Page 118

Valerie shook her head. “The magic we wield comes from our Dragon ancestor. All witchcraft comes from them, and, while we remain pure, it pays homage to them every time we use it.” She leaned forward so they were closer, where they could feel its heat. “Do you know what colour pure fire is? When it is at its hottest and most cleansing?”

“Orange?”

“It is white, Kaeylyn. That is why our magic is white when we wield it.” Valerie lifted both her hands, swirling them towards the flames. “Dragons are beautiful creatures, and to deny your magic is to deny the one you came from. Do you wish to deny Faerydae while he watches over us?” Valerie lifted her hand to the stars above them, and Kaeylyn lifted her gaze to follow it. “Do you wish to no longer honour him when he has bestowed upon you such a wonderous gift?”

“Well, no. I love Faerydae!” Kaeylyn turned to her with bright eyes, full of love for their Dragon parent.

Valerie eyed the forest around them.

She knew Geryon would find this conversation rather odd. He must be cringing or scoffing at what she told her sister, but it is what her family believed. These were the teachings of the old ways, the ways Witches used to believe in their magic and its source.

I cannot let her turn her back on her witchcraft.

Regardless of him and how he may feel, however he decided to perceive this, she needed to help Kaeylyn heal.

“Then do not deny your magic. Breathe it through your body in the way they breathe fire through theirs. Understand that while it is white, it is wonderful and should be cherished.” Valerie tucked a strand of Kaeylyn’s red hair behind her ear. “If you grab a piece of the fire, I will show you.”

There was a long pause while Kaeylyn waited to decide if she wanted to use her magic again.She is afraid.She shouldn’t be.

Valerie grabbed her hands gently and rubbed them with her fingers. “I am with you, Kaeylyn. Know that I will protect you from anyone or anything that might come.”

Tentatively, she leaned forward and used her magic to suck a tendril of flame into the palm of her hand. It floated, and she used her other hand to concentrate, so she didn’t lose it while it settled.

Even her tongue came out while she concentrated.

Once it was tamed, Valerie cupped Kaeylyn’s hand wielding that flame.

“As you know, witchcraft comes from dragoncraft. At the base of all our magic is dragonfire. That is what you carry with you, and although we cannot breathe it, we can express it.”

“Like love?”

“No, but it spreads like love. It leaves a mark behind every time we use it.”

She moved Kaeylyn’s hands for her, forcing her to cup it, knowing she would protect herself from it. When she pulled her hand away, she was cupping two flames, smaller now that they were split.

“Fire can mean many things. It can mean the burning passion of love and desire. It can be the smoulder of a broken heart as it burns with sorrow. It can be the jealous rage of a scorned lover. It can be the fiery hate behind being wronged. It is the brightness of happiness, the warmth of comfort. Fire is the symbol for life, for death. It is everything, in everything. It is essence, Kaeylyn, just like our souls and our witchcraft.”

“So, it is inside me, whether or not I use it?” She stared at the fire she was holding, almost with awe.

“Yes. It can also be chaotic and cruel, eating and burning everything it touches. It can even eat you from the inside out.” She brought her hands back together to create one flame again. “It is dangerous, Kaeylyn. Mix your magic with the wrong things, and it will have everlasting damage, like a sickness. Once you start mixing other essences with it, it changes colours, becomes green, blue, red, yellow.”

“You are talking of dark magic.”

She tried to close her hand to get rid of the magic she was wielding, now worried. Valerie forced her to keep it by keeping her fingers straight.

“You cannot be afraid of it. You cannot be afraid of your magic for this reason. If you fear the world, that might make you seek to strengthen it, to change it. This is the risk you take in denying yourself.” Valerie looked down to Kaeylyn who was now frowning with distress. She merely stared back with coldness, even though she knew her sister deeply hated it. “You cannot fear the world and its dangers. Fight it with your sword, fight it however you can with your white magic, but you must never turn your back on who and what you are.”

Kaeylyn squirmed enough that she fell from Valerie’s grasp, rolling to the side to crawl backwards on her hands and bottom.

“You invite darkness inside you by holding onto your fear of what has happened to you. If that happens, everything I have done to save you will be for nothing.”

“But I do not want to be unfeeling like you!”

“I am not unfeeling, Kaeylyn. I have just learned to not let the things that have hurt me linger.” Valerie averted her gaze to look at the crackling fire, hating the way her sister picked on her coldness – as if it was something she could control when she couldn’t. “Embrace what has happened to you as the lesson it was. Grow your magic and let it be beautiful. Then, pass it on to your children because you are the only one left who can.”

“Why does it have to be me? Is that why you truly saved me? So that it did not have to be you who continues our line?”

With a sigh, Valerie folded her legs and reached into the supply bag she’d stolen to grab a roll of bread. She’d taken a lot of food from the bandits and was now rather thankful she’d come across them, considering everything worked out in the end.