“I’m sorry you can’t claim your heritage,” I said. “You’re one of the original six.”
“My father was an outling. He met my mother here, at the Academy. They fell in love and everything should’ve been perfect.”
“Why did he do it?”
Cloven’s gaze met mine, his filled with sorrow. “No one knows. Or, they’ve been bespelled to forget.” Resettling in his seat, he braced his hands on the arms of his chair. “I’d like you to forget this, too. It’s…safer if you let it go. Stop investigating.”
I couldn’t. I had to know.
“Let the world remain oblivious to what happened.”
We sat in grim silence. I hadn’t meant to hurt him with my questions. I’d just wanted answers. But maybe some secrets were better left hidden.
“My mother will teach you to unravel, then,” he said softly. A statement, not a question.
“She said she would.” Though I was sad for Cloven, I couldn’t hold back my smile. “She even called me her apprentice.”
“I’m proud of you, Fleur. Life keeps throwing challenges your way, but you never give up. Your determination is one of the things I admire about you most.”
“Thank you.” Heat made my cheeks ache. I wasn’t used to receiving praise from anyone. “Minerva said I can call her whenever I have time to learn.” Which would be as often as possible. I just needed to find the right location, a place where no one would overhear, where we wouldn’t be disturbed.
I knew just were to go. Winter had grabbed hold of the campus. Surely Donovan wouldn’t go up to the roof often. I’d watch. If he went there to jump, I’d follow and wait until he was gone.
Donovan.
My throat spasmed but I shoved my agony aside, replacing it with a spark of the determination Cloven had said I possessed.
Donovan had been my sole reason to master my skapti, and I would do this for him. He deserved to keep his memories, not have them stolen from him.
But Minerva was right. I also needed to do this for everyone else. Bespellers couldn’t go on unchecked. I was a solitary Unraveler in a world filled with some spells that should never have been cast. Like the one on Alys. Donovan. Who else?
Once I was a full Unraveler, I could make a difference.
Ever since Mom left me to make my own way in the world, I’d believed I was worthless. I had no one to care. No one to love me. Some of my fellow students had reinforced that belief, even the one I now called sister.
But I wasn’t alone. I had Patty. Tria and Moira. About ten percent of Alys. A bit of Donovan buried deep inside.
And I had Cloven.
How could I tell him how much his support and affection meant to me?
“I know,” he said softly, his clasped hands pressed to his chin. His green eyes—much like Tria’s—glistened.
Could he read minds or was I still unable to keep my emotions from blazing on my face?
“From the moment I met you,” he said with a tender smile. “I sensed I’d found a kindred spirit.”
“Because we’re both outlings?” Half Elite, like him.
“Because, even without sharing blood, we’re family.”
Chapter 21
It was time to dive into the belly of the beast.
Or, in this case, a slork.
While I’d wanted to flop on my bed and dream up ways to manipulate Katya at the mall tomorrow, I had a Magical Creatures & How to Tame Them class I had to go to first.
With night descending, I joined up with my fellow classmates, and we left the main building through the eastern door. Stark, chilly darkness greeted us outside.
We milled on the bridge with the murky moat water icing up beneath us, stomping our feet and blowing on our hands in an attempt to keep them warm. Not happening when it was only ten degrees outside.
“This way, students,” Professor Trarion called out. Lifting her arm, she led us off the bridge and onto one of the paths leading toward the eastern forest.
Our buckets and tool bags clunked against our legs while our boots shuffled through the light dusting of snow on the ground.
Brr. I snuggled deeper into my coat, grateful I’d pulled on my fuzzy hat and forced both my hands into my mittens before we left the building.
Professor Trarion strode beside me, her robe swishing around her high black boots. We passed the greenhouse lab, dark and empty for the moment. A hive of wilty-sparks bobbed past us. Shifting from pinks and greens to blue and purple, they seemed to mimic our Professor’s bright purple Academy robe and her lighter purple dreadlocks shot through with blue ribbons. The blue matched her mittens. She’d pulled her hair back in a low ponytail, and the tight strands swished across her back with each step.
Tall posts with balls containing swirling liquid had been spaced along the path to light our way. I’d been told the balls contained an iridescent plant that grew at the bottom of the sea. Regular doses of moat water kept them aglow.
“Delighted to see you in class this evening,” our professor said, her nod taking in my right hand. “I wasn’t sure you’d be here.”
“My other hand works fine,” I said, holding it up. “And I don’t want to miss any of my classes.”
We passed three stout trolls dressed in matching uniforms with Magical Extermination, emblazoned in red letters on their backs. Steel tanks with narrow hoses in hand, they darted among the vegetation, spraying steaming white liquid around the bases of the trees and across the tops of the stone park benches.
A cluster of vrillas burst from the bushes and scolded the exterminators in high-pitched trills before swirling across the path and into the woods.
Grunting, the trolls kept working.
Yay. They’d soon eliminate the prankster. One less thing for me to worry about.
“You have a commendable attitude,” Professor Trarion said, drawing my attention back to her. “I appreciate your dedication considering your condition. You do know I would’ve excused you until…until…”
“Until I’d been fitted with a prosthesis?”
“I’m sorry,” she breathed out, her steps faltering. She turned watery eyes my way. “All of us are horrified. No, we’re devastated about what happened.”
Her grief made my high-flying kite take a nose dive. “I’m sorry I snapped at you.”
“It’s completely understandable.” Rubbing my shoulder, she pressed for a smile that didn’t make it to her eyes. “Please know we’re thinking of you as you go through this rough time.”
“Thanks.”
We fell in behind the others on the path.
Ahead of us, Eben walked behind Vik.
“Why is Eben here tonight?” I asked Professor Trarion. “Did he sign up late for the class?”
“Yes.” She lowered her voice and leaned close to me as we walked behind them. “He added a few classes in the hopes of lifting his average enough to win the Outling of the Year Award.”
“What’s the prize if he wins the award?” I asked.
“A change in status.”
I frowned. “As in…”
Professor Trarion winced. “He’ll be granted full Elite status.”
That explained why Eben was so eager to win the award. I’d thought…I don’t know. That the award was partly a joke. Who would’ve thought it was real?
Did Eben’s goal of winning also make him eager to eliminate the competition? I’d thought he might be behind the nightlace attacks, though that had been disproven when it was revealed it was Alys. And while Eben could manipulate plants with his skapti, I doubted he was also a Bespeller.
I studied Eben closely, looking for clues he could’ve been involved in the nightlace attacks. Not that he’d give himself away, but it didn’t hurt to keep an eye on him.
Thorn told me Eben and Vik had been caught sneaking out late at night, perhaps on a nefarious mission. They’d been overheard saying my name and slork.
And here we were, walking toward the slork.
Had Eben joined the cl
ass to increase his grade, or had he planned a more sinister to win Elite status? With me gone, his chances improved.
“I thought once you were born an outling you remained one for life,” I said.
“There are rare opportunities to become Elite.”
Interesting.
Eben flicked his zether rake back and forth, periodically poking Vik’s backside.
I shook my head. What was he up to now?
One poke too many and Vik whirled around, scowling.
“Remember, each of us will help you through this, Fleur,” Professor Trarion said. “Never think for a minute that we’re not in this together.”
Except for the looming amputation, which belonged solely to me. But I held in my snark. She was trying to be supportive, and I hated to see her sad.
“Professor Trarion,” Vik whined. “Eben won’t leave me alone.”
“Eben,” Professor Trarion said sharply.
“Yeah?” Eben called over his shoulder, his voice projecting pure innocence. The beatleycarne wasn’t the only prankster around. Maybe the exterminators could take care of Eben after they’d handled the beatleycarne.
How did he think he’d get a good grade if he kept fooling around?
He partly shielded his rake with his body and gouged it toward Vik again.
Vik groaned then glared at Eben.
Professor Trarion flicked her fingers toward Eben and his rake was yanked from his hand. It rose up to dance above him while he leaped, trying to grab it without success.
Giving up, he stomped forward, growling at Vik as he passed.
The rake flipped down and tapped Eben on the butt. He yelped and, thankfully, the gesture stunned him into submission, a benefit to all of us. He scooped his rake off the ground and carried it carefully at his side, his shoulders cowed forward.
“Cool,” I breathed out, creating a puff of white in the chilly air. “Can you teach me how to do that?”
“I’m afraid it takes special threads,” she said, sliding a quick smirk my way.
“What color?”
“Fluorescent green, orange, and yellow, woven into a braid.”
“I’m learning how to braid threads.” Or I would be learning soon. Once I could consistently create a simple braid and store it in my moonstone, I’d reach Level Three of my Unraveler skapti. “But I haven’t seen fluorescent threads before.” Not yet, but I’d look for them.
“If you find any.” She winked. “Come see me, and I’ll teach you my trick.”
“Deal.”
We strode up the gardener’s path I’d taken with Patty and Bryce when we rescued the captive dandybucklions. We’d caught them as part of our assignment in Professor Grim’s class in order to milk them of their anti-venom. Professor Grim said the anti-venom could be used against dragons, but I’d discovered—with Alex’s help—that it killed nightlace. We’d taken the dandybucklions to the eastern pasture and set them free. Sadly, we’d been caught by Seekers, then scolded by the Headmistress for our actions.
We reached the eastern pasture and paused. Professor Trarion pulled small lanterns out of her pocket, lanterns that should take up the space of ten pockets. A puff of breath, and wilty-sparks inside each glass chamber burst into color. They bobbed around inside, bumping against the walls.
With our small lights outlining the trail, we entered the woods, following a snow-covered track that snaked slowly higher in elevation. Moonlight filtered through the leafless branches above, making slender shadows dance across the snow.
Eventually, we came to a broad meadow. The dusting of snow coating the grass and trees brought back memories of winter holidays when I lived with my mom. I missed those days. Missed her. It still hurt that she’d abandoned me but being with my friends helped lessen the sting.
A small hill projected up in the middle of the meadow, strangely bare of snow.
“This will do, students,” Professor Trarion said in a cheery voice. “We can stop here while we talk about our project, the slork.”
“What’s a slork?” Someone whispered, their voice overly loud in the hush of the untouched meadow.
“Someone hasn’t done their reading before class,” our professor said. Her lips twisted. “For everyone’s benefit, I’ll explain. Slorks are normally sedate, sluggish beasts but when riled, they can turn quite deadly, as a few unlucky wizards discovered long ago.”
I peered around her, at the motionless mound that looked much like the landscape surrounding it. Grass covered, motionless, and inanimate.
And again, no snow.
My skin prickled, and an uneasy feeling rushed through me. What were we getting into here?
“We learned by accident how to keep the slorks happy,” Professor Trarion said, swirling her arms out at her sides. “As long as we regularly rake their blight, they remain calm and cooperative.”
Blight.
Yes, I’d skimmed the material a few days ago, but I couldn’t remember what blight was. I guessed I’d soon find out.
“While inside the slork, a few exploring wizards accidentally stirred up the blight and some was excreted. The beast calmed and, when it yawned, the wizards were able to return to the surface. They were regurged, actually.”
How…intriguing. Not. Regurged sounded a bit too much like being vomited.
“Let’s hope today is a good day for the slork,” Eben said. He lifted his rake. “Let me at it. I’ll rake a bunch of blight and we can head back to the Academy.” He stomped his feet. “It’s freezing!”
“We have three slorks we maintain on campus,” Professor Trarion said, ignoring Eben’s comment. “Today, students, we’ll rake blight! Hold tight to your buckets and trowels. Your rakes. Your lanterns. And follow me.” She trooped across the field, heading toward the small hill that remained unmoving. “This slork was recently raked and thus is quite tame,” she said over her shoulder. “It’ll be happy to accommodate us for this lesson.” Turning, she walked backward, slowly getting closer to the mound. “Can any of you explain how to approach a slork and encourage it to invite you inside?”
I nodded and half lifted my hand.
“Fleur?”
“You walk up to it and recite the chant,” I said. “Then it allows you inside.” I hoped. I’d hate for it to take a bite out of me before sending me down its gizzard.
“Perfect,” she said. “Remember, it’s completely safe.”
Like beatleycarnes?
“Who will volunteer to enter first?” she asked. “Extra points for the student.”
Vik stepped forward. “Me.”
Eben elbowed him to the side. “No, me!”
"Thank you, Vik. I’ll add three points to your next quiz grade,” Professor Trarion said. “Eben, you may go second.”
Ha. No points for him. Call me snarky, but the guy got on my nerves.
Our professor turned toward the hill and lifted her arms. “Mr. Slork, we’ve come to fork.”
“Thought it was a rake,” Eben whispered beside me.
“Shh.” Jeez, couldn’t he wait with someone other than me? He was half the reason my beatleycarne got away during Professor Grim’s class. If Eben hadn’t chased it, I might’ve caught it. Then we could’ve skipped the exterminators and me almost dying on the stairs when the prankster shoved me.
“If you don’t give us a fright,” Professor Trarion trilled to the slork. “We’ll rake your blight.”
“Lame,” Eben said.
Shaking my head, I left Eben and went over to stand with Faith, another First Year student. At least she wouldn’t make ridiculous comments or mess this up.
“Oh, slork!” Professor Trarion sang. “We’ve come to fork!”
A groan echoed through the meadow, and the hill shuddered. The grassy embankment in front of us split, and a gaping black maw about four feet across appeared.
I’d studied the mechanics of this task and knew what to expect, but my hands still trembled. My jaw dropped along with Faith’s.
“Holy,�
� she blurted out. “How are we going to find the guts to go inside that thing?”
Guts was right. I had a suspicion blight wouldn’t be found in the entrance. Otherwise, regurging wouldn’t be part of the plan.
“March, students,” Professor Trarion shouted. “We mustn’t waste time. The jaws will close within minutes, and we won’t make it inside.” She nudged Vik’s back. “Go on. Step lively. Everyone will be right behind you. I’ll take the rear.”
Sure, remain outside where it was safe while we trooped into a living cave.
In the distance behind us, gruff shouts filled the air.
Professor Trarion paused.
Faith and I turned to look back. Nothing but woods, woods, and more woods behind us. Oh, and a bunch of snow. No one ran this way.
When the world went still again, our professor lifted her rake. “Inside, everyone. Don’t dawdle.”
Faith stared past my shoulder. Something rustled behind me, making my skin crawl, and I whirled around.
A few leaves skittered across the forest floor but nothing appeared out of place.
“What did you see?” I asked, turning back to face her.
“I’m not sure I saw anything.” She frowned. “Maybe it was a squirrel?”
The exterminators had located the beatleycarne, hadn’t they?
I didn’t like how my spine trembled. As if it sensed a creature watching. Hunting?
If only I could feel more confident about the wards.
Chapter 22
“Come along!” Professor Trarion shouted again.
Wilty-spark lantern held aloft, Vik ducked through the opening with Eben right behind him. The rest of us marched forward, our tools and lanterns in hand.
“I don’t remember what the book said we’re supposed to do with the blight,” I said to Professor Trarion, who walked immediately behind me.
We paused by the entrance and she waved. “After you, Fleur, dear.”
“Thanks.” Not.
I took one step inside. Another. As I was swallowed by the dark room, a musty odor dove into my sinuses, stinging like I’d inhaled rotten milk. My boots sunk as if I’d stepped into a pool of slime. When I lifted my feet, strands of goo stretched up with it, reminding me of when I’d been caught in Katya’s web. Not a pleasant thought now that I was inside a beast.
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