I put my hand against the bark of the Baobab tree, feeling in it the faint pulse of life and magic that was starting to grow familiar. Landy's cavalier attitude made me double guess myself. I looked back at the old man.
"What do I say?" I asked.
He shrugged. "Just ask, child. There ain't nothing wrong with asking."
I returned my attention to the tree. Just ask. It didn't need to be a whole ceremony. I didn't need to think about how badly I wanted this, how badly I wanted to work magic. Because if I started thinking about that, I might be forced to confront other, uglier truths hidden inside me.
"Okay," I said. "Baobab tree, will you give me an Implement?"
Like the Magnolia had before, the Baobab responded at once. Life flooded me. I felt the earth deep beneath me, the spread of roots
