“What were you thinking?”

“That she’d listen to me!”

“Ok, let me rephrase. Why were you thinking that?”

I sighed and sank back into the cushions. The woman who had been with the Traders had been arguing with my father for nearly an hour. She kept referring to my father as Death. I thought only I was allowed to get away with that.

“She needs to exercise her wings! Make yearly trips to the Goddess to keep her-” the woman stopped and turned on me, “Do you have magic?”

“Of course she doesn’t!” my father yelled, “I think I’d know if she had magic!”

“I wasn’t asking you. Midnight,” I started, how did she know my name? “do you have magic?”

I swallowed the lump in my throat and avoided my father’s eyes, “Well… you see… I think I… maybe… might have some.” Her eyes were triumphant and she turned to my father who looked aghast.

“She’s mine. She was born on this side. She can’t be-”

“She crossed the Border.”

Silence hovered over everyone for a long time. What was going on?