Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted novel Chapter 392

Clumps of white powder scatter across the wooden planks of my doorstep as I stomp my booted feet. The others are headed to the cafeteria for a well-deserved dinner, but I’m too amped up to eat. Magic thrums beneath my skin like dancing electricity, even as my body’s exhausted from the day’s events.

"Your capacity has grown." Grimoire materializes beside me once I enter the cabin, in his favored childlike form. "The Grand Sage’s quartz would make excellent storage."

It’s pleasantly warm inside, encouraging me to throw off the thousand layers I’m wearing. Lucas always makes sure our place is tended to so I come home to a heated home. "Where did I put those stones?"

"Under the bed." Grimoire watches as Selene veers away from us, toward the far corner of the kitchen. "In the wooden box with the brass clasp."

"Running away already?" I ask her.

The stones reek of after you enchant them. They make me sneeze and itch.

"Fair enough." Crouching beside the bed, I pull out the ornate box. Inside, three chunks of milky quartz nestle in red velvet, each the size of my palm. "How do I do this? Same as the little ones?"

Grimoire nods, floating in mid-air. "Yes. These hold quite a bit more than you would think. They’re of better quality than what we usually use for batteries, so it should be enough to drain you."

I cup the first stone between my palms. The quartz is cool and smooth against my skin, and I swear my magic is eager to dive into it. Closing my eyes, I imagine my excess power as a glowing river, channeling down my arms and into the crystal.

It takes little more than a second for the stone to warm against my skin. Energy pulses in steady waves, and my breath catches at the raw sensation of magic moving through me.

If I let it go too fast, the stone will shatter under its force; it’s a lesson I learned the hard way months ago. Now, it’s almost second nature to restrict the pace of magical transfer.

"Good," Grimoire murmurs. "The crystal accepts your power easily."

He’s right. Unlike the violent push-pull of purifying taint, this is peaceful. Natural. The quartz drinks in my magic like a sponge absorbing water.

The first stone, the smallest of the three, reaches capacity after a few minutes. When I open my eyes, it gleams with an inner light, small sparks dancing in its cloudy depths. Lucas says he can’t see it, but it’s clear in my view.

"One down," I say, setting it carefully back in the box. "Still feel pretty full, but not like I’m about to burst."

"Take your time with the next one. No need to rush the process."

I pick up the second crystal, larger than the first. This time I let the magic flow even slower, savoring the strange feeling. It’s almost as freeing as shucking off your bra at the end of a long day. The quartz resonates in harmony with my energy, creating a soft humming sensation that travels up my arms.

From her corner, Selene sneezes. That smell gets worse every time.

"Sorry." I can’t detect whatever scent bothers her so much, but her nose twitches with each pulse of magic.

The second stone fills gradually. I watch the light spread through it like dawn breaking.

"Last one." I reach for the final crystal, the largest of the three. "How much can these hold?"

"Quite a bit," Grimoire says. "The Grand Sage chose these specifically for their capacity. Quality quartz can store remarkable amounts of magical energy. Not as much as, say, jade, but it’s easier to come by."

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