But secretly he was pleased when Brianna chose the nook without hesitation.
"I can't do it!" Brianna exclaimed in frustration for the third time that day. "Perhaps you're wrong, and I'm not a mage at all."
The possibility was somewhat disappointing, but better than the idea that she might be a failure.
Lyall smiled at her words. "You know that mages are taught this technique all through school from the time they're children. You've only been trying for a week. Give it some time."
As if that made her feel any better. Even children could do this. "How about people who don't learn as a child then? How long does it take them?"
"Um … I don't know," he admitted. "Everyone does learn as children. I don't think I've ever heard of someone not knowing how to use their magic until they were an adult."
"Perhaps it can't be done? Perhaps if you don't learn to use magic as a child, you can't?"
A frown crossed Lyall's face, and he said nothing for a few moments. Then he shook his head. "I don't believe that. There is no reason you wouldn't be able to learn as an adult. You just have to keep trying."
He sounded so sure, so certain, that Brianna sighed and tried again-more because she didn't want to disappoint him than because she thought it was going to work. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on only her breathing, tried to let all the other thoughts leave her mind.
But they wouldn't be silenced. She might have only been here for a week, but that week had been filled with as many new experiences as her whole months in Bymere. After their initial conversation, Lyall's family had accepted her without question, almost as if they already considered her one of the family. A thought that made her distinctly uncomfortable whenever she thought about it.
Lyall had spent the week trying to show her everything there was to see on the Isla de Magi. They'd been to dances, carriage rides, visited caves, beaches, and of course, spent quite a bit of time in this room, where Lyall said he had learnt to use his magic as a child.
And where Brianna was failing miserably at using hers.
Clearing her mind just wasn't working. She couldn't stop going over everything that had happened since she left home. And it was worse this time than usual. For some reason, today, she felt restless, as though she couldn't sit still. As though something important was happening, and she was missing it.
Mianna. It wasn't Brianna who was restless, it was Mia! As soon as she'd worked that out, the world around her seemed to suddenly go still. Everything faded into the background.
Then suddenly exploded in colour and light.
After a second, it steadied, and her vision cleared. Except it wasn't Lyall's study that surrounded her, it was her own bedroom back at home. Instead of standing on the floor though, it was as if she were floating up in a corner, looking down on the two neatly made beds, and Mianna staring into the mirror.
She had the feeling of tears starting in her eyes when she saw the flowing white dress her sister wore, and she saw echoing tears in her twin's eyes as Mianna turned around and looked almost straight at her. "Where are you, Bri?" she asked, and for a moment Brianna thought Mia could see her. But her eyes weren't focused, they stared off into space, at something beyond the place where Brianna floated.
"It was supposed to be both of us, together," Mianna continued. "I know you didn't love Terion, but somehow it still feels so wrong that you aren't here. I miss you so much, Bri." Now the tears fell freely, and Brianna wasn't sure if they were hers or Mianna's.
"I miss you too, Mia," she answered, even though she didn't think Mianna could hear her.
Yet her twin stared more closely at the spot where Brianna floated. "Bri?" she asked, perplexed.
"Mia? Can you hear me?"
Her twin stared around the room, as though searching for something. "Bri, are you here somewhere?" she asked. Then shook her head. "Of course not. I'm going mad."
"Not mad," Brianna said, although she wasn't sure that that wasn't strictly true. "I'm not here but... I can hear you. And see you. And I wish I could be there with you, Mia. But... I'm happy here."
It hit her with a jolt. It was the truth. Being with Lyall was making her happier than she had been in a long time.
"Really, Bri? Are you really happy?" Mia asked, a touch wistfully.
"I am. And I hope you are too?" Brianna was suddenly uncertain.
Mianna's answer dispelled any doubts. "Oh yes," she breathed. "Terion and I, well, I'm so very happy that we'll be husband and wife today. The only thing that could make today any better is if you were here to share it with me."
Suddenly the world wavered. Something was happening back at Isla de Magi. Brianna spoke quickly. "I may not be there in person, Mia, but I'm with you in spirit, as I always will be. Be happy and don't feel sad for me. This is the right thing for both of us."
"I know," Mia admitted. "In my heart, I know. I just miss you so much."
Brianna could feel the world fading around her. She reached out her hand to touch her twin but it passed through thin air. "I love you, Mia."
"I love you too, Bri." Her sister's voice was faint, just a fading echo.
Then Brianna was sitting cross legged in front of Lyall again, and he was shaking her shoulder, looking concerned. "Brianna? Are you all right?"
Brianna shook her head, as though to clear it. "I think so. What just happened?"
"How about you tell me? I've been talking to you for several minutes and you've just been staring off past me." Lyall sounded amused.
"Did I do it?" Brianna asked, confused. Surely the only way to explain what just happened was through magic?
"I don't know," Lyall admitted. "If you'd touched your magic, it should have only taken a few seconds. You were gone much longer than that. What happened?"
"I... I don't know. Things just, kind of, exploded? And I was floating. Is that what's supposed to happen?"
"Not quite," Lyall said, but he was smiling. "As you said though, we don't know what happens when someone learns magic as an adult. Perhaps this is it? Anyway, I think that's probably enough for today."
Brianna nodded agreement. The last thing she thought she could concentrate on right now was magic. Not when she was thinking about her twin at home getting married without her.
It was such a strange thought. Today was Mianna's wedding day. Yet not hers. For a moment, she felt a little sad. This wasn't how it was meant to be. Then she looked at Lyall, watching her, still looking slightly concerned, and she smiled at him.
It wasn't how it was meant to be, but it was right. Being here with Lyall was right for her. Just as Terion was right for Mianna.
Lyall seemed to sense her shift in mood. "So what do you want to do now?"
Brianna thought about that for a moment, but really, she had only one idea in mind. "Can we go sailing?"
Lyall smiled. "Sounds like a perfect way to spend the afternoon." He slid to his feet and held out his hand to Brianna. Hand in hand, they walked through the castle, stopping to pick up a hastily packed picnic basket from the kitchens, and down to the dock where his yacht was moored.
Brianna sat on the deck in the shade of the wheelhouse, watching Lyall as he cast off. A feeling of anticipation settled over her. Much, she suspected, like the feeling of anticipation Mianna would be experiencing back home. She might not be getting married today, but there was nothing stopping her from having her own wedding night.
She felt free this afternoon. The communication with Mianna, be it real or imagined (and she still wasn't quite sure which it was), had settled something in her mind. The little bit of reserve that had been holding her back from committing to Lyall had dissipated.
Lyall smiled back at her from his seat near the stern, one hand on the rudder, the other on one of the lines. Brianna was content to wait, suddenly there was nothing to hurry about now.
After taking them slowly out of the harbour, Lyall turned to the north, sailing along the coast for a few hours. They anchored in a deserted bay, a beautiful visage of white sand and palm trees. It was perfect.
They ate on the deck of the boat, then Brianna grinned over at Lyall and said, "You want to go for a swim?"
"I didn't bring any spare clothes," Lyall said doubtfully.
"There's no one around," Brianna teased. "Do we need clothes?"
Lyall blushed, but he didn't look away. "I don't know, do we?" He raised an eyebrow at her.
Brianna walked to the railing, pulling her shirt off over her head and dropping it in a pile on the deck. A wriggle of her hips sent her skirt down to pool around her ankles. Before she could chicken out, she grabbed hold of the railing, climbed onto it, then dived off into the azure sea.