"Good catch," He said, nodding in approval.
"There was something else...." I met his eyes, but I was nervous. Could I be overreacting?
"What is it?" he asked curiously.
"I thought... I mean, I could have been imagining it." I paused, feeling stupid, "It felt like something was following me when I walked back last night."
I was reassured when he didn't immediately laugh at me. "What happened exactly?" His eyebrows knitted together.
"I was walking back through the woods. I got nervous." I said, blushing. "It wasn't anything at first, but I just got this feeling. So I called Nox." He looked at me expectantly. "Then I started to hear something. It was like the banshee was there, but not. It was like an echo, but it sounded close."
"That's interesting." He said cryptically.
"What?" I said. He didn't mean to but it felt like he was withholding information on purpose sometimes. "Is that all you're going to give me?" I laughed.
"I'm not sure exactly," He admitted. " I believe that you are right. I think you felt something."
"But?" I asked.
"Well, a banshee wouldn't have enough power to come to the physical plane on its own." He was thinking hard. "Unless... -no that can't be possible."
"Lucian, you're leaving me hanging here." I was almost begging him to spit it out.
"Right, of course, sorry," His face faltered in apology. "You might have heard the banshee somehow, without her actually being here."
"Like from the Liminal world?" I asked.
"It does seem rather improbable, doesn't it?" He supplied, shrugging.
"So what does it mean?" I questioned him. "I mean, two banshees in one week. That's got to mean something right?"
"It certainly does seem like something is trying to make a point." He sighed.
"Do you think somebody is going to die?" I asked, feeling a deep shudder roll up my spine.
"It's not impossible." He said. "I just don't know how much of the old legends are true. I wish I could be certain."
"Thanks," I said. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure it's nothing." I buried the thought.
"Well then, let's get to the plan for the day." He smiled. "You've done excellent work on the map Esther. We are going to use it to connect the liminal. What I want you to do is go to the Liminal world and try to match as many points as you can on the map. Mark them, and make note of any differences. Does that make sense?" He asked.
"I've got this," I smiled, feeling confident.
Every time I traveled to the Liminal world, it became a bit easier. The veil between the worlds parted for me simply, with the smooth feeling of light fabric against my skin. I was more at ease. The grey sky and misty air were no longer completely alien. I find it cool and comforting rather than cold and empty as I had before. The physical world felt stifling and overfull of chaotic energy in comparison to the liminal world.
I pulled out the map which I had brought with me. I would take the points on the edge of the map first, making the perimeter, before stopping back at the jagged crown-shaped ruins that were built in honor of the Queen of Witches.
The pace of my walking seemed slow, but distance didn't work the same way in the Liminal world. It wasn't clear to me how long it would take me to get where I was going, so I just walked, knowing that I would get there eventually. That was really all I could do. Fighting it made it worse. Of course, I could run if I wished, but that wouldn't get me there any faster.
I journeyed through the endless forest in the direction of the ruins. Eventually, the trees began to thin and I saw something up ahead. Arising before my eyes was a massive stone wall, at least 30 feet high. Turning my head to the left and right, I couldn't see where it ended. I took the path heading south along the edge of the wall, toward where the ruins should be. This certainly wasn't represented in the physical world. I wondered what it was. The place where I had marked the ruins in the physical world was ahead somewhere. Would I recognize it when I saw it?
I kept walking and eventually there was a change in the wall. Looming high above, was what looked like a sentinel tower. It had a precariously placed slab stone for a roof which helped date the wall. It was definitely ancient. This had to be the ruins. It was very different than what I saw in the physical world, but I knew it was the place.
I felt the urge to hurry, but I knew the liminal world would not let me. I tracked the wall all the way around the school until I had returned to the place I started. It encircled the entire campus. My thoughts raced, and I was excited to tell Lucian. Every point that showed up as a ruin was a piece of the wall, a tower, or a guidepost.
When I passed through the veil of the liminal world, I found Lucian tending the fire. The sky was brighter than when I left.
"Back already?" He questioned me.
"How long was I gone?" I asked.
"About an hour." He answered.
How strange. "But I was gone all day."
"That's a new phenomenon." He said, pulling out his notes. I peered over his shoulder to see that was writing time dilation. "There's still so much that we don't know about the Liminal world." He said.
"So, I might have found something else interesting," I started, waiting for him o return his attention.
"Yes?" He asked, looking up from his
