vision made the world sharper, causing the vivid colors to pulsate with energy; my hearing amplified not only the sounds filling the forest but magic’s soft, nearly indiscernible melody, making its whispers that wove through the air easier to decipher. With some focus, I was able to comb through each magical layer glimmering across the undergrowth in search for what didn’t belong.

Eventually I came across a clump of clover containing a unique aura. Curious, I probed the magical air around it as best as my webbed feet allowed. In one of my dreaded magical theory lessons during my apprenticeship, Alden had explained that magic connected to everything, and that each force possessed unique properties that made them naturally inclined for certain aspects of magic—whether spells, potions, or even use with the elements.

Whereas most seemed inclined towards one or possibly even two, this plant seemed to test the usual limits by possessing the potential foranyof the elements, something I hadn’t yet encountered in my studies.

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