Starfell Willow Moss and the Lost Day (Starfell #1) - Dominique Valente Page 0,34

the battle the spells were said to have been destroyed.’

‘But couldn’t the old magicians just fight back – use the magic that people were so afraid of?’

‘Some did, yes, but fear is a powerful force. The Brothers of Wol captured their families and threatened to kill them if they fought back. Many of the people they captured weren’t magical. As you know, not everyone in a family is born with magic, so they couldn’t fight back even if they tried.’

Willow thought of her father and nodded. She thought of what she’d do if someone captured him and threatened to hurt him – probably anything they asked her to, she realised.

‘Then there were those with magic who betrayed their own kind – that was the worst part,’ sighed Granny Flossy, taking a sip of her sherry and staring off into the distance. ‘You see some of them started to believe that what the Brothers said was true – that it was an evil gift. They were told that Wol would take away their sins if they worked to rid the world of this evil, so they helped the Brothers to destroy their own kind.’

Willow was horrified. ‘But why would they believe that?’

Granny Flossy grabbed Willow’s face, looked deep in her eyes and said, ‘Fear, my girl. It’s more powerful than any magic in this world. It’s what’s holding you back right now – the fear that you won’t be as powerful as your sisters, the fear that your gift isn’t special. But it is. You think your powers aren’t exciting? Well, I think that you’re wrong. Magic is like life – it’s what you do with it that counts. The Brothers of Wol tried everything to rid Starfell of magic, but they couldn’t do it. It still came back to our world, slowly but surely, after all those centuries. And now, years later, a small piece of it found you. It singled you out and made you special. Never forget that, my girl – the fact that you have a magical ability at all is proof of how lucky you really are.’

Willow looked at Nolin Sometimes now, her eyes wide. She’d half convinced herself that the Lost Spells were nothing more than myth – just a story about the old magicians of Starfell.

‘You really think someone has found one of them?’

‘Yes – and if there’s one, there might be others.’

‘That jes can’t be good,’ said Oswin.

Feathering’s golden eye had widened. ‘I can’t help but agree …’

Nolin Sometimes nodded.

Willow blinked. ‘But even if one of those old, powerful spells had survived, surely it wouldn’t work? I mean, there are no magicians left, right? Could a witch or wizard use one of those old spells now?’

Sometimes frowned. ‘Maybe … The magic was here before. You can’t erase it, and long ago our ancestors could use them, so perhaps we could too. I’m not sure. But I think that there might be at least one who can, someone who found a way to get some of the old powers back …’

Willow’s eyes bulged. ‘You mean to find the missing Tuesday we’re going to have to fight someone who has managed to tap into the old powers? Someone as powerful as one of the old magicians of Starfell?’

Sometimes looked a little green himself. ‘I’m afraid so.’

12

The Moon Garden

‘But who? Who is this magician? Can you see him?’ asked Willow.

Nolin Sometimes ran a hand through his wild white hair, and shook his head. ‘No, but I think I know a way that we can find out.’

Willow looked from Feathering perched outside the window, his large golden eye blinking rapidly at the news, to Oswin, and asked, ‘Really? How?’

Nolin Sometimes grinned. ‘As you may know, I am also a botanist.’

‘Um?’ said Willow.

Oswin blinked. ‘I tol’ yew ’e’s off his rocker,’ he said.

Nolin Sometimes’s passion for botany explained the strange plants dotted around the stilt house and how they’d come to find him in the magical forest of Wisperia, but not, Willow couldn’t help thinking, how it might help them understand who had taken the missing Tuesday.

Sometimes sighed dramatically, shaking his head. ‘The study of botany, along with the art of forgotten telling, have long been entwined. The early oubliers were able to grow certain plants that helped them in telling larger portions of the past. The roots of these plants connect beneath the ground, creating a large network of memory, and if we can access the right ones, we can find out what really happened. Do you