Page 138 of Magical Mission
Mara snapped upright so fast she nearly tripped over her own shoes.
“Stella!” she squeaked, adjusting her cloak with exaggerated dignity. “I was investigating a disturbance.”
“Of course you were,” Stella said sweetly. “And doing it with exceptional enthusiasm.”
Mara glared, but the corner of her mouth twitched.
“You’ve always loved to show off your wears,” Stella teased and turned to me, her expression shifting from playful to curious. “So. Portal?”
“Maybe,” I said. “It wasn’t here yesterday. It came into being sometime overnight. The vampires found it first, thankgoodness. They’re keeping watch while I try to figure out if it’s dangerous.”
Stella stepped closer to the path, her shoes just shy of the glowing line. She crouched, reached into her bag, and pulled out a small bottle of dried rue and another filled with iron shavings.
“What are you—”
“I’ve seen this before,” she said, not looking up. “Sort of.”
I froze. “Wait—what?”
“Not here. Notexactlythis. But something like it was near the cottage decades ago. Same scent. Same glow. Same sense of time holding its breath. It’s why I followed my nose back to the Academy. I’d planned on staying at the tea shop today since I don’t have any classes to teach.”
“What was it?”
She stood, brushing her hands off. “A calling path. They’re rare. Some old earth-bound magic. They appear when someone, typically someone with a deep magic or bloodline resonance, needs to recall, reclaim, or reconnect with something deeply buried. They don’t hurt you, but they don’t let you through unless you’re the one they’re meant for.”
I stared at her, but my mind drifted back to the orb that left me with so many unanswered questions.
“How doyouknow this?”
Stella smiled softly. “Elira taught me a thing or two when we were young. And you forget. I’ve lived here longer than most. You think I just sell tea and biscuits?”
“Well, yes.”
She winked. “Then I’m doing it right.”
I looked back at the glimmering path, now pulsing softly as Mara resumed her stance a safe distance away.
“So it’s not a trap?” I asked.
“Not atrap,” Stella said. “But not without risk. If it’s meant for you or someone connected to you, it’ll test them. These paths often do. Emotionally. Spiritually. Sometimes magically.”
I swallowed. “I was afraid you’d say that.”
“But,” she added gently, “they always give something back. A memory, a name, a truth. You go through when you’re ready. Not before.”
My dad, still beside me, let out a low rumble. It wasn’t a warning.
It was agreement.
I took a long breath, and the cold stung my lungs just enough to bring me fully into the moment.
“I’ll investigate it soon,” I said. “But not alone.”
Stella nodded. “Good. And in the meantime, keep the vampires rotated. Let the Academy breathe around it. See what stirs.”
We both turned toward the golden aura curling gently through the path.
Like a doorway waiting for the right hand.
