Sinatus

✨ Chapter Fourteen ✨

The next morning, Lily was in front of Ivy's house with Ivy, Kaia, and Ara, scratching the Lucami absently behind the ears as she lay on her back and watched fluffy white clouds adorning the sky as the golden morning sun shone down on them softly. She could hear doors opening and curtains being snapped open from the houses around them, and Dalton yelling something about dragons from inside. Lily turned her head slightly and tore her gaze from the clouds to look questioningly at Kaia, who sat playing with a blade of grass, a book laying on the floor beside her, and she was, as per usual, humming to herself. 

"What's the Bibliocella?" Lily asked her, causing Kaia to look up and toss her blade of grass to the side. It fell softly onto a page of the small leather-bound book Ivy was drawing in, rolling across the page and falling into her lap. Ivy brushed it away absentmindedly.

"It's one of our biggest libraries," Kaia explained, her eyes lighting up. "It's great, they have so many books. Deianira wanted you to go there, right?"

Lily nodded, looking back up at the sky, her eyebrows knitting themselves together. "I have to do a better job this time."

Ivy looked up from her book, putting it carefully on the ground next to her, before she inquired, "Do you think you will?"

"I hope so." Lily said, shrugging and sitting up.

"We all do, I'm pretty sure." Ivy admitted. "But do you think you will? Yes, or no--not hope."

Lily frowned and thought for a moment. She needed this next challenge to go better. And what reason was there to keep it from going great? "Yes. This challenge will go better." 

Ivy nodded, giving Lily a smile before picking her book and pencil back up. 

"That's good." Kaia told her fresh blade of grass. As an afterthought, she added, "I'm killing the grass." at the same time Ivy asked her, "You know you're murdering the grass, right?"

Lily let her head fall back against the ground with a small laugh, her mind wandering towards the subject of the second challenge. If it was anything like the first challenge, she'd likely get frustrated. If it was very different, she probably wouldn't, which would raise her chances of doing a better job. 

                                                                  〰️〰️〰️

"Here we are." Kaia said, pulling on the bronze handle of a large oak door. It swung open smoothly, revealing shelves and shelves and more shelves of books, big and small, old and new. Standing near the door were seven wizards--one more than there had been at the last challenge.  Lily, Kaia, and Ivy stepped inside, letting the door fall closed behind them. 

A witch with wavy caramel hair called, "They're here!"

Eliphas turned to face them and nodded. "Right. You two--er, go with Cassiopeia, she'll tour you through some medical stuff." He pointed at Kaia and Ivy. Kaia frowned. Ivy stiffened. Lily's eyebrows raised themselves infinitesimally. 

"I was supposed to help with that, too, wasn't I?" another witch in a grey robes with round silver-grey eyes asked. Deianira shook her head.

"No, Aella, you're supposed to stay with me." Alethea told her. The round-eyed witch--Aella--nodded, running a hand through her frizzy brown-blonde hair. Cassiopeia, Kaia and Ivy walked outside. 

"Now," Eliphas said. "Alethea, Aella, Holt, you two take Lily to the transport. Gwydion and I will be there in just a moment, once we're sure the others have set off as well."

Alethea nodded, and Aella took Lily by the arm and led her after a wizard with brown hair whom Lily assumed was Holt. Deianira followed after them, nodding at Eliphas, who turned to Gwydion. They made their way to a fairly large, open carriage behind the Bibliocella. Lily followed them onto the carriage and sat down in a corner next to Aella. Holt sat down across from her, while Alethea remained standing in the opening to get in, waiting for the others and Deianira sat in another corner. Lily cleared her throat and focused on Alethea.

"Where are we going?" 

"You'll see," Alethea replied, sparing her half a glance before looking back out the across the road.

"We're not allowed to tell you." Holt explained, bracing his elbows on his knees. Lily nodded. 

"I don't even know." Aella empathized, smiling and shrugging her shoulders.

Lily gave a small smile, then sat in silence, hands folded in her lap, her right foot tapping a barely noticeable light, nervous rhythm against the floor. 

Alethea stepped away from the opening, letting Gwydion step onto the carriage. He nodded and took a seat on one of the blue cushioned benches next to Aella. Eliphas followed right after him. Once everyone was seated, Eliphas called something and the carriage began to move. Lily frowned. The carriage moved smoothly. Too smoothly. It didn't wobble or jolt on the cobblestones, there were no bumps, there was no noise. Lily found it eerie and slightly disturbing, especially when she compared it to the wobbly carriages she'd used back home. 

She turned and looked out at the scenery around them. They were heading past shops and houses, other people waving absently at them as they passed. The houses and shops became fewer and fewer, until they were going down a dirt path with only a house or two placed at random intervals along the side of the path. As the amount of homes diminished, more trees starting popping up around them, and Lily could see they were heading towards a forest. 

They rode towards the forest, until the carriage came to a stop between two dark green evergreen trees. Eliphas stepped off the carriage, the others following behind him. When Lily jumped to the rich brown soil beside the carriage, Gwydion said, "And now we wait."

"For what?" Aella asked brightly. Lily was glad she'd asked, now Lily wouldn't have to.

"The others." Eliphas said. "Cassiopeia and the Sinatus's friends. Once they're here," he turned to look at Lily, "the next challenge begins." 

Lily nodded, taking a breath. "I'm ready whenever you lot are."