Death had latched on to Grandma Flaire. It was heaven’s way of saying her time would soon be up.
Grandma Flaire was going to die—and soon. While it wasn’t set in stone, the mist was never wrong before. All who were shrouded in it perished. Even after I left Dr. Hendy’s office, it was all I could think about.
“Meg… Meg! Meg Raspberry!”
“Huh?”
Hearing my name brought me back to reality. I was sitting at the kitchen table with a plate of spaghetti in front of me, and my teacher was looking at me.
“Stop spacing out and finish your meal.”
“Sorry.”
I watched as my teacher sighed before focusing on her dinner.
“Teacher…”
“What is it?”
“Is there a way to save someone who has Death clinging to them?”
My teacher’s fork froze in midair as I said this.
“Did you see the mist today?”
I didn’t say anything, though my teacher could likely see right through my silence. I was too afraid to say Grandma Flaire’s name out loud.
“You’ve seen it before, and you know what happens to those followed by the black mist. There’s nothing we can do to help them.”
Her words pierced right through my heart. The Eternal Witch continued, as if to enlighten me.
“Fate exists, and Death merely follows the rules of fate. You who can see the mist should understand this more than others.”
“What about a seed of life? Couldn’t I use one to stop it?”
“Meg.”
My teacher whispered the next part.
“Fate is not something that should be bent.”
There was a gentleness to her expression and a weight behind her words as well.
“You’re the one who always says a witch needs to live with the way of the world. Wouldn’t that mean using a seed of life on myself would effectively be bending my own fate?”
“There are fates in this world that can be tampered with and those that we must not.”
“Whose right is it to decide that?!”
Without really thinking, I slammed my fists on the table and stood up. The sudden noise must’ve shocked my teacher’s nearby familiars, because they all jumped. I was breathing heavily—my voice was quivering; I could barely control my emotions. The tension was less than ideal for a plate of pasta.
“Meg, you need to calm down.”
“I won’t! I refuse to!”
Despite my lack of composure, my teacher remained calm.
“A witch’s role is to recognize the natural way of things in the world and live in harmony with it. We may tamper with fate for those who wish to live on, but it isn’t right to force someone who doesn’t wish it to live beyond their time. You would only be changing their fate for yourself, which you mustn’t. It isn’t wrong to save a life, but does the life you wish to save truly want that?”
My teacher had a sad look in her eyes.
“Do not avert your gaze from the reality of things. It isn’t right to extend one’s life just because you want to. Do not…make the same mistake as me.”
It was rare for my teacher to say something so personal. She didn’t want me to make the same mistake as her. I could tell my teacher carried something painful from her past with her, something she probably had never told me about.
“When met with someone whose death is upon them, it is our job to see that they can leave this would peacefully, with no regrets.”
“Our job…”
“Meg. Your ability to see Spirits and Death and the powerful magic in your eyes are unique to you. These are things that mages can’t attain even after years and years of hard work. You have a power they can only dream of having—and you have it for a reason, Meg Raspberry. Your powers have a purpose.”
“A purpose?”
“Don’t you suppose there is something you and only you can do for those soon to be visited by Death? A way you can help them spend their limited, precious time left in this world?”
“I think saving them from Death is something I could do.”
“Meg…!”
“So what, we’re not allowed to save people just because they aren’t necessarily asking for it? Then why do doctors save people who tried to end their own lives?! Your point of view on this is too one-sided!”
“That isn’t what I mean! I’m simply telling you that you mustn’t misinterpret the reality of things!”
“So?! What’s wrong with saving someone we may have the power to save?! I just want to save someone I see in need. That’s the reality of this conversation!”
My breathing was heavy and irregular.
“Who knows when that dark mist will start hovering around me? Are you going to tell me to give up on making my seed of life when that happens, too…?”
It was evident that my teacher had no response to this remark. I picked up the half-eaten plate in front of me and dumped it altogether into the sink.
“I can’t sit by and let someone I might be able to save die, nor do I want to. What you call the way of the world isn’t something I want to take part in if it means watching people die.”
“Meg!”
As I stormed out of the room, my thudding stomps almost drowned out my teacher’s voice as she called my name. Grandma Flaire was always there for us… A soft-spoken, gentle woman, she loved her flowers, and I wanted her to live a peaceful life. So if there was even the smallest chance that I could do something for her, I certainly wasn’t going to give up on it.