Epione Clinic

“Is she okay?” I ask.

“Yeah,” Pixie answers. “At least, from what they're saying she is.”

Marist is floating four feet above the ground, wrapped entirely in gauze. She looks like a mummy. Resting on her eyelids are two green witchstones. Witchstones courtesy of Blackhart.

“And you?” I ask. “How are you?”

Pixie looks at me and just as quickly turns her eyes back to Marist.

“The Shadow Vaile isn't a pretty place,” I say.

Pixie shakes her head no. “It's not that. It’s the Magick World. Anara. I don't know what I expected, but it's uglier than the Shadow Vaile.”

I nod. “It is. A lot of it is extremely ugly, but there are still parts of it that are beautiful.”

“Are there?” Pixie asks. “When there’s such ugliness, how can any of it be beautiful?”

Dom walks in and as soon as he sees me, he glares. “What are you doing here?”

“I asked her to be here,” Pixie says. “Be nice. Dick.”

I laugh. Girl after my own heart.

Dom continues his sullen glaring. “I heard you had an appointment with the Lord Wizards today.”

“Yeah.”

“How did it go?”

I smile at him. I can tell by the look on his face he knows exactly how it went. I can tell he knows exactly what I said.

“Same to you,” I say.

His face turns red. “What?”

“What I said to them. The same goes for you.”

“Well…” he blusters, trying to find the words. “I don't—”

“I know.” I pat him on the shoulder. “Whatever.” I turn my back on him and look over at Pixie. “Let me know if you need anything. Whatever Epione needs from Blackhart, they've got.”

“Thank you,” Pixie says. She clenches her fist and, as I watch as the feathers of Filigree shimmer into view before disappearing, she still can't look at me.