Time's Tragedies- The Books Of Beginning [2]

59. The Second Piece

Lili's fingers wove tightly with Eternity's. They fit so well there, she thought, as if the two of them were made to stand like this, side by side. Eternity squeezed the blonde's hand slightly, her reassurance and ever present amusement at the chaos around them leaking through the psychic blond that stretched between them.

It was strange to have another person's thoughts and feelings sneak into her brain at times, but Lili found she didn't mind it. Eternity's thoughts were foreign, but not unpleasant, and she could easily distinguish them. It was honestly nice to have a way to communicate with her best friend, even in the strangest of circumstances. The linking chain between them may have been an accident, but she couldn't say she was upset about it - honestly, it was far more of a blessing than a curse.

There was the slight rustling of metal against skin and fabric, as Abby removed the golden locket that she had inherited from her mother, giving it over to Eternity. The pink haired girl clutched it tightly in the hand that was not clasped with Lili's. It was time for them to retrieve the second lost piece of the Scroll of Souls.

"Are you ready?" Abby inquired, for what had to be the fifth time that morning.

"Yep," Eternity said, popping the p, "try not to burn up in the heat while we're gone."

Jake sighed from where he was flipping through a spellbook, perched atop the armrest of the couch. The boiling August heat wave that had swept Westport wasn't pleasant, that was for sure. "We'll do our best, but no promises."

"If you two are done complaining about the heat," Rafe cut in, "do you know where you're going?"

Lili nodded, "yeah dad. We looked at the calendar and picked a day in early October, after the cleanup from the first battle of Loris died down, but before the buildup to the second one begins."

"Great," Rafe smiled, "just get into the garden, find the piece, and get home."

"Sounds almost too easy," Abby frowned, "especially compared to trying to get the first scrap from the Countess's boat. I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop."

"There always does seem to be a catch, doesn't there?" Lili sighed. 

Rafe frowned, "be on guard, then. And stay out of sight of anyone from the past. I know you know this already, yes, but I just..."

Eternity mock-saluted, "no worries, we got this."

Rafe snorted, "thanks, but I'm honestly probably going to worry anyways."

"Of course you are," Lili teased, "the world may find you intimidating, but we know the truth, and the truth is that you're a huge softy."

"Only to my kids," Rafe replied, "well, and my wife of course."

Abby rolled her eyes, "okay, we all love each other and that's great, but we have work to do, so can we can the chit-chat and get to it?"

Eternity smirked, "whatever you say, Abby. Lili, my dear, I do believe your sister is telling us to move ourselves through time, and we wouldn't want to disappoint her.

Lili resisted the urge to sigh heavily at her best friend's sense of theatrics, and instead simply directed, "think of the date and place."

Without further ado, the adolescent magician reached for the core of power threaded into her very soul, drawing forth all that she could, enough to overwhelm the natural flow of time and harness the traces of her mother's magic and bring her to the past. Between the softly glowing gold locket and the lightning bright green aura of Lili, was Eternity, stifling a gasp as she absorbed Lili's excess power through their psychic link, her Rapina gifts allowing her to take in magic like no one else could.