Chapter 66 #2
And my stepbrother is clapping and whooping before she’s even made it to the lectern. Headmistress Moonhart cuts him a look, silencing him with one glance. My lips curl into a smile as Poppy’s cheeks flare bright red. She takes her scroll, then descends the opposite side of the platform.
I step up to the bottom of the stairs.
“Maeve Briar Vandermere.”
Aric whoops and cheers again.
Around my neck, Isis shifts, then hisses, “Congratulations, Maeve.”
I smile as I climb the stairs. Headmistress Moonhart is waiting for me, her ice-blue hair twinkling under the sun. As I approach, she holds a scroll out to me, tied with a purple ribbon.
“Exemplary work this year,” she says as I reach to take the scroll. She pulls me in for a hug and whispers into my ear, “You’re going to do great things at the Arcanum Collective. I look forward to seeing your future work.”
As I pull back, tears threatening my eyes, I whisper, “Thank you, Headmistress.”
A gentle round of applause calls me to turn, and my mother, stepfather, and stepbrother are grinning up at me.
My mother is perfectly put together, as always, but my stepfather has tears running down his cheeks.
I hold my scroll up, smiling at them, then descend the opposite side of the platform, heading back toward my seat.
“Lyra Marie Wilder.”
Lyra climbs the stairs to the platform, and I take my seat just in time to see her accept her scroll.
The headmistress whispers something into her ear, and when Lyra pulls back, she’s smiling, her freckles crinkled into shapes I’ve come to know so well after all these years together.
Then Lyra holds her scroll up to the sky, grinning as she crosses the dais.
Once all four of us are seated together, we join hands again, holding fast to one another as the last few students receive their scrolls.
When everyone has returned to their seats, Headmistress Moonhart faces the audience once more.
“When you first arrived at Coven Crest, many of you were only beginning to understand your magic. Now you understand something much more important: who you are, and what you wish to do with your magic as you move forward.” Her lips lift into a smile.
“But there is still much to be discovered. And wherever you find yourselves next, remember what you built here. The wisdom travels with you. In the choices you make, in the way you treat one another, and in the way you carry and wield your power.” Her gaze lingers on us, and a swell of emotion builds in my chest. “We’re so proud of you. Congratulations, graduates.”
She lifts her hands to clap, and the entire crowd joins in.
From the tops of the castle’s towers, fireworks explode, painting dazzling colors across the pale blue sky. All around me, the graduates leap to their feet, cheering and wrapping one another in crushing hugs.
But for a moment, the four of us stay seated. I squeeze Poppy’s and Lyra’s hands, and Poppy holds Alina’s. We all meet one another’s eyes, and Alina says, “Can we cry now?”
I nod once, tears filling my eyes. “Yeah. We can cry now.”
So we do. We hug and cry and hug some more.
Lyra holds Isis, and Yuki yips at our feet.
Juniper sits on Poppy’s shoulder, and I wonder how I’m ever going to move forward into a life without them.
But then I realize that they’re all still here, still with me.
And I’m not actually losing anything. It’s just changing, as everything does.
“I love you girls so fucking much,” I say at last, wiping the tears from my cheeks.
They echo me, wiping their own tears.
And overhead, in the distance, thunder rolls. My friends turn their eyes to the sky, which is now painted with fluffy clouds—the coming of the storm.
“Is that you?” Alina asks.
I shake my head. “No. That one’s Mother Nature.”
A breeze swirls around us, ruffling our hair and silver-trimmed robes.
Our families are starting to find their way toward us through the crowd—Raelan; Alina’s grandfather, father, and mother; Lyra’s dad; Cairn; Poppy’s mom; and my mom, stepfather, and stepbrother.
Before we can become swept away by them, Alina says, “I’m going to host a little graduation gathering at the castle. You’ll all come, right?”
Lyra speaks for all of us when she grins and says, “That’s a silly question; of course we will.”
As our loved ones swarm around us, voices overlapping as hugs and tears are exchanged, I feel a pull in my chest. My gaze lifts to him, finding him immediately despite all the chaos surrounding me.
Severin doesn’t approach, but he smiles at me across the distance separating us, and when he lifts one hand to his heart, I swear I can feel his fingers brushing my sternum in the same exact spot. Our bond hums pleasantly, steady and warm.
And I know without a doubt that whatever I’m stepping forward into after this moment, he’s part of what comes next—though not just a piece of it. He’ll be my constant, my beautiful inevitability.
Just like the storm in my veins and the clouds gathering on the distant horizon.