Page 36 of The Midwinter Mirror
“Do you want to fly?” Zayne asks. “I can carry us all.”
One day, I would love to fly on Zayne’s basilisk, but tonight… “Is it okay if we walk? I just need a little time.”
“Of course.”
He keeps hold of my hand as we set out for Silvergate for the second time that day. I’ve always hated Christmas because so many bad things seem to happen around the season of goodwill. But the singing has lifted my spirits a little.
“How does magic work?” I ask Zayne.
“I have no fucking clue.”
Very helpful. Josh comes up on my other side. “Amber told me that it was different for everyone. That you just have to sort of embrace it, accept it.”
“But how do you actually do spells?”
“You make them up. The words don’t matter, at least not until they’re out in the world. Then they’re sort of imbued with your power. You just have to think clearly about what you want and then make up the spell. She said it’s best if they rhyme, though.”
Zayne snorts. “Feeling poetic, princess?”
“No.”
I can sense the panic rising inside me again. I believe now, but all my life my automatic reaction to any mention of magic has been—rubbish. Now I’m suffering from mental whiplash.
What if I can’t do this?
What if it’s all a mistake and I’m not what they think I am? What if I let Zayne down? Again.
Zayne squeezes my hand. “Hey, stop thinking so hard.”
“I can’t. I’m scared I’m going to let you all down.”
I hear the flap of wings from behind me, and Grimlet lands on my shoulder. I bite back a yelp as he wraps his little claw-like hand around my plait and tugs. “Pretty hair. Silver like the snow.”
“Er, thank you.”
“Pretty witch, shouldn’t be scared. She has the power to open the mirror. Grimlet senses the magic inside you.”
For some reason, his words settle me. I reach into my pocket and pull out a truffle, handing it to the gargoyle. He takes it delicately, unwraps it, and pops it in his mouth. “Maybe pretty witch isn’t so stupid after all.”
I laugh. “Thank you.”
We’re silent after that, and as we approach Silvergate, the heaviness increases until it presses down on me.
“Why do you think he took the children?” I ask to take my mind off things.
I intercept a look between Zayne and Josh. I’m guessing they’ve discussed this and come up with a theory that they think I’m not going to like. “Come on, spit it out,” I say.
“We think he’s looking for a mirror mage.”
“Me? He was looking for me? But why now? Why not other years?”
“Things changed this year,” Josh says. “When Amber went through the Eternal Mirror, it sent a ripple of magic through all the worlds.” Sometimes it amazes me how grown-up Josh sounds. “We think maybe it weakened his prison even more. And for the first time, he could sense you. And the one thing he really wants is a mirror mage to open the mirror so he can really get out.”
“But that still doesn’t explain why he took the children.”
“While he could sense you, because of the spell, your magic was…muted. Witches usually come into their power when they're around twelve to fourteen. So maybe to him, you felt like a child. So he called them all to him.”
“Oh my god, he took them all, thinking one of them might be me.” This really is my fault.
