Funny Tragic Crazy Magic (Tragic Magic Book 1)

by Sheena Boekweg

  The men laughed, which I did not find amusing.

  “Leo,” Robert commanded.

  “No!” Leo said, with a dead serious face.

  Robert looked at him, and I could see the sternness on his face. “Heal him.”

  “Can I at least kick him first? Hmm?” Leo asked.

  Robert and I both turned to him with murder in our eyes. He would not hurt Joe. I would not allow it. Leo didn’t seem to notice either of our fury.

  “Slap him at least? Hmm.”

  “Dad,” Ash said. I glanced back at him. “Please.”

  “Oh, all right,” Leo said with a smile, pointing at Ash with a withered finger. “But whose gonna take his beating later to pay for it?”

  “I will,” Ash said without any expression on his face, but I could see his Adam’s apple dip when he swallowed.

  Leo giggled with a look of anticipation.

  “You always were my favorite, Ashford,” he said as he moved in and put his hands on Joe’s feet. He smelled disgusting.

  “Excuse me, darling,” he said to me, “You’re in my way.”

  I moved with a sickening feeling in my stomach for allowing Leo to put his foul hands on Joe.

  I glanced at Ash. What must have it been like to grow up with a father like Leo? He said his dad was horrible, but… Leo? The worst single hour of my life was Ash’s entire life growing up, at least until he ran away. Moreover, his mother was the kind of woman who would marry Leo. Who in their right mind would chain themselves to a man like that? What kind of a woman was she?

  Joe stirred as the healing took effect. I pushed that man out of my way, and my fingers felt dirty where they touched him. I didn’t care. Joe was waking up.

  “Joe,” I whispered, my fingers running through his sweat-filled hair. His eyelids fluttered. “Joe, wake up.”

  He didn’t open his eyes, but he spoke, “Hey.”

  I laughed once, and it was more a sigh than a laugh. It was all okay. I was surrounded by Mages I didn’t trust, men who hit me, made me bleed, haunted my dreams and my thoughts, but I didn’t care.

  Joe was awake.

  CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

  I did need the Grandfathers’ help. They convinced the pilots, TSA, the air traffic controllers… everyone, to let the plane take off exactly twelve hours earlier. They used magic, of course. I couldn’t tell you what runes they used or how they did it, because my eyes didn’t leave Joe’s for more than a second.

  We didn’t talk for a couple of minutes after Joe opened his eyes. The Grandfathers seemed to hamper my need to ask the questions that had been pounding in my head since Joe collapsed. I helped him into the airport, and we sat together on those plastic chairs at the terminal while the grownups did their magic.

  He looked at me with eyes that knew me. His fingers ran through my hair, despite the fact I didn’t have any runes making it look beautiful. His hands were on my waist, my own waist, not magical in any way. A river of hope coursed through me. Maybe, me… as I was, not the me I wanted to be, or the me I should be, but the me I was... Maybe I was enough. Knowing Joe loved me gave me a confidence I didn’t trust.

  “Why now?” I asked when we had a moment on our own. “Why do you want me now, but you didn’t earlier?” I bit my lip and looked down at our hands entwined together. “What changed?”

  “Larissa,” I loved the way he said my name, and I looked up at him. “I’ve always wanted you. From the first time I saw you, I wanted you… I, well, I don’t know… I guess I was scared. I was scared I’d mess it up…” He glanced away, and then turned back, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed, “I was scared I’d do something wrong, and then we wouldn’t even be friends anymore. For a long time…” Joe looked down and sighed, “I didn’t think you even liked me, least not the way I liked you. Because every time I took… like a baby step toward being with you like this,” he gestured with his hands and smiled, a hint of a blush filling his face, “you would hit me, or call me an idiot, and push us back to just friends.”

  “Really?” I asked. My go-to move had betrayed me.

  “And then…” Joe let go of my hands and cupped my face in his hands. I leaned into them. “Then I did that love rune, and you basically attacked me.” I blushed and Joe laughed, “I’m not complaining. I figured out what the rune was, and I knew you loved me an unhealthy amount. And you still hit me, still called me an idiot.”

  “Well, in my defense, you deserved it.”

  “See, just like that. When you feel uncomfortable, you push people away. And apparently, I have the ability to make you more uncomfortable than anyone else can. I thought I was just being the idiot you always called me, trying to push back to be close to you. I thought I had to make it clear that I knew you only wanted to be friends, just to stand near you.”

  “But I didn’t want to be just friends.”

  Joe laughed, and then kissed my forehead. “Well good, because it’s too late now. I love you, Larissa, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.” His eyes seemed to dare me to try.

  I put my forehead against his and closed my eyes. “I might be okay with that,” I said.

  “Yeah?”

  I took a deep breath and then turned back to his sunflower eyes. The warmth of his look toasted gently on my face.

  “I love you, Joe.” I smiled, “Always did.” Always will, I left unsaid. I think we both heard it anyway.

  “You want to hit me?”

  “Maybe once.” I said, pushing his shoulder away from mine, When he was as far away as my arm would push him, I pulled him back and kissed him. It wasn’t as sweet and empty as that first kiss, or as hot and burning as our second, but this one was perfect. We both gave each other the kiss, without any holding back, without any feelings of discomfort. The kiss kind of sealed Joe’s words into my heart, and made them real. It was just… magic, you know? I don’t want to talk anymore about it, because it was mine, Joe’s and mine, and I don’t want to share.

  For the next hour, while the world moved around us, we sat together talking, staring at each other, and yes… kissing. Nosey people. It was as if the sunshine was back, a kind of calm before the storm. It was the perfect kind of calm, the tropical sunsets of calm, just as it was a tropical storm that was coming.

  About an aisle away, Ash sat reading a newspaper and watching us. I glanced at him once, and he smiled at me, then looked away.

  I slept on the plane, my head on Joe’s shoulder, and his arm around mine. I could sleep, even with Leo on the plane, because I trusted Joe to keep me safe.

  When I woke up, Joe was running his fingers through my hair while reading a science fiction novel. Where did he find that? There was a white label stuck on the side, with the words Property of Ashford Zabriskie written in black marker. Ash sat on the aisle next to us, and he smiled at me.

  “Welcome back,” he said, his voice friendly. I sat up, and Joe smiled at me. The others were on the back of the plane, talking in closed circle. Miles had the silence rune written on the one hand of his I could see.

  I swallowed.

  For the first time, I wondered if bringing a few Grandfathers to the Grandmothers’ Study was a good idea. The silence rune ended, and Leo’s laugh filled the corridor of the plane. A chill ran up my neck, and even Joe’s presence wasn’t enough to comfort me.

  We’re about to make a huge mistake, I thought.

  I had no idea how right that thought was.

  CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

  We landed in Paris at 8:19 at night. It was freezing, and the sun had already gone down. Walking out of the airport, I was struck by the beauty of the city and by the age of everything. Everywhere I looked, from the pipes to the doors, everything just looked so beautiful it couldn’t be real. It had to be like a photo, or a movie. It just felt different from what I was used to, and with Joe’s hand in mine, I felt like I was living inside a dream. The buildings seemed like they were built too close together; it felt like driving through a canal of stone architectur
e.

  Cars parked all along the side of the roads as we drove down the street in a rental car purchased in Leo Zabriskie’s name. I felt sick about the whole thing, this overwhelming sense of dread. Even as I was trying to avoid the Grandmothers, I surrounded myself by… No. I put my trust in the people who beat me. Over my own mother. Over Giara. Over people who I probably should trust, but couldn’t. They wanted to take Joe away from me. They wanted to end this spot of light in my life, in the world. Joe could do so much good in the world. Right? It wasn’t just that I loved him, or that I turned my back on doing what was right because I couldn’t control my hormones.

  Right?

  Frustrated and full of feelings, I ignored the city that loomed up over me and focused instead on my notebook. One last cramming session before facing… whatever was coming.

  About fifteen minutes out of Paris, as we drove around the outlying cities, I put the book away. Maybe I didn’t have to be anyone else. I didn’t have to be better than who I was. I was my mother’s daughter. It was my right. It was my notebook.

  That was worth fighting for. With the notebook in my hand, I would be able to keep Joe safe, both by the wealth of runes and by authority. I would be a Grandmother. That was something my mom would want. Even though I’m not sure how much she would have approved of my journey, I know she would have liked my destination.

  I took a deep breath and glanced at Joe. There were just three of us in the car: me, Joe, and Ash. The others took a different car, and at the time, I was glad to see them go. Now I wish I had kept a better eye on them. There were just so many Mages. When we had landed, men had come from all around the world to nod to Robert, and avoid Leo with a subtle lean-away he didn’t seemed to notice. When we left the airport, Leo and Ash had walked a few paces behind me, and I felt so confused by what we were about to do. It didn’t feel real. All the Mages had left to go into the Grandmothers’ Study by the front, and Joe, Ash, and I would sneak into the back unnoticed, and (by my thoughts) unaffiliated. We’d get the notebook, and then we’d leave. It’d be simple.

  The car parked with a bump that sent anxiety into my stomach that wouldn’t leave. I put both my hands against the window of the rental car and took it in. The Grandmothers’ Study was a grand-looking building outside the main city. The façade looks a bit mismanaged, with peeling plaster and cracks spider-webbing from the side of the windows, but it’s still a beautiful building. It seemed so large, so imposing, the first time I had come here. I was twelve, and I had held my mom’s hand as I entered, because I felt like the building was going to fall down on top of me. Now the building seemed too small, almost defenseless. I felt strangely like it was my job to defend the building, and not bring poison into it.

  There were two sides to the Grandmothers’ Study. On the back of the building, the side that pointed toward Impasse Compoint, was a beautiful façade, with warm wood shutters framing perfect windows, white pristine stone, a black roof, and ivy gently climbing up the side. The two sides couldn’t be more separate, more different, yet inside they connected into one building. The pretty side was just the face.

  The Grandmothers’ Study. I leaned back in my chair after we drove past it.

  “We’re here,” I said for Joe’s benefit.

  I opened the car door and then stood up, brushing off my clothes. I had changed clothes at the airport in Paris. It was such an elegant city, I didn’t think my pink sweat pants would cut it. I wore, instead, my favorite red silk vintage dress. I leaned against the rental car and pulled gloves on my hand, trying to cover my palms. I reapplied my transformation runes on the back of my neck while Joe got out of the car. I was as thin as it was possible for me to be, with my eyes lined and my hair curled. I guess this was vain, but in case I was to die, I wanted to go out looking my best.

  So yes, that was vain.

  Oh well. I was who I was. I think part of who I am is being someone who likes to dress well. Vanity or not, even the bad things about me are part of who I am. I’d have to accept them, right alongside my strengths.

  The rest of our company parked on the side reserved for visitors. Robert, Leo, and Miles (all three were Grandfathers) were going in the front entrance. Their presence alone was the distraction Joe, Ash, and I needed to sneak in the back. I didn’t think they were going to attack the Grandmothers. I thought most people thought the way that I did, and wanted peace.

  Joe joined me at the side of the car. He took my hand and then pulled me close to his side. Ash got out of the driver’s seat and then pulled a big black bag out of the trunk.

  “We’re not going to need weapons, Ash,” I said.

  Ash laughed once, without humor, “Right.”

  He pulled out a large black assault rifle, then put the bag back in the trunk. He smiled at Joe, then drew the rune for hide on his arm. When I looked directly at him, I could see him, but as I shifted my eyes, he faded to a blurred shadow.

  I closed my eyes and thought through my notebook until I remembered the rune hide, and I drew the rune on Joe’s arm. It felt as if he became a shadow; I barely noticed him, and I always noticed him. I think a rube wouldn’t have seen him at all. I kissed him once; the blur made it difficult for me to see where his lips were, but we made it.

  Then we turned and together, we walked towards the building. A rust orange curtain fluttered from a window on the third floor. I bit my lip.

  It was time to go inside.

  CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

  There was graffiti on the front door, but when I got closer, I realized it was actually runes carved together. I saw the runes for protection, hide, stay, and a few more that I didn’t recognize. It was beautiful and complicated, yet anyone walking by would only see it as defacement to the already crumbling building.

  Joe put his hand against the door, and it waved like an image painted on water. Ash cocked his gun, and then walked through.

  “I didn’t know you could do that,” I said.

  I could see a flash of Joe’s smile inside the blur. “My dad showed me a few things I could do.”

  His dad. Wow.

  Shots fired from inside the building. I ran through the door and Joe followed close behind. Joe’s “Dad” stood over the body of an elegantly dressed woman. I recoiled in horror, but then I saw a tranquilizer dart sticking from her shoulder. Ash reloaded another tranq.

  “I don’t like this,” I said.

  “Come on,” Ash said, gesturing left with a quick nod of his head.

  I ran after him through the dark room, only noticing the herringbone patterned wood floors enough to watch out for missing chunks of wood. I glanced back at the woman lying on the floor; a deep bruise was already appearing from her shoulder up the side of her neck.

  We stopped around the corner from the grand staircase. Ash had the gun raised toward a woman walking down the stairs. She looked… she looked familiar to me. Ash pulled the trigger and the tranq exploded from the gun.

  “No,” I shouted.

  I drew the rune for stay in the air, and threw it toward the tranquilizer dart. Runelight twisted around the dart and stopped it, just inches from the woman’s neck.

  “What are you doing?” Ash asked, his voice frustrated.

  He moved toward the woman, but I stopped him with stay. He stood there, out in the open, the panic on his face visible, even through the blur from the hide rune. The air felt stale in my lungs.

  The stairs thundered under my feet as I ran up them toward the woman.

  Joe took my hand. “Are we doing the right thing?” he whispered.

  I shrugged.

  “How did you… How did you do that?” The woman said in a strong Brazilian accent once we reached her. She started speaking in Portuguese, and I didn’t catch much of it.

  “You’re Ana, right?” I said, trying to calm her down. “We met when I was twelve. I’m Larissa, do you remember?”

  “You drew a rune in the air, and then you threw the air-written word quick enough to catch a bullet.” She pul
led her hands in the sign of the cross.

  I plucked the dart from the air.

  “Tranq, actually.” It was still warm. I glanced down the stairs, at Ash, he hadn’t moved.

  Ana stared at me. “No one has been strong enough to write a rune in the air since Camilla Fortuna, the first Grandmother. I had heard rumors of your strength, but the rumors were not enough. Você sabe como ...”

  “I told you,” Joe said, coming up the steps behind me, “freakishly strong.”

  Freakish anyway.

  “...Como é que nós não sabemos?”

  Ash inched the gun so it was pointed toward us on the stairs. I threw another stay at his hand. He gave up struggling but glanced at me with wrath in his eyes.

  “You’ve betrayed us,” he hissed.

  “We’re on our own side here.” I said after a second to catch my thoughts. “Ana isn’t our enemy, no more than you are.”

  “You must come with me to Helena, she will want to know why you are here.” Ana’s voice was rising in volume.

  Ash looked around like there were people there watching us. The hairs started to stand at the back of my neck. I heard a screaming sound come from within the building.

  “Um, we’ve got something we need to do, Ana.” I whispered. Joe looked back at me.

  “We?” she asked. “Who is this we? How are you in company with Mister Zabriskie here? And arriving at the same time as three Grandfathers. I assumed they would send Zabriskie around through the back, which is why I came, but that you were in their company I had no premonition. Miss Alvarez, are you with them?”

  “No. They just gave me a ride?” I smiled, hopeful.

  Ana laughed. What a strange woman, laughing just seconds after someone tried to knock her out. “How like your mother you are.”

  I smiled at the compliment.

  “May I?” she asked, gesturing to the tranq in my fingers. I handed it to her, and she looked at the point, grimaced, and walked carefully down the stairs. When she got to the bottom, she circled frozen Ash like a shark.