I wanted to touch it.
My fingertips buzzed to press against the smooth feathers, to feed some of my magic into the bird. Instinct drove me—or maybe it was the book, feeding knowledge into my soul. Whatever it was, everything suddenly felt natural. Inevitable.
I kept one hand pressed to the book and raised the other. The bird watched me with wary black eyes, head tilted.
Then it hopped closer.
Shaking, I rested my fingertips against its smooth, ebony feathers. Magic exploded within me, bursting out through my fingertips and into the bird.
Light glowed around the feathered animal, and it squawked loudly. I jerked, nearly removing my hand. But instinct stopped me.
I kept my fingertips pressed to the bird’s feathers, letting the magic surge from me into the small creature. The book felt like a conduit or a battery, helping my magic flow with incredible ease and power. I still couldn’t read the symbols on the page, but somehow, my soul understood what was happening.
The magic shifted, growing stronger. With it, the bird began to grow. Light glowed from it so brightly that I could no longer see the creature.
The air popped, and power sparked across my skin.
When the light died, the bird was gone.
A person sat next to me.
Beatrix.
Holy fates, it was Beatrix, her red hair gleaming in the light. Shock dropped my stomach to my knees, and I gasped.
My long dead friend…returned?
8
Carrow
Weak from magic use, I stared at the figure on the couch.
Beatrix.
It was her—there was no doubt. Same brilliant red hair, green eyes, pale skin. The same little scar through her brow that she’d got when we’d gone rock climbing in the Peak District, and she’d fallen.
Confusion flickered in her eyes, along with fear. She leapt off the couch, spinning around, her gaze frantic.
“Beatrix?” I rose slowly, my heart thundering a mile a minute. What the hell had happened? “Is it really you?”
“Um…” She looked down at her arms, brow creased in concern, then looked up at me. “It is.”
“You’re not…dead?” My skin chilled. I’d seen her body.
“I don’t think so?” Confusion echoed in her voice. Her eyes flicked up to mine. “And you’re truly here?”
“Yes.” I threw my arms around her, thrilled when she felt solid and real.
My magic flared to life, trying to read her the way it always did. In my mind flashed images of the sky and trees from above. From her time as a bird?
She laughed and hugged me back. It felt so good to hug my friend again. It’d been over a year since she’d been murdered by the necromancer’s henchman. I’d thought her gone forever.
She winced, pulling back. Pain twisted her features, and she reached up to rub her head.
Concern flared to life inside me. “Are you all right?”
“Um—” She swallowed hard, staggering slightly. “Some memories are coming back. Foggy, though.”