Page 26 of The Banshee and the Warlock

I nod, and gesture for us to sit down on the bench. I rub my left thumb until he reaches out and takes my hand in his.

I take a deep breath. "Okay, so I've been having the dreams since I turned twenty-one."

"You said. I assume that's some kind of milestone for whatever you are," Cethin says.

I frown. "I hadn't considered that, but I guess it makes sense. There's always some mist, and there are wails in the air. There's a woman at the river washing clothes. Normally, I think the woman is me, and that's when I wake up screaming." I touch my throat, still able to feel the echo of all the dream-screams.

"Screaming?" he echoes.

I nod. "No one else seems to be able to hear it. Or it doesn't seem like my flatmates can anyway, they're always asleep when I wake up. But maybe I'm just not as loud as I think I am. Tonight was a bit different. I didn't think the woman was me this time, and it was almost as if she was trying to tell me something. But then she screamed, and I woke up. That hasn't happened before."

"What about when you were sleepwalking? That didn't seem like you were screaming."

I frown. "No, it didn't. I was wandering around in the mist when I fell. I didn't get as far into the dream as normal. Though maybe that's not true. Maybe I dream about that all the time and just don't notice. Or maybe it's an escalation. I don't know."

"But you think the answers are in your dreams?"

"Yes. I mean, they must be, right? Why else would I be having them?"

"I don't know," he admits. "It's not something I know much about. Although..."

I perk up. "You know something?"

"I know of a potion that might help you communicate with your dream."

"Is that even possible?" I try to keep my hope at bay, but it's impossible to.

He shrugs and runs his thumb over the back of my hand in a surprisingly soothing gesture. "Only if your dream wants to be communicated with."

"I want answers."

"Okay, then let's go." He gets to his feet.

"Where?"

"The Potions Lab."

"You're so casual about breaking into classrooms."

"You want answers, and we can't just brew a potion there during the day, so we should do it now," he says.

I nod. Even if we get caught, it'll be worth it if I discover the answers to what I am. "All right." I join him and reach out to take his hand, loving how natural it feels for us to do that.

Caw!

I jump without meaning to, causing Cethin to laugh.

"I'm guessing that answers that one," he says. "Definitely your familiar."

"Do you want to come with us?" I ask the raven.

It cocks its head to the side.

"I don't have any gifts this time. I haven't found anything perfect," I admit.

Cethin gives me an odd look.

The raven opens its mouth to show me that it doesn't have anything either.