Bewitched: A Paranormal Academy Romance

by Victoria Mercier

  “Are you proposing to protect a member of Moonless Clan?” Ryder asked incredulously. He looked shocked. When Gabriel didn’t react to his brother’s question, Ryder dropped the act and agreed.

  “It is sealed then.”

  “Wait.” I stood up. “What exactly is going on here?”

  Chapter 9

  Gabriel and Ryder took me away from the alpha king’s room. Then they started to explain. The academy, the alpha king’s palace, and Blacktooth town all co-existed within the walls. The town was for the palace’s and the academy’s personnel as well as for the students. Once the students graduated, they either needed a job in the palace or the academy or they had to move out of the town.

  Because I had a signed invitation to attend the academy, the alpha king couldn’t kick me out. Neither brother was very forthcoming about the relation between the alpha king and the council though. After an unpleasant stretch of silence, our conversation slowly reignited and we discussed the shifter academy.

  The classes started the next week on the first day of September and followed human school schedules with free weekends. Classes were grouped into three categories:

  Magical

  Shifters

  Others

  And from the grimace on Ryder’s face, I could say that he despised the magical classes, or, well, he’d had. Neither Gabriel nor Ryder were students of the academy anymore. Both of them graduated already. Gabriel a year ago and Ryder three years ago. I gaped at them for the entire five minutes.

  “How’s that possible? You don’t look older than the rest.”

  “We all have our secrets,” Ryder joked but Gabriel said nothing, which gave Ryder’s words a lot of weight.

  “So, I am stuck with Rocco and Hunt? Or is Lord Hunt too important?” I asked after a few moments.

  “I love her,” Ryder grinned.

  “You should not mock Hunt,” Gabriel said solemnly. “There’s a reason why he’s an heir instead of us.”

  “Yeah,” Ryder agreed in a much more toned-down manner. “He’s strong.”

  We settled down in a cozy room with fancy armchairs with tall backrests. I was sure we still were in the palace despite walking for something like an hour. Okay. Now was the time to ask the real question.

  “What next?”

  “We need to find you a student flat. Each student is given one, close to the academy and free of charge for the first year.”

  “In your second year, you’ll start magecraft. If you’re good with magic, it’ll generate a lot of surplus income.” I was terrible with magic. I told them that.

  “The second option is hunting,” Ryder explained but both brothers didn’t seem to like the idea. Hunting?

  “I don’t understand.”

  “There are plenty of magical beasts in the forests on the island. Some of them are rare and sought after. But don’t worry. You can also search for magical plants. Some are very hard to find but getting one or two makes a lot of money.”

  This sounded a little more reasonable. Still, why would they hunt or gather plants? What about farms and raising stock? It made much more economical sense. There was something I was clearly missing.

  “What about doing it in a civilized manner?”

  Ryder chuckled but Gabriel’s expression was ghastly.

  “You really don’t know anything.”

  “I expected to find a school here. That’s it.”

  “I cannot do it without a drink,” Gabriel said smoothly. Woah. I didn’t see that one coming. He tapped a round table with his finger, a faintly lit pattern came to life on the surface. It was around five on five centimeters in size.

  “Romanian Sun.”

  “I will take the water,” Ryder said. “And you, Cora?” It was the first time he said my name, it made my stomach all bubbly and fizzy. I don’t like this. My wolf agreed with me.

  “I don’t ... well, the water will do fine.”

  Five minutes later a waiter arrived with two bottles of water and a glass with a two-layered drink. Red at the bottom and orange on the top. Gabriel sipped it, while his violet eyes stared at me. He was considering what to say, then he put the half-empty glass on the table.

  “Will I have a waiter in my student flat as well?”

  “I am afraid not.” It’s a joke, dude. But I didn’t bother telling him that.

  “So what else is located here?”

  “Just the student town, the palace, and the academy.”

  “What about this council?”

  “The Overseeing Council and the Three Pillar’s cathedral are located in the shifter city – Mael’lorn.” The Three Pillars had a cathedral now? My dad told me they were barely a sect before our exile. What made them grow so much? And the freaking shifter city. What the hell?

  “A shifter city?”

  “Yes. Shifter Island consists of several towns, Mael’lorn, the alpha king seat, and unexplored territories.” I took a mouthful of water. It tasted fresh. I needed to clear my head, to wrap it around the idea of unexplored territories. They mentioned it earlier but seriously, what the, actually, fuck?

  “I don’t get it.”

  “It’ll be explained in classes,” Gabriel said calmly. “The shifter population on the island is around a million now.” Million shifters! This is crazy. My clan is barely fifty. Oh, poor me. We all live in disillusion that our clan may one day still mean something. They saw my shock.

  “The academy must be full of students then?”

  “Barely a soul there,” Ryder smiled.

  “Exaggeration,” Gabriel explained. “You should not listen to Ryder’s rambling. He doesn’t know when to shut up.” Ryder nodded to that.

  “So, what is it?”

  “Every shifter aged twenty-one receives an invitation to the academy. Your clan is the exception, of course.” Not to mention that I got an invitation from an unknown person and it bears the legal signature of the alpha king. Don’t bother fellows, we don’t need to talk about it. “But they have the right to ignore the invitation.”

  I shot to my feet.

  “What?! I could’ve refused and stayed with my clan?”

  “No,” Gabriel crushed my hopes. “You received a summons. This cannot be refused. Even Moonless Clan must follow the shifter law.” Yeah, dad wouldn’t have it any other way.

  “Why a summons instead of an invitation?” And why do you care so much about me?

  The Goldfury brothers exchanged glances then fell silent for a short moment.

  “We don’t know.”

  “Okay. Forget it, what’s next?”

  Gabriel finished the drink and ordered another one. I politely declined an offer. I didn’t feel like drinking alcohol right now. Ryder, on another hand, ordered a bottle of wine! He decided this would be easier for him as well.

  “Attending the academy is risky. If you succeed. Congratulation, you’re now a part of the elite. If you fail, you join the outcast. These are like your clan, except they live here on the island or the Great Coast.”

  “Don’t be like this!” Ryder protested. “Tell her the full truth.”

  The white-haired brother tsked, and a hint of annoyance crossed his face.

  “When Blackfang Clan ruled, the academy was all about heirs competing with each other, fighting in a very straightforward way. Nowadays, the rivalry is done through assassins or the loopholes in the law. It is as I said, not the same place.”

  Assassins? What the fuck is going on here?

  *

  I couldn’t deny it, their little ‘welcoming party’ helped to open my eyes. Gabriel had been so right about this place—how could he not?—he lived here. Even more confusing was his attitude toward me. Why did he care? I couldn’t see Ryder’s motivation. He did it in spite of his father and establishment. But Gabriel? He didn’t belong amongst people like me.

  We exited the palace through a side door. Apparently, the main entrance was rarely used. Both guys insisted on walking me to the student living quarters. I
inquired if it wasn’t safe, especially that it was the middle of the day. Ryder argued that he needed to vent his head after drinking the entire bottle of wine by himself and Gabriel thought it a good idea to visit this part of the town.

  Blacktooth town was layered on the steep hill. The palace towered above it all. The academy had no exact form to its architectural style. It rose above the town’s buildings next to the palace but never really gaining its own identity. At the bottom of the hill, the town spread for half a kilometer then it met the wall. The view from this level was marvelous. A tall, dark forest stood a few kilometers to the west. A few solitary buildings stood in between the wall and it, but nothing that could be called a village. The forest couldn’t be the Ebony Forest, could it? That place was supposed to be a day of travel from here.

  Gabriel noticed the source of my attention and said.

  “Dramarung.”

  I shook my head, I’d never heard this name.

  “I thought it could be the Ebony Forest,” I muttered. They already knew how pisspoor my knowledge was. Why did I fear that unfolding my ignorance in front of them would push them away? Why did I care? We beat the flights of stairs—there were many of them!—and arrived at the students living quarters. These guys needed to update their vocabulary! The living quarters weren’t anywhere near the academy. Twenty minutes of walking—upstairs! That’s how close they were. At least the architecture was a thing of beauty. Old red bricks, artful façade, patterned stained glass. One deep breath confirmed my suspicion about this place, it was ancient.

  Student Reception

  I glanced up at the iron plate and frowned. I expected some grander name than ‘Student Reception.’. We entered the building, a small atrium shoved a stark difference into my face between the palace and this. Walls were bare red bricks with hanging announcements. Two wooden benches had no backrests and looked worn. At the end, behind a room-wide desk with a glass protector sat a woman, old and rugged. Her blue eyes cut like razors. I wondered if her skin would crumble beneath my fingertips. She sniffed as I approached, wrinkling her small nose.

  “Another student?” She asked with a dose of surprise and unsettlement. “A week ahead of the school start. Gah. I hate the latecomers, doubters, and those who cannot decide.”

  Her voice was harder than it should be. Her gray hair was like feathers and the rest of the body seemed to go through prolonged fasting. Her long, bony fingers ruffled through the papers with confidence and goal. She wasn’t randomly shuffling them. She knew what she was looking for.

  “Don’t stand there like a dumbo. Tell me your name.”

  “Cora.”

  “Cora what?”

  The next words caught in my throat. Standing in the place where I’d been born and saying I was the Moonless felt like sealing it, making it real.

  “Cora of Moonless Clan.”

  The old woman’s hands stopped abruptly and her cutting glare climbed to my face, then traveled beyond to Gabriel and Ryder. Her expression melted into something I couldn’t recognize. Was she angry or terrified? I sniffed softly, keeping it quiet. Amongst wolves, sniffing in the presence of elders was frowned upon. Her scent was mild, distantly floral. But it carried a bit of emotional charge I could read. She was deeply troubled, almost shocked.

  “Why the Moonless is here?”

  “Is there any problem, Aurelis?” Gabriel asked in a very mannered fashion.

  “You—Goldfury—are playing with fire by bringing this one here.” Her hands restarted, but they shuffled slower now.

  “She received a proper invitation to attend the academy.”

  “She should have refused it.”

  “She is here, and she couldn’t because the invitation came in a form of a summons, happy now?” I snapped. She was an ugly person, within and without. I growled, showing my teeth.

  “Did Arthur lose his mind?” Arthur Goldfury, alpha king, traitor, and backstabber. Hatred toward this man now ran in my veins.

  “Will you sign her up?” Gabriel asked patiently. What a man! I was close to tearing the old hag apart.

  “Or do you need someone younger to give you a hand?” Ryder added. Upon his question, the old woman’s wolf almost reached the surface. Such a powerful desire to taste blood. Despite her advanced age, she wouldn’t go down without a fight... Wait a minute, did he do it on purpose? To show me that even weak and old can be dangerous... I offered Ryder a thankful glance.

  “Goldfury clan will regret summoning this girl, mark my words,” she said, nonetheless, her hands produced two sheets of paper. One white, one golden. “Fill this up.”

  The white sheet wanted to know all my basic information like address, name, previous education. Bank account? What? Do they use human banks and money?

  “I don’t have a bank account.”

  “Of course you don’t. Your sort was kicked out of the island before one was established.”

  “Can I start one or it is okay to leave this blank?” I was pulling every string in my body in the hope to stay calm. I even made a lame attempt at smiling. I was trash at faking niceties. The old hag didn’t seem to care either way.

  “We can create one the next month,” Gabriel said.

  “It’s a Ragnarok Weekend!” Ryder added, excited, and after noticing my confused expression he explained. “It’s a celebration in Mael’lorn. The shifter bank is located there.”

  “I don’t care,” Aurelis said. “But she must pay a student and an accommodation fee.”

  Ryder’s jovial mood evaporated and he glared at the woman.

  “Don’t you try scamming her, hag. The first year is free.”

  “I’ll have a word with Mara about your behavior.” She pointed her finger at Ryder. “And for the record, the first year is free, but only for clans from the island. Those pay tax. She isn’t exempted from paying the fee.” My legs turned into jelly and I sweated like a grilled steak. This is it. I have no money with me. Thanks, dad. You could at least ask. It wouldn’t change a thing, though. Gabriel and Ryder didn’t know and there was a significant chance, Hunt and douche Rocco had no clue as well.

  “Just put my bank account there,” Ryder said.

  “It is appreciated, but she’ll do better with my account,” Gabriel countered.

  “But...”

  Aurelis grunted.

  “Do I hear it correctly?”

  “Why do you care?” Ryder asked. “It isn’t your money.”

  “Fine,” she snapped. Gabriel snatched the paper from my hands a split-second earlier than Ryder who quickly assured me he’d provide financial support in other matters. I stood there like an idiot, speechless. It makes no sense. Gabriel and Ryder are Goldfury. Their clan hates mine. They should rather see me homeless than fed and with a roof over my head. Unless ... no. Don’t even think this way. Remember uncle Isaac. His paranoia killed him.

  When I touched the golden page, an electric shock ran throughout my body. What the hell?!

  “Ouch!”

  The old woman frowned but kept her thin lips sealed. It was Gabriel who came with an explanation, though he had to be wrong.

  “Not many shifters are attuned to feel the magical charge in the golden sheet. Your magic must be on an excellent level.” It was a trash level.

  “What do I do with it?”

  “Write your name on it,” Ryder said. I did. “Now, throw it into the fire.” What fire? I turned and found a fireplace with happily dancing flames. I am sure this wasn’t here. I stared at the fireplace until Aurelis grunted. I looked up at her questioningly.

  “Do as he says.”

  What was the point of writing my name on the sheet if I was going to burn it? I did as instructed though. The flames took hold of the paper, greedily consuming it. Then the fireplace collapsed in itself, leaving not a trace that it existed a second ago. Magic usage in my clan was rare and neglected. This was magnificent. Still, what was the point?

  “What just happened?”

  “Is she an imbeci
le or what?” Aurelis asked and I imagined her to be an ancient creature who cackle instead of talking. It made me smile.

  “In a week, the magical flame will allocate your name to one of four ranks. It’s a big deal.” Oh, shit. How much more stupid will I look to these people?

  The old hag threw a wooden square plate no larger than my palm on her desk. I had to attune it to me as it turned out to be a key to my apartment. No. I didn’t have a say where my room was. Yes. I expected the worst. She grudgingly told me that the welcome pack would be delivered tomorrow, although she almost choked on the word ‘welcome’.

  “Let’s go see your new room,” Ryder fired up with excitement.

  Chapter 10

  I was wrong only to a certain degree. The apartment wasn’t located by the wall, so I didn’t need to spend an entire day commuting to the academy. It wasn’t a rat-infested shithole as well. I had a small sleeping room with a bed, a commode, and a place to hang my clothes. Actually, there were more hangers than I had clothes in my bag. A small bathroom with running water and a shower. This was an upgrade from what we had in Alaska. A living space consisted of a kitchen and an open room with a table and two chairs. It was pretty decent.

  “This is a joke!” Ryder snarled. “That fucking dinosaur scammed us.”

  “She indeed went overboard,” Gabriel said and disgust flashed on his face. “I am going to clarify the matter with—”

  “Wait!”

  Gabriel stopped.

  “I like it here. It isn’t anything grand. But it is comfortable. The walls need some painting and the floors good scrubbing, but I am fine.”

  Ryder slapped his forehead and laughed, looking at the ceiling.

  “Imagine Hunt’s reaction, Gabriel.”

  Gabriel nodded, then opened his mouth but no words came out. Ryder gave him a sly glance.

  “Thank you guys,” I quickly said to chase away the awkward silence. “I am grateful for your help and the money ... I will pay everything back. Once I find a job here.” I drew a circle in the air with my finger, indicating the town. “By the way, won’t your father be angry? We are technically enemies, remember?”