“No one’s falling for your juvenile witch hunt,” I tell her. “Topher’s a good teacher and a good demon. Having dark magic doesn’t make him evil any more than having light magic makes you a decent human being.”
“You’re wrong about that,” she says, gesturing back to her crowd of supporters. “Everyone’s on my side this time. No one is safe as long as there’s a demon on this campus, and that’s not going to change until we get rid of Darius and my father takes his job.”
“Ah, so that’s what this is about,” I say. “You’re still butt-hurt because Daddy didn’t get the job he wanted.”
“Everyone knows Topher’s a demon,” she growls. “It’s so obvious.”
“It’s obvious because you ran your big mouth,” I say, getting impatient. “You didn’t know all of last semester.”
Bella huffs again. “Whatever. It’s ridiculous we’re even having this argument. He’s a demon. They have a shit-ton of dark magic. How could that not be the reason for the ogre attacks?”
I tap my finger against my chin, voice sugary-sweet. “Gosh, I don’t know, maybe because he was here all of last semester, too. This is the first time we’ve had an ogre, unless you qualify.”
“I’m the prettiest girl on campus,” Bella howls, and her supporters bob their heads like eager puppets.
“Well, next time you decide to run your pretty mouth,” I say as I hook my arm through Elowen’s. “Make sure that pea-sized brain of yours thinks over the repercussions. That’s hard, I know, but I believe in you.” With that, I turn on my heels and start out the dining room, leaving Bella to splutter in place.
Elowen grabs her backpack from her chair as we go. “Wow,” she says as we step into the darkening evening, Thorn on our heels. “You’re so brave.”
I snort. “Elowen, you don’t have to be afraid of Bella. She’s a sad little person who only has power over you because you let her. Now, let’s go watch a movie and eat junk food for dinner.”
“Okay,” she says, sounding relieved. “Thanks, Jade. You’re such a good friend. I don’t deserve you.”
“Of course you do,” I say lightly.
We haven’t taken three steps when Asher comes jogging along, out of breath and disheveled. He stops short when he sees us, and an awkward moment of silence passes as he and Elowen size each other up.
“Did I miss dinner?” he asks after a second.
“Nah,” I say. “Just a bunch of drama. Did you lose track of time at your secret lover’s?” I give him a wink to show I’m kidding, but he sighs, his shoulders slumping.
“No,” he says glumly. “I got stood up.”
“Oh, wow, I’m sorry,” I say. “I know it’s not a consolation, but it’s his loss.”
“I know, right?” Asher says, perking up. “Who wouldn’t want an evening tryst with all this fabulousness?”
“I don’t know,” I say, grinning back at him. “I mean, I’d spend an evening with you any time.” I glance between him and Elowen, suddenly feeling guilty. “I mean, if you want to join us, and you two are okay with it…”
Elowen chews at her lip, and I don’t miss the flicker of hurt that crosses Asher’s face. But he quickly waves a dismissive hand. “Oh, no, you two go on. I’m famished. I’ll see you around, Jade.”
This time, it’s Elowen who looks hurt as Asher disappears inside without a word to her. I sigh. If they don’t work this out soon, I’m going to have to fix it for them, and I’d really rather they figured it out between themselves.
“So,” I say as we start toward the dorm. “I haven’t seen you much this semester. You holding up okay after the breakup?”
“It was hard at first,” she admits. “But maybe we can be together after I graduate, you know?”
“Yeah,” I say, squeezing her arm. “That sounds like a plan.” I totally know how that one goes.
“He’s worth waiting for,” she mumbles.
I almost open my mouth and agree, but then I realize she’d think I was talking about Topher, and I can’t exactly tell her who I am talking about. Or…
Maybe I could tell her about Darius, just so I’d have someone to confide in, someone who understands what it’s like. But that wouldn’t be fair to her, and someone might pluck details from her head—especially since she’s around Topher so much. It’s one thing to have dated a graduate assistant and then broken up when he got a teaching job. It’s a whole other level of scandalous to have fucked the Headmaster.
Not to mention if I told her, and Asher found out, he’d be crushed that I trusted her with my secret and not him.
“I’ll be rooting for you two,” I say at last. “He seems like a good guy.”
When we reach the dorm, I ask about her classes. “Are you still afraid of going dark?” I ask as we make our way up to my room.
“It’s not so bad this year,” she says. “I’m even… I kind of enjoy some of my classes.”
“Elowen, that’s great,” I say. It’s so nice to see her growing into who she is, even if it’s a slow process.
“Yeah,” she says. “Can I show you something I learned in my Life Cycles class?”
Once I agree, Elowen pulls up a chair at my desk and opens her backpack. She pulls out a baggie filled with little bones and shells and jar filled with insect parts. What specifically catches my eye is a pair of large, beautiful butterfly wings, kept perfectly intact by a thin layer of plastic.
“Necromancy revolves around manipulation of part of the life cycle,” Elowen explains as she carefully pulls out a few bones and the beautiful wings. “People think that means just reanimating corpses to make them do your bidding, and it can be that, but a lot of necromancers use their powers to help people resolve the dead’s final wishes or give closure to the grieving.” She carefully starts laying out the parts, putting together what almost looks like a small, fairy-like creature made of a collection of tiny, animal bones. “Some actually work with druids, keeping the balance and helping return natural properties to the earth.”
“That’s really cool,” I say. “I knew it couldn’t be all evil.”
She gives me a tentative smile. “Right. Dark is essential for balance, just like light.”
Taking a deep breath, Elowen’s hands start gliding across the bone construct. A haze-like energy begins seeping out of her hands, getting soaked up by the bones and butterfly wings. Then, the haze begins to take shape, almost acting like muscle and connective tissue to the bones. “See?” she says. “I can make things, too, even if it’s not like you could. If it was a real living thing that had died, I could bring it back. But I made this out of random stuff, so I can’t reanimate it because it was never… Animated.”
I smile and reach out a hand. “Can I?”
She nods eagerly, sitting up straight and watching as I pour some of my magic—life magic—into it. She gives a little shriek of excitement when it suddenly snaps upright. The new creature gives its wings an experimental flutter, its haze-like structure drifting through the air before letting out an excited squeak and settling onto Elowen’s outstretched hand.
“Wow,” she breathes, holding the fairy-like creature closer to me so I can see. “You brought her to life.”
I’m as amazed as she is. We brought freaking life into the world! Together, dark and light, we combined to form a new creature that’s never been alive before.
“I call her Fionola,” she says. “Is that okay now that she’s alive?”
“Of course,” I say. “She’s yours.”
Elowen blushes, setting Fionola on the table and watching as she skips across. It strikes me that maybe I shouldn’t have done that. I don’t know what that creature can do, what it is. It’s a new lifeform.
“Thorn?” I ask.
He sticks his head in without me having to raise my voice. Sometimes it’s nice to have a guard with superhuman hearing.
“Want to come hang out?” I ask tentatively. I’ve always kept my guards outside, except when they’re coming into my bed.
I know they don’t approve of my friendship with Elowen. But if I’m really going to be dating them, I’d like if they could hang out with my friends.
Thorn hesitates, his brow knitting as he looks between us. Then he steps inside and closes the door.
“So, um, we kinda made a life,” I say, pointing to Fionola. “She’s not going to, like, destroy the world, is she?”
Thorn laughs, the sound low and warm and so unexpected that it makes my heart flip in my chest. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about,” he says. “If she tries, just step on her.”
Elowen gasps in horror, and Thorn looks sheepish.
“I’ll make popcorn,” I say, unable to hide my smile. Thorn is hanging out with my friend. It makes me feel all giddy and stupid, like a teenager hanging out with her boyfriend for the first time. I let myself just enjoy it for a minute. I’ve never fallen in love like this before, where everything is new and exciting and normal, just like I told Darius I wanted. To have the experiences everyone else did, the ones I missed when I dropped out of high school. With Darius, it’s too complicated, and with Rocco, it’s too simple. And though I appreciate both of them, there’s something addictive about this shiny-new feeling.
“So, um, do you know much about ogres?” Elowen asks Thorn. “Like, could Bella be right? Could it be here for Topher?”
Thorn props himself against my desk, his hands braced on the edge next to his hips, looking so sexy I could cry as his brow furrows with thought. “I know they eat dark magic,” he says. “And they can see auras.”
“Like, what my mom could do?” I ask.
“Your mom saw auras?”
“Yeah,” I say. “Is that unusual for a psychic?”
“Yes,” he says, crossing his arms over his chest and frowning at me. “Usually only powerful people can see those.”
I roll my eyes as I dump popcorn into the big bowl I bought for my movie nights with Asher. “Maybe that’s why I have such a high capacity. Maybe lowly psychics are actually very powerful.”
Thorn shakes his head. “Maybe.”
“So, ogres can do this aura thing,” Elowen presses quietly.
“Yes,” he says. “Both light and dark magic users have auras. Something we give off to creatures that rely on their other senses to detect their preferred magics. Unfortunately, it’s hard to block. Once an ogre catches on about a place, like here, they’ll keep coming back and attacking students like Dirk.”
“Like all of us,” I point out. We’re all in possession of dark magic. And Topher knew it would keep coming back, and he told me not to tell anyone. As much as I want to believe he’s good and that he’s our friend, I can’t help but be suspicious. Why didn’t he tell me it would return?
We watch Fionola flutter up to the rim of the bowl and pluck a kernel of popcorn from the bowl.
“Jade,” Elowen begins carefully. “Please don’t think I’m accusing you of anything, but are you worried that you’re the reason the ogre came to campus?”
“The thought crossed my mind,” I admit. “I mean, it wouldn’t be the first time some weird creature came after my powers. And the only difference between now and back then is that I’m learning more dark magic.”
“You’re learning to master the Dark Arts,” Thorn clarifies. “You don’t have any more magic than you had before.”
“Then what could it be?” I ask.
Thorn glances at me and then away. “I know one person who might be able to help.”
My mind instantly goes to Topher. I don’t know how much help he’ll be, especially since he hid this.
“Who?” Elowen asks, munching on popcorn from the bowl.
“If anyone knows why an ogre showed up, it would be Headmaster Darius,” Thorn says.
Great. If I go to him, I risk Topher outing us. Darius could lose his job or at least his position. But I can’t just sit around and do nothing. I stayed quiet for a week like Topher wanted, and look what happened. Besides, Darius already knows about Dirk’s attack. He just doesn’t know I was attacked before that. I was responsible and got my guards back, but if staying quiet means putting others in danger, then it’s time to speak up.
Chapter Thirteen
I head across campus later that evening, Thorn walking with me, both of our weapons drawn. I’m half excited to see Darius, half nervous as hell. As much as I miss him, part of me isn’t ready to face him yet. He’s going to be so pissed that I kept this a secret. Basically, it’s my fault that Dirk got attacked. Yes, I thought I was protecting Darius, that the threat was gone, and that Topher and I could figure it out, but those are all just excuses. I should have told Darius. I can see that now.
Dirk’s lucky he got away with just a scratch. He could have been killed. I could have been killed.
Before I’m ready, we’re standing in front of the Headmaster’s office. My soul sings out, delighted to be back in Darius’s presence. Until, of course, I remember why I’m here.
“Here goes nothing,” I mutter to Thorn, who doesn’t know about the burden of guilt I’m carrying right now. No one but me and Topher know.
Thorn takes my hand and squeezes. “I’ll be right beside you,” he assures me.
“Thanks,” I say, standing on tiptoes to brush my lips over his cheek. “But I think this is something I need to do alone.”
Releasing his fingers, I take a deep breath and rap softly on Darius’ door.
A second later, the door swings open, and Darius stands there looking so gorgeous it takes my breath away. He’s slightly disheveled, his hair messy and his shirt unbuttoned at the collar, showing a few inches of manly chest hair. His tie is tossed over the back of his chair, and books are strewn open across his desk.
“Jade,” he says, his face breaking into a smile that sets my heart racing. He glances at Thorn and schools his expression into one that’s a bit more professorial. “Come in. To what do I owe this pleasure?”
“I wanted to talk to you about the ogre,” I say, deciding to go for broke instead of beating around the bush.
“Right,” he says, running a hand through somewhat unkempt hair. “Of course.”
I push the door closed behind me, trying to decide what his words could mean. Was he hoping I’d come for another reason?
Before I can drive myself too crazy, he rounds his desk and takes his seat, leaving me to grab the chair across. Okay, so definitely still keeping things professional.
No matter what I want, I know I have to respect his boundaries. He’s worked hard for this job, and I know how important it is to him. I’m not going to risk that again.
I’m tempted to tell him I can come back later. The last thing I want is to give him more problems to worry about, and maybe I’m a bit of a coward, too. I don’t want him to be mad at me.
“What would you like to ask me about the ogre?” Darius asks, his voice and face all sympathy I don’t deserve.
“You killed it?” I ask.
“Yes,” he says. “Like a snake in a henhouse looking for eggs, once they find a spot with food, they will return over and over.”
I nod, my throat tight. Why didn’t Topher tell me that? Why didn’t we find it in our research?
“So, it’s gone forever?” I ask. Maybe I don’t need to tell him after all.
“Yes,” Darius says, reaching across the desk to squeeze my hand. “I’m just relieve you weren’t the one attacked.”
Guilt flares through. I open my mouth to tell him the truth, but there’s one more question I want to ask before he flips out. I glance at the wall, where I see an old-fashioned paddle mounted. I swallow hard, imagining Darius taking that to me. My clit throbs, and I yank my attention back to him. “Is it my fault?” I ask. “I just have to know that much. Did it come here because of me?”
Darius nods, his expression reassuring, his hand gripping mine gently. “I thought you might be here to ask that,” he says. “And while I appreciate your concern for your fellow students, this time, I don’t think the ogre
was here for you. Generally, they don’t single out one person’s magic. It’s more the combination of all the dark magic we have on campus. Which should not be enough to attract an ogre and draw it through our wards, but…” He breaks off with a frown.
Oh, God, how can I tell him about my personal run-in, now? He’s being so supportive, and he’s got so much on his plate already, and the ogre is already dead. “I don’t want to be a burden to you,” I begin.
“You’re never a bother, Jade,” he says before I can finish. He strokes my hand, and pleasure ripples through me at the contact, every part of me dying to dive across the desk and press my lips against his. To forget all this and just sink into his arms and let him convince me it’s all okay and the danger is gone.
I stare at our linked hands, suddenly wanting to cry. It’s so unfair. What does it matter how old I am or what his position is? We should be able to love each other as everyone else does. We’re both consenting adults, and Darius would never use his position to control me.
“As Headmaster of this school, I’m in charge of every student’s needs,” he murmurs. “Yours especially, given your ethereal status.”
“Is… That the only reason?”
“Jade, you know how important you are to the world,” he says. “Your protection has to be my number one priority as Headmaster.”
“Is that all I am to you now?” I ask, drawing my hands from his. “Just some fragile thing that needs to be protected? Because I don’t need protection. I can protect myself. I’ve been doing it for years.” Anger flares inside me just like it does whenever anyone underestimates me.
“Of course you can,” Darius says. “But as your Headmaster, it’s my job to make sure you are both protected and trained properly.”
“I can protect myself,” I growl through clenched teeth, standing and extending my leg, bare below my school skirt. I turn it so he can see the scars, the only thing left from the ogre attack. “I almost killed that ogre myself, and I would have if Topher hadn’t scared it away.”
For a second, Darius doesn’t respond. He stares down at my leg. Finally, he lifts his gaze to mine. “You encountered an ogre?” His voice is soft, quiet, like the beginning layer of ice during a snowstorm. “Dirk said that he was alone during the attack.”
Shadow Magic: Year 3 Page 12
