The Curse Begins

by Abby James

  “I’m not sure where here is.”

  “But you know where the stairwell is.”

  Was that his way of saying scram? “Are you the caretaker or the janitor?”

  He hissed, actually hissed, then vanished. Like, completely vanished. In front of my eyes. I whimpered in shock, then swiveled on my ass, expecting to see him behind me, but the corridor was empty.

  “I’ll give you—”

  I screamed and lurched to the side as the deep masculine voice spoke into my ear.

  He crouched beside me, close enough the hairs on my arms prickled to attention and would’ve brushed along him had either of us moved.

  “Ten seconds to retrace your steps.”

  His face came into view and whoa, whoa, whoa this guy wasn’t real. He couldn’t be, not looking like that. How was it I’d met two super hot guys in less than three hours and yet I’d spent twenty years in the human world and had struggled to find one decent guy? But Fae boy was off my list of potentials given he’d manipulated my mind for his own gain. And this guy was shaping up to be Mr. Friendly not.

  “If this part of the castle is out of bounds, why isn’t it sign posted?”

  “Everyone knows their place.”

  Arrogant ass. “I’m not everyone. Besides, I’m new, like hours ago.”

  His black eyes—I’d never seen black eyes—crawled across my face like they were greedily taking in every curve and shadow. When they settled on my lips a thrill shot to my nether regions and set me tingling. I returned the favor, savoring the close up of someone so gorgeous.

  Actually, his eyes weren’t black. There were swirls of color, deep rich amber and blood red breaking up the flat black, creating layers and depth. And the smell of him. Wow, I smelt him like I’d never smelt a man before, except the fae not so long ago. Spicy blends like frankincense and clove, burned caramel and a dash of melancholy to make your heart mourn, mixed with a heady dash of musk, which was bound to strip your bra and knickers at the promise of a kiss.

  And weirdly enough, I think he was sniffing me. At least he was getting pretty close with his nose. At first I thought he was angling his lips in close for a stolen kiss, and my body reacted accordingly, so not like me, but the fae had screwed with my mind. Instead he dropped his nose to my jawline, ran it down my neck to my shoulder. As far as introductions went, it was sexy as all hell.

  “I suggest you leave, fae whore.”

  “What?” He might as well have slapped me. It would’ve given me the same shock.

  “How dare you?”

  “The smell is all over you.”

  The smell! What the hell was he?

  I gathered myself off the ground with as much ferocity as I could manage. He followed, rising to his full height with the grace of a panther, forcing me to arch my head back to look up at him.

  “Thanks for the warm, hospitable welcoming. If they run social etiquette classes in this place, I suggest you attend and take detailed notes.”

  I turned to leave.

  “You are not as you seem.”

  “I couldn’t say the same as I don’t know who or what you are, and I hope to keep it that way.”

  “What is your name?”

  “Sorry, pal, you should’ve asked me that before you called me a fae whore.”

  This guy didn’t deserve any more of my time or my fantasies. I turned to go.

  “Samara.”

  I froze, back to him, then inched around. If at all possible, he seemed to have blended further into the shadows. It felt like I was talking to the dark. “I see the news has spread fast.”

  “It does when there is a worthy topic.”

  “Someone new, how’s that worthy?”

  He didn’t reply and for a moment I thought he’d disappeared again until I caught the hint of a shadow to my left, but maybe it was a trick of the light.

  Finally he spoke from beside me. “You’re right, you’re not news worthy.”

  That was the second time I’d let this asshole insult me. The second and the last. “I’ll leave you to your lonely corridor and rude manners.”

  “See you again, Samara.” The taunt leaped out at me.

  “If so, it will turn into a bad day.”

  Was that a chuckle? I was already squeaking my way back down the corridor, so couldn’t be sure. Perhaps it was my inflated sense of indignation that made me think he was laughing at me. Either way, I’d mark this area of the castle as a stay away at all cost zone, and if I did see him again I would ignore him; childish, but affective.

  I needed a few lessons on academy survival, like the ins and outs on who to befriend and who to avoid. That way I would perhaps survive my time here without being humiliated, abused or degraded.

  9

  Several times I had to stop someone and ask for directions, but at long last I saw the rotunda at the end of a wide pebbled path heading south of the castle. Either side were hedges trimmed into a variety of animal shapes.

  The rotunda was a huge limestone monolith, with huge archways as entrances. An ugly gargoyle’s face had been carved from the limestone above each of the archways. The pillars in between were also similarly decorated, long elongated figures of grotesque creatures with hooked claws and protruding ribcages. Groups of students sat on moss covered limestone park benches in the manicured gardens either side of the rotunda, amongst blooms of flowers and sprouting herbs.

  I slowed unsure whether Amy meant for me to meet her inside or outside the rotunda and there were enough students milling around it wasn’t going to be so easy to see her. Then I heard my name.

  “Samara.”

  Amy waved from just inside the entrance of the rotunda, standing next to a girl with ink black hair.

  “Sam, this is Lorna.”

  “Hi.” Lorna beamed with eagerness in both her eyes and her smile.

  Amy cut off any reply I could make. “So tell me, what did Ms Lane say?”

  I inhaled and the two of them looked at each other as if my inbreathe told them everything.

  “Empath.”

  And there it was, the deflation in their expressions, no doubt the same expression I had worn on my face when Ms Lane had told me.

  “But that’s all right.” Having only known her a few hours I could already tell when Amy faked a smile. Maybe that was the empath in me finally coming out.

  “Empaths make wonderful caring and compassionate friends,” Amy said.

  “They’re the peace makers of the supe world,” Lorna chimed in. Neither helped. I tried a wane smile, but I’m sure it didn’t work.

  Amy threw her hands in the air, then slammed them at her sides. “Okay, that’s crap,” Amy said. “Of all the supe abilities empathics has got to be the worst.”

  Lorna slapped Amy’s arm “That’s not helping.”

  “It is because I’m being honest, she’s likely already sensed my disappointment.”

  “Disappointment!”

  Amy seized my hand. Eddies flowed between where our skin touched. “I didn’t mean that, honey. Whoa.”

  A sudden gust just in front of our feet sprayed pebbles away from us in a dusty, tinkling shower.

  “Jesus, was that you, Lor?” Amy said.

  “No.”

  “I didn’t mean to do that,” Amy said, smiling apologetically. “I’m only a second year, so sometimes my emotions get the better of my powers. And things happen.”

  “Why are you emotional? I’m the empath.”

  She dropped my hand. “Sorry, you’re right. I’m feeling incensed for you.”

  This conversation wasn’t lightening my downcast mood. “Ms Lane said it’s only faint. I’m going to need more lessons with her to help bring it forth.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Lorna said. “This happened to my paternal grandmother. She didn’t show her ability until she was twenty-five. I was so worried I would follow in her footsteps, but I showed early at seventeen.”

  “You’re an elemental as well?”

&nb
sp; “We share classes,” Lorna said, as she nudged Amy.

  “Let’s forget about that,” Amy interrupted. Jamming her hands on her hips, she stared at me. “I warned you to stay away from Emrol.”

  “You heard about that already?”

  Both Amy and Lorna gasped.

  “So it’s true?” Amy said. “You can’t always tell.”

  “But how do you know? It must’ve happened only twenty minutes ago.”

  “Gossip shoots around this castle real fast thanks to the telepaths.”

  I wasn’t going to bother acting shocked about the revelation of telepaths.

  “But you’re never sure if it’s real or malicious fabrication.”

  I was too afraid to ask, but I had to know. “What did you hear?”

  “That you were climbing him.”

  I leaned back against the brickwork of the rotunda entrance. “Typical, it’s always the woman that gets the blame.”

  “No blame here, honey. But you need to be careful,” Amy said.

  “He started it. He used his ability on me. He beguiled me.”

  “Of course he did. Didn’t I tell you the fae are manipulative and cunning.”

  “Will he get reprimanded for doing it? Surely the faculty must understand what is going on?”

  Amy and Lorna looked at each other. “Most of the time faculty don’t know,” Lorna said.

  “How could they not? Isn’t it suspicious when girls are suddenly making out with fae all the time in public?”

  “That doesn’t happen. Fae are usually more discreet than that as they don’t want to get discovered using their ability. Punishment is banishment back to the fae realm for a time and the fae like it here too much. They like to have all these minds to play with as fae aren’t susceptible to fae mind games.”

  I folded my arms across my chest. “He started it all. It’s not my fault I almost stripped him.”

  Both Amy and Lorna’s eyes widened. In unison they said, “you did?”

  “If we’d not been interrupted by that Mila girl, I would’ve had my hands on his— You know.”

  “Uh-huh,’ they said simultaneously.

  “I had no idea what was going on. One minute we were talking and the next we were kissing.”

  I glanced around us to the other students. All of them would know about what had happened.

  “I’m all a flutter,” Amy said, hand fanning herself.

  “You guy’s would know what it’s like, right?”

  They both shook their heads.

  “No fae has bothered to look at me twice,” Lorna said.

  “Me either.” Amy leaned against the brickwork. “So what’s it like? Being kissed by Emrol, I mean.”

  I tried to keep a straight face. “I’m no expert. I’ve had a few boyfriends but none of them were amazing at anything to do with the sexy times, so I don’t have a good reference point. But it was awesome. Any longer and I may have orgasmed on the spot.”

  Both descended into peals of laughter.

  “Beguilements something. It was like I’d woken up for the first time. I saw everything differently, clearer, in more detail. All my senses were acute. And my desire for him. God that was off the scale.”

  Lorna’s eyes misted to that dreamy look, but Amy’s expression crinkled up into a frown. “That’s weird. I’ve had the experience explained to me on two occasions by some lucky girls and none of them said any of that. They said they found the fae irresistible, but they didn’t go on any magical trip of enhanced senses or anything.”

  “Maybe it’s my empathic ability. Maybe it enhanced the beguilement.”

  “Who cares, that was a hot story,” Lorna said.

  “You’ve only been here one morning and already you’re the talk of the school. Best keep your head in for a while. And stay away from Emrol,” Amy said.

  “I don’t think there will be a problem there. He looked pretty angry when he left.”

  “Weird. What’s he got to be angry about? You succumbed to him. Just like he intended,” Lorna said.

  “He was likely angry their time together was broken up by Mila,” Amy said.

  “And I’m grateful for that.”

  “Take that back,” Amy snapped. “Never be grateful for anything the Elert sisters do.”

  The students around us were heading back toward the castle. Amy peeled herself off the brickwork. “We have to get to afternoon class. You’re welcome to sit in on our class if you like. You can see what us elementals get up too. The teachers don’t mind. They see it as a way of fostering unity.”

  “All right.”

  I didn’t like the idea of roaming around aimlessly in case I ended up somewhere else I wasn’t supposed to be. And waiting back in the Nylph common room sounded boring, not to mention awkward if Emrol turned up.

  We headed toward the south wing of the castle, filing in through the large doors with the rest of the students. Once inside everyone scattered to various parts of the castle, some heading up stairs, some disappearing into nearby rooms.

  “Do the different factions mingle outside of their houses?”

  “Not much. Factions spend most of their time in class with their own kind. These are the people they make friends with, not so much the people in their house,” Amy said.

  “Then I’m grateful you guys gave me a chance. I’m not an elemental and you’re still talking to me.”

  “That is why we have the Darkwells tournament,” Lorna said.

  “Sounds interesting.”

  “Interesting’s not the word,” Amy said. “It’s down right dangerous at times. Every year something goes wrong. Thankfully no one has been killed yet, thanks to the healers, but there’s usually injuries. A few supes disappeared and it took a team of casters a lot of spell work to find them and bring them back. Or so the story goes, I wasn’t at the school at that time.”

  “Why do they hold them if they’re so dangerous?”

  “Tradition. They also see it as a great way to bring the different factions together in good natured competition. Faculty pick the teams so you never know who you’re going to be with.”

  “What do you have to do?”

  “Games. But they’re no ordinary games. Faculty call them games, but the students call them trials. You’re given certain tasks you must complete and these tasks will require the use of varying abilities. It means that everyone in the team at some point will be required to offer their ability if the team wants to succeed. There’s a trophy for the winning team, which isn’t much of an incentive on its own, but if your team doesn’t make it through all the trials they’re made to do kitchen and janitorial duties for a semester. It’s a great way to force everyone to work together, but it’s rarely a cohesive team as faculty would like. You can imagine the stress everyone’s under. Since the trials are run over a week most of the team aren’t speaking to each other by the end. And those injuries I mentioned, well that’s usually caused by your own team members when you fail to complete your part of the task successfully.”

  “Sounds brutal.”

  “It is for the newbies.”

  “Like me.”

  “Don’t worry. If you can get your empathic skills working by then, you may be able to soothe the tension and keep everyone focused and working as harmoniously as a bunch of differing factions can when forced to rely on each other. And I will add, those with a good number of empaths on their team tend to fair better than most,” Lorna said.

  “So it’s not bad being an empath after all,” Amy said.

  “I’d rather be useful in other ways than soothing people’s hurt feelings or aggression.”

  “I can’t argue with you there,’ Amy said.

  “Samara!”

  The three of us spun to see Dean McGilus fast pacing toward us through the crowd of students.

  “Glad I found you. I have some albums you may be interested in seeing.”

  Photos of my parents. “Of course, I’d loved to.”

  “See you
back at Nylph,” Amy said as her and Lorna joined the conveyor belt of students heading off to class.

  I fell in beside the dean, glad we were surrounded by the noise of clomping feet and chatter as it replaced the awkward silence that would’ve fallen between the two of us if we were alone. I wasn’t a gregarious person and found it hard to make small conversation to fill up empty space in conversations. If I didn’t hit it off with someone straight away I tended to drift off as the conversation became too painful to try and maintain. It seems McGilus was also unwilling to fill the silence with meaningless chatter as we made it all the way back to his office without either of us saying a word.

  “Take a seat, Samara.” He spoke kindly as he shut the door. “I got right on to it as soon as you left. It took some searching but I was able to find a few things,” he said as he pushed a large album toward me. Next to that were two more stacks. “These are Darkwells’ albums and so contain a great many students in them, but you should find a few of your parents. Your father was a very good student. He won many awards.”

  “And my mum?”

  “She too was very good with her ability.”

  But because she was an empath she wasn’t recognized for her achievements as much.

  “I have some matters to take care of and so I will leave you to go through the albums by yourself. You probably would like to see your parents for the first time alone.”

  I looked up from the album into the dean’s eyes. “Thank you.”

  He shot me a short smile. “On my way back I shall stop by and see if Mrs Trouel has your timetable printed up yet.”

  “You’ve heard what my ability is?”

  “Of course, my dear. It’s spread around faculty by now and no doubt the rest of the school. This is an academy for supernaturals, my dear girl, what else is there more exciting than your gift.”

  A lot of things if you were an empath.

  “I shan’t be too long, but long enough. Flip to the bookmarks.”

  He handed me the bowl of sweets. “Want one?”