@esmerays
Sometimes, it's easy for her to forget. The mild numbness to her fingertips after crafting simple talismens or a potion of fortune is commonplace, a constant that she has disregarded in her mind at this point. And even the ice she inhales as she casts a spell, the tingling rushing from her chest and spreding down her arm until it is lame at her side hasn't startled her in years. It was the way her world worked. And yet, in the silence between spellwork and shuffling cards, when she was left alone in the corner of her home with an empty glass and a trremor in her hand, it hits her all over again. Borrowed time. She hit her expiration date eight years ago. How much longer does she really have?
The plan was set into motion when she was still an untrained mage desperately looking for a teacher; her contigency for when things went wrong because she was never so arrogant as to believe she could remove the curse completely. No, it would come for her some day and she had come to terms with that. As long as her ultimate plan worked. But that was dependent on someone else.
She stood on the balcony of her bedroom, overlooking the distant mountain as Pip sat at her side. Leaning on the railing with one hand on top of her familiar’s head, she could feel the pulse of the universe swirling around her and she could almost visualize the cascading colors dancing around the mountain. It had to be the only beautiful sight in the city. Well not only.
Nora could always sense the fae's presence before ever seeing her, her innate power pulsing like a homing beacon to call all of the foolish mortals toward her. She picked up the bottle of wine that was on the small table behind her and poured two glasses.
"The last time we were here, we were watching our 'light display', remember?" she called out to Esme, picking up the glass and offering it to her. Light display. A kind descriptor to setting several meth labs on fire. That kind of wonton destruction was easy when you held the power to bend reality to your will with a flick of your wrist and a fae who enjoyed a dramatic display. She offered her friend a smile. "Thanks for coming. I know people keep you busy."