Alison nodded, rubbing her hand on the blossom as she leaned forward. “Time to sleep, little one. You’ve had enough sun for today. Hide away now from the bitter cold.”
The plant swayed for another moment before curling back up. Alison could smell the sweet nectar of the flower, which was the same scent that Kathleen wore every day. She wondered if a girl wearing the flower’s oil would affect how the plants reacted to her. It was kind of like trying to feed bacon to a pig—it might just sense you were a traitor and turn on you. Kathleen didn’t have the best luck with plants as it was.
Three flowers down from them, Kathleen and Emma sat staring at a bud. “You want to go first?”
Kathleen sat up straight and pushed back her sleeves. “It would be my pleasure.”
She pulled the energy up from the ground, her body glowing, symbols flipping on her arms and neck. Emma watched them, wondering what they meant and how so many outcomes could come from such a simple magic spell.
“Optimus Blooms.”
The sparkling pink light cascaded from her hands to the bloom. It began to unfurl, and she leaned down to talk the blossom into opening. The bloom leaned toward her and she smiled, thinking it would speak to her in some way. Suddenly it reared back and hit her in the nose, then its leaves wrapped around her hair and the flower hit her again and again.
Mrs. Fowler ran over, gasping. “Oh, my. Are you wearing the scent of the flower’s family? Oh, Kathleen, what were you thinking?”
“I didn’t know,” she growled, irritated as the bloom smacked her in the face once more.
Emma, not sure what to do, leaned down and began to whisper to the flower. “Shhh, calm yourself. Let her go. The sun awaits you.”
The flower slowed down, reacting to her voice. It hit Kathleen on the nose one last time and let go, its bloom opening and leaves swaying momentarily in the sun’s rays. Mrs. Fowler clapped her hands happily.
“Very nice, Emma. You have a natural gift with plants, it seems.”
Emma smiled broadly and nodded in thanks. She looked at Kathleen, who was angrily rubbing her nose. Emma had to hold back a giggle, finding the whole situation highly amusing.
“Stupid flower. You’re only open because I cast the spell.”
The flower stopped swaying and snapped its bud shut, crossing its leaves over its stem and stiffening up. Kathleen rolled her eyes and pulled her hair from her forehead.
“Great, now even the flowers here have attitudes. What the hell?”
“I might give you attitude if you wore the scent of wizards.” Ethan laughed from the next bloom over. “And although my punch might be a little more powerful. I give the thing props.”
“You would.”
Emma smirked and rubbed her hand over the stem to calm it down. Emma loved Kathleen, but it was nice to be better than her at something every once in a while. Kathleen often forgot that she still had plenty to learn, but she should open her mind and let that in. Kathleen glanced at Izzie, who was waiting patiently for a turn. They needed to shift to a new bulb. She shook her head and sighed.
“Guess next time I’ll leave the perfume at home,” she grumbled. “I almost had the spell. I didn’t mean to offend.”
Emma smiled. “I’m sure the flower will forgive you.”
“If not, you can just turn it into perfume.” Ethan laughed, and his flower slammed shut before the spell could be completed. “Dang.”
“Focus, Ethan. Take your head out of the clouds.”
Ethan looked up at Luke, who didn’t have the magical ability to open the buds. “Does it ever bother you that we do all of this magic and you can’t? I mean, how do they grade a shifter?”
“Some participation, but I get graded more on tests and quizzes. And to answer your question, no, it doesn’t really bother me. I think it’s cool that you can, and it would be cool if I did have the powers to do stuff like that, but I don’t, so no use in dwelling over it. Do you wish you could turn into a wolf?”
“I mean, it would be interesting, but no, not really. Not with the way you get looked at. I have a hard enough time being accepted. At least you have a good personality and girls think you’re cute.”
“Girls do not think I’m cute.” Luke chuckled.
“Uh, you haven’t seen the table of freshmen who gawk at you every time you walk into the cafeteria?”
“No. Where? Who?”
“I’ll show you next time we’re there. Dude, trust me—girls think you’re cute. And because you’re a shifter, you get bad-boy props even if you aren’t one.”
“Weird.”
Behind them, Peter and Aya were staring at their bud. Aya waved her wand over the top of it and whispered the words, but although the bloom shook slightly when the mist hit it nothing happened. Aya frowned and tried again, but still nothing. The pink magic rolled out, but the bloom just wouldn’t budge. Mrs. Fowler looked down and smiled.
“Looks like you have a stubborn bloom. Why don’t you give it a try, Peter?”
Peter looked nervous, but he swallowed hard and waved his wand over the bloom.
“Optimus Blooms.”
Bright pink magic flowed down over the bud and the leaves instantly unfurled. The stem relaxed, and the largest bloom of the class opened. The flower stretched wide to take in the sun, swaying back and forth. When it’d had enough it slowly closed back up, its leaves gently dropping to the sides and the rest stiffening. Mrs. Fowler clapped her hands and nodded proudly.
“Another amazing job. Peter, you too seem to be naturally gifted with plants. I know you like science, and Botany is a special type of science. Maybe plants are your answer to not blowing up your parent’s basement!”
She winked as Peter grimaced and hunched his shoulders. His parents must have told the teachers what had happened, and now the whole class knew. He heard a few smart remarks and some chuckles but ignored them, looking at Aya. She looked upset.
“Hey, hey, not everyone can get it the first time. Here, I’ll help you. Hold out your wand.”
Aya held out her wand and Peter put his hand over hers, swirling it around the next flower as she whispered the incantation. The pink magic flowed, and the flower opened. Aya smiled in delight and put her wand in her lap.
“Thank you. I’ll have to work on that.”
“Just don’t give up, okay?”
Aya nodded her head.
Izzie moved over to an open bloom with Alison by her side. She took in a deep breath and began to pull the light into herself. The feeling was so warm and comforting that she didn’t realize just how much energy she had pulled. It flowed through her veins like water, with an intensity she hadn’t felt before. Alison watched Izzie’s energy grow brighter. She had never seen anything like it.
The pressure of the magic was building inside Izzie, and she almost felt as if she were starting to float away. Alison, concerned, put her hand on Izzie’s knee. The touch of Alison’s hand brought Izzie spiraling back down and the energy burst in all directions from her chest. She watched wide-eyed as a wave of white light shot over the entire patch of blooms and sparkling pink mist flowed down over them. One by one the flowers opened, taking in the sun and then shutting again.
“Are you alright?” Alison asked her.
“Yeah, I am. That was a lot of magic. It just covered and opened all the blooms.”
Mrs. Fowler looked at her suspiciously before smiling. “The magic got away with you there, didn’t it?”
“Yes.” Izzie grimaced. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right. We have to start heading back anyway. Some of us are practically frozen.”
Izzie gave her a crooked smile and nodded. She had never felt a pull from her magic like that before. Even when she had been fighting in the kemana, it hadn’t been that intense. She had met a number of Light Elves, especially here at the school, but their magic didn’t compare to that. Izzie was confused, and she had no one to ask.
She couldn’t help but think about her parents, wonderin
g what kind of magical beings they had been. Who were they? Where had they come from? And how powerful were they…because in all the things she had read about magic, she never read anything about floating away with it.
Yet that was exactly what she had felt was happening—that she couldn’t tear herself from the peace and bliss the light was showing her. It had been fierce, and she was absolutely exhausted.
On the walk back to the school Izzie was very quiet, her energy flickering the shade of blue that indicated contemplation. Alison didn’t blame her. She had felt the powerful energy that had burst from her. It had been the strongest she had felt so far. She hoped it would give Izzie some insight on her past, not just dredge up more unanswered questions.
7
Alison walked with Izzie to the cafeteria through the packed halls. There were brightly colored energies moving and melding all through her mind. Some were excited, others bored, and some just seemed to be making it through.
“Wait for me, I need to use the restroom,” said Izzie.
Alison nodded and clutched her books to her chest. She leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes, rolling her shoulders. She could tell she needed to rest—trance out and get some of her energy back—but it was just lunch time. Her powers were growing and it was taking time for her to adjust. It would have to wait until that night, when everyone else was asleep or out.
She lifted her head from the wall and watched the energies as they passed. Some of them she recognized and others she didn’t, but no one stopped to talk to her. On the other side of the hall two sources stopped, swirling close but not touching.
She narrowed her eyes and straightened, focusing on one on the right. There were all kinds of colors, most of them signifying calmness, but inside that swirling light energy she saw a drip of darkness, just like in her trance state the other day.
She tilted her head as the dark energy swam around, being pulled back and forth by the light almost as if it was trying to tear the dark energy apart. She took a step forward distracted just as Izzie grabbed her arm and pulled her back a step.
“You all right? A senior almost plowed right into you.”
Alison shook her head and leaned toward Izzie. There was another rush of people streaming down the hall in front of her, but she nodded in the direction of the dark energy she had seen.
“Who is that? Someone standing against the wall with another person. The one on the right.”
Izzie had to wait for all the people to pass. She tried to see through the masses to the other side, but it was just too crowded. When the crowds finally slowed Izzie looked over, but no one was there.
“There isn’t anyone there anymore.”
Alison didn’t see the energy anymore either. She scanned for it, thinking they had just moved, but the person was completely gone. Izzie watched her face, slightly concerned.
“Are you okay?”
Alison nodded. “Yeah, I just... I thought I saw...”
“What? You thought you saw what?”
Alison shook her head. “Nothing. It was nothing. I mean, obviously I can’t actually see, but...”
Izzie sighed and pulled her close. “Let’s go get some food in you. We’ve had quite the exciting day, with Kathleen getting beat up by a plant and you seeing but not actually seeing. I’m ready for study hall, and that is the only time you will ever hear me say that.”
Alison laughed and went with Izzie to the cafeteria. They sat down with the others and Alison thought about what she wanted for lunch, then picked up the sandwich on the plate and took a bite. It was a Philly cheesesteak, just like she and her mom used to eat when they went shopping. She liked that she had a reminder of her mom, even if it was through magical food.
“So yeah, everyone was standing out in the snow in their boxers, no shoes, figuring they were safe from the squirrel,” Ethan explained. “Guess what happens then?”
Kathleen sighed. “Someone kill the squirrel, so this boring story can be over.”
“Don’t worry, you can tell everyone the story of how you got beat up by a flower right after I’m done.”
Kathleen stuck her tongue out at Ethan and threw a fry at him. He picked it up and shrugged as he popped it into his mouth. After he swallowed, he continued his story.
“The front door opens and out runs the squirrel. He stood there on the icy steps just watching everyone. The guys had backed up and were all huddled together. Luke, Peter, and I had stayed in the dorm, and we watched the whole thing unfold from the window. I seriously have never heard a man scream at the pitch our dorm manager did.”
“Yeah.” Peter chuckled. “It was definitely interesting.”
“I’m currently taking a poll to see if everyone thinks we should get Peter a pet squirrel, so he can get over his fear.”
“Not funny,” Peter growled.
“What do you think, Alison?” Ethan laughed as he looked at her. “Alison?”
“Huh? Oh, sorry. I guess I drifted off into my own thoughts. What did you ask me?”
“If you think we should get Peter a squirrel to help him get over the phobia.”
“It’s not a phobia.” Peter groaned. “It was a wild animal on my back. Of course, I panicked.”
Alison smiled and faked a laugh. “Sure, or he can try to get that egg to hatch.”
“Yeah.” Peter scoffed. “And who knows what could come out? You think dragon, I think giant hairy spider looking for its first meal.”
“Hey, spiders can be nice,” Emma pointed out. “My dad really liked tarantulas and wanted one as a pet, but my mom put the kibosh on that.”
“Oh, my God.” Kathleen shook. “Good for her! Those things are freaky. They have fangs and furry butts, and all those legs. Yuck.”
The bell tolled over the speaker to give the ten-minute warning that classes were beginning again. Alison was only partially listening since her mind was wandering through the dark energy she had seen, both just before lunch and in her meditative state. She could have brushed it off as a dream—and she had pretty much done just that until she saw the energy that afternoon.
Izzie wiped her hands and put one on Alison’s arm. “You ready? We have study hall in the library next period, and you know how much the librarian loves us being late.”
Alison chuckled and nodded, grabbing her bag and standing up. The two girls made their way out of the cafeteria and down to the library, very quietly walking through the doors. Izzie noticed they were the first ones there, which was good in some ways and bad in others.
“Alison and Izzie, I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to have you here this semester,” Leo Decker called sarcastically. “Find a seat, read the rules, and be done with it.”
“Yes, Mr. Decker,” Izzie called toward the back, though she didn’t see him anywhere.
“Alison, would you come here for a moment?”
Alison put her bag down on a chair and followed the sound of pages turning to the back corner of the library. She could see Leo’s energy at the shelves, and she smiled to herself. Leo tugged down his vest and tilted his bowler hat, then remembered that Alison couldn’t see him.
“I read that book you gave me, and I liked it.”
“Good,” Alison replied kindly. “I knew you would.”
“I hope you are enjoying the new semester, and I hope you had a good holiday.”
“I did, thank you. And I hope you do as well.”
Alison turned to go back to her seat as Leo called after her, “Don’t think that means you can take books out of here.”
Alison laughed and made her way back to Izzie’s energy. She stood behind the chair and opened her backpack, running her hands over the books and laptop inside. She zipped her bag back up before lowering it to the floor, then looked at the energies near her. Sitting at the table next to them was the dark energy. She stood there for a moment to make sure she was right, but there was no mistaking it. The light tugged at the dark, an internal struggle that she wondered if the person
even knew about.
She sat down in her seat, tuning in to the energy again every so often. It was three times now that she had faced the energy, and she was curious about what would cause the darkness to react like that. She had seen dark energies before, but none of them had been fighting with the light—if they had any light in them at all. They were resolute in their darkness, and usually if the interest was present it grew at a rapid pace. This was stagnant. Almost stuck inside the body, unsure where to go. Held prisoner by the light around it. After a few more minutes of trying not to stare, Alison grabbed her laptop and walked over to the empty chair in front of the energy.
“Do you mind if I sit here?”
“No, please.”
Alison put her things down with a smile and carefully pulled out her chair. She held onto the table as she sat, trying not to show she was blind. She didn’t know if he was watching her, but she assumed he was.
“I’m Alison.”
“Tanner,” he replied.
Tanner was a good-looking guy, tall, with dark wavy hair and a perfect smile. He had always been kind, doing what he could do for others and making friends easily. To him a pretty girl asking to sit down was no big deal, but he could tell from the subtle way she moved and how she looked at him that she couldn’t see.
“What year are you? I don’t remember meeting you at the beginning of the year.”
“Oh, I’m a junior, but I didn’t come here until this semester. I transferred from another school.”
“Oh, got it. Did your family move?”
“Something like that,” he replied, watching her struggle to find her pen in the crack of the table. “Here, let me help you with that.”
Alison blushed and waited for him to pick up the pen. Here was her chance to let someone in on her secret. “I’m… I mean… I can’t see. At least not like everyone else.”
“That’s cool,” he said, leaning down to pick up the pen.
Alison sat back surprised. It was a non-event. This really is the school of different teenagers.
He handed the pen to her, and as their fingers lightly brushed he took a deep breath, feeling the warmth of the power inside her. He cleared his throat and looked down at his book, finding her more interesting than he had thought he would when she’d first sat down.
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