Tangled

39 Ava: Her Identity

39 Ava: Her Identity

You have the potential, Selene says, her voice a cautious whisper in my mind. The arcane flows through your veins. But…

My breath escapes me in a giddy rush. Magic. Real magic. Human magic. It’s something out of a fairy tale, not something that should exist in my life. Then again, supernaturals exist–and we’re pretty nonstandard,

ourselves.

It’s not that simple, Selene continues, her tone growing more serious. Magic is not a toy, little one. It’s a force of nature, raw and untamed. To wield it requires knowledge, discipline, and control.

I swallow hard, feeling the warning in her words. “But how do I learn? I don’t even know where to start.”

You would need a teacher, Selene explains, her voice tinged with hesitation. Someone well–versed in the arcane arts, who could guide you, show you how to harness and control your power. But magic is a lost art. Magicians were lost to the curse and became shifters.

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39 Ava: Her Identity

Talk about a letdown.

O

“So, I won’t be able to do magic.” Is that how you say it? Do magic? Cast magic? Spell magic? Cast spells? It all feels weird in my mouth.

It is unlikely, Selene says, but she still has that cautious

sound to her voice.

“If I tried, what’s the worst that could happen?”

Death.

A simple word, bluntly given, with all the truth in the world behind it. I shudder at the matter–of–fact tone.

many talented humans were lost to the recklessness of their magical talent. Until magicians began to teach each other,

some of the warmth that fled

I say, shoving down the odd sense of loss. Magic would have been amazing to learn, of course. But–if Selene says it’s too dangerous, I believe her. It isn’t

Ava: Her Identity

volatile.

question that’s been bothering me from the beginning. “Selene,

Of course.

you separate from me? No shifter has a wolf with a physical body.”

hums, a thoughtful sound that echoes through my mind. You were born bonded with the ancient magic, she explains in that non–explaining way, where nothing is really answered. We are both separate and one at the same

shifters are bonded with ancient magic, and

and I can almost picture her shaking

an English professor now? And what are we, exactly? Are you a Lycan or a

Her

with a quiet pride. I came to be with you of my own

my brain work better. “How is that possible? Doesn’t the curse decide

who is matched?”

another time, Selene says, her tone turning brisk. For now, it’s more important that you take a cold shower before your heat

mention of the alpha sends a shiver down my spine, and I can feel the first tendrils of heat starting to uncurl

frantic state like yesterday. But I can’t let this conversation go just

with me? And what do you mean, we’re separate and one at the same time? I don’t

softening. There is much you don’t understand yet. But trust me when I say that

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more later.

my skin starting to prickle with sweat. I need to get this under control

humiliation is

it on the ground as I

as I can.

a powerful wolf. I don’t know how far they are, but they’re close enough that I’m lifting my chin to sniff, trying to get

my nose.

a little

Ava!

me feel better for at least trying, and turn on the water at

huddled under that freezing

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Ava: Her

it seems to help keep my mind clear to

extent.

through my mind again. Why is heat even a thing? This is ridiculous. I’m losing my mind