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“Outside,” she replied, calm as could be. She immediately set about reducing her meal to ground-up bits in her newly awakened stomach.
“Mama, why on earth would I go out there?”
“Because it appears that koalas also have excellent hearing,” she replied. “There’s someone in the square right now—shouting, carrying on, and whipping up a mob to invade Wind and Wild.”
“What!”
“She’s saying that...” She tipped her head. “This is all the doing of Alisdair Shadowsoul, and if they want to save themselves and Elva, they must march on his castle and kill him now.”
The world dropped out from under me. “But they can’t! They don’t—”
“Wait.” My mother held up a hand. “There’s more. She’s saying—shouting—that killing him will be no difficult feat. All they need is a little purple flower? Is that right?” Mama screwed up her face. “Wait, yes. She definitely said flower. All right, all they need is a flower, and...”
“No, please—”
“...she has dozens of them.”
“Dozens?” I cried. “How is that possible!”
My mother shook her head. “I can’t say, but she is whipping the mob into a frenzy. I can’t hear her anymore over the shouting and hollering for Shadowsoul’s blood.”
“But they can’t do this.” I rose on tiptoe, straining to see the square. “They have it wrong. Weallhave it wrong! Killing Alisdair won’t break the curse. They’re about to make everything worse, and take away the man I love with one horrible mistake!”
“Unless you stop them,” Mama said firmly.
“Yes, yes,” I breathed, running to the door, then back to the window, then to the door again. My mind spun in faster circles than I did. “How do I get there? I sent Bradach away. It takes two weeks to get to Lumenfell by carriage.”
“Same for them too,” Meliora reminded. “It’s not like the mob can get to him tomorrow.”
“The ones that fly can. The ones that have mastered speed and transportation magic can even faster than the rest.”
She winced. “Oh, right— But, wait,” she cried. “Mama has her magic back. Can’t she put a transportation spell on you?”
I spun on my mother, expression hopeful, until her shaking head obliterated my smile. “Transportation spells are dangerous. A single mispronounced word, or badly written rune, and you appear a mile above your destination and fall to your death.”
“What about a speed spell?” I asked.
“Those burn out quickly, my love. After fifty miles, someone would need to feed it more magic, and you can’t. I’d just be stranding you fifty miles away.”
“We have to think of something!”
“Why not go with the mod, Haeowen?”
Our conversation halted. Mama, Meli, and I turned to Gisela.
“What was that, sweetling?”
“The mod,” she repeated. “Mama said all the angry people are going to the Wild place. If that’s where you want to go, go with them.” The little eight-year-old shrugged. “Just say you’re angry too and they’ll help you.”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
“Meya, take it, Gisela,” Meliora cried. “Are you, like, a genius?”
Gisela burst into giggles. Grabbing her twin’s hand, she tugged him out the door to play.
I blinked at the spot she was standing in. “We’ve been jokingly calling her a prodigy. I think it’s time we stop joking.”
Even Mama nodded, surprise shattering her koala calm. “She does have a point though. They must know they need numbers to take on Alisdair Shadowsoul. They won’t have them if most of the mob is taking the slow path,” she said. “They’re likely figuring out a way to get everyone there. You need to be there when they do.”
