The moment Magdalena drew them from her pullover, I felt their thrumming energy - a current that passed between us before a word was spoken. These runes had lived in her thoughts, her eyes finding them whenever my memory surfaced. Now they would live in mine.
She spoke of their silencing, how after years of communion, they had fallen quiet. She had long since welcomed another set into her practice, leaving these thirteen sacred stones waiting. Each one held a language of its own, ready to whisper answers to questions both asked and unformed.
Gratitude filled my hands as I accepted them and tucked them into a little midnight blue sachet. After her departure, the stones whispered against each other as I shook the little bag, their quiet clinking like a secret just before they decided to share it with me. I reached into the bag of runes, and the Star sat ready between thumb and forefinger. "Yes," I breathed, a smile touching my lips. My finger traced its edges, already knowing what dawn would bring. And oh, how ready was I.