Shalti was a little taken aback.
To be honest, she had not expected Tang Qi to say that-and nothing more.
She still felt guilty about keeping things from him, enough that she instinctively asked another question. "And what else-"
"What else?"
Tang Qi blinked in surprise. "Well-if you have any other spells wandering around out there, tell us sooner so we can figure out how to deal with them in advance."
"I killed Falto."
"I heard you. You don't need to say it twice."
"Oh."
Studying the uncertainty in Shalti's eyes and thinking back to her question, Tang Qi felt he could guess what was on her mind. "Although I'd really like to say this wasn't your fault, accepting the benefits and dangers of wild magic is a lifelong challenge for every wild warlock.
"Besides, if you hadn't used it, things probably would have ended so badly that you wouldn't even have the chance to recover his body today.
"But you clearly haven't been able to come to terms with it yourself. So what I can tell you is this-you've sealed your magic away anyway. At least I don't have to worry about it hurting me, do I?
"So I'm not afraid of you."
He drew Shalti gently into his arms, then let go after only a moment. "See? I can even hug you."
Shalti had to admit that she did not dislike being hugged like that.
It was not just because she had grown somewhat used to it.
More importantly, without her wild magic, she would no longer hurt anyone.
"Thank you."
After a moment's thought, she reached out with both hands and hugged Tang Qi back.
That, too, lasted only a moment.
Yet it meant a great deal to both of them.
Tang Qi committed that moment to