Nikko sighed.
Oh boy, this is going to be a long day.
Chapter Two
Charlie
I walked into Miss Johnson's class with my head down, all kinds of emotions bombarding me.
I really wish I didn’t have to attend this class.
I looked over at the round table I was assigned to the first day at TC High, and my heart sank. Tammin, Simon, and Nolan were sitting there, talking. I stopped and just watched them. They all seemed happy, but I knew, more than anyone, that looks could be deceiving. Best example: Kate. That conniving, deceitful… yeah, you get what I’m saying.
Nikko nudged my shoulder. “C’mon. It’s not going to be that bad, Charlie. I’m here! Ok? Stop looking so sad. I’m right here!”
He pointed at himself, giving me a cocky grin and trying to cheer me up like he always did. But he wasn’t here, not really. Nikko was gone, and I felt so lost because I knew it was my fault. If he and I weren’t so close, he may still be alive. He had a hand in saving me when Max and those men tried to kill me. Then Kate tried to kill me, but he stopped her, taking the blow meant for me. So why couldn’t I save him? Why wasn’t I good enough to save the one person who deserved to be saved? Why didn’t my spirit work? If I had known what I was doing when I used my spirit, Nikko would be alive and not what he was right now—this strange, ghostly life form.
Miserable, I looked over and found Cris watching me again. I shivered. His eyes, a shade of sinister obscurity and so darkly enchanting, penetrated every inch of my body down to the depths of my soul. There was an unnerving tug in the pit of my gut pulling me towards him. All I wanted to do was touch him, and unfortunately for me, we had every class together. This incessant need to touch him would be something I’d have to suffer through. On the plus side, it was going to make showing him around the school a piece of cake! I wondered if Mr. Pots thought about how hard it would've been for me to show him his classes and make it to mine on time. I doubt it. I allowed my shield to fall, taking in the thoughts, inquiries, and the flood of chaos from those around me.
Simon: Why is she just standing there looking at him?
Nolan: Hell, there's a new kid?
Tammin: Charlie looks really sad!
Classmates:
Wow, look at the new guy!
He is so hot!
Really, why is there a new guy when there isn't much school left?
Overwhelmed, I quickly put my walls back in place and looked at Cris.
“Okay Cris, just wait for Miss Johnson, and she will tell you where you will be sitting,” I told him.
He nodded, his eyes still fixed on me. I shook my head, and with a heavy sigh, I took my seat.
“Hey Charlie, girl. How’s it going?” Tammin asked in her sweet, southern twang.
I shrugged and watched as Nikko sat down in his seat next to me. A little quiver crawled up my spine, and I looked away, feeling miserable.
“Yeah, sorry we haven’t been over since your birthday, but with Nikko and all—” Simon trailed off.
“Oh, it's fine. I totally understand. How are all ya’ll?” I asked in a rush.
“Gosh, this table sucks. You guys need to get out of the funk you are in!” Nikko exclaimed.
I glared at him. You would think a guy that was no longer alive would be all depressed about it, but not Nikko. He was acting like this was just another day. He gave me an impish smile, laughter playing in his violet eyes.
Hello! You’re dead! Act it! Be sad! Cry! Just do something that shows you care! I shouted in my head, but I got nothing.
“Well, I don’t know about you guys, but all this gloom and sadness needs to end... like now! Nikko wouldn’t want everyone feeling sorry for him. Hell, the kid is probably pestering someone in heaven like he did me all the damn time.” Nolan announced.
I huffed. Yeah, well, he's not in heaven, but he sure is pestering someone...
I looked over at Nikko. I couldn’t even finish the sarcastic thought before reality set in. I would much rather have him pestering me than not.
Tammin gasped. “Nolan, I cannot believe you would say those words. There will be no curse words at this table. Remember!”
Simon laughed, and Nolan and I smiled.
“That’s more like it,” Nikko mused.
As Simon, Tammin, and Nolan cut up, I looked to see what was going on with Cris. I watched as Miss Johnson placed a hand on Cris’s shoulder and smiled. My eyes widened. Miss Johnson was smiling. The Wicked Witch was smiling!
She cleared her throat. “Class, we have a new student.” There was an audible groan from the class on his behalf. “Settle down, settle down. Now, this here is Cris. If you would, Cris, please take the seat over there." She waved her hand in our direction. "Who was it that sat over there? Oh it doesn’t matter. He is gone now.”
The pencil I was holding snapped in two. I was livid. I was going to rip off that hand she just waved and shove it down her throat! How could she forget about Nikko? How could she dismiss him so callously? Yes, she is an evil old woman, but really? I was not going to sit here and let her dismiss Nikko like he was nothing more than trash.
She was going down!
I felt deep inside myself for my elemental powers. I have three, distinct magical powers.
I am a telepath: I can read minds. Unfortunately, I read minds when I don't want to, but yeah, I’m working on that.
I am a Cypher: I can siphon any super-natural’s magic and powers. Be it Vampire, Pixie, Fairy, or any number of beings out there. I can draw on their speed, strength, or whatever makes them unique. I can siphon it right out of their bodies; however, I’m not too good at that just yet. But I’m learning.
I am also an elemental: I can call earth, fire, air, water, and spirit to me. The only down side to my elemental magic was the fact that my skin would change colors: Green for earth, red for fire, white for air, blue for water, and purple for spirit.
Heck, I used my elemental magic on Nikko to try and save his life when Kate threw, I was told, a death-ball at me. Nikko yelled for me to look out, and then he did something heroic and simply dumb. He pushed me out of the way, taking the spell squarely in the chest. I called on spirit to bring him back to life, but instead, I turned him into a ghost—a ghost of magic. Since I was going to use air, my skin could go any shade of white it wanted to. I wavered.
Was I really about to use magic at school? I looked at Miss Johnson, and that just clinched it. Hell yeah I was!
I opened my shields and called on my air, but something strange happened. Air came easily to me, like it has never done before. It felt more controlled, and I noticed something oddly amazing. Beautiful lights were streaming from my body to Nikko’s in a continuous loop. It was like every imaginable color you could think of flowed from my body to his. I looked around to see if anyone was watching and caught Cris looking at me. Looking at us? It was a knowing look, one that had me almost pulling back.
“Charlie, girl, are you ok? You’re turning a sickly shade of white. Your skin almost looks like the color of…white paint?” Tammin stated, looking confused.
I looked at Tammin, shrugged and then back to Miss Johnson and thought: Air, shut her mouth!
Air whooshed from Nikko’s body, through mine, and then made a beeline straight for Miss Johnson. There was an audible pop as the air basically throat punched her, cutting off her next words. I looked on in horror, hoping I didn’t permanently hurt the old bat, even though she deserved it!
She rubbed her neck, coughing, and pointed to our table. Cris gave a subdued nod; he looked at me and winked while strolling our way.
“Well, your color is coming back. That was the oddest thing I think I have ever seen. What in tarnation just happened to you?” Tamm asked.
“I’m fine. I just felt a little sick, but I’m good now,” I lied.
Flicking her blond hair out of her eyes, she peered at me once more, accepting my explanation.
“Wow! My Kitten has sharp claws. Wh
at I wouldn’t give to sink my teeth in that pretty little neck of yours right now. The magic coursing through your veins would taste so sensational. I imagine it would be like chocolate and velvet: Sweet and soft. Don’t you want that, Kitten? Don’t you want me to press my body into yours and sink my teeth deep?”
I brought my hand up to my neck and felt the faint scar. My body convulsed with the remembrance of ecstasy as pleasure surged downwards.
“Yes, I can feel how bad you want it, Kitten. Just say when, and I’ll be there.”
Someone put their hand on my shoulder. I looked over to see Cris studying me. He had a funny look on his face. My shields were back in place, and Asher was gone. It was crazy, but I didn't even have to force my shields into place. They just went up on their own. How is that even possible?
“That’s more like it,” Cris muttered.
“Excuse me?” I asked.
He waved his hand. I guess he was dropping the subject. I shrugged, letting it go as Miss Johnson started class. It looked like there were no lasting effects from that throat punch. I didn’t know if I was happy or agitated, but I was disappointed that she wasn’t nursing her throat as she led the class. She went on like nothing had occurred. I guess that was a good thing, but dang, I wanted more.
I am so screwed up.
I looked over at Nikko. He had this wild, crazy look on his face. His beautiful, violet eyes were almost glowing, and his ink-black hair was standing straight up.
How could I have forgotten that my magic flowed through him earlier?
Asher popped up and distracted me, but now I was very worried. I hoped it didn't hurt him.
I wish I could ask him. He looked at me and laughed. It was a joyful laugh. The kind that starts deep in the pit of your stomach. Nikko started dancing. I kid you not; he was doing a little jig. Swaying his hips back and forth and putting one foot in front of the other while he lifted his arms.
“That was the most amazing thing ever. I felt your magic, Charlie. It was euphoric. When can we do that again?” Nikko asked, showing me his dimples.
What did I get myself into now?
Chapter Three
Charlie
At lunch I worried everything was going to fall apart. That I was going to fall apart. All day long I'd been avoiding Tru, and all the feelings I was having about Asher were driving me straight to crazy town. Plus, thoughts of Jace before my mind was wiped, played on a continuous loop.
“Breathe, Kitten, I can feel your anxiety, and it's making me hungry.”
“Nice.”
I slammed my shields in place and rolled my eyes. I was in no mood for him right now. I had to stop my shields from slipping so much. It seemed as though I was losing hold of them.
These last weeks of school couldn’t go any faster!
Checklist for the summer:
(1) Fix Nikko.
(2) Break the bond.
(3) Learn more about myself and my powers.
(4) Find out what's up with the new guy.
(5) Stay alive and away from Kate.
In the scheme of things, my checklist wasn’t that long, but if I was to give it some time, I’m sure it would grow.
“Hey C!” Tru came around the table, wrapping me in a warm embrace.
I hugged him back, sinking into his body, needing the contact he was providing. Just for a moment, I forgot why I'd been dodging him. I forgot about everything—Asher, Jace, Nikko, the Traveller, and the new guy, Cris. I forgot about the crazy woman out for power and blood. I could breathe. However, that moment didn't last. Someone nudged Tru, and he let go of me, turning to see who it was. I felt dejected and a little disappointed, and I was starting to get a bad case of pissedoffness.
Why did someone feel the need to interrupt my much-needed hug? Did this person not know who they were dealing with? I was the Chosen One, the destroyer of yada—yada—yada. But right now, I was the destroyer of rude interrupters. It was unfortunate for the jerk because, today, I had a very short fuse.
I looked down and saw that my skin was changing colors. It wasn’t that noticeable yet, but it would be with how pissed I felt. Gosh-dang-it, I needed a hug and some rude-ass-person took that away from me. It was only a matter of time before I was in flames.
“Calm down, Charlie!” Nikko looked at me with wide eyes.
I shook my head and breathed.
This was not good. Calm down! Calm down! Please body-mind-what-the-freak-ever-is controlling my powers, calm down!
I felt someone touch my shoulder, and I looked up to see Cris. He grinned at me, and my hot-flash—for lack of a better word—dissipated.
“Hey, C, you ok?” Tru asked.
I shook my head and then nodded. “I’m just going to go to the bathroom." I hitched my thumb over my shoulder. "I’ll be back. Umm, Cris, this is everyone! Everyone, this is Cris. Yeah, get to know each other.” I turned and fled the dining hall.
As I rounded the corner almost running for my life, I bumped into Jace.
“Whoa, slow down, Fox.” Jace held me up.
I was shaking all over.
Oh wow, I was so losing it.
“Hey,” he said lifting my chin and brushing my hair from my eyes. It sent shivers over my body. “Where’s the fire?”
Throw a cold bucket of ice water on me, why don’t ya?!
I laughed bitterly. “Funny you should ask that because it seems I’m the fire.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Well, you are hot.” He winked, being cheeky.
“Jace, please stop,” I whispered. “Just hold me...Okay?”
He stopped smiling and gave me a concerned look. He nodded, and without a word, Jace pulled me around the corner, out of sight, wrapping his strong arms around me. I know I shouldn’t let him hold me like this, but everything was wrong, and I needed someone to make me feel better. I needed to be held.
I felt like there was so much going on with me—my new-found powers, Nikko’s half-life, crazy people trying to kill me, and guys.
“Ok, what’s up?” Jace asked, brushing his blond hair out of his beautiful, bright blue eyes.
I sighed. “Everything is falling apart, and I feel like I'm losing it. I don’t want to be in people’s heads, but I'm tired, and trying to keep my shields up is draining me. I feel off around Tru now that my parents told me that his family could have been the ones that killed mine.” Jace nodded, letting me unload all my problems on him. “Then, there's this new guy that I have to show around. That’s okay, but I feel strange around him. Like something’s off about him, and I don’t know what it is. I'm constantly worried that Kate is going to pop up any second to try and kill someone I love. Sorry!” I winced. He shook his head and frowned, but he didn't say anything, so I continued. “Plus, I have to break this bond with Asher, and you know....” I nodded my head sideways to where Nikko was standing.
“Okay, just because I’m dead doesn’t mean that I can’t see or hear you,” Nikko huffed.
Jace chuckled. “Technically, Nikko, you shouldn’t be here. Well, maybe you would be here though, like a ghost stalker watching Charlie twenty-four-seven." Jace folded his arms.
“If we are getting technical about it then I am, and I do!” Nikko said, sticking out his tongue. He made a funny face. “Wait, that didn’t come out the way I meant for it to come out.”
“Oh, you keep telling yourself that, man,” Jace snickered.
I shook my head disbelievingly. “Okay, stop with the five-year-old arguing.”
“Fox, it’s going to be ok. You're strong, and I'm here. We'll figure this out together.” Jace smiled, giving me a reassuring hug.
I blushed, feeling hot all over. “You promise?” I asked.
“Cross my heart and all!” He nodded.
“Don’t forget you got me too!” Nikko chimed in.
I laughed. “I could never forget you.” I just hope I can fix you.
"Yeah, how could she forget her ghostly stalker?" Jace teased.
"Hey!" Nikko glared.
"What’s say we ditch school?” Jace asked, ignoring Nikko.
I shook my head. “I can’t. I have to show the new guy, Cris, around.”
Jace looked annoyed. “Why are you the one stuck with this job?”
I sighed. “I don’t know. I guess it was the luck of the draw, and I got the short stick.”
Nikko laughed, “You can say that again, shorty.”
I glared at him. “Okay guys. Let’s go get the rest of this day over with.”
Chapter Four
Nikko
I was never far from Charlie. She told me I didn't have to be around her all the time, but really, where could I go? Who could I talk to? Yeah, again, I could become visible, but in the end, what would that accomplish other than freaking people out? No, thanks!
I knew it was more than that, and for some reason, I needed to be around her. I can leave her side, and I have, but if gone too long, an ache starts to spread through my body. The longer I stay away, the stronger the ache becomes. I wanted to tell her, but I was worried about what she would think. Would she blame herself? I knew that, if I told her, she would insist even more than she already did, that she had to fix this—fix me! What if her fixing me meant I would really, truly, be gone?! I'm not ready to say goodbye and leave this world.
I thought about what happened with Charlie and her magic. It was an amazing sensation, but the feelings frightened me. Her strength was addictive, and I could get hooked to it fast. It felt so wonderful. I felt so alive. I wanted to feel it again, and that thought alone was troubling.
“Nikko, are you sure you didn’t get anything on the new guy?” Charlie asked in a whisper.
“Nope. I got nothing, boss.” I shrugged.
“Ugh!” She groaned. “Well, there is something off about him.”
“Who are you talking to?” Cris asked, coming up beside Charlie.
She gave me a glare, and I shrugged my shoulders.
“Hey, I can’t see behind me, you know. Just because I'm see-through doesn't mean my eyes can rotate!” I smirked, and Charlie stuck out her tongue and turned around.
A Ghost of Magic: Chosen Saga Book 3 Page 2