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“Trust that no matter how it works out, your magic will do what you want most.” She squeezes me against her side in a one-armed hug. “Besides, you’re not doing this alone. You have some of the baddest witches around to help you.”
“That’s strangely not as comforting as you think,” I lament with a heavy sigh. “I’ve never performed such intense magic in front of a crowd.”
“Imagine us all in our underwear,” she suggests cheekily. In another stage whisper, she adds, “Mine are green with daisies on them.”
“Daisies?” I echo, looking over at her.
“What? Can’t a girl like flowers?” She huffs with comical exaggeration. “Why wear boring underwear when you can wear something cute?”
A smile spreads across my face despite myself. “Is it a matching set?”
“Of course!” she exclaims, raising a hand to her chest like she’s scandalized by the mere idea of her bra and panties not matching, and then she grins. “I also have a set with rubber ducks on them, but I figured nature was more on theme for today.”
I snort, and some of the tension eases out of me. Wrapping my arm around her waist, I return her one-armed hug. “Thank you for being my friend.”
“You’re welcome. I mean, you really did hit the jackpot with me. I’m high-quality friend material,” she replies, a teasing smile evident in her voice. “We’re ride or die, though I vote death as something far, far in the future.”
“I second that,” I agree, taking a moment to appreciate all that I have.
In less than a year, I went from being alone and terrified to being surrounded by people who love me. I’ve come so far from the cold, isolated girl who used all of her effort to survive for the next day. I finally know what it’s like to have a real family, real friends, and limitless real love.
Mei gives me another pat on the back and then stands up. Clapping her hands together, she gives me an encouraging smile. “Okay, now that we’ve pulled ourselves together. What do you need to do to prepare for the spell?”
“Well, I was told I’m going to need to call a lot of magic into myself.” My hand clutches the arcane focus that hangs around my neck, rubbing the cracked blue stone. “It might be a good idea to fill this so I’ll have a reserve.” My eyes round as a proverbial light bulb blinks on in my head. “I’m an idiot.”
“That’s not very nice to say about yourself,” Mei replies, shaking a finger at me. “I don’t befriend idiots.” She tips her chin into the air. “I don’t have the patience.”
Standing up, I grab her hands and give them an excited shake. “No, I just mean that I figured out how I’m going to lure the parasite out without risking everyone.”
“Awesome. How?” she asks, smiling over my enthusiasm.
I hold out the stone from my necklace. “This can store massive amounts of magic, as well as channel it out slowly into something not quite as explosive. My nan gave it to me when my magic was being a bit…”
“Explosive,” she supplies with a quirk of her lips.
“Exactly,” I reply, ignoring that she just repeated what I said back to me. “Anyway, I can fill this with magic and use it as a lure. Once it’s trapped inside, the focus can slowly release it, leaving it too weak to fight against the barriers.”
“If that’s the case, why not leave it trapped in there?” she asks, frowning at the stone.
“Because the longer it’s in there, the stronger it will get,” I explain, tucking the necklace underneath my shirt. “Anytime I gather too much magic, it’s funneled into the focus. Last thing I want is to keep a magical super parasite as a pet.”
“It would be a cool card to have up your sleeve as a last resort—a fuck some shit up kind of thing,” she muses, tapping her chin with one finger. “However, I can see why you may not want a ticking bomb like that hanging around your neck. Keeping an insatiable magic beast that was created to fuck over one of your boyfriends seems to be more trouble than it’s worth.”
I laugh. “Glad you agree.” Taking a few steps back, I adjust my ponytail and then shake out my hands. “Okay, I’ll need some silence to do this.”
“Don’t you usually draw a lot of magic when you’re all like, ‘Grrr! Callie smash!’ or whatever?” Mei comments, plopping herself down on the rock.
“Yes, but I want this to be controlled. Remember, my magic tends to have a mind of its own when I’m all ‘warrior witch,’ as the guys like to call it.” The term reminds me of the night I spent with Nolan, and how he wanted to make his warrior witch come. A blush burns across my cheeks, and I try not to squirm when I close my eyes. Focus, Callie!
“Heh. Warrior witch.” Mei chuckles. “I like it.”
“Glad you approve,” I state briskly as I once again shake out my hands. “Now shush. I need to focus.”
“You’ve got it. Sealing my lips now, which you would know if your eyes weren’t closed,” she announces, and then flashes me a wide grin when I glare at her.
Closing my eyes again, I take in slow, deep breaths, focusing on my senses as I exhale. There’s the sound of the purling stream as it flows deeper into the forest. I also hear the stirring of a breeze through hanging leaves. I feel the steadiness of the earth beneath my feet, and the heat of the burning sun shining brilliantly in the sky.
Centering my connection to my surroundings, I follow the lines of magic that run through them, and then I reach for the magic that’s intrinsically a part of me—the pure magic of life. Gathering these threads, I weave them together and funnel them into the focus. Unlike so many times before, this is a gentle, almost meditative experience. There is no out of control weather or exploding trees. Instead, it’s a communion with all that I am and all I’m capable of being. My anxiety and fear melt away, and I’m left feeling strong and confident.
