Once upon a Midnight | BOOK I

Sixteen

"So what? What if I look like her?" I said firmly. I knew Khiroth calling me Morgana was weird, but now, this white lady telling me I looked like her was just...

"For what is magick? A source of power given to us by mystic forces? Or a figment of our imagination?" the white lady began. "And who are we sorcerers? A blessing to mankind? Or a doom to the world?"

"Is that supposed to mean anything to me?" I folded my hands and raised an eyebrow.

"Those were the words of your grandmother, Loretta Ackles," she said softly.

The words of the shadow queen, you mean?" I said. The white lady's words just made me remember Angela's. Being associated with the shadow queen made me feel like I was more of this blood of darkness and I didn't like it.

"Those were her words before she became the shadow queen," she said. "You know, I was friends with your grandmother when she was still... herself. Or rather, she was friends with me." She traced a finger over the spine of a book. "Your grandmother was a seer, yet she never believed in prophesies. She was the first person to have this shadow prophecy everyone is talking about. But she didn't believe that the blood of darkness, you, would cause the apocalypse."

"That's comforting," I said dryly. "I'm sure she also didn't believe she would become the shadow queen, yet, here we are." I found it absurd. Both the prophecy and Loretta's belief. Nothing is written in stone. That was the first thing my mum explained to me when I started have dreams about what was to come. Angela said the blood of darkness would pour darkness out from the bowels of hell. By the gods, I didn't see myself doing that in the nearest future. They could all shove their prophecies and whatnot up their arses, I didn't give the tiniest shite about it. At least, that's what I kept telling myself.

The white lady tilted the book she was playing with and it fell with a thud. "I want to believe she was right," she said, and despite how melodious and seductive her voice was, there was a hint of sadness in it.

"You were the one in the Hall of screams, right?" I realised.

She smiled. "You listened to the screams. Just like I told you to."

"Well, you didn't technically tell me," I pointed out. "If you're Magick, why didn't you just get rid of the shadows yourself?"

"For you, Anabeth, ignorance is bliss," she said. "I'm just not sure how long you're going to stay ignorant."

"What are you talking about, you this bloody white witch?" I scowled. I didn't like being kept in the dark. I wasn't going to remain ignorant.

She laughed softly. "Your grandmother called me that too." She shook her head. "There's still a lot you do not understand yet, Anabeth. When the time comes, you'll understand it all." She dispersed into white mist, but her voice lingered. "Prove to me that Loretta was right. That the blood of darkness can be something more than what all the sorcerers, all the beasts, all the gods and even all the damned devils think she is. You're more than what they think you are."

"Hello?" I called out, but it was futile. She was really gone this time around. I went to where she stood and picked up the book that fell from the shelf. The old leather-bound book was extremely dusty and dirty, but the most peculiar thing about the book was the fact that it was completely blank and a few pages had been ripped out. Sugarplum had once boasted about how hard the knowledge keepers worked to keep all the books in the library clean and in good shape. So, I wondered, what was a book as dirty as this doing in a row filled with clean books? That spiked my curiosity. I felt the white lady was trying to tell me something. I took the book back to my room with me.

Midnight leapt up when he saw me enter the room. I didn't pay him any attention and immediately cleaned the book. I moved to my table where I opened the book and flipped through the pages one by one, trying to see if there was anything I was missing. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Midnight rummage through my things. I sighed and turned my attention back to the book. Midnight leapt on me and placed something on my lap. I realised it was the black glass I collected from Nicolas. Nicolas had later confirmed it was made from a lynx's core stone.