by Imogen Rose
I didn’t know that, however, when I first arrived there with my dad. I was very anxious. It helped that we were greeted at the door by the headmistress, who practically trembled in Dad’s presence, as she led us to the left wing. Once I was settled, Dad left. I felt somewhat comforted knowing that he scared the living bejeezus out of the headmistress, so my chances of having a pleasant time were practically guaranteed. I smiled as I remembered the look of relief on Frau Smelt’s face as Dad disappeared from the halls.
“Faustine! Hon, wake up, it’s time for dinner,” Mom whispered as she gently shook me back into consciousness. Demons sleep like they are dead.
“Hey, Mom. What time is it?”
“It’s almost six thirty. Tessa and Neave will be here in about half an hour. Could you get dressed and come through when you’re ready?”
“Sure, Mom,” I said sleepily, as she turned to walk back out. “Hold up, Mom.”
She stopped as I clambered out of bed and went over to give her a hug. It was so nice to be home again.
I felt strangely shy walking into the dining room. After all, it was just Mom, Neave and Tessa. I guess I felt a bit self-conscious in the pretty, purple dress I had put on for the occasion. The purple dress was simple enough–cut to just above my knees with a full skirt and three-quarter length sleeves. I pulled the look together by adding a grey belt. It wasn’t the least bit fancy, not even a hint of sparkle. It was just that I was so unused to wearing anything other than my school uniform that I felt awkward. I slipped on a pair of ballet flats to help keep me grounded, and then walked through to greet Tessa and Neave.
“Hey, Faustine!” Neave exclaimed as she practically knocked her chair over in her rush to get to me. She was at my side in what seemed less than a heartbeat, pulling me into a tight hug.
“Nice to see you, too,” I laughed when she loosened her grip. I looked her over, shocked to see that the blonde-haired knockout had gone Goth! Dark hair, heavy makeup, dark lips. Don’t get me wrong, Neave was still a knockout, but in an Avril Lavigne sort of way.
Neave did a turn and half bow. “Like it?” she asked, pouting her ruby-stained lips. “I though I’d buy into the witch thing completely,” she explained.
I was too shocked to speak. No, I didn’t like it, even though she looked okay. It was just... not her. Not one little bit. She looked at me gravely, waiting for a response.
“Well?”
I shrugged. “I guess it’s good. It’s just really different. It’s going to take some getting used to.”
“Neave, honestly! Give Faustine a break,” Tessa laughed, coming up behind her. She put her hand to Neave’s hair and yanked it really hard. Really hard. As Tessa pulled the long strands, Neave’s dark hair fell away, revealing golden curls to the eruption of full-blown guffaws.
“You little w...” I started, but then laughed.
“Be right back. Got to take this Goth gunk off my face,” Neave said, and then walked off toward the bathroom.
“Sorry about that,” Tessa smiled. “She insisted.”
I sighed. Yes, there was no stopping Neave once she got fixated on playing a practical joke. It was her thing. I should have remembered and expected something.
“Come sit down,” Tessa said, taking my hand and pulling me toward the dining table where Mom was looking at me bemusedly.
I looked down at the offerings–sushi. Not my favorite.
Mom smiled. “Not to worry, dear. I’ve got a steak ready for you. I’ll go get it.”
“So?” Tessa asked, smiling at me. “Did you accomplish everything you had to at the Academy?”
“I did,” I replied vaguely.
“I know you can’t tell me anything, and that’s okay. The main thing is that you’re home. It’s really good to see you. Both Neave and I have missed you terribly.”
I squeezed her hands. “I’ve missed you, too–a lot. I’m glad to be back. So, tell me about you. I heard you got married!” I said, pointing to the silver band around her finger.
“I did,” she nodded.
I never noticed before how similar she was to Neave, right down to her mannerisms. In response to my question, Tessa gave a slightly crooked smile and her cheeks flushed as though she was embarrassed. It occurred to me that Neave looked exactly the same when she got embarrassed. “Oh, that’s funny, Tessa,” I teased. “I don’t mean you getting married, but that you’re so bashful about it.”
“Well, I guess I never thought it would happen at my age. When it did, it was all so fast. I haven’t quite become used to it myself. Can you believe it? I am married!”
“She sure is,” Neave said, returning to the dining room and sitting down next to me. She looked like her normal self again. Mom came in as well, carrying a steaming plate, which she carefully placed in front of me.
“Steak for the demon?” Neave chuckled.
“Yes, witch,” I grimaced at her, and then dug into it. It was cooked to perfection without any unnecessary garnishing–plain, rare and juicy. Perfect. I ate in silence, a habit I had acquired at the Academy–we never spoke during mealtimes. Mom watched me in amusement as I chomped down on my steak. Once I was done–third rule obeyed–I turned back to Tessa. “So, you were saying that you are married. Congrats! Who is he? A wizard?”
Tessa shook her head and smiled. “A human.”
“Really? Just a human?” I asked in surprise. “No offense, Mom. You know what I mean....”
“No offense taken,” Mom reassured me.
“Just a human?” Tessa laughed. “I guess you could say that.”
“Does he know that you’re a witch?” I asked curiously. That can’t have been an easy nugget to share. A sure deal breaker for most humans, I’d imagine.
“Yes, he knows,” she responded.
I was surprised, and just about to ask her how, how in the world she had shared that gem with him, when the doorbell rang.
“Girls, you are done eating, aren’t you?” Tessa asked, then continued without waiting for an answer. “I need you to excuse yourselves to Faustine’s bedroom and stay there until I come and get you. Okay?”
I shrugged and got up. Tessa had a no-nonsense look in her eyes, so Neave and I quietly made our way to the bedroom and closed the door. Well, I actually tried to leave it ajar, but Tessa must have spelled it shut because it definitely closed.
“Geez, what’s that all about?” I asked Neave.
“Not sure. Something weird is going on. Has been, for the last few days.”
“What sort of weird?”
“There’s a kind of darkness....”
A kind of darkness? That didn’t sound good.
Neave continued. “I can’t explain it very well. It’s a feeling, a heavy feeling. Something bad is going down, but I don’t know what.”
“Is that why we were sent to my room?”
“I think so. Whoever came to the door did not have a positive aura.”
I went over to have a peek out the door, but the knob wouldn’t turn.
Neave sighed. “That’ll be Mom making sure we do what we’re told.”
No problem. I could listen from behind the door. My hearing was exceptional, even for a demon. I signaled Neave to be quiet as I concentrated on listening. Not a sound! It was like there was no world outside the door. I looked over to Neave and shrugged.
“Yeah, I bet Mom remembered your enhanced hearing and included a sound shield.”
Brilliant. “So, now what?”
“Nothing,” she replied. “Well, there’s nothing we can do about what’s going on out there, but we can catch up. I want to know everything. So, spill. What was it like at the Academy?”
“It was cool. I learned a lot and made some friends. You’ll get to meet some of them.”
“What did you learn? What kind of special powers do you have?”
I really did want to tell her. In all honesty, she could probably cast a spell over me and make me. But, I knew I’d better stick to the rules. “I’m not allowed
to tell you, which really sucks because I want to.”
“It’s okay. I’ll find out when I need to, I’m sure,” she winked. “Best not to break any rules. Wouldn’t want any weird stuff happening as a consequence.”
I nodded. “What about you? Got anything you can share with me?”
“Pretty much anything you like! What do you want to know?”
Much as I wanted to know about her witch powers and spells, I was even more interested in knowing what she’d been up to all the time I had been away. “What’s been happening here?”
She laughed. “Lots! You’ve missed out on a lot! For starters, Mom got married. Totally unreal! His name is Robert, a total nerd, but nice. He works at the stock exchange.”
“How did they meet?”
“Mom ran into him in the elevator. He started chatting with her and asked her out and that was that. Very boring, really.”
“And your mom said that he knows you guys are witches?”
“Yeah, apparently she told him. He’s never said anything about it to me. I bet you he didn’t get it. It’s never come up in front of me.”
“How about you? How do you feel about sharing your mom with someone else?”
“Well, I was a bit put off to start with. Just the thought of having someone else living with us and being in our stuff was seriously annoying. We moved into his apartment–which is cool, and here in this building!–before they got married, in order for me to get used to it. I’m not going to pretend it was easy. It wasn’t. Even just having him in the kitchen at breakfast felt intrusive. Breakfast time had always been when Mom and I connected for the day. It felt wrong to discuss witch business in front of him, even though he apparently knows. So, we basically had to transition into pretending to be a normal family. It still feels kind of fake, even after all this time. We just sit around the breakfast table and talk about normal stuff. Weird. Anyhow, after only two days of living there, I cracked. I’m talking major tantrum. Major tantrum with a few spells thrown in. Luckily, it happened after Robert had left for work,” she smirked.
“I’ll bet,” I smiled. Neave did throw some whoppers!
“Anyhow, once we got the apartment back to pre-tantrum mode, Mom and I decided that we would have witch time after Robert left for work in the mornings, which is very early. So now we sort of have a second breakfast, and I get to prepare myself for the day with just Mom before I head off to school.”
“Middle school? I missed all of that. What was it like?”
“Much harder than I thought it was going to be. I ended up in all the advanced classes, so I had heaps of homework and multiple projects pretty much all the time. It was all right, though. I thought it would really suck, especially since you weren’t coming with me, but I made some new friends pretty quickly, especially when I got involved in the school musical.”
“Boyfriend? Boyfriends?”
“There have been a few. Nothing special enough to mention, and I’m starting high school single and free to play. What about you?”
“At Bonfire Academy? Hardly! Although....”
“Although, what?” she prompted.
“There was this one guy, a Wanderer, his name is Ryker. I kinda liked him, though it didn’t amount to much.”
“What’s a Wanderer? I don’t think I’ve come across one of those before, or even heard of them. And what do you mean didn’t amount to much?” Neave demanded.
“Wanderers are paranormals who can transport themselves between time and dimensions,” I began.
“Cool! That’s flipping awesome! Real time travelers. I’d love to be able to do that!” Neave exclaimed enthusiastically. “And they can travel between dimensions as well? Double cool! Imagine how awesome a date that would be! So where did he take you?”
“ Well, I didn’t actually speak to him. Ever.”
“That’s pathetic! Why not?”
“I don’t know! It just didn’t happen. I don’t know why I even mentioned him! Forget about it. Tell me about high school,” I said, changing the subject swiftly.
“Did you see the uniform?”
“No. I only had time for a quick look through my new clothes.”
Neave went over to my closet and came back with a grey skirt and white blouse. “This is it,” she said. “There should be a tie somewhere,” she added. She sat down on my bed and studied me intently.
“What?” I asked.
“You’re totally unprepared for high school, aren’t you?” she mused.
“I don’t think so. Although we had a lot of paranormal prep work to do at the Academy, we kept up with all the academic stuff. If anything, I’m more than prepared,” I boasted. After all, I had graduated from the Academy with the highest academic honors.
“That’s not what I meant,” Neave explained. “I mean you’re not prepared socially. You haven’t had the three years of middle school here–not that that really prepares you, but it’s better than nothing. There’s a lot of politics to take into consideration. There’s a hierarchy, which we’ll have to fit into.”
“I’m a demon princess,” I scoffed. “Hierarchy? I’ll be at the top.”
Neave raised her eyebrows and pursed her lips. “Faustine, my sweet little demon, that’s not how it works at an Upper East Side high school. You may have had that status at the Academy, but now you’re entering high school as just another freshman. It’s going to be hard.”
“Well, I’m never going to be just another freshman, ever. I’m Lady Annabel Spencer’s daughter after all. That’s got to count for something, right?”
“I don’t know, maybe,” she said. “Best to make plans not to take that into account, just in case.”
“What kind of plans?”
“Well, we have to establish ourselves as leaders. We need to make sure that we aren’t swallowed up, or worse–targeted.”
Targeted? I wasn’t the least bit worried about that. After all, one jab from my glowing finger would put a stop to that sort of nonsense in a hurry. However, I could see the sense in making sure early on that we were at the top of the pecking order.
“The easiest way would be to cast a spell on everyone,” Neave smiled, “but Mom nixed that idea!”
“Very unsporting of her,” I laughed. “So, I guess we’ll have to use our natural charm....”
“Yeah, maybe. I think it’s a bit more complicated. But don’t worry, I’ve set things in motion to help us,” she hinted.
“Like what?”
“Like a rocking party tomorrow night!”
“Awesome! Who’s coming? Anyone I know?”
“Everyone who is anyone at the high school! I’m sure there will be people you recognize. But, what about your new friends? Do you want to invite anyone from the Academy? We still have time. If you give me a list, I can start calling them now.”
“Lemme think...” I said, and picked up a pen. Hmm, apart from the vampire twins, I couldn’t think of anyone else. And I wasn’t sure they would be interested anyway. No harm in inviting them, though. “Well, how about Audrey and Viola? They were in a lot of my classes, and we hung out a bit.”
“Great! Anything I need to know about them? Special dietary requirements?”
“No, I’m sure they’ll feed before the party.”
“Feed?”
“Vampires,” I explained.
“Oh, is that a good idea? I mean, there will be other vampires at the party, but these two are fresh out of the Academy. Are you sure they’re under control?”
“Sheesh, I don’t know! I don’t even know if I’m completely under control. Are we ever really? We can just try to control it the best we can,” I sighed.
“Okay, let me give them a call. It’s too late to send them the formal invitations,” Neave said as she pulled out her cell phone.
I lay back on my pillow while she chatted into the phone. Was I ready to be let loose on society? Could I keep my temper in check? I was fairly confident that I could. I did have years of training after all. What
about Audrey and Viola? In a way, it was easier for them. As long as they were well fed, there shouldn’t be any issues.
“Awesome,” Neave said, hanging up the phone. “The twins are coming, and they suggested a few names of kids from the Academy who will also be going to high school with us. Do you want me to run the names by you?”
“No, it’s okay. Just invite whoever you want. When’s the party?”
“Saturday night.”
“Good. I’ve got tomorrow to figure out what to wear.”
“Yeah. I’m sure your mom has already picked something, but let’s go down to Madison Avenue tomorrow. I was thinking....”
“Neave, shush,” I indicated, holding my finger to my lips and pointing to the door.
She shrugged at me. “What?” she whispered.
“I can hear sounds. That must mean the shield has been lifted. Should we go and find out what’s going on?”
“I don’t know, Faustine. I think we should wait here until Mom comes and gets us.”
“Two minutes,” I conceded and concentrated on listening to any streams of conversation I could pick up through the door. There were mostly sounds, like doors closing and a banging noise, but no real chatter was coming through. “That’s two minutes. Let’s go,” I said. I walked toward the door, but stopped short in front of it. The gilded knob was glowing.
“This can’t be good,” Neave whispered. “Should I try to put a spell on it to keep it locked?”
Too late.
I could feel my fingers tingle as the door opened. It had to be another demon. Who else could make the knob glow like that? I figured it was probably Dad, but I prepared myself, just in case. The door opened just enough for a head to appear.
