Page 68 of Liminal

Why is he saying that like it’s a compliment? “I stole nothing. I simply…reclaimed it. Anyway, this mirror has been transmuted to reflect magic cast upon it. It was done originally to allow theowner to utilise lesser cosmetic spells, but it will suffice for what we need.”

“We’re making me even prettier, boss?” Lambert offers me a sly wink that makes me roll my eyes. “I rock a red lip, in case you’re wondering, but when it comes to eye palettes, I’m strictly into subtle neutrals. Glittery bold colours tend to overwhelm my poor little peepers.”

Why am I not surprised that he knows that?

“Focus.” I click in front of his face, annoyed that the action makes no sound and draws my attention to my cracked hand. “You’re going to practise a laughing spell. Imagine how useful that could be on a magiball court. If your opponents are stuck laughing so hard that they can’t hit the ball, you’ve got an easy win.”

Laughing spells have to be one of the easiest and least harmful members of the school of ensorcellment, and I watch as Galileo relaxes incrementally. Like I was about to start teaching the two of them?—

“Sorry I’m late.” North’s voice makes me jump, and I whirl with a lecture waiting on my lips, but it dies as soon as I catch sight of his face.

The skin of his left cheek is the fresh pink of a barely set restoration spell, and his hair, eyebrows, and lashes are missing. With a wave of my hand, the ingredients for a hair-regrowth potion start combining together in the mortar in Jasper’s room, the pestle diligently crushing them quietly enough that it shouldn’t disturb my guest.

“Fire spell?” I assume, stepping closer to examine him as he slides onto the bench beside Lambert. “You haven’t been fighting, have you? You’re not experienced enough to take on anyone with a decent grasp of destruction magic?—”

Without thinking, I raise my hand, manipulation magic at the ready to tip his chin up and examine the shoddy job whoever healed him has done of his throat.

“Piss off,” he retorts, batting my hand away. “It’s none of your business.”

Ibarelydisappear in time. Even when I’m sure I’ve dodged the contact, it takes me several long moments to regain the necessary composure to reform a few inches farther from them.

“Watch yourself.” The cold snap is harsher than I mean it to be, but I can’t help it. He almost… If I’d not been fast enough…

“Sorry.” Ackland grunts after a long moment, where Leo and Lambert both stare at him expectantly. “Are we learning this stupid giggle magic or what?”

His brusqueness rankles, but I take his point. Why should I care what happened to him, of all people? He didn’t touch me. No damage was done.

“Yes. Let’s continue.” I smooth down the imaginary creases in my dress as I search for my composure. “Copy down the runeform.”

Both Lambert and North start, but Leo doesn’t, and I pin him with a look. “Avoiding one of the foundation schools will only hurt you in the long run.”

“I mastered ensorcellment as a teenager,” Galileo replies smoothly. “I have no need for tutoring. I’d rather you spend the time telling me what you know about divination.”

As distractions go, I suppose it’s a good one. Double checking that the others are occupied, I ponder what it is he wants to know. It’s one of the widest-ranging schools of magic.

“That’s third year magic,” I remind him.

“I may not have until third year.” There’s a hint of flinty steel in his tone. “And what I need to know won’t be covered by the syllabus.”

I hover a little closer, despite the wariness reminding me that I shouldn’t be within touching distance. “Divination is the art of revealing the unseen, as I’m sure you know. I assume you want to learn how to discern the intention behind spells?”

A skilled divinator can tell another arcanist’s power levels with a glance or read the runeform on his skin and tell him the details of his ensorcellment.

But Galileo shakes his head and pins me with one of those enigmatic looks.

“No. I want to know how it can be used to tell the future.”

Twenty

Kyrith

North looks up from his grimoire so fast that the action pulls on his still-healing skin, and he grimaces.

“You guys can tell the future?”

I shake my head slowly. “Many have tried. The results have always been…murky. Divination shows one many things, but the future…”

Fixing Leo with a look, I give him a little shrug. He knows it cannot be done.