Page 28 of Compass Points
She wondered if he knew how excellent his timing was. She tried to pat his head, but Arie shook her off with the brush of his wing.
“We ran into a thief on the road. We handled it.” Her eyes tracked the archer’s receding shape as he walked away from them. “Though it was a somber reminder about the impacts of the mist plague on more than just those lost to the endless sleep.”
Luc’s eyes shifted to the black bird. He’d seen Arie in bird form enough to recognize him, especially when he landed so casually on Rose’s shoulder. The fae didn’t seem happy to see him. She was sure he’d been moments away from taking a guess at her magic line.
“Let’s get back on the road. We’ve still got a lot of ground to cover,” Luc said as he gave Rose a meaningful look.
She couldn’t help but smile to herself. He thought he knew what type of fae she was, did he? If only the answer were so straightforward.
Chapter Sixteen
15years ago - Compass Lake
“On the count of three, Aiden,” Rose yelled from the lake’s edge.
“One,” Aiden yelled as he sprinted down the hill toward the beach and Rose.
“Two,” Rose shouted back at him as she called on her magic.
“Three!” they yelled in tandem as Aiden leapt into the air, on a collision course with Rose and the hard ground if she didn’t change his trajectory.
She reached for her magic as Aiden’s frame came barreling towards her, calling the water from Compass Lake. She didn’t want it to burst through the ground like last time. She worked to picture it creating a slide that caught Aiden in mid-flight and shot him out into the deeper part of the lake.
She heard him laughing with glee and then a splash.
She let go of her magic and turned to look as Aiden’s head burst above the surface.
“Nice!” Aiden yelled from the water as he grinned.
“Your turn,” Rose said as she ran back to the bottom of the hill to get a running start. She turned back toward the lake as Aiden emerged and moved to take the position she’d been in at the water’s edge.
“When I say go!” Aiden skipped the countdown. “Go!”
Rose didn’t hesitate as she rushed forward. Bare feet connected with grass and then sand as she gained speed. She watched Aiden concentrate as she moved. She readied herself to lunge, just as he had. Rose felt the second that Aiden started to call the water around him. She hurled herself into the air, with no fear that she wouldn’t slide gracefully into the lake just as he had.
She was already in midair when her eyes locked on Aiden’s. They widened in panic and flashed grey. He flailed his arms as he tried to pull his magic to create the slide just as she had. Not so much as waves rippled from the motions. She was running out of airtime as he tried to call the water to shoot directly from the ground instead of pulling it out of the lake. It would at least stop her from crashing, even if it wasn’t as elegant.
Nothing happened.
Rose was out of time. She was no longer leaping; she was falling, about to land face first on the sandy beach. She didn’t want to take Aiden’s turn from him but knew she had to act fast. She called the water to her as she headed for a crash landing, using it to push her body off its current trajectory, catching her inches from the ground and sending her splashing into the lake.
Pushing her head above the surface, she looked toward Aiden.
His head hung, drooped between his shoulders. His eyes were closed, and his hands balled into fists at his side. She understood he’d be disappointed, but she’d landed fine. It wasn’t until she turned back to look at the shore that she saw the real reason for his disappointment.
Aiden’s parents stood at the bottom of the hill, his father’s brow furrowed and his mother’s arms folded across her chest as they both studied their son.
“Want to try again?” Rose asked Aiden. He lifted his head, his blue eyes shining with unshed tears.
“You alright, Rose?” he asked. “I’m so sorry. I’m not sure what happened.”
“No worries, Aiden. Want to try again?” she echoed.
His parents had unfortunately moved closer. His mother stepped cautiously as she twisted her hands together. His father’s eyes searched the lakeshore as if assessing if anyone else saw his son’s failure.
“Aiden, haven’t you been practicing?” his father asked as he moved onto the beach.
“Good afternoon,” Rose called as she paddled back to shore, pulling herself out of the lake.
