Serpent & Dove

Shaken by her dream, Lou recalls her 16th birthday: Instead of becoming an initiate into the sisterhood, she was to be killed. Her death would be the “sacrifice” that allowed the Dames Blanches to overthrow the Church and monarchy. Lou had known that this was her fate since birth, but when the moment came, she resisted and escaped.

Reid interrupts Lou’s memories and tells her La Vie Éphémère is being performed at Soleil et Lune. He asks if she’d like to go. She has finished the book, and while Reid may see the end as hopeful, she thinks the couple’s love was futile. Depressed and weary, she still agrees to go.

When Reid leaves, Lou hurries about the room looking for a weapon, to Ansel’s dismay. She tells him to escort her to her husband. Ansel assumes Reid is in the council room, but the only one there is Jean Luc. Lou, knowing that Jean Luc is jealous of Reid, goads him. He calls her a “clever little witch” (217), and Lou momentarily thinks he knows her secret. Jean Luc tells Lou that Reid has gone with the Archbishop to dispatch some hobgoblins, which upsets Lou since they’re harmless creatures. Jean Luc insists that, like witches, hobgoblins are unnatural and must be exterminated. Lou tries to argue, but Ansel pulls her away.

They go to the infirmary, where she and Coco practice in Monsieur Bernard’s room. Lou realizes she has been repressing her magic for too long and doubts she’ll ever be as strong as her mother. Father Orville arrives and tells them Monsieur Bernard tried to jump out the window the night before. He gives him a syringe of the paralysis drug. Coco and Lou exchange glances—the fathers are making progress—and go elsewhere to redouble their practice.

Lou and Reid arrive at the Soleil et Lune. He has bought her a new dress and has chosen a matching coat for himself. Lou deliberately wears a hood and covers her scar with a ribbon. The play begins and Lou recognizes Estelle, the actress who helped her when she was bruised from her confrontation with Andre and Grue. Reid holds her hand, and Lou feels pleased, finding it hard to concentrate. Suddenly, she realizes Estelle is a childhood acquaintance. She pulls away from Reid and starts to panic. When the final song plays, she asks Reid if they can leave right away. However, Estelle follows them. Using magic, Estelle bashes Reid with a street sign and tries to capture Lou, explaining that her planned sacrifice is an honor. Reid recovers and manages to subdue Estelle. He assures Lou that the witch will burn.

Though Estelle would have handed her over to her mother, Lou chastises herself as a “witch killer.” The following day, the Archbishop exhibits Estelle to a crowd, who hurl insults and rocks at her. They tie her to a stake. Ansel warns Lou not to watch, but she feels she must since she believes “no one deserves to die like this” (242). He insists that witches are unnatural. She responds that there are witches all over the city, some good, and that the Archbishop’s torch is equally unnatural. Lou uses magic to assume Estelle’s pain as she burns. Ansel tries to help Lou as she falls and writhes in agony.