We’re in the back yard, just the two of us, on the heels of dawn. I put down a blanket on the dewy grass to keep us dry, and a plate with a few warmed cinnamon rolls rests between us, already missing one fragrant pastry. Steam rises in wispy strands from the surface of the coffee.
Sable looks rumpled and sleepy as she licks the last of the icing off her fingers and reaches for the mug.
“I think so,” she says, then pauses to sip from her cup. Her shoulders slump forward and she smiles, clearly having a moment with the caffeine.
I can’t blame her. I rolled her out of bed way too early this morning to start work on recreating what happened during our shared dream. I’m absolutely positive that she was able to pull me into the astral plane—where she meets Cleo—using our mate bond. Either that, or it was an awful strange coincidence that we had the exact same dream at the exact same time.
I don’t really believe in coincidences.
If Trystan’s right, we can use this newfound power to our advantage. Cleo may be strong, but the five of us together are stronger. I’m certain of it. So the question now becomes, can Sable repeat what she did? Can she control that power and take all of us with her into the astral plane?
Sable sets her mug on a level spot on the grass and goes on. “I’ve been trying to come up with a plan for how we can do it without Cleo knowing what’s going on.”
“Good.” I nod. “I’ve been worried about that. I know she pulls you into the cave, usually. That probably means she has some kind of connection to it, which could make it dangerous for us to be there.”
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Sable nods. “Right. The last thing I want to do is drag you into a fight with her before we’re ready. So I’m going to build a new place. A separate place in the astral realm specifically for practice.”
I raise an eyebrow, impressed. “You think you can do that?”
She shrugs modestly. “I won’t know until I try. But you know, I trust her. My witch, I mean. I think she knows what she’s doing, and I just have to let her take the reins.”
A smile spreads across my face. I can’t help it. Sable has worked her ass off to learn how to use and control her magic. The rest of us have helped her as much as we can, but ultimately, her abilities come down to her own strength and determination.
And it makes me so fucking glad to see that she no longer fears this part of herself.
We start with some basic meditation practice to hone her mind and prepare her for the kind of control necessary to visualize and build her own astral place. To be honest, sitting with her in the growing sunshine, meditating with her, coaching her through mindfulness—hell, this is the stuff dreams are made of.
I learned meditation as a teenager, when the stress of my past became too much to handle on my own. I needed something to chill out my mind, calm my fears, and ease the anxiety I still had over my time being held captive and tortured by the witches. I was just a kid when it happened, but the older I got, the harder it became to deal.
Meditation helped, more than I think I ever expected it to.
It’s nice, passing on my own methods to Sable. It’s nice to have someone to sit here and just be with, and it’s even better that the one I’m with is my mate. My favorite person in the whole damn world.
After she feels ready, we move on to the next part, most of which I can’t help her with.
“Do you know much about visualization?” I ask her.
“I know what it is, but not exactly how to do it,” she tells me, wrinkling her nose a little.
I take my time and consider my words, trying to figure out how best to describe it. Visualization was part of my studies in meditation, but I’ve always thought it’s one of those things that’s easier to do than to explain.
Finally, I settle on saying, “Close your eyes and imagine Ridge’s living room couch.”
She raises an eyebrow, a small smile dancing on her face, but she follows my instructions. Her hands are resting comfortably in her lap, and her expression is the calmest I’ve seen it in weeks. She takes several deep breaths, letting each flow in and out slowly and smoothly.
“Okay,” she confirms after a moment. “I’m thinking about it.”
“Picture it entirely,” I tell her. “From every angle. There’s stuffing coming out of one corner, and a patch on the left arm that’s a different color than the rest. The corduroy almost looks striped, doesn’t it? Some lines darker, some lines lighter, depending on the angle.”
Sable nods as I speak, and I can see her eyes moving behind her eyelids. Better yet, magic is rising beneath the scars on her body, which I take to mean she’s got a handle on the visualization.
“Can you see it?” I ask her. “Can you see the room around it? Can you smell the woodsmoke from Ridge’s fireplace?”
She nods again, smiling. “I can. It’s like I’m there.”
“Good. You just visualized his couch,” I say with a grin. “So now, you have to take that same method and build. Create something new, specifically inside the astral realm.”