by L. C. Mawson
I returned my gaze to Willow and she winced.
“I’m so sorry, Amelia. I... I wasn’t strong enough. If I had just handled the pain...”
Ms Maltere finally spoke. “If you had, you would both be dead.” Her gaze was hard, and she refused to look at me. “This wasn’t about a lack of strength. The curse has been refined since the version you were looking at, to prevent exactly this kind of tampering. You tripped a secondary curse, directed at whoever attempted to lift the original. It’s crude, and clumsy. A hasty rewrite made out of fear that magic may have surpassed even her while she was asleep.” She gave a cold smirk. “It seems that the great Maria Brown isn’t as brilliant as everyone remembers.”
I snorted, though it came out as a strained sound, followed by a bout of painful coughing.
When I finally recovered, I shrugged, trying not to look as bad as I felt. “Crude as it may have been, it worked.” I sighed. “How long is it going to take me to recover this time?”
Ms Maltere didn’t answer, instead turning to Willow. “Perhaps you should get some rest and give us a little privacy.”
Willow didn’t look happy, but she nodded before turning to me. “Thank you, Amelia. When the curse was hurting me... You’re only this injured because you took it on yourself. Because you saved me.”
“I couldn’t bear watching you hurt.”
A moment later, her lips were on mine, and if I wasn’t in so much pain, I would have grabbed her, and never let her go.
But I was, so I settled for kissing her back with everything I could muster.
When she finally pulled away, she gave me a soft smile. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“Yeah. Later.”
She hesitated for a moment before leaving the room.
And leaving me alone with Ms Maltere.
The knowledge that I had just kissed someone in front of her was quickly overshadowed by the guilt of breaking my promise to her.
And then the fact that she hadn’t answered my question about how long it would take me to recover.
She moved over to the chair Willow had left, sitting beside me, though she didn’t speak.
She also didn’t meet my gaze, instead looking over my new scars.
“So... It’s going to be a while before they heal, huh?”
“They won’t heal.”
Deep down, I had known that, but I had hoped that I was wrong.
“Ever?”
“Ever.” She finally met my gaze. “I’m sorry. I should have... I should have known. I shouldn’t have...”
“It’s not your fault,” I said. “You made me promise not to use my magic, and I did it anyway.”
She shook her head. “You’re a teenage girl. Of course, you weren’t going to listen to me. If you had just come to me... But I made you promise, so you didn’t feel like you could.”
“It’s not your fault that I was stupid enough to break my promise. That I was stupid enough to think that I could save her...”
“You could have. If not for that secondary curse, you and Willow could have done it.”
I wasn’t sure how to feel about that fact, so I stayed silent.
She sighed. “I know how to get past the secondary curse. I can’t heal it, but I can stop it before it attacks.”
I stared at her for a moment as I processed her words.
“You can help me save my mother?”
She nodded. “I can. But I need help. I wasn’t sure if you were ready, but you could have done this, so... I have a curse of my own that I need to get past. My sisters were cursed, and I’ve been trying to get them free. I had planned to do it on Samhain, and I’m hoping that you can help. Once they’re free, they can help me to free your mother.”
I winced. Samhain was only a week away. “Will I have recovered by then?”
“You’re mildly exhausted, but you mitigated that by using the maze, and Willow is powerful in her own right, so she helped. No, your pain now is from the curse, and what will heal will heal quickly.”
“And what exactly won’t heal?”
She moved her wand over to the black scars, gently prodding them.
I screamed, agony overtaking me.
I gasped as it faded, and awareness returned to me.
“I barely touched you,” she said. “Numbing salves might help, but they’ll only take the edge off. Otherwise, those scars are permanent.”
“And they’ll always hurt like this?”
She nodded. “I’m so sorry, Amelia.”
I didn’t respond, not sure that I could.
Not sure that my mind could comprehend it.
The scars seemed fine with the light touch of my clothes, but they snaked across my chest and side and upper arm.
Would every touch knock the wind from me? Every nudge in the corridor? Every hug?
Yeah, that wasn’t something I was ready to think about.
“You’ll be fine to cast another spell on Samhain, and if you help me to save my sisters, I can help you save your mother. Deal?”
I nodded, the memory of the curse overtaking my mother once more still fresh in my mind.
I couldn’t let her down again.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Amelia.”
I groaned as I awoke once more, my shoulders stiff, but my pain otherwise gone.
I rubbed my eyes as I realised that I was still lying across one of the desks in Ms Maltere’s room, sunlight streaming in from the windows.
I must have fallen asleep when she was casting her healing spells.
“What time is it?” I asked as I sat up, finding the task easy enough, despite the slight ache of the scars.
I didn’t want to risk actually touching them, though.
“Nearly breakfast,” Ms Maltere told me. “I wanted to give you as much time as possible to rest and heal, but I figured that you would need to get back.”
I frowned as I realised that she was still in the same clothes as the night before. “Have you been up all night?”
She nodded. “You needed healing spells to recover as quickly as possible.”
“I... Thank you. And sorry again.”
She smiled. “You don’t have to apologise, Amelia. It was really no trouble. Now, go on. You’ll need to get changed, and you’re probably famished.”
I nodded as my stomach growled, confirming her suspicion.
“Thanks again,” I said before heading out the door.
I hurried back to my room, and found Natalie there, sitting on the end of her bed and putting her shoes on.
She frowned as I entered.
“Where were you last night?”
I rolled my eyes. “Good morning to you, too.”
She sighed. “Sorry. Just... I was worried about you. You could have at least messaged if you were going to be somewhere else.”
“Sorry. I was with Willow and time got away from me.”
That wasn’t technically a lie, and I didn’t have another excuse, though I cringed a little as I realised what that might sound like.
Though, Willow had kissed me last night, so maybe what it sounded like wasn’t completely off base.
Then again, that had been a kiss she’d given after I’d almost died, so I wasn’t exactly holding out hope that it meant anything more.
Natalie glared at her shoes as she finished putting them on, and I felt the temperature of the room drop.
“Everything okay?” I asked, remembering her warnings about staying away from Willow.
Maybe that hadn’t been the best excuse...
She finally looked up and the glare faded, replaced by a smile.
It was a bittersweet smile, but at this point, I would take it.
“Yeah, everything’s fine,” she said. “I’m guessing if you stayed out all night that you had fun?”
I shrugged. “It was definitely... memorable.”
“Well, I’m glad that you’ve found someone to... To spend time with.”
I raised an eyebrow
. “What happened to your warnings that everything I felt for her was just a side-effect of her Elven beauty?”
She sighed as she stood up. “It’s been weeks, and she’s only half-Elf. Unless she lowered her suppression magic again, everything you feel for her at this point should be real.”
She didn’t look happy at that, but as long as she wasn’t vocalising that unhappiness, I decided not to bring it up.
I couldn’t imagine that conversation ending well.
“Okay, well, I’m just going to quickly get changed before breakfast.”
Natalie nodded as I grabbed some clean clothes and headed to the bathroom.
I locked the door behind me, not wanting to risk Natalie seeing what was beneath my blouse.
Even I hadn’t had a good look at it yet, and I knew as my fingers hesitated over my blouse’s buttons, I didn’t want to.
But waiting wouldn’t change anything, so I braced myself before peeling away my top.
I winced as I saw the full extent of the scarring.
Around the edges, the scars were just black lines. I didn’t find them pleasant, but they were no worse than a tattoo.
But where the lines intersected? There, the skin was cracked and broken, looking like my flesh had been charred.
I gingerly reached over to touch the damaged flesh but hissed and yanked my hand away after just brushing my fingertips across it.
Yeah, as much as the rest of me had recovered, the scars still hurt like hell.
And would likely always hurt.
And always be there, marking my skin.
Tears were falling down my cheeks before I’d even realised that I was crying, unable to drag my gaze from my marred body.
MY UNIFORM COVERED the scars so that none of my friends noticed.
I just sat there at breakfast and during lessons, pretending as if nothing had happened.
That everything was fine.
“You finally coming to History of Magic this afternoon?” Natalie asked as we sat in the library, drawing my attention
I cringed. Sitting on my own in my room seemed like the worst thing for me right now. But I’d been using my exhaustion to avoid going to History of Magic classes.
I’d managed to avoid seeing Mr Stiles at all since I’d planted the listening device in his room and copied his book.
Ms Maltere had promised me that the listening device was working, so he couldn’t know that I’d been in his house.
But still, some paranoid part of me was sure that as soon as he saw me again, he would be able to sense my guilt, and know what I’d done.
“I’m actually feeling a little tired,” I said. “Do you mind taking notes for me again?”
“No, it’s fine. But Mr Stiles did ask after you last time.”
I suppressed a shudder. “What did you tell him?”
“That you were still recovering from magical exhaustion. But he did point out that it’s been weeks, and you should have recovered by now.”
“It’s not just his classes. I’m not going to Innate Magical Control or Magical Self-Defence, either.”
I struggled to swallow, and tears threatened to well in my eyes at the reminder of the latter.
Even when it was past Samhain, and I was no longer on rest from my exhaustion, could I really go back to those lessons now?
One sharp hit to my side, and it was over.
All those years training, now meaningless.
“They’re physical classes, though,” Natalie continued, oblivious to my thoughts. “History of Magic is theoretical.”
I shrugged, taking a deep breath to centre myself in the present. And not on my morbid thoughts. “I know, but if he has a problem with me needing more time, he can take it up with Ms Griffin. She’s allowed me to skip as many classes as I like until the exhaustion has passed, and I’m keeping on top of my work.”
Natalie sighed, but didn’t argue.
Lena, thankfully, cut in, turning to me. “Looks like someone wants to talk to you.”
I frowned and looked up to see Willow standing in the doorway.
Lena raised an eyebrow. “What exactly happened between you two yesterday?”
Natalie answered before I could. “Amelia spent the night with her.”
I raised my hands. “I... It’s not as bad as it sounds. We didn’t... It wasn’t...”
Lena just smirked, and I’m sure that my cheeks were bright red.
“Yeah, sure it wasn’t.”
I sighed as I got up to see Willow, figuring that there was nothing more I could say to help the situation.
She led me out of the library and to a secluded corner before casting a privacy spell.
She then turned to me. “How are you? You look better.”
“I feel better,” I said with a smile. “Ms Maltere managed to patch up almost everything.”
“Almost everything?”
I cringed. “The scars are still there.”
Willow frowned before stepping close.
My breath caught in my throat as she moved her hand over to the collar of my shirt, her hand pausing. “May I?”
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.
She moved the fabric aside and her frown deepened as she saw the scars.
And that wasn’t even the worst of them...
“I know they’re not pretty,” I said, going for a joking tone, though I wasn’t quite sure that I managed it. “Going to the beach is going to be a nightmare.”
Willow’s gaze snapped up to meet mine and I found my words missing once more.
“They’re beautiful,” she said.
I scoffed. “You don’t have to lie to me, Willow. In fact, I would prefer it if you didn’t. It’s okay, I’m a big girl, I can handle a few scars.”
Willow’s hand went to my cheek, not allowing me to lower my gaze.
“I’m serious,” she said, and I believed her. “You earned these scars trying to save someone you love. They’re likely only this bad because you took all of the pain of the curse to spare me from it. That makes them beautiful.”
She leaned close, kissing me and stopping any argument from passing my lips.
I kissed her back, the way I couldn’t the night before, clutching her blazer to drag her close.
But then her hands went to my waist.
My vision went black as I failed to swallow a cry, my legs giving out from under me.
“Amelia!” She reached down to help me stay steady. “Are you okay?”
I nodded as I gulped for air, accepting her help getting back to my feet. “I’m fine, just... the scars are a little sensitive.”
Her eyebrows shot into her hairline. “A little sensitive? Amelia, you nearly passed out.”
I shrugged as my breathing finally returned to normal. “Yeah, it’s not pleasant. I barely got my bra on this morning without throwing up. But, you know, I’ll get used to it.”
She frowned. “Get used to it? How long until they heal?”
“Um... That’s the thing. They’ll probably never heal. But it’s fine. Really. I would rather not talk about it.”
“Can you tell me where they are, at least? I don’t want to risk hurting you again.”
I nodded before waving my hand over the affected areas. “Just here, here, and here.”
“Okay,” she said before leaning close once more. “I promise, I’ll be careful from now on.”
One side of my mouth quirked up into a small half-smile. “So, does that mean that you intend to do something that would require being careful?”
“Well, we were in the middle of something that required being careful, weren’t we?”
“Yes, but I wasn’t sure if that was something you would want to do again.”
“Is it something you would want to do again?”
I nodded, my mouth dry.
She smiled. “Me too.”
She leaned close, and I was sure that she was going to kiss me again, but then the bell rang, and she pulled away with a groan.
I smiled. “Well, we’ll have plenty of time for that later.”
She returned my smile. “Yeah, I suppose we will.”
Chapter Thirty
“Turn that damn thing off.”
I raised an eyebrow as I sat up, leaning over to turn my alarm off before looking over to see Natalie still under her covers.
“What’s got you so cranky? You never complain about getting up on a school day.”
“Samhain’s not a school day.”
“What?”
She pulled her duvet over her head. “We don’t have classes today.”
“Aren’t we helping with ritual set-up?”
“This afternoon, now let me sleep.”
I shook my head. Natalie was worse than me when she didn’t have classes.
Her nocturnal instincts, I supposed.
I sat up and grabbed my laptop, figuring that a morning off meant a morning for Civ.
At least until Natalie called my name, drawing me to the present to see that she was dressed.
When had she even gotten up?
She sighed. “It’s lunch.”
“Oh. Sorry. I wasn’t looking at the time.”
“There has to be a mod for an in-game clock, so this doesn’t happen as much.”
I shrugged as I got out of bed. “There is one. It’s just small and in the corner.”
“A mod for a bigger one, then.”
“I’ll look into it,” I said as I made my way to the bathroom.
“Wait...”
“What?” I turned to her, only to see her frowning at my chest.
I glanced down to see black lines creeping out from under my top.
I quickly yanked it up to cover them.
I would need to get pyjamas that covered more...
“What was that?” she asked. “It looked like a curse.”
I shrugged. “It’s nothing. Just a spell that backfired. But it’s fine, Ms Maltere gave me a numbing salve.”
Natalie’s frown deepened. “A numbing salve? Not a healing salve?”
I looked away. “Can we please just not talk about this?”
I cringed. I hadn’t meant my voice to come out so pathetic, but now the words were out of my mouth, and I couldn’t take them back.
“I... Yeah. Okay.”
I nodded, hurrying into the bathroom before getting changed.