Chapter Nineteen #3
“Come with me, Katria,” he says. I follow him to the now significantly smaller pile of wood.
Davien lays the book out on the ground. “The first thing you need to remember about rituals is that they all require base components. This can be anything from time to location to physical objects to actions you take. The components can be consumed, like the book I used that night in the woods. Or they can be reused, like those crystals.” He points to the crystals still on posts in the ritual workspace Giles drew on the ground.
“I understand,” I force myself to say, ignoring the reminder of the loss of my mother’s book.
But I can’t. “My m—” I almost say my mother’s, but the promise I made to my father to never tell anyone whose book it was sticks.
He wanted no one speaking of that book. It was only for us.
It’s unsurprising he never gave it to Davien for so many reasons.
“My family’s book, the one you used in the woods—why did you need it? ”
He looks uncomfortable. Guilty, even. I wish it made me feel better about him destroying it.
But his guilt won’t return what I’ve lost. “It had special magic woven in its bindings. The components of a ritual can sometimes be strange, and they do not always make sense. But when they come together, the magic is unleashed, and that’s what’s important.
If I’d had any option other than destroying the book, I would’ve done that instead. ”
“I see.” Silence passes between us and I push the memories aside.
I don’t want to think of the book any longer.
It’s gone. What good can come of lingering on it?
And in a way, if burning that book could save an entire people, I’d like to think it’s what Mother would’ve wanted.
Davien waits to see what I say next. Determined, I return us to the topic at hand, pointing to the top of the page. “Up here?”
“Yes, these are the components of the ritual.” Davien gestures to what looks like the ingredient list of a recipe. “Next is preparation. Sometimes before the ritual even begins, you must do something to yourself or the components. That’s blank here because this is fairly simple.”
I nod and he continues.
“Then there’s the instruction of how to perform the ritual itself. And that’s it. Fairly simple.”
“In theory, I suppose,” I say, still somewhat uncertain about the prospect of all of this.
“In execution too. First things first: You need to make these markings on the stone you want to use.”
“What do the markings do?” I ask as I take the paint he hands me and begin copying from the book.
“They attune your magic to the item you’re trying to manipulate. It helps give you control—or connection—with the person or thing.”
“A person too?” I think of the lines that Vena drew on our faces and how connected I felt to him in that moment.
“Yes. Now, next step is to visualize what you’re going to make. This is why they included the picture with the ritual.” He points to the lantern in the book. “As you visualize, you’re going to say these words, and then, when you’re ready, unleash your magic.”
I stare at the picture, thinking about how I would build this lantern…I take a breath and close my eyes. Unleash. I think the command to the magic within me. Make the lantern. My brow furrows. Nothing happens, and I feel nothing. “Come on,” I murmur.
“Say the words,” Davien whispers at my side.
My eyes shoot open. Oh, right, words. I look down at the page.
“Broken little pieces. Joined back together. Make something anew. That can withstand time and weather,” I say. But still nothing happens. “I don’t think—”
Davien shifts and kneels behind me. His hands settle on my shoulders, run down my arms, pull the thin fabric of my borrowed shirt in unintentionally teasing ways. His hands on top of mine, he laces our fingers together.
“Stop trying to force it. Take a breath. Let it happen,” he says in that husky voice of his.
I feel something stir in me that is not entirely magic-related.
“Feel the magic in me. Feel it as I let it go. Feel my breaths and the power I draw from the earth itself. Think of your magic like a dance. You are leading a partner with their own will.”
Like a dance…steps I take with the magic, not forcing it.
I close my eyes once more and envision the lantern. The words I need to say come into my brain. I feel power ripple through the muscles of his forearms atop mine.
“Broken little pieces,” I start softly. I try and give myself to the words. Relinquish the control I so crave to a part of me that has never been there before. “Joined back together. Make something anew. That can withstand time and weather.”
The sound of stone cracking makes my eyes jolt open. I see the pieces dance through the air. My shock makes them falter, shudder, nearly fall to the ground.
No, I think calmly. Carry on, we’re still dancing.
Davien’s magic merges with mine. He’s helping, but not much. His power more runs alongside mine, walling it in, channeling it. Almost like he’s guiding me with the lightest invisible touch.
In an instant, a lantern is now on the ground before me. I’m left breathless and I slump. Davien catches me with a hand across my shoulders. He pulls me back to him and I lean against him for support.
“It’s natural to feel exhausted after your first time,” he says softly.
“Exhausted? I feel…I feel…” I stare at the lantern in awe. “I feel alive.”