I kicked off of the wall, getting right into his face as anger flashed hotter inside me, but it was starting to tangle with something else. Something softer I wanted to ignore. “That’s your trouble isn’t it, Seth? You can’t do a good deed unless you get something in return for it. Just because you saved him, doesn’t mean either of us are going to tell you anything about that night.”
He slammed his palm against the wall in frustration. “You ungrateful little-”
My rage gave way to that treacherous piece of my heart and I lurched forward in a moment of madness, wrapping my arms around him and hugging him tight. The earthy scent of him ran under my nose and the heat of his hard body reminded me he wasn’t just some coldblooded being.
“I am grateful. I am so fucking grateful.” Tears seared my eyes and I wondered if the moon was to blame for me being so emotional or if it was just the fact that my relationship with Seth had become so messy that I didn’t have words for what I felt towards him anymore. There was a bitter kind of hate that lived in me, digging deeper and deeper. But now there was a warmth toward him too which was just as resilient. Because I could never, ever repay him for giving Orion the magic he needed to survive.
I stepped back and Seth stared at me with wide eyes, his features suddenly boyish instead of harsh and distant.
“But you can’t really think one good deed, even if it was the best deed you could possibly commit, could make me trust you for even a single second,” I said breathlessly, my lungs working too hard.
My dislike of Seth had been so clear cut, I hated that it was foggy now. I hated that I’d hugged him. Hated that I had to feel anything toward him but anger. He was the guy who’d cut off my hair, the guy who held me and Orion hostage to his demands, who’d mocked and humiliated me. I was never going to forget that.
A frown worked its way into his forehead and he slowly nodded. He disbanded the silencing bubble, stepping back to let me pass and I kept my eyes locked on his as I moved down onto a lower step.
“Don’t ask me about this again,” I said firmly and his lips pursed in that entitled rich boy way that said he despised being denied anything.
I turned away and kept walking, taking a calming breath as I headed down the stairs.
“I still own you!” Seth called after me, his voice ringing around the stairwell. I didn’t answer, despite my chest compressing and my jaw tightening.
We’ll see about that when Darius Acrux has a word with you, asshole.
After breakfast, I headed to my first Cardinal Magic class of the semester. Tory hadn’t shown up to eat and my heart niggled with worry for her as I arrived at Jupiter Hall, making my way through the huge white atrium and upstairs to the classroom.
Students were filing inside and I headed in with Diego and Sofia, dropping into our usual seats.
“I hope Tory’s okay,” Sofia said sadly, glancing over at me. “I knocked for her this morning but she didn’t answer.”
“She’ll be alright,” I said automatically.
Tory was the strongest person I knew. But deep down, I knew she was breaking. This was one enemy she couldn’t fight, punch or insult. It was a quiet thing that was going to live with her forever, the knowledge that she could never find love would chip away at her always. I couldn’t imagine what she was going through right now, but I was gonna be there for her no matter what.
At ten past nine, Tory arrived with a give-no-shits expression, her hair flowing around her in perfect waves and her eyes thick with eyeliner like she actually wanted to draw attention to the dark rings that circled her irises.
A hushed silence fell over the room and I chewed on my tongue, wanting to slap everyone for treating her like she was some ghost floating around the place.
She dropped into her seat, taking out her Atlas and tossing it on the desk with a clatter.
“Hey,” I said lightly.
The last thing in the world Tory would want was people acting like she was made of glass. Which was why she was acting like she was made of freaking platinum. She was gonna front this out with the strongest wall she could possibly build. But inside, I knew she was hurting.
I took out the pastry I’d saved for her at breakfast, planting it on her desk. She glanced over at me with a smirk. “You’re a life saver, Darcy.” She snatched it up, taking a bite and leaning back in her seat with a moan of enjoyment, ignoring the stares she was getting from around the room.
I glanced at the door, my heart beating faster as I expected Orion to arrive at any moment. I didn’t know why I was so on edge. Maybe because every time I’d seen him since New Year’s Eve, I’d been reminded that he was still breathing. And all the while I couldn’t see him, my heart started to get tricked into thinking something terrible had happened again. Or that I’d imagined him being saved at all and was living in some false, pretty illusion.
Tyler Corbin took out a large bag of Order Snaps and started working his way through the chewy sweets (which came in multicoloured versions of different Orders) as he tapped excitedly on his Atlas.
The door flew open and Orion strolled into the room like he was on time and the rest of the world was early. My mouth dried up as he made it to the front of the class, planting a coffee mug down on his desk and casually thumbing through a pile of papers. Then he looked up and his gaze slammed into mine. I released a breath that had been trapped in my lungs and a smile hooked up the corner of my mouth. His eyes danced with light for a moment and I swear I could have swum in that light forever.
Alive. Safe. Same old Orion.
He snapped around with a bolt of Vampire speed, a pen in his grip as he wrote on the board.
YOU ALL HAVE DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS.
A few people chuckled nervously as he turned back to face the class, his eyes fixing on Tyler as he continued to look at his Atlas and toss Order Snaps into his mouth intermittently. Orion shot toward him in a blur, snatching the sweets and throwing them at the wall so they exploded everywhere. He grabbed Tyler’s Atlas in the next breath, tossing it onto his own desk before folding his arms and glaring down his nose at him.
“Do not eat in my classroom!” Orion barked, his harsh tone sending an injection of adrenaline into my veins.
Tyler gaped at him, swivelling in his seat to point at Tory who was still munching on her pastry. “But Tory Vega’s eating!” he complained.
“I don’t care if Tory Vega is starting her own bakery back there and using Polaris as a rolling pin, I’m talking to you, Corbin,” Orion snapped and I suppressed a laugh, sharing a look with Tory as she smirked.
“That’s so unfair,” Tyler complained.
“Fair is a concept,” Orion said with a shrug.
“But you’re a Libra!” Tyler said in exasperation. “You’re all about fairness.”
“Wrong. Ten points from Terra. Libras are about justice. And I decide what that means to me. And if I say that Tory Vega can have a bake sale and employ her sister as a cupcake stand, then I will be the first in line for the grand opening. But you, Corbin. Do not have that right. So clean up your mess and see me in detention on Thursday.”
Tyler pursed his lips, rising from his seat and marching towards the sweets scattered all over the floor, starting to pick them up and muttering about favouritism.
“My favourite students are the ones who don’t piss me the fuck off,” Orion snapped.
“And the ones who suck his cock best,” Kylie whispered from behind me with a giggle and a gust of air rushed over me as Orion shot up to her desk.
I twisted around with my lips parting as I found Orion had hefted Kylie’s whole chair up onto her desk and was holding the front two legs as he tipped it backwards. She screamed wildly, throwing out her hands to cast air magic and sending people’s notebooks scattering everywhere as she failed to get a hold of her powers.
“If you ever insinuate anything like that in my classroom again, you won’t just be in detention for the rest of the month – which you are by the way – you will be pa
cking your fucking bags.” He let go of the chair legs and she wailed as the whole thing toppled backwards over the desk. I gasped as she crashed toward the ground, catching herself with air magic a second before her head impacted with the floor.
Orion sped back to the front of the classroom, casually adjusting his tie and taking a sip of his coffee like he hadn’t just almost mortally wounded a student.
“Right,” he said like there’d been no interruption at all. “Today you’ll be learning a concealment spell. Can anyone tell me the three types of magic which can be effective in concealing an object?”
Sofia raised her hand along with a few other students and Orion pointed her out. “Miss Cygnus?”
Sofia cleared her throat. “Illusion, confounding and influence.”
“Good, ten points to Ignis,” Orion said, tapping the board to bring up a list of examples.
Concealment Spells
Illusion – magical hiding places
Confounding – causing any Fae who approach the concealed item to become confused and forget why they were there or what they were looking for
Influence – causing a physical or psychological response to coming close to the concealed object
“Confounding and influence are more advanced magic, so today you’ll be learning a simple illusion. Can anyone give an example of illusion concealment?” Orion asked.
Diego’s hand raised and he pointed him out. “A hidden pocket?” he guessed.
“Correct,” Orion confirmed. “Other examples might be a hidden door or floor space, or an object can even be hidden in plain view and caused to blend with its surroundings. Illusion magic works like a mask. If you make it to your senior year, these masks can be used for other more advanced magic. Such as concealing your face to look like another Fae.” He raised a hand to his face, running his palm across it so a faint blue light trickled over his skin. A moment later his face appeared as Tyler Corbin’s. Everyone started laughing, but by the time Tyler looked around from where he was kneeling on the floor, Orion disbanded the illusion and gave him a stern expression instead. “You will also be taught to protect your identities. Most Fae can effectively put an anti-mimicry spell on their appearance. However, powerful Fae can break past these barriers, so it is not totally effective. That is something you will be taught in time.”
I frowned at Tory, not liking the idea that someone could just take our identity whenever they liked right now. So long as they were capable of the magic. And our list of powerful enemies was growing every day. I was gonna have to start an excel spreadsheet soon.
Orion smirked as concerned chatter broke out. “Bars, clubs, banks and any other private institutes have anti-mimicry technology installed at the doors, so don’t worry about your precious identities,” he said, pushing his hands into his pockets. “Not that anyone would bother to impersonate most of you,” he muttered under his breath. “Can anyone give an example of a confounding concealment spell?”
“Making someone, um, need the toilet sir?” a girl in the front row offered.
“Yes, a spectacular case of getting the shits can draw a Fae away from your concealed object nicely,” Orion said with a grin and everyone chuckled. “But it takes powerful magic to effect a Fae’s body like that. Especially when you’re not present to cast it.”
Orion moved to his desk, picking up a mason jar full of gold coins. He started moving through the classroom and throwing them out to everyone, making them try to catch so coins went flying everywhere.
“Pitball Keeper!” he barked at me before throwing one my way and my heart juddered as I lurched out of my seat and caught it at the last second. He smirked, his eyes glittering with satisfaction. “We may have a shot at beating Aurora Academy in the next game after all.”
I grinned, dropping into my seat as he tossed one to Tory. She wasn’t even paying attention and it bounced off of her desk so hard, it pinged right into Diego and hit him in the eye. Which was pretty weird considering he was adjacent to her, so I had a sneaking feeling Orion had used his air magic to send it in his direction.
“Hijo de puta,” Diego hissed, cupping his eye.
“Language, Polaris. Five points from Aer,” Orion snapped at him and I pursed my lips. He could be such a dick sometimes.
When everyone had a coin, Orion headed to the front of the class, placing his own coin down on the desk.
“Illusion is all about subtly,” he explained, tapping the wood beside the coin. “You need to study the area you’re going to copy and make sure the mask you create around the object is seamless. Poor concealment spells can be noticed a mile off if someone is looking for whatever you’ve hidden.” He glanced around at us all. “And I’m sure at least one of you have items you’d rather keep out of sight. I for one, don’t take any pleasure in turning out freshmen rooms. You can only imagine the amount of fucking Order porn and weird and wonderful sex toys I’ve had the displeasure of discovering. If you get this spell right, you’ll have a shot at hiding them. Of course, I am unfortunately very apt at discovering concealment spells so unless you can disguise your magical signature too, you’re most likely fucked.”
“I wonder how many sparkly Pegasus horn vibrators Caleb Altair has hidden around his room,” Tyler mused as he dropped back into his seat with a full bag of sweets and laughter exploded around the classroom.
I glanced at Tory with a smirk, but she didn’t even have it in her to smile. And that just broke my heart to pieces.
Orion pressed his tongue into his cheek, leaning back against his desk and clasping the edge of it. “Well, I’ve only found the one, but Mr Altair’s skill could mean every lamp, candle and potted plant in his room are concealing glittering dicks. Not that I’m judging.”
More laughter carried around the room and Tyler bobbed in his seat excitedly. “He probably has one concealed in his butt at all times!”
“Another ten points from Terra,” Orion barked at him and the class fell completely quiet.
Orion was seriously playing Jekyll and Hide today and the smile dancing around his lips said he was enjoying the hell out of it. Asshole that he was, I couldn’t help but love him for being a teensy bit psycho. His idea of fun came with a sadistic little twist. And I was hot for it.
Tyler sank lower in his seat with a huff, but didn’t say another word.
Orion pressed his fingers to the coin on his desk. “Bring pure energy to your fingertips and envision the surface you’re trying to conceal it within. The clearer the image you imagine, the easier the magic will be to mould. Once you have it in your grasp, a simple hand movement like this-” He ran his fingers over the coin and it instantly vanished. “Will do the trick. If it helps, the movement is similar to that of turning a page of a book. Gentle, with little effort required. If your movements are too harsh, well…”
As if on cue, Diego’s table cracked right down the middle as he attempted the spell and Orion pointed it out. “That can happen. And if you’re more powerful than Polaris – and let’s face it, most of the world are – then you can cause a lot more damage than he has. Begin.”
Diego growled under his breath as chatter broke out around the room and everyone attempted the spell.
Orion moved up to stand in front of Diego, clasping his hands behind his back. “Again,” he demanded and Diego took a breath, looking a little sweaty under the intensity of Orion’s glare as he raised his hand above the coin. He did a subtle sweep over it and the coin turned as black as pitch.
Orion’s mouth twisted down at the corners. “Focus on the surface.” He tapped the desk.
“I’m trying,” Diego said firmly. “But all I’m seeing is your loco black eyes staring at me, sir.”
Orion rolled said eyes and sidestepped to stand in front of me instead. “Put Polaris to shame, Blue,” he encouraged and I held my fingers above my coin.
“He has a point, sir, you’re pretty distracting standing there like the Grim Reaper,” I said lightly.
He placed his hands
on my desk, leaning over me with his fangs on show. “What if you need to conceal a murder weapon with the cops two seconds away, hm? What if you don’t do it right because of the stress?”
“Are you teaching me to get away with murder, sir?” I teased and he chuckled in a low tone.
“I’m teaching you to cast magic under pressure,” he said, pinning me in those endlessly dark eyes of his. My stomach dipped and heat trickled down my spine. Yah. Officially distracted.
I dropped my gaze to the coin and focused on the table surface around it. Blocking Orion out wasn’t easy, but I just about managed it before I lifted my hand and gently brushed my fingers over the coin in the way he’d taught us. The coin changed colour to blend with the table, but it was still visible. I pursed my lips, glancing up at Orion for pointers and he reached out to take my hand. The frenzied energy that passed between us made my pulse skip as he guided my fingers over the coin.
“You have to believe it isn’t there with all your heart,” he whispered, his voice making the hairs rise along my arms.
I swallowed thickly, dropping my gaze to the coin as I released the magic from my fingertips again with him guiding my hand. The moment I imagined the table without a coin on it, holding that picture vividly in my mind, it vanished, as simple as that.
I glanced over to find Tory mimicking us with a taut expression and she managed it too.
Orion glanced between us with a smirk, then lowered his tone. “The Heirs are given more advanced tasks in my classes. If you two ever want to challenge yourselves, you only have to ask.” He shot away to help Jillian as her table rocketed up to the ceiling and smashed to pieces.
Tory’s eyes brightened for a moment as she looked to me and my heart lifted at the sight.
“We should do that,” she said. “We have to play catch up. Hard.”
I nodded in agreement. “Definitely. And one day we’ll zoom on past them and leave them in our dust trails.”
Her mouth pulled up a little at the corner, but she didn’t really smile. And I couldn’t bear it. If there was anything I could have done to fix what had happened between her and Darius, I would do it no question. The worst thing of all, was that she’d chosen this. Preferred it to the alternative. But were the stars really so cruel that she should be punished for the rest of her life because she hadn’t chosen to mate with a guy who’d hurt her in unspeakable ways?
Zodiac Academy 5: Cursed Fates: An Academy Bully Romance (Supernatural Bullies and Beasts) Page 10