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Mariketa,

Happy Accession! Behold, a gift A skeleton key of sorts a piece of the puzzle for the Witch in the Glass

Fondly as ever,

Lady Nïx,

Proto-Valkyrie

My lass;

She is afraid that I will see

A little witch that looks like me,

With a red, redI should not know!

PS: You still owe lass? Was the mother Mari's own? Why would Nïx think Mari would need this?

Mari had known Nïx all her life, and she are that, as confused as N&ius without reason In fact, Mari had been around her enough to know that everything she did - no- was done with purpose, from a stray word to an absent touch

With that in mind, Mari took the letter and padded past MacRieve and the fire toward the water At the pool, she knelt down and peered at the s if the words could be an incantation

Mari's spell casting was hit-or-miss at best, and witches were most vulnerable to another's spells when they cast their own Spells opened the gates, and anything could get in

As Elianna taught, "Reach for power, leave your power vulnerable"

Mari's uncontrollable, near useless power What was there to lose, truly? Besides the ability to send MacRieve airborne?

Decided, she began to murmur the words, once, twice on the third recitation, her reflection began to shift as if the pool had been disturbed Then she saw so she never expected Her eyes looked like h Mari felt her hair heavy down her back in the windless cave It was her in the water, but it wasn't

"What what is this?" she whispered

The reflection spoke, answering, "A conjuration"

Mari was actually conjuring? "Who are you?" she breathed in amazement

"You," the reflection replied

"But how?"