It was dark outside, the only thing that could be heard was the leaves and brunches of the trees surrounding the small house.
Inside the house, Amara was sleeping in the bigger bedroom as Thuban proceeded on sleeping on the cushioned floor. Not that he was sleeping. The glass ceiling was reflecting bright red and white lights, making it unable for him to focus on anything else but his surroundings. After much thinking, he stood up, carefully taking a book out of the self, and opening it to the first page. His eyes however weren't reading. They were more stubborn than that. He tried to focus, he really did, but he just couldn't. His mind was on Amara.
'That beautiful witch, that mystical presence, always so ready to protect herself, yet so mysterious. A witch without powers, or a witch with powers so sensitive that if they show themselves, she'll die. Merlin, I hope she doesn't die. I'll make sure she doesn't die.' he finally came to a conclusion, one that seemed reasonable at the time as he felt his eyelids heavy and finally fell back to the pillows, engaging in a dreamless sleep.
The next morning went by as good as anyone would expect. Amara woke up from an earthquake, or so she thought. When she went to the living room, she found Thuban, already making breakfast with the supplies he could gather. A hot cup of tea with some honeyed slices of bread seemed to be more than adequate for the two acquaintances. They sat in silence, munching on their bread and sipping their tea cautiously so as to not burn, when Thuban tried to speak. His mouth was still full of food when he opened his mouth, clearly an idea had flown into his head, one he wouldn't let his mind forget.
"What ef we pacticed en a de-"
"I can't understand a word you're saying, Thuban, please swallow first and then talk." Amara said, desperate to get rid of him.
"I was saying" he pretended being offended "what if we practiced in a different way?" he seemed to have the most enlightened look on his face, like he had just discovered something very important.
Amara sighed. Out of all people, and the High Court sent him. Him. Her insides seemed to burn. 'He was useless, a man who thinks he is someone just because of the people behind him. Who does he think he is?' she thought to herself, anger raging inside her, although...the glass reflected red and white patches of colour. That mostly meant love and serenity. That can't be. She didn't love him. He was handsome, sure. Smart even, in order to be part of the High Court one would have to pass their exams, most of which were spent while showcasing how much control they had over their powers. Amara shook her head. She found no use in being in love with him.
"I already confided in you that I've spent the last 10 years of my life trying to reveal my magic. Don't you think I've tried everything?"
"What if we push your magic to its limits?" he had a wide smirk on his face, probably thinking that his idea was ingenious.
"That's illegal. I can't control my magic, if it gets out of control, people will die. WE will die." Amara said, the tone of her voice giving away her feelings, along with the dark red and purple patches, fear had taken over her.
"I'll make sure we won't. Don't you trust me?"
"No. Not with this."
"Well, that was cruel. You CAN trust me. Here, let me show you." he said while getting up, he had finished his breakfast a long time ago.
Thuban went out of the little hut and Amara followed him, not quite sure what he was going to do next. The moon could still be seen, it was in the stage right before being full, also known as Waning Gibbous. The air around them shifted, the leaves of the trees surrounding them fell down, almost frozen, they made a cluttering noise, like kitchenware falling on a cold floor. The moon's position changed, the air blowing harder and harder around them, a soft yet firm breeze was entangled in Amara's dark brown hair, making her curls fly above her shoulders, she wanted to smile but there was something odd about the air, like it had feelings, she could almost sense its breath, hot yet cold, an uncanny feeling filled her insides with that breath, her stomach seemed to be on the brink of being teared apart from the heat trapped inside it, yet her body felt cold, her blood still in her vains, like she had just died. She wanted to look next to her, what had happened to Thuban? His incantations couldn't be heard anymore, was he dead? Had he pushed his magic to the limits and died? Was she going to? Was she already just a corpse, yet to be found by the High Court or a villager passing? The thoughts overwhelmed her senses, tears formed in her eyes but she couldn't cry. Invisible hands grabbed her from every direction, she felt like life was squished out of her. And then everything stopped.