I had hoped it would stay that way.
And now, this.
Flynn reappears at my side just as the rest of the crowd disperses. He looks between us, and then back towards where the girl just disappeared. “What happened?”
“Some girl just showed up and claimed she’s had magical powers ever since, well…” I trail off.
Draven finishes for me. “Since the night Octavia performed The Sight ritual.”
“Didn’t perform,” I try to remind him. But no one is paying any attention to me.
Cedric still stares down the hall. “My father will not be happy,” he says. “The fact that she was able to find us even still, is a complete mystery to me.”
There is no point just loitering here in the hall. I want to follow them up to the office against orders, but I know that will only lead to further trouble.
Instead, we continue back to the infirmary where the nurse reluctantly signs me out and allows us to start gathering my things. She tries one last time to confiscate the books that Flynn left with me. It takes some convincing before she reluctantly lets me take them with us. Not that I’ll have much time now for reading. I have a lot of work to get caught up on, and even more to prepare for.
But Wednesday won’t stop bouncing anxiously on the balls of her feet the entire time. I can tell from her expression that she is excited about something, but I can’t imagine what it is. After a second, I can’t stand the suspense anymore. I stop everyone before we even get halfway down the hall away from the infirmary with my things bundled up in our arms.
“What is it?” I say, more than a little exasperated. I don’t think I have ever seen Wednesday so jittery.
“Don’t you realize what this means?” she says.
Everyone, me, Cedric, Draven, Flynn and even Kendall, turn to look at her out of curiosity. So far, none of us has any idea. At least, not what could make Wednesday of all people so excited.
She pulls up one of her sleeves to reveal the smooth, unbranded skin of her forearm. “It means,” she says, “That there may be more mages turning up soon. I might end up with a pair after all.”
In the last few weeks, I’d completely forgotten that Wednesday never got paired up at the initiation ritual. She never even got the brand of her affinity—the mark that glows when a mage’s pair is near, and also lets others know what kind of magic they practice.
I try to mimic the hopeful look on her face, but I don’t feel it. If there were a lot of mages about to turn up at the academy, why did it take so long for the first one of them to show up? We don’t even know for sure that Mathilda is a mage, or just some weird anomaly thanks to the whole Homecoming fiasco.
For my own sake, I hope it is an anomaly. It won’t look good for my case if I’ve somehow upset another set of traditions, right now, when I am supposed to be proving I can control myself. But for Wednesday’s sake, I know I should hope that it isn’t.
Once my things have been returned to my old dorm room, I am not really sure where to begin. I still haven’t gotten the chance to confront Flynn about his paired mage, Jessica, or why Draven was in the principal’s office before the rest of us were. I don’t think Wednesday is thinking about anything other than the possibility that another mage might turn up for her.
It isn’t likely that the principal and the others will be finished dealing with Mathilda any time soon, but with nowhere else to go, we head on over to the assembly hall.
The six of us, including Wednesday, take up nearly a whole row. I thought it would be difficult to find a place to sit together since most of the school has already show up, but no one seems eager to get in our way. As soon as we appear, a wide path appears through the middle of the gathered students to let us through.
I want to sit in the back so I can avoid all the curious stares, but Wednesday marches us right up to the front row—so close to the artifacts that I can read the name of each of the affinities they represent carved into the stone pedestals they sit on.
It’s crazy to think that I was just here six weeks ago, finding out that I have all three affinities—and then some. I haven’t had time to really process my fourth affinity, Time Magic, since I was banned from practicing during my recovery.
Come to think of it, while the rest of the school files in and sits down all around us, I haven’t done any magic since that night. I was basically bedridden for over two weeks, and then the rest of the time I was kept under such close surveillance that I never got the chance.
Maybe a small part of me is worried. That final spell, the ritual that was supposed to kill me, scraped every little bit of magic out from inside me until there was nothing left. I’m anxious that it delved so deep, it might have done permanent damage. The pain of those last moments has quelled my desire to cast for so long, I might be afraid of what I find when I try again.
It isn’t until the principal and the three new teachers arrive that I really look around the room. I wonder how everyone else is taking this. I see apprehension, curiosity, and when they look my way, unless I am mistaken—more than a little bit of fear. No one sits even remotely close to us. The seats to our side and behind us are all empty. The few students who took a chance by sitting only a couple rows back glance at me nervously when they see me looking.
Sheesh. I wonder what kind of rumors have been fermenting over the last weeks. Doubtless the little time spell I threw at Cedric’s ex, Whitney, has turned into something more.
The principal climbs the couple steps up to the podium across from me. The students behind him crane their necks up to watch him as he addresses us, his voice once again magically amplified.
“As many of you already know, and the rest of you have already guessed, there has been a significant increase in activities by the mage crime syndicates, specifically the one calling itself The Underground, in the last few weeks.”
He pauses here to eye the students all around him. They shift uncomfortably under his gaze, avoiding meeting it directly for fear of being singled out by his exceptional Psychic abilities. “Because of this, we have already begun taking additional security measures to keep all of our students and faculty safe. We request, as always, that you remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities or persons immediately.”
Someone in the crowd coughs, and the principal shoots them a deathly glare.
I take this opportunity to lean in closer to Cedric and whisper, “Is it really true then? Are they overreacting, or should we be worried?”
Cedric shakes his head just a bit. “There are things going on that we don’t understand yet. We know The Underground is preparing some kind of move, but we can never catch them at it. It’s like they are always just out of reach.” He briefly glances at me from where he sits beside me. “But don’t get too worried. I’m sure my father will have things under control soon.”
His father’s voice continues on, overhead.
“As much as we have tried to avoid it, the repercussions of the temporary lifting of The Sight are still coming to light. There may be some subtle shifts in routine in order to accommodate, and we ask that you bear with us for the time being.”
With that, Mathilda is led inside by none other than Dr. Fashu. For a second, I wonder if she is going to be a subject of one of his tests as well. But as they walk past the pedestal and come to stop in the middle of the room, I catch sight of someone else in the crowd that I did not expect to see.
I lean in to Wednesday on my other side and whisper, “What the hell is Camilla doing here?”
The student that betrayed us sits almost directly across from us. She avoids making eye contact with me, and for good reason. This was the last place I expected to see her. If I were alone with her right now…I might gladly lose control of my powers once again and do far worse to her than I did to Whitney that night.
Wednesday shakes her head. “They decided she was coerced into it.”
“Bull! Do they have any idea what she did to you?”
It was because
of Camilla and the rest of them that Wednesday spent several days in the infirmary by my side. The magical medicine she was given let her recover much faster than any normal medicine would have. She’d likely still be in that hospital, or worse, without it.
We don’t have further time to complain about the fact that Camilla has been allowed back to school. The principal is commanding us all from the podium once again, his voice magnified even louder above the muttering that has broken out all around.
“It is not customary for us to accept students past the beginning of the school year, but as this is not a customary situation, we have made an exception.”
I lean closer in my seat. I am looking forward to watching the full ritual this time. I was too distracted at my own initiation to pay any attention to the others. But when Mathilda steps forward, they make no move to lead her over to the artifacts.
“So, without any further ado, we would like to introduce you to the newest member of the Earth Mage class.” The principal nods in her direction, but there is no applause.
“What?” I look to either side of me. I am not the only one confused. Cedric especially, who was basically raised here in the academy, furrows his brow. She didn’t even go through the ritual to test her affinity.
I glance back at the circle of runes. The last time I was here, they moved and lit up—spelling out an omen that the principal hastily brushed off. But if they aren’t eager to demonstrate the power of the ritual as they once were, maybe there is more to it than he originally let on.
No more shall be bound by the circle here.
“We ran a series of tests to determine her affinity,” the principal continues. “We will now perform the final step in the binding ritual that will complete her initiation.” I note that he does not try to explain the deviation from tradition—something that I find very odd indeed, especially because it was once this same tradition that prompted him to try and have my powers stripped the first time.
With that, the new Ritual teacher steps forward. It is a woman this time. I can’t get a good look at her here, in the dim light, except that her hair is cropped short and her face is pale and thin.
She places a hand on Mathilda’s forearm and utters a series of words in what I think is ancient Greek. Then the new Earth teacher steps up, and something appears in her hand. It isn’t until the tip of it begins to glow red hot that I realize what it is. It is a branding iron.
I have to look away when they bring it close to the skin of her arm.
Kendall reaches over Wednesday’s lap to squeeze my thigh, and Cedric puts an arm around my shoulders.
“What are they doing?” I breathe into his shirt, unable to look back until I am sure it is over with.
“It’s an early form of the ritual,” he says. “It’s still binding, but it’s a lot more…messy.”
I’d say.
The girl has tried to keep her composure thus far, but the moment the brand touches her skin she cries out in pain. She is still whimpering a moment later when I hear a sudden other sound. This time, from right beside me.
I open my eyes and look to my left. Kendall’s hand is still on my leg, but now it’s clamped down out of shock.
Another brand has appeared, but it’s on Wednesday’s arm.
6
Octavia
I am barely able to catch Wednesday by the wrist in the hall before she completely disappears.
“Hey!” I say. She still manages to wrench her arm out of my grasp, but she doesn’t immediately run off again. Her face is red and splotchy, and I think she’s been crying. She won’t meet my eye. Instead, she keeps staring at some spot just over my head. “Wednesday, it’s okay…I’m just surprised you never told me.”
“Told you what?” she finally snaps, her eyes dropping down to lock with mine. There is a fury there, as if she is goading me to dare continue.
“You like girls?” I say, but as soon as I do I know it comes out wrong. “Or…or boys, or both?”
“I do. Not. Like. Girls.” Wednesday stamps her foot. “This is all a mistake.”
There are other students filing out into the hall behind us. Wednesday’s eyes fall on them, and she quickly turns to run. When I reach for her again, she makes an exaggerated grunt and backs off. “At least you have a pair, right?” I say.
She just glowers at me. “You can’t possibly understand.”
It’s my turn to be exasperated. I thought we got past all that already. “Come on Wednesday…”
But this time she won’t stay. She storms out of the front hall, but not before shouting at the statues to keep this to themselves for once. Kendall brushes by me, stopping only for a second to rest a hand on my shoulder, before he runs out after her. Maybe he can talk some sense into his twin sister where I can’t.
I just stand there, trying to let the shock sink in, until someone steps up behind me and wraps his arms around my middle. I smell the scent of coffee on him before Draven presses his lips to the little area behind my ear.
“Don’t worry,” he says, his arms tightening around me for the briefest second. “She’ll come around. Just give her time.”
I know he’s right, but I still wish she would talk to me right now. Flynn and Cedric appear at my side as well.
“It’s not like this is the first time it’s happened,” Flynn says. “Wednesday should know that.”
“I don’t think that’s why she’s upset,” Cedric says, glancing between Flynn and the rest of us. “It just usually doesn’t happen so dramatically.”
I nod, and I think I am finally starting to understand. “I still don’t know why she wouldn’t tell me, of all people.”
“Maybe she wasn’t ready,” Cedric says.
“Or maybe she didn’t know,” Draven says. His lips are still so close to my ear that I can feel my skin tingle. “You would be surprised by the things you don’t know about yourself, until you take the time to figure them out.”
The way he says it makes me shudder and warmth floods my cheeks. I have to wriggle out of his arms before he tries to make things more heated here, in front of everyone, in the middle of the hallway.
Kendall returns, and from the look on his face, I know he wasn’t able to get Wednesday to talk to him.
“Well,” I say, “I guess neither one of us was ever meant to be particularly conventional.”
I notice that I am getting even more stares than usual in the hall, so Cedric quickly suggests we go somewhere for dinner—before he remembers that I’m not exactly allowed outside of the school. We will have to settle for some kind of delivery, but for now, we head to the one place where we might at least be able to grab a couple of seats before the rest of the students.
I’m not about to try and squeeze all four of these boys into my dorm room while Wednesday bawls her eyes out next door. It seems a little insensitive. So instead, Draven and Kendall grab a couple of armchairs in the dorm common room while Flynn stands and points out where the best places are to put them that will offer us maximum privacy.
After a couple hopeless minutes trying to avoid too much eye contact with the other students as they file in, Cedric stops us.
“I have a better idea,” he says.
Fifteen minutes later, Cedric finally remembers the correct passcode for a door at the end of a hallway I never even saw before. He better not ever ask me to meet him here, or else I’ll get completely lost in the rest of the labyrinth that is the academy.
The room inside is dusty, most of the furniture covered with white cloths and the windows stained with years of grime. But one wave of Flynn’s arm, and all the age and dirt is swept away. The cloths fold themselves up, the windows sparkle, and we are left instead, in a small comfortable sitting room that looks like it was abandoned at the turn of the twentieth century.
I plop down on one of the sofas and reach into the center of the table. It isn’t an ordinary coffee table. The middle of it has been hollowed out, but whatever was once placed in the center of it is go
ne.
“This must be the old divination room,” Flynn says. He crouches down beside me and runs one finger along the inside edge of the hole in the middle of the table. For a second, his hand brushes against mine and he pauses, but he doesn’t look me in the eyes.
“It is,” Cedric says. “It’s fallen out of use, but I used to come and hide here as a child.”
“What for? To make sure no one was spying on you?” Draven says.
“Actually yes.” Cedric chooses the chair across from me and sits down. He presses the tips of his fingers together to form a little tent in front of him. “It’s been enchanted to keep mages in this room safe from Psychic prying,” he says. “Magic can go out, but it cannot come in.”
“Wait,” I say, moving over a bit to allow Draven to scoot in beside me on one side, and Kendall on the other. Flynn gets up and takes the other seat opposite me, but not before he lets his hand graze longingly on mine again. Even now, I still have trouble understanding him above all the rest. He’s always just so…complicated. “What does that even mean?”
“It means that you’re basically invisible here,” Cedric says. “You can say anything you like, or do anything you like, and no one outside the room is able to sense it. It’s ideal for divination, since it requires so much concentration. Sometimes hours, or even days, on end, depending on what the mage is trying to divine.”
I look around the corners of the room with a new appreciation. “I’d like to learn more about it. What is it, fortune telling?”
Draven chuckles beside me. I can feel the vibration of his body through the upholstery. “Fortune telling is just a cheap trick,” he says. “Divination is about the future.”
“But no future is certain,” Flynn says. I can still see him eyeballing the center of the table greedily. Whatever was once there, he knows about it, and he wants it. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look at anything like that, and for a moment, I wish he would look at me that way. “Divination shows you pivotal moments. The moments that can ultimately change the direction of your future.”
Adapt: Book Two of the Forgotten Affinities Series Page 3
