Light Fae Academy: Year Two

by Nala Kingsley

  “A serial killer.” Wren nods emphatically.

  “It’s possible the first murder was someone else,” Orchid cuts in.

  "Or the person wanted to see if they could get away from it and has become bolder and even more bolder," I say.

  Orchid glowers at Wren.

  Wren forks at her meat pie.

  “What is it?” I ask.

  “We’re worried,” Dahlia starts.

  “Don’t,” I snap. “Don’t even. Fire and brimstone, why can’t you all just stop and realize that I’m not going to run off and try to solve every crime there is?”

  “Good,” Orchid says smoothly.

  “It’s probably terrible of me to say this, but if one of the victims was a fae…”

  Dahlia shakes her head. “Your heart is too big.”

  “Nah. If it were too big, I’d be going after the murderer now. I’m not. I have classes to worry about.”

  “And guys to toy with,” Wren says with a grin.

  I eye her. “How are things between you and that guard anyhow?”

  “Pine? He’s been reassigned to outside the city.”

  “Really? Why?”

  “Because his superiors learned about us.” Wren enjoys a mouthful of meat pie.

  I gape at her. “So it’s official, then? You two are together?”

  “I would say so. It’s a little loose, not too restricted or anything, but I’m not seeing anyone else, and neither he. I think he’ll freak, though, if I ask for more of a commitment, and I’m not ready to tie my wings down either just yet anyhow.”

  I wince and flutter my wings. Having my wrists bound to bedposts would be one thing, but I am never having my wings bound again.

  Wait. What did I just think? No way. Seriously? Damon is really starting to rub off on me. More than Sage ever did. Is that a good thing? A bad thing? I don’t even know.

  Dahlia begins to talk about some of the guys she’s eyeing, and Orchid chimes in, but I take one look at my food, and my appetite is still gone.

  “Hey, I’m gonna head to the cottage and start to get everything set up for tonight,” I tell them.

  “Are you sure?” Orchid asks. “We won’t be much longer.”

  “And you didn’t eat,” Wren says.

  “It’s because she’s in love,” Dahlia says with a giggle.

  “I am not,” I say dryly.

  I wave to them, ignore the kiss Dahlia blows me, and fly my tray over to Thistle in the food tent.

  He takes one look at my tray. “Do you want something else? Changed your mind on the—”

  “I’m just not hungry.”

  Thistle sighs. "I understand. I'm sure it's not easy for you to have such a big heart and be so light and hear about all of the terrible things going on in the world."

  “I’m not the only one struck by it,” I protest.

  “But you are affected by it.”

  “Are you?”

  Thistle gives me a wan smile. “I haven’t been doing much fae nectar lately, and since your sister stopped dealing, I’ve done fairy dust once, no, sorry, twice. That’s it. I’m trying here, trying to be light, but it’s not easy.”

  “All you can do is try. I’m proud of you.”

  His smile turns more genuine. “Thanks. Can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure,” I say slowly, hoping he’s not going to ask me out, already thinking of ways I can gently let him down.

  “Have you seen Bracken lately?”

  “No.” I shake my head emphatically several times. “Why?”

  “He must be off campus again,” Thistle mumbles. “He’s been spending a lot of time away lately.”

  “Really?” I ask. “Bay has too. Do you think…”

  Thistle shrugs. “I don’t know. Your sister’s changed this year.”

  “You think so?”

  “Well, she hardly even looks at me,” he complains. “It’s as if she used me and the others for our money.”

  “I’m sure it wasn’t like that,” I tell him.

  “I haven’t seen her hanging around Holly, have you?” he points out.

  I slowly shake my head.

  “What about Cosmo?” he asks.

  “My sister is a good person.”

  “I didn’t say otherwise.” Thistle holds up his hands.

  “It sure seems like you think otherwise.” I narrow my eyes at him.

  “I’ve been realizing that all of that—the drinking, the drugs—it’s not what I want. It’s a dark path, and it can change even the lightest of fairies dark, and it’s toxic. It’s alluring. It tries to tempt you back. I’ve been avoiding it by staying away from those who brought me down before and—”

  “Then why are you asking about Bracken?” I ask haughtily.

  “Because I bumped into him yesterday, and I’ve been trying to get him to apologize to you for the terrible, rotten things he said to you last year. He had no business talking to you like that.”

  “He thought his friends were innocent, so he viewed me as the bad guy. I get it. He doesn’t have to apologize. It’s done and over with.”

  “Yet you never seem to want to look at him, and I’ve seen you stop in your tracks and turn around and fly away when he’s heading in your general direction,” Thistle points out.

  I lift my eyebrows.

  He shrugs. “I keep an eye on my friends and fairy watch. It’s boring otherwise.”

  I laugh. “I’m sure it is, but seriously. If you’re worried that hanging out with Bracken will drag you back to the dark, then don’t. I really don’t need an apology from him. It’s sweet of you to think of me, but don’t worry about it. I’m just glad you’re on the right track.”

  “I just want to be worthy of you,” he murmurs.

  It’s sweet, really, very touching, but I just don’t see him as anything more than a friend, and I doubt that’ll change. All I can do is smile and jerk my thumb over my shoulder like I have to go, blurt out, “Have a good night,” and jet out of there. My mind is a whirl between the conversation with my professor, learning that there’s definitely a serial killer again, realizing that maybe I’m more light than I realize despite everything I’ve done with Damon, and we haven’t even kissed. If I’m causing someone like Thistle to want to change, that’s saying something, and I’m not sure I know how to feel about that.

  Chapter 16

  Two weeks later, I’m stuck. Seriously stuck. I have two major projects, and I have a partner for each, which would be great, except my partner in Chlorokinesis is Damon, and my partner in Plant Healing is Sage. Normally, I would actually be thrilled by that, but even Sage is starting to make comments about my hanging out with Damon, just as Damon's continuing about Sage. Having to spend time with them because of the projects just makes the two of them irritable.

  Orchid thinks this proves Sage does like me and wants me to ask him out.

  Wren and Dahlia think it's romantic, and I swear they want to eat popcorn each time I return from a session to hear all the nitty gritty details.

  Bay, not surprisingly, disagrees with orchid and wants me with Damon. It almost makes me wonder if she wants me to be with the half-demon because she wants me to turn darker and be more like her, but that’s ridiculous, right? I haven’t flat-out asked her because I’m not certain I want to know the answer.

  I don’t know if Orchid’s right about Sage because, while it’s interesting to try to walk back and be friends with Sage, I can’t help thinking about him naked or the feel of his arms around me, the pressure from his kisses… At least once, he’s caught me staring at his lips. Now that had been awkward, and I practically just upped and flew away.

  Tonight, I’m meeting up with Sage in his cottage. I haven’t been over to Damon’s, even though he’s asked me to a few times. I’m not sure if my refusal is because I don’t trust Damon or because I don’t trust me. Does this mean I trust Sage? I don’t know. I’m so confused. Right now, I just need to concentrate on getting good grades. Lately, they
’ve been slipping some.

  Sage flies out the window before I can reach the door. “Hey. It’s a beautiful night out. Want to fly around and see if we can just talk things over?”

  My eyes widen wide.

  “About our project,” he continues.

  Of course he doesn’t mean about us. I shake my head. “Sounds like a good idea,” I agree.

  We start to fly, but neither of us says anything. He glances over at me and shakes his head.

  “What?” I ask.

  “You need to start talking.”

  “About?”

  “Why you’re so uptight. We’re friends, right? You can talk to me. Unless it’s guy trouble. That would be a little awkward.”

  “More like a lot awkward.” I laugh, but it’s a little forced. He’s probably thinking about Damon, which I can’t blame him, but I do appreciate Sage’s reaching out.

  “Well?” he prompts.

  I blow out a breath. “I really need to do well on this project. My grades have been slipping, and it’s eating away at me.”

  “Can’t focus?”

  “No, I can’t, and it’s not because of guys.” I give him some side-eye.

  “No? What then?”

  “Nightmares,” I admit.

  I bite my lower lip. Last year, Sage told Bay about a nightmare he had, back when he hadn’t realized Bay and I were two separate people. I’m not sure I ever did learn what his nightmare had been about, and a pang hits my chest.

  “Do you want to talk about them?”

  I heave a sigh. “It’s about the murders,” I mumble.

  “Rosemary…”

  "I'm not going to go all Nancy Drew, but that doesn't mean that I don't feel terrible for the victims, for their families."

  "It's awful, yes. No one denies that, but the authorities… You aren't thinking about becoming a member of the police force after you graduate, are you?"

  I blink several times. “I haven’t thought about that at all.”

  “About becoming a police officer or about what you want to do after you graduate.”

  “Both. Have you given it any thought?”

  “Which?” he asks with a grin.

  “Either.” This conversation is too serious for me to be able to return his smile.

  “Not yet. There’s time, though. We have another year.”

  I nod. "But only if we don't have to repeat this year. So. Plant Healing. Any ideas on how to treat our plant that's been struck by some kind of sickness that if we mistreat will die?"

  He laughs and runs a hand through his long hair. It seems he’s not going to take scissors to his locks anytime soon.

  “We can talk about the project now, but maybe you need to try to find some time to relax and spend more time with friends. That might get your nightmares to stop.”

  “Maybe,” I say doubtfully.

  “Friends are good,” he continues.

  I just shake my head and laugh. Is he hoping I don’t consider Damon a friend? Is that what he’s getting out? Damon is my… I don’t know what he is, but I’m not going to worry about labels right now. Between everything else, I don’t need to add another worry to the list.

  The next night, I have a meeting with Damon. Every pair has been assigned a plant that doesn’t respond well to magic. It’s both a challenge and a test. We’re supposed to learn how to coax magic into an unwilling plant, and my solo research has given me a theory as to how we should approach this.

  Damon told me to meet him at the hill behind our class, and I find him there, but he’s not the only one. Two other fairies are there, and I hear them before I’m even close enough to see the trio.

  My stomach twists into tight knots. It’s stupid for me to feel jealous, but considering I’m not dating Damon and everything with Sage. Damon can flirt with anyone and everyone. It doesn’t mean I want him to, but I will not blame him for his actions or be hurt. I won’t.

  Or, at the very least, I'll try not to be.

  Dewdrop and Rayne are the fairies fluttering about. They glance over as I approach, and they kiss Damon’s cheeks at the same time, half draped over him before they eye me and fly off, giggling as they tell him goodbye but ignoring me entirely.

  I scowl at their retreating backsides but refuse to say anything to him about them.

  “You look… tense,” Damon says. “Do you want a massage?”

  “Not if you just gave one of them one,” I mumble.

  "So, you do want a massage." He pats the grass in front of him.

  “I said, not if—”

  “I didn’t massage one of them.”

  I want to ask what did they do, but all of them have clothes on, and none of them are sporting the rushed, jumbled, quick-throw-clothes-on-after look.

  “You’re such a flirt,” I say, not sitting at all, hovering just enough that he has to tilt his head to look at me.

  “Not with all the girls,” he protests.

  “Yes.”

  “No.”

  I cock an eyebrow and cross my arms. “Who haven’t you flirted with? And professors don’t count.”

  “I’m not referring to a professor, but your one professor, Fern, she’s not that bad looking.”

  I just shake my head.

  “Bay,” he says.

  “What about her?”

  “I don’t flirt with her,” he says simply, nonchalantly.

  My heart starts to hammer in my chest. It can’t be a coincidence that he won’t flirt with my twin. Why, though? Is it because he wants to try to prove he’s everything Sage isn’t? Because Sage isn’t a huge flirt, but he thought I was my twin, maybe even wanted to date Bay at first instead of me.

  I need to talk to her about Damon and get some straight answers. Spending time around Damon is affecting my judgment, and I’m not sure I can believe what he says. I can tell when Bay’s being evasive and trying to bend the truth. If Damon has any tells when he’s lying, I haven’t learned them yet. Probably has something to do with his eyes and how they sparkle.

  No. I refuse to stare at him and be put into a trance of some kind.

  I clear my throat. "You can flirt with whomever you want. Right now, though, we need to work on our project, and I have an—What are you doing?"

  “I promised you a massage.” He’s flying around behind me and starts to massage my shoulders.

  “Stop that.”

  “Why? Doesn’t it feel good?”

  Honestly, it feels way too good, but I’m not about to tell him that. My eyes close, and a shot goes right through me to my core. Fire and brimstone.

  “Maybe later,” I tell him, lifting his hands from my shoulders. “Now, my theory is that we’ll both need to use our magic on the plant, but we’ll have to do it linked.”

  “Join our magic.” Damon grins devilishly. “If it works, if we’re able to join our magic and make the plant grow, can we join our bodies and—”

  “I don’t need to hear about what else will grow.” I cover my ears. My face has to be bright red.

  “I thought you weren’t a virgin.”

  "I'm not, but…" I blow out a breath.

  “It’s true. You never forget your first, but do you really want to hang around, hoping that the guy who thought you were your twin will be into you? Can you ever be certain that he’s happy with you and not wishing you were someone else?”

  I scowl at him. “My theory is that we need to link our magic. Nothing else. Do you want to try or not?”

  “Sure.” He beams.

  “Why are you smiling?” I demand suspiciously.

  “Have you linked magic with another fairy before?”

  “Yes, loads of times with Bay when we were younger. Why?”

  He waits, and I close my eyes and suppress a groan.

  To link our magic, we have to touch. Bay and I always held hands.

  With a sigh, I hold out my hand. He clasps mine, and even though I didn’t intend for us to entwine our fingers, we do.

  “We ca
n do this,” I murmur.

  “You got that right.” Damon chuckles. “We can do anything.”

  Chapter 17

  It’s late by the time I return to the cottage. Immediately, I knock on Bay’s door. It creaks open, and I peer inside. She isn’t there.

  I fling her door open and flop onto her bed. I must’ve dozed off because the sound of her door shutting jars me, and I sit up, blinking.

  “Bay? Why are you getting in so late?”

  “It’s not that late,” she says, not sounding tired at all.

  I glance over to her tree clock. It’s a tiny bush that changes shape and color depending on the time of day. It’s about one in the morning, so I guess it’s not terribly late. Bay’s always been awake later in the night than most fairies.

  “Where were you?” I ask.

  “Out with a friend.” She smiles, her eyes drifting toward the window.

  She seems happy and also like she doesn’t want to share. Or maybe she’s playing games and wants me to draw it out of here, but I’m unwilling to draw it out of her right now.

  “You and Damon,” I start without preamble. “What gives?”

  “There is no me and Damon,” she says with a laugh. “A you and a Damon, that I’m rooting for.”

  “Why, though? Why are you avoiding him? Are you afraid that if you go near a guy, they’ll automatically stop paying me any attention?” I cross my arms.

  She sits beside me and brushes hair back behind my shoulder. “Rosemary, stop. We’re both beautiful. I would never try to steal away a guy from you. Not even Sage.” She scowls.

  “Wait. What?”

  “To protect you from him. He doesn’t deserve you.”

  “People make mistakes,” I protest. “You can’t fault him for being upset. I kind of deceived him.”

  “He needs to forgive you, and he needs to do it now,” she says flatly.

  “We’re friends.”

  Bay rolls her eyes and shakes her head as she kicks her legs back and forth. “He needs to make it up to you. He needs to—”

  “I don’t want to talk about Sage. I want to talk about Damon.”

  “Fine. Let’s talk about the hotness that is Damon. You two would make a killer couple. So dark and so light… Perfection.”