Dark Is Her Nature

by Judith Berens

  Ethan looked at Alison and smiled awkwardly; he still had twigs and debris stuck in his hair. Alison lifted her eyebrows and gave him a half-smile, unsure what to make of the whole scene. Suddenly two more boys ran up to them, laughing and looking down at Ethan and Peter.

  “There you are, idiots.”

  “Oh, great, more of them.” Kathleen threw her hands up and rolled her eyes. “And who are the two of you, since these two don’t have any manners?”

  “Wyatt.” The tall dark-skinned boy gave a toothy grin and bowed. “Wood Elf at your service, and this is my best friend Henry.”

  Henry had bright blue eyes, shaggy blond hair and a smile that made Kathleen stare. He was stylin’, wearing a football jersey, straight-leg jeans, and Chuck Taylors. Alison could see his soul so she knew he didn’t have magical powers, but he was definitely not human.

  “And what are you?” Kathleen was tight-lipped.

  “Shifter.”

  Wyatt slapped him on the back. “And a damn mean one.”

  Wyatt had regular magical abilities. He was a rich kid who came from a long line of Wood Elves and had grown up in the lap of luxury not too far away. He rarely gave a crap about the rules, especially when it came to lowerclassmen.

  Henry was, a total jock, interested in every sport under the sun. It was what kept him from falling into the shifter crowd, the ones no one at the school took seriously. Wyatt and Henry had roomed together their first year and been inseparable ever since, especially when it came to torturing newbies.

  Wyatt turned his attention to Peter and Ethan, who stood to the side with their wands out, still trying to catch their breath. Ethan was scowling and gripped his wand tightly. Alison could see the angry energy radiating from him, while Peter was more frightened. Ethan hated being bested, especially when it was by two idiots picking on the new kids.

  “Come on, boys, we were just having a little bit of fun. Right, Henry?”

  “Oh yeah, just a bit of fun with the street rat and his mad-scientist friend.”

  Ethan gritted his teeth and balled his fists. “I’m not a street rat, and I barely know this kid. We share a room.”

  Wyatt swung his arm over Henry’s shoulder and leaned his head back. “Ahh, the memories. Remember when we were new freshy roommates?”

  Henry chuckled. “And we tied those two upperclassmen upside down to a tree somewhere out here?”

  “Sounds good to me.” Ethan gripped his wand tighter.

  Izzie sighed and shook her head, not understanding boys and their constant need to prove they were bigger and stronger than everyone else. She couldn’t remember being around boys before; her orphanage had been all girls. Kathleen, however, knew exactly what it was like, having grown up in coed private schools.

  “Tell everyone where your parents are right now.” Henry smiled proudly.

  “Belize. Our chauffeur dropped me and Henry off at school, of course.”

  “It was a Mercedes. What did you come in on, Ethan? Oh, that’s right—the school sent the groundskeeper to pick you up. The human.”

  Both Wyatt and Henry laughed loudly, irritating everyone at the stream. Kathleen wasn’t impressed, and even Aya looked like she wanted to throw a little magic their way. Ethan had had enough, though. He couldn’t bite his tongue any longer. He had promised to behave while he was here, but the injury these boys were causing was almost too much to bear.

  Alison went over to Ethan and put her hand on his shoulder. “It’s not worth it.”

  “Sure it is. These two assholes need someone to teach them a lesson. Why not me? Just a little zap to make it hard for them to walk for a couple of days.”

  “And you’ll be in detention when school hasn’t even started.”

  Ethan glanced at Alison, noticing she didn’t make eye contact with him. He shook his head and shrugged her hand off, then raised his wand up. Wyatt smacked Henry in the stomach and nodded in Ethan’s direction and both laughed even louder. Ethan breathed heavily and snarled. He swirled his wand over his head and shot out a steady stream of purple light. Wyatt and Henry grabbed each other and looked up as the energy snapped a large limb high in the tree above them.

  Wyatt shook his head. “Shit, come on man. Let’s get out of here.”

  Wyatt and Henry took off through the woods, running as fast as they could. Alison stepped away from Ethan and raised her shoulders. The limb plummeted to the ground, crashing hard and rolling over the edge of the ledge. Ethan put his wand in his pocket and nodded firmly at Peter.

  “You gotta get that wand in check. You almost took my head off back there.”

  Peter nodded and Emma got up and looked over the edge into the gully with a smirk.

  “Personally I think you handled those bullies just right. I don’t care if you are an upperclassman, rich, a jock—whatever—you don’t get to treat people that way.”

  “Exactly.” Ethan nodded again, finally noticing his surroundings. “Hey, this is a nice area. I’ll have to come down here for some R&R.”

  Kathleen threw her hands up and plopped down on a rock, and Ethan looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Peter walked to the edge of the stream and cupped a hand to scoop up some water. He pulled his wand out and swirled it around his hand, and a tiny water fairy danced across his hand for a moment before splashing back into the stream.

  Izzie smiled. “That’s really cool.”

  “It’s just using the elements and magic together, that’s all.” Peter shrugged, proud but not wanting to show it.

  Emma was still standing at the edge of the gulley and looking down to where the branch had hit. Her attention had been caught by something sparkling below. It looked like a hole, maybe a cavern or something, that the branch had broken through. The sides shimmered with black stones, and it gave off a magical glow that was hard to ignore.

  She waved at the others. “Hey guys, check this out. I think that branch punched through something. It looks like an underground cave or something.”

  The girls walked over and peered over the edge. Ethan narrowed his eyes, wondering if it was another trick, strolling over only after he saw Peter’s eyes widen. Emma was right; there was some sort of cavern below, and the hole was big enough for them to fit through. He was always up for a little exploring, but from the look of most of the girls, he wasn’t sure they would be.

  “I wonder what’s down there.” Kathleen looked curious, but couldn’t imagine actually crawling down there to check it out. As she had said before, she wasn’t a nature girl. The walk through the woods and the mossy patch by the stream was about as adventurous as she got.

  Alison realized that for the first time that day she didn’t feel awkward in the group. They were all acting normal around each other, like they had been friends for years. Their energy had calmed, something she hadn’t been sure would happen—except for Peter, who looked nervous.

  “Let’s check it out.”

  Kathleen turned to Alison in surprise. “Uh, no. I am not going in there.”

  “I will.” Emma raised her hand.

  Izzie nodded at Alison. “Me, too.”

  Alison turned to Ethan with a smile. “How about you?”

  “Hell, why not? I’ve slept in worse places than that.”

  8

  Ethan was the first one down, taking a leap over the edge and landing firmly in the leaves. Peter climbed down awkwardly and reached up to help Emma. Izzie looked at Alison and shrugged, then sat down and slid into the gulley. Aya went next, taking Ethan’s hand, her cheeks growing rosy red. Alison looked at Kathleen, whose energy showed she was pissed, then took Ethan’s hand and jumped down. Kathleen sighed and mustered enough magic to slowly float her down into the gulley.

  “Why does it not surprise me that I am climbing down into the depths of hell with you guys?”

  Alison smiled and walked to the opening, feeling for the edge of the stone stairs with her foot. She glanced at Izzie, whose energy was radiating curiosity, and shrugged again, stepping into th
e hole. One by one they entered, slowly making their way down while being careful not to touch anything.

  Izzie stopped at the bottom. “Can someone throw up a light?”

  Ethan swirled his wand, sending out several bright orbs that skipped along the walls before planting themselves like lanterns. “That should help.”

  Izzie ducked to pass through an earthen arch. After a few steps she stopped, her mouth dropping open as she looked at the immense damp cavern. Black crystals shimmered along the walls and stalactites jutted from the ceiling, water dripping from them into pools. Kathleen pushed ahead and stood next to Alison, crossing her arms.

  “Well, this is homey.”

  “I think it’s an adventure.”

  Kathleen snorted and looked across the cavern, squinting at something in the back corner. A crack in the roof let through just enough light for the object to be illuminated by the sun. Izzie and Kathleen looked at each other for a moment before walking over, being careful where they stepped. Alison could see the bright energy that emanated from the object, but the colors moved so fast she couldn’t read what it was. Kathleen gasped as they stopped.

  Alison still couldn’t make out what the object was. “What is it?”

  “It’s an egg of some sort.”

  Ethan came up beside them and stared down at the black egg whose specks of gold flickered in the sunlight. Kathleen looked back, only to find the others hadn’t moved from the archway, not willing to come in any farther. She rolled her eyes and sniffed.

  “Cowards.”

  Ethan sighed and stepped back, putting up his hands. “I think they might have the right idea. We should get out of here.”

  “No way!” Kathleen bent down in front of the egg, mesmerized by the swirling gold specks. “We should take this back to the mansion; see what comes of it.”

  “Are you nuts?” Ethan shook his head and waved his hands. “I’ve never seen anything like it. Who knows what kind of crazy creature will come bounding out of that thing.”

  Kathleen started to reach forward but stopped as Alison grabbed her arm and gave her a look advising caution. Kathleen nodded, and against Alison’s better judgment she slowly let go of Kathleen’s arm.

  Kathleen stepped forward and put both hands on the egg, feeling a surge of energy in her gut. She smiled, looking around before carefully picking up the egg and pausing for a reaction. Alison and Ethan looked all around as well, but nothing happened.

  “You guys are a trip.” Kathleen laughed. “What do you think this is, Indiana Jones? Trust me, there aren’t any booby traps.”

  Ethan shook his head and walked back to the others. Alison stared at the egg, unsure what to do next. “You can put it in my backpack so you aren’t walking through the mansion with a random black and golden egg in your hands.”

  “Good idea.” Kathleen motioned for Alison to turn and slipped the egg into her bag. Its energy flowed through the fabric and into Alison’s chest, giving her a warm sensation. She still couldn’t sense what the object was or if there was anything inside, but she suddenly felt the need to take it back to their room and protect it.

  “All right, it’s in there.” Kathleen dusted her hands off and took one last good look around the cavern to make sure there were no more. “Let’s get this thing back to our room and hide it. We don’t need Ms. Berens to snatch this baby right out from under us.”

  “Kathleen?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Did you feel...”

  “Feel what? The ungodly need to protect the thing? Yeah, but keep it between us. I don’t need the other ones running off to Berens.”

  “Right.”

  Kathleen put her hands up in victory and headed for the arch. Alison tightened the straps on her pack and followed her, bringing up the rear as they walked back through the tunnel and climbed into the light. When they reached the top, the sun was starting to sink in the sky.

  “We should get back, get this hidden, and get to the cafeteria for dinner. It’ll look suspicious that all of us are late on our first day here.”

  The guys climbed out of the gully first and pulled up Emma and Aya, then did the same for Izzie and Alison. Kathleen refused their help, using magic to get her up and out. Kathleen ran to the front of the group, leaving Izzie and Alison to bring up the rear.

  Izzie looked curiously at Alison, eyeing her bag. “Are you sure it’s safe to have that thing in there? I mean, we have no idea what it is.”

  “I think so,” Alison replied, looking down as she walked. “I don’t feel or see anything harmful in its energy.” She had no idea what was inside that thing, if anything, but she wanted to calm Izzie’s nerves…and she definitely didn’t want her to freak out and tell the headmistress. It was obvious she knew her pretty well.

  When they reached the mansion Ethan and Peter headed to their dorm and the five girls went to their wing, listening to the announcement from the intercom.

  “All students should wear their uniforms to the cafeteria for dinner,” Ms. Berens stated. “This is an assembly to meet and greet. Dinner will begin in approximately fifteen minutes.”

  The girls sped up, trying to keep blank faces so that they wouldn’t draw too much attention. One by one they filed into their room, Izzie closing the door behind them. Kathleen pulled the egg out of Alison’s backpack and the girls gathered closely. All eyes were wide as Emma reached out to touch the stone-like object.

  Kathleen slapped her hand away. “No need to put you in danger too. Alison and I have already touched it, but we have no idea what it is. Best keep a safe distance unless you absolutely have to pick it up.”

  “I have to agree.” Alison shook her head, looking down at the black on her hands.

  Kathleen surveyed the room. They had to hide it somewhere good; somewhere no one would think to look. Finally, she walked over and opened Alison’s top drawer, pushing her panties and socks to the sides. Alison frowned.

  “Why can’t it be your underwear drawer?”

  “Because my drawer has a lot of designer clothes, including my lingerie. I’m not putting an egg in there and having it hatch on my unmentionables.”

  “And mine are okay?”

  “I’ll make you a deal: if it hatches on your stuff I’ll take you shopping.”

  Alison raised an eyebrow, but knew Kathleen wasn’t going give in. “Fine.”

  Kathleen carefully set the egg down and stood back, watching as if it was suddenly going to do something. After a few moments of nothing Alison pushed her socks around it, creating a sort of nest. Carefully she shut the drawer, leaving it just a smidge cracked for light. Kathleen nodded happily and went over to her closet, pulling out a perfectly-pressed uniform. Alison reached into her wardrobe and pulled out her own, as Kathleen came over and dusted hair off the front for her. “That’s better.”

  Kathleen’s energy showed she wasn’t happy at having to wear a uniform, but Alison didn’t really care. It was what it was, and at least she would have some sort of uniformity with the others at the school—something she wanted in order to stay under the radar.

  When she had finished getting dressed, she smoothed her button-up blouse and pulled the blue cardigan tighter around her shoulders. Her skirt came to just above the knee and her socks were pulled up her calves. She slipped her feet into her brand-new loafers and ran her hands over her hair, unable to see what she looked like—not that she ever had. Across the room the other girls were dressing, and Izzie pulled her hair back in a low ponytail. She glanced at Kathleen, who had rolled her skirt halfway up her thigh. Izzie rolled her eyes and pulled on her cardigan, nodding at the others.

  It shocked Izzie that even though they were all dressed the same, they each had their own flair. Alison’s was Chuck Taylors, Emma had a rainbow pin on her sweater, Aya buttoned her blouse all the way to the top, and Kathleen, well, she was her own flair. Izzie didn’t have anything extra, but that was the way it had always been for her, it seemed.

  Kathleen finished up in the
mirror and walked to the center of the room, swaying her red hair back and forth. “All right, ladies, if we are going to keep an egg in a drawer in our room, we need assurance from each person that this will stay between us.”

  Emma glanced up. “I’m not gonna say anything.”

  Izzie nodded, glancing at Alison. “Me neither, unless it’s an emergency.”

  Aya nodded slowly but didn’t say anything, just grabbed her tote and threw it over her shoulder. Kathleen nodded and turned back to her bed, straightening the comforter and throwing her clothes in the closet. She shoved her suitcase under the bed as a bell tolled over the loudspeaker—the signal that dinner was served. Alison looked back at the dresser, where the streams of the egg’s energy burst from the crack. There was something about it that made her want to stay, but if she didn’t show up for dinner the first night it would raise suspicions.

  “All right, ladies.” Kathleen smiled. “Are we ready for our first dinner here at the school?”

  “Hell, yeah. I’m starving,” Izzie grumped.

  The rest of the girls nodded and waited for Kathleen to lead. Alison brought up the rear yet again.

  9

  After the girls walked through the dining hall doors, they stopped and looked out over the vast sea of students. They could tell the upperclassman easily from the others. They sat at their tables with serious looks on their faces and whispered to each other as they scanned the fresh meat. Izzie hated it, it felt like she was trapped in some soap opera. She just wanted to get to her schooling, knowing how important a scholarship really was. Alison scanned the crowd too, but instead of looking for age she looked for comforting energies. There were some, but the rest were mixed, some with envy, some pride, and others were too fast for her to really pinpoint.

  “Well, come on, girls! Find a seat.” The headmistress pushed them forward, motioning into the dining room.

  The tables each sat seven people and were almost all full. There was an empty table next to the seniors, but before they could even set foot in that direction Wyatt and his friend sat down. They looked at the girls and snickered, then returned their attention to each other. Emma looked to her right, finding a table in the corner. She tapped Kathleen on the shoulder and motioned to it.