Three Oracles, A Dance, & A Song, part IV-V

... from The Vitmar Chronicles, Volume II

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Part IV: Light 14th, 233; 3rd Era

Dear Gabriel,

I wish I had the words to explain what happened last night, but they elude me.

I have always been able to walk freely with my magic. The average person doesn’t notice, so it’s usually something personal that I play with. Yesterday, I tried to make you a part of it and instead, something else happened entirely. I had no frame of experience for what happened.

I see now that my timing was extremely ill-chosen and I’m sorry if I’ve added any undue burden to your fears with my requests and actions. You deserve someone who can be stable for you as you learn to rebuild trust and, in my hubris, I thought I could use something that hurt you to heal you, betraying that trust. I hope that whatever you saw in my eyes doesn’t make you think worse of me.

I know I was a fool and I need time to examine myself in this light.

I’m sorry if I’ve hurt you and I’m sorry to leave suddenly, without a proper farewell. I couldn’t handle seeing you again.

You were beautiful, and your music has changed my world.

With all love to you for whatever is to come,

—Amelie Nivekorpi

The note slid under his door while Gabriel was lying awake and by the time he heard Kaldor and Aelwynn return after the Day of Oracles, he had already read it too many times. It was so vague. It was honest, but Gabriel wondered if it was hubris of his own to recognize what felt like trauma in her reaction to the dance.

He was in the middle of pondering the deeper meanings in her words for the umpteenth time when Kaldor’s knock brought a more immediate repercussion to the forefront: he no longer had a companion for the festivities that day.

Kaldor opened the conjoining door and found his brother staring at the note. “Has Amelie blown out your ears somehow?” Kaldor asked. “If you’re awake, you should have heard that.”

“Sorry,” Gabriel murmured, not really moving or looking up. “Amelie left.”

Kaldor’s exhausted face—which looked like it had been about to tease Gabriel—changed immediately. “Okay, tell me everything,” he said seriously.

Gabriel explained, as best as he could, that they went to the Isidor Asswall with the intent of making art together, but that something strange happened to Amelie in the process. He then showed Kaldor the letter. He read it, grunted a couple of times, and then shook his head.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “She was… kind of great. She really liked you, too.”