by Sarina Dorie
“This isn’t funny,” I said.
He cleared his throat. “No, of course not. Excuse me.” He burst out laughing. “Sorry. I just thought of a good pun. Do you want to hear it?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“I dream of djinn-x. Djinnx. Get it?”
I liked puns, but that one was lame. He kept laughing.
“Is it a student or staff member?” he asked.
“Quidditch,” I said.
“Right.” He drummed his fingers along his desk. “Was it Thatch?”
I hesitated. It wasn’t Thatch, but Miss Periwinkle was doing it because of her relationship with Thatch. I shook my head. At least I could do that.
“Can’t you unjinx me so I can tell you?” I asked.
“Sure, but that takes a lot of magic. You can make a wish if you want. I should warn you, though, my lamp has migrated … farther south from where it was last.” The little smirk on his face told me how far south. “And not that I’m choosy about where a good rubdown comes from, but you aren’t exactly my type.”
“Oh.” I could see why he hadn’t offered to unjinx me now. I was fortunate his lamp hadn’t been in such an inconvenient place when we’d encountered the Raven Court.
Khaba waved a hand over his desk. The surface rippled and transformed to a map of the first story of the school. It reminded me of the Google Earth bird’s-eye view of the school he’d shown me previously, only this one lacked a roof. He nodded to the representation. “Place your hand over the map and show me where you were jinxed.”
I studied the map, trying to figure out where Miss Periwinkle’s office was located. I pointed.
“The library? In Miss Periwinkle’s office?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Is she the one who jinxed you?”
I nodded.
His eyebrows drew together. “And tried to poison you?”
I emphatically nodded again.
He rose. “We’re going to confront her.”
“I already tried.”
He nudged me with an elbow. “Tried and failed if your jinx is any indication of your lack of success. This time, you’re going to have a powerful djinn with you, and I’m immune to siren magic and paltry Witchkin spells.”
Khaba confidently strode toward the library. I had to run to keep up with him. This was great! I wished I’d gone to him first. He was going to find out all that she’d done, and she would get fired.
In the library, Maddy returned books to shelves along one of the aisles. She waved to me, her smile faltering when she took in the determined expression on Khaba’s face. Miss Periwinkle stood behind the counter, checking out books. Three students stood in line, all young men with dreamy expressions on their faces. One of them held a flower behind his back. I sincerely hoped she wasn’t sleeping with the students. I caught the tail end of what Miss Periwinkle said to one of the students.
“That is very sweet of you to ask, but you would do better to focus your attention on someone your age,” she said.
I didn’t know if she was saying that because of Khaba heading her way or she truly had no interest in seducing students.
“Ahem,” Khaba said.
Miss Periwinkle flashed her sweetest smile at him. “Mr. Khaba, how may I help you?” Her voice purred like a sultry cat.
“Don’t try that siren crap on me. Unjinx Miss Lawrence immediately.”
“Me?” she asked innocently.
The students whispered to each other.
“What kind of jinx?” a tall boy asked.
“That’s what happens when you don’t return your library books on time,” Ben O’Sullivan said, coming up to the counter with a stack of library books.
Khaba eyed the students. “Don’t you have somewhere better to be?”
“I have books to check out,” a young man with a goatee and spacers in his ears said. From the eclectic stack of books that included a Nancy Drew mystery and Little House on the Prairie, I wondered if he’d been too distracted checking out the librarian that he had no clue what books he intended to check out.
Miss Periwinkle batted her eyelashes at the students. “I’m so pleased you have such a passion for reading. I’m sure Maddy can assist you with your books.” She waved Khaba around the counter. “Perhaps we should speak in private, away from the students, Mr. Khaba.”
Only weeks before these young men would have loved for an opportunity to flirt with Maddy, but today they rolled their eyes and groaned as she came over.
“I don’t want that dog to touch my books,” one of the boys muttered.
“Hey!” I said, “That isn’t very nice. We don’t talk that way about people.”
“Whatever,” he said.
Maddy just rolled her eyes.
Khaba and Miss Periwinkle headed into her office. I hurried around the counter to join them. Miss Periwinkle grinned at me as she closed the door in my face. I tried the doorknob, but it was locked. I knocked, but Khaba didn’t open the door for me.
Did she think she could use magic on Khaba? He was Fae. His magic was more powerful than anything she could throw at him. Probably he was going to yell at her and tell her what a wicked witch she was—without me as a witness.
“Do you want me to help you check out those books?” Maddy called to the students at the counter. She rolled the cart of books closer.
“No, thanks. I’ll wait,” the tallest student said.
“You can wait if you want, but she’ll probably be in there for a while.” She shrugged and returned to work.
I didn’t hear any yelling. I waited at the counter with the students. Ten minutes passed.
I walked over to Maddy. “Earlier we were talking about that book… .”
“Yeah, didn’t you get it?” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Hailey snuck it out for you.”
“No, I did not get it. When did she borrow this book from the library?”
“A couple days ago.”
“Of course.” Just what I wanted, the book to be in possession of one of my students.
I soooo didn’t have time for this.
Khaba emerged from the office, a satisfied smile on his face. “That takes care of that.”
I rushed over to the counter, along with the teenage boys.
“Well?” I asked.
Khaba pointed a finger at me, his laugh jovial and light. “You need to start returning your library books on time.”
“What?”
“You need to follow the school policies, young lady.” He wagged a finger at me in mock sternness. “I will not allow staff to disregard library rules and return books late. You’re fortunate Miss Periwinkle let you off easy this time. Next time she might be forced to take more drastic measures. As the school’s disciplinarian, I’ll be bound to see you comply.”
I shook my head at him, unable to believe my ears.
The teenage boys snickered beside me. I shot them a dirty look. I was not a library delinquent. I returned my books on time. Mostly.
Miss Periwinkle stepped out of her office, her smile amused. I hated her more than ever.
How had she done it? Khaba didn’t even like women.
I had failed in soliciting Khaba’s assistance. I could only imagine that she had bewitched him with her siren’s voice. For all I knew, she had convinced him to allow her to rub his lamp and make a wish.
I couldn’t speak about what had happened because of the jinx, and I could see no male staff member would be able to resist her charms. The thing Miss Periwinkle had been the most adamant about was that I not sully her name to Thatch. I wondered if there was another way to alert him of what she was doing. Every time I met with Thatch, she interfered. He had been bewitched as well, I was certain, but if Miss Periwinkle didn’t want him to think ill of her, surely her enchantment wasn’t infallible. If Thatch could understand she had poisoned me, he might snap out of it.
I tried writing a le
tter.
Dear Mr. Thatch,
I am writing you this letter because I need to speak with you about something important. I cannot talk about it in person because if I do, Miss Periwinkle will interrupt. We have already discussed how jealous she becomes every time I speak with you alone.
So far, so good. My grammar and word choice made sense. The tongue-twister jinx might only apply to my tongue. That would make sense. Khaba had been able to ask me questions that I could nod or shake my head to answer. I continued writing.
I need you to understand something about Miss Periwinkle. She strange gauche for phony thesaurus in the library with fishy.
That hadn’t worked as I’d hoped. I crossed off the line and tried again.
Artificial inelegance ponders curious doubt. Pig piranha resents zealous me. Watch rival grasping djinn and tonic. Persuade hijinks skeptics of seduction.
Sweat dripped down my forehead and my hand cramped as I attempted to defy the spell. I tried a different tactic.
Do you have a counter spell for a tongue-twister jinx? Something that will help with handwritten messages as well? If so, would you please place it in my mailbox or send it to my classroom with a student? I need to be able to tell you about the green-eyed zealous vigilance of attentive broom closets.
Your friend and attentive student,
Miss Clarissa Lawrence
I looked all over until I found Imani and Greenie studying in the girls’ dormitory. I handed the folded note to Imani. “I need you to take this to Mr. Thatch pronto. If Miss Periwinkle intercepts you, hide it, and don’t let her get it.”
The two girls set their books aside.
Greenie giggled. “Is it a love note?”
“No, it isn’t. And don’t read it. The note is private, and it contains information about grades and… .” I desperately tried to think of something that would make it less interesting to students and failed. “Just mind your own beeswax and take it to him. Ask him if he will reply and send you with the response to me. I’ll be in my classroom.”
The girls ran off. I suspected they would read the note. Considering I didn’t even know if he would understand the note, it was possible it wouldn’t make much sense to them either.
Fifteen minutes later, Imani ran into my room, pigtails bouncing. She waved an envelope in her hand. “He replied. What does it say?”
Greenie ran in after her, out of breath. “He wouldn’t tell us. Will you tell us?”
“He yelled at us for reading your note,” Imani admitted. “But I hardly read any of it.”
Greenie’s cheeks flushed dark green, and she cast a sheepish smile my way. “We only glanced at it really quickly and then folded it back up before giving it to him.”
On the front of the envelope was my name written in cursive with a fancy calligraphy pen. I tore the paper open. I was thrown off by the brevity of his note.
I am determined to be an impartial and uninvolved party to whatever you and Gertrude are feuding about now. If she’s jinxed you with a tongue-twister spell (which, I will point out any moron with half an education could undo) you can find the book for undoing it in the library and perform the spell on your own. I will not involve myself in your problems.
I sank into my chair, tears filling my eyes. “I can’t go to the library and check out the book.” I crumpled up the note in my hands and dropped my head onto my arms. “She’ll hide it from me.”
“Who’s Gertrude?” Greenie whispered.
“That’s Miss Periwinkle,” Imani said.
“Oh. She’s changed since she became beautiful, hasn’t she?” Greenie patted my shoulder. “Why did she jinx you, Miss Lawrence?”
I didn’t want to share my personal problems with students. It wasn’t professional. Then again, jinxing teachers or seducing coworkers with siren magic didn’t seem professional either.
“Do you want us to go to the library and see if we can find the book with the counter jinx?” Imani asked.
I lifted my head. “Would you?”
“Of course. You’re my favorite teacher.”
They returned a few minutes later with news. I should have known: the five books on counter jinxes were currently checked out.
The attempted poisoning, Derrick’s disappearance, and presence of the Raven Court couldn’t all be separate incidents. I didn’t believe they were coincidences. Miss Periwinkle was behind the chocolate poisoning. I’d seen her sneaking off into the woods, which was also suspicious.
Could it be the librarian’s jealousy and hatred of me inspired her to work for the Raven Court? I was certain it had been a raven that flew up into the sky after she’d entered the forest. Maybe she could transform into a bird woman like the emissaries of the Raven Court did.
I needed to spy on her and see if I could catch her in the act. If I could prove without a doubt how evil she was, Jeb or Khaba would be forced to believe me. Maybe if I took photos on a cell phone, I could use that as proof. Josie had advised me not to use the camera feature on my phone in the past, though. Plus, I would need a phone.
I called in the favors. I asked Imani to bring Maddy to my classroom.
She came just before curfew, probably when she was released from working in the library. Her bubbly personality was gone. She stared at the floor.
I tried to reassure her with a smile. “Maddy, do you ever see Miss Periwinkle leave the library in the evening after dinner?”
“She sometimes has me lock up when Mr. Thatch comes in and they walk out together.” Maddy bit her lip. She glanced around. “Have you noticed how Mr. Thatch has been kind of … not himself lately? Do you think maybe she cast a spell on him?”
“Probably.” Who hadn’t she cast a spell on? “It’s none of my business, and I have way bigger things to think about at the moment.” I tried to get her back on task. “What about when they don’t walk out together? Does she ever go out alone?”
“Sometimes.”
The librarian might have been leaving to meet one of her lovers, or even Thatch down in the dungeon. Or she might have been planning a secret rendezvous with the Raven Court.
I would get to the bottom of her mysterious disappearances and prove she was a wicked witch. Derrick might be depending on it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
The Invisibility Snuggie
I returned to Khaba’s office. “Do you have any more invisibility clothes?” I asked him.
He crossed his arms. “Please tell me you’re not going to try to do anything dangerous or stupid.”
“Me? Do anything stupid? Or dangerous?” I waved him off, trying to act casual. “That would be ridiculous.” Maybe it was ridiculous to want invisibility clothes to try to secretly spy on Miss Periwinkle.
“I’m not going to ask why you need invisibility clothes in case you say something that incriminates yourself, but I will say, I’m not just saying this as your dean of discipline, I’m saying this as your friend: you need to be careful. I don’t want you sneaking off to Lachlan Falls. I don’t want you falling into the hands of Fae.”
“You’re Fae,” I said with an attempt at a teasing smile.
“Ha ha. As if I don’t hear that one every day.” He walked over to his file cabinet and sifted through the contents. “I confiscated this jacket from Hailey Achilles last semester. If I give it to you, promise me you aren’t going to sneak off school grounds.” He held up his hand as though he were holding something, but I couldn’t see it.
“I promise,” I said.
I hoped I could keep that promise.
The piece of invisibility clothing wasn’t a jacket, it was a Snuggie. I remembered Hailey using it when I’d chased her months ago, thinking she had intended to steal the answer keys. I tried it on in my room. It didn’t close in the back and it was so long it dragged on the ground.
It would have come in handy for Derrick to use, except that it was such a small size. It was loose on me, but it must have been tigh
t on Hailey. The sleeves swallowed my arms with so much extra fabric that it hid my hands. I turned it around and tried pinning the back closed with safety pins. No matter what I did, little lines of metal showed, even when I pinned it from the inside. That would give me away if I tried to use it during the day. Plus, my head was still visible.
Vega walked in on me. I hurriedly ducked into the fabric, trying to pull it over my head.
“That isn’t going to work. I already saw you,” Vega said. “Though, just so you know, that’s an improvement for your figure.”
“Um, thanks.” I never knew what to expect from Vega. She might tell Thatch she thought I was up to something, or she might try to blackmail me.
Vega spritzed herself with stinky perfume and retrieved a shawl from her wardrobe. “If you really want to improve your looks, you’d put a bag over your head too.”
“If I temporarily wanted to make my face invisible, how would I do it?” I asked.
“Invisibility spells are too difficult for you, so don’t even bother. The best you can do is an invisibility hat or mask, but they’re expensive. With your first-year teacher salary, I’m surprised you could afford one of … whatever it is you’ve got on.”
“Where can I get an invisibility hat? Do you have one?”
She bumped me aside with her bony hip and applied lipstick in the mirror. “Stop pestering me right now. I have places to go and people to see.”
“Khaba said we aren’t supposed to leave campus.”
“Who says I’m leaving campus? I have friends here I’m going to visit with.”
Periwinkle and Thatch? That seemed unlikely. “Where are you going?”
“Enough questions.” She whipped out her wand. “Unless you want me to make sure you’re not seen and not heard, I suggest you shut your trap.”
I pretended I was zipping my lip.
If I couldn’t purchase a hat or mask, and I couldn’t make my face invisible with magic, maybe I could trim off the extra fabric and sew a hood with the remnants. Of course, if I used thread, it would show like the pins. I needed invisible thread.
