Absorb: Book One of the Forgotten Affinities Series

by Analeigh Ford

  4

  Octavia

  As soon as I am out in the hall, I unzip the front pocket of my backpack. “Damn it.” I glance up and see Flynn about to disappear down the stairs. “Hey, you!”

  He doesn’t turn back. I don’t know why I expected anything else.

  I am left, instead, with a shattered phone screen and three teachers hovering uncomfortably close to me. The only positive is that the glasses Wednesday lent me are still intact.

  Speaking of Wednesday…I hurry down the hall before any of the teachers can try and stop me. I don’t like the way that Psychic teacher looked at me after I showed them my four brands.

  Four brands. Four boys. What am I supposed to do about all…that?

  Fortunately, I don’t have to go hunting through this maze of a place to find Wednesday. She is waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs.

  “What happened?” she asks. “Someone said something about you not passing the affinity ritual, but I knew that couldn’t be true.” Her pale face says otherwise.

  “No,” I say, shaking my head. I still don’t know what to think of everything. I spot Flynn storming off somewhere else. Just my luck to get paired with him. Thankfully I have another Psychic who may turn out to be slightly less unpleasant. I try not to blush as the image of Cedric comes to mind. Then I remember what he said about “good families” and I blush even deeper, this time for an entirely different reason.

  “Wait, what? Why are you turning so red?”

  I lower my voice. “I didn’t get one affinity, I got three. Or four. I’m not really sure.”

  Wednesday blinks a few times and then giggles nervously. “What do you mean?”

  “It means...” I lose my voice as Kendall appears behind her. It has a habit of doing that whenever he’s around. Wednesday and I used to make fun of the fact that no one could tell them apart since they looked so alike. And then one day…they just didn’t any more. In a good way.

  Not that Wednesday isn’t objectively attractive, it’s just that Kendall is more than objectively attractive. He’s subjectively beautiful. The only feature they share now is the shaggy too-long blonde hair he likes to hide behind whenever he notices someone staring. Speaking of...I deliberately try to make myself look away. After all, he is my best friend’s brother.

  My best friend’s brother who keeps staring down at his arm as if in some kind of trance, or shock, or both.

  Wednesday catches me staring and gushes, “Kendall’s pair is already here! But we haven’t...”

  She trails off as she looks down at my own wrists. I try to tug down the sleeves of my sweater, but she grabs my arm before I can and turns it over. Sure enough, my Earth brand is glowing blue.

  “What the hell? You two?” She looks at the two of us. I avoid making eye contact with Kendall, but I can’t stop the flutter in my stomach. Kendall, really? It shouldn’t be that surprising. Not as much as having three other pairings. I want to look up to see if Kendall is pleased or not, but Wednesday is examining my wrists so feverishly that I can’t ignore her. “There are four of them.”

  I yank my hands away as Kendall’s head snaps in our direction.

  “Octavia?” His voice comes out like an accusation.

  “I’ve been paired for each one of my affinities,” I say. “And then some.”

  Wednesday’s brow furrows. “That can’t be right. Your paired is supposed to help balance out your abilities. Keep you safe. Grounded. How are you supposed to do that with three…”

  “Four.”

  “With four paired, then?”

  I blush again. “I don’t know! I only just found out. I’m as surprised as you.”

  Wednesday turns over her own wrist. The skin is smooth and unblemished. When I don’t respond right away, she throws up her arms and lets out an exasperated sigh. “I’m supposed to have the brand, even if my pair hasn’t started school yet!”

  Oops. I feign a shocked expression, but it doesn’t pass.

  “I told you about all of this,” she says.

  “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” I can see her spiraling already. The last time she got this angry with me we didn’t talk for a month over winter break. That’s the last thing I want to happen right now. I need her. More than ever. “Tell me again. I’m all ears.”

  Her sigh is resigned this time. “The affinity ritual literally brands you with a marker that is supposed to tell you when your perfect partner has gone through the affinity ritual as well. It glows bright right after their initiation, and then again whenever you are near them.”

  “But you don’t have one.”

  Wednesday rubs a thumb across her wrist. “I asked the nurse about it while you were gone. She told me to wait a couple of days and see if it appears.”

  “See!” I say, forcing false confidence into my voice. “Everything is going to be fine.” I don’t believe it, and I know neither does she. But there is too much to think about. Me and my four brands, her lack of one.

  I suddenly realize we are now alone. Kendall has disappeared. He is so quiet, I didn’t even notice him leave. Wednesday sees my gaze shift, and glances over her shoulder as well. I feel a mixture of disappointment and relief. Disappointment that he is gone, and relief that it means I don’t have to deal him yet.

  Paired with Kendall.

  I can’t pretend I haven’t thought about it once or twice, but this wasn’t how I imagined it. None of this is how I imagined it.

  My stomach growls at exactly the same time as Wednesday’s, and neither of us can help but crack a grin. We may disagree, and quite often, but the one thing we can always agree on is food. Lots of it, and frequently.

  There is a banquet being thrown in honor of the new initiates, but as soon as we arrive, we know there will be no blending into this crowd. We have barely so much as stopped in the doorway when I overhear someone saying my name.

  When I glance in the direction where it came from, a group of girls all duck their heads and pretend they weren’t staring at us. The table beside them also hastily looks away. Man, word travels fast here.

  I start scanning the room for any empty seats—preferably alone in a corner somewhere. I catch a glimpse of leather, and then see a very wet-looking Draven start getting up out of his seat. I think he is about to wave me over.

  He is surrounded by the most obvious Ritual Mages I’ve ever seen. Wednesday’s face goes white when she sees them. Not a good move to sit there on our very first day. Not if we want to get along with anyone else.

  I take her hand and drag her over to the closest thing to us. I have to grab a chair from another table and squeeze it in between Wednesday and a dark-haired girl I am pretty sure is an Earth Mage from the look of her. Her eyes are too wide and innocent for a Psychic Mage, and she doesn’t exactly fit the whole goth Ritual Mage vibe.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see Draven sit back down in his seat. I should work on my feelings towards Ritual Mages. I am one too, now, or at least I might be.

  A plate and food appears before me. I don’t have to wait to be invited to eat. I grab a steaming roll and start slathering it with butter. I have just shoved half of it in my mouth when Wednesday nudges my shoulder.

  “Uh oh,” she says. “I sense trouble.”

  I glance over in the direction she is looking, and immediately make eye contact with Cedric. He’s sitting next to a girl so stunningly attractive that I am immediately overwhelmed with jealousy. He is paired to me, after all. But she shoots me a look to tell me that this pairing thing may be more complicated than I thought.

  “Oh, did you get paired up with the principal’s son?”

  I force myself to look away from the invisible daggers being thrown my way. The girl beside me is craning her neck as conspicuously as possible in their direction.

  “Um, sort of,” I say once I’ve forced myself to swallow. My throat is suddenly very dry, and I am not as hungry as I thought I was.

  “My name is Camilla,” she says. She nods at me
and Wednesday. “How about you?”

  Wednesday very carefully lowers her hands down to her lap.

  “What do you mean?” she says.

  “I mean, it’s all anyone is talking about. My paired isn’t at the school yet, so I will just have to wait until next year I guess.”

  Wednesday starts playing with the bottom of the tablecloth, trying to use it to cover up the naked skin of her arms. Right. I’m not the only person struggling with the results of today’s affinity ritual.

  “You know, I’m actually not feeling so well,” I say.

  The girl nods at me little too eagerly. “It’s probably just nerves. Not everyone gets three magical affinities in one day,” she says.

  “Right,” I say. “That’s why we are leaving now. Thanks for the reminder.”

  I push my chair back, and without giving Wednesday the opportunity to protest, tug her after me as we duck out of the banquet hall. I sneak one longing look at something smothered in melted cheese as we go.

  We slow down as soon as we are out of eyesight. I can still hear the clink of glasses and the dull thrum of many voices.

  “Thanks for that,” Wednesday says. She runs one hand up the length of her forearm.

  To be honest, I’m not sure what to do. Wednesday has always been the strong one, the sure one. Seeing her so unsettled makes me anxious. So I do what I do best. I evade.

  “I bet there are still a couple bagels squished in here somewhere,” I say, patting the top of my backpack.

  “Oh yay,” Wednesday says, her tone dry. I’m glad to see her sarcasm has at least emerged unscathed. “Nothing says ‘welcome to your new life’ like stale bagels.”

  “I know what you were trying to do there, but it didn’t work. We are basically in Brooklyn, and bagels are kind of their thing. What, don’t roll your eyes at me!”

  Wednesday tries to look indifferent, but I can tell she’s actually pleased. And tired. So tired. It’s been an exhausting day for both of us.

  I’ve been at this academy for less than a day, and I’ve already been singled out. I am not going through the same thing as everyone else. There is something wrong with me.

  I try to tell myself that it won’t always be this way. I’ll get this affinity thing sorted out. I’ll figure out what to do about the four boys I am paired with. There will be other banquets. And by then, I hope as we walk briskly away before we can be spotted by anyone else, maybe I’ll actually feel like I belong.

  5

  Kendall

  The rest of the new class is settling down to a banquet dinner, so I find a seat as close to the back as possible and slouch into it without bothering to see who I am sitting with. I try not to draw any attention to myself, but that doesn’t seem to be a problem. Everyone is too engaged in trying to look like they are paying attention to a speech the principal is giving. It’s the usual stuff about having a safe year, welcoming the new class of mages, and reminding everyone that performing magic outside of school-sanctioned areas is cause for expulsion...that sort of thing.

  But I can’t stop thinking about Octavia. I know it’s wrong, and I’ve tried so hard not to let it show, but I’ve always had a thing for her. Ever since she met me and Wednesday in the first grade, I knew right away she was the girl for me. She was smart, and witty, and stubborn—even all the way back then. Now, well...she is all that and beautiful, too.

  I grab the drink closest to me and chug it. Today did not go at all as planned. Part of me always knew, always hoped that we would be magically paired. I may have done a few things to make sure that happened as well, just in case we all got surprised and discovered I was a Ritual Mage. Nothing ever came of it, obviously; Earth Mage and all. Then there was the moment where I knew we had been paired, and I...

  I shake my head.

  Whatever made me think I could have her, I don’t know. I let my hair fall down over my face as I bow my head. The glass in front of me magically refills. I want to appreciate the magic, but instead I grab it and throw it back again. It tastes a bit like maple syrup. It’s cold at first in my mouth but warms and calms me as it slides down my throat. For a second, I forget the darkness clouding my mind.

  Then someone plops into the seat beside me and knocks the rest of the glass into my lap. The liquid sloshes all over me and the guy beside me, who, until this moment I haven’t noticed. He jumps up, swearing at me like it’s somehow my fault.

  “Watch it,” he growls. He and I make eye contact, and we both frown. It’s that boy Draven. I overheard him talking to Octavia earlier. I don’t think he knows who I am, but I’m not about to apologize to another one of the boys she’s paired with.

  I stand up, letting the rest of the liquid dribble down my chin. A few people at the table behind us crane their necks back to see what’s causing the commotion. It isn’t until now that I feel myself wavering on my feet a bit. I feel lightheaded, and my eyes don’t seem to focus right.

  Draven cracks a wicked grin. “You’ve never had Salamander Brandy, have you?”

  I choke. “Salamander what?”

  Draven only smiles wider and takes a long draft of his. “Don’t worry,” he says, “It doesn’t actually have brandy in it.”

  I can’t find the bathrooms in the hall, so I lean against one of the marble statues by the entrance and vomit behind it instead.

  What an idiot. I slump down to the floor. Whatever was in that drink is still affecting my head. I keep getting these little blips of how the room must look to those without The Sight. I see rusted doors, loose newspaper flitting about, crumbling tiles on the wall. Man, what a drab world Octavia has lived in up until now. I never imagined it could be so bad.

  I hear a noise above me and peer up at the statue towering overhead. It peers right back.

  “In the future,” it, or he, says, “I’d appreciate it if you gave me fair warning before you expelled the contents of your stomach on me.”

  I scramble to my feet and back away. Another voice startles me from behind.

  “You must be one of the new ones.” I whirl around. The second marble statue is leaning over to look down at me a little too closely for comfort. “Are you a boy, or a girl?”

  “A…a boy,” I stammer. The second statue straightens up as the other one continues to twist its upper torso to try and see the vomit behind it.

  “Well, I’m sure you’ve heard the news.”

  “Now is not the time for gossip,” the first statue says. It tries reaching around to wipe off the backs of its legs, but its motion is too limited. It screws up its face as much as the carved stone will allow it to instead.

  I back away slowly. I don’t know what to think of these two moving statues, but I am sure I don’t want to be within arm’s reach.

  “Some girl cheated the affinity ritual,” he says. “I heard the principal talking about it, so the news is good, I promise.”

  My stomach drops. “What did he say?”

  The statue raises an eyebrow. “All good information comes at a price,” he says.

  “Whatever you want.” The words are tumbling out of my mouth before I have time to consider the consequences. I have no idea what a living stone statue could possibly want.

  His eyes grow wide and he looks between me and the other statue. For a second, his eyes linger on my chest. “I want your shirt,” he says.

  My eyes wander down to the rest of his naked body. “Only my shirt?”

  He looks offended, so I hastily pull it over my head and toss it to him without a second thought. He struggles to put it on and ends up with one arm in it and the rest draped over his shoulder. But he seems content.

  “I overheard the principal discussing the issue with the rest of the teachers,” he says. “I’ve never liked that Psychic one. He always looks at us like he knows our thoughts, doesn’t he Drummel?”

  The statue with the shirt looks over at the one covered in vomit, who’s name I guess is Drummel. He is still engrossed in the mess covering his backside.


  “Can’t you see I’m a bit busy, Harvel?”

  I try to steer the conversation back to Octavia.

  “You were saying something about the girl with the three affinities, right?”

  Harvel looks back my way. “Yes. Right. They are going to make her choose just one by Homecoming.”

  “Isn’t that in two weeks?”

  “And it is going to be splendid!”

  The two statues start gushing about how they are going to be draped in fine gold cloth for the event.

  Only two weeks? How is that supposed to give Octavia enough time to figure out what magic she has a true affinity to? I overheard what she was telling Wednesday earlier. Do they even know for sure that it was a mistake?

  I try to get their attention one more time. “Did anyone say what would happen if she couldn’t decide by then?”

  Harvel and Drummel look my way. Their faces harden for a moment. It is Harvel who speaks first. “She’ll be stripped of her powers, of course.”

  Drummel nods. “That’s what they do to the naughty ones.”

  And just as quickly, they are back to discussing the clothes they would wear if they had legs that weren’t attached to giant blocks of marble. It is not likely I am going to get any more information out of them.

  Harvel and Drummel. These two could come in handy.

  I have to tell Octavia what the principal is planning.

  Choose. They are going to make her choose.

  I feel the world around me ebbing in and out. I know it is some combination of the vile, hallucinogenic drink and my own thoughts, but that doesn’t stop me from disappearing inside my own head.

  Octavia. The girl I’ve had a crush on for a decade. The only girl I’ve ever had eyes for. The girl who I have feelings so strong for...even I am afraid to name them. For a brief second, I thought she was mine. If what the statues say is true, then what kind of chance do I really stand that she’ll choose me?