Day 19

Jules had heard it was supposed to be big deal to finally get his driving license. He didn't see it that way, possibly because he had already done plenty of venturing out on his own on horseback, not to mention the fact that he had a whole prophecy thrown on him two years prior. He also didn't feel a need to be away from his parents, or drive around with friends, especially since he really had no friends. He knew he could get further in a vehicle compared to a horse, but a car didn't replace the bond he had with his horse. This was simply a different mode of transportation.

His mother urged him to be careful. All Jules felt he could do at that point was roll his eyes due to how much he had already been careful with just about everything. He got in as much practice as he could, choosing to take his parents into work at the university and picking them up later in the day. He did well, and worked on navigating different parts of the city by offering to take Livna, their Siberian husky, to her annual vet appointment.

After dropping the dog off at home, Jules had to go right back out to pick up his parents. He came to a stop at a red light not too far from the university, but when the light turned green, a cold sense of dread suddenly flooded his veins as he began pulling forward. He looked around, and spotted another car with a driver who didn't want to wait for the red light on their side to turn.

Jules frantically slammed on the brakes, but his effort was futile. He heard and felt the other car crash into his—well, his father's. He heard the other vehicle's driver slam on the brakes as well. He heard horns honking and people shouting. He realized he was gripping the steering wheel with shaky hands. His whole body was cold, and a hundred thoughts were racing through his head at top speed. He was suddenly flooded with memories of falling from the magpie castle turret, landing in the forest below. The sound of sirens pierced his brain, and he became aware of the fact that he hadn't moved an inch.

The car that hit him took the brunt of the damage, but his father's Land Rover wasn't exactly unscathed. Jules's heart started beating faster. He kept squeezing the wheel, frozen in shock and terror.

The two policemen trying to assess the situation were patient when helping him out of the driver's side and talking to him, allowing him to sit on the pavement as he tried to describe what happened. There were a lot of witnesses who all said the same thing—the other driver ran a red light, and Jules was completely innocent. The whole time, Jules didn't even realize that he was unhurt. He kept cradling his left arm, thinking about his fall from the castle turret. He could hear someone trying to assure him that everything was alright, but it was difficult to believe that with his mind constantly flashing back to the fight at the castle two years ago.

He eventually heard his father's voice saying, "Jules? Are you okay?"

Jules realized he was sitting on the sidewalk near the scene of the accident. "Dad?"

Moffitt knelt by him to hug him. "Thank goodness you're okay." He released his breath. "I'm just glad you're okay. I'm not angry with you, I promise. I'm not angry."

Jules could feel the shock and panic slowly leave his body, even when Vanora grabbed him in a hug and kept asking if he was hurt. He tried to assure her that he was okay, though he wasn't sure of that himself.

Thankfully, Dr. Millington was able to take them home once the Land Rover was towed. Jules didn't start to relax a little more until he was home, but his appetite was nonexistent, and he did nothing apart from sit in the parlor after getting a shower.

His parents didn't say anything until a little later, but he overheard Vanora saying, "Maybe we were a bit hasty in letting him learn to drive."

"Darling, are you bleeding mad?" Moffitt said. "That wasn't his fault."

"He could've been killed, Jack."

"He could get killed riding horses!" Moffitt sighed. "Just… you're being silly. We're all a bit worked up. Let's just rest and talk this over tomorrow."

Despite Moffitt saying tomorrow, Jules was having a hard time falling asleep that night. He went to bed a little earlier than usual, then left his bedroom when his mother was in the shower and his father was in the parlor with his evening tea and Livna resting her head on his lap. Jules quietly stepped down into the parlor, and Moffitt turned to look at him.

"Everything alright?" Moffitt asked, reaching over to turn the radio off.

"No. I… I don't… don't know," Jules said. "I've been in shock all afternoon."

"We can all tell, and that's okay." Moffitt motioned for Jules to sit next to him. As soon as he was seated, Livna turned and put her head on Jules's lap. "I think you needed that," Moffitt said.

"I think I did. Thanks." Jules spent the next minute or two stroking the husky's head and back. She lifted her muzzle up to lick his face, then went back to comforting him.

"So, I know what the police told me, but can you tell me what you remember happening?"

Jules sighed. "Pretty much everything they told you. I went when the light turned green, like I'm supposed to, and the other driver ran through the red light on his side and hit me. I… panicked, but I didn't do anything. I just sat there. I was… having very unwanted thoughts about what happened at the magpie castle. Just kept seeing myself falling over and over again."

"Couldn't pull yourself out of it."

"No." Jules stopped petting the dog. "I should've tried to do something. I couldn't pull myself out of my head. I just… Mum's right. I shouldn't be driving."

"That's not true. No. Your mother is about as shocked as you are. She'll come around and see she's being ridiculous." Moffitt laughed a little. "You think you shouldn't be driving? I learned to drive when I didn't know about my snake abilities. I could come across a dead snake or someone could hit a snake and—" He snapped his fingers. "I could have had a seizure and caused an accident. I shouldn't have been driving, but I did anyway, all because I wanted to be seen as normal as possible. At least that's not something to worry about anymore."

"You actually had something wrong. I'm just stupid."

Moffitt frowned, looking down at his lap, then back at his son, a look of sympathy on his face. He knew the cycle of self-loathing all too well. "No. No, you're not. Far from it. You're new at this, but… I really don't see why you feel the need to think it's your fault when it isn't."

"I know the accident wasn't my fault, but I just sat there dumbly when I got hit. I didn't bother seeing if the other driver was okay."

"Jules," his father's voice was somewhat firmer now, "It's okay. You were in shock. You were having flashbacks. You weren't expecting such a thing to happen. You didn't consciously choose to freeze. I saw the look on your face when your mother and I got there. I doubted you were capable of doing anything when the accident happened. You needed to be pulled out of your own head first."

Jules nodded a little. "That can't happen every time, though."

Moffitt shrugged. "You can't predict that." He squeezed Jules's shoulder. "At least you didn't confront the other driver, and at least you came out of this with no serious injuries. Does my car need to be repaired? Yes, but that's not more important than you. Just don't do anything stupid and I won't get angry at you over things like that."

"Thanks."

"Besides, your driving instructor had high praise for you when you took your test, more praise than he's given most people your age. You actually care about what you're doing. You see this as an important skill, not a chance to go break all the rules just because your parents aren't watching you."

"Yeah. My instructor was a bit surprised when I mentioned that I ride horses as a hobby and I knew when I moved out that I would need to get a trailer in case a horse needed to go to a vet, or we were going somewhere for a trail ride. He said I seemed more responsible than most of his students." Jules started to feel a little better. "This was one incident. It genuinely wasn't my fault. I'm… I'm okay."

"Exactly." Moffitt tousled his son's hair. "Good talk?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Dad."

"Not a problem. Alright, go on to bed, and you can take the dog with you if you want. I'll see you in the morning."

Jules bid his father goodnight before getting off the couch and heading back to his bedroom. He still felt somewhat rattled over the whole incident, but didn't feel that he had to quit driving anymore.