Page 108 of Reign of the Talon
Eunbi inches closer to me. “You’re shaking, Lili,” she says.
I’m scared, I reply honestly.
“Don’t be,” a voice—my voice—says. A Lina steps out from one of the mirrors, this one crafted of polished, rose-gold metal. She smiles, gesturing to her plaque. THE LOVER.
The Lover wears a white nightdress, her hair long and unbound. Her cheeks are full and pink, her dark eyes sparkling as she walks toward us. Her every movement is lithe, almost weightless, as if she is walking atop the clouds. “Lina,” she greets, raising a hand. Her voice is different than The Assassin, than The Addict, than The Sister—it is sleepy, content, as if she has everything she could ever possibly want.
My heart stops as I spy the jewelry on her fingers. The jade garakji, the silver ring with the inscription on the underneath—the inscription that reads,Call to me, and I will come.
These rings, they were destroyed by the Prophecy, crushed into dust, into nothingness. And yet here they are, on The Lover’s fingers, glittering underneath the silver light, sparkling in the dozens of reflections around us.
A small breath escapes my lips, and The Lover raises her brows knowingly.
“You want them back, don’t you?” she asks. When I nod, she sighs. “I can’t just give them to you,” The Lover scolds, as if this should be common sense, and perhaps it is.
“Why not?” Eunbi demands and points to the garakji. To the two jade rings, meant for the fourth finger of a bride. If her husband passes before her, the woman parts with one of the rings, sending her lover to Jeoseung with one of the rings on his finger while she continues to wear the remaining one above—a symbol of perennial love and loyalty. “Those are from her husband. Those are fromRui!”
The Lover looks at me with soft brown eyes. I wonder when I looked this beautiful—hair mussed, lips slightly swollen, life blooming like a gorgeous radiance atop my face. I wonder if I will ever look this beautiful again. “I want to give them to you,” she assures me, “but if you take them, you’re making a promise again. Are you ready to keep that oath?”
A promise.
A promise to Rui, to be his once more—to stay by his side. To love him, forevermore. My vision blurs, and I blink away the hot tears. I do not know if we will ever have the happy endings I so coveted in the stories, the mythologies. But perhaps, if this works… Perhaps we will find a piece of happiness, and even that would be enough for me.
I’m ready.
The Lover smiles then, a brilliant beam, and slides the rings onto my fingers. They are warm, comfortingly so—and in a way, it feels as if I was never separated from them at all.
“Love him,” my other self whispers as the glass of her mirror begins to ripple. “Desperately so, passionately so, steadily so. He is your anchor in a treacherous sea. You are his light in the impenetrable dark. Where you go, he will follow.” She smiles. “One more self awaits you, Lina. Good luck.”
One more self. One more broken piece of me I must try to glue back together.
Oh, gods. I know which one this is.
As The Lover disappears, I turn to Eunbi, crouching down to hold her face in my hands. I know what self it is that awaits me—there is one that has, until now, been notably absent. One of scales and serpentine grace, one with golden eyes and fangs, one with a forked tongue and a murderous appetite.Eunbi, I say, summoning the words to float in the air,little sister, this last one…I must do it alone.
Eunbi frowns, her small hands covering mine. “I’m not scared,” she insists. “And I won’t hate you, if you show me.”
I know, I tell her with a smile that is bittersweet on my lips.But I’m asking you for me. I don’t want you to see this one.
She holds my gaze for a long moment before sighing, accepting my wish with a tiny nod. “Will I see you again?” she asks in a small voice.
My eyes fill with tears.I do not know, I answer, the smoky words trembling slightly,I… This is not over, not yet.If Gameunjang has guided us true, it may be…some years before I see Eunbi again. But if we have failed… Yego’s face flashes in my mind’s eye, a herald of what may come.
Eunbi swallows hard as she scans my eyes. “Lili,” she whispers, “I love you. And I…I forgive you.”
It is an effort to remain standing as my knees buckle beneath me. Blinking hard, I drag her into one last embrace.I love you too, little sister.I kiss her cheek.I’ll see you again, one day.
“Don’t…” Eunbi shakes her head, like she’s searching for words. “Don’t see me againtooquickly,” she finally manages. “I don’t want you to be—to be hurt.”
My smile wavers.I will try.
It is not a promise, not really, yet she nods contentedly and returns my embrace so tightly that I can barely breathe. “Remember that I forgave you,” she says, muffled, face pressed into my stomach. “Please…please don’t hate yourself any longer.” Stepping back, Eunbi wipes at her eyes and sniffles. “Goodbye, Lili,” she says. “Remember how strong you are. You have more power than you know.”
I fight to keep my face from crumpling.Since when did you become so wise?I tease, fighting back a sob.
Eunbi smiles a little shyly as she begins to fade. “I learned from my older sister,” she replies, just before she disappears altogether.
The mirror maze is so very silent without her. For a few long moments, I stare at the place where she once was, picking up my broken pieces and fitting them back together. As a tear traces a path down my cheek, I feel—for the very first time—entirely whole.
