Without bothering to change, we both flopped down on our beds. As I embraced the clean happy scent of my pillow, Rowan was already snoring. Shutting my eyes with the intention of welcoming sleep, I became distracted as my ears picked up on Kit and Cash whispering outside the door.
“Should we tell them?”
“Let’s not until we know for sure.”
I couldn’t make anything else out, and my need to sleep trumped my curiosity. Surrendering to the kingdom of blankets and sheets, I drifted off into dreamless oblivion.
The morning sun licked my face, waking me. Rolling over, I noticed Rowan was not twisted amongst her forest green blankets. Her laugh rang out from the corridor, and it sounded like she was talking with her brothers. There were other sounds too, the steps of multitudes of feet making their way down the hall, no doubt students of the third floor headed off to class. I heard snippets of conversation, people chatting on their phones, calling out to friends, it all sounded so delightfully normal. Stretching out under the white softness which covered my bed, I felt a strange emotion. I frowned at first while I tried to put my finger on it, and then a wide smile stretched across my face. I feel safe. For the first time in a long time, I was actually amongst people I considered friends. And even though the events of the last few days had been more than crazy, perhaps I would be able to take on this uncertain future. The warmth of the blankets soon called me back to sleep, and when I woke about twenty minutes later, there was note on my bedside table.
‘I’ve gone to class,
headmistress wants to see you when you’re ready!
:) - Ro”
Wiping the sleep out of my eyes, I sat up, and stretched out the length of my spine, enjoying a couple of solid cracks. I still have so many questions for Midwood, I don’t know where to start.
Selecting one of Rowan’s outfits, I went about making myself presentable enough to leave the dorm room. Hair brushed and body dressed, I slid out the door, locking it securely behind me with a satisfying click.
Heading down the staircase I couldn’t help but notice how all the colors seemed brighter and the cinnamon scent of the air more delightful. A half smile touched my lips. I’d heard the saying ‘today is the first day of the rest of your life’, and for whatever reason, I was really feeling those words this morning.
Hopping off the concrete steps and into the warm rays of the day, I had only been walking for a minute when a high voice called out to me.
“Nyminia, wait!”
Pivoting, I saw a haggard looking Farsky jogging to catch up. His typically slicked back hair was out of place, and dark bags hung under his eyes. He looks like crap. I stopped, crossed my arms, and gave him a look meant to strike him dead.
“What do you want?” I asked after he had come skidding to halt.
“I want to explai–”
“You know what, I don’t care.” Turning on my heel, I continued walking.
“Please, Nyminia!” Farsky’s voice was hushed and pleading.
He thinks he can act like he did last night, and show up like this?
“Look at me, Nyminia.”
Whirling around, I hurled my anger at him. “I’m looking at you! Do you know what I see? Doctor– I see a coward.” I saw his eyes flash. “I see a man who can’t put aside his own petty prejudice to help a person in need. And that is a kind of man I don’t need to talk to.”
“Nyminia, I have my reasons.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It does matter. I want you to understand.” Farsky pressed his hands together like he was praying.
“And why is that exactly.”
He remained quiet and glanced from side to side.
Is he wearing the same clothes from last night?
After a moment tainted by tension, he finally spoke, “you’re the most important magical person in the world right now. And I want you to know that I’m on your side.” Farsky glanced behind me as he sucked in a breath. “And that I would do almost anything to make sure you are happy and safe.”
Almost anything? As long as it doesn’t involve vampires, is that it? I sighed. Farsky struck me as a man who was constantly saying what was on his mind and not what was on his heart, this statement sounded different, out of character. Maybe I should hear him out?
“Alright, you have five minutes to explain yourself,” I replied.
“Could we go somewhere more private?”
“You have four minutes and thirty seconds.”
Farsky’s face turned red. “Like you Nyminia, I grew up without a family. But unlike you, I knew my birth parents, and my brothers, and my sisters. We were a large happy family, until one night.” Farsky’s eyes become clouded. “A group of rogue vampires entered our home. I was very young, and didn’t know anything about magic at that time. I couldn’t save my family. Everyone was slaughtered in their sleep, and drained completely of their blood.”
Wow, that’s heavy. A small twang of pity echoed in my chest for the young Fredrick.
“How did you escape?” I asked. Seriously, why would they leave a survivor?
He shoved his hands into his pockets. “I was sleeping over at a friend’s house that night.” His voice was barely a whisper. “We watched movies, played board games–” Farsky swallowed a shaky breath “–It was my last night as a child.”
“I’m sorry, Fred I didn’t realize,” I said quietly. He’s one part awkward, two parts tragic, shaken with crazy, and topped off with alleged genius.
“I wouldn’t usually share this about myself, but I wanted you to understand why I couldn’t bring myself to help Marcus.” He cast his eyes down. “I know not all vampires are the same, I just can’t be around any of them. I’m sorry he didn’t make it.”
“He survived, actually.” I crossed my arms.
Farsky’s gaze flashed up to meet mine, mouth open and eyes wide.
“I managed to save him,” I said, answering the unasked question.
The shock on his face turned to confusion, and then to concern.
“You didn’t–”
“Someone had to, and you wouldn’t. This has been a nice talk and all–” I shrugged “–but I’m meeting with the headmistress.”
“Of course,” Farsky said, his voice sounded far away. “Until next time, Nyminia.” He pronounced my name with heavy emphasis. After a small bow, Farsky excused himself and walked back the way he had came.
Walking across the grounds, I couldn’t help but feel a little shook up. Something about that conversation is bothering me. It’s more than just his story or how overly interested in me he is. Sighing, I did my best to put the funny feeling out of my mind. Before I knew it, I stood at the headmistress’s beautiful ornate door, high above the campus. Glancing at the vials, I shivered involuntarily before knocking.
“Come in!” Midwood called from the other side.
“Good morning, Headmistress,” I said, shutting the door behind me with a heavy clank.
“Good morning, Nyminia. How are you feeling?”
“Rested, surprisingly.”
“I am very happy to hear that. About last night, I’m so sorry–”
“Don’t worry about it, please. I worked it out with Marcus, I think he understands and respects that it was my decision.”
Midwood sighed, and the look of concern lifted from her face ever so slightly.
“If you don’t mind me asking, exactly how did someone’s murderous mother manage to get into my dorm building last night?” Because this seems like a major security issue.
“Mrs. Carmichael is, or rather was, a respected member of our board of directors.” Midwood sighed. “She regularly spends a lot of time on campus, working with vampire students who are in various states of the transition process,” she said, rubbing her arms. “According to Doctor Farsky it was one of the students who let her out of his office last night.”
“What will happen to her now?” I asked, pulling a loose thread off the bottom of my shirt.
“We’ve turned her and the weapon over to the supernatural authorities.” Midwood let her hands fall to her sides. “I can’t say what they’ll do next, but I’m positive you won’t have trouble from her again.”
I let out the breath I had been holding. I know Mrs. Carmichael was wrong in what she did, at the end of the day though she’s just a mom who lost her kid. Frowning, I looked down to my hands.
“Are you alright, dear?” Midwood’s voice was kind.
“Yes, thank you,” I said, doing my best to stifle any feelings of guilt.
“Good.” Midwood smiled. “Now, Nyminia, I want to reassure you that life here at RBU isn’t normally so–” she paused.
“Dangerous?” The word rang out as I filled in the blank.
Midwood nodded. “Yes, we strive to make this a place where all students can feel safe and accepted. I hope we haven’t ruined your opinion of our institution so far.”
Looking past Midwood, I caught sight of the blue leather book she had shown me, tucked tightly
into one of her overflowing shelves. “I understand I’m a bit of a special case and I can’t expect everything to go smoothly. But honestly, I would rather be here than–” the woman’s home, greyhound bus, or shelter “somewhere else.”
“Of course, child.” Midwood gazed at me. “I know you haven’t had much time to decide, but I believe it would help get you settled if you were to begin taking classes.”
I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. We’re seriously discussing classes now?
“Sorry?” Midwood asked, raising an eyebrow.
“It just seems so mundane compared to what’s been going on lately.”
“I want you to do your best to forget about the past few days. Don’t worry about dragons, the True Sacrifice, or vampires.” Midwood gripped my hand and gave me a warm smile. “I think a little routine is just what you need right now.”
Sitting down with Midwood amongst the towering walls of books in her office, we hobbled together a class schedule which included ‘The Source of Magic’, ‘Spell Casting’, ‘Supernatural and Supernormal Relations’, ‘Theory of Elemental Magic’, and ‘History of Medieval Magic’.
So I’m finally attending Uni, but instead of ‘Public Relations’ and ‘Accounting 101’, my class schedule looks like it was written by a member of the occult. This is my life now.
“You’ll enjoy spell casting.” Midwood’s voice brought me back to the present. “But be prepared to be the center of attention. We only have one other fire mage on campus, and five total at most in the entire magic-kind community.” She placed a hand on her beaded necklace. “Once the other students see you perform your magic, they will be surprised to say the least.”
I nodded. Thanks for the heads up. Shifting in my seat, I did my best to quiet the nervous feeling growing in my gut. My strong aversion to being the center of attention mixed with my inexperience as a magic user was giving me anxiety already. And only one other fire mage on campus? Something tells me I already know who it is. I asked Midwood about Farsky, but she simply deflected my question. Instead, she spouted some line about how it’s personal, and not her place to divulge that information.
Fire magic being so rare, I guess those who use it aren’t keen on everyone knowing.
When we had finally completed my enrollments, a hollow knock sounded from the entrance to the office. We both turned to look, and saw Professor Starling’s head appear.
“Hello, Nyminia, you don’t mind if I borrow the Headmistress for a moment do you?”
“Hello, Professor,” I replied. I haven’t asked all my questions yet. The look on Starling’s face, albeit calm, had a tinge of urgency to it. Guess I’ll just come back later. “Of course I don’t mind, we were just finishing anyway.” Gathering my things, I moved towards the door.
“There is one last thing,” Midwood said, snagging my attention. “Avoid going out late at night, or straying too far from campus in the dark.” Her eyes darted to the window.
“Is there something I should be looking out for?” I asked.
“Not at all. These are just the normal precautions which we recommend to all our daytime students,” Midwood answered.
Well that doesn’t sound incredibly suspicious at all. Nodding and smiling politely, I turned and walked past Starling and out into the empty hallway.
Classes start tomorrow! I chuckled to myself. And I’ll be learning about magic!
I did my best to focus on this and banish the negative feelings which had sprung up from the past few days. Besides, I’m safe now right? I can properly start my new life. And speaking of which.... I looked towards the library.
My feet moved across the spongy grass of the quad, and the back of my neck soaked in the the yellow sun. I could feel the warmth travel down my spine, burrowing into my bones. I felt alive, and a part of something bigger than myself. I can’t wait to learn more about my new world.
As I entered the grand glass building, I admired the way the multicolored light danced across my skin. Looking up into the domed roof, I couldn’t tell if it was the excitement of classes, the uncertainty of my future, or simply the beauty of what lay before me that made my heart race.
Bringing my gaze back to earth, my eyes lit upon another sight which made my pulse jump in my throat. Marcus worked on the far side of the library, re-arranging dark colored books on a shelf. I padded quietly over to him, and cursed myself for not having thought of something to say before I arrived. Can I just say hi? Or is that not enough? ‘Hello my magical true love life partner vampire guy’ is probably too much. I should have practiced at home this morning.
As silent as I thought I was being, Marcus’s head popped up, turning to meet my eyes. He smiled and waved. Whew, he’s not running in the other direction. He heard me coming? I guess the guy probably has super vampire senses or something. I wonder if it’s weird to ask him for a book on vampires? I shook the thoughts out of my head, and returned his smile.
“Afternoon, Nyminia.” He placed the last book in his hands on the shelf. “I wasn’t sure I would see you today.”
“But sir! I am a woman of my word!” I said, placing my hand over my heart and opening my mouth in mock offense.
Marcus chuckled, a sound that made me feel happy all over. Happy, and like I was in some sort of lame vampire romance movie. Although I have to admit, judging popular culture and actually living it– that’s two very different things.
I suddenly realized that I had become lost in my own thoughts, and again dropped the conversational ball. Marcus was smiling sheepishly at me, and literally for the love of all that was holy I could not think of something to say that wasn’t ‘want to grab a bite?’ Feeling like a dork, I coughed, hoping to break the silence.
“Oh, um,” he fumbled, before falling silent again. Finally, he sighed, and let the tension flow out of his shoulders. “I’m really sorry. It’s just that I haven’t done anything like this in a really long time.”
“Well, if you mean you haven’t flirted with someone in a long time, then don’t worry, we’re in the same boat..”
A twinkle appeared in Marcus’s eye. “So, we’re flirting?”
I gave him a playful whack on the arm, which sent an electric shiver down mine.
“Nope.” Oh dear lord, I’m flirting with him! I don’t know who I am anymore. I took a deep breath while I shook out my hand. Just get a grip on yourself Nym, be cool. “I was thinking we could just talk a bit and get to know each other, If that sounds good to you?”
“Of course. Let’s head outside?”
I nodded. As we walked together towards the exit, I tore my attention from Marcus long enough to realize that most of the students in the library no longer had their noses buried in books. In fact, they were quite obviously eyeing me and, well, the librarian. Their faces didn’t seem unkind in any way, more curious than anything. I kept my head down as we made our way out into the fresh air. In my experience, being the center of attention had never brought on a
nything positive.
CHAPTER 14
KISS LIKE FIRE
So what do I talk with a thousand-year-old vampire about when we’re thinking about dating each other? The weather, apparently. I smiled. Also the color of the sky, the history of the grounds, and anecdotes about some of the more eccentric gardening staff. As it turned out, the person who’d created the time rift for the grove pines was currently serving the second lifetime of his three-lifetime sentence for that particularly illegal bit of magic.
“He doesn’t regret it either!” Marcus laughed. “I look forward to seeing him back at work in two hundred years or so. Frank is always good for a story.”
I’ve never enjoyed small talk, but he makes it easy. Decades of practice maybe?
Once we had gotten over the initial awkwardness associated with ‘our situation’, as we had taken to calling it, conversation flowed easily.
We walked down a path through the woods on the eastern side of the library, and I enjoyed the bright scent of the pines. After another entertaining story of life on campus, we emerged from the forest and stood on the shore of the glistening blue lake. The rays of the day played with the small waves the breeze conjured, light reflecting off of them and across Marcus’s face.
“Beautiful,” I said as I stood in awe.
“It’s often quiet here, the water mages are kind enough to let me come and go as I please.” He lifted his face to the sun. “It’s my favorite place to sit and clear my thoughts from time to time.”
“I can see why,” I said, sighing. The water made a rhythmic sound as it lapped against the earthy beach. It’s so calming.
Marcus eased his body down to sit on the soft green grass.
“Nyminia, I’m sure you have some questions,” he said as I joined him on the ground. “I want you to know that you can ask me anything, and I will answer you truthfully.”
Of Flesh and Fire - Book I: Everything Will Burn Page 11
