A Sacrifice for the Night

The astrology column was the biggest load of hogwash I’d ever read. Predicting fate through star movements…

I scoffed at the idea. Might as well read about magic and true love in fairytales. At least those stories taught something valuable, like morals and some such. As for “fate”, I preferred choosing my own future, not subscribing to one preordained for me by some know-it all in the sky.

Today, it seemed my horoscope was right, as stupid as that was.

Be open to change, but be wary of the timing. Today’s energy encourages the Virgo to go with the flow and not fight the universe’s plan.

I fought the plan, and now I was stuck in traffic with nothing for company but the magazine I’d picked up for Lydia.

All because I’d left for work two hours earlier.

Even my phone reception was down, for some weird reason.

I was about to throw my version of a tantrum when the bus jerked into motion, the same boring yellow wall I’d been staring at for fifteen minutes giving way to Selidos Street. One inch closer to whatever surprise my manager, Chloe, had in store for me.

My shoulders tightened further at the thought, the need to kick my feet like a three-year-old difficult to ignore.

Why…why did she have to start my Monday like this?

“I swear to the sky above if it’s what I think it is…” The bus ground to a halt again, and I slapped the magazine to my face, hoping to muffle my groan.

“Anything interesting in there today?” Came an overly-friendly voice from beside me.

The magazine slid down far enough for me to eyeball the woman who’d chosen to sit next to me—out of all the other available seats. Her bobbed black hair bounced as she dipped her head to the side, her smile squinching her eyes shut.

“No.” It was all I was willing to offer her, opening the book once more with more force than necessary.

“Oooh, the horoscopes. I love those!” My open irritation clearly wasn’t enough to dissuade her. “What’s it say?”

“Don’t care. It’s all rubbish, anyway.” That had to do it. If not…

“You think so?” She wriggled her nose like a rabbit. “I sometimes read it for fun, but I think sometimes it has meaning. Y’know what I mean?”

Damn.

Either this woman had no brain cells to spare, or her skin was thicker than the socks I wore during that one vacation in Norway.

“No, I don’t, because astrology is for bored people who’re too lazy to take responsibility for their own lives.” I fixed her with a glare that would’ve withered a cactus.

She giggled.

Giggled.

This woman had to be blind. Or maybe she was neurodivergent. They sometimes struggled with social cues, didn’t they? I flinched mentally. My attitude sure sucked if that was the case.

“Maybe.” Her shoulder raised in a casual shrug. “Or maybe the universe has a plan for us. You can’t fight fate!”

“Whatever you wanna believe.” I slid down my seat, hoping in vain that she’d finally get the tip and leave me to sulk.

She kept babbling away until the hiss of the brakes drowned her out. From her vanishing presence and the wave over the top of the magazine, it was a goodbye of some sort.

The moon—a waxing gibbous—embroidered on her sleeve caught the morning light. I craned my neck to get a better look at it. When that didn’t work, I squished my face to the window, trying to catch sight of her as we drove past.

She was already a ways down the street, too small for me to make out any details.

I fell back into my seat, cursing my rancid attitude. If I hadn’t been so dismissive, I could’ve found out where she got it, and whether there were others. Imagine having one for each phase of the moon.

Call it cliché, but as an astronomer, I could never have too many space-themed hoodies.

The Palintro Astronomy Association coming into view pulled me from my sulking, my heart leaving the bus long before I could. I tried to rein it in, but still ended up jogging the last two blocks from the station.

Several of my co-workers shuffled around the lobby, either sipping on Starbucks or munching on tiropites.

My stomach growled as I imagined biting into the golden pastry, the warm cheese melting onto my tongue.

Served me right for skipping breakfast.

Once I’d checked in with Chloe, I’d head down to the cafeteria depending on what her surprise did to my appetite.

The elevator up to the third floor took forever, the tinkling music grating on my teeth more today than any other day. That it stopped on the first and second floors to let people on did not help.

I let out a tiny sigh of relief when I entered the corridor to my department, reveling in the silence for all of five steps when Lydia and Thea’s laughter shattered it. The last thing I needed after the morning I’d had was their high-energy interactions.

Not their fault.

With a steadying breath, I plastered on my friendliest smile, returning their energetic waves as I passed.

Half of me wanted to stop and ask if they knew why Chloe wanted to see me. No point delaying the inevitable though, so I continued on my path until the manager’s door loomed in front of me.

In the snap of a finger, the simple task of knocking became utterly impossible.

I swiveled around at the click-clack of approaching heels, my heart both slowing down and speeding up at the sight of my brown-haired manager.

She inched her square-rimmed glasses up her nose.

“You haven’t been waiting long, I hope.” Her chocolate eyes flicked to the clock above her door.

“Just got here, actually.” I tucked my hands under my arms, following her into the cramped office. “Thought I’d be late for work, what with that accident on Latestias. Had me stuck on the bus for ages.”

“No matter, you made it anyway. Take a seat. I won’t be a minute.” She dropped into her chair, pulling her laptop from its case.

Sure. No biggie.

Not like my anxiety was about to send me to the moon or anything. The second I sat down, my foot started bouncing like a rabbit on steroids. I focused on a poster at the far right of the room, halfway through naming the stars I recognized when she cleared her throat.

“I suppose you’re wondering why I called you in today.” She linked her hands.

“Yeah, sort of.” I stared at the little white rectangles reflected in her glasses, confused, not for the first time, why she insisted on using light-mode.

“As you know, the PAA has been communicating with NASA about a possible employee transfer program.” Chloe flipped open a sunshine-yellow file. “Well, on Friday, they sent through their chosen candidate.”

Oh, no. Oh hell no.

“Ah ha, and who might the lucky person be?” My stomach quivered, every fiber of my being already knowing the answer to that question.

“You!” She grinned as though this was the best news of my life.

It wasn’t. It was the worst.

“And…uh…did they choose a backup?” I scratched the back of my neck, my eyes finding the poster once more.

“They were quite clear with their decision and, as you know, the PAA is eager to keep this avenue open.” The file snapped shut, making me jump.

“No, no, I get that. I don’t know if I’m the best person for this, though? I mean, I’m kind of happy here. This is my home, y’know? And what about Deacon? There’ll be a proposal any day now.” My laughter wobbled much like my insides were.

“You said the same thing five years ago.” Chloe reminded me, her look softening. I was about to argue when she plunged onward. “Look, Raina, I can ask them if they’re open to him coming along. I can’t promise anything, though. Often these offers don’t even extend to spouses.”

“Then I am definitely not the right person for this,” I said, this time firmer. “If I had to consider such a big move, which I’m not, Deacon coming with is non-negotiable.”

“I’ll speak to them.” Chloe repeated. “You should think about this carefully, Raina. You’re a bright young woman, and you’ll have an even brighter future ahead of you in America.”

“Not necessary.” I gave her a tight smile. “I’ve thought about it plenty, and I still say no.”

Her shoulders sagged an inch, expression still warm and open. “It’s a big change, I know. Scary even for people who like that kind of thing. But your talent is wasted here. You could do such great things at NASA.”

“Then sending me is counterproductive. Wasn’t the whole idea of this collaboration to make Palintro better? More competitive?” I leaned forward, my fingers digging into my knees. “How will we achieve that if we send all the talented people to our competition?”

“It’s not a permanent transfer.” Chloe turned the file around, sliding it across the desk. “Take a look at the paperwork first and have a chat with Deacon. You still have a few days to make your final decision.”

As I walked out of the office, file tucked under my arm, I knew one thing for sure.

Nothing and no one would convince me to accept this stupid offer.

Oh, and I really hated the color yellow.