A Curse of Fire

by Sophia Shade

  “You know,” he says, “if your boyfriend wouldn’t get mad, maybe we can get a coffee or something later.”

  I push his shoulder, laughing as he sways back. “He’s not my boyfriend!”

  “Right,” Erick says, his grin even bigger than mine. “So I’ll take that as a yes?”

  I never thought I’d say this, but the idea of coffee with Erick actually sounds really nice. But before I can answer, he lobs a small ball of fire my way.

  “Think fast!”

  I roll out of the way, immediately dirtying my clothes.

  “You were supposed to catch it, dope,” he says as he runs away laughing.

  “Yeah, well, catch this!” I yell. I chase after him with fire spewing from my fingers.

  Practice is more fun than usual. More lighthearted. And for the first time since I’ve come to this place, I feel at ease. I can control my fire, and I’m not as afraid as I usually am. I feel like there is even more power deep inside me, like I haven’t actually released a blast at full strength. I’m scared to know what would happen if I completely let go, but for now, I’m happy with the progress I’ve made.

  I even make it the entire practice without blowing anything up.

  As practice winds down, Erick and I are drinking from our water bottles and toweling off when Caleb sheepishly approaches us.

  “Hey,” he says awkwardly.

  “Hey,” Erick and I both reply, also awkwardly.

  “I wanted to apologize for how I reacted earlier,” Caleb says. “I shouldn’t have gotten so mad. You’re new here. You have the right to ask questions and learn whatever you want.”

  I’m shocked by…well, everything. That he is speaking to me. That he’s apologizing. That he seems understanding about why I would question the Unseelie lord. Caleb gets me, and he is so thoughtful and humble. Meanwhile, I’ve been flirting with Erick. I’m an ass.

  “I’m the one who should be apologizing,” I say. “I was kind of rude in class. And if I had questions about anything Unseelie, I should have asked you.”

  “Well, you need to talk to more people than just me,” he says. “I’m a prince, so of course I think the Unseelie court is the best.”

  He gives a playful smile, and I feel heat creep into my cheeks. But I quickly realize I’m not blushing from talking to Caleb. I’m blushing at Caleb flirting with me with Erick right there. It feels…wrong.

  “Still, you don’t need to apologize,” I say, trying to redirect the conversation to making amends. “I’m just glad you aren’t mad.”

  “Me? Mad? Nah,” he says. “In fact, I wanted to know if you would be interested in checking out a game of faèdahunt with me.”

  “What’s faèdahunt?” I ask, scrunching my nose.

  “It’s like hide-and-seek,” Erick cuts in. I can practically hear the eye roll in his voice, even though I wasn’t looking at him when he said it. “Most Fae play it during childhood.”

  “Yeah, it’s a game we all grow up with,” Caleb says easily. “But this one should be more interesting than how we played as kids. You want to come?” he asks, holding out his hand.

  I glance at Erick, a warm wash of guilt cascading over me. I was looking forward to getting coffee with him, and talking more about being a human in a Fae world. But this is Caleb. I really feel something here—a future at being more than just friends. A future with someone who believed in me from day one. I never should have agreed to a coffee date with Erick in the first place. It might have given him the wrong idea, which wouldn’t have been fair to either of them.

  Damn, I could have screwed things up badly. But breaking my promise to Erick feels equally as wrong. Like I’d be ditching a friend for some guy, even if that guy is the right one for me. I might have made a lot of mistakes recently, but this time, I need to do the right thing.

  “I’d like to,” I say. “But I’m training. I should probably—”

  “It’s fine,” Erick says. “We can call it a night. Go have fun.”

  I turn toward him, trying not to let the shock show in my expression. “Are you sure?”

  “Why wouldn’t I be?” he asks, giving me a look like he is daring me to answer.

  I can feel that he’s upset with me. Why is he making this so hard? So confusing? Erick clearly doesn’t want me to leave, but if I argue with him and insist on continuing the training session, Caleb’s going to think I’m avoiding him.

  “Thanks,” I mutter, determining there’s not much I can do. Erick had his chance for me to stay if that was what he wanted. I can’t play these games with him. I turn to Caleb, smiling weakly. “Let me get cleaned up real quick in the locker room, then we’ll go.”

  “Awesome.” Caleb grins. “You’re gonna love it. We are going to have so much fun!”

  I don’t feel like I’m having much fun as I walk toward the locker room, but I hope he’s right. Why do I care so much what Erick thinks, anyway? I don’t need his permission. We were just two friends who were going to get coffee, nothing more.

  At least, I don’t think there’s something more.

  Thirteen

  We arrive in the woods near Ember Lake. It’s night, but the glow from the lake is bright enough that everyone can see. A small flicker flits in front of my face.

  “Driftblossom,” I exclaim. “I’ve missed you.”

  “Are ye lost again?” she asks.

  “Not at all,” I say. “I’m here with my friend, Caleb.” I pull him close, and squeeze his arm. “This is Driftblossom.”

  “Oh, I know Miss Driftblossom well enough.” Caleb laughs. “Almost all pixies are Unseelie, if they bother to join a court at all.”

  “We’re too naughty for the Seelie king’s liking,” Driftblossom says gleefully.

  “I believe that,” I say, remembering that she and her friends were raiding the school’s kitchen when we met. “What are you doing here?”

  “It’s a faèdahunt!” she exclaims. “Everyone gets to join in. And us wee folk are the best players!”

  “Not always,” Caleb says. “You might be tiny, but your light gives you away every time.”

  “Bah!” she says with a wave of her arm. “Just ye wait, ye spoiled princeling. Ye’ll never catch me!”

  In a blink, she’s gone, followed by a trail of glowing pixie dust that quickly fades.

  “She’s hilarious,” I say.

  “She’s trouble.” Caleb takes my hand, pulling me over to where everyone is gathered near the lake.

  My heart flutters a bit at the feel of his hand on mine. It’s cool out tonight, though the lake’s embers and Caleb’s body keeps me warm. It almost feels like a real date.

  Dannika and Ella wave us over. Dannika looks from me to Caleb and raises her eyebrows.

  A big, stupid smile spreads on my face, and I mouth, I know, right?

  She gives me a wink.

  “Why didn’t you tell me this was going on?” I whisper as I come up beside her, Caleb on my other side. “I might have missed it if Caleb hadn’t shown up.”

  “Who do you think suggested he ask you?” she murmurs with a wicked smile.

  Looks like I lucked out in the friend department.

  There are so many Fae creatures here—many more than I’ve seen in my time at Callador. In addition to the pixies, there are dwarves, ogres, and even a centaur couple. I’d learned in class that centaur don’t typically send their young to Callador. They have few children, and the school wasn’t really built with the horse-folk in mind.

  “Okay, everyone,” Raven Goodfeather calls out. I’ve only seen her around school twice since we last met by the lake. She’s an air elemental, so we don’t have any classes together. “Time to begin!”

  She uses a burst of wind to lift herself up so everyone can see her. Then she uses a breeze to carry her voice so everyone can hear. She’s a master at practical application of her powers. I’m impressed.

  “Same rules as usual,” she says, but thankfully, she still tells us what they are. Otherwise
, I’d have no idea. “There are two teams: red and blue. Everyone take a flag and tie it on your arm. Brenna will cause a rain shower over the lake to dim the light for a few moments. You’ll need to hide before the light comes back up. If someone from the other team catches you, that means they claim your flag. If that happens, you can return back here for your boobie prize. All Fae powers are legal, though you can’t hurt anyone, of course. Last person standing will be the king or queen of the faèdahunt!”

  Everyone cheers, and we each collect a flag to tie onto our arms. There are even tiny pieces of cloth for the pixies and dragonettes. Dannika, Ella, Driftblossom, and I grab red flags. I’m surprised when Caleb grabs a blue one.

  “We aren’t going to be on the same team?” I ask, trying to keep the disappointment from my tone.

  “It will be more fun if I have to find you.” His tone is teasing, but it has an undercurrent of something else in. Something sensual. A quiver starts in the base of my stomach, spreading heat throughout my entire body.

  I’m not sure what I’ll do if he finds me, alone and in the dark. I’ve never been alone with a boy before, but as an avid reader, I can think of a few things I’d like to try.

  Brenna Blackwater, a water elemental, approaches the lake and raises her arms. “Everyone ready?”

  We shout yes.

  Brenna waves her arms, and an enormous black cloud appears over the lake. It thunders, and there are flashes of lightning. Finally, the rain breaks loose, dimming the lake and causing a heavy mist to form.

  “Go!” Raven yells, and we disperse.

  I grab Dannika’s hand, though, because I don’t know the area and don’t want to get lost for real.

  In the dark, the woods are a bit more treacherous. We have to move slowly to avoid getting slapped in the face by branches. Well, except for Driftblossom. She and the other pixies are bright as stars, but one by one, their lights go out as they hide in logs and under branches to conceal them.

  “Over here,” Dannika whispers, pulling me under a bush.

  I’m not sure what happened to Ella or Driftblossom, but I hope they found good hiding spots.

  The light from the lake slowly returns, but there is still a haze from the mist.

  For a moment, the whole forest is quiet, as if the world is holding its breath. I know I am.

  Then, in the distance, there’s a scream, followed by squealing laughter. Someone has been caught. I turn to Dannika, and she puts her finger on her lips. I slap my own hand over my mouth to keep from laughing.

  Then we hear another scream, a yell, and a “Gotcha!”

  I think our team might be losing.

  “Maybe we should move,” I whisper.

  Nooooooo! she mouths, but it’s too late.

  “There you are,” a voice says right behind me.

  We squeal and run out from under the bush, not even bothering to look and see who it is. Dannika takes off on her long legs, leaving me to fend for myself. When I feel a hand on my arm, I wheel around to fight whoever it is off, desperate to protect my flag.

  “I told you I’d find you.” Caleb grins mischievously.

  “Only because I let you catch me,” I reply.

  “Oh yeah?” he asks, pulling me closer to him so our bodies are nearly touching, his face inches from my own.

  Here. In the dark.

  My heart thunders with anticipation.

  “Yeah,” I say, my voice barely a whisper.

  “And what else are you going to let me do?” he asks silkily.

  I think maybe he’s going to kiss me, or at least, that’s what I want him to do, but I’m too nervous to say it.

  Thankfully, he doesn’t wait for an invitation. In an instant, his mouth is on mine. His lips are warm and soft, and the quivering returns to my belly. My whole body feels alight, tingling in ways I’ve never imagined before.

  I sigh, leaning into the kiss. Reaching up, he slides his fingers in a soothing caress over my cheek. I close my eyes, my body going boneless, losing myself in the experience. I don’t want to think or worry about anything else right now. Just. Pure. Bliss.

  “Imogen,” he finally murmurs as he pulls away.

  “Yeah?” I ask on a sigh, my eyes still closed.

  “I got your flag,” he whispers.

  “What?” I ask, my eyes shooting open.

  “Get it back if you can,” he yells as he runs off.

  Wait? What just happened? Did he only kiss me to get my flag? Or had it meant something more?

  I thought we were having a real moment, but now I’m not so sure.

  “Better hurry,” he says.

  “You are so dead!” I chase after him, deciding to just have fun with. The giggles come easily at the carefree grins he keeps shooting me over his shoulder.

  When we get back to the lake, Dannika and Ella are there. They’ve already lost their flags, too. They look at us and groan.

  “Of course he got your flag!” Dannika says in mock disgust.

  “I did my best to fight him off,” I lie, trying not to blush.

  “Is that what humans call fighting?” Driftblossom asks as she flies up. “Because where I come from, we call that—”

  “Hey, you little sneak,” I say. “What was that about a boobie prize?”

  We walk up to Raven, and she holds out a pail of items. “The brownies were responsible for this year’s prizes,” she says.

  Dannika reaches in first, and pulls out a clothespin. “Wow, that’s great,” she says, and I can’t tell if she’s joking or not.

  Ella goes next, and ends up with a small coin with scalloped edges. “Oh, from Hong Kong,” she says. “I don’t have one of these.”

  I put my hand in, coming out with a paper clip. I decide to be gracious about it. “Well, I have some of these, but another might come in handy.”

  “Exactly,” Ella says. “We joke that they are booby prizes, but gifts from Brownies usually have a special meaning or bring good luck.”

  “Oh?” I put the paper clip in my pocket for safekeeping, just in case. “So who is the king or queen?”

  Raven takes a quick headcount.

  “That can’t be right,” she says.

  She takes the count again. Now she’s looking a little worried.

  “We’re one person short,” she says. “We can’t declare the king or queen until everyone’s accounted for. But it’s getting late.”

  Ella nods, seemingly taking a look around at everyone’s flag count. “I think it’s time to call it. One flag isn’t going to change the winner tonight.”

  “Okay,” Raven says. She cups her hands around her mouth and yells, “Fae in the fray! Fae in the fray!”

  We all wait a moment, but no one else emerges from the woods.

  After she tries again, the panic becomes palpable in the air around us.

  “Does that usually work?” I whisper to Dannika.

  She nods. “Usually…”

  Everyone works together, figuring out which of their friends are present. The only person missing is someone named Myra Atticus.

  “I haven’t met her,” I say.

  “She’s the daughter of Nurse Oshae,” Ella explains.

  “Let’s all spread out and see if we can find her,” Raven says. “Maybe she got hurt. Everyone pair off so no one else gets lost.”

  Dannika takes my arm before I can look for Caleb, which is fine. If I went with Caleb, I wouldn’t be able to focus on looking for Myra. Caleb must be thinking the same thing, because he doesn’t hesitate as he wanders off with Ella.

  Those already paired into search groups take off. Dannika stays by my side the entire time, though I really don’t know what to look for. If Myra was hurt, wouldn’t she call out for help? I don’t hear anything.

  Dannika doesn’t seem too concerned, though. She just makes small talk the entire time we traipse through the woods.

  “I heard Mr. Clawfire dragged you into another meeting after what happened in Elemental Application,” she sa
ys.

  “Yeah…” I step over a fallen branch and peek behind a bush. “I think that guy has it out for me for some reason.”

  “I don’t know what is up with him,” she says. “How is your training with Erick going?”

  “Really good. I’ve been learning a lot, and we’ve been trying to be friendlier to each other.”

  “Oh?” Dannika pushes a tree branch out of her way. “I thought you were working on getting friendly with Caleb?”

  I slap her arm playfully. “It’s not like that! We just…” I pause. I almost told her about Erick’s sister, but I realize I have no idea if anyone else knows about her. He didn’t say it was public knowledge. It might be something his mom doesn’t want spread around. “I think we might have more in common than we thought.”

  “Really?” she asks. “A full Fae and a halfling?”

  “I don’t know,” I say. “Maybe it’s nothing. But I was wondering, since it is so common for Fae people to leave halfling children in the human realm, do you think I could have siblings here in Fae?”

  “It’s possible,” she says. “But if you don’t know your dad’s real last name, it would be hard to find out.”

  I stop, confusion taking over. “What do you mean if I don’t know his name? He’s a Flareburn.”

  “No, he’s not,” she says, looking at me quizzically. “Didn’t you know? That’s just a name given to ashlings who don’t know who their family is.”

  I freeze, reeling at this information. “But my mom, she said his name was Flareburn.”

  “Oh, I mean, your mom probably just told you what she knew,” Dannika says quickly, trying to reassure me. But it’s not reassuring at all. “It’s possible he told her his name was Flareburn to hide who he really was.”

  “That son of a bitch,” I mutter.

  Dannika peeks inside a fallen hollow tree, then pops back up. “Yeah, that’s why I changed my name when I came to school here. I didn’t need that label hanging over my head.”

  I pause again. I might as well stop trying to walk through this stupid forest. “You…you changed your name? You were a Flareburn? You can do that?”

  “Yeah. It’s not a big deal. You should have been able to give them whatever name you wanted when you showed up. In fact, that’s how Myra ended up with the last name Atticus. I mean, come on. Atticus isn’t even a Fae name!”