Page 35 of Cloak of Night
“Are you two decent?” Liga called from nearby. The sky cleared back to its normal morning brightness.
“You didn’t give us enough time to be otherwise,” Daemon said.
Liga emerged from the woods. “My apologies, brother. But I need to return to Celestae soon, so I must teach you what I can quickly.”
Daemon bit his lip, but he crossed his arms over his chest and stood tall. “I’m ready.”
“Remember,” Liga said. “You are not merely a boy. You are a son of Vespre and grandson of Luna. You are the wolfof the stars and a master of gravity. Embrace who you truly are.”
Daemon closed his eyes for a moment and imagined himself as all those things.
Not just a boy.
Wolf of the stars.
Descended from gods.
Daemon’s skin buzzed, lightly at first, then strong enough that his skin vibrated. Heat prickled in his veins, and when he opened his eyes, he saw the tiny sparks bursting around him creating a faint blue aura.
“He’s doing it,” Fairy said, but her voice was almost lost in the noise of the electricity.
It felt different this time. In the past, he hadn’t noticed the subtle changes that happened before he turned into a wolf. Maybe he did now, though, because he was asking for the shift, coaxing the magic to transform him.
Daemon could tell when the shift really began to take hold, because the power of the sky filled his lungs, his heart, and his entire being to their limits. He was suddenly bigger than he’d ever been, not just physically but intangibly, too, as if his existence had expanded. Every sound was sharper, every color more saturated. He thought if he tried, he’d be able to see around to the other side of the world.
Liga’s clapping brought him back from his awe. “Well done, brother.”
Daemon looked at his thick blue fur, at his paws, at the tail behind him. He was solid, and yet he understood that this was what it meant to be a constellation—just not the way humans thought of it, not mere stars connectedby empty space and drawn-in lines. Sparks danced around Daemon like stardust, and he could feel the pull of earth’s gravity at his mind, almost inviting him to play.
He started to reach for it.
The chestnut trees creaked, as if whimpering, and began to bow toward him.
“Halt!” Liga said.
Fairy was crouched on the ground, arms over her head to protect her from falling trees.
Liga wagged a taloned finger. “First you need to practice transitioning back and forth from wolf to human and back again. It’ll give you a better feel for your magic. Then you’ll be able to reacquaint yourself with your gravitational power without inadvertently damaging anything.”
“Spoilsport,” Daemon grumbled.
The trees eased gratefully back into their normal positions.Sorry, he thought to them.
“How do I turn back into a boy?” he asked.
“The same way you shifted into a wolf,” Liga said.
Daemon nodded. It had really been as simple as knowing he could do it and then thinking about the end state. He began to concentrate on his human form again. Until he remembered that he’d be naked when he shifted. His clothes were jumbled in a pile nearby, but that wasn’t the same as covering him the moment he turned into a boy.
“Uh, do you two mind turning away?”
Fairy let out a fake indignant huff. But then she winked and spun around.
Despite currently being a wolf, Daemon flushed.
Liga pointed at him with an alligator claw. “Focus, brother. Once you have better control of your magic, you’llbe able to conjure clothes to cover yourself simultaneously with your shift.” Then Liga also averted his gaze.
Daemon glanced down at his furry paws. He flicked his tail in the air. And then he imagined those gone, replaced instead by the version of himself he’d known for eighteen years.
