by Wendy Knight
"Good for you. That’s so exciting." Ari rolled her eyes.
"You know, you should care that he takes the time to walk you to your classes. It's not like he likes you or anything, that's just how he is. He takes care of all new students," Brittany said as she pulled on a bright pink fuzzy sweater that fell low on her shoulders and a denim mini-skirt over bright leggings.
"You look like a unicorn threw up on you." Ari crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against her desk in amusement.
Brittany's green eyes widened in outrage. "I didn't ask for your opinion!" she cried.
"Well, that's a lot of pink." Ari shrugged and turned back to her homework. She could feel Brittany's glare boring a hole in the back of her head, and then she heard her moving around and the soft ruffling of clothes. When she glanced back at her roommate again, it was just in time to see her flounce out the door. At least she had traded the bright pink leggings for black ones. Grateful that her banshee-roommate had finally left, she turned back to history.
****
As Ari and Livi walked out of Calculus several days later, Ari had to force herself to not scan the halls. But she felt those dark blue eyes on her before she looked up and saw him. Shane was leaning against the wall, surrounded by girls, but he was watching her. Her heart took off at a run, leaving her struggling for breath. He met her eyes, a mischievous smile playing around the corners of his mouth, and then he was telling his admirers he'd talk to them later and falling into step beside her.
"Hey, Liv," he said. Ari watched the group of girls, most of whom were glaring at her.
"I think you just made me a bunch of enemies." She sighed.
"What?" He glanced behind him, baffled.
Livi took pity on him and changed the subject. "We're heading to lunch. Wanna join us?"
"Of course," Shane responded with a wink, turning his attention back to them.
"Have you cleared this with the boss yet?" Ari was sarcastic. Just a bit.
"The boss?" Livi asked, her small face wrinkled in confusion as she darted through the crowds of students.
Shane cast Ari an exasperated look.
"Hunter," Ari told Liv.
“Ah,” Livi said with an understanding smile.
"He's not—" Shane started, but Ari interrupted.
"And I'm wondering. Why is it okay for you to be surrounded by those girls?” Ari’s eyes flew back toward the group of girls still watching Shane leave. “Or Livi or Nev? What's he got against me? I'm new. He doesn't even know me."
"They aren't a threat." Shane’s eyes danced.
A threat. Well, this is new. I’m a threat and it has absolutely nothing to do with being a monster. Ari thought, somewhat delighted at the concept.
****
Ari ate her dinner in her dorm room while she attempted to do her calculus homework. Brittany sat next to her, pretending to work but mostly just pointedly ignoring her. So when the shiny red phone started to vibrate it startled both of them.
"Good grief! Do you mind? I'm trying to study here!" Brittany yelped as she nearly fell backward off her chair. Ari choked on a laugh as she snatched up the phone.
Will. Her face split into a grin and she punched the answer button. "Will! Hey!" she said. Aware of Brittany's curious stare and disliking it, she headed outside.
"Hey baby sister. How's the new school?" Will asked, and she could picture him with that easy grin, his black and red hair messy, his big brown eyes sparkling.
"It's… okay, actually. I even made some kind-of friends. At least, I have people to sit with at lunch."
"Through no fault of yours, I'm guessing. You're probably doing everything you can to keep them away from you."
She didn't respond.
Will sighed. "I knew it. Ari, we've talked about this. You need friends."
"I can't have friends, Will. You know that. Not with… this life."
"I think this life you lead should come second. But hey, that way of thinking is what got me in here in the first place," Will said, and Ari could picture him grinning. She missed him so much it hurt. Will was always grinning.
"How are things in rebel country?" she asked, a teasing lilt to her voice as the corners of her mouth turned up in a rare smile.
"Oh, just peachy. Are you coming by any time soon? I am having a serious craving for junk food. Anything not home grown," he said with a groan.
Ari laughed. "I'll bring pizza, but I don't know when it will be. Things have been pretty tame on the war front." She glanced up to make sure no one was around to hear her. The night was quiet, and the only people in sight were several yards away. She leaned against the wall, adjusting her phone on her shoulder and digging her bare toes into the cool grass.
"You know Richard won't let that last. I bet he’s out inciting the masses as we speak. A tame war is not a profitable war." There was a whole lot of bitterness in his voice.
Will was her big brother. Before she was born, everyone had thought he was the Prodigy — he was so powerful. She came along when he was ten, and that was the end of that thinking. After she was born, it was obvious to everyone what he was supposed to be — the Prodigy's Guard. Ari had never understood why, if the Prodigy was so powerful, did she need a Guard?
Whatever the reason, Will began training immediately, but before his seventeenth birthday, when Ari was six and starting to come into her powers, he had walked away. He said he’d had enough of the war and he didn't believe in it anymore. Of course, there were rumors that he was angry and jealous of his little sister. But Ari knew it wasn’t true. There were whole colonies of Carules and Edrens who had walked away from the war, living together. He left to join them. But because he was so powerful, the ruling class of Edren society known as the Family and headed by her grandfather feared him and what he could do. They had waited a couple of years, drawing forget spells on Ari's forehead daily, until she couldn't even remember she had a brother.
And then they had sent her to kill him.
"Hello? Ari!" Will called into the phone.
"Oh! Sorry. I'm here. Just daydreaming." Ari snapped back to the present. Cricket noises assaulted her. Crickets had always creeped her out. Strange little bugs that made a lot of noise but would never show themselves.
"So tell me all about school. And these friends of yours. I need to know the details. Oh, and Ward’s wife Ember had her baby. Did I tell you that? She was not happy that she had to do it here without any western medicine to help her through it. But she did it. And the baby is so cute. Not that I would say that, because I'm a big tough manly guy. But I've heard."
Ari chuckled. Will was the only person in the world who knew the real her. He was the only one who could make her laugh, and the only one who would never hurt her. “And how is Dani?” Ari asked, mischief in her voice.
“Same as always. She wants us to take some steps forward and I don’t have time.” Will sighed. Dani was Will’s sometimes-girlfriend. Or at least, they would both like her to be, but with the war, Will had to focus on Ari. So he put Dani on the back burner.
"Will, it's late," Ari said several minutes of easy banter later. "I have to finish my homework and head to bed."
"It's Friday night, Ari," he pointed out.
"Yeah, I know. But I've got a headache." Ari clapped a hand over her mouth.
"What? Why didn't you tell me? How bad is this one?" She could hear alarm running through his voice.
"It's not my normal headache. I… um… fell off a ladder. Or rather, I fell off and then it landed on me."
"When did this happen?" Will demanded.
Ari winced. Obviously her attempt to soothe his fears hadn’t helped. "The day I got here. So, um, a week ago, I guess."
"Did they take you to the hospital?"
"No." She bit her lip.
"What!?"
"I'm fine, Will. I'm just tired. I'll try to get some pizza to you somehow or another, okay?"
"Ari…" His voice held a warning, and Ari relented.
&n
bsp; "Will, I promise, if the headaches continue, I'll see a healer next time I'm home. I'm due for a visit anyway. It's been over a week since they've wanted me to kill anyone." Although she meant it to sound lighthearted, it sounded sad.
"You could always walk away, Ari," Will said. She could hear sadness in his voice; they both knew her answer.
"I can't. Somehow I have to find the Prodigy and kill him so I can stop the war and set you free. I’ll talk to you soon, Will, okay? Have a good night.” She hung up, loneliness creeping through her as her mind traveled back to places she couldn’t forget.
Rarely, those in charge of the two sides — the Council for the Carules and the Family for the Edrens — let those who refused to fight walk away. But Will was too powerful, and he knew who the Prodigy was, which made him a threat. He couldn’t just walk away. The only way out was death.
To circumvent that, the Renegades — those like Will who refused to fight — created colonies. There were powerful wards, like invisible walls, created by a combination of Edren and Carules magic that didn't allow anyone through. Except Ari, who for some reason could walk right through wards. The only way in or out was by using a saldepement spell, a spell that opened a doorway between both casters.
The Renegades who lived there rarely left — it was just too dangerous. There were always Hunters watching them, waiting for them to leave. Then the Hunters attacked and collected the bounty for killing a Renegade.
Needless to say, that made living difficult. They couldn't just run to the store for groceries or clothes. Everything they ate had to be raised or grown, and they had to make their own clothes, unless they wanted to risk sneaking out to the ‘real’ world to buy things. Will, who was a genius with computers, built his colony in an abandoned Normals town with electricity and plumbing. He had started his own company and employed many of his colonists.
Ari sighed as she walked across the commons toward her dorm. She fought daily to forget the night she had found him, all those years ago. She had tracked Will with ferociousness, not remembering he was her brother, believing he wanted to kill her.
She was young then, and believed everything the Family told her. She thought they knew it all, could do no wrong, and had her best interests at heart. That changed the minute her ten-year-old self crossed those wards. Edrens and Carules Renegades came running, all of them knowing who she must be, and all of them fearing for their safety. Will had to have known she was there to kill him. And yet, he had saved her.
Ari cringed remembering that day. It was etched so forcefully into her brain that she couldn't get away from it. It was always there.
She drew a lirik, the most powerful spell she knew, her eyes sweeping over the children, the old people. She didn’t care. They stood between her and her enemy.
But then, over all the noise, over all the screaming, she heard him. "Arianna! Leave them be! It's me you want!" Will appeared through the smoke and the red and blue tangle of flames. She froze, surprised he knew her name. She felt his voice seeping down into her soul, past all the forget spells, and she remembered. She knew who he was and she knew he loved her. She remembered when he left he had tried to take her with him.
“No, wait! She’s not attacking!” she heard Will scream, but it was too late. The spells had already been thrown. She didn’t know how many or even what they were that hit her, but she knew it hurt. A lot.
She didn't remember what had happened after that, but Will told her later that he’d stopped them and convinced them to help her. They’d gathered all the healers in the colony, Edren and Carules alike. They had worked for two days straight, drawing spells over her injuries to keep her alive. She spent three weeks recovering, and by the time she was well, she remembered everything.
And everything had changed.
Chapter Six
Shane couldn't remember the last time Hunter had been this mad at him. But now… well, now they were definitely having issues. He didn't want to admit it was all because of Ari, because admitting that a girl had come between them was admitting that maybe they weren't as undefeatable as he had thought. Both sides, Edren and Carules, had a Prodigy — one had to kill the other to end the war. Of course, hunting the other Prodigy would end the war a lot quicker, but the Council wouldn’t let him. The Edrens, however, sent their Prodigy out to hunt every chance they got.
Both the Prodigies had an uber-powerful Guard. The Edren Prodigy had never been seen with his, but Hunter was Shane’s. Which was why it was imperative that they work as a team. Or at least, be able to talk to each other without throwing a punch. That would be good, too. Shane thought, grimacing.
But instead, Hunter stared stonily at the smart board, ignoring Shane as best he could. Shane glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, but refused to look at him. He heard Charity sigh behind them. She was angry, but Shane had no idea whose side she was on. She seemed to like Ari, but Shane knew her well, and he knew she was holding something back. "You two suck. You know that?" she said through clenched teeth as the bell rang.
Hunter glanced back at her guiltily but refused to look at Shane. "He's being an idiot."
"Why? Because I like a girl that you don't? Since when do you get to decide who I date?" Shane jerked his bag up off the floor and flung it over his shoulder.
"You're going to be late meeting her. She might have to walk to her next class by herself!" Hunter said, holding his hands up to his mouth in mock horror.
"Knock it off, you two," Charity said but they both ignored her.
Shane stomped toward the door. "What've you got against her anyway? You don't even know her." Hunter followed him, grabbing Shane’s arm and jerking him around.
"Neither do you," he responded. They stood toe to toe in the crowded hallway, both breathing hard. People stopped to watch, the anticipation of a fight blooming in the air and drawing them like bees.
"So? Why is that such a big deal?" Shane asked, his voice rising.
Hunter flushed and looked away. Spotting Charity, standing at the outer fringes of the crowd, he replied, "It's a big deal because Charity can't see her."
"Oh please. That's what this is about? And you call me an idiot." Shane spun on his heel and walked away, leaving Hunter staring angrily after him.
Ari hadn't waited for him. Big surprise. She seemed to barely tolerate his presence. Actually, she seemed to barely tolerate any of them, except Charity, who for some reason was exempt from Ari’s disinterest. He thought of heading in the direction of her next class hoping to catch up to her, but that seemed a little desperate. Frustrated, he also considered smashing his fist into the wall, but decided that would be counter-productive. With a sigh, he started off to his next class.
As he turned the corner he nearly ran into Charity, who was leaning against the wall with her arms folded, waiting for him. "How is it you always seem to know just where I'll be, if you can't see me?" he asked with a slow smile, stopping next to her.
She looked up at him. His cousin was average height, but he was tall and it forced her to crane her neck back to see him. "Because I know you," she said quietly.
Shane groaned and fell back against the wall next to her. "You too, huh?"
"Me too what?" she asked, her eyebrows drawing together as she picked at her nails.
"You're mad too."
"Nope." Her silver eyes sparkled as she glanced up at him. "I don't know why she makes Hunter so angry. Maybe because she's gorgeous and intimidates him. Not much does."
Shane stared ahead at beige corridors, but didn't see them. "She's different, Charity," he said, bouncing the back of his head off the wall a few times.
"Shane, I can't help but wonder… and don't take this the wrong way, but is she different because she's hasn't jumped at the chance to go out with you?"
Shane blinked in surprise. His mind traveled back to the first time he had seen her, under the ladder, unconscious and bruised. And yet, she had been the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. And then he jumped to when he ha
d seen her in the hall the first day of school.
The world had stopped.
Time had stopped.
Nothing had existed but her, and it had taken everything he had to even attempt to not be a blathering moron.
Returning to Charity, he shook his head. "No. That isn't it."
Charity studied him for long seconds, searching his face. Even if she couldn't see him using her gift, she could still see more of him than anyone else. Coming to some internal conclusion, she nodded, "Okay," and turned to walk away.
"Okay?" he asked, baffled, pushing away from the wall.
"Yep." And she continued walking.
****
"Hey Shane!" a boy named Conner yelled at him over the noise as he walked into the crowded lunch room. He hadn't gone to walk Ari to class or met her before lunch. He was half-hoping it would appease Hunter, but he knew better. Hunter didn't like Ari, and the only thing that would make him happy was if Ari was out of the picture. And Shane just didn't think he could do that.
He stifled a sigh as he realized a whole table full of guys was watching him like he was crazy. "Hey, Conner. What's up?" He attempted to force a smile.
He glanced across the lunch room to his table, where Hunter had watched him walk in alone, eyebrows raised in mild surprise. Nev sat next to him and she also watched Shane, except she was frowning. Charity was just setting her tray down but as usual, she didn't seem surprised about anything.
"Uh, Shane?" Conner asked again.
"Sorry. Rough morning." Shane dropped down in an empty seat and rubbed the back of his neck.
"I was saying we're playing some two-hand touch football after school. Are you and Hunter in?"
Shane again looked over at Hunter, who was still watching him. "I'll have to ask Hunter but I'm in. Sounds great," he said with forced enthusiasm, getting up to go get his lunch.
Ari had just walked in the cafeteria, and as usual, the room went silent for a few seconds. She was that stunning. And Shane was sure she had no idea. She assumed everyone was staring at her because she was the new girl. He stopped behind her in line.
