been predictably sarcastic, and more than a little bitchy about me not going back to Tulsa with her, but our hug had been tight and genuine, and I knew I’d miss her. I already missed her. I missed Stevie Rae and Damien, Jack and the Twins, too.
“And Nala,” I told my reflection.
But did I miss them enough to go back to the real world? Enough to face everything from resuming school to possibly fighting Darkness and Neferet?
“No. No, you don’t.” Saying it made it even truer. I could feel some of the
I miss them
being diluted by the serenity of Sgiach’s island. “It’s magick here. If I could send for my cat, I swear I’d stay forever.”
Sgiach’s laughter was soft and musical. “Why is it we tend to miss our pets more than we miss people?” She was smiling as she joined me at the stream.
“I think it’s ’cause we can’t Skype them. I mean, I know I can go back to the castle and talk to Stevie Rae, but I’ve tried doing the computer video thing with Nala. She just looks confused and even more disgruntled than she usually does, which is pretty darn disgruntled.”
“If cats understood technology and had opposable thumbs, they’d rule the world,” said the queen.
I laughed. “Don’t let Nala hear you say that. She
does
rule her world.”
“You’re right. Mab believes she rules her world, as well.”
Mab was Sgiach’s giant, long-haired black and white tuxedo cat who I was just getting to know. I think she was possibly, like, a thousand years old and mostly stayed only semi-conscious and barely moving on the end of the queen’s bed. Stark and I had started calling her Dead Cat, but not within Sgiach’s hearing.
“By world you mean your bedroom?”
“Exactly,” Sgiach said.
Both of us laughed, and then the queen walked over to a large moss-covered boulder not far from the stream. She sat gracefully and patted the chair-sized area next to her. I joined her, wondering vaguely if my movements would ever be graceful and regal like hers—and doubting it.
“You could send for your Nala. Vampyre familiars fly as companion animals. It would only be a matter of showing her vaccination record to get her into Skye.”
“Wow, seriously?”
“Seriously. Of course that means you would need to commit yourself to staying here for at least several months. Cats don’t travel particularly well—and moving them from one time zone to another, and then back again, really isn’t good for them.”
I looked into Sgiach’s eyes and said exactly what I was thinking, “The longer I stay here the more I’m sure that I don’t want to leave, but I know it’s probably irresponsible of me to hide from the real world like that. I mean”—I hurried on when I saw the concern grow in her gaze—“it’s not like Skye isn’t real and all. And I know I’ve been through a bunch of bad stuff lately, so it’s okay for me to take a break. But I am still in school. I suppose I do have to go back. Eventually.”
“Would you feel that way if school came to you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Since you’ve come into my life I’ve begun to reflect on the world—or rather on how disassociated I’ve become from it. Yes, I have the internet. Yes, I have satellite TV. But I don’t have new followers. I don’t have student Warriors and young Guardians. Or at least I didn’t until you and Stark arrived. I find that I’ve missed the energy and input from young minds.” Sgiach looked away from me and deeper into the grove. “Your arrival here has awakened something that was sleeping on my island. I feel a change coming in the world, greater than the influence of modern science or technology. I can ignore it and let my island go back to sleep, perhaps to become completely separate from the world and its problems, perhaps even to be lost to the mists of time—like Avalon and the Amazons. Or I can open myself to it, meeting the challenges it might bring.” The queen met my gaze again. “I choose to allow
“And Nala,” I told my reflection.
But did I miss them enough to go back to the real world? Enough to face everything from resuming school to possibly fighting Darkness and Neferet?
“No. No, you don’t.” Saying it made it even truer. I could feel some of the
I miss them
being diluted by the serenity of Sgiach’s island. “It’s magick here. If I could send for my cat, I swear I’d stay forever.”
Sgiach’s laughter was soft and musical. “Why is it we tend to miss our pets more than we miss people?” She was smiling as she joined me at the stream.
“I think it’s ’cause we can’t Skype them. I mean, I know I can go back to the castle and talk to Stevie Rae, but I’ve tried doing the computer video thing with Nala. She just looks confused and even more disgruntled than she usually does, which is pretty darn disgruntled.”
“If cats understood technology and had opposable thumbs, they’d rule the world,” said the queen.
I laughed. “Don’t let Nala hear you say that. She
does
rule her world.”
“You’re right. Mab believes she rules her world, as well.”
Mab was Sgiach’s giant, long-haired black and white tuxedo cat who I was just getting to know. I think she was possibly, like, a thousand years old and mostly stayed only semi-conscious and barely moving on the end of the queen’s bed. Stark and I had started calling her Dead Cat, but not within Sgiach’s hearing.
“By world you mean your bedroom?”
“Exactly,” Sgiach said.
Both of us laughed, and then the queen walked over to a large moss-covered boulder not far from the stream. She sat gracefully and patted the chair-sized area next to her. I joined her, wondering vaguely if my movements would ever be graceful and regal like hers—and doubting it.
“You could send for your Nala. Vampyre familiars fly as companion animals. It would only be a matter of showing her vaccination record to get her into Skye.”
“Wow, seriously?”
“Seriously. Of course that means you would need to commit yourself to staying here for at least several months. Cats don’t travel particularly well—and moving them from one time zone to another, and then back again, really isn’t good for them.”
I looked into Sgiach’s eyes and said exactly what I was thinking, “The longer I stay here the more I’m sure that I don’t want to leave, but I know it’s probably irresponsible of me to hide from the real world like that. I mean”—I hurried on when I saw the concern grow in her gaze—“it’s not like Skye isn’t real and all. And I know I’ve been through a bunch of bad stuff lately, so it’s okay for me to take a break. But I am still in school. I suppose I do have to go back. Eventually.”
“Would you feel that way if school came to you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Since you’ve come into my life I’ve begun to reflect on the world—or rather on how disassociated I’ve become from it. Yes, I have the internet. Yes, I have satellite TV. But I don’t have new followers. I don’t have student Warriors and young Guardians. Or at least I didn’t until you and Stark arrived. I find that I’ve missed the energy and input from young minds.” Sgiach looked away from me and deeper into the grove. “Your arrival here has awakened something that was sleeping on my island. I feel a change coming in the world, greater than the influence of modern science or technology. I can ignore it and let my island go back to sleep, perhaps to become completely separate from the world and its problems, perhaps even to be lost to the mists of time—like Avalon and the Amazons. Or I can open myself to it, meeting the challenges it might bring.” The queen met my gaze again. “I choose to allow
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