Bright Is Her Sight_An Urban Fantasy Action Adventure

by Judith Berens

  The spell didn’t completely fade before classes started. People were still running around speaking their minds, but at least the teachers were aware of it. By the time lunch rolled around, the spell was gone from the cafeteria. Everyone poured back in, a little nervous to start talking at first. Kathleen sat down in her chair and let out a deep breath, thinking about what she had said earlier. She was a little embarrassed, and she wasn’t the only one.

  “Where’s Peter?” Luke asked.

  Ethan chuckled. “He decided on study hall instead of lunch. I think he overdid it at breakfast and figured he’d had quite enough.”

  “Not to mention when he asked the potions teacher in second period if she could make him a potion for the rash on his ass. That was pretty amazing.” Emma almost spat out her drink when Izzie told the story.

  “Well, Ethan finally did it, and he definitely became the King of April Fools even if he will be spending the rest of the week in detention.” Kathleen smiled.

  Izzie laughed. “He doesn’t regret it.”

  “Hell, no, he doesn’t. He probably put it on his list of his finest achievements in life so far. I don’t blame him. It was epic.”

  Alison smiled, thinking about Tanner. “I liked it. It made people say the good and the bad, and I can hear the camaraderie in the room now. I wouldn’t necessarily suggest it every day, but it was good for a few hours.”

  Emma smirked. “I think that has something to do with your lover boy confessing his desire to kiss you.”

  Alison blushed and slapped Izzie’s leg. “What? It was juicy. I had to tell someone.”

  They all laughed and enjoyed their lunch, albeit with a bit more restraint.

  18

  It was late April and spring was in full swing. The flowers were blossoming, baby birds and bunnies abounded, and Spring Break over and done with. Many of the students left campus with their families, but the campus stayed open for those who didn’t want to or have anywhere to go. Alison and all of the crew except Kathleen stayed behind, deciding a week of exploring the grounds would be better than Easter bunnies and pink dresses. They lounged around the stream, talking about life and the rest of the school year, and just chilled.

  When school started up again, everyone was beginning to get stoked for summer vacation. The warm weather was bringing the need for sun and sand out in everyone. Even the nights were warm, and the sounds of crickets and tree frogs echoed across the fields.

  Late at night, after everyone was asleep, Alison and Izzie snuck out for one of their normal late-night walks. They were both relieved that coats and boots were no longer needed. They wanted to see Horace and find out what new plants were in the fields, and see how Marigold and the new kittens were doing.

  Ms. Tabby had had her kittens at the beginning of the month, hiding out in one of the empty horse stalls and delivering when Horace was there. There were seven spunky kitties following their momma around, suckling for lunch and dinner and climbing all over her.

  She wouldn’t let anyone except Alison near them, so a couple of times a week she would go in and sit in the center of the stall, and Ms. Tabby would bring her kittens to Alison one at a time. It had become something Alison looked forward to.

  That night they searched the entire grounds for Horace, but they couldn’t find him anywhere. They decided to head over to the stables on their own just to make sure everything was good. When they arrived, the light was on in the barn, and Izzie found Horace in the stall with Marigold, preparing for the arrival of the new foal.

  “Looks like you came at just the right time.” Horace had rubber gloves and a smock on. “The foal should be coming at any moment.”

  “Oh, Marigold, you’re gonna be a mommy.”

  The horse neighed, lifting her head and swishing her tail. Izzie sat by Marigold’s head, petting her long forelock as Horace worked feverishly to help her deliver the foal. When it was time, Marigold stood up, and Izzie went with her. She stomped her hooves, and Izzie could see the baby moving around in her tummy. Alison made her way to the stall, sensing the energies of everyone involved.

  The amazement they all felt as the foal was born brought Izzie to tears. Such a tiny horse brought into the world by Marigold. After about an hour the foal began to stir, trying to stand up on its long wobbly legs. Horace had cleaned up from the event and now sat on a stool next to the girls, narrating the developments for Alison. It was a really beautiful moment for all of them, something Izzie was counting as easily one of the tops in her new life.

  “Would you ladies like some hot chocolate while Marigold bonds and feeds her foal? I brought some in a thermos.”

  Izzie and Alison nodded, and they followed Horace out of the stall. He pulled out three paper cups and filled them, then sat down with the girls and let out a deep breath.

  “This is part of what makes this job so cool—getting to see things like this and watch the miracles spring brings. They are cooler to me than magic.”

  “Me too.” Izzie grinned.

  Alison took a sip of her chocolate and put the cup in her lap. “Can I talk about magic for a minute?”

  Horace patted her knee. “Of course, you can, but I’m going to leave you with Izzie for a bit and run up to the house to change. You guys okay to watch them for a bit?”

  “Sure.” Izzie nodded. “We got it, Chief.”

  Alison waited until she could no longer sense Horace’s energy. “So, I’ve felt that my magic has been increasing lately, but I haven’t told anyone about it. I went to the library and used my braille reader to do some research. From everything I’ve read, throughout history, and I’m sure even now, Drow are feared by most. I’ve been terrified that you guys, my closest friends, would eventually fear me.”

  “Unless you make some drastic change to your personality, I don’t think that’s possible,” Izzie told her comfortingly. “Once you get to know someone, you kind of understand what they are mentally capable of. Your magic may be capable of a lot of things, but we know your mind will keep you from harming others.”

  “Yeah, but the pure strength of some of this magic makes me almost afraid of myself.”

  “You shouldn’t be. The magic doesn’t control you, you control it.”

  “You’re right. It’s just overwhelming, I guess, learning all this as it comes.”

  Izzie squeezed her hand and smiled. “I can understand that completely.”

  “I learned some new things, you know, exploring what I was capable of. Would you like to see them?”

  “Sure,” Izzie exclaimed, excited.

  “Okay, and do you mind helping me with one of them?”

  “Of course not.”

  Alison took a deep breath and closed her eyes, feeling the energy moving through her. Sensory images flew through her mind, pulling her in all directions. She could see energies in her mind, ones she recognized, almost moving at fast-forward speed. When they slowed she recognized Horace’s and Izzie’s, and the scene played through what she had just witnessed. The foal was born, Horace left, and then it slowed, showing the foal dancing across the floor in front of Izzie. Alison let the energy go and sat back down.

  “The foal is going to come out of the doors and dance in front of you as it tries to get used to its legs. You will laugh and turn to me.”

  Izzie looked at her and chuckled, not sure what she was doing. Suddenly the foal bolted toward them, spinning and catching itself on its wobbly legs. Izzie giggled and turned toward Alison. They spoke in unison and said the same thing.

  “He’s going to be a handful.”

  Izzie’s smile faded, and her eyes got big. “You are clairvoyant now?”

  “I suppose so. It happened before. I saw Tanner in one of my meditations but didn’t meet him until the next day. I didn’t know until I read about it that I had the ability. It’s not perfect, and I can’t really control what I see yet, but it’s there.”

  “That’s amazing. Anything else?”

  Alison shrugged. “Yeah, bu
t I don’t think you want to see it. It’s not a good kind of magic in my mind, so I haven’t tried it yet.”

  “Would it hurt me?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Okay, then let’s do it. I trust you.”

  Alison let out a breath. She wasn’t sure whether she should, since it was definitely one of those things that could frighten people. At the same time, if she couldn’t do it around Izzie, there was no one else in the world she could. It was part of her powers, whether she liked it or not. She stood up again, closing her eyes and facing Izzie’s energy. She pulled the energy into her chest, feeling it move up her spine to the top of her head. It was hard to focus because it was so intense, but she tried to anyway. She pictured Izzie slapping her hands together in front of her.

  The sound pulled Alison from her thoughts—Izzie was clapping. Izzie looked around in shock as her arms moved without her directing them. She clapped and clapped until she finally controlled her movements again. She slowly looked up at Alison and shook her head in amazement, unsure how to respond.

  “Alison, that is an amazing ability for someone like you. You could help the war against the dark. You could use it to apprehend bad guys—”

  “Or control people. Any people.”

  Izzie reached out and squeezed her hand. “No, Alison, you aren’t that person, and that’s why the thought didn’t even enter my mind. If nothing else, I was concerned for your safety. Those kinds of powers would be very tempting for someone like the dark families.”

  Alison found the chair and sat down. “Exactly, which makes me a liability. What if they captured me and forced me to harm someone? Forced me to give away secrets of the future that could change the outcome of a battle or war?”

  “That’s why you are going to keep this between you and me, at least until we can figure out what to do and what to tell people. And please, don’t think you are alone. I have my own abilities that don’t fall under normal Light Elf stuff too.”

  “Like what?”

  “I know you can’t see it completely, but you should be able to see the energy of it. I’ll show you some of it.”

  Izzie stood up and cleared her throat, putting her palms up. As the energy flowed through her, the symbols on her arms and chest lit up brightly. Light swirled around her, light that Alison could sense through her mind. She pushed the energy into her palms and created an orb, floating it carefully in front of her. She wrung her hands and began to sway, moving her arms from right to left, bending the light at her will. The barn wall shook, and dust drifted over them.

  Izzie closed her eyes as if she were leading an orchestra, moving the light energy in ways no one else could. Alison used her mind to sense the light, following it as it danced through the barn. Lights overhead began to burst, sending shimmering sparks to the ground. Alison reached out, touching what she only sensed as extreme light coming from Izzie. The touch grounded the Elf and she immediately dropped her arms, the energy swaying for another moment before dissipating.

  “I’m sorry.” Izzie breathed heavily. “I don’t know… It was so peaceful that I blocked everything else out.”

  “That was beautiful,” Alison remarked. “How did you know how to do that?”

  “That’s the thing—I don’t know. I don’t remember magic in my life until I came here, but it feels like I learned it. It’s so strong—not how Ethan described it at all.”

  “You must have more to you than Light Elf then.”

  “That’s what I’m thinking,” Izzie replied, sitting down next to Alison and taking her hand. “It’s scary, though, so you see I know how you feel.”

  They sat there for a few moments in silence, the last few lights in the barn flickering slightly. Izzie put her hands up and sent a beam of light out, her energy surrounding the broken bulbs and repairing them. She plopped her hands in her lap and sighed, wishing she knew more.

  “How powerful will you get?” Izzie asked.

  “I don’t know,” Alison replied. “Everything I’ve read said it has to do with my heritage—what was behind me—but that’s almost impossible for me to find out at this point. I didn’t even know I was a Drow until the summer before I came here, and by then it was too late. My mother was already dead, my father was gone, and even my guardians barely know anything about Drow magic. I know my hair will turn silver, and the stronger I grow, the more it will change.”

  “I thought you were looking a little more shimmery lately.” Izzie giggled, trying to lighten the mood. “I guess it doesn’t really matter how strong either of us gets. What matters is that we learn to control it.”

  “Not just control it.” Alison squeezed Izzie’s hand. “But how to use it in the way we want to. I have seen the worst of people and the best, but the worst is what really sticks with you. Whether or not people have good intentions, they will try to teach us how to use the magic the way they think is best, and if we aren’t careful, that could hurt others or even us. Sometimes even the best intentions will blow up in our faces.”

  “I agree with you, but what does that mean for us? What are we supposed to do with that?”

  “We do what we’ve been doing I suppose,” Alison replied. “We keep learning about ourselves, we keep tabs on what we know, and we try to manage it the best way we can. Along the way, we will try to find someone who can help us. Right now, though, with everything that’s happened, I think we should keep it between us.”

  “I agree,” Izzie replied. “Everyone’s already afraid and worried about the dark families. I think if people knew, even Kathleen, Emma, and Aya, there would be a level of fear for them, and I don’t want to lose my friends. Our friends.”

  Alison smiled and held Izzie’s hand tightly, watching the energy of the foal dance around with his mother. If only things were that easy for them…a peaceful existence and a beautiful life. But at that point, all either of them could feel was worry.

  Horace stood on the hill in front of his house, looking through the supplies he had picked up to make sure that Marigold and the foal were well taken care of. He was glad Izzie and Alison had been there. It was the kind of teaching moment that for him were few and far between.

  Most kids at that school looked at him as the janitor, the guy who cut their grass and swept their floors. They didn’t understand that he had a lot of knowledge in his head, things they could learn. He had never wanted to be a teacher, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to share what he knew.

  He shrugged and pulled the bag across his chest and behind him. He looked at the barn, the doors open wide and the lights bright. He could see the girls talking, Alison standing in front of Izzie.

  She was concentrating on something, and Horace was curious as to what they were doing. Suddenly Izzie began to clap, and the look on her face let him know that she had no control over it. When it stopped, he watched as they interacted, Alison looking worried and Izzie consoling her.

  He took a step in the direction of the barn but stopped when Izzie got up, light starting to move around her. She got brighter and brighter, channeling energy into a ball that floated out into the barn. Her arms started moving wildly from side to side and Horace could see the light moving and bending at her will. The whole barn was shaking, and lights were bursting. The light was so bright that for a moment he had to put his arm up to shield his eyes.

  When it dulled, she plopped back down next to Alison, and they continued to talk. Horace stepped back down the hill out of view and stood there thinking about what he had just seen. He had spent most of his adult years around magical beings, but he hadn’t seen anyone that powerful before. He heard stories about Leira Berens and her magic but had never seen it in person. He sat down to give them some time, not wanting them to know he had seen them. He rubbed his hands over his face and mumbled out loud.

  “That’s not good. Those are two very powerful teenagers.”

  From the stories Mara had told him about the dark families in the area, he couldn’t help but be worried t
hat they were there for those girls. That kind of magic could go bad in a heartbeat, which he knew was why Drow had always been a whisper in the wind. They were known for living in the dark cavernous reaches of Oriceran, cast out of the light and misunderstood. This had backfired so many times, and even the Drow in history who were said to have been allies weren’t the kind that any of the magical beings had trusted.

  After about ten minutes he got back up and headed back over the hill toward the barn. He could see that the lights had been fixed, and he was glad. He wanted to act like he hadn’t seen a thing. He wasn’t sure if he was going to tell Mara or if he should even let on that he knew, but at that moment, he didn’t want to upset the girls any more than they already were. He was human, so he didn’t have the powers or the ability to help them in any way. He could only be supportive—and report anything dangerous when it was necessary.

  He shuffled back into the barn making enough noise to alert them that he was there. Izzie stood up quickly and turned to him, worry on her face.

  “I think we should get back now. The sun is about to come up, and we need to get ready for classes.”

  “Sure.” Horace nodded. “Thanks for watching them.”

  “No problem.” Izzie smiled as she and Alison went to the door. “We’ll see you soon.”

  “I’m sure.” Horace nodded as they walked out.

  He turned back around, stared at shards on the ground for a moment, and grabbed the broom. Things were changing really fast for those girls, and all he could do was sweep up their broken glass.

  19

  Eleanor Hudson pushed up her black-rimmed glasses and pulled down her light gray blouse. She looked at the students in attendance, satisfied that everyone had shown. She was used to people trying to skip out on history, since it wasn’t as exciting and glitzy to them as the classes they got to perform spells. At the same time, she felt it was just as, if not more, important than knowing how to cloak someone. If you didn’t understand history and the future, you would be left in the dark with magic.