Picnic By the River Styx [Attn: Kalen, Sera, Gwen, Alex]

[mnemosyne]

They were in the park. Is it still twilight? It must be still twilight, the hour when the earth and the sun part ways. This space when some doors open into darkness, and others close. The first

three

four

five heart/beats after her wrenching spell is loosed are braced in and soundless. Just the rasp of her breath. Just the worms in her heart -

(breathe breathe breathe)

- slow motion. Serafíne does not mind slow motion. Sometimes she experiences the world like this, in a beautifully clashing kaleidescope of colors and sensations that come to her because she welcomes them and retreat because they must, each with an edge of everything and a side of forever and she feels quite nearly fine, you understand. So empty, purged, arrested at the edge of a breath she does not have to take.

She could just stay here.

She could just stay here so fucking long.

-

Then a rushing reorientation and a snap-back and all that soundlessness resolves itself into a kind of livid cacophony that has everything, everything, and she's breathing, breathing, breathing, and she's still - she's still -

- and well, she seems, really rather fine.

--

The other ferrymen come. The realm rearranges itself and Sera can feel it waking the way things wake, which is not precisely like dawn and not precisely like spring and is perhaps closer to the way the desert wakes after the rain but she is not a goddamned Verbena and does not experience the world in circles and cycles and cicadas, she just feels it.

All the others know, really, is that that they felt the gutwrenching lash of her magic as Kalen stepped in front of her to shield her, and the Nephandus - leering at Gwendolyn - slumped over and fell into the River Styx.

And there she is, afterwards, arms crossed over her bustier, over her breasts, pale in a way that feels like it leaves beneath her skin - because she is not given to pallor at all - rubbing the meat of her right thumb over the edge of a ring on her right index finger in a meditative manner. Mouth dry, and maybe kinda shakey but - fine. Just fine.

The grass grows. Sera steps out of her ridiculous heels and uncrosses her arms and bends down to scoop them up with her left hand, the index and middle fingers through the black straps and crosses her arms again, shoes dangling now.

Gwen asks if everyone is alright and she means Sera and Sera gives Gwen a tight, lovely smile and says - "I'm cool."

She is cool. She is cool right now. She feels empty and purged and a bit floaty and a little bit numb and she is cool. There is a strange little wall inside her right now. She is so fucking cool. "You good?" Including Alexander and Gwen and Kalen in the question, before she finds The Message again. "Ready to go though. Can you please take us home?"