magic in the moonlight

LOREN

Loren had, after a great deal of deliberation, decided that (despite Remi’s amulets and reassurances that the Launceleyn didn’t need to get bit by the Ascended) he needed to at least try. It would provide them one more potential way to combat the monsters come LongNight. More importantly, however, he knew that he needed to get over his hang-ups around touch and being bitten, and yes, the pleasure that apparently accompanied the Ascended’s fangs. And there was only one Ascended he trusted enough—and knew, really, since Wessex hardly counted—to help him work through his issues.

So he’d sent a note to Rexanna, asking her to meet him out on the Bone Bridge. For some reason, even after his return, the Launceleyn maintained a strange fondness for the hidden and out of the way places of the Hollowed Grounds. Perhaps it was simply because he’d spent so much time in them during his lost year that they still held a strange comfort, even now. In this particular case, it was also practical: the strange white substance the comprised the bridge and gave it its name probably wasn’t flammable, especially covered in snow as it was.

For once, the sky was clear, and the moon and the stars provided ample light for the summoner to see by. He was waiting directly in the center of the expanse, a dark spot against the white snow and stone. Indeed it was hard to tell he was even a person, bundled up as he was in a heavy fur-lined cloak and thick leathers, hood drawn tightly against his cheeks. While he waited for Rexanna to show up—well, hopefully, since she did have a wedding to plan and might not have time for someone who was barely a passing acquaintance—he gazed up at the sky. It was late, so Astra was asleep at home. That meant he’d have to make do with the stars twinkling above and not the luxere who’d quickly become the light in his life.

A beggar's book

outworths

a noble's blood