The Arch Stone: Foxway Academy: Book 1

by Adam Faulkner

  I thought for a moment.

  “Mum’s working today anyway, so I can probably stick around for a bit.” I decided.

  3

  I wasn’t quite sure what I was expecting from a party at a magic school. I’m still not quite sure, to be honest. But, all the same, here I was, in the middle of the Nightrain Dorm, staring at what appeared to be a complete shit-storm. I had only been to a couple of parties at home, and I could only remember one of them (It’s a long story. Probably). There weren’t a whole lot of people who held parties at my school, and I wasn’t going to search around for them. They were generally just loud, mostly drunk, but generally fun times. This seemed to be just about the same. Plus magic. Like, lots of magic. A group of students in one corner seemed to be taking the concept of ‘getting high’ very literally, almost touching the ceiling. I smelt burning. I really hoped that it was pizza, given the alternatives.

  “So… Welcome to Nightrain Dorm.” Leigh announced.

  “It’s… Weird…”

  “You’ll get used to it.” Matt decided.

  He condescendingly patted me on the back as he walked off to a group of other students. They might have been his friends. He might have been trying too hard. I honestly couldn’t tell.

  Leigh turned to me.

  “So, you want a drink?” she asked.

  “It’s barely the afternoon…”

  “It’s fine. One of the Third -Years managed to hook up an enchantment. Purges alcohol from the body when you cross it.” she explained. “Basically, we can get as drunk as we like, but we’ll be fine afterwards.”

  I squirmed.

  “What’s up, have some fun!”

  “I… Think I’ll stick to the light stuff, if it’s alright. I don’t really like the idea of relying on some mysterious enchantment to keep me sober…”

  “Suit yourself.” Leigh chirped, before disappearing away herself to go and find some kind of alcohol. Of course, that left me standing on my own in the middle of a house full of pissed Magicals, without anyone to talk to.

  I looked around for anyone else in my position. There was a group huddled in the corner, looking more than a little awkward. A group of girls were mingling with a group of disturbingly cool-looking boys. It was weird, actually. Assuming that Matt and Leigh hadn’t been taking the piss when they explained how the dorms worked, you could really tell which dorms everyone came from. Which I suppose explains why I was standing on my own.

  After a couple of minutes looking for someone to talk to (By which point I had completely lost track of Matt and Leigh) I decided to take the opportunity (The opportunity being that everyone else was too drunk to notice me) to have a little explore around the dorm.

  The Nightrain Dorm, like, I assume, the rest of them, consisted of a four-floored faux-Victorian look. When I say ‘Faux-Victorian’ I literally mean it looked like it was designed to look like it was made in the 1800s. Not that it did an amazing job, but the slightly off feel did make an interesting atmosphere. The ground floor was the main floor, obviously, and that was where the living room, kitchens (There were three) and other various recreational facilities that would probably be destroyed by the end of the day. The ground-floor stairs seemed very ornate, the sort of thing you’d find in a proper Victorian mansion; the kind that you get dragged to on bored days in the summer holidays. The stairs up to the second floor were more conventional, like the sort of stairs you’d find in a hotel, or something like that. The top three were all residential floors. The dorms were pretty normal, nothing that interesting. They were all locked, so I didn’t get a good look, but the doors looked like any other hotel or boarding school. There was a staircase that led up to the roof. Nothing up there. When things started to get strange was when I found my way to the cellar.

  The first thing that stuck out was that the stairs down to it were on the first floor. They completely skipped the ground floor. I mean, that’s weird, right? I thought so, at least. Admittedly, I didn’t think it was strange enough to not go down there despite the weirdness. So I did. And that was when everything got really, really strange.

  I was expecting the cellar to be dark. There didn’t seem to be any kind of light switched on the way up, so I think it was a fair assumption. But apparently it was the wrong one. The stairway seemed light. It took me far too long to work out why. The walls were glowing. I mean, it’s not like it was necessarily surprising. It might not have even been magic. I’m sure there are plenty of scientific reasons why a wall could glow on its own. I kind of shrugged it off and kept walking down. The stairs felt like they went on forever. But, they didn’t, and eventually I found myself in a room. The walls were glowing a strange, tealish colour, and seemed to be made from some strange, translucent crystal.

  “What the hell is this place…” I muttered. I searched around, as best as I could with the limited light. All I could really make out was a chest in the middle of the room. I moved forward to get a little closer. As I reached towards the chest, the entire room lit up.

  “Shit…” I muttered as I looked around.

  “You know, I’m impressed that you discovered this place.” A voice said from behind me.

  “Why do people keep doing that to me today…” I grunted as I turned around to face Greyford. “I didn’t mean to… I wasn’t going to take anything…” I quickly defended myself.

  Greyford shook his head.

  “Oh, no, by all means. If you’ve found this place, then what is in that chest belongs to you.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “This room was designed to only be able to be found by one person,” he explained. “Apparently, that is you. Now, all that is left is for you to open the box.” he told me.

  “What’s inside it?”

  “Something powerful. Very powerful, in the right hands. Apocalyptic in the wrong ones.”

  “Oh, no pressure then…” I grumbled.

  I slowly opened the chest. Inside was a crystal, attached to a string. The crystal was almost perfectly clear, and about the size of an unshelled peanut (I know that’s a shit description. It’s the best I can do). I picked it up. The second I touched it, it turned the same strange blue colour as my eyes.

  “What is this?” I asked.

  Greyford smiled.

  “That’s for you to work out. Put it on.” he suggested.

  It looked like it was probably designed as a pendant or necklace of sorts. I wasn’t too keen on stuff like that, so I tied it around my wrist.

  “That’s a somewhat unorthodox style…” he commented. “Though, I suppose it doesn’t really matter.”

  “So, what’s going on here?” I questioned. “You can’t just leave me with this without telling me anything.”

  “I can’t tell you anything straight away. And neither can you. If anyone asks, that crystal is just a piece of jewellery. It’s important,” Greyford asserted. “Promise me.”

  “Sure… I’ll keep it quiet. You are going to tell me why though, at some point,” I told him. Not that I had any power at all in this situation, but, you know, I thought I might as well try.

  “When you’re ready…” Greyford mysteriously answered, before turning and walking away. I stood still for a moment, looking at the crystal tied around my wrist.

  “Seriously…” I grunted. I looked around. “Now, how do I get out of here again?”

  I eventually made my way out of the cellar and back down to the ground floor. The party was still at full strength. The only difference is, after my little experience, I somehow felt even more isolated. It’s strange how secrets can do that.

  “Hey, hold this for a second!” Leigh pushed an overflowing cup of something into my hands. I looked up at her as she went off to dance.

  “Holy shit…” I sighed. Matt walked up and took the drink off me, taking a gulp before handing it back to me.

  “Hey…” he slurred.

  “That’s Leigh’s drink, you know…” I told him. He stared at the drink b
ewilderedly.

  “Oh, is it… Oh well…”

  “How much have you had to drink?”

  “I dunno… six?”

  “Six what?”

  “… Alcohol?” he suggested hopefully. I rolled my eyes.

  “Aren’t you going to have anything?” he asked. Somehow, with his inhibitions screwed up by the alcohol, he actually seemed politer. Go figure… I shook my head.

  “I’m alright, don’t worry about it.”

  “Oh, okay then…” Matt drunkenly replied as he disappeared off into the crowd, still with Leigh’s drink.

  “Okay, I’m done with this…” I decided. I checked the time on my phone. “I should look for Raven…”

  I turned around and walked out of the Nightrain Dorm. I figured Matt and Leigh would be fine with me leaving, so I figured I might as well.

  The dorms were arranged in a circular pattern, with enough space between them so they felt very separate. Each house had a garden around the back, and there was a communal yard area in the middle.

  I walked around the circle, until I came to Umbra, where Matt had told me Raven lived. Much as I resented my sister being called an ‘emo’, I have to admit that the description was accurate. The ground floor in Umbra Dorm was dim and empty, for the most part. There were a couple of chairs, but compared to the posters all over Nightrain, it felt much more restrained. Still, strangely, there was something about it that made it feel homier than Nightrain did. Though that might have been the lack of a hundred drunk students…

  “You looking for someone?” A boy, sitting on a chair reading, asked.

  “Raven Blake,” I replied. “I’m in the right place, right?”

  The boy nodded. Silence.

  “I’m Emilie, by the way.” I held out my hand. The boy nodded again. Silence. “Are you alright?” I asked, “because, normally when people ignore me, either I’ve done something to them, or there’s something wrong with them. So, what’s up?”

  The boy sighed.

  “I’m fine. I was trying to concentrate on my book. And I would be if you weren’t pestering me. Blake’s on the second floor. Room 34.”

  “Okay…” I replied, a little confused. “Thanks…”

  I made my way up to the second floor. There wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary in its layout; two opposite rows of doors, stretching down along the corridor. I searched until I found room 34 and knocked on the door.

  “Hey, Raven? It’s me,” I called in.

  The door opened to show a short, red-haired girl with thin-framed glasses.

  “Oh! Hello!” she enthusiastically greeted.

  This is not what I was expecting. Is this Raven’s roommate? I thought to myself.

  The girl turned around.

  “Raven! Someone here for you!” she shouted into the room. “I think it’s your evil twin!”

  “Well, you’re half right.” I smiled. “She’s the evil one,” I whispered.

  “Well, that I can believe,” the girl laughed. “My name’s Mary, by the way. Mary Merriway.” she stuck out her hand. I shook it and smiled.

  “Emilie George.” I introduced myself as Raven came to the door. “Hey.” I greeted.

  “Emilie… Hello… Sorry, how did you find this place?” Raven asked.

  “Matt told me you were in this dorm, the weirdo reading downstairs told me you were in this room. I didn’t think you’d mind.”

  Raven shook her head.

  “No, it’s fine. Come in.”

  I smiled and walked into the room. It was small. Not cramped, but small. There were two beds, one on each side, and a desk at the end of each bed. The walls were painted grey. The first thing I noticed was a massive difference between the two different sides of the room. Raven’s side was, in contrast to her polite, restrained personality, a total mess, with clothes and books half-heartedly shoved under her bed. On the other side of the coin, Mary, who in the two minutes I had known her already came across as completely insane, seemed to keep her side of the room immaculate. Like, scarily tidy. OCD levels tidy. Then again, slightly disturbing as the tidiness was, Raven probably could have taken some lessons from Mary. I stood around awkwardly for about a minute before anyone said anything.

  “So… Do you want a drink?” Raven asked.

  “Tea?” I requested. Raven nodded.

  She walked through a door into a very small-looking kitchen. Though, to be honest, I was somewhat surprised that the rooms had kitchens at all, so I suppose it was hard to complain. Anyway, after Raven left, I was left with Mary.

  “So, you’re Raven’s twin sister?” she asked. I nodded. “Since when?”

  “Well, since we were born,” I joked. “Our birth mother gave us up for adoption. I ended up with my mum. She’s never really had any interest in relationships or anything, but didn’t like being alone, so she ended up with me. Raven ended up with Evaline. We grew up completely apart. I never even knew magic existed. Until about a week ago. I was attacked by another Magical. Raven saved me. And here I am.” I explained.

  Mary almost jumped off her bed.

  “That’s so cool! And to think that Fire-bird just happened to be there as well! It’s like fate or something!”

  For some reason, her calling Raven ‘Fire-bird’, for the first time didn’t feel like someone were taking the piss. Whether or not Raven thought of it that way, I was started to get the impression that at least Mary considered herself Raven’s friend. I shook my head.

  “I don’t think fate’s got anything to do with it,” I admitted. “Though it is strange. Well timed, at best.

  Mary thought for a moment. She shrugged.

  “I don’t know. I never really think about fate, to be honest. But I’m not sure you’re supposed to.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean… I mean that even if fate isn’t an actual thing, maybe it’s one of those things that you can just believe in. Maybe there is a logical reason that you two met. But… But does it really matter? You know each other now, and that’s the important thing. You don’t need to think about it.”

  I thought about it for a second, and nodded.

  “You know, I never thought of it like that.” I was starting to get impressed by this girl, actually. She seemed a lot smarter than our initial introduction put across.

  Raven walked back into the room with two cups of tea.

  “What were you two talking about?” she asked.

  We spent the rest of the afternoon talking. Not about much in particular, just talking. It was nice.

  “So, you made any other friends today?” Mary asked.

  “I saw you talking to the Silvemists?” Raven noted.

  Mary coughed on her tea.

  “Matt and Leigh Silvemist?” she spluttered. “I feel sorry for you.”

  I laughed.

  “They’re… I’m not quite sure what they are, actually… What’s that Flamel girl’s problem though?”

  Mary coughed again.

  “August Flamel? Did you manage to piss off August Flamel?” she interrogated. “Smart move…”

  “Honestly, I’d say she started it. Almost got into a fight with her in the middle of class though.”

  “I wish you had… August’s a total bitch… She could use someone telling her ‘no’ for once…” Mary grumbled.

  “What’s her deal?”

  “The Flamel family are one of the largest investors in Foxway.” Raven explained. “You see, there’s no actual government structure or anything for Magic, no weird councils or anything. Foxway is a completely private institution, funded by various influential families of Magicals who wanted to make a place to teach magic in a controlled environment.”

  “Isiah Flamel, August’s dad, is some big businessman. Not sure what he does, but whatever it is, the Flamels are loaded. I guess August probably gets what she wants most of the time.” Mary shrugged.

  I laid back on Raven’s bed and exhaled.

  “I’m not sure… I gues
s I haven’t seen much of her. But something doesn’t seem right about that explanation. She’s a brat, no doubt. But the way she was looking at me… And all through the rest of the lesson… There’s something else there, I know there is.” I debated. “Then again, my brain’s pretty much fried right now, so I’m probably not making sense.” I supposed.

  “I guess we’ve known the brat for longer, so if there is anything else, it’ll be hard for us to see.” Mary decided.

  I looked at the clock on the wall and sat up.

  “I should probably get going... Mum’s coming back early today.” I remembered. “We were going to order pizza, to celebrate me starting here. You want to come, Raven?”

  Raven shook her head.

  “Sorry, Emilie, I need to get some work done. I’ve got an Application of Magic essay to write for tomorrow.”

  “Don’t worry about it. You are coming over the weekend though, got it?” I jokingly ordered.

  I hugged Raven. Or, at least, I put my arms around her. Raven just kind of sat there. I don’t think that Raven was a hugging person.

  “See you tomorrow. Nice to meet you, Mary!” I called back as I walked out of the door, closing it behind me.

  4

  It just occurred to me that I never explained exactly how you get to Foxway Academy. Yes, how you get there. I honestly have no idea exactly where it is. But the general gist is that there’s a chain of budget supermarkets, run by Foxway, dotted around the country. The people who work there are directly employed by Foxway. A secret door in the back leads to wherever Foxway is. Not quite as fun as running through a wardrobe or a wall in a train station, but it was still pretty cool.

  It was just past four when I got back from Raven’s dorm. The Foxmart (Terrible name, I know) was open until nine, which was essentially the school’s curfew, not that that affected me. I made sure to close the door behind me and walked out of the shop’s back, where the door was subtly hidden. One of the workers looked confused as they noticed me.