Hybrid Academy Box Set

by L. C. Mortimer

  She’d done it. She’d reached out and touched his soft, dark fur. She’d run her hands up and down his back and he’d stood perfectly still when she did. The moment had felt sacred somehow. It had felt perfect. She hadn’t wanted to do anything that could hurt him or make him uncomfortable, yet somehow, Cara had managed to completely lose herself in that moment.

  And now they were on a wild adventure, just the two of them. Well, the two of them plus one. Their little trio was going to do something incredible: something brilliant. They were going to solve a mystery of something that had been plaguing all of them ever since they’d discovered it.

  Wolaftiam was a concoction that could make you shift into an animal.

  It could make anyone, regardless of their magical abilities, shift.

  And after years of searching, they were closer than they’d ever been to finding the answer to so many things that were plaguing the magic-user community.

  They needed this.

  They needed what came next.

  The world was at odds, Cara knew, and it wasn’t going to get any better until something changed. She wanted their baby to grow up in a world where people were accepted for their magical abilities: not shunned. She wanted their child to have a chance to be able to use her magic freely. That was the goal.

  Part of Cara hated the fact that they’d left Maxine behind. She was old enough to understand that they were going away, and why, but still young enough that it probably hurt. Cara and Falcon had taken every precaution to ensure that their child would be safe while they were gone. They’d even gone so far as to perform a blood ward that would ensure she would be safe during this time.

  She would be protected.

  No one would be able to find her, no matter how hard they tried.

  Hell, even Cara and Falcon wouldn’t be able to locate their own kid if they didn’t know where she was, but that was okay. Maxine was in good hands with her grandmother. Maddison was a fierce witch: clever and strong. She wasn’t going to let anything happen to her grandbaby. Not on her watch.

  “Up ahead,” Falcon said. “I think I see something.”

  They’d been walking for what felt like forever. For years they’d heard rumors and legends about Wolaftiam. It was supposed to be this incredible potion you could mix and create. It was topical, which meant you could put it on your skin and that would let you shift freely. That was all it would take and then you could be an animal.

  And oh, Cara knew it was selfish, but she so desperately wanted to try it out for herself.

  What would the world be like if anyone could shift?

  It would be freeing.

  It would be even more magical.

  She wasn’t a shifter herself. She wasn’t even a hybrid. Nope, she was just an ordinary, usual, run-of-the-mill witch, and she’d been lucky to happen upon a book that described the potion in detail. It had been her friend’s book, actually. Al had shown her what she’d found, and Cara hadn’t been able to pass it up.

  A student at Hybrid Academy, Al was always coming across new and interesting things. She’d found a spell for turning homework into chocolate. She’d been able to use her wand to levitate small objects. She’d even learned exactly what it took to turn something invisible.

  But the Wolaftiam potion had been the best discovery of all, Cara thought.

  Her sister-in-law, Erin, was a student at Hybrid Academy, as well, but Erin was very serious about her studies. She wasn’t as interested in the playful side of things. She didn’t really want to use magic as a way to have fun. For Erin, magic was something to be meticulously studied and carefully considered. She didn’t know what kind of quest Falcon, Cara, and Al were embarking on.

  All she knew was that they were going to do research for a book they all wanted to write together.

  Hell, Cara hadn’t even told Erin that they’d be brining along their friend on the journey.

  That was okay, though. They wouldn’t be gone long. In fact, they’d be back before the next semester started at Hybrid Academy and no one would be the wiser. Well, except for their trio. Cara desperately wanted to be able to use the Wolaftiam potion herself. She knew it was powerful and something they’d have to be careful about, but she wanted it all the time.

  What if she could finally use it to connect with her husband on a deeper level?

  What if she could finally see what it felt like to be more than a witch?

  What if she could…

  There were so many different things that Cara wanted to do, but she wouldn’t be able to do any of them until they found the last few ingredients they needed for the potion. That was, at the heart of it all, why they were traipsing through a forsaken jungle in the middle of nowhere.

  The ingredients they needed were ridiculously hard to come by, but they’d be able to get at least three different things here.

  If everything went well, that would be more than enough.

  “I see the ruby flowers,” Falcon said.

  “Where?”

  Cara squinted, but maybe her eyesight just wasn’t as good as the wolf beside her. She couldn’t see much beyond the trees and brush all around them. They were traipsing through waist-high grass at the moment, which felt unusual for the rest of the jungle. Most of the space they’d gone through had been fairly clear and easy to walk through.

  Not here.

  Here there was magic.

  Here science didn’t seem to apply.

  She felt uncomfortable and nervous as they moved forward, but Falcon was right. Soon the grass disappeared and was replaced by dozens of ruby-colored flowers. The patch of flowers was small, and they only grew here. This was the only place to get the ruby flowers for the Wolaftiam potion, and it had taken them far too long to locate. If Cara had been any older, she probably would have thought this was a dumb and strange quest, but she wasn’t older, and she didn’t think it was strange.

  She thought it was perfect.

  “Beautiful,” Al said.

  “Truly lovely,” Cara agreed.

  “I’ve never seen anything like this.” Falcon reached for a flower and yanked, pulling it from the ground. He lifted it to his nose and smelled it.

  “That’s the last of it,” Al said. “That’s the last of what we need to make the potion.” Her eyes lit up and she reached for a flower and pulled it loose from the soil. She listed it up, smelled it, and sighed. “That’s it. We can do it.” She dropped to the ground in a spot that was free from grass and flowers, and started pulling items from her bag.

  “You want to make it now?” Cara asked.

  “Why wait?”

  Al looked at Cara expectantly, eagerly.

  “I just…I guess I thought that we’d gather what we needed and head back to our camp.”

  “Nope,” Al said. “Let’s do it now.”

  An excitement spread over Al’s face. She was really into this idea of using the potion now. She wanted to try it out and see what happened. She’d been their friend for only a short while, but long enough that Cara felt uncomfortable with the way Al was acting. She looked over at Falcon, and he, too, seemed a little uncomfortable.

  “We can wait,” Falcon said.

  “No,” Al glared at him. “I want to do it now. Besides, it was my idea to come.”

  It was true. Al had been fighting with her boyfriend and had wanted an escape from him. Alexander wasn’t exactly a nice guy. In fact, he’d been downright cruel to both Cara and Falcon the one time they’d tried to go on a double date. Cara had urged Al to break up with the guy, but she hadn’t been interested.

  “Okay,” Cara finally agreed, albeit reluctantly. What was the worst that could go wrong?

  The three of them sat down and pulled the other ingredients from their bags. Most of the items had been fairly mundane things. It was the ruby flowers that had been the most difficult to find. Perhaps it was because they only grew so deep in the jungle or perhaps it was simply because there was so very little information on this potion.
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  “How did you first hear about Wolaftiam, anyway?” Cara asked as Al pulled out a small cauldron. It wasn’t much bigger than a soup bowl, but it was big enough to get the job done.

  “You know how I heard about it.”

  “Not really. You just found it in a book.”

  “Yeah, it was a gift from Alexander.”

  “I didn’t know he was the reading type,” Cara rolled her eyes. Al looked up at her, irritated.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Nothing,” Cara shook her head.

  “No, tell me.” Al glared. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  “I’m just saying,” Cara shrugged. “He’s not exactly a nice guy.”

  “Not a nice guy? He gives me gifts all the time.”

  “There’s more to a relationship than gifts.” Cara sneaked a glance at Falcon, and he smiled, taking her hand. Al noticed the gesture instantly.

  “Oh, so that’s what this is about.”

  “What?”

  “You two think you’re the only good couple around. Is that right?”

  “No.”

  “You don’t even go to Hybrid Academy, so how would you know what a good couple looks like? There are plenty of magical beings there who have better, stronger, and sweeter relationships than yours.”

  Cara wasn’t sure what to say to that, so she stayed quiet as Al finished mixing the potion. She reached for the ruby flowers, crushing the petals, and dropped them inside. Once the potion settled, Al pulled out three small cups.

  “Shall we?” She said.

  Cara had a sinking feeling in her stomach. Something felt a little bit…off…about this entire thing. She couldn’t quite figure out why, though. She thought back to how they had planned their trip. She and Falcon were old enough to love exploring. They were big into research and learning about new potions and spells. Al was younger than they were. She was Erin’s friend, really, but a recent falling out meant the two girls hadn’t been talking much. It wasn’t a huge deal, and Cara was certain they’d resolve whatever had caused their disagreement, which was why she didn’t feel bad spending time with Al. Eventually, she and Erin would talk about what had happened between them and they’d make up.

  When Al had shown them the Wolaftiam recipe she’d come across in an old book, both Falcon and Cara had been intrigued. She’d always wanted to know what it was like to be able to shift, and this potion enabled them to do so.

  Now, as she held the cup of Wolaftiam potion in her hand, she looked at the swirling concoction. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to take it anymore.

  “How safe it is?” She asked.

  “Perfectly safe. Not like it’s permanent or anything.”

  “How long does it last? Did the recipe say?” Falcon asked. “Here, let me see the book.”

  “It’s already back in my pack,” Al waved her hand. “Come on, let’s try it out. I wonder what I’ll turn into.”

  Al was in a hurry, which seemed to be totally typical. Cara was a little tired of just how hurried the woman always was. Maybe it was because Cara was a little older, but she wasn’t used to being in a rush. When it came to ordinary things, like spending time with Falcon or fawning over little Maxine, Cara seemed to want all of the time in the world.

  Even now, she wanted to relax and just enjoy this experience. They had done it. They had come on this incredible adventure and they had found the last ingredient they’d needed. Cara felt lucky that Al had invited her and Falcon to be a part of this expedition. Then again, Al had said she wouldn’t have been able to find the ruby flowers without Falcon’s nose or Cara’s herbology experience. That was one of the perks of studying flowers in school, she supposed. She was something of an expert now.

  Al looked at her potion and motioned for the others to drink. She held up her glass.

  “To us,” she said.

  With a sigh, they all murmured the words, lifted their drinks, and sipped.

  That was it.

  They’d done it.

  Only, Cara didn’t feel as good as she thought she was going to feel after taking the potion. Instead, she felt sick. Ill. She thought she might throw up everywhere and she fought to keep the potion inside of her. She didn’t want to throw up in front of her husband or in front of her new friend. Al was mostly Erin’s friend, anyway, but still, Cara didn’t have a lot of buddies since becoming a mom. She wasn’t about to lose this one.

  But oh, why did she feel so damn sick?

  Cara’s head began to swim. Within seconds, she felt her body changing. It hurt. It wasn’t supposed to hurt, was it? She groaned as her bones changed and her skin seemed to grow fur. Suddenly, she wasn’t sitting around the cauldron anymore. She was on the ground, splayed on her stomach, and she was…

  No longer human.

  She had changed into some sort of creature.

  It had worked.

  The potion had worked.

  But why did she still feel so sick?

  Maybe it would take some time to get used to feeling like an animal. That was part of the magic, she supposed. Maybe there would be a period of adjustment before she finally felt okay, before she finally felt like things had worked out all right.

  Lifting her head, Cara looked around. She could see the flowers, and she could see grass, and she could see Falcon. She could see him. Only, he wasn’t her husband anymore. He wasn’t a different type of animal, either. He was himself in wolf form. He was just him.

  He had changed, just as she had, but something was wrong. She tried to hurry to him, but she hobbled on her new legs. She had four of them now, and it was kind of strange, but she tried to get to him as best as she could. Cara opened her mouth to call out for him, but Falcon didn’t move. More than that, she realized that she wasn’t speaking words at all.

  She was…howling.

  A wolf.

  That was it.

  She was a wolf now.

  The potion had turned them both into wolves, but something had gone wrong with Falcon’s shift. He wasn’t jumping around or being playful the way he had before. He was laying on the ground groaning, and that sent a pain to Cara’s heart. She wanted to tell him that everything was going to be okay. They could get help. They could figure something out. No, she didn’t know how they were going to get help out here in the middle of the jungle, but surely there was something they could do.

  And then Cara heard laughter, and she looked over and up.

  Al hadn’t changed at all.

  Al was still Al: tall, lanky, and beautiful. She cocked her head as she looked down at Cara and Falcon, and she shook her head.

  “You idiots,” she said. “You really think I’d be stupid enough to take the same potion that could turn you into an animal? Ha.” She laughed and crossed her arms over her chest. Then she let her fangs out. Her teeth elongated into bright, long ivory shards, and Cara realized that she’d been entirely tricked.

  Al wasn’t a shifter like she had told Cara she was. She’d told Cara she could change into a bird at will, and Cara had taken her word for it. She hadn’t wanted to be rude and ask for proof, after all, but now she wished that she would have been bolder and taken the initiative.

  She had been completely tricked.

  No, Al wasn’t a shifter.

  She was a vampire.

  And now she had one of the most powerful potions on Earth.

  If Al had lied about her abilities, then she had also lied about the potion, Cara realized, and there wasn’t a lot of time to make a decision. She and Falcon were done for. They were definitely going to die. They had made a bad call and they had trusted the wrong person, and now they were going to pay the price for that, but they had a child back home.

  And their child was going to be powerful one day.

  They couldn’t let her die.

  Not for nothing.

  Not like this.

  Al paced in front of the two wolves, talking, and Cara tried to think as she listened to any clue�
�s Al might be dropping about how they could get out of this mess.

  “We’ve been searching for the last ingredient for so long,” she said. “And now we’ve got it. With the ruby flowers, we’re going to have an army of shifters. This is the last patch of the flowers, you know, and once we harvest them, we’ll be able to turn everyone around us into willing and pliable food. No more hunting. No more fear that the humans will attack. What is a wolf against a vampire?” She shook her head. “Not much. I’ll give you that.”

  Al had been quite serious when she’d said she’d needed help finding the last ingredient of the spell, but Cara had always thought they were doing research for a potions book that could be used to educate kids at Hybrid Academy. She hadn’t thought they were helping out an evil vampire.

  Now she knew better, and she also knew that she only had one shot.

  She looked at Falcon. His eyes were open, but starting to glaze over, and he nodded at her just a little. It was enough. It was enough for her to know that he loved her, and he wasn’t mad at her, and he was sorry, and she nodded right back to him because she felt all of those same things when she looked at her husband.

  He was the type of man who would do anything for his family. He was kind of man who would go to the ends of the Earth for his girls if he thought it meant they would be happy or pleased by it. He would do anything.

  And now it was her turn.

  She had to do something.

  Anything.

  And then she saw the cauldron.

  Al was still talking, droning on about the end of the world and how the vampires were going to be in charge, and there was no doubt in Cara’s mind that Al was right. The vampires would definitely be in charge if they got their hands on the ruby flowers.

  But the potion had a lot of strange ingredients, and was still hot, and was still sitting on top of a small flame, and Cara would beg that ruby flowers so delicate they only grew in one place might not respond very well to that.

  She took a deep breath, and then she let it all out. As she exhaled, she focused on feeling every part of her new body: her legs, her fur, her flesh. And she focused on developing control. All she needed was a little bit.