The carriage carried me steadily back toward my godmother’s kingdom.
The rhythm of its motion should have brought comfort—
Yet it did not.
For as we began to leave the meadow behind, a sharp pulse surged through my necklace, its light flaring violently against my chest.
I gasped softly, my focus slipping as the world around me seemed to blur.
The magic I had called upon—
It had taken more than I had realized.
‘You must rest,’ Flower’s voice came at once, no longer gentle, but firm with urgency. ‘I will protect our pup… but you have drawn deeply from your gift. If you do not recover, your weakness may endanger the life we carry.’
Fear struck me then—
Sudden.
Cold.
I had not thought of it.
Not in the moment.
Not when I had acted.
But now—
The truth settled heavily within me.
