Shifter Academy- an Impish Christmas

by Angel Leya

Well, she wouldn’t let it continue.

  But just as she was about to delve into the details of fixing her problem, her tablet chimed, signaling time for the next class. Ugh. Time for another day of “regular” school classes. She wished she could just skip and study her grimoire, but there was no way she could get away with that. At least the next class was with Bob. He was pretty cool, and Kenzie could usually keep her head down when he was teaching.

  She peeked over her shoulder, and seeing Ms. Heather busy with one of the other students, Kenzie stuffed the grimoire under her shirt, tucking a corner into her waistband for good measure.

  “Coinnash i fholacha,” she said quietly, and the bulge under her shirt disappeared, the waistband snapping back into place. That hiding spell was one of her favorites. She just hoped Ms. Heather didn’t realize Kenzie had smuggled the thing out. She was supposed to leave it in the Avian Training Room—locked up, of course—to avoid being tempted to use magic outside of mastery class. Right. Like she didn’t have half the book memorized and wouldn’t use what she knew in a heartbeat if she ever needed it, for any reason.

  But she couldn’t risk going a whole weekend without the grimoire, especially if it had what she needed to fix this mess. And there was no way she was getting expelled over some misplaced magic. She’d worked too hard to get into the school. She wasn’t about to get thrown out now.

  THE DAY CREPT BY WITH no further opportunity to crack open her grimoire. She twitched and fidgeted through all her “normal” classes, making fun of herself when the open stares of the other students became too much.

  Lunch was more of the same, but the blows came at the hands of her friends, which made them sting a little less. All except Wes, who was too busy being sulky and withdrawn. Kenzie tried to ignore it. It was probably a were thing. He always seemed to get cranky when there was a new moon. Jesse seemed unaffected, but he’d been a were longer than Wes. Not to mention he was a bit like her, deflecting with humor whenever he felt off. It was one of the reasons he was part of their group, even with his incessant flirting.

  They locked down the plans for the Christmas movie marathon before everyone broke for Defense Class. Kenzie groaned inwardly, even as she grinned at everyone else. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to do the movie marathon, but her nerves were on edge over the helper creature. She wanted to fix that mistake. Fast. But the entire weekend stretched out before her. She’d have the problem solved by then. Hopefully.

  She ran to the Oceanid wing to shower and drop off her stuff before the marathon. And of course, who should she run into on her way out but Trevor? It was like he was always in the common room these days. Like he was waiting for her. He wore the Santa hat she’d given him, the green looking oddly good on his tanned skin. The color was faded, like hers, but obviously he hadn’t been able to remove the dye entirely, either. Great. Maybe that was the reason Wes was so cranky.

  “Where you off to?” Trevor asked, launching off the couch—to the scowls of several mer, including Helena and Lenore. Whatever.

  Kenzie shrugged. “To the Avian wing.”

  Trevor dug his hands into his pockets, then looked back at the group. His eyes met Kenzie’s, and he nodded toward the door. Kenzie colored, but followed him, her back burning with what felt like the laser-etched disapproval of the entire mer wing.

  “Look, about last night,” Trevor said, leaning toward Kenzie as they walked out of earshot. At least she hoped it was out of earshot. Most of these paranormal types had enhanced crap, like hearing and strength. But the walls were thick, and nearly soundproof, so at least she didn’t have to worry about the mer overhearing them.

  Kenzie shook her head. “Don’t mention it.”

  “So, you’re not worried it’ll come back?”

  Kenzie shrugged, trying to keep her appearance calm and unconcerned, despite the churning in her stomach. It would come back, but she didn’t need him to know that she knew. “It’s cool. I’ll just delay my decorating until it’s caught.”

  “You told Oberon?”

  “Pshhh. What do you think?”

  Trevor’s eyes narrowed, and he stared for a long moment.

  “Look, if there’s nothing else . . .” Kenzie hitched a thumb over her shoulder. Not that she was anxious to do anything besides searching her grimoire for answers, but movies with the girls was far more appealing than trying to answer Trevor’s questions. No matter how cute he was.

  “Well, if you want any help, decorating or otherwise, don’t hesitate to ask.”

  Kenzie smiled. “Yup. Thanks!” She spun on her heel and sped off, her heart hammering in her throat. His constant need to insert himself in her endeavors was flattering, and a little terrifying. She was marked by Wes. She loved Wes.

  But what if it doesn’t last?

  The thought niggled at the back of her mind. Gram said the mark could be broken, if either of the couple strayed. Part of Kenzie wondered if she’d settled too soon. Sure, Wes was great and all, but what if he wasn’t enough for her? Was she just stuck with him for the rest of her life? His recent back-and-forth didn’t help anything, either. He was holding something back, and it seemed to stretch their connection like never before.

  Probably just the stress talking.

  Kenzie shook her head, trying to rid her mind of thoughts of Trevor’s full lips, exotic eyes and strong, lean body. She yawned, wondering how far she’d make it into the marathon before falling asleep and drooling all over herself. At least if Wes showed, like he said he would, she could snuggle into him for a movie or two. Then she could put aside her stupid fears once and for all.

  Chapter 12

  Kenzie smiled wide as she made it to the Avian Common Room. All her friends were there, including Wes and Juliet. The aroma of freshly popped popcorn greeted her seconds before the twinkling Christmas lights. And did she smell hot cocoa brewing? Kenzie gave a contented sigh.

  “You guys have outdone yourselves,” she said, sliding onto the couch next to Wes, whose droopy eyes were fixed on the TV. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and she snuggled in. Brilliant. All of this was so gloriously Christmassy she could hardly stand herself, and that warm fuzzy feeling she’d been chasing started to fill her chest.

  “Sorry we started without you,” Juliet said, plopping down on the other side of Kenzie with the bags of popcorn, her hands still glowing faintly red and her eyes just settling back from blue to their usual yellow and green coloring.

  Kenzie snorted. Show-off. But she totally loved Juliet’s creative use of her abilities.

  “It was my fault. I couldn’t wait,” Juliet added.

  “Whatever. No biggie. Hey, you look different,” Kenzie said, gently elbowing Juliet’s arm.

  Juliet’s brows creased. “Huh?”

  Kenzie raised her brows. “Your headphones?”

  Juliet laughed, shaking her head, her orange curls waving back and forth. “It’s kind of hard to listen to a movie with headphones. At least, if you plan on watching with other people.”

  Kenzie wrinkled her nose, glad to spend a little time with her friends. Leya and June were on beanbags nearby, Jesse between them with his arms sprawled around their shoulders in a way that looked brotherly. Who would’ve thunk?

  “So, when does the kissing start?” Jesse asked, shattering Kenzie’s moment.

  Leya and June both popped the hound—or maybe it was dog—and Juliet tossed the hot bag of popcorn onto his stomach.

  Jesse flinched, grabbing the bag as he looked around, bewildered. “What? I meant the movies.”

  There was laughter all around. Kenzie finally took a moment to check the television. She’d been too distracted by the food—and no wonder with Wes sliding chocolate into her back pocket. She retrieved the candy bar, giving him a peck before digging in.

  The movie was a typical Christmas chick flick, involving some sort of awkward coercion into hanging out, meant to be funny and heartwarming and the kick the couple needed to notice each other. Kenzie and Juliet exch
anged grins, but Wes groaned.

  “Are they all gonna be like this?” Wes asked, rubbing his face.

  Kenzie chuckled. “Yeah. Duh. What did you expect?”

  Wes sighed. “I don’t know.” He retracted his arm to stifle a yawn, then draped it back over Kenzie. “I’m just tired, I guess.”

  Kenzie sat up. “If you’re too tired, you don’t have to stay.”

  Wes grimaced, but got up anyway. “Are you sure?”

  Kenzie rolled her eyes. “As much as I love drool in my hair, I’d rather you get a good night’s rest. We’ll do something later.”

  “Yeah, I guess you’re right. Sorry.” He kissed her on the forehead, then pushed himself off the couch as he nodded to the group.

  There were murmured goodbyes, and Kenzie scooted to the far end of the couch, curling her legs under her in his absence. A few in her group threw her worried glances once he was gone—okay, it was pretty much everyone—but she tried to shrug it off.

  “Everything okay with you two?” Juliet asked quietly as she leaned over. The others kept their eyes on the television, but Kenzie could practically see their ears perk. Jesse could probably hear everything. The weres had some of the most marked physical abilities, super hearing and speed and strength and crap. Or was the hearing just a mao thing? Kenzie couldn’t keep them all straight.

  Kenzie shrugged. “Yeah. We’re fine. You heard the man. He’s just tired.” And he skipped Thanksgiving with me, and has been distracted and distant since I got back, her mind chimed in. Whatever. They were solid. It was just a phase. Their relationship had been forged in fire. They were unbreakable. Right?

  Juliet’s brows rose. “But he’s a were. Should he really be feeling so bad?”

  Jesse chuckled. “We’re still human. Mostly. But he does seem a little under the weather.”

  “Maybe you should have Ms. Heather look at him,” June suggested.

  “Or Leya,” Kenzie said, turning pleading eyes toward her harpy friend.

  Leya shook her head. “It’s better if he sees Ms. Heather. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, and I’d hate to make things worse. Can’t you just do magic or something?”

  Kenzie shook her head. “No. Same problem. Without knowing what’s wrong with him, I have no idea what spell would work. It’s too bad. I mentioned Ms. Heather, but he refuses to go. He says it’s nothing, but this doesn’t seem like nothing.”

  Juliet eased back into her spot with her eyes on the television, munching on her bag of popcorn, her brows still drawn. The others followed suit.

  Kenzie grabbed a handful of popcorn from Juliet’s bag and crunched her way through the next few minutes of the movie, finishing it off with the rest of her chocolate. She sunk into her seat, her blinks becoming slow, her body growing warm and fuzzy. She’d had her own rough night, and it seemed it was just catching up with her.

  “Wouldn’t it be great to play one of these on the Dome? You know, like when they projected the northern lights?” June’s voice sounded faraway, but Kenzie nodded anyway, humming her ascent. It was brilliant. And the Dome could totally do it. She’d have to remember that.

  But her drowsy mind was too far gone to do more. She fell asleep smiling to the tune of Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer as it drifted from the TV.

  KENZIE WOKE WITH A start, peering around the dim common room to find out what had awoken her. Jesse’s head was tilted way back, soft snores coming from his open mouth, Leya and June curled into his sides. Juliet had her head on her elbow, as if she might still be watching, but her eyes were closed, too.

  Kenzie perked her ears, but the only sounds she could hear were coming from her friends and the television screen.

  Must be my imagination, she tried to reassure herself, but the uneasiness had returned. She had a sinking feeling it could only mean one thing.

  “Twice we start but are not done. Helper wants to have more fun!” There was maniacal laughter, and Kenzie shuddered. She couldn’t tell where the voice was coming from, but the creature had obviously tracked her here. Now she just had to figure out what it wanted with her this time.

  Kenzie slowly got to her feet, creeping forward. Her foot landed on something, and the television started going wild, changing channels, raising the volume to an ear-piercing level. Kenzie scrambled for what she now realized was the remote, her eyes wide, hoping not to disturb her friends. But they were already jerking awake to the tune of Silent Night, shouting for her to turn down the volume.

  Just as her finger found the mute button, a piercing sound broke through the room and echoed down the halls of the Dome. Fudge. This couldn’t be good. Kenzie careened toward the door, but a moment later, the sprinklers were on, and just as she opened the door, a burst of glitter rained down on her.

  She closed her eyes against the onslaught, only to have to blink them open again because she could hear something moving. A snicker barely rose above the din, and Kenzie tried to follow it, slipping and sliding along the stairs until she came to the floor of the Grand Hall. She didn’t wait when she heard shouts behind her, reeling around the bottom of the stair rail, desperate to end this thing once and for all.

  She noted with dismay the trail of red and silver glitter she left in her wake. Glitter was certifiably awesome, but this was too much. Her only sense of relief was that Wes had escaped the main bulk of the madness. And maybe he was able to sleep through the fire alarm? And sprinklers? Okay, so that was unlikely, but she could hope.

  Armed with her new knowledge, Kenzie had only one goal: capture the creature. She couldn’t use her magic on it, but if she could trap it and wait for it to turn back, she could lift the spell-turned-curse.

  Finally, she bent over with her hands on her knees, her eyesight blurry and unreliable, her breathing labored. She was soaked to the bone and running almost blindly. She wasn’t even sure where in the Dome she was anymore, or if she was any closer to finding that imp. She wanted to fix this tonight, before things got any worse.

  A few bodies blurred past her, slipping and sliding on the slick floors. It was Mr. Suzuki and a few kitsunes, no doubt trying to disable the sprinklers. A few moments later, the mer emerged, looking different shades of angry and smug as they began to manipulate the downpour to shield students and minimize the damage to the contents of the Dome.

  Kenzie stood there, unsure what to do in the onslaught of students filling the halls. She was trying to squeeze some of the water from her hair and clothes when a large blob of it dumped on her head.

  Kenzie whirled around, thinking it was the imp again, but Helena and Lenore were watching her, their eyes aglow with teal. Of course, all the mer had teal eyes, thanks to their powers being at work, but the look of satisfaction on their faces said they weren’t just using their powers for good.

  Kenzie smiled big at the girls, giving her clothes another wipe. “Thanks! I was hoping to fit in an extra shower this weekend. Your timing was perfect.”

  Helena pouted her lower lip. “Awww, the poor selkie doesn’t like water, does she?”

  Kenzie raised a brow. “I’m not the one keeping water off myself. Or maybe it’s you two who don’t like water. What? Are you afraid you’ll spring a tail?”

  Lenore scowled, folding her arms.

  Helena leaned forward, a sneer marring her otherwise pretty face. “Like we’d have so little control. I’d be happy to give you another shower to demonstrate just how much control we do have.”

  It was that moment that Trevor seemed to materialize, stepping between Kenzie and the mer. “Helena. Lenore. You need to stop.”

  Helena’s face hardened. “You’re always siding with her these days.”

  “I’m not picking sides. I’m trying to bring peace.”

  Kenzie snorted. Noble words for a mer.

  “It doesn’t have to be like this,” Trevor continued. “We can—” But his words were cut off as another large blob of water doused him. Trevor wiped off his face, glaring at Helena and Lenore.

  Kenzi
e gripped his shoulders, standing on her tiptoes so her face was beside his, pouting her lower lip. “Aw, girls. Tsk. It’s not my fault that he likes his girls with wet t-shirts on.”

  Helena’s scowl deepened, and Lenore rolled her eyes as they walked away.

  Trevor’s head turned toward Kenzie, a grin on his handsome face. “You got rid of them for now, but what happens when them come back like a hydra?”

  Kenzie shook her head. “They always come back. I just keep swinging for the fences.” She shrugged as she let go of Trevor, suddenly self-conscious. Sure, it was nice throwing the wet t-shirt jab at the mer, but now she just wanted to cross her arms over her chest. She resisted the urge, though her shoulders rolled forward of their own accord. No need to call more attention to herself than she already had. “Thanks, by the way.”

  Trevor shrugged. “Yeah. No problem.”

  Kenzie didn’t think the moment could get any more awkward, and then Wes rushed in, scooping Kenzie into his arms. “You’re okay,” he mumbled into her hair. “I went to the common room as soon as I could, but when you weren’t there, I got worried. What the heck happened? Why’d you run?”

  Kenzie chewed on her lower lip, throwing an apologetic glance toward Trevor.

  Trevor nodded and began to back slowly away.

  Wes stiffened and whirled toward the mer. “You. I should’ve known you were involved.”

  Kenzie grabbed Wes’s arm, though she doubted she could physically hold the man back if he wanted to turn Trevor into chum. “Wes, it’s okay. He was just helping with Helena and Lenore.”

  Wes shook Kenzie’s arm off, but didn’t advance. “I don’t want him anywhere near you.”

  Trevor puffed out his chest, seeming to gain several inches. He was a fraction taller than Wes, but with Wes in such a wide stance, the difference seemed much greater. “Maybe if you were here, I wouldn’t have had to step in and help.”

  “Wes, please,” Kenzie said, tugging on his arm again. This was not going well. She shot Trevor a glare, hoping to get him to back down, but male ego was involved now. She wasn’t really even a factor in their little standoff.