Spellbinding Starters

by Annabel Chase

  I’d never been part of anything official in my life. Not a school. Not a company. All of my restaurant jobs were under the table to keep me off the books. It seemed to me that I risked my identity if I stayed here.

  "What will happen to me if I decide not to stay?" I asked.

  "I suppose I might feel obligated to turn you over to the League," she said. "It won't take them long to figure out who aided you in your escape. If I say that it was part of a training exercise gone awry, I might be able to persuade them to sweep the matter under the proverbial rug." She hesitated. "If you choose to leave, however, you would no longer be under my protection."

  In other words, the League would find me—if my father didn’t find me first.

  It didn’t seem like much of a choice. "It looks like you've recruited a new member, Chancellor. What happens next?"

  She rose to her feet. “Come now, you must be tired. I'll see you safely into a room for the night, and tomorrow we shall discuss your future."

  My future. I’d never given it much thought, beyond six to twelve month intervals. That life, it seemed, was officially over.

  Chapter Three

  The chancellor escorted me to a room in the western building called ‘the bunker,’ where transfer students stayed before they were assigned to a room in the residential wing. The room was clean and sparsely furnished with a bed and a nightstand. It was much better than an alleyway.

  "Sleep, child," the chancellor said. "You’ll be safe here. We shall provide more suitable accommodation tomorrow." The door closed behind her with a gentle click.

  I stretched out on the bed and stared at the ceiling for the next two hours, my mind whirring. I’d left all my belongings behind. Even my toothbrush. Although I didn’t own much, it was still unsettling to leave behind everything I owned in the world. It would take more than a pair of blue sneakers to make me comfortable here.

  When I finally succumbed to sleep, I dreamed of feathers falling from the sky. I didn't know whether they belonged to Icarus or the chancellor's cloak. They drifted to earth like snowflakes, soft and beautiful. I stood on the ground below and watched them dance in the air around me.

  The next morning, a knock on the door woke me abruptly. "You awake in there?" an unfamiliar voice shouted.

  I bolted upright. "Who's asking?"

  "Are you decent? The chancellor says you have no nightclothes, so you either slept in the buff or in the clothes you arrived in. Before I open this door, I’d like to know which it is.”

  I stared at the closed door. "I don't sleep naked."

  “Good.” The door opened to reveal a stout woman with rosy cheeks. "Nothing wrong with sleeping in the buff, mind you. It's our natural state, after all. I only wanted fair warning.” She examined me closely. "My name’s Hazel Hazeldine,” she said. “I’m Chancellor Tilkin’s secretary. Her right hand, if you fancy those sorts of metaphors. She sent me to fetch you for breakfast."

  "Hazel Hazeldine?" I repeated. Who would do that to a child?

  She placed a hand on her plump hip. "Hazel's a family name. They liked it so much, they used it twice."

  “Okay then," I said, and jumped to my feet. "Ready when you are.”

  Hazel gave me an appraising look. "A go-getter. I like that, especially when it comes to food. This way, miss. We’ll get you in there before the crowd. You don't want to be scavenging for leftovers after the fourth years have been through. They’re the hungriest of the bunch. Fieldwork messes with your appetite, it does.”

  I followed her down the long corridor, admiring the interior as I went. The walls were a smooth grey slate. Tapestries were hung every few feet, depicting mythical scenes of centaurs and woodland nymphs.

  As we approached the dining hall, smells of breakfast meat filled my nostrils and I inhaled deeply. My stomach rumbled in response.

  We bypassed the tables and chairs in the cavernous room and went straight to the kitchen. I was in awe of the kitchen with its multiple cooking stations and shelves loaded with fruits and vegetables. Some of them I didn't recognize. Even the shapes and colors were different from anything I’d seen in the human world. Then again, most of my meals consisted of food I took home from the restaurant. I rarely saw the inside of a grocery store.

  "Here you go," Hazel said, handing me a plate. "Load up, and we’ll head back to the chancellor's office. You can eat and talk at the same time." She paused, thinking. "Maybe not at the same time because that's rude. Swallow first. Then talk." She carried on walking through the kitchen, making suggestions along the way. I greedily filled my plate until there was no hope of squeezing another morsel.

  "I don't know where you plan to fit it all," Hazel said. "You’re about the size of my calf, and I’m not talking about a baby cow.” She ambled out of the kitchen and I trailed behind, careful not to drop any food off my plate.

  Even though I’d already been to the chancellor’s office, I had no idea how to get there from the dining hall. I blindly followed Hazel until I recognized the doorway at the end of the long corridor.

  "Morning, Chancellor," Hazel chirped. "The young miss is here with her full day's requirement of protein." She gave me a knowing wink. "Let me know if you need anything else."

  Chancellor Tilkin glanced up from her paperwork. “Thank you, Hazel. Have a seat, child."

  I chose the nearest chair to the desk instead of the settee, thinking I could rest my plate on the corner. The chancellor seemed to notice my awkward struggle.

  "How thoughtless of me," she said. The end of her staff appeared, and a tray table materialized beside me. As much as I loved my water magic, the chancellor's skills seemed much more practical.

  "Did you sleep well?" she asked, observing me. "You have shadows under your eyes that suggest not."

  Instinctively, my hand flew to touch the delicate skin under my eye. "It was fine, all things considered." I set the plate on the tray and began to eat, careful not to put too much in my mouth at once in case I had to answer questions.

  “I’ve spoken with the Board of Regents, and a few members of staff,” she said. “Everyone is willing to agree to your inclusion as a student at the academy.”

  “Thank you.” I wolfed down a piece of crispy bacon. Forget the materializing of sneakers, this meat was magical. Hestia seemed to feel the same. She jumped onto the desk from the mantel and sniffed the air around me.

  “Hazel is making arrangements for your necessities here,” the chancellor said. “She’s an excellent resource. Be sure to use her.”

  I shoveled a forkful of eggs into my mouth and chewed quickly, in case the ginger cat decided to make a move. “I will.”

  “Do you have any questions?”

  I swallowed the last of my food and Hestia turned away abruptly. “I’ve never attended school before, not formally. Is that going to be a problem if the other students already know lots of magic?”

  “You know lots of magic, Miss Morrow. You simply haven’t used it very often.”

  She had a point. “I guess that’s true.”

  “I don’t foresee it as an issue. Do you?”

  I wasn’t sure. “I’ll do my best.”

  The chancellor smiled. “I know you will.” She shifted her gaze to the doorway. “Hazel, why don’t you escort Miss Morrow to her room, so she can meet her new roommates?”

  “Anything for you, Chancellor.” Hazel disposed of my breakfast dishes and escorted me to the residential wing.

  “Your new room,” she announced, pushing open the heavy wooden door.

  A pair of bunk beds lined opposite ends of the walls. Only one bed was without linens.

  "What happened to the student who was supposed to be here?" I asked.

  Hazel ushered me inside. "Never mind that. It's your place now. I’ve sent word to housekeeping for sheets. You’re very lucky to be assigned to this room. They’re a lovely group of girls." Hazel motioned to a smaller door opposite us. "There's your shared bathroom. It's your job to keep it clean. We don't provi
de a maid service. You'll receive a schedule of your classes within the next hour or so. The girls are in the morning session now, but they'll be along shortly. Make yourself at home because…Well, that's what it is now."

  I surveyed the room. I was so accustomed to being alone, I wasn't sure how I’d handle close quarters with three other girls. Icarus was enough of a roommate for anyone. I turned to Hazel.

  "Any sign of my owl?"

  "Not yet, miss," Hazel replied. “The chancellor asked me to keep an eye on the sky. Not to worry. He'll figure it out. They always do."

  It didn't take long for my roommates to arrive. I heard their excited chatter before they even entered the room. The first one in was tall and statuesque, with strawberry blond waves that cascaded past her shoulders. Her pale green eyes were wide and inquisitive. She stopped short when she saw me.

  "Hazel said we’d get a new roommate," she said. “I didn’t realize she meant today, though.” She thrust out her hand. “I’m Dani. I’m on the Sentry of the South track."

  “Bryn Morrow,” I said.

  Another girl stepped forward. She was shorter than Dani, but taller than me. Her light brown hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail. “I’m Mia Holmes. Future Keeper of the North."

  "And I’m Cerys Davies, eventual Enforcer of the East." The petite blonde sported a California tan and deep brown eyes. She emptied the pockets of her blue cloak and went to place a handful of rocks on the window ledge.

  “What are those?” I asked.

  “She paints runes on them and uses them for spells,” Dani explained.

  I had a vague recollection of reading about runes in one of the magic books my mother had given me. “I thought you’d all be future wardens, too," I said.

  Dani set her books on a nearby desk. "No, they try to mix up the quadrants. They figure it’ll enable us to work more closely together once we’re in the field. They used to segregate the groups, but found that there was a lot of mistrust and competition in the agency later on."

  “I’ll let you all get acquainted,” Hazel said. “Prefect Chambers will be along shortly to give Miss Morrow a tour of the academy.” She left the room, leaving the door ajar behind her.

  Mia stifled a giggle. “Well, the tour will be thorough, that’s for sure.”

  “And boring,” Dani said. “We apologize in advance.”

  "Hazel said I'll get my class schedule later,” I said. "I have no idea what to expect."

  "We can help you catch up on any subject," Dani said. "We all have our strengths. Mia’s great with wind and air. Cerys has powerful earth magic, and I’m adept with fire.”

  “We tend to work as a team,” Mia added.

  “I’m pretty good with water,” I said. “I guess that explains why they put me here.”

  “That, and we had an opening,” Dani said, nodding toward the empty bed. “Our roommate ran off without a word. We knew she was struggling, but we didn’t know it was that bad.”

  “Beth didn’t want to be a warden,” Cerys said. “Her father was forcing her.”

  A Ragdoll cat nudged open the door and poked its head in. “There you are, Pepper.” Mia scooped up the cat and kissed its nose.

  “Is that your familiar?” I asked.

  “She is,” Mia said proudly. “I know the other girls will argue, but she’s the smartest cat at Spellslingers. Paws down.”

  "I hope my familiar finds me," I said. "I left town unexpectedly."

  Mia's eyes lit up. "Oh, what kind of cat do you have?”

  “I don’t have a cat,” I said. “My familiar is a snowy owl called Icarus.”

  The girls exchanged glances and I got the sense that an owl was not the norm.

  Dani spoke first. “I had a cousin with a horned owl called Major.”

  “Really?” Cerys seemed shocked.

  “A distant cousin,” Dani added, almost apologetic. “She had no formal training.”

  "Our familiars tend to come and go," Cerys said. "They have their own schedule, although it's not as rigorous as ours."

  The cats had a training schedule? That was unexpected.

  “Would you mind if we left a window open?” I asked. “If Icarus makes it to campus, I don’t want him trapped outside. It’s too hot.”

  “I don’t mind,” Mia said. “We get a nice breeze off the lake.”

  Cerys walked over and pushed up the window. “I hope he finds you soon. How did you get separated?”

  “It’s a long story,” I said. I couldn’t divulge my past without revealing too much, so I gave the barebones account of meeting the chancellor after using magic.

  “You spent your whole life in Terrene?” Dani was gobsmacked.

  “Terrene?” I echoed.

  “The human world,” Dani said. “Wow. That’s amazing.” A cat sauntered into the room, oozing confidence. “Here’s my familiar now. Clementine, meet our newest addition, Bryn.”

  “Do I pet her?” I asked. I wasn’t sure what the protocol was for familiars. No one had ever tried to pet Icarus, although being an owl might have had something to do with it.

  “Clementine says that would be nice,” Dani said.

  I reached over and ran my hand along her thick coat. “She’s beautiful.”

  “Where’s Haggis?” Dani asked her familiar.

  “Haggis is my familiar,” Cerys interjected. “She’s a chocolate point Siamese with the bluest eyes you’ve ever seen.”

  “Haggis is very vocal,” Mia said. “Even though Cerys is the only one who can talk to her, Haggis likes to make noise.”

  “Clementine says she saw Haggis on the lake path,” Dani said.

  “She likes to stalk butterflies,” Mia admitted. “I try to discourage it, but she’s obsessed.”

  A knock on the door interrupted us. A young man with shaggy brown hair entered the room, donning a tweed jacket and a bow tie. How anyone could wear tweed in the middle of summer was beyond me.

  “Prefect Robin Chambers, at your service,” he announced, bowing slightly. “You must be Miss Morrow.”

  “That’s me.” I glanced over my shoulder at my roommates to make sure this guy was serious. Their straight faces told me that he was.

  “I come bearing gifts,” he said. “Dark blue cloaks for first years.” He handed one to me.

  “Why don’t you have to wear a cloak?” I asked.

  “I do for class,” Robin said. “As it happens, I have independent study this term.”

  “Perks of a prefect,” Dani interjected. “What about her grimoire and wand?”

  “Not yet,” Robin said. “We’re working on it. We weren’t exactly anticipating a new student at this point in the term.” He pulled a laminated slip of paper from his pocket. “Hazel asked me to give you your schedule.”

  “They must know how messy I am,” I joked, stroking the clear protective layer.

  “I took the liberty of laminating it for you,” Robin said. “Creases are unbecoming.”

  Unbecoming? “To a schedule?” I queried.

  Dani peeked over my shoulder. “Yay! They’ve put you in all the same classes with us.”

  “That’s what I thought they’d do,” Mia said, coming over to examine the schedule. “No point in having us together if we’re not, you know, together.”

  I slipped my cloak on over my clothes. “Looks like we’re due in Herbology soon.”

  “You’ll like that class,” Cerys said. “Very useful.”

  “Paranormal Psychology: Understanding the Criminal Mind,” I read.

  “That’s merely a taster seminar,” Robin said. “You’ll attend a more advanced version of that class next year.”

  “Mixology, Healing Arts, Arcane Rites, Understanding Runes, Weaponry, Divination.” I looked up. “These are a lot of classes. What’s Divination?”

  “Seer stones, crystal balls, that sort of thing,” Mia said.

  “In Healing Arts, we learn how to use things like toadstones and painted pebbles,” Cerys added. “I love anything
that involves earthen materials.”

  I had no idea what those items were. I was beginning to think a prison sentence would be easier.

  I squinted at the rest of the week’s schedule. “Do I need a broomstick, too?”

  “Not right away,” Robin said. “There are plenty of loaners until arrangements can be made. We’ll need to take your measurements.”

  “This is so exciting,” Mia said, punctuating her remark with a little squeal. “I remember when I first started.”

  “That’s because it was only a few months ago,” Dani pointed out.

  “It’s summer,” I said. “You only started a few months ago?” I was no expert on schools, but I thought most students started their year in August or September.

  “Spellslingers has a unique calendar,” Dani said. “Because we’re essentially training for the AMF, students start when they’re deemed ready. Cerys, Mia, and I started at the same time.”

  “We should go,” Robin said, tapping his wrist. “We’ll do a quick tour and then I’ll drop you off at your first class. You don’t want to be late.”

  “We’ll meet you outside the Herbology room,” Dani told me.

  “Not to worry. I’ll deliver her on schedule,” Robin said.

  Dani flashed an indulgent smile. “I didn’t doubt it for a second, Robin.”

  Chapter Four

  Robin and I left the room and he launched into a history of the building. “An eccentric magus by the name of Percival Mercer built this grand institution back in…”

  I tuned him out, absorbing my surroundings instead. We passed through the residential wing of the building and ventured outside, where I immediately began to itch in my cloak. It seemed far too warm to wear layers.

  “Don’t worry, the fabric feels heavy, but it regulates your body temperature,” Robin said, as though reading my mind.