Journey of a Girl

A Proper Education: Chapter Twenty-Nine

Though Credence fought the whole time, the first vial went down quickly.

The second, and then the third—those felt like fire on her tongue.

Her stomach twisted and rolled, and she had the strong urge to vomit, something she eagerly welcomed.

Domestics were racing around her, setting bucket after bucket of sap near her feet. She didn't think her body was capable of drinking so much, but the Headmaster remained eerily calm and patient.

"This will take some time, given what you are," he said. "But we've got all night, and the domestics will keep the sap coming." He shook his head in disdain. "What a shame, to end a creature of magic."

After the third vial was finished, he lifted the first bucket to her mouth.

"I need—to breathe—!" Credence sputtered.

The Headmaster ignored her and pinched her nose to force her mouth open. When her lips parted the bucket was there, spilling a wave over her teeth and tongue. It was too much to keep up with, and she could barely gasp for air through the flood of thick, sweet sap. It filled her cheeks and fell onto her chin. Having wedged the bucket between her teeth, and keeping a firm grip on the back of her head, the imposter released her nose, no longer needing to keep it shut to ensure the sap found its way into her mouth.

Credence glanced at Frederick, the real headmaster, who was still slumped over the table.

If only he would wake and jump to action.

But he never would, and Credence knew it.

This was her end, and what a grisly fate it was.

She looked around for Death, hoping the spirit might come to comfort her final moments.

Death won't come, the horrible thought struck her.

She wasn't going to die, she was going to live for many years, maybe centuries, trapped within the courtyard of the school, inside the towns.

Watching generations of students fall, until her roots shriveled to nothing.

She tried to push the sap out of the side of her mouth with her tongue, but there was too much to fight. Her eyes rolled up to look at the sky, where the bright moon sat, heavy and full. She had a manic thought to drink from it one last time, to soothe her spirit as her body began to change.

She might be able to channel that energy into controlling what she became.

If I am to be a tree, she thought wildly, I'll be something fierce and deadly. My sap will be a bitter poison, and none will enjoy the taste.

But she couldn't give in so easily. It would be an insult to the powerful, resilient blood she'd come from. With difficulty she took a long breath in through her nose, using all her strength to focus on pulling from the moon.

Should she pull—or take? Was it Ma's friendly drinking of energy that would help her now, or Lilith's forceful drawing of power?

Maybe it wasn't all one thing, but a bit of both.

Balance.

What Credence needed most, however, was not energy. The moon would not help her escape.

Magic would. A show of power.

Trust yourself and fight.

She would not fall tonight. She would not become a relic of the orchard.

She could not create a blood orb. She had no potions or teachers by her side.

She had only herself, and that alone must get her through.