Chapter 22 #2
Birdie's smile widens, her eyes twinkling with ancient warmth. "I've always been Birdie, but yes, I go by other names as well."
I shake my head, thoughts spinning back to Wichita. To the cramped apartment building with its creaky stairs and flickering hallway lights. To Birdie shuffling between units wearing DIY outfits, her arms full of bedraggled plants and Bingo troll dolls.
"You were her the whole time?" My voice comes out hoarse. "The whole time you were living in our building, coming to game nights, bringing us those weird cookies that tasted like lavender and regret—that whole time?"
"I have been me every moment of my existence, yes." She reaches out, cupping my cheek with surprising gentleness. "And they were cinnamon cookies, not lavender."
"They tasted like both." The words slip out automatically, muscle memory from our old arguments.
She laughs, the sound like bells across water.
I pull back slightly, staring at her. "But why? Why would the Goddess Mother live in a crappy apartment building in Wichita, Kansas?"
"Because you were there." She says that as if it's the simplest thing in the world.
"What your coven leader did was an affront to my teachings and my way.
Through no fault of your own, you and your sisters were lost and the gifts I bestowed upon you mistreated.
I wanted to watch over you until you found your way back to Emberwood. Back to your destiny."
The grotto spins.
"You were there just for me?" I press a hand to my chest. "I'm not… I'm just a witch who got lost."
Birdie's expression shifts, something deeper flickering in her eyes. Ancient. Knowing. "You are far more special than just a witch who got lost."
The words settle over me, heavy with a meaning I can't quite grasp.
I swallow hard. "Did you know Sebastian would come? About my mom? And my sisters?"
"Many things are always possible." She gestures to a moss-covered stone, and I sink onto it without thinking. "The threads of fate are rarely fixed, and so I watched… and perhaps I tried to ease your suffering and guide you from time to time."
"Bad day brownies." My throat tightens. "The ones you always brought… you always knew when I needed them."
"When you needed comfort, yes." She settles beside me, her presence warm and solid. "A goddess doesn't stop being a neighbor just because she wears a grander title elsewhere."
Tears prick my eyes again.
"And the apartment manager never questioned why you paid rent in baked goods and hand-carved talismans?"
"Mrs. Chen appreciated my contributions." Birdie's lips quirk. "Though she did think I was quite mad."
Despite everything, I laugh. It comes out wet and broken, but real.
But then reality crashes back.
Asher. The grief that had consumed me…
"Wait." I grab her hand. "Was it you? When I was teleported to the hospital with Asher, I’d called to the standing stones and felt this incredible energy. It wasn’t my power or Hallowind ancestral power. Did you teleport us there?"
Sadness flickers across her features, and she squeezes my fingers. "I was hoping for a better result. I'm so sorry Asher didn't make it. He was a treasure even among the most precious gemstones."
The words land hollow in my chest.
I grip her hand tighter, desperation clawing up my throat. "You’re a goddess. Is there anything you can do? To bring him back? I'll pay whatever the cost. Anything. Please."
Birdie's smile returns, soft and knowing. "Why do you think I brought you here?"
Hope flares so bright it hurts.
She turns toward the crystalline pool, and lifts one hand, gesturing to the waterfall. The cascading wall of white begins to glow gold.
Ripples spread across the surface of the pool, catching light like diamonds. The glow intensifies, rising from the depths in swirling patterns that make my eyes water.
Then a figure breaks through.
Asher rises from the grotto, water streaming from his shaggy blond hair. He’s a vision, like something out of a Greek or Roman myth.
His skin gleams with faint golden light, his eyes bright and clear and alive.
He looks healthy. Whole. Beautiful.
One second, I'm standing with Birdie, and the next I'm doing an awkward run through water and crashing into him. I wrap my arms around his middle so tight I'm probably crushing him, but I don’t care. He’s solid and real.
"You're here," I sob into his shoulder. "You're here."
His arms come around me just as fiercely. "Are you okay? The wolf didn’t get you, did it? Tharuzel didn’t hurt you?"
“No, I’m fine. You saved me.”
“Good. I would’ve hated to die for nothing.”
The laugh bursts out before I can stop it—wet and hysterical and so relieved I can barely breathe.
"You didn’t." I pull back enough to see his face, tears still streaming down my cheeks. "And you’re absolutely forgiven for dying on me, now that you're back."
He grins, and it's so perfectly Asher that something in my chest cracks open.
“I love you hard, Asher Hendrix.”
He pulls me back against his chest for another hug. “And I love you back just as hard, baby girl.”
We turn together toward Birdie.
"Thank you." The words aren't enough. They'll never be enough. "Thank you so much. I don't—I can't—"
Birdie moves closer, radiating warmth. "You don’t have to thank me. Just live. Fight. Be the duo I know you can be."
Asher steps forward, still glowing faintly. "Thank you, Birdie. Seriously. But uh—" He holds up his hands, studying the shimmer beneath his skin. "Why do I feel different? Like, really different. And why am I glowing?"
Birdie's smile turns mischievous.
"Your human life ended. I couldn't bring you back exactly as you were or the balance would be upset." She taps his chest lightly. "So I gave you an arcane upgrade. A pretty cool one, if I do say so myself."
"An upgrade?" Asher's eyes light up. "What kind of upgrade?"
She winks. "Oh, I’m not going to spoil the surprise on your new tricks.
But I will tell you that since you’ve always been Poppy’s guardian angel, I’ve made it official.
Your life force is tied to Poppy's now. As long as she lives, so will you.
And when she passes, whether that be in a month, a decade, or a lifetime, the two of you will face the next life together. "
My breath catches.
"And since you’re an arcane being now," Birdie continues, "you’ll be much sturdier than before—though not indestructible, so don't get too heroic."
Asher looks like someone just handed him keys to a spaceship. "I can actually be useful to the team now!"
"You've always been useful, Ash. You are, and always have been, the foundation of everything I do. Still, yeah, this is amazing."
He turns to me, his expression serious despite the glow. "We're really gonna kick Tharuzel's ass now."
"Damn right we are."
Birdie clears her throat gently. "It's time for you both to go home."
The grotto seems to brighten, the edges growing hazy.
She opens her arms, and we both step into them. The hug is warm and encompassing, filled with a love so pure it makes my magic sing in recognition.
"I love you, kids. And more importantly, I believe in you."
Warmth spreads through my entire body, chasing away the last shadows of grief and fear.
"We love you too," I whisper.
Asher nods against her shoulder.
She eases back and reaches to cup my cheek with one hand and Asher’s cheek with the other. "Now go. Your friends are worried sick."
The golden light intensifies.
The grotto begins to fade.
Birdie's smile is the last thing I see before everything is engulfed in golden radiance.