Wild ​Reverence

by Rebecca Ross

For anyone who has ever had to let go of someone they love

“A name shapes a divine as much as the stars do,”

And I would rather be feared than ever be loved.”

War only makes love flame brighter, defiant.

“If you call for me, I will answer.”

“He chose me first,” I replied. “He dreamt of me before I knew of him. His soul found mine before I even knew how to look for his.”

She was not mine by spoken vow but something deeper. Something that felt older, stronger, darker, like a language that had been sung centuries ago but had now been forgotten. Something that simmered in the blood, calling to me, calling to her.

“If it takes you,” I said, “then let it also take me. Don’t leave me behind like this, Red.”

And I had never desired to be a god, to wield power as one, but in that moment, I longed to halt time. I would have made an interlude for us, a space when the hour lost its bite and the sun stood still. We could simply breathe and let ourselves unravel this knot between us, slowly.

“He may be irreverent toward all of us, save for you. I think he desires to worship you.”

We were doomed, she and I. One day, I would perish, and she would live on, endless as the stars. But if we were doomed, then let us fully embrace it.

I am yours, Red. I will always be yours. Not even Death can change that.”

would wait a thousand years for you,” Vincent said. “If you asked me, I would wait for you until only my bones remained upon an altar. But if you must leave again, then let me follow you, Red.”

I saw the magic gathering in the space between letters, the space between words. I saw the magic draw tight as strings.

The divine is nothing without mortal hearts. And should we love them, we should not be punished for it. No, I think. It is all the more reason why we should be remembered.

Matilda’s magic was about to rewrite all the old myths.