by Sadie Moss
It takes conscious effort to keep my body still as I turn my head slightly to look at her better. The blue-white light bathes her face as she continues.
“Roman is very private about his past. We dated for a year, and I don’t know much about it. I never pried, and it’s not exactly my business, but you want to know those kinds of things about the person you’re dating. It’s natural, you want to know everything about them.”
Yeah, she’s got that right. From the first minute I met Roman, all those months ago back at The Den, I wanted to know more about him. That craving has only increased as things have progressed between us, although like her, I’ve done my best not to pry or push too hard.
She sighs softly. “I never learned his whole history. But I knew enough to know that there was… something. It still pains him, and sometimes it’ll make him retreat into himself or need to spend time alone. And that’s not your fault. I thought it was my fault, that there was something I wasn’t doing right, that if I could just… be more, somehow, he wouldn’t feel that he had to push me away during those times. But if he does do that with you—it’s his choice, to let you in or not to, and you can’t blame yourself.”
Then she shakes her head and winces. “I’m sorry. I sound like I’m lecturing you. I don’t… I don’t mean to be. I hate when people condescend to me. I guess he just needed something different from me… and I just couldn’t give him what he needed. I do hope he gets that from you, but if you’re ever… it’s not you, that’s all I’m saying.”
“Do you know something?” I ask. “About—”
“He’s not violent,” Tamlin assures me. “He won’t ever hurt you. He’s not going to use whatever’s in his past as an excuse to manipulate you or be cruel to you or anything like that.”
That’s reassuring, I suppose, but it’s not what I meant—and I think she knows that. I think she was deflecting.
The magical wand beeps, and Tamlin gets up to check on it, smoothing out her skirt. I can almost see her drawing an armor back around herself.
She glances up at me, releasing the wand to continue its path over my body. “The machine wants to inform me that you’re in good health and that you don’t have cancer, so I suppose that’s a good thing.”
My brows shoot up. “I thought this was scanning for my ability to steal magic.”
“It’s diagnosing your magical ability, yes, but it comes with side effect features that I couldn’t quite turn off.” She gives me a brisk smile, the kind she gives the whole class, and I know she’s slipped back into professor mode.
I get it, I do. Tamlin’s younger than every professor here besides Roman, and she’s a woman, and only a few years older than her students. She has to establish her authority constantly.
Still stings a little bit.
I hope she at least doesn’t hate me. She doesn’t seem to, but I could be wrong. It’s just—I have enough people against me right now; I’d really like one of the people I respect most at this school to not be one of my enemies.
“Ah, here we are.” The wand has reached my head now, and Tamlin plucks it from the air and begins pressing some buttons on it. “The marriage of technology and magic, it’s really quite fascinating.”
My heart races. Now’s the moment we find out the truth—if I’m the one who’s really taking people’s powers or not.
God, I hope it’s not me.
Not just because that’s an awful thing to do, but because it would mean I’ve been using this power against my own will, without being aware of it. I was so certain I wasn’t the culprit because I haven’t felt it, or tried to do it, or anything like that. But if it’s been unconscious this whole time, and I didn’t even know…
It would make me a danger to everyone around me.
Tamlin looks up, giving me a smile. Is it just me, or is it a bit stiff? “Ah, good news. You’re absolved, Elliot. You don’t have the power to steal people’s magic.”
“What’s going on with me, then?”
“You do have a third power: mirroring.”
“Mirroring.” I roll the word around on my tongue, grateful beyond words that she didn’t say “stealing”.
“Yes. It’s not something we see very often, even in Unpredictables. I’ve never met another person with that power, actually. I’m sure it will be quite a valuable skill once you learn how to control it properly.”
“Yeah.” I nod emphatically. “I’ll definitely need to work on control. Do you know how mirroring works?”
She brushes a delicate hand over the wall, and the runes on the walls stop glowing. “You can mimic the ability of another person in your proximity as long as you maintain your concentration. It’s an excellent defensive ability, since fighting fire with fire is quite effective. Or you could use the ability of, say, someone standing to your right to attack someone to your left. But it will take time to properly master and to maintain the mirroring for more than a few seconds.”
So much relief floods me that I nearly faint, feeling lightheaded and dizzy. I was right—I wasn’t the one doing it. I’m not hurting anybody. Thank God.
But that means…
“Then who is doing this, if I’m not?” I ask.
Fear flickers in Tamlin’s eyes for a moment, although when she speaks, her voice is calm.
“That is a very good question.”
Chapter 18
After the way students went after me in Combat class, Tamlin confirming my innocence privately in her little makeshift back office isn’t enough—the whole school needs to know that their mass hysteria was wrong, and that I’m not the person responsible for these attacks.
Hardwick calls an assembly to talk about it. He wants me to sit on the stage beside him while he speaks, but I put my damn foot down on that. I just had everyone glaring at me and whispering about me nonstop for days. I’m not going to go up onstage and be gawked at like I’m a circus sideshow freak.
Instead, I sit in the audience. Cam’s on my left, Asher on my right, and Dmitri on Asher’s other side. Cam has his arm around my shoulders and Asher’s holding my hand. They’re both physically affectionate people, and that’s only increased as things have gotten more serious between us. But this feels different than their usual casual touches. I told them what happened, how Tamlin’s weird magic-reading machine cleared me, but I think they’re still worried the other students won’t believe it or that something will go wrong.
“Students.” Hardwick’s tone is measured and gentle—fatherly, almost. I don’t think I’ve ever heard him get really angry. According to Cam, he went on a rampage after the Trials, but I was asleep for that. “We have looked into the accusations against Elliot Sinclair, and I would like to publicly announce that her innocence has been proven.”
A noise like wind through trees or rushing water fills the auditorium as people whisper to their neighbors in a soft voice. But Hardwick raises a hand, and silence falls again.
“In the interest of honesty, I’ll explain to you in brief that Miss Sinclair’s new ability is to mirror magic. What that means is that she can, with concentration, mimic the magical abilities of those around her for a short period of time, so long as the person she’s mirroring remains in her proximity. That person still retains their magic, and will experience no negative effects from having their power mimicked. Unless you count your pride being wounded if she uses your magic better than you.”
There are some muffled chuckles around the room.
“I am, of course, glad to announce that someone who has represented our school so well in the magical community is not the culprit behind these attacks,” the dean goes on. “But that does bring with it bad news. It means that we still don’t know who is actually behind the magic thefts. It saddens me to admit that magic of this nature cannot be done remotely, and so it has to be someone on this campus.”
Everyone starts whispering immediately, probably debating theories about who it could be. I can practically hear the war drums, and I wonder who every
“We’re not closing the school down just yet,” Hardwick says, a heavy sigh falling from his lips before he gathers himself and straightens. “But that is a possibility if this continues. We urge anyone who sees anything suspicious to report that activity, no matter how small or insignificant it might seem.”
He pauses, casting his gaze over the entire auditorium, meeting students’ eyes.
“Please be mindful that this is not an excuse for a witch hunt—pun not intended. If you go out of your way to accuse someone who stole your boyfriend or copied your essay, you’ll only be causing more headaches for us to sort out, and possibly setting other students up to have their magic stolen because we’ll be investigating the wrong people. But if you do see something that strikes you as odd, no matter how paranoid you might feel for saying something… it’s better for us to be safe than sorry, at this juncture. Thank you all.”
Everyone starts talking again after Hardwick finishes, but quietly, like they’re scared of making too much noise. Raul’s attacks during my first semester hit people hard, but he only took out three students—although one of them died. Whoever’s stealing magic has taken out five, and there’s no end in sight.
Alyssa, of course, can’t let it go. As we all start to leave, she stands up, apparently having activated some kind of charm that makes her voice louder, like she’s using a microphone.
“It has to be Elliot!” she yells, her voice a little shrill but echoing through the room. “Anyone who knows her knows she hates this place. She never even wanted to come here! She’s the most ungrateful little—”
“Oh my God, would you quit it with Elliot already?”
My mouth literally drops open as the last person I ever expected to speak up for me stands up and shuts Alyssa down.
It’s Kendal.
Kendal isn’t a bad person. I figured out a while ago that her decision to hang out with Alyssa and the others was mostly because of peer pressure. But cowardice isn’t an excuse for letting other people do bad things. Kendal sitting quietly by while Alyssa bullied me like we were all still in middle school was just as bad as if she’d joined in, as far as I’m concerned. I try not to judge, but it frustrated me, I admit.
I know Kendal helped me out during the Trials, both above board and on the sly, but that was because it helped the whole school if I won. I never expected her to actually care about me as an individual—and definitely not enough to stand up to her queen bee over me.
But that’s exactly what she’s doing.
The whole room—which means the entire damn school—is staring, riveted by this new drama.
Kendal is standing close enough to Alyssa for the amplification charm to work on her too, so her voice carries just as much.
“Look, I don’t know what your problem with Elliot is. She’s done nothing but avoid you. There’s no reason for you to be so harsh to her, and honestly, it makes me not want to hang out with you because you just want to gossip about her. I’m sorry if you feel so insecure because of her, but this isn’t a game!”
Holy shit. Go Kendal.
Oh, but she’s not done.
“If the Circuit believes Elliot is the one doing this, then she’ll get her magic taken away. Do you understand that? Her magic will be stripped! That’s so much bigger than whatever petty game you think this is. You’re not just inconveniencing her, you’re putting her at risk, you’re putting all of us at risk. Because if you make people think it’s her, then the real culprit goes free and can attack again—and more people will get hurt!”
Kendal isn’t panicked, but I can see that she’s starting to be. She must be terrified, standing up to her friend like this, but clearly, defending me is more important than her fear. And she’s right. If I’m labeled as the guilty party, then the real culprit goes free and more people could get hurt.
Alyssa looks shocked. Her face goes pale, and then red with embarrassment as she realizes everyone is staring at her.
Glaring, she whips around and storms off. Cristina and Megan follow, leaving Kendal alone.
I could just go… but…
Maybe I need to stop walking away—stop hiding from people who make an effort to reach out. I’m starting to realize that maybe the reason I don’t have many friends at this school, why all my classmates were so ready to assume the worst and turn on me, is partly my own fault. My own behavior.
I know I’ve been rather closed off with the guys. Not letting them in, not letting my walls down. I’ve done the same with people around me, even just in a casual way. The only person I started to consider a friend was Raul, and it hurt and scared me when that went so wrong. After that… I stopped trying.
I think it’s time I changed that.
Kendal’s gripping the back of one of the seats and looking terrified, like she’s just realized she might have committed social suicide.
I walk up to her and touch her shoulder. She turns, looking surprised to see me, her cheeks flushing.
“Thanks,” I tell her. “Honestly, I mean it. Thank you. That meant a lot to hear.”
She smiles tentatively at me, tucking a lock of auburn hair behind her ear. “Well, someone had to say it. She’s out of control. And you don’t deserve that bullshit.”
I never would’ve thought I’d hear a word like “bullshit” come out of shy, quiet Kendal’s mouth, and I laugh a little.
Her smile widens.
“Nice one, Kendal!” Cam throws an arm around my waist, pulling me tight against his body as he beams at her.
“Yeah. Well said.” Asher smiles quietly at her.
She glances at the floor, her face flushing bright pink from their combined attention and praise. I can’t blame the girl. I’ve been on the receiving end of a lot of their affection, and I can say from experience that it’s a little overwhelming.
In a good way. The best damn way possible.
Dmitri doesn’t say anything, but he hovers in the periphery, and the look on his face is one of fierce approval. I mean, he probably would’ve preferred it if Kendal took Alyssa down with a roundhouse kick rather than with words, but he still looks supremely satisfied with the result.
It makes my heart twinge a little. I wish I could tease him about how bloodthirsty he is. I wish we could joke around and banter like we used to. The silence between us has stretched on for so long that it’s starting to feel insurmountable. It’s starting to feel like the new normal, and I hate that more than anything.
Before my mood can spiral into a nice deep, dark depression, I wrench my gaze away from the dark-haired mage and look back at Kendal, determined to at least foster this little seed of friendship.
“We were all going to head over to the dining hall for lunch. Do you want to come with us?”
She still seems a little flustered by the guys, but she blinks and then nods, grinning shyly.
“Yeah. I’d like that.”
Kendal’s shutdown of Alyssa shifted something.
If you’re thinking it made Alyssa into a nicer person, sorry, but wrong guess. She seems to hate me just as much as ever—but what is different is that she starts keeping it to herself. Maybe it’s because she knows she doesn’t have as much support for her vitriol as before, since most of the school seems to have taken my side after Hardwick’s speech and Kendal’s outburst.
It feels good. I feel vindicated and so relieved not to be the object of everyone’s suspicion anymore. And even though Dmitri hasn’t forgiven any of the people who ganged up on me in our Combat class—and honestly, I don’t think Cam or Asher have either, although they’re a lot more subtle about it—I decide to try to make a fresh start.
I mean, sure, I’ve already been at this school for almost a year and a half and am about to hit the midpoint of my training, but it’s never too late to try, right?
Over the next couple weeks, I make a concerted effort to be a little more friendly and outgoing. I’m not gonna lie, it’s hard, and I’m still not that great at it. I’ll never reach Cam levels of friendliness, and I really don’t want to, but I at least learn a few more people’s names and join in some conversations in the hallways.
It helps that nobody else has lost their magic since Tandy, so the grand total of magic-less students in the infirmary still sits at five. As days go by without another attack, people start to relax a little, although an edge of anxiety still permeates the entire school.
My determination to be friendlier to people is put on a bit of a hold when Thanksgiving break rolls around, because campus almost completely clears out for the holiday. I think more people go home than usual this year because they want to get away from whoever’s stealing magic.
Originally, Maddy was supposed to come to Griffin Academy so we could spend the week together, but now that someone’s been attacking people, I don’t think it’s smart. I can’t put her in danger, no matter how much I want to see her. She goes to a friend’s house instead, and I get to hear about the good time she’s having when we call and text.
Maddy’s never had a problem making friends, and I’m so glad. I feel a twinge of sadness—that old fear that she’ll forget about me, that she’s flown the nest and will never come back—but overall, I’m just relieved that she’s somewhere safe for the break.
The campus goes eerily quiet, since most of the students are home and a lot of the faculty are too. The professors still have work to get done, like grading papers and planning exams, but they’re doing it off campus with family, visiting parents, that kind of thing.
All of the guys stay at school. Cam doesn’t have a family to go home to, and I think Dmitri would rather set his hair on fire than go see his folks, which… I understand better now than ever. Asher explains that it’s just too much to try and get his family all together for Thanksgiving.
-->