Edge of Pathos (Book 4 of The Conjurors Series)

Chapter 33

The next morning, there was more bustle in the little house than ever, but Valerie loved it this way—bumping into a grumpy Cara while she made her tea, assisting a smiling Mrs. Burns while she made eggs and bacon, watching a pink thread of magic wind its way through the halls when Emin hummed a tune. When his magic touched her, she knew the song, and she sang along.

Through her bond with Henry, she could tell that he was enjoying their crowded home, as well, though rooming with Thai was a little awkward.

Valerie was thankful that Cyrus had returned to his dorm room so that he wouldn't have to see how comfortable Thai was in her house.

"Emin, want to come to Arbor Aurum with me today and see some of your old friends?" Valerie asked, peeking into her bedroom, where Emin was reading a book, eggs untouched.

"Maybe Uncle Elden woke up?" Emin asked.

"I don't think so," Valerie said, hating to put out the light in his eyes. "But there are lots of people who miss you."

Valerie hoped her words were true. She couldn't imagine anyone not wanting to see Emin, even if he was half-human. But the People's culture wasn't one she knew well.

"Okay," he said.

They started out, but Emin stopped when they were only a couple of minutes from her house.

"There's an entrance the other way that's a lot closer," he said.

"Really? You're helping me already," Valerie said, and was rewarded with a little smile.

"Mom says I'm the best boy for helping," Emin said, marching off the path and into a part of the woods Valerie had never been in before.

They'd been walking for a half an hour when Valerie began to think Emin was lost. But before she could craft a way to ask him without stomping on his pride, he stopped before a spindly tree.

"Do we climb it?" Valerie asked, uncertain that the skinny branches would hold even Emin's slight weight.

"No," scoffed Emin. "Don't you know?"

He hummed a tune that reminded Valerie of things growing in the sun. The leaves of the tree rustled in response to Emin's magic, and an enormous gold leaf fluttered to the ground.

"Come on," he said, holding out his little hand.

Valerie gripped his sticky fingers, and together, they stepped on the leaf. It rose, swiftly enough that she gripped Emin to her side tightly so he wouldn't fall. Emin laughed, and the sound was as sweet as Clarabelle pinging in her mind.

"You can't fall!" he said, still giggling.

"Magic, right," she said. "What would I do without you?"

"Get lost, probably," Emin said, serious now.

They burst through a clump of leaves and were deposited on the wooden platform that connected all of the trees in Arden. The spot where they landed was devoid of the bustle in Arbor Aurum, but Emin turned as if he knew where he was headed, and Valerie followed.

"That's where Mom and I stayed when we were caught in a rainstorm once," Emin said, pointing to a nook in one of the trees. "She sang to me until I fell asleep, and then I woke her up in the morning with a song. It was an even trade."

"She was lucky to have you as her partner, and now I'm the lucky one," Valerie said.

"That's where I stepped off the platform and got lost," Emin said, not listening to Valerie. "Mom was so mad when she found me. She made me weed gardens for three years."