Another shriek erupted out of Mave's mouth, so guttural and intense it made her entire body shake. 

"What the hell happened?" Lila yelled as she ran to one side of the bed and Melinda ran to the other. 

"I don't know. She hasn't gotten this bad in years." Melinda held Mave by the shoulders and gave her a firm push back down. "Mave, can you hear me?" she asked, moving her hands up to cup her cheeks and land gentle pats on the sweaty skin. Mave's eyes rolled back as if in a drunken stupor. 

The House leader took shuddering gasps and shook her head side to side as if to shake some awful thought away. 

"Amor," Melinda cooed, lowering her voice to its gentlest tone, "you've got to be strong. Don't let it take over." Mave pinched her eyes together and lifted her hands to grab Melinda's wrists. Her skin was turning red under her grip, but it didn't seem to bother Melinda. "I'm not sure she's entirely here, Lila."

"Poppy. Why are you just standing there?" Lila rushed her, pointing across the bed. "Emery, come sit next to me."

Poppy jumped as if startled from deep thought and rushed to the side of the bed. Her bottom lip was sucked between her teeth as she nervously nibbled at it. None of them seemed to think this situation was under control, which in turn made Emery ten times as nervous. 

"What do you want to do, Mel?" Lila asked.

"Virtutis damus," she quickly replied, easing her hands away from Mave to move next to Poppy. 

Emery's eyes darted between all the women every half a second, so she didn't fail to catch how Lila flinched at Melinda's suggestion. "But Emery can't—"

A shrill cry erupted out of Mave's throat, making them all jump or shiver or—in Emery's case—both. Thick beads of sweat rolled over Mave's dark skin. 

"Virtutis damus," Melinda repeated, extending an arm over the bed towards Lila and another to Poppy. "Emery, you will repeat those words with us, understood?"

"Hey," Lila whispered to her as she took Melinda's hand. "Trust us. Everything's going to be okay." Her nurturing smile did not sway Emery's wary demeanor. She kept her hands tied together and close to her chest. 

"I don't understand what's happening," Emery replied, her fingers beginning to tremble. Her eyes moved to Mave once more and saw a dollop of red seep from her nose and merge with the downpour of sweat over her features. 

"Now, Emery!" Melinda growled, her commanding voice pulling at Emery's limbs. She grabbed Lila's hands before reaching for Poppy's, and then the chanting began. 

"Virtutis damus," was repeated over and over and over again, loud enough to drown out Mave's whimpers and wails. The words felt foreign to Emery's tongue, but soon enough she pronounced it as naturally as the others did. The more they repeated the words, the more Emery felt her chest heat up under her Song's power. The swelling warmth seemed to course through her muscles, moving from fiber to fiber until it pooled at the palms of her hands. 

Between the heat from the candles, her necklace, and the weighing atmosphere, Emery began to feel suffocated. A drop of sweat trickled down her cheek and she felt it land on her neckline. 

When she felt on the brink of heatstroke, Lila and Melinda broke their link and laid their hands on Mave's head. The heat was sucked out of Emery's hands like she'd dunked them in a bucket of ice water. 

For a second, Mave's body went entirely stiff. Her fingers slowly uncurled from their tight grip on the cotton mattress. With one long exhale, her body relaxed. Her head lulled to the side, and her chest moving up and down in a steady rhythm. 

"It's done," Melinda huffed out with a tired exhale. 

Poppy let go of Emery, but Lila's grip on her hand never loosened. She was grateful for the support because Emery's head had begun to feel heavy. Her free arm fell limp by her side, her strength failing to even raise a finger. Even her eyelids felt like they weighed a ton. 

"Emery, how are you feeling?" Lila asked, grabbing Emery's other hand and helping her to her feet. 

"Is Mave going to be okay?" she asked, her syllables slurring into one another. It was difficult to keep her head still. It kept swaying back and forth. Lila set a hand at the nape of her neck to steady it. Now if only she could keep her eyes focused . . . 

"Yes, she'll be okay," Melinda replied sitting on the bed and gently patting away the sweat from Mave's head with a small towel. 

"That's great," Emery replied and smiled. At least, she hoped she was smiling. She couldn't feel her mouth for some reason. 

Though her figure had grown blurry, Emery saw Melinda lift her head in her direction and say, "Thank you, Emery. Emery? Hey! Lila, catch—"

The last thing Emery felt was Lila's hand steadying her as she fell limp towards the floor. 

⤝◈◈◈◈◈⤞

Emery didn't realize she'd opened her eyes until the hazy figures around her started to exclaim and shout to each other at the marvel of her consciousness. 

She groggily pushed herself up against what felt like a big, grimy cushion. The smell of dust and mold wafted up her nostrils and made her want to sneeze, but she was still too groggy to even try to react. So, she just sat there, mouth half-open, nostrils flaring, in the world's longest pending sneeze. 

"Let me help you there, kid," Lila's voice was accompanied by her two fingers pinching the tip of her nose so hard that it made Emery startle awake. It even scared the sneeze away. "There we go. You're welcome."

Emery pinched her eyes closed and opened them three times before saying, "Someone better start explaining what just happened." Only then she noticed the break of morning seeping in through the house's dusty windows. "Or what happened last night," she corrected, feeling devastated that another night went by without peaceful sleep.

Lila hunkered down next to her in the living room's only uncovered piece of furniture: a grey sofa. A myriad of dust particles flew up and danced in the streaks of light pouring in from the window. 

"The head of the house has a lot of responsibility, and sometimes it can overwhelm her. So, when it gets too much, we lend her some of our strength until she can get it back under control."

"We've never had a gatekeeper help us, so this time she's back and better than ever," Poppy added, walking towards her with a tall glass of water. She handed it toward her before sitting crossed-legged on the floor. Then she handed her a bottle of pain-relievers. "Here, your head must hurt."

She was right. Her brain pounded against the walls of her skull so hard she wasted no time in downing the pills and chugging down every drop of water in that glass. The drink seemed to wake up her stomach; it let out a fierce growl of hunger.

A soft smile spread out on Poppy's features. "I'll go make some toast."

"They bought a toaster?!" Lila exclaimed, eyes wide in surprise and a curious smile spreading across her lips. 

"Nope, but I'll make do," Poppy replied. She flicked her fingers and summoned up a small ember before walking into the adjacent room. 

"So, the only way to help her is giving her all our strength, fainting, and dealing with a nasty hangover?"

Lila laughed at her without remorse, making a blatant scowl stretch upon Emery's features. "Only you fainted. You don't know how to measure your magic yet, so you gave too much away."

"Well, thanks for the warning . . ." she mumbled. 

"I did tell you everything was going to be okay," was her pitiful excuse. Emery scoffed and rolled her eyes. Lila furrowed her eyebrows at the action. "Hey, believe me. I would never put you in harm's way. Never." Her voice took such a serious turn that Emery didn't know how to react. 

Thankfully, Poppy came in screaming, "Breakfast is ready," and interrupted the intense atmosphere. She handed two slightly singed, unevenly cooked pieces of bread to Emery, with a proud grin on her mouth. 

"Thanks, Poppy," Emery tried her best to sound earnest as she placed the plate in her lap and began eating. She gulped down each piece of toast in three bites. The rumbling in her stomach eased down, but she didn't stop until her there wasn't a single crumb on her plate. 

Lila landed two pats on Emery's knee before pushing herself up. Her gaze was directed at her phone screen for a few seconds before quickly tucking it into her back pocket. "Well, I gotta head down to the station, and you better head over to Mrs. Baker's before they start missing you." 

"You don't have the morning shift," Poppy pointed out as she grabbed the plate out of Emery's lap. Her blue eyes narrowed at the sheriff. 

"Butt out, Poppy," Lila replied, not sparing the girl another glance before she exited the house and slammed the squeaky door behind her. 

The action made Poppy react much like a pufferfish, with her cheeks filling up with air and her straight strands seemingly frizzing up like spikes. Or maybe Emery was still a little woozy. Either way, it was clear the girl was pissed. "It's none of my business, right? I've only known you my entire life! What do I know?"

Emery shrunk back as the girl stomped toward the kitchen yelling, "You should probably say goodbye to Mave and Mel before you go."

In a hasty retreat from the raging girl, Emery tried to remember the path to the candle-lit room. The house's layout provided little choice in direction, and it wasn't long before she found the long hall. The door at the end was shut, making the hall as dark as last night, with the exception of a small string of light pouring out of the small crevice at the bottom. 

She hurried to it, with her fist raised and ready to knock, but then she realized she could hear the conversation inside, and it piqued her interest.

"—and then I just lost it," she heard Mave's silvery tone as clear as ever. Her heart swelled up in relief to hear she was okay. "There was a point where. . . ."

"What?" Melinda asked. 

"It broke through . . . just for a couple of seconds. It spoke to me, Mel, and it was furious. Something about me crossing the line or . . . I'm not sure. It's all very hazy."

"What do you think it meant?" 

"I don't know. I just know it's worse since we found Emery. Do you think it's her? Maybe we should take her away. Keep her somewhere guarded like the other gatekeepers. Somewhere far away from Bellenau."

"Maybe," Melinda replied, "but if we ask her to give up everything she knows and go live in some foreign bunker until further notice, it might steer her in the opposite direction. She's reckless, that one."

A light laugh, that Emery quickly recognized as Mave's, floated out the door. "Reminds me of someone I used to know." 

"Me? Oh, no. You are sorely mistaken, love." They paused for a moment to chuckle, and then Melinda's tone turned serious once more. "But . . . Maybe it isn't Emery. You know who else recently appeared."

"Theodore." Mave sighed. 

"We need to find him."

"And then what?"

They remained silent for a moment, and Emery grew anxious about the next reply. She got closer to the door, remaining careful not to touch the potentially-noisy wood. 

Melinda let out a sigh this time. "He's Vareus' son, Mave."

"What if he's good?"

"He attacked Emery," Melinda pushed, her tone growing demanding. "In my book, that makes for a rotten soul. She didn't even know how to properly defend herself then. She barely knows how to now."

"I understand what he did wasn't right, but . . . what if he's good?" Mave asked again. "He could return our Kingdom to us. Give us a home once more."

"Even if there's a small chance he's good . . . You know we'll have to turn him in. It's royal business."

"No. No royal will willingly help him break the curse. They'll lock him up, Melinda. Who knows what those pesky royals will decide then? They're desperate. Izoven bless him, the Wind Kingdom might even sentence him to execution on account of his father's wrongdoings alone. Diuna's Kingdom isn't in a position to protest, and the Earth Kingdom . . . Blessed Izoven. . . We could lose our only heir."

Emery's blood ran cold. If she presented him to Mave and Melinda, she could be sending him to his death?! That was too much. It was clear; she couldn't make this decision. 

"And do you realize what would happen if we found him and didn't turn him in?" Melinda asked. 

"Oh, Mel. . . . "

"You'd have to revoke your leadership of the House. They'll throw me away with you. Who knows what power-hungry bastard they'll appoint then. If we find Theodore, we must turn him in for Poppy, for Lila, for Emery too."

"But. . . ."

"Shh, hold on," Melinda said, making Emery's heart race. In an effort to avoid being caught eavesdropping, she turned back around and ran back towards the living room. Upon running, her feet got caught in the same lifted piece of floorboard she'd stumbled upon last night. Her arms flailed in front of her. She used them to ease the fall and muffle the sound, then pushed herself back up and keep running. 

Just as she made the turn into the living room, she heard the sound of the bedroom door creak open. To her relief, she heard it close again a second later. 

"What's wrong?" Poppy asked, tilting her head curiously as Emery took shallow breaths on her way to the front door. 

"Gotta go. Gonna go check on our pal or bosom friend or whatever. I'll see you later," she blurted out as she reached for the doorknob. It was so old and rusted it took her a few tries to get it to turn. 

"Hey, Emery, something's falling out of your . . ." Poppy's words died in her lips. 

Emery froze. 

The key, the key, the key . . . 

Her hand slammed over her the back of her pants. Sure enough, she could feel the metal peeking out over the edge of the jeans' back pocket. A clump of saliva accumulated under her tongue. She tried her best to swallow it, despite feeling her throat clench up in nerves. 

Summoning up every ounce of courage and skill she had, Emery plastered a small, convincing smile on her face, looked over her shoulder, and said, "Oh, yeah. Thanks." She shoved the key back down and dragged her shirt over it. 

She barely looked at Poppy as she pried the door open and hurried outside, but in that passing glance, it was clear to her that something clicked inside Poppy's head. She recognized it. 

Poppy knew Emery had the Song of Water.