Page 17

17

Big Three

EMILIA

T he warmth of LA hit me like a fist down my throat when the vortex of light dropped me on my ass outside the Sacred Temple.

The Luminary stood waiting, looming over me looking like a regal goddess. The sun, a perfect blinding halo over her head. Long platinum hair in elaborate braids, her uniform robes of translucent gold billowing around her.

“Welcome back, Miss Morningstar.”

I sat alone on the cobblestone path, my duffle bag sitting ineptly beside me. My mother hadn’t tagged along. Big surprise.

“Hello.” I rose to my feet, and brushed off my dress. Sunlight melted over my head and dripped down my arms, hot as fresh candle wax. Every breath felt heavier. I grieved the crisp lightness of winter. The silence of snowfall in the woods.

“Before you head up to your room, I would like to speak with you in the temple.”

I followed her up the stone steps, into the great space that sustained the Eternal Flame. The ever-burning fire rose from a hole in the center of the circular stone floor, burning with hues of violet, orange and blue. The goddess carved of stone watched over it, her three faces blank. Vines and flowering plants lived everywhere, butterflies and dragonflies darting about. The round ceiling above was stained glass, capturing the sunlight and spinning it into rays that beamed down so vibrantly that they looked thick enough to touch.

A sacred space. Yet, every time I’d been in here, something egregious occurred. From the time I caught my mother slapping Nyx, to Artemis Ambrose accusing my family of being evil then trying to kill Michael. I fixed my eyes on the triple-faced goddess, wondering if she abhorred or relished all the discord.

The Luminary stood by the Eternal Flame, beckoning me with her calm, turquoise eyes. “I wasn’t sure you would come back,” she said.

To that, I didn’t know to say.

“But I’m glad you have. This place needs a starseed like you, Emilia.”

I swallowed. “Um. Thanks.”

“How have you been doing?”

“Fine.”

She nodded. A brief, slightly uncomfortable silence passed between us.

“In the aftermath of the Clash of Spirits, you should know, things have changed slightly around here.”

“Oh,” was my incredibly profound response.

“Our daily schedule is more fixed. While we still encourage Sovereignty here at Luna Academy, things must now be more structured Every morning at first light, we all gather in the Elemental Sphere for meditation, grounding, and intention setting. Attendance is mandatory. It is up to us as a coven to keep the wards in place and keep ourselves safe from external forces. The wards are strongest when we all put our intentions toward it.”

She paused a moment to see if I had anything to say. When I offered nothing, she continued. “After Intentions, the Priestesses each select a group of students, and branch off to different lessons focused on a niche topic. Dark Arts Defense, Elemental Wielding, Astrology, Herbology and Potions, Kinetic Arts, and many more important subjects. Changing daily. You get a break for lunch, and we finish our days with student versus student elemental duels in the Sphere. Dinner is now held in a joint dining room, shared with the students of Veneficus. We need to encourage unity between our academies right now more than ever.”

She offered a smirk when she noticed my dumbfounded look. “Destiny will explain that one. Any questions or concerns?”

Only about a thousand .

I wanted to arch my back and scream until the stone crumbled to dust. I wanted to rip off my own skin and throw it into the Eternal Flame. I wanted to lose all civility and control and demand the Luminary tell me how she could be so fucking casual about all of this.

My sister is gone.

But all I did was shake my head no as it reeled. She regarded me in a way that made me feel naked. Like she could see directly into the turmoil I fought to keep buried.

To my relief, she didn’t pry.

Being back in my dorm room was both a homecoming and a tragedy. It smelled like Destiny in here—sweet, smoky, with notes of sandalwood from the incense she liked to burn. Her dresses and shawls were strewn everywhere, books and grimoires littering every surface. Boots kicked off by her unmade bed. She kept about a hundred white candles burning, even on my side. Her plants were all luscious and well-loved, swaying in the breeze from the open window.

She reminded me so much of my sister it fucking killed me.

It had to just be the fireling nature. Warm, messy, erratic. Just the way of the flame bearer.

I got to hanging up all my clothes in our walk-in closet and changed into something more weather-appropriate. The thick linen dress I’d arrived in was perfect for the winter, but winter never truly manifested here in the city. I slid into something lighter—a black dress with peasant sleeves. I undid my mother’s braid, letting my hair fall free in waves down my back.

The crescent moon pendant resting against my chest glimmered in the light, cool against my skin. I clutched it while I stood in the mirror, feeling lost in a daze.

A kerfuffle of footfalls followed by the door bursting open brought me back down to earth. Destiny spilled into the room, her bright, sparkling eyes landing on me instantly.

“You’re back!” she cried, lunging forward. She knocked a yelp out of me before we crashed down onto her bed. “I missed you so much!” Her glossy lips smooshed against my cheek, and she squeezed me hard enough to steal the air from my lungs.

The aggressive affection sent me into freeze mode. I had no response in my muscle memory. I just sort of took it until she was done, releasing me from her bear hug.

“Sorry,” she murmured, watching my face. She rolled onto her back, both of us lying the same, our heads turned to see each other. “I know you’re not big into the love language of physical touch. But I am. And I fucking missed you, dude. This place has been so bizarre lately. This new class structure, a new Fire Priestess, no Nyx, or Natalia or—”

“A new Fire Priestess?” I cut her off, brows narrowed.

“You didn’t know?”

“No. Where’s Bridget?”

Destiny shrugged, releasing a sigh. “I don’t know. The Luminary just said she’s taking a sabbatical. The new Priestess is pretty cool. Priestess Tianlong—but she goes by Tia.”

“Huh,” I muttered, thoughtful.

“Yeah. And the dinner thing! I mean, I’m sure you’re going to be stoked because you get to see Michael, but I hate that we have to eat with dudes now. Even though the new dining hall is gorgeous. That’s beside the point. They are saying it’s important for us to be unified right now.”

Michael. My stomach tumbled.

My best friend’s golden-brown eyes searched mine. “He’s fine, don’t worry. I see him every evening. They’re not roughing him up too bad down there.”

I scoffed. “Wow. That’s comforting.”

She chuckled. “I mean it. He’s fine.”

“I wouldn’t know,” I admitted quietly. “We haven’t really talked since I went back home.” Besides one night in the dreams and I don’t even know if it was real or not .

The silence that followed was charged with something that made me look away from her.

Saved by the bell, our door opened again. This time it was Faye. Destiny and I sat up on the bed, shuffling away from each other a bit.

“Emilia!” Faye sang, though her emerald eyes didn’t glint with the same light as I remembered. Nor were they slathered in glitter, only a dusting of forest green eyeshadow. Her blonde hair remained wild and full of feathers, gems, and flowers, but she no longer chose bright, happy colors. She’d adorned her chaotic mane with black irises, grey feathers, and obsidian gems lining her part. The corseted bodice complimenting her figure was baby pink, her leather skirt and combat boots black as night.

She looked freaking bad ass. Feminine in a way that didn’t teeter too far into dark or light, but rather balanced somewhere in the middle.

I stood up, and the smile I gave wasn’t even forced when we hugged. She squeezed me, though she had more mercy than Destiny. Faye held me at arm’s length for a moment before we parted. “You look healthy. I’m so relieved.”

“Me too,” Destiny said, hopping up from the bed.

“Wow. Thanks guys.” I glanced at myself in the mirror. I guess it was a miracle I looked relatively normal.

“Well, shit, dude. You’ve been through a lot.” Destiny brushed her fingers through my hair.

A glimmer on Faye’s skin caught my attention. She’d never had living tattoos before, but now she had three lined up under her right collarbone. Three little symbols pulsed with green light. One for Aquarius, Pisces, and Cancer.

“My big three,” she explained, watching me as I studied them. “I’m an Aquarius moon, Pisces sun, and Cancer rising.”

“Oh,” I murmured. “Cool. It looks really pretty.”

“Check mine out!” Destiny chirped, holding out her arm, and showing me her wrist. In silver whirling ink, she had the symbols for Sagittarius, Virgo, and Leo. “You need to get yours, Emilia. Everyone’s doing it now. Yours would look so pretty on your arm!”

I held back a scoff. Giving myself a tattoo was about the last thing I cared about right now. “Yeah. Maybe.”

“I could go get my feather pen if you want?” Faye offered. “I did Destiny’s for her. I could do yours right now!”

“Oh. Uh. Not tonight, but thank you. Maybe another time.”

She nodded. “Okay. Sure.”

I turned to look in the mirror, and my eyes locked with Destiny’s in the glass. Hers filled up with a shade of severity that made my stomach clench. “We need to talk,” she said.

The girls shared a quick, knowing look. Faye nodded at something unspoken.

Gone were the light, cheery vibes of our reunion.

Destiny moved over to her night table, grabbing the bundle of sage she had resting in a seashell. She stared at the herbs for a moment, then the burnt end caught fire. She blew out the flame, letting it smoke. She waved it through the air, spreading the haze, chanting something under her breath.

“What are you doing?” I wondered.

She pressed her finger to her lips, shushing me, and continued to whisper her chant. The burning sage smelled lovely, though she was going a little crazy with it. She set the smudge stick back down into the shell, where the smoke remained rising in a thin tendril. “As long as this burns, we have absolute privacy.”

Confusion had me making a face. “For what?”

She and Faye closed in on me.

“Cut the shit, Emilia.” Destiny’s voice had a new sharpness to it.

My heart dropped.

“We obviously know the story they’re spreading is all lies,” Faye declared, her eyes filling with tears. She didn’t let them spill over. Her pink lips pursed and quivered, but her floodgates stayed strong.

“Yeah,” Destiny cawed. “Hardly anyone believes it. And I know that fucking video of the person with wings was Solaris Adder. He took her, yeah?”

My jaw hung open. “I—I don’t—”

“Don’t bother lying!” Destiny scolded, shaking her head at me. “When you know, you know.” She pointed to her chest, her heart. “And I know.”

“Me too.” Faye held her heart, both of them immutable.

My eyes darted to the bundle of smoldering sage. “How effective is that? Are we truly protected right now?”

“Yes,” Destiny vowed.

I sighed like the expulsion of air from a balloon, collapsing onto the bed behind me and cradling my head in my hands. I pressed my palms into my eyes hoping I could extinguish the acidic burn of oppressed tears.

Weight sunk to the bed on either side of me. Warm, soft fingers brushed through my hair and down my arms.

And then I was telling them everything. The forbidden truth surged through my lips like a waterfall, filling the room enough to drown us all. I held nothing back—not even my tears. I spilled the truth about Nyx and Solaris. The High Lord’s threat. I didn’t stop until everything was out. Until the weight of the secrets lifted from my chest, making me light as air.

For a long, loaded moment, there was only silence.

Then, Faye breathed, “A dragon ?”