Tears—not of fear or pain—slid down her cheeks unbidden. She didn't know why, but his presence broke something inside her, and from that fracture, a sense of purpose, of dread, of power poured into her like moonlight through a crack in the night.
Though she could not see his face, she could feel the smile on his lips as the aura around him shifted into one of joy.
"Sleep, little Queen. You will need all your strength if you are to conquer your legacy."
"Let me make preparations; in the meantime, get some sleep."He didn't wait for her reply. A wave of incense flowed from the hand over her face, putting her into a sleep so deep, she would not wake for anything.
Before she fell into slumber, she swore she saw the strange winged man lower his hood slightly, just for her.
For the briefest instant, she glimpsed mauve and mercury—twisting, luminous, like the birth of a star—and in that flicker, she saw madness, beauty, and something like... sorrow.
Then it was gone.
