Juniper & Thorn

by Ava Reid

But there’s hardly anything in life worth doing that doesn’t make somebody angry.

Part of me wanted to say no more of Dr. Bakay, ever, until his face rinsed from my mind like dirty water down the drain. But there was another part of me that wanted to scream his name through empty hallways so I could hear the way it echoed. I wanted to whisper it into the ear of every person I ever met; I wanted to burn it onto me like a brand. I wanted, most of all, for someone to steal the wretched, awful burden of it away from me, and to explain precisely how wretched and awful it was. I wanted someone to write it down like a story in Papa’s codex so I could know what lesson there was to be learned.

Magic is the first sip of good wine that makes the edges of your vision blur. Magic is the cool breeze of the boardwalk at night and organ music in the air. Magic is landing a grand jeté and nearly going deaf with the crowd’s applause. Magic is the low flicker of tavern lights and the girl you’re courting leaning close so you can kiss.”

“What happens when you hold up a mirror to a monster? In my experience, nothing enrages them more than the truth.”