by Cheree Alsop
Don Ruvine stopped as if he had hit a wall. He looked from me to my father in shock. I don’t know if he regarded my dad’s presence in the middle of a room full of monsters as bravery or stupidity, but after a moment of silence, he shook his head and stalked away.
“Come on, Vicken. This place has truly gone to the dogs,” I heard him say before they left the corridor.
Talking returned, though not with the casualness of before.
“Well that was rude,” Dad said.
I shook my head, careful to keep my voice low. We didn’t need to attract more attention than we already had. “There’s a lot of prejudice here.” I held Dad’s gaze. “It apparently started with the uncle I never knew existed.”
“You know about Uncle Mark,” Drake pointed out.
“Not Uncle Mark,” I replied, keeping my eyes on Dad. “I’m talking about Uncle Conrad, the werewolf who tore this place apart and killed innocent people. That’s why werewolves haven’t been allowed in this school for twenty-five years. Mom’s brother was a murderer.”
Dad’s lowered gaze told me he had known about Conrad. He sighed and I heard the heaviness of years of keeping my mother’s secret. “I hoped it wouldn’t affect you.”
“Don Ruvine was there, Dad,” I replied. “My professor’s girlfriend was killed along with the Headmaster, and others they won’t even tell me about. It was bad, really bad.”
He gave me a tight-lipped smile and set a hand on my shoulder. “I knew that if anyone could turn the view of werewolves around, it was you.”
I blew out a breath and shook my head. “I don’t think I can do that, but it would have been nice to know what I was getting into.”
“I’m sorry, Finn,” he said with true heaviness in his voice. “I should have told you instead of letting you find out this way.”
I heard footsteps behind me.
“Not everyone at the Academy is as prejudiced as the Don,” Alden’s father said.
I turned and gave him a grateful smile. “I appreciate you letting your son be my friend.”
Alden’s mother gave her son a fond look. “We know better than to tell Alden who to befriend; but we would have recommended a werewolf had we known one resided at the Academy.”
His father nodded. “A friendship with a werewolf is a lasting one as long as you stay true to it.”
That made me smile. “Someone told me the same thing about Grims,” I said, thinking back to a conversation I’d had with Professor Briggs.
Mr. Grim nodded. “Whoever told you that was wise.”
Alden’s mother smiled. “We were friends with your mother when she came to this school.”
“Did you know that?” I asked Alden in surprise.
He shook his head quickly. “I had no idea!”
Mr. Grim gave my dad a warm look. “Such true friendships must come naturally.”
My father held out his hand. “I agree. It’s an honor to meet a friend of Silvia’s.”
Mr. Grim looked surprised at my dad’s gesture. He took the hand and shook it heartily as if he hadn’t had a proper handshake in years. I caught a glimpse of the names that glowed on the Grim’s forearm before he let go of Dad’s hand and his sleeve slid back down to hide them. “Yes, well, we’re just glad her son is rooming with ours. With all these ghosts and demons plaguing the country, we’re lucky to have them together.”
“Demons?” My dad gave me a searching look. “I thought Headmistress Wrengold’s letter was being ironic, not that there were actual demons attacking.”
“Oh, it’s, uh, it’s under control,” I replied. “I didn’t want to worry you.” My hand throbbed as I thought of the fact that my team was the control I mentioned.
Dad continued to watch me. “Just so you’re safe,” he said.
“I am,” I reassured him.
“Don’t worry,” Mrs. Grim told my dad. “They are safer here inside the Academy than they would be outside of it.”
Alden and I exchanged a look of uncertainty that we quickly smothered.
“I’m glad to hear it,” my dad replied. He shook his head. “I never had to worry about demons at Finn’s last school. Our biggest threat are the Devils from Lincoln.”
“You have devils?” Mrs. Grim said in horror. “I’m so sorry!”
Dad realized she was serious and laughed. “They’re the neighboring high school; they were one of Finn’s biggest competitions in track. Right, Finn?”
I forced a laugh and said, “Right, Dad. They were tough.”
“They were until that Ertz kid broke his leg,” Drake replied.
I stared at him. “Really? He took the title from me twice!”
“I know,” my brother said with a grin. “Now it’s my turn to win it!”
I nodded. “You do that. Keep it in the family.”
“Always,” Drake replied.
“Ghosts,” someone said.
I turned, expecting to see the usual specter drifting through the corridor. But instead of one, there were at least a dozen of them. As with the others, they didn’t seem to see us or at least ignored our presence. A few were talking in a group and wandering through as if they belonged at the school. I realized with a start that given their age, they may have occupied the school back when my mom was a student.
“They seem content just to be, for now,” Mr. Grim said musingly.
“We should stay close by in case things take a turn,” his wife suggested.
Mr. Grim nodded with his gaze on the ghosts. “I agree.”
“Silvia?”
I glanced back to see my father hurry up the stairs toward the second floor.
When I met Drake’s gaze, my brother shrugged. “I don’t know what he’s up to.”
Instinct bade me to follow. “I’ll check it out,” I said. “Stay with Alden. He’ll, uh, keep you safe.”
It sounded stupid to say, but I didn’t dare leave my brother alone with Don Ruvine stalking about in an apparent search for a fight. Alden nodded in agreement.
“Thanks,” I said.
I ran up the stairs after my dad, but he wasn’t on the second floor.
“Silvia, wait!” I heard him call from further up the steps.
I took them four at a time and felt a brief amazement at the way my body responded with a strength I had never known. The fact that my werewolf side was becoming more obvious made me nervous. I reached the thirteenth floor and slid to a stop.
“Silvia, it’s me, Stephen, your husband,” Dad said with pleading in his voice. I could hear him gasping from the exertion of the run, and he leaned with his hands on his knees to catch his breath.
His back was to me. Beyond him, a figure floated down the hallway toward the window at the end. It was the same window I had jumped through to save students from demon fire.
My heart slowed at the sight of the ghost’s wavy golden hair. Memories pushed at my mind, beckoning from the photographs in the album on our coffee table and the family videos I had watched over and over until I had them memorized.
I saw her in my mind’s eye from the video of when she and my dad had visited the ocean. She stood with the waves lapping gently at her bare feet. Her hair was caught in the light of the sun so that it shone like pure gold, and when she turned, the happiness in her eyes matched the laughter that sounded like music from her lips. It was my favorite video. I had watched it so many times I knew how long it took for her to turn and laugh. Her hand was on her belly, pregnant with me. I guess in a way it had been my first visit to the ocean, too.
“Mom?” I said. The word felt strange coming from my lips. It had been so very long since I had called anyone that.
The ghost turned and the present warred with the video from the ocean. Her golden hair shone with otherworldly light and when she looked at me, I found myself staring into bright green eyes that matched my own.
“Up and around, tickle the troll, find your way down, and pay the toll,” she said.
Dad dropped to his knees beside me.
“Mom, I don’t know,” I began, but she cut me off.
“Up and around, tickle the troll, find your way down, and pay the toll,” she said again.
She gave me another warm smile, then turned and floated toward the window.
“Silvia, wait!” Dad called. He stumbled to his feet and ran after her.
I caught his arm to keep him from dashing through the window when she drifted to the other side.
“Dad, stop!” I told him when he struggled to break free.
We both watched Mom stride out into the night as though she was still walking along the hallway. The moonlight illuminated her with a greater glow until she reached the edge of the roof and disappeared.
A whisper broke from my dad’s lips. “Silvia.”
Chapter Three
Dad sank down and I followed. We both sat with our backs against the wall. My heart thundered. I put a hand on my chest, willing it to slow. With the moonlight filtering in above us, it was hard to keep the wolf at bay.
“I don’t understand,” my dad said in a voice that was weak and sad.
I didn’t either, but I could tell that if I didn’t give him something to hold onto, he was going to climb out on that roof if it was the last thing he did.
“Ghosts have been showing up at the Academy ever since the demon attacked,” I told him. I held up my wrapped hand and admitted, “That’s where I got this.”
Dad focused on me for the first time since I had reached the thirteenth floor. “I thought you got that in class.”
I shook my head. “I just didn’t want you to worry.” I sighed and admitted, “I guess we’re far past that, now. When the demon attacked, I helped fight it and we were able to kill it, but the professors think the demon’s presence means a doorway has been opened.”
I didn’t want to tell them that a ghost had actually told me that before it attacked me. The last thing he needed to know was that there were volatile ghosts along with the image of my mother.
I grasped onto that thought. “The Grims, Alden’s parents, have been trying to send the ghosts back to where they came from, but they’ve been struggling because they say most of these aren’t real ghosts we see, but mere memories from people who used to be here.” I ran with that. “So it wasn’t Mom that we saw, it was the memory of her because she used to go to school here.”
Dad thought about my words for a moment. When he nodded, I couldn’t tell if he believed me or if he was just grasping onto something in order to keep his sanity. “That’s why she didn’t talk to us,” he said. “It wasn’t really her.”
I nodded, trying to convince myself that he was right.
“What do you think that meant?” I asked him. “Up and around, tickle the troll, find your way down, and pay the toll?”
Dad shook his head and pushed up to his feet. He gave a little chuckle and said, “That’s just like your mom to keep us guessing, isn’t it?”
The wistfulness to his tone echoed the way I felt. “I think so. Was she always like that?”
Dad nodded as he led the way to the stairs. I scooted around the direct moonlight from the window so I wouldn’t show up in the corridor in wolf form. I was sure Don Ruvine would appreciate that.
“Your mother was always a mystery to me,” Dad admitted as I followed him down the steps. “She was like sunshine. You couldn’t keep her bottled up and no matter where she went, she made everything seem that much brighter. Yet, because of her past and her werewolf heritage, she held a side I couldn’t follow or relate to. She kept it deep within her, but I felt it there in times when she was quiet. I’d ask, ‘Silvia, are you alright?’ and she would smile at me and say with her sunshine returning, ‘Of course, Stephen. I’m with you.’” He paused on the fourth floor and gave me a small smile. “You’ll learn someday that werewolves love with all of their heart. It’s a rare thing in this world, and a gift. I was honored to hold such a precious gift in my hands.”
He continued down, but I waited on the steps to collect myself. I had seldom asked about my mother because I knew how hard it was for Dad to talk about her. To hear such things like ‘she was like sunshine’ and ‘she held a side I couldn’t follow’ made her feel more real than ever. I blinked quickly at the thought of the ghost we had followed above and how badly he had wanted to talk to her.
My mother got sick and passed away when I was four and Drake was three. My dad eventually married Julianne who was wonderful and loving and took great care of us, but there was something to be said about living a life and raising children with the woman he had loved since they met right out of high school. He would always love her, and her loss had taken more from him than I even imagined.
“What took you so long?” I heard Drake ask from the bottom of the stairs. “The Headmistress addressed the parents and a lot have already gone home.”
“What did she say?” Dad asked with forced lightness in his tone.
“That there’s some sort of demon danger here along with the ghosts and that they have a team dedicated to keeping the students safe, something like that,” Drake replied. “I wish I could see a demon.”
A smile touched my face. My fifteen-year-old brother never thought to censor what he said. I had no doubt students and other parents were staring at him because of his words.
I ran down the rest of the stairs and met them at the bottom. Sure enough, I caught several looks of disapproval before individuals turned away.
“I’ve got a lot of homework,” I told Dad. “It’s probably time for you to head home.”
“That’s it?” Drake replied. “But I wanted to meet a dragon and have a magician show me a trick.”
“There aren’t magicians here,” I replied. “They’re called witches and warlocks, and they don’t just do tricks on command.”
“I could do one.”
I turned at Brack’s deep voice. The huge warlock grinned down at me.
“Did you parents leave?” I asked.
He nodded. “They, uh, had to hurry.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet them.”
He gave a massive shrug and said, “They’re afraid of werewolves.”
I couldn’t imagine anyone Brack’s size being afraid of a werewolf, but it wasn’t my place to argue. I caught a questioning look on Dad’s face and figured it would be easier not to get into it.
“You want to show Drake what you can do?” I asked Brack.
He nodded. “Watch.” He pointed at the front door.
Mrs. Hassleton was busy saying farewell to Martus’ parents. The boy was in my Care of Green Multicellular Organisms class, called such because Professor Seedly hated the term ‘plant’. Martus was a taniwha whose family only ate bugs. He and his parents had slimy-looking skin because they usually lived in the water.
“Take care, Mr. and Mrs. Phagen,” Mrs. Hassleton was saying. “See yourselves safely home.”
She pulled on the door, but it didn’t open. Mrs. Hassleton gave them an apologetic smile and tried again, but it still didn’t budge.
“Are you doing that?” Drake asked.
Brack nodded but kept his focus on the door. “She doesn’t like Finn.”
I was touched and embarrassed that he was using his affinity out of some sort of protectiveness over me.
“It’s alright, Brack. Let her open it now,” I told him.
Brack closed his eyes and Mrs. Hassleton opened the door.
“Geesh, strange door,” she said by way of apology to the Phagens. “It doesn’t normally act up.”
“Have a good night,” Mr. Phagen told her before he led his wife through the massive door.
Mrs. Hassleton shut it behind them, then opened it again as if afraid it would stick. When it opened, she gave the door a relieved look and left it partially ajar.
“That was awesome!” Drake said.
Brack beamed at the compliment.
“That’s some trick,” Dad told the hulking student. “I would definitely be playing tricks on m
y students if I could do that.”
“You have students?” Brack asked in surprise.
Dad nodded. “I teach high school science. Maybe if I could lock my students in the classroom, they would actually learn something.”
Brack gave a laugh so loud it echoed around the room.
Dad and Drake both stared at him. I took the opportunity to escort them to the door.
“Well, uh, thanks for visiting,” I said. “I’ll let you know when the next parent night is. And please tell Juli thanks for the stroganoff.”
I looked around quickly and found the bag sitting at the bottom of the stairs where I had dropped it when I ran after Dad.
“I’ll tell her,” Dad said. He still looked a bit stunned from all that he had seen.
“Make sure he gets home,” I told Drake quietly.
My brother nodded. “I will. I hope I’m a werewolf so I can come here,” he said.
“Me, too,” I replied levelly. Inwardly I cringed at all I had come up against as a werewolf in a school that was still recovering from the damage my uncle had left behind. “Take care and text me.”
“I will,” Drake promised. “You too.”
I nodded and followed them through the door. The sight of the buildings of New York reaching around us surprised me. It was easy to forget that we were in the middle of such a huge city. The Academy felt apart from anything around us, as if we were in our own world.
“I want to show you something,” I said before they could go down the steps. “You wanted to see a dragon, Drake? Look.”
I pulled back the sleeve of my shirt to reveal Sparrow sleeping around my wrist. She had begun to stir during my trips up and down the stairs. It was time for her to eat, anyway, so I didn’t see the harm of letting them watch her hunt.
“Is that real?” Drake asked, staring.
Sparrow’s head lifted and she looked at him. Her red forked tongue flicked out as she tasted the air.
“Whoa!” Drake exclaimed.
“That’s really a dragon?” my dad said in awe.
I nodded. “Are you hungry, Sparrow?” I asked her.
The black and purple dragon unwound herself and crossed to my palm. Her green eyes blinked and she shook herself, unfurling her black wings.
