‘What do you think?’ Luna asked. She sounded a little nervous, but she was smiling.
I stared at her for a few seconds before answering. ‘Not bad.’
Arachne snorted. ‘Don’t listen to him, dear. You look perfect. A few more touches and you’ll be all ready to go.’
The sun had set by the time we finally said goodbye, and as we walked out of Arachne’s lair I could see the first stars shining in the sky above. The air had cooled, and around us, Hampstead Heath was quiet. ‘Had a good time?’ I said as we walked out into the gully.
‘I had a great time.’ Luna was smiling; you would never have thought that only a few hours ago she’d been scared of being left with Arachne. ‘Is she named after the weaver? The one from the Greek myth?’
‘If I had to guess, I’d say it was the myth that was named after her.’
Luna looked at me for a second before her eyes went wide as she got it. ‘But that was — how long ago?’
‘Two, three thousand years?’ I shrugged. ‘I’ve never asked.’
The Heath was fast emptying of people, and here in the densest part, it was all but deserted. As the light faded from the evening sky we walked to a ridge and into a grove of trees. I took the glass rod and recited the incantation. ‘What are you doing?’ Luna asked curiously.
‘Calling us a ride.’ I grinned. ‘An air elemental called Starbreeze. Be nice to her.’
Starbreeze must have been close; I’d hardly finished speaking before she sprang up in front of me in an invisible rush of wind. ‘Hi, Alex!’
Luna jumped as the voice came out of mid-air, and Starbreeze pointed at her. ‘Ooh! Who’s that?’
‘This is Luna,’ I said. ‘Could you go visible for a second?’
‘Okay!’ Luna jumped again as, to her eyes, Starbreeze seemed to materialise out of thin air right in front of her. Today Starbreeze had decided to look like a woman in her thirties, with long hair and clothes woven of mist. She floated closer and stared at Luna in interest, studying her clothes. ‘Pretty.’
‘Um, pleased to meet you,’ Luna said, recovering. She stepped back and Starbreeze floated closer, then whirled in a circle around her, faster than Luna could turn.
‘Starbreeze, we need to go to the tower at Canary Wharf,’ I said. ‘Can you take us there?’
Starbreeze stopped whirling and brightened. ‘Oh, the ball! I want to go there!’ She vanished in a puff of wind, leaving us alone in the grove. ‘Starbreeze!’ I yelled after her. ‘Starbreeze!’
Starbreeze reappeared in the blink of an eye, visible again. ‘Hi, Alex! Ooh!’ She pointed at Luna. ‘Who’s that?’
I sighed. ‘Could you take us to Canary Wharf? Us.’
‘Okay!’ Starbreeze swept forward over us, and I felt my body start to transform. Then suddenly it stopped, and I was standing on the grass again.
I looked around in surprise; that had never happened before. Starbreeze had zipped away, and was floating at a safe distance, pointing at Luna. She looked upset. ‘Don’t want to take her.’
‘What’s wrong?’ I asked.
‘She’s wrong.’ Starbreeze shivered slightly. ‘Hurts.’
Luna sighed. She’d been keyed up, excited, but now the animation faded from her body. ‘It’s me. I know.’
‘It’s all right.’
Luna shook her head. ‘It’s okay, I should have known.’ She gave me a half-smile. ‘You go ahead. I’ll meet you there.’
‘Oh, I think we can do better than that.’ I held out my arm. ‘Take my hand.’
Luna looked down, then up at me. ‘Um, what are you doing?’
‘Arachne’s very old and very wise,’ I said. ‘Your curse can’t hurt her. And right now it can’t hurt me either.’ I took the ribbon hanging from my lapel, held it up so she could see. ‘As long as this is still white, I’m safe. So,’ I smiled, ‘ready to go?’
Luna looked at me for a long moment, very still. When she spoke, her voice was suddenly cold. ‘Are you making fun of me?’
I stared at her. ‘What?’
‘I can’t touch anyone. You know that. If this is a joke-’
‘Luna!’ I touched my fingers to the ribbon. ‘Arachne made this specially for you. It’s the same spell as your curse, but inverted; it absorbs it. As long as you’re near it, Starbreeze’ll be fine, and so will I.’
Luna’s mask wavered, and I saw she was uncertain. She looked from me to Starbreeze, still floating off to one side. I held out my hand and she took one hesitant step forward, almost within arm’s length. Then she gave a shiver and backed away, shaking her head. ‘No.’
I dropped my hand. ‘Luna, it’ll be fine.’
‘You don’t know that! How can you tell?’
‘I don’t know, maybe because I can see the future?’ I stopped and took a deep breath. Being snarky wasn’t going to help. ‘I know you can’t see how this thing works. But trust me, it does.’
Luna shook her head.
‘Look, I thought you were getting on with Arachne? She obviously likes you; she wouldn’t go to this much trouble for anyone. Take her word for it.’
‘No.’
‘Goddamn it! What are you planning to do, sit here all night?’
Luna shook her head again. Her face had firmed, and her voice was steady. ‘I’ll get there on my own. It was at Canary Wharf, right? I can find my way.’
‘No you can’t. You won’t make it halfway across London before Cinder and Khazad and that woman find you, and your curse can’t protect you from one Dark mage, much less three!’
‘I guess I’ll have to take the chance.’
‘It’s not a chance! You’re as good as dead if you go out there!’
‘And you’re as good as dead if I touch you!’
I stopped, staring. Luna glared at me, then caught her breath as she realised what she’d just said. She closed her eyes, inhaled, and straightened her back. When she opened her eyes, she looked calm again. ‘Thank you for trying, really. But it’s fine.’
‘That’s it, isn’t it?’ I said slowly. ‘You’re afraid.’
Luna went still, then shook herself. ‘It’s okay,’ she said levelly. ‘You go with Starbreeze.’
‘You’re scared of what’ll happen.’ I gave a short laugh. ‘Look, you don’t need to worry. It’ll be fine.’
Luna stared at me. ‘You think it’s funny?’
‘No.’ I caught myself. ‘Look, there’s nothing to be scared of-’
‘You don’t know that.’ There was an edge in Luna’s voice.
‘Yes, I do.’
‘You don’t know everything.’
‘I know enough about this-’
‘Shut up!’
I rocked back, and Luna took a pace forward, glaring at me. ‘You always think you know everything. You don’t! You don’t know what it’s like, you’ve never felt what it’s like. Stop acting like you do!’
I stared. I’d never seen Luna like this. She’d never before even raised her voice. ‘Luna-’
‘Stop it! Stop telling me what to do! I don’t want your-I don’t want-’ Luna’s voice wobbled and she swallowed. I took a step forward, but she jumped back, glaring at me. ‘No! Stay away from me!’
I took a deep breath. Luna stared at me, fighting back tears, and I tried to figure out what I needed to say. ‘Look,’ I said at last. ‘You’ve always trusted me so far. Trust me now.’
‘No! I haven’t- I mean-’ Luna turned away, running a hand through her hair, breathing fast. ‘I can’t, I- You don’t know what you’re asking. I can’t get close, I-’
‘If Arachne says something works, it works. You won’t hurt me.’
Luna drew in a shaky breath. ‘Alex, you don’t know what it’s like. The only way I can live is if I tell myself it has to be this way. If I let myself-’ She realised what she was saying and put a hand to her mouth, fright in her eyes.
I looked at Luna, standing alone and frightened on the hillside, and finally understood. All I could feel now was pity. I held out my hand to her. ‘Luna-’
But as Luna recognised the expression in my eyes, she finally snapped. ‘Stop looking at me like that! Stop feeling sorry for me!’ She took a step back. ‘I’m not going to the ball. I don’t want to be with you. Get away from me!’