It wasn't long after Solene had closed the trunk with the satisfying click of the clasps being sealed into place when she saw the poppy red convertible pull into the driveway. As soon as it stopped moving, she sprinted down the stairs—Aunt Soleil had arrived. 

When she reached the first floor, the front door swung open, the rays of sun coalescing around her aunt's silhouette into a halo of sorts. The light clung to her, to her long fur-lined brown coat with leaf-green embroidery along the hem, to her silvery-blonde curls. She lowered her round sunglasses and smiled. 

"If that isn't my niece—all ready for your last year at good old Anouir?"

"As much as I can be." Solene pressed her lips together. "Where did you go this time?"

"Let me get in the door, and I'll tell you all about it," Aunt Soleil laughed. "Is my sister here, or—"

"Sorry, we were just finishing something up." Luna's voice carried coolly through the entryway before her and Horus's arrival.

As soon as her eyes fell upon Horus, Aunt Soleil's smile tightened, the light around her seemed to flicker or dim. "Hello, Horus. I see my sister's still keeping you around."

Horus, to his credit, did not respond in kind. "I had acquired a new tea variety that I thought she might want to share."

"It really was good, you should get more of that when you can." Luna's eyes softened as she dusted something off of his jacket. "I take it you have to get going, though?"

"It really is for the best." Horus placed a hand on Luna's shoulder. "The family's meeting up at the old house down in the Arcane Lights. If Aratus is calling a meeting, then it must be serious."

"I suppose so." Luna frowned. "Well, I suppose then you've kept me company long enough."

"Don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow, and I'll bring more of that tea." Horus looked to Solene. "I don't think I'll see you again before you take the ferry, so good luck at school tomorrow. Please feel free to write if you need anything, and you don't want to tell your mother."

"Yeah, he's good at keeping secrets," Soleil volunteered with a gleam in her eye. "The kind of things you used to get up to, Luna, like in our last year—"

While the polite smile remained, the light dissipated in both Horus and Luna's eyes. Solene could have sworn Horus looked a little paler for it, some of the color had dissipated from his bronzed cheeks. 

"I could tell so many stories about what you were up to in our last year too." Luna spoke evenly, but even Solene could recognize the truth behind the airy, casual tone. "I'd daresay you got into even more trouble than I did."

It was a threat. 

Soleil merely laughed. "I'd say that's true."

Horus sighed. "Have fun, you three."

With that, he brushed past Soleil and left the house entirely. 

"Well then, now that it's just us girls, I guess I should come on in, shouldn't I?" Soleil planted her hand on her hip. 

"You should, make sure to close the door." Luna pressed her lips together thinly and disappeared back into the living room. 

Soleil shook her head and chuckled as she shut the door. She removed her coat and draped it over her elbow before clapping Solene on the shoulder. "So, kid, this is the big year, the one where you've gotta make all the decisions."

"Yeah, I guess so." Solene let Soleil guide her into the living room, and joined her on one of the ruby and violet couches. 

"Have any idea what you want to do yet?" Soleil set the coat aside and crossed one leg over the other, showing off her long legs and her tall lace-up boots. 

"Same one it's always been." Solene toyed with the silver chain around her neck, with a little sunburst and silver moon dangling off of it. "I want to be a Healer."

"Just like your mom, eh?" Soleil patted her shoulder. She smiled—but something had changed about it. Something had dimmed, like a cloud passing over the sun on an otherwise perfect day. 

"And my dad—he wanted to be a Healer too, before his accident." 

"That's right." Soleil sat up straighter. "I forgot all about that. He was just so good at what he did, it would be easy to forget that wasn't always who he wanted to be."

He never wanted to be a warrior.

He'd told her so, once when she was still a little girl. He'd told some story about him and Luna when they were back in their school days at the Anouir Institute. One of the ones that dated back to before his accident. Back then, the way he told it, he'd been pining endlessly after her mother, and had often followed her into all sorts of misadventures.

One of these anecodotes had involved a class they'd shared at the time, a healing class. Which had prompted the question from Solene: "Wait, if you had healing classes, why didn't you become a Healer? Why did you give it up?"

The hazel eyes they shared became really sad at that. Brown hair fell across his freckled face. He was silent for a long time, enough for Solene to understand that she'd asked something she wasn't supposed to. There were a few things like that, she knew even then, that her parents would go strangely quiet and still about. 

When he spoke again, it was uncharacteristically solemn. "I wanted to. But after my accident—I could never heal again. No matter how much I tried. Something about what happened—it changed my magic. I could never cast a healing spell again, but I at least got better at dueling."

He smiled at the end. "That part wasn't so bad. After all, it meant I could finally go up against Horus at the Dueling Club. Before then? I didn't stand a chance. Not to mention your mother."

The sad look on his face stuck with her, even after he'd moved on from the moment. That was when her dream was born, the result of a childish attempt at empathy, a clumsy expression of love.

She'd be the Healer her father never could be. What he should have been. 

But Soleil and her father had never been all that close. Even in their school days. 

"I was the shy type then," he admitted. "I used to sit in the corner reading and watching, afraid to step in. Luckily, your mother also liked to sit and read in the corners. But your aunt? She was always in the spotlight, in the middle of the crowd."

So Solene supposed it was reasonable that her aunt never knew this about her father. 

"Well, I guess we can call this a going-away present." Soleil's voice pulled her out of her memories.

Solene straightened up as Soleil reached into her coat and pulled out of its pocket a little box.

"Got you this when I was on the site in Khiyiira." Soleil passed it to Solene. 

"You didn't have to get me anything," Solene protested.

"Of course I do." Soleil gestured dismissively. "You're my only niece. It's practically in the job description. 'Must get sole niece gifts from all the aunt's fabulous travel.' It's in the fine print, you know."

Solene grinned and shook her head.

"Come on, open it, I'm not getting any younger!"

"Alright, alright!" Solene removed the top of the box to reveal underneath a sheet of tissue paper a little silver ring in the shape of a cat. She immediately slid it on—a perfect fit. "Oh, wow, thank you!"

"Of course." Soleil leaned her head against her hand. "I saw it in one of the shops and instantly thought of you." 

She glanced to the kitchen door—Luna hadn't emerged back out yet. 

"You know, one of these days I'd like to take you with me to one of the sites." Her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. "I know your mom's worried—but you're nearly grown up now. It'll be your choice soon enough. And I think some adventure would do you good."

"I don't know." Solene shifted uncomfortably. "Maybe in the summer, before I try to get a Healing job somewhere."

"I know you don't want to be in this house, in Ventura Sound all your life, do you?" Soleil's eyes gleamed as she leaned forward and placed a hand on Solene's knee. "You're different, you're going to be something special someday, I just know it. All you've gotta do is take a step out of this little box, and the world is yours."

That was the thing about Soleil.

The way her eyes shone on you, she made you feel like you were the most special person in the world. And maybe you were, just to experience her radiance for a moment. 

It was hard to say no to her. 

And to be honest, hadn't Solene thought just earlier that morning that something had to change about her life?

She didn't want to be an archaeologist for magical artifacts, disabling curses and determining the properties of treasure long locked away by wealthy elves or kitsunes or ancient witches. 

But a summer couldn't hurt, could it? One where she would be the one traveling to far-off places, where she could have stories to tell her own children?

Before she could open her mouth to answer, she heard footsteps and turned her head to see Luna had returned.

"I hope you aren't trying to get Solene to join you on a dig site again?" Her mother's voice took on that breezy, too-casual voice once more as she sat down in one of the armchairs.

"Can't blame an aunt for trying, can you?" Soleil leaned back, away from Solene.

"I can and I will." Luna looked to Solene. "After all, you want to be a Healer—and I think that's a fine ambition."

Soleil snorted. "You would."

"It seems I was wrong about what I had in the pantry," Luna continued, as if Soleil had said nothing at all. "Solene, why don't you go drive over to Monetti's and grab a pizza? That'll give time for me and my sister to catch up."

There was no arguing with her mother when her eyes got all steely like that and her voice airy.

Besides, with the setting sun? It was a good time to take her car for a ride. A red convertible with all rounded edges and colorful flower stickers on the hood and door, it had been her sweet sixteen present last year. And because she was so often away at school, on the island, she hadn't yet tired or driving it. 

"You got it." Solene gave her mother a two-finger salute before dashing out of the house. 

Still, she couldn't help but wonder why exactly her mother didn't want her to go with her aunt to any of her dig sites. Was it overprotectiveness? Or was it that Soleil knew the secrets that Luna would never tell her and that Solene could never bear to ask about?