Now the tears left her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. She was crying and not ashamed of it.
“I wish you luck on the rest of your journey. The village of Dominion awaits you, Maria.”
Fear struck her heart. She stepped forward on wobbly, muscle-tight legs. “I can’t do it without you, Duke. I need your guidance.”
Duke pointed to the wall, where beyond the burnt-orange paint and plaster was a table full of people Maria cared about and who cared about her.
“You have them, Maria. Your tribe. They will follow you anywhere, to the Gates of Hell, the Laughing Trees of the Dark Forest, anywhere. And you will lead them. But you cannot do it without them and they cannot do it without you.”
Maria reached out. Her hand passed through Duke. He looked down and smiled. Then he reached his own hand toward Maria and their fingers lay atop of one another. Maria felt nothing besides a slight tingling in her palm, as if her hand had fallen asleep.
“I must go now, Maria. Eternity awaits.” The light surrounding Duke glowed brighter than the sun. Maria didn’t shield or close her eyes. She watched it all in sheer fascination and disbelief.
“Thank you,” Duke said.
Then he was gone, the light washing out the Denny’s bathroom with him. Maria was alone. She sat on the trashcan after a moment, worried her legs were going to give out on her.
Not long after, Claire and Tabby opened the door.
“Maria?” Claire said. They turned and saw her slumped over on the trashcan.
“Maria!” Tabby said. “Jesus!”
The two girls helped her up.
“I know the pancakes weren’t great, but they weren’t that bad,” Claire said.
Tabby glared at her, a look that said now was not the time for silly jokes.
“I’m all right,” Maria said. “I’m okay. Just a little lightheaded.” She was able to stand on her own now. And, if she was being totally honest, she felt better. Much better.
“Come on,” Tabby said. “There’s more steaming blueberry pancakes on the table with your name on it.”
“Unless the Muffler twins ate them all,” Claire said. She held the door open, and they helped Maria back to the table. All eyes were on her, even the waitress’s and the cook’s.
Too young to be drinking, the cook, Reggie, thought. Oh, what do I care? I hardly remember my early twenties. He grinned and went back to flipping pancakes.
“Are you all right, Maria?” Ignatius asked. He leaned forward and placed a cool hand on her forehead.
“It was Duke,” she said.
The witches and wizards at the table nodded in mutual understanding.
“Good for him,” Agnes said.
“He passed on,” Maria continued.
“Because of you. You have given him an eternal life, Maria. There’s almost nothing more valiant that that,” Ignatius said.
“This is just too weird,” Tabby said, shaking her head. Claire elbowed her.
“Embrace the weirdness,” she mumbled, unaware this was decided as Maria’s new catchphrase just minutes before.
“I’m going to miss him,” Maria said. She started cutting up her pancakes.
Are you gonna eat those? Sherlock asked.
Maria grinned at the Bloodhound and threw him a piece. He caught it with an odd sort of finesse.
“You may see him again,” Ignatius said. “After all, our journey is only beginning.”
Surprisingly, the group finished the pancakes, drained the buckets of syrup, and still had room for desert. But they did not order desert. They sat in Denny’s until the sun was close to coming up, talking, laughing, and just being happy.
Though Ignatius and Maria were the only ones bound by blood, they and the rest of the group had formed a bond that night; one exclusive to the closest of families.
Because this group of weirdos was, after all, a family.
“You’re sure you have to do this?” Claire asked Maria as they got out of the Kia. The damage to her car looked much worse in the rising sun. The sky was a purple-orange. Beautiful.
“Yeah, Maria, don’t go, please,” Tabby said. There were tears in her eyes. Something Maria had never seen before.
Maria took both of them by the hand and looked them in the eyes. “I have to go.”
Close by, Ignatius heard this exchange. “We won’t be long,” he said.
“It’s dangerous,” Claire said, lowering her voice.
Maria tapped the hilt of her sword. “I can handle it. After tonight, I think I can handle any and everything. Gotta burn off those pancakes and all, you know?”
Neither of them smiled.
“Nothing. Okay, jokes are not my strong suit, I’ll admit that, but that…that was comedic gold.”
Still, neither smiled.
“Listen, I have to do this—”
“Let us come with you,” Claire interrupted.
“What?” Maria said. She was taken aback. “Claire, are you serious?”
“Classes are starting soon,” Tabby said. “I can’t—”
“This is bigger than that,” Claire said. “C’mon, Tab. Road trip! We’ve always talked about going on a road trip, right?”
Tabby shifted from foot to foot. “Yeah, I guess…but—”
“But nothing,” Maria said. “This blows a road trip away.” The idea of bringing her friends didn’t strike her as odd as she thought it would. In a weird way, like most of what had been happening to her over the last forty-eight hours, it felt right.
Tabby smiled. It was an uneasy smile, but there was honesty in it. “I-I—”
“Tab!” Claire urged.
Tabby sighed. “Fine. I’ll go, but if my mom finds out, she’ll kill me.”
“Oh, crap! What am I gonna tell my parents?”
“The truth,” Gramps said. He walked up to them, Sherlock at his heels. “Tell them the truth. Tell them you are going to save a village in a far away land.”
“They’ll think I’m talking about Africa or something. That won’t fly.”
“So you don’t mind?” Maria asked Gramps.
He grinned. “No, no, the more the merrier. Oriceran is a magical place. I look forward to seeing it again and sharing it with you all. Just promise me one thing, all of you, okay?”
They nodded.
“Don’t anger any
