A Great and Terrible Beauty Chapter 35 Summary

  • Everyone is asleep and the girls sneak out to the caves one more time, but Gemma won't take them into the realms. 
  • She also won't tell them what is wrong—Felicity guesses that she's upset about Miss Moore, but she has no idea about Gemma's mother being Mary Dowd.
  • So Felicity brings out the old bottle of whiskey and the three friends drink.
  • Then Felicity recites "The Lady of Shalott" to tease Gemma, and creepily invites the girls outside to howl at the moon and find another way in to the realms. Um… this doesn't sound good, Shmoopsters.
  • A deer walks into view and Felicity calls it their sacrifice; she tells them the huntress told her secrets in the realms and if they give her a sacrifice, she'll give them power in return.
  • Knowing this sounds really wrong, Gemma tries to protest, but Fee beats her to the punch and tells the other two that the huntress told her they can't trust Gemma anymore because she wants to keep all the power to herself.
  • When Gemma asserts that she will stop Felicity from making such a big mistake, Felicity pushes her down and says she can't stop them.
  • The other two want the power too much to think Felicity is wrong—they want to change their lives and will do anything to get the power to do so.
  • Finding no way to fight against Felicity's passion and threat, and with everyone against her, Gemma gives in and says she'll take them to the realms.
  • But Felicity doesn't want to rely on anyone but herself—she wants power over her own life—so despite Gemma's best efforts to make someone listen to reason, the girls strip down to their birthday suits and run after the deer, chasing it toward a deep ravine. Gemma follows them.
  • A crashing sound startles Gemma and she looks into the ravine and sees the deer hurt and struggling below. 
  • Felicity creeps up and soothes it gently… then bashes its head with a rock. The naked followers scramble down into the ravine and take turns with the rock.
  • They come up with bloody hands and Felicity puts the rock in Gemma's hand. 
  • The three blood sisters try to summon the door of light, and Felicity is totally bewildered when they can't because the huntress promised her they'd have power.
  • Just then Kartik arrives and Felicity comes at him with a stick, scratching him—she positions the stick at his head and threatens to carve his eyes out for seeing them naked.
  • But thankfully Gemma is there to protect him. She offers to take the girls back into the realms.
  • They agree and Gemma holds their hands, nervous about what she'll find on the other side.