The professor put his eye to the instrument again and called out the timed positions to Nicolaus, who wrote them down swiftly. Luna didn’t move; her face was turned to the sky, mesmerised by the magic of the flashing spot of light, so far away. She swayed again and felt that other girl in a different life come forward. In the moment of connection, she spoke before even realising the words had flown from her mouth.

‘We can test Ptolemy’s mathematical model of the Moon’s motion with the observations you are recording.’

Nicolaus looked up at Luna, his eyes wide and his brow furrowed. He nodded, but did not speak, turning back to the page and scribbling notes upon it. Luna waited for the professor to censure her. Instead he gestured for her to join him and stood back so that she could put her eye to the instrument.

‘Leonarda, if you are staying on here at the villa, I would also like it to be as a student of mine, alongside Nicolaus.’

Luna stared at the professor. ‘What is that you say?’

‘I am offering you a place here as my student.’

Luna felt a surge of energy course through her. Snippets of what she’d written in the fateful parchment came back to her and she hurried over to Nicolaus.

‘I have an idea of something to contribute,’ she said, reaching for a quill. Nicolaus stood back so she could add her notes to his paper. His hand rested on her shoulder and he read whilst her hand flew across the page. When she’d finished, Luna stood and stretched her back and together they turned once more to the view of the heavens. She had much to read to catch up to Nicolaus and she planned on doing just that, and more. She must write to Friar Bartholomeo and tell him that she’d accepted the Novaras’ invitation to live with them and that she would be studying astronomy under the professor. He’d be gladdened to know she was to become a student once again. She would write that she was happy here and had no need of a nun’s habit to feel the warmth of the Lord’s light.

The wind had dropped so that all was silent. The sky beyond the window was dark as the winter’s soil, spotted with a million stars, and the full Moon hung high above them. Luna stepped forward so she could better see Aldebaran reappear from its hiding spot, bright as before, to lead the Moon across the sky.

Acknowledgments

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS