Shifter In The Swamp (Academy of Necessary Magic Book 1)

by Martha Carr

  What kept her awake was the unknown of what would happen to the new girl if she got caught breaking the rules, especially in a place like the Academy. Because where else was she supposed to go if she got sent here after being kicked out of other schools? The Academy of Necessary Magic was a school too—granted, a school for bounty hunters in training—but it was also the end of the line.

  I tried to warn her more than enough times.

  Amanda flipped over on her bed and clutched the second pillow tightly against her chest.

  Not my fault if she wants to make even more trouble for herself. I have to focus on why I’m here. Plus figure out what I’m gonna say to Ms. Calsgrave on Wednesday.

  The next morning, Amanda almost forgot about her surprising find the night before as Ms. Ralthorn droned on in their first class of the day—History of Oriceran. The other freshmen didn’t seem to be doing much better with their attention spans, passing notes folded up into paper airplanes or origami shapes or simply crumpled balls. Even Alex, who was usually pretty attentive—or at least always looked that way—had drowned out Ms. Ralthorn’s monotone voice to focus his energy on growing a whole new root system on a small plant he’d brought inside with him from the field.

  Amanda’s eyelids drooped, her chin slipping off her hand where she tried to keep it propped up on the desk.

  “Psst. Hey.”

  She slowly opened her eyes, then a wadded ball of paper smacked her in the side of the head. Frowning, she searched for the culprit and found Summer in the row behind her, three desks down.

  The girl waggled her eyebrows and grinned, sparing a glance at the front of the room where Ms. Ralthorn was reading to them from a textbook. “Hey, how’d you sleep last night, huh?”

  Amanda sighed, faced forward again, and stared in a daze at the teacher’s lips, which were covered in a bright orange lipstick this morning and moved at a snail’s pace while she read.

  Grace shot Summer a confused frown, then leaned toward Amanda and whispered, “What’s her deal?”

  “No clue. Ignore it.”

  For the rest of that week, that pretty much became her new mantra. Ignore it. Amanda managed to keep her focus mostly on school and each class, refusing to respond to Summer’s weirdly cryptic comments and attempts to shoot her sly, knowing glances from across the room. At least once a day, she saw the new girl huddled in private conversation with small groups of upperclassmen Amanda didn’t know. They were always up against the side of a building or behind the crowds at the picnic tables during meals, and every time, Summer pulled something indecipherable from her pocket to make some kind of exchange with these other kids before they disbanded and went their separate ways.

  Amanda’s immediate thought when she saw it the first time was that Summer was making some kind of drug deal. However, that didn’t make sense. The school had so many layers of charms and wards that kept out illegal paraphernalia; Principal Glasket had been clear about that the second week of the school’s opening during the summer. Once Amanda saw the first exchange though, she couldn’t unsee it. Then it seemed like every time they were out of class—between sessions or during meals or after dinner during their free hours before Lights Out—Summer was huddled up with another student, slipping things into each other’s hands before smirking at each other and walking quickly away.

  After Summer caught her staring at the last exchange and gave the shifter girl an exaggerated wink, Amanda made it a point to avoid the new girl at all costs from there on out. She couldn’t let herself get distracted by what wasn’t any of her business. Summer seemed intent on messing with her anyway.

  The girl had even used their time in both of Mr. LeFor’s Augmented Technology classes, Tuesday and Thursday, to rearrange her set of tools in front of her in the shape of a bucket and a door, then laughed and tried to get Amanda’s attention.

  “That’s very…artistic of you, Miss Flannerty.” Mr. LeFor peered over Summer’s shoulder. He readjusted his glasses and flicked a clump of unruly red hair away from his forehead before clasping his hands behind his back. “You won’t complete the circuit or get a single spark by putting the pieces next to each other. If you don’t start taking this seriously by next week, we can always try something different.”

  “Oh, yeah?” The girl craned her neck to look up at him with a crooked smile. “Like better tools?”

  “Hmm. I need a new assistant after hours. Right now, I’m perfecting a few modifications to my remote-control bear traps. Of course, I haven’t seen many bears around campus yet, but it doesn’t always have to be bears. Maybe you learn better in a one-on-one environment, huh?”

  Summer’s grin disappeared, and she quickly knocked apart her crude picture of a bucket and doorway before getting busy with the actual assignment.

  That was the only time Amanda let herself respond, and it came out as a snorted laugh before she caught the new girl glaring at her and immediately tried to wipe the smile from her face.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The final alarm bell shrieked across the campus at 4:30 p.m. that Friday. Amanda snatched up the blue sheet of construction paper she’d been trying to visualize as orange in Ms. Calsgrave’s class and crumpled it up into as tight of a ball as she could before standing from her desk. “I’m so done with this.”

  “Still nothing, huh?” Grace glanced at her paper and stepped in front of it, trying to hide it from her friend.

  “Nothing. How many times did you get yours to change? Four?”

  “Five.” The witch tucked her short bob self-consciously behind one ear and shot Amanda an apologetic smile. “Who’s counting, right?”

  “I guess.”

  “We’re free!” Jackson shouted as he slung his backpack over his shoulder. “The whole weekend to do nothing but whatever we want!”

  “Dude.” Alex shook his head and gathered up his things. “We did that for almost two months. This is only the first week of class.”

  “Boy, am I glad it’s over.” The wizard reached for the doorknob, but the door wouldn’t budge. He jiggled it, then yanked harshly to no effect. “Hey. What’s up?”

  “Oh, right.” Ms. Calsgrave chuckled and set down her weird black book before standing behind her desk. “I timed that as a reminder. Listen up, everybody. Make sure you’re out by the dining pavilion no later than five-thirty. I’d recommend getting there a few minutes earlier, just in case. Principal Glasket is really excited to share a new announcement with you before dinner.”

  She waved at the door, and Jackson stumbled backward when he pulled way too hard on the handle again, and the door swung quickly open.

  “Jeeze! No warning or anything. Come on, man.” He nodded at Alex as they stepped into the hall. “I’m gonna pass out if I don’t get food in the next hour.”

  “Good thing dinner’s in an hour.”

  “Yeah, but they should feed us more if Mr. Petrov’s gonna keep running our asses into the ground three days a week…”

  Their voices faded down the hall, lost in the chaos of hurrying students and excited conversations as the other classes let out and everyone filtered outside.

  Grace rolled her eyes. “I can’t wait ’til he stops complaining.”

  Amanda snorted. “I’m not sure that’s gonna happen. There’s always something.”

  “True. Maybe he’ll get bored with it?”

  “I mean, there’s always—”

  “Miss Coulier?” Calsgrave called, and Amanda slowly turned around. “I’d like to talk to you for a minute. Do you mind?”

  Grace grimaced and bumped her shoulder against Amanda’s. “Good luck.”

  “Thanks?” She hung back as the rest of the freshman class filtered out of the room, then waited for whatever punishment she knew was coming her way.

  Either she was nice on Wednesday, or I got busted for sneaking out.

  “Amanda.” Calsgrave raised her eyebrows, then sighed and slowly headed toward the shifter girl’s desk. “First, I want to say again how
much I appreciate you coming to me after our last class to talk about what happened on Monday. It shows a lot about your character. Especially when the standard of character among the Academy’s student body is…well, still developing.”

  “Okay.” Amanda studied the teacher’s blue eyes and waited for the other shoe to drop. “But?”

  “What? Oh, there’s no but in there at all. I simply wanted to thank you for following your conscience and tell you that I understand.”

  “Understand what?”

  “How hard it can be for someone with your…background to stay focused in a class like mine. Honestly, you’re the first…you know. The first like you I’ve had the opportunity to teach. With the way you’re pouring yourself into getting down this first illusion, I know you’ll get a handle on it eventually.”

  “Um…thanks.”

  “Of course.” Calsgrave tilted her head and smiled. “If we get farther along in the semester and you’re still struggling in my class more than you’d like, we can get you some extra tutoring. Because your attitude is most definitely in the right place.”

  “Yeah, okay.” Amanda glanced at the open door as the shouts and raucous laughter of the free-for-the-weekend students faded down the hall. “Is that it?”

  “Yep. You can go. Oh, and don’t forget. Announcement at five-thirty.”

  “Right.” She hurried out of the classroom and down the hall toward the front doors of the main building.

  That was weird. Did she offer tutoring 'cause I apologized for the lightbulbs? Or ’cause I’m the only kid here who can’t do any spells at all?

  When she finally made it outside, she found Grace and Alex talking with some of the other freshmen and a sophomore their age who’d tested up. Vinny something, maybe. Grace saw her and left the group for a private chat. “What was that about?”

  “Uh…” Amanda shrugged. “A thank you for having a conscience and an offer to tutor me in Illusions.”

  The witch barked out a laugh. “Seriously?”

  “Yeah. I have a feeling it’s pity, though.”

  “You don’t need any of that.” Grace bumped her with her shoulder. “You don’t need tutoring, either. At least not from a teacher. Hey, if you need help, I’ll do it.”

  “You’ll teach me how to change the color of construction paper five times in two and a half hours?”

  “Hell yeah. It’s a lot harder than it looks so… Well, you know.”

  “Thanks. I guess. Where’s Jackson?”

  “He went to camp out at the cafeteria. I think he’s trying to get the kitchen to sneak him some extra food before dinner’s ready.”

  Amanda laughed. “Good luck with that before Lights Out.”

  “What?”

  “Nothing.” She smiled and headed toward the group of kids huddled around and speculating on what the announcement from Principal Glasket was about.

  Probably another one of her long lectures on rules and how not to break them.

  From the corner of her eye, she saw Summer walking across the field with Candace, Emma, and Megan. The new girl shot her a crooked smile and winked before pretending to listen to whatever the sophomore girls thought was so much more interesting.

  I don’t care what she thinks she’s doing. I’m not helping her break into anything.

  Most of the students had already gathered at the outdoor cafeteria when 5:20 p.m. rolled around. The kitchen pixies had held off on setting the large buffet table until after Principle Glasket made her announcement. That didn’t mean the air wasn’t thick with the smell of lemon-herb chicken wafting through the kitchen’s open windows, along with the maddening scent of freshly baked bread and something with an extra vinegary sauce.

  The students groaned as they waited for the principal to show up, and at 5:29 p.m., Glasket made her appearance.

  “I know, I know,” the principal shouted, raising her hands for everyone to quiet down. This time, she didn’t make a big deal out of the process with the podium in the center field or even a mic—only her voice, which sounded hurried and distracted anyway. “You’re hungry. I’m hungry. We’re all ready for dinner, and I have”—she glanced at her wristwatch—“so much more to do tonight. Wow. Now that I have your attention, I’m happy to announce that the Academy of Necessary Magic has been approved as the newest team on the Louper roster. Our first match is in four weeks, which should be plenty of time for players to get the hang of the game. Hopefully. Tryouts start tomorrow morning at six, so anyone who wants a shot at making the team needs to meet out by the training arena at that time. On time. Mr. Petrov can answer all your questions then. That’s all.”

  With a nod at the kitchen’s open window, Glasket spun and marched smartly across the grass toward the central field and the main building beyond.

  The outdoor cafeteria was silent.

  “What did she say?”

  “Louper? That’s…what? A game?”

  “Sounds like a sport.”

  “Hey, Jonathan! Sounds like your hula-hooping skills will finally be useful for something!”

  A round of laughter came from that end of the cafeteria. Amanda was about to ask her friends if they knew what the heck this game was, then Summer’s laugh rang out over the student body's confused voices.

  “I know! No, no. Just wait. This game is so cool. You have no idea!”

  “Huh.” Grace turned toward Summer at the other end of the cafeteria and cocked her head. “I didn’t know the new girl could get more excited than when she asked Zimmer about making bombs.”

  “Yeah, me neither,” Amanda muttered.

  The buffet table flashed with silver light, followed by a light pop, and their dinner materialized on it in huge serving dishes. She looked up at the open window and saw Fred shooting her the thumbs-up again before he turned away to focus on whatever his job was while the students snarfed down hours’ worth of prepared meals.

  “Yes! Finally!” Jackson darted forward through the crowd, laughing like a maniac when he reached the buffet table with no one else in line. “I can’t believe it. I’m first! Hey, Coulier! Check it out. No lines!”

  She glanced at him but turned to look over her shoulder as she headed toward the table. Most of the students were now crowding around Summer to listen to the new girl’s even more confusing description of Louper.

  “Yeah, it’s awesome. So it’s a virtual-reality game, right? Well, not exactly. I mean, everyone’s actually on a field somewhere, wherever the teacher in charge of the match chooses. It’s always different. There are headsets. You can totally be whatever. I mean, yeah, yourself, but anything else. It’s like Capture the Flag too, except there’s no flag. I mean, it could literally be anything, and you can do whatever you want to get it, and—what? No, it’s not like football. What are you, crazy? Just wait. Oh, man. You guys have no idea what’s coming. I’m telling ya. Probably the only good thing about this whole school, know what I mean?”

  When Amanda turned back toward the table, Jackson was staring at the crowd around Summer with his nose wrinkled. “Is it me, or did she babble a bunch of crap that made absolutely no sense?”

  “I have no idea what she said.”

  “Okay, good. Thought maybe I was having another episode from this concussion I got in—you know what? Never mind. Check out this spread.” Grinning, the wizard went back to piling food on his plate, taking great care not to let any of the separate dishes touch each other. “Oh, yes! Pie.”

  Amanda shook her head and worked her way down the table as the other students slowly filtered away from Summer toward their dinner.

  Grace fell in line behind her. “I don’t get it. She’s the only one here who apparently knows what this game is, but she can’t explain it right. Everyone’s still falling over her like she’s some kind of celebrity. How does she know what Glasket’s talking about?”

  “She was at a different magic school last year,” Amanda muttered while grabbing a chicken leg dripping with butter and lemon sauce and stabbing up
a generous helping of carved chicken breast for good measure.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. That’s why she was so pissed about being put in the freshman class.”

  “Wow. So you do know her.” Grace spooned up a heaping helping of pasta salad. “Now things are starting to make sense.”

  “I don’t know her.” Amanda shot her friend a sidelong glance, but the other girl was too focused on the food to notice. “I overheard the teachers talking about it.”

  “Ha. You overhear a lot of things. You know that?”

  “Hey, we’re all good at something. You can turn a yellow piece of paper violet. I can hear conversations.”

  Grace snorted and grabbed a fork at the end of the table. “Yeah, okay.”

  “Grace!” Jackson shouted from where he’d already parked himself at a picnic table. “Hey, grab me an extra piece of—”

  “There’s no line, Jackson. Grab it yourself.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  That night, Amanda felt antsier than usual. Despite being as worn out as she was from the first week of classes—three days of which had started with falling off or being blasted off Mr. Petrov’s obstacle course—she couldn’t settle down enough to think about sleep. Not counting her brief escape for a visit to the pixies on Monday, she realized how long it had been since she’d shifted and gone out for a run.

  That’s what I need. A run through the swamp to get my head screwed back on straight.

  The dorm had quieted down surprisingly quickly, maybe because of all the excitement about this ridiculous-sounding Louper game. That was even better. The earlier she could get out, the more time she had.

  Amanda slipped out of bed and headed toward the door, listening for movement from anyone else. Nothing.

  A vibrating buzz came from her dresser, and she practically leapt toward it to pull open the bottom drawer.

  It had to be Johnny. No one else had her phone number. No one else had a reason to call or text her at all. Sure enough, when she pulled out her phone, his name popped up on her screen with a new text she quickly opened.