The Girl Who Drank the Moon: Chapter 36 Summary & Analysis

Luna runs in panic. The crow caws that he was wrong about the paper birds. Finally, Luna stops and says that she doesn’t want that woman anywhere near Xan. Suddenly, Luna’s brain unlocks. She remembers being little and standing blankly. Xan told Fyrian to fetch a flower for a game and Fyrian flew away. Glerk appeared and scolded Xan for lying, but Xan insisted she must lie to protect. Glerk inspected Luna, and Xan explained that Luna caught sight of her scrying device when she made one to check for the Sorrow Eater. Glerk pulled Luna close and said they need to tell Fyrian, but Xan cried that Fyrian would reveal that Xan is a witch. After that, Luna will go into a trance every time she sees Xan, and Xan won’t be able to teach her before she dies when Luna turns 13.

Luna’s heart races. She’s never heard the word “witch,” but if she searches her memories, she finds it often. She says out loud that Xan is a witch, and she is too. The crow is unimpressed and says that this is obvious. Luna suddenly remembers all the times that Xan made scrying devices out of all sorts of objects. She grabs some objects and instinctively starts to wind a knot. She tells the knot to show her Xan, and peers through it. It shows her a frightened man. Luna asks again for Xan, and the device zooms in on a small swallow in the man’s jerkin. Luna shouts for Xan and watches the swallow squawk desperately. The device gets even closer to the bird and the bird stares into Luna’s eye. The device goes dark and Luna realizes that someone has blocked it.