“And it helped in a lot. In the past everything that came up in my life seemed to be helped by my mom’s journal, but now,” I shrugged. “Life just seems a lot more complicated and things have come up that mom didn’t prepare me for.”
Anali reached out and squeezed my hand. “I’m sorry, Sapphire. Your life has gotten a lot more complicated than any of us had planned. And while I don’t have answers for everything, I am happy to listen and try our best to help.”
“Both of us will,” Gavin added.
“Thank you, that means a lot.” I blushed and felt grateful. After the Avalon… had it been a fight, battle, skirmish, altercation? I didn’t know what to call it. All I knew is I was the leader and I had failed. So many people got hurt. Some died. Visions of lifeless eyes filled my mind. Everyone said it wasn’t my fault but they were wrong. Ramsey, a selkie and my first boyfriend, lost so much that day. A knife to his back, which pulled out his magic and life-force sending it to Cartazonon, forced him to go to Akasha to heal. His brother and band mates had been killed later by Cartazonon so he could heal from the fight. If I had been a better leader, a strong leader, none of this would have happened.
“So how are things? You seem to be doing well,” Anali asked.
Translate into, I haven’t seen any more signs of depression that the books told me to look out for but I’m still worried. “Good, I finished the English, World Government, and World Religions classes on the plane.”
“You’ve been doing a lot of school work,” Gavin said.
I sipped some tea and shrugged. “It goes really quickly when I don’t have classroom lectures to sit through and students goofing off to slow everything down.”
“Well, you’re grades are wonderful, and I’m glad to see you focused on your education.” Anali smiled at me.
“Thank you.” I really just wanted school done with. It didn’t help my destiny, well, except for my newest class.
“How are you liking the leadership class?” Gavin asked.
“It’s very interesting. Right now I’m reading about how to support people by understanding their strengths and weaknesses.”
“Since you just finished a bunch of classes what’s next?” Anali asked.
“Well, the next is Shakespeare, Economics, and Photography. I’m halfway done with Chemistry and just started the next semester of French.”
“That’s wonderful.” Anali sipped her tea and rubbed her belly. Did all pregnant women do that?
Gavin frowned. “It still seems like a lot of school work.”
“Is that a bad thing?” Right after the battle of Avalon I’d wallowed in depression. I’d allowed it to affect my day to day life. First it had been Gavin and Anali always there, always checking up on me, then the others started in. How are you? Have you eaten? Are you sleeping well? Falling back on what I’d learned in group homes, I forced myself to meet the basic requirements eat, sleep, show interest in a few activities, and do well in school. Add in not self-harming or thinking of killing myself and I was left alone. Until now.
“Of course it’s not a bad thing.” Anali assured me then glared at Gavin.
“No, but you don’t seem to get out and do much,” Gavin said.
“I’m out now. And I do go out. But Kayin and Shin are dating so they need time alone. Miu has other friends. Taliesin likes spending time alone.” I shrugged trying for teenage nonchalance, but fearing yet another hurdle would be set up in proving I was okay every day.
The waitress brought our meal. It felt like a blessing.
“This looks great, what is everything?” I asked hoping Gavin would be his easily distractable self.
“Okay,” Gavin said with a smile. “In the small bowls is fresh grated ginger, green onions, and shiso leaves. Put whatever you like into the sauce. Then you dip the cold noodles into the sauce, just a quick dip and slurp them up.”
“This looks so lovely,” Anali said as she added ginger to her sauce.
I picked up the white porcelain bowl of shiso, a diced green leaf that smelled slightly citrusy. I added some to my sauce then put in ginger and green onion. The purple-gray soba noodles sat on a bamboo mat in cone shape topped with fine strips of nori seaweed and sesame seeds. Using my chopsticks I grabbed some noodles, dunked them in the sauce and slurped them up. “These are delicious,” I said picking up some more noodles.
“Yes, very good,” said Anali adding more ginger to her sauce.
“They taste exactly as I remember them.” Gavin smiled sadly. “Your mom searched all over New York for noodles that tasted like these, as far as I know she never found any.”
“Thank you for bringing me here,” I said before taking another bite. I’d have to bring the boys, they’d love these.
“Of course,” Gavin said.
We ate for a while, watching people walking past. Kids holding their mom’s hand, groups of teen girls and boys in stylish clothes always separated by gender, workers, business people, older couples with silver hair, and occasionally a monk and people dressed in kimonos would wonder by.
“So, have you had any dreams lately?” Anali asked when we had finished eating and were sipping tea.
I shrugged. “None since we ran into the Sons of Belial in Austria. And that one was short. Ever since Cartazonon figured out who I was, he watches for me and sends me away from him. I know he’s plotting something, I’m just not sure what.”
“I’m sure you’re right, but I’ve enjoyed not having Cartazonon trying to capture us and suck out our magic,” Gavin said.
“They don’t seem to be hunting magical creatures hardly at all either,” Anali said. “At least not for a while.”
I shuddered remembering the last time I saw Cartazonon suck the magic and life out of someone. I should be happy I hadn’t had to see it in months, but I knew he was plotting, he wanted me to join him. And he desperately wanted Taliesin. I played with the bracelet Taliesin gave me, the crystal bead clasp glowed a soft lavender-blue color.
“I have been dreaming about snakes. It’s not every night and sometimes it happens when I nap. Anali woke me up just in time today, one was coiled and read to bite me. It’s very weird.”
Gavin frowned. “That is odd. We’ll have to look into it. Thank you for telling us.”
“Course.” I had learned my lesson, full disclosure of anything that could affect the group. And if I wasn’t sure and it seemed private I went to Anali to see what she thought. She always respected my privacy, and was the groups’ peace keeper. No one but Gavin argued with her and I don’t think he ever won.
“Try not to worry too much, it could simply be a reaction to all the horror movies you watch,” Anali said.
“True,” I said. “We did just watch Slither and Anaconda a few weeks ago.”
Gavin grunted. “That could be it, and you didn’t seem to like the cruise very much.”
We’d done a river cruise in Germany to open a portal. Gavin thought it would be a fun, scenic way to travel. I spent most of my time in the bathroom. “I don’t like the being on the water like that. Maybe if I could swim.”
“Wait, you can’t swim?” Gavin asked.
I shook my head.
“We should teach you how,” Anali said. “It could be an important skill. I’ll ask Miu to help me find classes for you since we’ll be in Tokyo for a while.”
“Do I have to? I’m not sure Phoenixes are supposed to like the water.”
Gavin frowned. “It doesn’t bother the rest of us, and you seem to like the water just fine.”
“Kayin doesn’t know how to swim very well either.”
“Then we’ll get him lessons too,” Anali said in a voice that let me know she was done discussing the subject.
“Fine,” I sighed and looked out the window. I hoped Kayin wouldn’t be mad at me for ratting him out.
“We do need to discuss something else,” Anali said. Her voice soft and apologetic. Their nervousness bounced against my shields whatever was coming they didn’t t
hink I’d like it.
“Okay.”
Gavin cleared his throat. “You know that we’ve been planning to stop traveling in a few months. The doctors all said it would be best for Anali to be settled by the time she’s six to seven months along.”
“Yes.” I nodded. “The cirque will take a break and we’ll all go to India.”
“Yes, well, things have changed.” Anali sighed then looked at me. He amber brown eyes sad. “My empathy is getting all tangled up in the baby. I’m having difficulty protecting myself from other people’s emotions.”
“That’s not safe.” I knew how it felt to be overwhelmed by emotions that weren’t your own.
“No,” said Gavin, “it’s not. It looks like we’re going to have to leave sooner. We were planning on staying in Japan with you then going to India.”
“Okay.”
“We don’t want you to feel abandoned,” Anali assured me. “And you all can come with us.”
“Except, Michael has us scheduled to perform. And that would take away several acts,” I said. “No, we’ll be fine. You need to protect the baby.”
“Philip is going to come here to watch over you and the others,” Gavin said.
I smiled. I’d met Philip over a year ago right after I came into my Phoenix powers and started taking classes at the San Francisco Center for the Circus Arts. I still talked to him, as he did research for us and had written several books on magical creatures. “Cool, I like Philip.”
“I dislike leaving you and not being able to protect all of you,” Gavin said. “I’m not one hundred percent sure we won’t be taking you with us.”
“Uncle Gavin, I’ll be fine.” He might not be sure but I was. I had a destiny to fulfill, magical beings counting on me, and I was the leader of our group of Children of Fire. I couldn’t let them down and I wouldn’t abandon them.
A Dragon’s Clutch can be found here
.
http://eepurl.com/bc5bzn
Thank you for reading Heirs of Avalon, the third book in the Children of Fire series. To find out more about me, the crazy thoughts bouncing in my head, what I'm writing, what is distracting me from writing, and when the next book will come out, please connect with me on
Twitter- https://twitter.com/AMckennaJohnson
Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/AlicaMckennaJohnsonAuthor
Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5755438.Alica_Mckenna_Johnson
My website/blog - www.alicamckennajohnson.com
AND to get information about my upcoming books, book signings, and talks subscribe to my newsletter. It only goes out when I have something of value to share. Cross my heart! http://eepurl.com/bc5bzn
About the Author
Being told she was a horrible speller and would never learn to use a comma correctly, Alica never thought to write down the stories she constantly had running through her head. Doesn’t everyone daydream about flying on a spaceship while walking to school?
Not until she was thirty did Alica dare to write down any of the people living exciting lives in her head. The relief was instantaneous. By giving them life on the page they could be released from her mind and given greater adventures.
As her books grew in size and the voices in her head learned to wait their turn, Alica found a loyal group to journey with. Women who would help her slay her commas, and use their magical gifts to traverse plot holes, transform words into their proper spelling, and release characters from any Mary Sue spells they might be under.
In-between magical adventures, Alica is mom to two personal kids, five foster kids, has one exceptional hubby, a bunny she knows is plotting her death, and some fish, aka her daughter’s minions.
<<<<>>>>
Heirs of Avalon Page 35