by A. J. Macey
My eyes slowly closed, and a sense of hopelessness flooded me, knowing it could be too late. Mr. Stripes howled sadly as he watched on, helpless to fix this. I knew nothing of poisons. I couldn’t move a muscle in my body, not even to alleviate the burning. Darkness slowly overtook me, my last thoughts before I passed out were of my sweet boyfriends.
October 4th
Friday Night
Drayce
“Dude, will you stop?” Kye hissed under his breath as his chicken yanked another piece of food off his plate. Raptor clucked but proceeded eating her catch.
I chuckled, unable to stop myself as Kye glared at me. Caspian sank into the seat next to me, his cheeks tinting pink as I rested my knee against his thigh. Flirting with him is just too much fun.
“Has anyone seen Aris?” Xan asked, his deep voice startling me from my teasing. Now that he pointed it out, I realized he was right; Angel was always here by now. The lunch lines were practically empty.
“Mentoring?” Kye asked, leaning around to try to get a view of the faculty section.
“Nope, Torryn is eating. I saw him in line grabbing his nasty healthy food earlier while I was grabbing a piece of cake.”
“That’s not good,” Xan said, standing up and using his height to peer over everyone’s head. His frown deepened as he came up empty.
“Should someone go check on her?” Caspian questioned, looking worried. Xan had just opened his mouth when Raptor shot straight up, her head whipping back-and-forth until she was yelling out an odd clicking screech. A sense of worry wormed into my stomach when I noticed all the familiars had stopped eating and clustered together.
“I think they’re trying to tell us something,” I murmured, moving to stand. Kye scoffed and mumbled under his breath, but I wasn’t paying any attention to him as the group of animals shot to the ground and barreled toward the door. “Come on,” I directed, following quickly, our trays forgotten on the table.
“What’s going on?” Torryn’s commanding voice echoed down the hall, running to catch up to us. His red panda, Ruby, was sprinting as fast as her little legs could carry her to join the rest of the familiars. His gaze darted around the group, his face paling when he didn’t find who he was looking for. “Where’s Aris?”
“She wasn’t at dinner, then this happened,” I explained, waving a hand at the animals as they started up the stone steps. As we neared, a loud ear-splitting screech filtered down the space, but no one who was around seemed bothered to go check despite their creased brows and frowns—what assholes.
Dread filled my stomach as we neared Aris’ room, and the screaming became even louder. A mix of shadows, fire, water, and air formed a miniature tornado as her room came into view. Please let her be alright, I pleaded, but my stomach sank as I saw a wave of pink curls fanned out on the stone floor, Mr. Stripes frantically hopping around screaming, darting around Aris’ prone body until he crawled onto her chest and started frantically patting her cheeks.
“Holy hellsticks,” Caspian raged, Torryn and Xan immediately falling to their knees next to her as we crowded around. Bending down, I scooped up the distraught lemur and rocked him softly, attempting to calm him. “What the hex happened here? Is she okay?”
“We need to take her to the infirmary as soon as possible,” Torryn commanded, whispering an incantation until Aris was floating between him and Xan. “Let’s go. Caspian, go tell the nurse we’re coming. Kye, are you able to do a rune scan?”
Caspian bolted down the hall and stairs, not even bothering to apologize as he ran into several of the people who stood with nosy expressions. Mr. Stripes must have realized none of them had come to help and gave a weird hiss, slashing out at them with his little claws. Holding tight, I cooed to him until we were out of the dormitory and in the courtyard.
“There are no runes or anything on her person, so I don’t have any idea what could have caused this,” Kye explained, slowly growing more and more unhinged as he ran his hands through his hair. I hung back, gripping his shoulder with my free hand.
“She’ll be alright, she’s tough. She’s too happy to be down for long,” I exclaimed, even though I felt acid burning my stomach in fear. Kye’s chuckle was slightly hysterical, but he calmed, nonetheless.
Everyone moved out of our way, Torryn’s glaring and Aris’ floating form enough to deter anyone from getting in the way. I moved ahead of them and pulled open the door, allowing Torryn to guide her down the hall to the infirmary. Caspian was already there, pacing with wide, worried eyes near the door. As soon as he saw us, he yelled for the staff. A moment later, four witches in white doctor’s coats converged on us, taking her easily from Torryn and rushing to the back, leaving us in stunned silence.
“She never messes with anyone, and I feel even her bullies wouldn’t go this far. Who would do this to her?” I asked, unable to hide the frustration in my voice, feeling helpless there was nothing we could do but wait.
“I thought the same thing,” Xan agreed, his voice deeper than usual as he joined the pacing.
“What bullies?” Torryn asked, his voice hard as his eyes flared in anger. Caspian opened his mouth to say something, but I shot him a look to calm the negativity before it started.
“A few girls have been giving her a hard time, but she handled it. This seems worse than your average student,” I explained, keeping my voice soothing to try to alleviate some of the tension, though it proved useless. They started in on each other, despite the warnings, the others joining in the argument.
“Why am I just now hearing of this?” Torryn grumbled, squeezing his hands into tight fists to try to contain his anger, but it still radiated off him in waves. It clearly ran deeper than just finding out she was bullied a bit.
“We didn’t realize we answered to you, big brother,” Cas bit out, taking some of his anxiety out on Torryn.
“I still need to know things, even if I have to stay further back than you. She means as much to me as she does to you, as much as you don’t believe it,” he bit back, his voice low to keep our conversation from the wrong ears.
“This isn’t helping,” Kye bit out. “We need to figure out who the fuck is targeting her.”
“This fighting isn’t going to help. When we hear she’s stable, we need to check her room. Something got her right in the doorway, so maybe a hex bag?” Xan rambled, pausing his pacing to hash out the details. “Torryn and I are probably most equipped for that.”
Our heads snapped to the door as it creaked open, revealing Headmaster Tallis and a man I recognized from Aether’s security team, a severe, scowling, bald man. His eyes were sharp, making the green seem volatile. The nurse hurried from the desk to greet them, wringing her hands as she clearly gave them more information than we had gotten so far. After a few moments of thick tension, they followed her as she held open the door to the room. As if we all were on the same thought process, we moved together, swarming the space without invitation.
“You all found her?” the headmaster inquired, a look of annoyance on his face that boiled my blood. The two men distracted us from checking on Aris as she laid in the bed unconscious. The witches who were working flittered around, weaving between us as they ran their scans but didn’t ask us to leave, no doubt detecting the tension running rampant through the room.
“Yes, she was lying on the ground, unmoving, and clearly hexed.” Kye’s voice was cold and angry as he answered, and I couldn’t help but brace myself for an argument.
“Now, let’s not jump to conclusions, you don’t know she was hexed,” the headmaster blustered, looking stricken at Kye’s boldness. “Mr. Windle is here to determine the details, so please give him honest answers.”
Without hesitation, Mr. Windle grabbed a notepad out of his pocket, turning his fierce gaze on us. “Now tell me, were there any visible signs of magic, runes, or hexes? Any distinct smells or sounds?”
“No, I did a rune scan, but it must have dissipated before we found her,” Kye answered, sounding a bit
less angry now that they seemed to be doing something.
“So, nothing to show it was a hex as you previously thought?” he challenged, causing Kye’s nostrils to flare.
Not wanting to cause more trouble, I rested a hand on Kye’s shoulder to calm him, trying to silently remind him what was at stake.
“Has she had any recent issues at school?”
“Just some bullies. She’s a Mixta, so they were teasing her,” Caspian said slowly, unsure if he should share it with these assholes or not.
“There you go. It was likely just a prank, she’ll be fine,” the headmaster cut in, his smile forced and fake.
“So, you’re writing it off as a prank before even doing a search of her room or making sure she’s alright?” Xan asked formally, his eyes dancing with an angry fire behind them. A small flame started in his hand, but he extinguished it before I could even process what I was seeing.
“I don’t like what you’re insinuating, young man. You may be the son of a high councilor, but that doesn’t mean you get the choice to be disrespectful,” Tallis barked out, his eyes darting side-to-side as if Xan’s dad would step into the room at any moment.
“He’s asking why a headmaster and head of security are not investigating an attack on a student. I also would like to know who will be heading the investigation,” Torryn asked, his voice holding a bit more of that commanding quality.
“I want what’s best for Miss Calisto, though I’m curious why you are so invested in her wellbeing, Professor Callahan?” Tallis asked, his eyes narrowing in on Torryn.
Oh shit, he looks suspicious. My heart pounded, and the moment seemed to stretch on forever as they stared each other down. A breeze formed at my panic, and I stuck my free hand into my pocket to stop it before anyone noticed, though all eyes were on the two men arguing in front of them.
“I care about the wellbeing of all of my students, Headmaster Tallis,” Torryn bit out, his face turning red at the creepy vibe emanating from the man.
“Then perhaps you should head the investigation of her room since you seem so determined to find evidence. We will be monitoring the investigation and speaking with teachers to find if there is any gossip floating around pertaining to this. As for right now, let the medical professionals handle her recovery, and we’ll see what they say,” he explained before patting Aris on the leg.
The sight of his hand on her knee made me irrationally angry, and despite my laid-back nature, all I wanted to do at that moment was punch him.
“I want what’s best for Aris as much as you do.” With that, the headmaster stormed out, his sidekick at his heels. We stood in stunned silence, the familiars standing vigil with us. I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact they brushed it off so easily.
“Fuck this, I’m going to check her room as soon as she wakes up,” Torryn bit out to no one in particular. Mr. Stripes abruptly let out a chirp and lunged from my arms, scurrying on top of the bed and up Aris’ chest. All of us surrounded the bed, determined to see our girl.
“Well, I guess we don’t need to give you a report since she’s awake now,” the head nurse said with a hint of disapproval as she walked over from her spot by the medical cart. “There were no signs of any magic in her blood or on her skin. Clearly, something knocked her out, but there are no signs of it left behind. Either someone was very smart with their magic, or she had a reaction to something.” She looked every bit as baffled as we were.
How could the magic leave no trace?
“We’ll find the evidence,” Torryn promised, shifting his attention from the witch to Aris. My heart clenched at the sight of her looking so shaken and weak in the hospital bed.
“Cupcake? Are you alright?” Caspian choked out, his voice wavering a bit with relief. Our magic had been fighting to break free from our holds this entire time, but now that she was awake, everything seemed to have calmed.
“I feel alright, just weak,” she rasped, hugging Mr. Stripes to her chest. “I just opened my door, felt a bit of magic, and bam, all I knew was burning pain before I passed out.” She shivered at the memory, her eyes haunted as they looked up at us. “How did you know to come find me?”
“Because of him,” Kye said, nodding to Mr. Stripes, “and the other familiars. We were sitting in the dining hall, wondering where you were when Raptor went crazy. Then the others followed suit. They all rushed out of the dining hall, and we ran to keep up ‘til we got to your room. If it wasn’t for them... we might not have found you in time. He was inconsolable when we got there.”
“Thank you, friend.” Aris hugged Mr. Stripes and kissed his head. Mr. Stripes purred and sank into the embrace.
“I’ll inform the headmaster you’re awake,” the head nurse announced, leaving us to speak with Aris. Nobody acknowledged her, none of us even caring she was still around, so she slipped out without another word.
“I’m going to check your room. They say your blood is clean, but something must be there,” Torryn said angrily, giving her a kiss on the forehead after glancing around to make sure we were truly alone.
“I’ll go too,” Xan offered, giving Aris a tight hug before rushing after an already retreating Torryn.
“They’ll probably keep you here awhile. Kye and I can go get your snacks and clothes. I’d hate for you to be uncomfortable,” Caspian said quickly, bouncing anxiously on his feet. I could see his relief, but he also seemed unsure how to process or handle seeing her like this. She gave him a soft smile, seeing through his intentions.
“I’m okay, Sprinkles,” she promised. “But I wouldn’t say no to some comfier clothes if I’m stuck here for a bit.”
“You got it,” Kye said, leaning in and kissing her softly before pulling Caspian away. Now that it was just me and my Angel, I settled onto the bed next to her, stroking her hair softly.
“So, how are you really?” I asked, giving her a soft smile.
“I feel like a witch who fell off her broom,” she said, flopping back down on the bed with a small sigh.
“You scared me,” I admitted, thankful to see those gorgeous gray eyes looking back at me. Seeing her on the floor like that was going to haunt me for a very long time.
“I’m sorry,” she sighed, her bottom lip poking out in a cute pout. “I didn’t mean to.”
“Angel, it’s not your fault. All I care about is you’re okay,” I explained, brushing her hair off her face lightly. Her forehead was hot against my fingers, her cheeks flushed slightly with a minor fever, but other than that, she didn’t seem to have any outward signs of whatever happened. “Even laid out in the infirmary, you’re still the most beautiful witch I have ever seen.”
“I doubt that,” she challenged, but try as she might, she couldn’t hide the tiny smile or happy glint that lit in her gray eyes. I smiled at her and leaned forward to press a soft kiss to her cheek.
“You are, I just haven’t gotten much of you to myself to be able to tell you, and I want my girlfriend to know how special she is to me.” Needing to show her how I felt, I leaned in and captured her lips with mine, the magic tingling along my skin as I poured my emotion into it. She met my kiss with the same amount of intensity, both of us panting as we pulled away.
Before I could say anything else, a frantic Caspian and Kye came running in with their arms loaded, their familiars not far behind, holding lettuce and fruit in their mouths for Mr. Stripes who hopped off the bed to accept their gifts. I had to hold back my laughter at the ridiculous number of treats Kye had grabbed for her—enough to feed all of us for days, let alone our petite witch.
“I just grabbed a t-shirt and shorts for you. I hope they fit,” Caspian explained, holding out the clothes to her.
“They’re perfect,” she said sleepily, taking the clothes and raising her eyebrow at Kye’s haul.
“Don’t judge me, I didn’t know what you’d want,” he half whined at her, dropping the snacks on her blanket.
“I’m not,” she laughed, grabbing a bag of roasted pumpkin seeds
and munching on them. “Open up,” she commanded, holding a seed in her hand, ready to throw. Kye looked at her like she was crazy, but Caspian opened his mouth right up. Seeing her giggle as she tried and failed to land a pumpkin seed in his mouth helped calm my frazzled nerves.
I’d been at this school for four years and not once had I met a person who I would have found capable of attacking Aris like this. She was cheerful to everyone, maybe a bit sassy at times but never without reason. What reason could this attacker possibly have for doing this? The fact they knew exactly the best time to strike was even more unsettling. The thing they hadn’t anticipated was she had five men and five familiars bonded to her who were willing to fight back. I hoped Xan and Torryn would find something upstairs so we could prove to the headmaster it was no prank.
And if they won’t protect her, we will.
Torryn
Anger pulsed through me as we stomped up to her room, white-hot and blinding as I shoved away the image of my gorgeous girl on the floor. I was determined to find something up here, then go punch Tallis in his face. This was no prank. Pranks didn’t put you in the fucking hospital.
Xan was just as mad, his mouth forming a tight line as he breathed angrily through his nose. Students dove out of our way as we hurried through the dormitory and up to her room. It was sort of satisfying to have such an effect on people.
We slowed as we reached her doorway, both of us holding out our hands as we scanned for magic. A white tendril of magic moved from my hand and enveloped the area below it like a fog, but nothing seemed to jump out at me. Xan’s sigh told me he found the same… nothing—either that or the magic already dissipated after it did its job.
