Spearwood Academy Volume Two (The Spearwood Academy Book 2)

by A. S. Oren

  Spearwood Academy

  Volume Two (Episodes 6-10)

  The Crystal of the Gypsy

  I leap off the boy. It can’t be him. How did he, of all people, get here? Maverick Hansen, the first guy I ever hit, stands in front of me. His long ebony hair, with a white streak, in a ponytail. His ice blue eyes see through to my soul, five-year-old me shakes in her shoes. Before I went to do homeschooling, I spent every recess under his thumb. I broadcast my thoughts. I can’t focus on just him right now. ‘What are you doing here?’

  With his arms shifted into their dragon form, he crawls out of the crater. He shifts back, before his eyes fall upon me again. Suffocating heat rolls in my chest, the same heat the moved through me just before I punched him all those years ago. I exhale. Fire bursts forth from my mouth, illuminating the darkness of the night with an orange glow. It’s better than screaming, it’s invigorating. I return my gaze to him again, eyes narrowed. He takes a step back and holds up his hands. “Easy, Clementine. I’m not here to pick a fight.”

  I snort, a trail of sulfur smoke billows from my nose. ‘Could have fooled me, Hansen. Was that your way of saying hello?’

  “I was just following orders, I was told to get this on you.” He pulls a necklace off his wrist. I gaze at it. A crystal hangs from a silver chain.

  I shake my head with disbelief. ‘Giving me jewelry? I didn’t even know we were going steady.’

  His cheeks flush. “Get your panties out of a twist, Clementine. This can help you.” He holds up the necklace to emphasize his point.

  Silence falls around us. More people watch us now, not just: the guys. ‘So are you going to tell me what that is for? Or are you going to just keep standing there holding it up like an idiot?’

  “I don’t know what it is for, I was just told to give it to you while you are in your Dragon form. It was part of my objective for today, so take it and let me be done.” He tosses it toward me. It lands at my feet. It appears to be a blue of some kind, but I can’t quite tell, it could be purple. I lean my head down to get a closer look. A hum fills my ears. It gets louder as I get closer. I take a step back. Like a circus flea, the crystal jumps after me. It doesn’t stop until it touches the scales of my talons.

  An instant burning rolls over my body, like none I have ever felt before. I let out a breath of fire before my body gets smaller and my scales become covered by skin. It is an odd sensation, one that I can’t describe, but it doesn’t hurt. I must be changing back, my eyes go to the night sky. The moon hangs heavy, it’s nowhere near dawn. Why am I changing back I don’t remember a time when I was awake while transforming back.

  My muscles shake. I return to my human form on all fours. My arms move to cover my breasts. I sit back on my knees. The crystal falls from my hand and onto my lap. With one arm still covering my breasts from the view of the audience, my freehand moves my hair from out of my face. The crystal slips off my lap and back onto the ground. The sunburn like heat rushes over my body. I begin to change back into my Dragon form. I grabbed for the crystal. Like magic, the transformation stops. With my freehand. I put the necklace on. I don’t want to risk not having it touch me. Somehow, it is what I’ve been asking for my entire life. Something to stop my transformations from happening.

  The guys come over to me and Horace hands me the extra pajamas again. I put them on and glance toward Hansen. Beside him stands the Royal. The guy that proposed to me the other day, He smiles, like the Cheshire cat.

  I walk over to them and hold up the crystal. “What is this thing? How did it turn me back?”

  The Royal’s eyes study my face. He smiles, and moves his hand to cup my cheek. I flinch away from his touch and take a step back. “I told you, my love. I would do anything for you, to get you love me, even if it means getting a crystal to cancel out the curse you are under.”

  Curse? What is he talking about? Before I can ask, the sound of dress shoes clacking on the cobblestone interrupt my interrogation. Perlow walks up to stand next to the Royal. His eyes are wide. I can tell he wasn’t expecting to see me in this form. His eyes travel down to the necklace. The crystal glints in the light of the lanterns that hang over the archways of the Rose Garden.

  “What is going on here?” He asks, his voice shakes a tad.

  The Royal tries to touch my face again, a glimmer of happiness in his eyes. I swallow hard. My heart hammers in my chest. I bat his arm away. “You try and touch me again, I won’t hesitate to break your hand.”

  Perlow blanches at my behavior. Undeterred, the Royal smiles. “You are so cute when you’re feisty.” He then turns to Perlow and says, “I was just giving my love, here, a gift.” He motions to the crystal. “You should recognize it, Perlow. It’s one of the Gypsy crystals.

  Perlow swallows hard and licks his lips. “Perhaps, Miss Clementine, you should give that to me.” He reaches for the necklace. The Royal grips his shoulder.

  “Are you questioning my authority, Perlow?”

  Perlow lowers his hand to his side and makes a white knuckled fist; he looks anywhere but the Royal. “Of course not, Paden, please excuse me.”

  The Royal arches an eyebrow. “Did I give you permission to use my first name?”

  Perlow grinds his jaw, but says nothing. A strange sadness enters his eyes, they look straight into mine. “I will take my leave now, but before I do,” he looks at the rest of the people gathered behind us. Even more people have gathered. “Congratulations to all of those who have completed their task and made it back to Spearwood. The Sun god has blessed you.” Perlow leaves.

  The Royal, or Paden, smiles at me again. “Do you like my gift, my love?” he asks. He must have enough common sense not to touch me again.

  “Stop calling me that. I’m not your love. I can’t accept this, please take it back.” I move to take the necklace off, but his hand stops me.

  “I’m sure you have figured out what happens when you take the crystal off. Do you really want that to happen now? Here, in front of everyone?”

  I narrow my eyes. “I’ve already had to change in front of three people I barely know, what’s a few hundred more?” I once again try to take the necklace off, but his hand over mine tightens to an almost painful level.

  Through gritted teeth, he says, “if you won’t accept it as a gift, then accept it as payment.”

  “Payment?”

  “Yes, for choosing to attend the school. Consider the crystal payment for making the right decision. Come, Maverick. We have things to discuss.”

  Paden begins to walk away. Maverick turns to me. “Regardless of how we left things back in Bellingham. It’s good to see you, Clementine.”

  Before I can say anything in return, he walks away in sync with Paden.

  Night Talk

  I run my hand through my hair, giving it a tug as my fingers get stuck in a small knot. Why must they give me more questions than answers? I’m so sick of everyone being cryptic all the time. It’s like I’m in one of those path books. I keep choosing the wrong option, but there is no way to go back and see what the other option lead to. I stare up at the sky, this is the first time I’m seeing it through human eyes. It still looks the same, but it feels different. It’s strange, being on two legs instead of four, while the moon hangs in the sky.

  I turn toward the guys. They watch me from where I left them. The crowd near them dissipates. The action show has finished; the only girl of the school doesn’t have anything else to give them. I walk over to the guys. I cross my arms in front of me. I’m still self-conscious over the fact that several, if not all, of them have seen me naked today. I guess I’
m more modest than I thought. Mirren stands with them, Bullock has not left either. It’s strange, all of them together.

  “So, that was, interesting,” I say, with a shaky laugh. .

  “That it was,” says Dante. “Why don’t we go for a ride tonight? Dinner attendance is not required, since not everyone will be back yet.”

  Code for the Cabin. I glance at Mirren and Bullock, are they coming too? I thought it was a secret place? “That sounds nice.”

  Dante walks off toward the stables. The others follow. I look to Mirren and Bullock, they hesitate before joining us. Soon, Spearwood is behind us. I can’t help but catch the tension in the air. I know it’s because of everything that has happened, and probably because Mirren and Bullock are with us as well. What happened while I was talking with Paden? Now they can stomach each other? What changed?

  I can’t stand my own curiosity anymore. We come to the stables, and wait for the tired servant to get our horses. I wouldn’t want to work at this late hour. I pull Dante off to the side, out of hearing distance from the others, and cross my arms in front of me. “Why are Mirren and Bullock here?” I whisper, just to make sure they can’t hear.

  He sighs. “Turns out, we might not be as different as we thought we were. I’ll explain more at The Cabin, but it looks like we’re allies, even if we don’t like it.”

  Looks like my gut feeling was right. I hope we can all get along. I know I have issues with the two of them, but I’ll be nice if they are.

  Going back to the group, we stand in a heavy silence. The servant comes back and leads us to the horses. Maryanne puts her snout into my hands and I give her a pat. I’m coming to really like her. “Hey girl. Sorry for waking you up.” She just blinks.

  Triton comes over to help me up, but I hold a hand up. “I think I can do it on my own this time.” He steps back and motions for me to get on with it.

  I put my left foot in the stirrup and use my upper body strength to pull myself up and swing my other leg over. I smile, I did it on my own. “Those brutal workouts you put me through have paid off, Dante.”

  Dante, already on his white steed, laughs. “I try, Fire.” He nudges his horse on and we follow.

  Perhaps it’s the night, but the world has a new aura. The colors, the cool air on my skin, even the way Maryanne’s strength feels as she walks, have more intensity than they ever had for me before now. The air, crisp, like after a rain storm invigorates me.

  We’re moving too slow. I want to move fast. For the first time in years, I’m outside at night. I didn’t get to fly long, but now I can experience it as a human. My legs nudge Maryanne into a canter. I lift myself off her, and tighten my legs. She picks up pace and moves into a gallop. We’re a good two or three miles from the edge of the forest, she has room to run before we have to slow down.

  Dante gallops with me. “What are you doing?”

  “Going fast!”

  Maryanne goes faster on her own will and I hold on. Her heavy footfalls echo throughout my body. She’s feeding off my energy, just like I’m feeding off hers. The others run with us.

  “Why?” yells Dante.

  “Because it’s fun!” I let out a scream of excitement. It’s not as freeing as flying, but it comes real close. Several of the guys mimic my scream.

  The tree-line is dark in the moonlight, but clear enough that I can make it out. I ease up on the reins, signaling that I want her to slow down. When she goes back to a canter, I put my weight back on her. The others slow down with me and follow behind Dante and me.

  “That was fun, but it doesn’t compare to flying. There’s a rush with being up in the air that is indescribable,” I say. We enter the forest and into a thick blanket of darkness. The cat like night vision turns on. No shadows can hide from me now. . It doesn’t take long before we make it to the clearing; the glow from the moon gives the waterfall and iridescent aura. The cabin looks even smaller than the first time I saw it. If I didn’t know better, I would believe there’s no way it could hold all of us. We tie the horses to the tree and allow them to have length to feed on the overgrown grass.

  Dante lets us into the cabin and my jaw drops. The place has tripled in size since the last time. Now, it has to have at least three stories added on. A fire roars in front of a sitting area. I don’t remember that being here last time.

  “Holy,” says Mirren. He follows in behind me. Obviously, he wasn’t expecting to see this on the inside.

  “I don’t know about you guys, but I could eat my weight in food right about now,” says Amr. He goes into a kitchen and opens one of the cupboards.

  “Where did this come from? This wasn’t here last time!” I walk over to the fridge and touch it to make sure it’s real.

  Dante laughs and plops himself down on one of the small couches. “This place is ever changing, like King’s Rose Red. We could come back tomorrow and there will be a pool in the library.” My head turns faster than the blood has time to shift and I go cross-eyed. Did he just say a Who reference with King?

  “Did you just make both a Stephen King and Doctor Who reference?” I go to the couch and he moves his feet just enough for me to sit down. As soon as I sit down, he puts his feet on my lap. I push them off, but he puts them back. I give him a mock glare and he sticks his tongue out at me.

  “Yeah, it was,” he says. He tips his head back to stare at Mirren and Bullock, who stand at the door, like a pair of statues. “Fais comme chez toi.” Ah, French, why must they speak French? More importantly, why do I want him to say it again?

  They glance at each other, before they each take a few steps into the room and find a seat. Well, they’re sitting statues now.

  “Avvi! Heads up!” says Amr. I look back just in time, a glass bottle flies at me. I catch it without a seconds thought. I have no clue how I did that. It’s Italian soda, strawberry flavor.

  “How did you know I like strawberry best?”

  “You tend to eat them last when you get the fruit bowl for breakfast. You are one of those, eat the favorites last people,” says Amr. He cuts up something at the counter.

  I smile and open the soda. I never knew he took so much notice of me before.

  “Do you two like each other?” Horace asks, from his place in the kitchen with Amr and Triton.

  I choke on my drink. “Like romantically?”

  Heavy silence falls over the room, that’s my answer. I look at Amr and he looks back at me, our noses scrunch up with disgust, at least the feeling is mutual. “Ew! No!” we say at the same time.

  “It be like liking a brother. Just no.” I shake my head.

  “Yeah, I like you, Avvi, but not romantically.”

  Dante sits up and grins at me. He has that gleam in his amber eyes. I know what’s going to fall out of his mouth next. “No!” I say.

  “You don’t even know what I was going to say.” He pouts like a child who has gotten their lollipop taken away.

  I take a drink of my soda and say, “Yes I do.” I give him a smirk

  He flips his hair. “No you don’t.”

  “You were going to ask me for, the hundredth time, who my type is and who I like.”

  He folds his arms over his chest and lies back again. “Fine, you did know what I was going to say. Then answer it, Fire.” He stares unblinkingly, a challenge.

  Again, silence reigns. I sigh, and an evil thought pops into my head. I smile. “You really want to know?”

  “Yes, woman! Why do you think I ask you? For my health?” He throws his arms up in the air, like he has been trying to work this answer out of me for hours.

  “More like your ego. Okay, but you have to keep it a secret, only you guys can know.” I put my finger to my lips. “He has long black hair—”

  Dante sits up again and smirks. “It’s me, isn’t it?”

  I roll my eyes. “No.” “He has a sarcastic type of humor and a God complex. He’s eyes are blue, but sometimes they can turn green.”

  Dante makes a face now. “That H
ansen dude from earlier?”

  I gag. “No! Don’t ever, ever, suggest that again. I’d have to be out of my mind to ever like Hansen.” I shudder at the mere thought. Hundreds of childhood traumas come flooding back to me. “Finally, his brother is a god, the god of thunder.”

  “Thor?” asks Horace, from the kitchen.

  I smile and nod.

  “Loki from Thor, or The Avengers?” asks Dante.

  I can’t hold it in any longer. A laugh bursts forth from me. “Though, I guess I like Thor, too.”

  He nudges me with his foot in the shoulder. “You were supposed to choose someone from Spearwood.”

  “Hey, you didn’t specify. You said nothing about them being a real person.”

  “Then who do you like from Spearwood?”

  I smile. “Now, that’s one answer I will be taking to my grave.”

  He smiles now. “I bet it’s me, huh?”

  I roll my eyes and shake my head. “Keep dreaming, Casanova.”

  Sizzling vegetables and chicken fill the room with crackles and pops. My stomach rumbles. Between the stress of worrying about the challenge, and actually doing it, I haven’t thought about food once. Now that it’s here, I can’t wait to eat.

  “Was this survival test bloody?” asks Mirren.

  Dante sits up to face the fire at the center of the room. “Yeah, at least it was for my group. We lost one of the team mates, got stuck under a boulder during one of the trials. Another got his index finger taken off by a third year. We got a scroll though, and returned it to the library. You?”

  Mirren shakes his head. We didn’t see anyone and the worse trial we had was a small avalanche.”