The familiarity of it reminded me of the spell we'd learned today for defense against evil golems or enemies that intended to get rid of us.
It was basically a death spell. "Great." I rolled my eyes. As if my mood couldn't even get worse.
The normal response should have been panicking my head off because I now had minutes to get to the queen or medic center to try and get rid of this stupid thing, but I was still debating whether I was going to murder Ella first and then test my chance.
"What's going on?" Rainer rushed out, followed by Xavier; the two of them looked over to the group of girls before they looked my way. It only took two seconds for Rainer to be down on his knees and pulling my wrist to his eye level to inspect it.
"Who marked you with a death spell?"
"Oh, I don't know," I sarcastically muttered. "My arch-nemesis, Ella whatever-her-last-name-is." Dry humor was clearly going to be the death of me.
"Why are you guys using such spells in the halls?!" Xavier demanded. He actually sounded peeved, which was surprising when he must have wished for my death.
"U-Uh," the girls all struggled to respond, and Monica bravely stepped forward. "Well, we were practicing! She shouldn't have gotten in my way."
Here it goes: blaming the innocent fae.
I tugged my arm out of Rain's and fought to stand up.
"Rose." Rain reached to hold my arm again, but I moved away. "I'll get the queen to look at it."
"You need to get there much faster than walking, Rosadette. You can literally die."
"Good." I shrugged. "That way I can avoid stupid training sessions and a group of jealous bitches!"
I was walking away before anyone even registered what I'd just said. Why was I so angry? Hmm. I was tired as hell, had a two-hour screaming session, was too tired to hug my boyfriend, got attacked by a girl that hates me for no reason, and now I'm about to die.
Yup. Valid reason to be angry.
"Rosadette."
I groaned at the annoyance in Xavier's voice that came from right behind me. He grabbed my arm, tugging me to a stop, but all I did was look back at him with raging anger.
"Let. Go." I was seething, and his touch was leaving me in a whole new level of rage.
"Let me take you to my dad. The medical center can't do anything about that."
I didn't want to see his dad or be around him any longer, either. I was just done with today, and even the bit of worry that was flooding his eyes wasn't going to make me accept his help.
"Nope."
"Death spells can only be undone with darkness!" he huffed as if I hadn't been listening in class.
"I know." I tugged my arm out of his grasp. "Your father won't be able to help me, and honestly, your mother probably wouldn't be able to either. So where does that leave me? Oh right, my best friend who actually gives two shits about me. Not with my anger management partner!"
I spun right around and walked away. It was almost amusing to not hear his footsteps coming after me. Did I truly expect him to follow after all he'd shown thus far? He clearly hates me, and yet I still think deep down that he'd come to his senses and at least want to work together as partners.
It took me a while to realize I was taking the trail back to my dorms, the anger haze beginning to lower as common sense took advantage and hit me in the face.
"Oh..." I actually stopped in my tracks. "I'm dying. Wait. Shouldn't I be dead by now? Death spells are supposed to be instant, aren't they? I should have checked the-"
"Rosadette!"
I frowned and looked over my shoulder to see Rain and Camilla racing towards me. How Camilla got to this end of the campus would need an explanation because I knew her shadow training today was outside of both schools.
I couldn't even say hello when she grabbed my wrist and examined it. "Huh?"
Her response wasn't really expected, so I followed her gaze, noticing how the originally pitch-black marking was already fading.
"How is it fading?" Rain questioned.
"Did Xavier cast something on you?" Camilla asked me.
"No," I huffed at the mention of that guy's name. "He was going to take me to his dad because darkness can only be removed by darkness, or whatever, and I said I know because I'm not a dumb idiot who doesn't pay attention in class, so I basically told him I'd go to my best friend who actually gives two cents about me, since you have shadow magic, and he doesn't and hates me, so here I am, trying to get to the dorms and...wait. Why are you here again?"
"To heal you!"
"Right." I bobbed my head in understanding, looking down at my wrist and seeing the mark was gone. "Well, anyways. It's gone so I guess you healed me," I concluded.
"I didn't do anything," Camilla emphasized. She actually looked more frightened than before. I looked over to Rainer, who sighed and walked over to my left side.
He noticed my pout. He reached for my arm, but when our eyes locked, he paused. "Can I see?"
"Thanks for asking, sure." I felt like my mind was being flooded with more clarity, but now that it was recapping what just occurred, I was acting...well, weird. "So...why am I not dead?"
"I did something to stall the movement of the spell," Rain mumbled, his eyes still glued on my wrist. "I'm getting that girl expelled."
"As if Prince Xavier would possibly allow that to come to pass," I huffed. "I want a new partner."
"You and me both," Camilla sighed, looking relieved that I was actually okay. "Are you feeling alright? Your aura...was weird."
"My aura. Sucks that I can't see it," I replied.
Why could we see other's auras and not our own? What a silly predicament to be in as a fae.
"Camilla?" Rain looked her way. "Can you go let the queen and king know what happened? I'll apologize to your partner for taking you from practice later."
"Don't even apologize to him. He's a bark of a tree that needs to be chopped," Camilla complained angrily. "I'll go now. Make sure Rosadette's okay,"
"Right here," I noted. "Breathing perfectly fine."
"Are you on your period?" she randomly asked me.
"Hmph." I didn't say anything more.
"Jeez. First time I've ever heard that you've lost your shit while playing games with death."
"I wasn't going to die." I rolled my eyes.
"Your impatience tell me otherwise," she replied, but let me off the hook as she turned around and began running away to do what Rain asked of her.
That left us in awkward silence, and I gently tugged my hand from Rain's.
"Sorry for worrying you," I mumbled. He didn't say anything at first, studying me carefully as I peered at the ground. He then reached for my hand, gently wrapping his fingers around mine.
"You up for a quiet walk?" he inquired.
"Sure." I'd apparently just avoided death so I might as well tag along for a lovely stroll. "I forgot my bag." It just dawned on me, which left me sighing.
"I got it. Let's just take a walk, okay?"
"Kay."
We walked in silence for five minutes, and I had no clue where we were going, but it didn't really matter. I was trying to figure out how things went from one to one thousand in a matter of seconds.
There I was, arguing with Xavier like usual, then I got frustrated with his demands and decided to bounce. Rain came on the scene, only for me to basically ignore him, and boom. Knocked to the ground by Ella, who I countered by kicking her off me out of reflex. Then I was plagued with the mark of death we'd just learned in class. I acted like it isn't a big deal, walked away, snapped at Xavier for the hint of concern he actually showed for once, and somehow got to the trail without meeting a single student.
That's weird...
The last part of me getting to the trail was unsettling, because the path to the trail was at least ten minutes from the building we'd been training at. Even if it was late, I should have seen a few students waltzing buy.
Could it actually be because I started my period that I got the symptom of burning r
age Camilla sometimes has? No, right? I mean, periods suck but can't cause tantrum madness...unless you’re Camilla...or maybe it's a fae thing?
We reached a small stone path, and once we got through it, my eyes widened because it went from night to bright day in three steps.
"What?" I blinked, again and again, to see if what I was seeing was real, but from the sudden warmth, sweet aroma of flowers, buzzing bees, and fluttering butterflies, I knew without a doubt that this was legit.
"The wonderful thing about the fae world is the many little pockets of hidden mystery in our lands." Rainer gave me a playful smile, squeezing my hand gently as he led the way through the new environment.
A short distance away was a little floral park, one with two swings, a flower-encrusted slide, and a sea-saw made of vines.
We each took a swing, beginning to move back forth while viewing the vast view of flowers and wildlife.
"Is this place huge?" I inquired.
"Nah. It's a hidden floral park. They take the kids who come for daycare here. It changes spots when it feels like. Today it's in my favorite spot."
"Your favorite spot?"
"Mhm. The other spots are a little too open for my liking. This one isn't as easy to detect so when you need a moment of quiet time, it's the best place to be." He swung higher, and I focused on getting higher as well.
The two of us soon got lost in the wonderful sights on the horizon, the multiple colors of flowers of various types and the different trees. The buzzing bees and butterflies were really aiding in lifting my mood, and I was far more relaxed than earlier.
I could now think clearly when earlier, everything seemed like a blur.
"Feel like talking about what happened before I arrived?" Rain finally brought it up as we began to slow down.
"Xavier was stressing me out to do some spell with rosebud vines. I tried over and over again and couldn't do it," I explained.
"That's a year two to three spell. Why would he ask you to do that?" Rain stopped his swing to look over to me, and I came to a stop as my shoulder sank in defeat.
"I don't know. The last month has been really frustrating, Rain." I really didn't want to whine, but I was reaching my limit here. "He's been asking me to do the most ridiculous spells and even when I do them, there's no praise. He screams at me all the time, for a whole hour, sometimes an hour and a half. I can never reach the standards he lays out for me for that session, and I'm left feeling drained by the time I get home."
My head hung low as I let out another heavy sigh. "I pay attention in class. I know as fae, we shouldn't expel magic for no reason because it isn't good for us. It's wintertime and we get less light as well, which weakens us. I'm trying to conserve as much energy as I can so that if anything happens, I can defend myself, but how can I do that if I don't feel rejuvenated with a few hours of sleep?"
I lifted my head up to give him a hopeless look. "Awake by six to meditate and study the material for the day, quick HIIT workout and shower before I grab breakfast to go. I've barely had time to even talk to Camilla, and it's not like I'm rich or have money to get a phone here. We barely get to see each other and even if we're in the same class, we have to sit next to our partners. Xavier won't even let me go five inches closer to you before we're heading to the next class, and school is done at six in the evening. Then we waste time doing these one-to-two-hour training sessions where he screams and basically sets me up for failure."
I blinked away my tears, fighting not to let Xavier be the bringer of my tears. He didn't deserve them.
"I knew this week I'd get my period, and I get really sensitive. Not just emotionally, like how we're always portrayed when it comes to the time of the month, but just everything feels so much stronger. The way the sun shines on my skin. My hearing picks up a few notches. Even when touched, if it's by someone negative, it burns like crazy, and when it's someone who actually cares about me, it’s cool and calming. I usually dealt with it easily, because I've always been alone. Sure, Camilla's my best friend, but even she gives me space so I can just sleep or be by myself. Going to school and being surrounded by all these people makes me claustrophobic, and Xavier's controlling attitude and hateful words, as well as all the pent-up frustration, reached its peak today and I couldn't take it anymore. I hate being treated like some type of tool. I'm his partner, and yet he can't even give me that much respect? Then what good am I? Why bother?"
My head sunk down like it had no more energy left to give.
"Then I get hit with some death spell that we just learned today in class. Do you really believe those four are just waltzing in the halls and practicing death magic that should only be used while under supervision? What if I actually died? What if you weren't there? I bet Xavier only showed a bit of concern simply because he doesn't want to be partner-less. Better yet, he didn't want to be portrayed as a complete ass."
I took a deep breath and let it out.
"I'm just tired, Prince Rainer. I'm exhausted from trying to meet standards that aren't meant for me to surpass. How embarrassing that I have to tell my boyfriend I'm on my period like that's a valuable excuse for anger tantrums. I don't want to complain to Alicia. She has better things to do, and I'd tell Camilla, but by the time we get home, we're both drained. She's dealing with a harsh partner and has to train even harder because of all the years she sacrificed to be with me. Her struggles are now due to me. Who am I to add my burdens to her? I...don't know what to do anymore, and it's only a month into the semester. Will it even get better?"
I felt Rainer's hands lightly lay upon my knees, the touch like a cool breeze that fluttered through my body. Opening my heavy eyes just slightly, I saw his concerned look as he looked up at me.
My words moved him, and I could see it in the heart of his eyes that twinkled with empathy. I knew if he could take me out of all of this, he certainly would have, and that bit of hope made me feel a lot better than I had all week.
"You are a valuable partner to have. Whether in battle or in a loving relationship. You are allowed to feel frustrated, Rosadette, and I can't excuse Xavier for his behavior, but I think I know why he's training you so much." He paused and looked around as if what he was about to share was forbidden. "I'm not allowed to share so much with you. Not due to status or rank, or any of those common excuses. I know it feels like you're in the dark, so I'll be honest, you are, like many individuals attending Fae Rose Academy and Shadow Fae Academy."
"In the dark..." I trailed off when he nodded.
"You're seeing tunnel vision right now. Again, not your fault, but its why Alicia wants to train you. For you to see the true view of this world and not what you currently see. These academies aren't solely created to teach fae. It's to awaken your true fae gifts and sight. That's all I can say, and you can't tell anyone, not even Camilla. Understood?"
"Understood." I nodded in agreement.
"I have a hunch of why you're feeling exhausted, and Xavier is just making it worse. Let's get back to your dorm and maybe you can have the rest of the week off."
"We have a test tomorrow though," I reminded.
"I'm sure Alicia won't mind you missing a silly test on everything you already know," he exaggerated with an eye roll. "The last test was far too easy."
I giggled and gave him a small smile. "Sorry for acting ungrateful."
He shook his head. "You weren't acting ungrateful. You've just been pushed to your limits before being death marked," he reasoned.
I lifted my wrist where the mark once was. "Why did it go away?"
He was quiet, which reminded me of what Xavier had been stressing earlier.
"Death spells can only be undone with darkness."
"You did more than just stall it, didn't you?"
"Maybe." He shrugged, but his eyes were more focused on my wrist then meeting my intrigued gaze. I knew he was avoiding the topic, and to be honest, I didn't think I should know what was being hidden.
This probably has to do with his family and
how they can't say what element they are. If he's of darkness...doesn't that also mean Xavier's family is of darkness too if he was going to let his father heal me? Does it matter, though?
"Thanks for helping," I whispered, catching his attention as he lifted his head up to look at me.
"Why do you thank me when you...well...I'm hiding information from you."
"You don't mean to." I grinned slightly. "I think you don't mean to. So who am I to be angry with you or question you? You gave me enough information to know that I'm not crazy, and I feel far better than earlier. That's enough information for me, and I know when the timing is right, you'll tell me the rest, right?"
"I'll do more than just tell you," he guaranteed. "I'll show you the true mystery of this world and why we're going to school for all this training."
"You're far too nice for a fae," I mumbled.
"I get that a lot." He smirked. "But when your vision is unlocked, and I can tell you all that's hidden, you'll understand why and your importance in all of this."
"I'm important." I grinned at the idea. He rose up from his kneeling position, looking down at me before his hands rested on my cheeks and he looked deeply into my eyes.
"Extremely important, Rosadette." That's all he said as his lips sealed mine. My eyes came to a close, my body humming at his soft touch and the way his lips moved so smoothly against mine.
The exchange of energies and the way my heart fluttered in happiness with his acknowledgment was overwhelming to accept. This is what I craved. The companionship and encouragement from someone who truly believed in me.
Even if I was the only one not seeing my true worth, he was helping prepare me in his own way. This world held a road of mysteries, and I wanted to discover all of them in the next three and a half years at Fae Rose Academy.
Today I was immune to death. The answers I need to work on discovering are why and which side am I supposed to be on?
Sensitive To The Universe And Carrying Sleeping Beauty
Fae Rose Academy: Year One (For The Purely Divine Book 1) Page 23