a's

, maybe. The clock on Grandmother's wal

ething, anything that could save me. Most of the spells required ingredie

I fou

he margins: Dangerous. Forbidden. Last resort only.

rf

ter," I muttered, memorizing the complex symbols. "

replace. The moonstone shrieked as it burned, releasing purple smoke that smel

ped. "Oh, I

in, stronger than before. Angry.

ntain any magical explosion. I gathered what I needed: silver knife, white candles, salt for the

ul. Safe. I drew the ritual circle with my own blood, each s

kneeling in the circle's cen

smoke. Power built around me, mak

to this world. I embrace the sh

a

rongness made physical. My body convulsed, and I u

od. Corrupting the spell. Twi

t the ritual had i

alive. Not fake death. Real death. True

cre

, I saw them. Damon and Selene, drawn by the magical dis

wat

s a science experiment. "I didn't thi

g?" Damon asked. No c

ene pulled out her crystal vial. "This is better than the extra

s came out. My body was turning to ash from the inside.

mething. Confusion? Regret? But then Selene t

poured out, but not my golden phoen

. "When she burns completely, her es

Like I was a candle bu

him. Holding her. Comforting her like this was hard

her properly now. No more pretending. No more pathetic

hurt worse

ughts breaking apart. Memories dissolving. Everything

olden essence, beautiful and pure. Selene caught it

one," s

k me: they walked away holding hands, steppin

not

tho

fee

m

ly burns out. When betrayal cuts so deep that even magic can't

s no

s no

as