Full Circle (Avalon: Web of Magic #12) (3 page)

“E
MILY, YOU FED
Harry twenty-five crackers!” Carolyn Fletcher exclaimed, turning the empty snack box upside down. An over-stuffed gerbil slipped out, landing on the desk with a thump.

Emily sat in the corner office of the Pet Palace, absentmindedly scribbling on order forms. The place was a mess. Filing cabinets were open, papers haphazardly crammed into folders. Three dogs ran in circles, barking their heads off as they tussled over a jumbo-sized bag of treats. A red and green parrot flew overhead, squawking for his share of the booty.

“Emily, what’s with you?” Her mom herded the dogs back into their kennels, nearly tripping on an unopened box of supplies. “These vaccines need to be refrigerated.”

She deftly caught the bird and put him back into his cage. “The Pet Palace was your idea. When I get you here, I expect you to do some work.”

Emily waved a handful of scrap paper at her mother and tossed it in the “To do” box.

“What’s this?” Carolyn picked up an order carelessly scribbled on a napkin. “The invoices used to be so neatly typed and printed.” She swept her hand over a pile of boxes beside the desk. “Four dozen cases of hamburger niblets have been sitting here for a week now. They’re usually gone in two days.”

Emily stared at the untouched boxes.

Carolyn sighed and perched on the edge of the desk. “Look at me.”

Emily turned red-rimmed eyes toward her mother.

“I know you miss Ozzie, but sometimes animals run away or—”

“I’m sorry!” Emily burst out so suddenly that her mother flinched. “I didn’t mean it!”

“Emily, honey.” Carolyn knelt by her daughter, rocking her gently in a hug. “Shhh, it’s all right.”

“I loved Ozzie.” Emily buried her face in her hands, sobbing. Just when she thought she had run dry, an entire reserve of fresh tears poured out. She felt like she would cry forever.

“I miss him too.” Carolyn gently stroked her daughter’s hair. “You were a wonderful friend. He was lucky to have you to take care of him.”

Emily jumped to her feet, gasping for breath. The words cut like a knife. She hadn’t taken care of Ozzie. She had betrayed her best friend. She ran for the back door, desperate to get away. Get anywhere but here.

Sprinting across the backyard, she ignored the playful shepherd in the exercise run. Her mother was only trying to help, but Carolyn didn’t know what Emily had done. Her mom could never know.

Jagged breath caught in her throat and she slowed to a walk, feet crunching over gravel. She veered away from the trail that led to Ravenswood, half-expecting to see Ozzie come bounding down the road with important news.

Instead, she walked into Arrowhead Park. Oblivious to the kids laughing and shouting in the baseball diamond, she wandered through the picnic area under rows of tall maples that fanned the sun into sparkles of light. This was where she used to sit and do her homework, Ozzie hiding in her backpack, whispering answers to her biology assignments. Once, Jellybean, the Feltner’s shepherd, discovered Ozzie and slobbered all over him. The ferret had protested so loudly, Emily had to pretend she was studying to be a ventriloquist as Mr. Feltner looked on, confused.

She sighed. Being here was only making it worse. Everywhere she looked she expected to see that furry little ferret head. Her whole life in Stonehill had been shared with Ozzie.

Emily slumped onto a bench. What was she going to do? She had faced loneliness when she moved to Stonehill. Her parents had just divorced and she thought her world had come to an end. Instead, it’d turned out to be just the beginning, the start of an amazing adventure.

She glanced at the tree line over her shoulder. At first, the Ravenswood forest had seemed so deep and foreboding. The haunted woods, the kids had called them, shrouded a rundown preserve whose owner, Henry Gardener, had mysteriously disappeared.

Now those trees bowed their branches. As if they too cried with her. As if they knew, remembered. This is where something magical happened. This is where she first met Ozzie—the elf-in-a-ferret’s-body who’d come from the magical world of Aldenmor.

How could she say goodbye? His friendship had always kept her going, kept her open to the wonders of her journey and the excitement of a future filled with possibilities. Now they were just lonely reminders of an empty heart. That life could change so fast was a hard lesson to swallow. And she couldn’t do a thing about it.

The true nature of the Prophecy of Three had never been revealed to the mages. But Emily had been warned many times that she could fall prey to the darkness. Instead of confiding in her friends, she’d been defiant, chosen not to believe the warnings. For all the power she had as a mage, she had been completely powerless to change her own destiny.

I take care of you. You take care of me.

Ozzie’s last words rang in her head.

She hadn’t taken care of him. Caught in the dark spell, she needed magic and he had given it to her, willingly, unconditionally, even at the cost of his own—

A soccer ball came to rest by her feet.

“Where have you been?” Kara asked, walking up to the picnic table. Adriane was beside her.

“Leave me alone.” Emily turned away, allowing her curly red hair to hide her eyes.

“No,” Kara answered curtly.

“What?”

“We said no,” Adriane repeated.

The two girls parked themselves on the bench, on either side of their friend.

“Emily, you’re not the only one who’s sad,” Kara began gently.

“We all miss Ozzie,” Adriane said.

“Your point?” Emily demanded.

“You have to help us,” Kara said.

Emily hung her head. “I can’t.”

“Tours are fully booked this week.” Adriane tried to break through to Emily.

“Not to mention the big dance next weekend,” Kara added.

“Yeah, thanks for reminding me,” Emily mumbled.

Adriane pointed at the blazing star. “Don’t blame me. Kara’s idea, remember.”

“You agreed to it,” the blazing star huffed. “The entire school is into it!”

“Thanks for sharing.” Adriane rolled her eyes.

“You’re not making me feel better,” Emily grumbled.

“Oh.” Kara refocused. “Aren’t you concerned about the magic web?”

Emily glared at them. “Concerned?
Concerned
that I helped the Spider Witch destroy the old web?”

“There was no way it could have been saved,” Adriane said.

“Well, now you have a brand new one thanks to me.” Emily stared off into the distance.

“The Dark Sorceress is inside Avalon,” Adriane stated.

“And we have to do something before she destroys everything!” Kara exclaimed.

Emily shook her head. “I can’t.”

“You healed the unicorns,” Kara said encouragingly.

It didn’t work. “Phel did that.”

“Emily.” Kara caught Adriane’s gaze. “We didn’t know the Spider Witch would go after you.”

“We should have,” Adriane said firmly. “And we should have been there for you.”

“It’s our fault,” Kara said.

Emily looked away. It wasn’t like she hadn’t heard it all before.

Adriane and Kara exchanged a worried glance. Their friend was lost in her own world of grief and guilt. It seemed as if nothing could reach Emily.

“I know what it feels like to lose a bonded,” Adriane began.

“I didn’t
lose
a bonded, okay? I killed my best friend!” Emily wailed, cutting her off.

Chastised, Adriane and Kara sat quietly.

“You heard what the sorceress said,” Emily continued coldly. “The prophecy is a dark prophecy. One mage always goes dark, and I’m the winner of this reality show.”

“You’re not dark anymore,” Kara reminded her.

“Don’t you get it?” Emily demanded. “I killed Ozzie. That darkness is inside me! It will never go away.” Tears streaked down her cheeks. “Ever!”

Adriane smiled sadly. “What do you think Ozzie would want you to do?”

“Well, I can’t very well ask him, can I?” Emily retorted.

Emily stared at Adriane and Kara for a long time. The breeze lifted her curls, framing her stony eyes. In the distance, children were playing, birds were chirping, dogs were barking. Life seemed so normal. She wished she could go back and forget everything. Just be normal again.

“Do you know what it feels like to be a dark mage?” Emily asked carefully.

Kara took a breath, but Adriane silenced her with a glance.

“It feels… good.” Emily shocked her friends. “It’s like being cut off from all emotion. You don’t have to feel anything. No pain, no sadness—I only cared about getting more magic.”

Kara understood that too well. “All I wanted was magic.”

“We all did,” Adriane admitted. “The dark crystals affected all of us.”

“So what happens next time?” Emily asked grimly. “What if I kill someone else that I love? What if Phel isn’t around to help me?” She rushed on before the others could interrupt. “You know I’m right. I’ll become everything we’ve been fighting against. I’ll be just like the Spider Witch and the Dark Sorceress. And next time you’ll have no choice but to—”

She stared hard at her friends. “The prophecy came true. I am the dark mage.”

“No! You still have a choice,” Adriane insisted.

“You’re right,” Emily said decisively. “There is one thing I can do. I won’t ever use magic again.”

“How can you say that?” Kara gasped.

“The only way not to be the dark mage is not to be a mage at all.”

“You still have the magic, even if you don’t use it.” Adriane pointed at the green and blue heart-shaped gem on Emily’s wrist. “You are the healer.”

Emily shook her head. “If I go dark again, I won’t care anymore that I killed Ozzie. Not caring would be so much worse. It would mean I would truly lose Ozzie forever… even his memory.”

Tears shone in Kara and Adriane’s eyes.

“It’s up to you two now.” Emily swallowed hard. “This quest is over for me.”