The next time Lucian heard movement from the Garden Above Ground, it was late afternoon. He brought a bottle of green tea in case she wanted a drink.
He heard the sound of soft scraping--chalk against stone. At first, Lucian didn't move. She was still drawing. But instead of frustration, she drew with care.
When he got closer to the rock table, he noticed three things:
Alice's drawn circle wasn't whole, it wasn't entirely hers, and...he didn't recognize it. He was half-tempted to call Merry or ask his Grimoire to scan it, but that would be rude. This was Alice's work, not his.
The pattern looked half-familiar. Angular edges. A central curl. Glyphwork built for resonance, not stability. A conduit, maybe. But it wasn't from any lexicon he'd seen before.
Which isn't saying much. I know what my Loom and Grimoire know, and even then they don't tell me everything all the time.
