He shook his head. “Your mother wouldn’t be very happy with me if I got you any more involved than what you already are.”
“Don’t you have some way to contact her?” I wondered seriously, knowing she could probably help with the situation.
His eyes widened. “Oh, I guess I didn’t tell you. The pigeon she usually sends around this time of the month, to check up on us, should arrive today or tomorrow. When it does, I’ll let her know what’s been going on. She’ll come straight home when she finds out.”
I knew about her pigeons of course, but I was hoping he had a magical method of communication. Still, it was better than nothing. I sighed in relief. I really missed her as it was, but with everything going on, I really needed my mom more than ever.
“That’s good,” I replied. “But what happens if someone comes after me again?”
“Just try to stay in public. They won’t attack as long as they can’t get you alone. School should be a safe place for you.”
“What about Kaylee’s house?” I wondered. “I told her I’d come see her after school.”
“That should be fine,” he agreed. “Just no trips down secluded alleyways. Stay where people can see you.”
“Okay,” I agreed, resting my head against his chest and hugging him tightly again. “Just please be careful.”
“I will, sweetie,” he replied, tightening his arms around me. “Now, try to get some more sleep. There’s still a few hours before dawn.”
“Are you leaving again?”
He shook his head. “No, I still have work in the morning, and I don’t think the mayor will try anything else too soon. The fact that you easily handled three armed men is going to make him more hesitant to try again. If he’s that set on harming you, then he will need time to come up with an alternative plan.” He bent down to kiss me on the forehead. “Now get some sleep, sweetie.”
I nodded somberly, letting go of him.
“Oh,” I added, stopping him before he left. “Speaking of Kaylee, her skin was dry and hot. I know that means something, but I couldn’t remember what.”
His eyes narrowed. “Now honey, I know you know what a fever is.”
“Yeah,” I pressed. “But she looked like she had just broken a fever the other night. Not to mention, she’s hurt, not sick. Doesn’t it mean something for her to have a second fever so soon? Her skin was really warm.”
He paused as he thought about it. “Maybe I should ask Elaine if I can have a look at her. I’m not sure how she will feel about that though, since I’m not technically a doctor.”
“Can you try?” I pleaded.
He paused for a moment, before nodding. “Sure. I guess I’ll meet you at their house then, after school.”
“Okay!” I replied warmly, giving him one last hug.
He wished me and Jasmyn both goodnight, and then headed off to his room to sleep for a few hours before work. I knew these days were rough on him. It was rough for everyone who was on the Night Watch, which is why each person only did it twice a month usually. It’s not like it was an actual job anyway – everyone was a volunteer, though supposedly the town was working to make it a full-time job like the Guard.
However, until then, volunteers filled the gaps in the town’s newfound security. It was weird to think that the Mayor had been the initiator responsible for most of it, especially considering he was now involved in a criminal activity himself – trying to kill me.
Unexpectedly, I gasped when Jasmyn grabbed me from behind with her arms and lifted me high into the air, our heads almost touching the ceiling, before setting us gently down on my bed.
“Too serious,” she whispered, before I could speak. She was cuddling me like I used to cuddle with one of the dolls my mom made out of an old cushion.
“What?” I said breathlessly, readjusting myself in her embrace to get more comfortable. I was laying awkwardly on her arm, so I slid down to rest my head on it instead.
“It’s time for sleep,” she replied, her tone content. “You can worry about serious things in the morning.”
“Why the sudden…” I tried to think of the right word to explain her tone and behavior. “Affection?”
She buried her face in my hair, pulling me tighter against her chest. “Because of what you said earlier,” she admitted. “Just before your dad got here.”
“That I’m thankful for how you look?” I wondered.
She nodded once, the end of her tail sliding up my leg like how it was when I first woke up. “Yes,” she whispered. “Now time for sleep.”
I tried to look back to see her expression, so I could understand what was going on with her, but she held me more tightly to keep me immobilized in her arms. After a moment, I sighed heavily, deciding that wrestling against her strength in my demon form probably wasn’t a great idea right now. When it was obvious I had given up, I heard her giggle quietly.
“Good night,” I finally responded, trying not to sound annoyed at being held captive against my will.
“Sleep well,” she replied happily.
The next morning, I was surprised to feel well rested, especially considering the nightmare and late-night meeting with my dad. However, thankfully, I slept really well after that. On the other hand, my dad looked exhausted at breakfast. No surprise there.
Jasmyn seemed a little sleepy too, but nothing extreme.
As my dad and I headed into town, the day seemed to be getting to a normal start until we came across Kain. He was hurrying in the opposite direction, at least until he caught sight of us. He slowed down then and waited briefly for a horse-drawn wagon to pass through before crossing the street.
I realized for the first time that it was strange the horses around the city didn’t respond to my dad and me, but I supposed he did say he was truly human at the moment. Did that mean I was truly human right now too?
I mean, I supposed I must be human enough for the horses not to notice.
“Good morning,” Kain said cheerfully.
“What are you doing?” I asked bluntly, confused by his behavior.
He began scratching the back of his head, appearing uncomfortable now. “Well, considering everything that’s happened, I figured I would walk you to school.”
I crossed my arms. “Usually my dad does,” I retorted, uncertain of why he was showing so much concern on my behalf. Especially since he knew my secret.
Granted, what I said was only half true. My dad walked me most of the way there, but then we headed our separate ways at a certain point. He knew I didn’t want to be embarrassed by having my parent walk me to the door.
Before Kain could respond, my dad spoke up. “That’s very generous of you, considering you live almost a mile away from us.” He paused. “And you have to walk in the wrong direction,” he added.
Kain shifted uncomfortably again.
“Well, just stay in public places,” my dad said abruptly. “No one’s going to try anything if there are people around.”
I gawked at him. “You’re going to leave?” I asked in disbelief. Surely he wouldn’t abandon me!
He shook his head. “No. I’m going the same way of course, but I don’t see why he can’t walk with us.”
I just threw my hands in the air and began walking again, not waiting to make sure anyone was following. Barely a moment later, and Kain was at my side trying to strike up a conversation. However, when I gave him simple one-word answers, he finally settled with socializing with my dad instead.
Once we reached the last stretch of the way to school, the point where my dad took a different street, Kain resumed trying to speak to me again.
“Are you mad at me?” he finally asked.
I groaned. “No,” I admitted.
“Then why are you acting like you’re mad?”
I glared at him.
“See?” he exclaimed.
I rolled my eyes and sighed. “I mean…I don’t know.” I took a deep breath. “Why are you even walking me to school? You’re a
cting like we’re friends or something.”
“I’d like to be friends,” he offered.
I glanced up at him again, before staring down at the cobblestone underneath my feet. “Why?” I asked sincerely. “You never showed an interest before.” I scoffed. “If anything, you and your friends used to try scaring me before I got smart enough to avoid where you hung out.”
Kain sighed heavily. “Yeah, well we don’t really do that anymore. And…” He paused.
I glanced up at him. “And what?”
He looked uncomfortable again. “Well, they wouldn’t have bothered you anyway. At least, not after I asked them not to.”
I abruptly stopped walking, gawking at him. “Why?” I asked in disbelief. “And when did you do that?”
He ignored my first question. “Probably about a year ago now,” he admitted.
“But why?” I repeated.
“Well…” He took a deep breath. “Because I kind of like you.”
I immediately started walking again, my face red with embarrassment. I wasn’t even sure how I felt about him, but having someone – anyone – say that kind of thing to me was mortifying.
“Sorry,” he said quickly, catching up to me without a problem. “That was probably too soon. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Too soon?” I echoed, not looking up at him. “You don’t even know me. How could you like me?”
He didn’t answer though, continuing to keep up with my pace. “I’d like to get to know you,” he finally said quietly.
I abruptly stopped again, though I couldn’t meet his gaze. I kept my eyes on the ground while he turned to face me. “Look,” I began, “thank you for trying to protect me yesterday, but I don’t even know you. You’ve never tried being friendly with me before now, and the fact you’re trying when all this stuff is happening only makes me more reluctant to trust you.” I finally glanced up at him. “And I’m not even sure I want to like anyone at this point.”
“That’s fine,” he replied, looking slightly dejected. “But can we at least try being friends?”
I scoffed and looked away. “You know, up until about a week ago, I didn’t have any friends at all.”
He stared at me in disbelief. “Seriously?”
I nodded once, keeping my eyes on the building behind him. A couple of my classmates walked by, gawking at us, prompting me to look at him again to avoid their gaze.
“Sorry,” he finally replied. “I didn’t know. I would have tried being your friend sooner, but…”
I didn’t want to hear excuses from him, or anyone for that matter. “Whatever,” I scoffed, feeling annoyed now. I turned and started walking. “Just keep your mouth shut about yesterday.”
“Hey,” he said, catching up to me right away. He lowered his voice. “I told you I wouldn’t say anything.”
I nodded once again, keeping my gaze focused on the school building, which was now in sight.
On the outside, the structure looked like a really large church, with a stone foundation and a tall steeple on the roof. However, on the inside it was built more like an inn, with two floors of rooms housing all the older kids over the age of ten. A smaller building next to it had all the children. Both exteriors needed a fresh layer of paint, the dark blue color peeling off in a lot of places. The areas that had once been painted white towards the bottom of the building were bare stone now.
“So can we try being friends?” Kain asked hesitantly.
“I said fine,” I replied hastily. “Just don’t expect me to trust you for no reason. I’ve had people betray my trust too many times to count.” Kain unexpectedly placed his hand on my shoulder, which I immediately shrugged off. “And you can start by not touching me without my permission,” I hissed, my face turning red again.
“Sorry,” he replied, but he didn’t have time to continue since we were about to go our separate ways. “See you after school?” he asked expectantly.
I quickly shook my head. “No, I’m meeting my dad at my friend’s house.”
“Oh.” He looked dejected again. “Then I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I sighed heavily. “I guess,” I said simply, before heading off to my class. It already felt like this was going to be a long day.
Ms. Landerson was back in class today, much to my chagrin. I realized I actually liked having Mr. Harmon around a ton more. I knew he couldn’t teach class forever, since he was the principal, but it was nice to have a teacher who didn’t seem to hate me for no reason.
At least she ignored me most of the day.
Monica, on the other hand, spent most of her time glaring at me. Obviously, she was not happy that she got sent home yesterday, whereas I was able to stay for an undisclosed amount of time. I didn’t know what she told everyone, but all the whispering going on whenever Ms. Landerson wasn’t paying attention made me suspect Monica had crafted some hateful rumor to spread.
Stupid girl.
I didn’t have time to worry about her though. I needed to stay focused on the things that mattered, like acting normal and trying not to stand out.
Needless to say, my peers made it difficult when I came back to my seat after lunch and found the word ‘Devil’ carved hastily into the wood. The entire class roared in laughter when I froze upon seeing it.
Ms. Landerson, who was already in a bad mood, yelled at everyone to be quiet while walking up to see what they were laughing about. She then grabbed me by the arm roughly, glaring at me.
“Damaging school property?!” she exclaimed. “You little twit!”
I gawked at her in disbelief, trying to yank my arm away. “You can’t honestly believe I wrote this in my own seat!”
She scoffed, before shoving me away. “Go stand in the hall!” she yelled, pointing over my head aggressively.
On the verge of tears, I marched off before I became any more pissed.
“And the rest of you shut up!” she snapped when a bunch of my classmates laughed again.
She made me stand in the hall for the rest of the day too. Either that or she just forgot I was out here. At least I didn’t have to look at anyone during that time. Instead, I focused mentally on my hands, clenching and unclenching repeatedly.
They were stupid. All of them, stupid.
And hateful.
And then I was even more mortified when Kain’s class came down the stairs at the end of the hall, their teacher having let them out a few minutes early.
I stared at the floor, trying to pretend like I didn’t exist, but that didn’t discourage him from stopping in front of me. It didn’t help that all the older kids started whispering when he did so.
I didn’t bother looking up at him. “Just go away,” I hissed when he didn’t say anything.
“What happened?” he finally whispered, knowing I could get in trouble if my teacher knew I was socializing with someone.
I just shook my head, and looked away to my right, tears threatening to cloud my vision. Talking about it wasn’t going to help. It was just going to make me fall apart. I didn’t want anyone to see me cry.
“I’ll be outside,” he finally said quietly, heading down the hallway again. He didn’t wait for me to agree to meet up with him.
When Ms. Landerson released everyone for the day, I made sure to stay where I was, so they could all see that I hadn’t left my spot. I didn’t need her punishing me again for leaving early, in the event she decided that was the only explanation for not seeing me after class.
Once they were all gone, I went back into the room to see what she had written on the board for homework.
I paused again and bit the inside of my cheek when I saw that someone had tossed half of my stuff on the ground in the hustle to leave. As I began picking my books up and shoving them back in my desk, Ms. Landerson stomped her way towards me and slammed her hand on the wood surface.
“You are such a nuisance,” she hissed harshly. “I can’t wait until you’re out of my class next year.”
; I wanted to agree, but I held my tongue, standing back up hesitantly.
“Take this home to your father,” she continued rudely. I realized she had a note under her palm where she had slammed her hand down. “And you need to apologize!” she snapped when I didn’t respond.
I gawked at her in disbelief. “Apologize for what?”
“For damaging school property!” she shrieked unexpectedly, her hostility brimming over.
“I didn’t do it!” I exclaimed. “Why would I write that on my own–”
Unexpectedly, she slapped me across the face with enough force to knock me into the next desk over.
I didn’t even see it coming.
I failed to catch myself on my neighbor’s chair and ended up falling squarely on one of my knees, holding the side of my face in shock.
“Shut up!” she shrieked. “Another word out of you and you’ll stand in the hallway for the rest of the year!”
“What’s going on in here?” a familiar voice asked abruptly. It was Mrs. Boone, the woman who taught Ryker’s class – the class I’d be in next year.
Ms. Landerson stood up straight and glared at her. “Nothing Michelle,” she snapped. “Just disciplining a student for damaging school property.”
Mrs. Boone fully entered the classroom, eyeing my still stunned expression from my knelt position next to my neighbor’s desk. I couldn’t even bring myself to stand up yet, still too shocked that she had really hit me. And for no reason. Not to mention, I knew I couldn’t do anything in response. It’s not like I could hit her back.
“Last I checked,” the woman replied sweetly, “our dear mayor eliminated in-school punishments involving physical discipline. That was to be left up to the parents.”
Mrs. Boone reached out then and helped me to my feet while Ms. Landerson retorted, gesturing wildly at my chair. “Look at what she did!” she snapped.
Mrs. Boone glanced down before her eyes narrowed. She then focused down at me. “You may go, dear. Run along home.”
I just nodded and started walking away. The side of my face still stung where she had hit me. I was sure it was bright red.
“She needs to take this with her!” Ms. Landerson hissed, holding out the note.
Magicbound to a Snake Girl Page 13