by A. L. Knorr
“Hiding from someone?” I asked, tossing the Blu-tack on to my desk.
“Ah!” April whirled around, mouth open. She lay her long-fingered hand against her chest and slumped against the door’s frame. “You scared me.” She made to leave. “Sorry, I didn’t realize anyone was in here. I’ll go.”
“You don’t have to.” Moving the empty luggage off my duvet and tucking it underneath the bed frame, I jerked my chin, inviting her inside.
She didn’t hesitate, crossing to my bed where she flopped onto her back. She rubbed her face and then threw her arms above her head and let out a groan.
“That bad?” I asked.
She rolled her eyes around to me, every expression and movement exaggerated. “I shouldn’t be here.”
After her performance today, I assumed she meant the academy. “You’re a mage, aren’t you?”
“Barely.” She gave a snort and sat up, crossing her legs, reminding me of a frog as she did so. “I wish I had been born normal.”
I turned my chair backward and sat down, leaning over its back with my elbows. “Why are you here if you don’t want to learn how to use your fire?”
“My parents made me come.” April scrunched up her face. “They told me that I have to do a minimum of one year and I have to pass both semesters. If I don’t pass, I have to do it all over again.”
“And if you do pass?”
April brightened. “Then I don’t have to come back. My parents are betting on me falling in love with my fire through my time at Arcturus, but they don’t understand me. I’ll never love my fire. I’d get rid of it in a heartbeat if I could. Headmaster Chaplin says there’s only two ways for a fire to go out: dying, or coming close to death and then passing it to someone else.”
I nodded. “That’s how I got my fire.”
April’s eyes grew round. “Someone gave it to you?”
“A young boy in Venice named Isaia. The fire was killing him. At the time, I didn’t know what was wrong with him. I was his au pair.”
Her voice was hushed. “What happened?”
“He was only six. I had no idea there was even such a thing as supernaturals, let alone fire magi. I grew up totally normal.”
“You call us magi?”
“In Italy, magus is singular and magi is plural. The terminology has stuck with me. Anyway, the kid—Isaia—the fire was killing him. We got trapped in a tobacco shop that was on fire. He collapsed and—” I cleared my throat as the unpleasant scene rose in my memory. “Anyway, he almost died. I thought he had died when he passed his fire to me. At the time, I didn’t know it was fire, it looked like light under his skin. But when it went into me...” I shrugged, beginning to feel uncomfortable under her scrutiny. “Well, then I understood what he had been dealing with.”
April was nodding, eyes glued to my face. “Then you learned the pain of it.”
“Yes. I think that sometimes the fire is too big for its host, you know?”
She nodded. “I’m sure that can be the case because I’m on the other end.”
I cocked a brow. “Your fire is too small?”
She nodded, looking annoyed. “I have all the pain but none of the power. I begged my parents to help me find a way to pass my fire on but it’s impossible. There’s no way they’d ever help me bring myself close to death, they’d never dream of it.”
“No, of course not,” I murmured.
“And who would I pass it to anyway? We’re not supposed to tell naturals about our powers. Even if we could, who would want to deal with daily pain and the constant struggle of trying to control it? No one.” She slumped again, bracing her elbows on her knees.
I could think of someone. Easily. In fact, back in Venice someone had tried to take the fire from me by dehydrating me and locking me in a cell. I wasn’t even the first mage Dante—the son of a wealthy Venetian family of questionable integrity—had tried to do it with. He’d been responsible for the death of the mage who had fathered Isaia. Killing Nicodemo had foiled his plans, so he’d tried again with me. Only I’d been rescued and given water within that tiny window of time which transformed the event from a murder to a Burning. It had leveled up my abilities beyond imagination and taken my voice with it. My voice had been husky ever since. But this was all territory I couldn’t go into with April.
“Sorry,” I said instead and reached for the glass of water sitting on my desk.
April’s expression turned pleading. “All I want in life is to lose my virginity and pass my first year at Arcturus so I can get out of here.”
I nearly choked on my water. Thumping myself in the chest, eyes leaking, I looked at April, wondering if she had been making a joke. She appeared totally earnest, brown eyes hopeful. I’d had the impression from the placement class that April was timid, yet I was quickly learning that she might be meek when it came to using her fire, but her character was forthright to the point of disarming.
“Surely, those two objectives are within your reach,” I replied, my voice even more of a rasp than normal. “Got your eye on anyone in particular?”
Her look turned dreamy. “Not really. I’d take anyone with a phallus at this point.”
I thumped my chest harder and coughed.
“But the one from Tokyo is quite pretty, or one of those twins would be nice.” She brightened. “You’re friends with the twins. Maybe you could introduce me?”
Laughing, I put my glass down and nodded, then wiped at my teary eyes. “Sure, April.”
“I got close with this boy back home...”
“Where’s home?”
“A little town called Wychwood in Northern Maine. Anyway, he was a nice boy. Not very bright, but willing. We’d set a date and everything. It was going to be his first time, too. We had it all planned out. There’s this cliff where kids go to make out. He would borrow his parents Cutlass. It had a huge back seat, the bench kind with plush upholstery.” April’s expression clouded over. “Then my parents surprised me,” she made air quotes around ‘surprised’, “by sending me to Dover for the Fire Fair, thinking it would get me all invested in learning to use my fire.” She let out a long-winded sigh and held her thumb and forefinger up a centimeter apart. “I came this close. Now I have to start all over again. They have no idea how much work it was to get Steve to agree to it all in the first place. Boys don’t like me until they get to know me. Girls too, as a matter of fact.”
“I’m sure they like you just fine,” I said with a smile. In fact, the more I listened to her talk, saw the way she expressed herself so honestly, the more I liked her.
She flapped a hand. “It’s okay. I’ve come to terms with it. I just need to force myself on people a little to get them to see that.”
April rethought what she’d just said and put up a hand. “Not boys. I’d never force myself inappropriately on a boy.”
“I think I know what you meant.”
April bobbed her head. “That’s why I had to dodge into your room. I’ve been ingratiating myself with Jade, she seems like someone it would be good to have on your side. You know?”
I wasn’t sure I did know but I nodded anyway. “She wasn’t taking it well? The ingratiating?”
“Nah. She threw a stiletto at me and threatened to buzz my head while I’m sleeping. She’ll come around, though. They always do. I’ve been turning mean girls and boys into allies since kindergarten. I’m a pro.”
April gave a yawn and began to ask me questions about my life, where I was from, my family. She made me show her pictures of my older brother, RJ, and visibly melted when she saw him.
We talked until the traffic of students going by my room had dwindled.
“There you are,” said a voice as the last of the daylight leached out of the sky.
Jade stood at my door, hair wrapped up in a turban and towel wrapped around her wet body. Her eyes flicked from April to me and her expression went from disdainful to curious. She looked around my room before casting her gaze back to us.
/> “How cute. A little girl-talk before bed? Don’t let me interrupt. I just came to give you this back.”
Jade tossed April a gift box with a gold bow on top. April made to catch it and missed. It landed on my bed—chocolates from a high-end brand I recognized from gift shops back home.
“I’m allergic to nuts.” Jade scrubbed delicately at her neck with the corner of her towel. “Besides, American chocolate sucks. Next time, make it salted-caramel and European or it’ll get you nowhere.” She flashed us a flirty wink. “Free tip of the day. Night, losers.”
She slipped out of view. A moment later we heard a low catcall and a whistle from down the hall. Another moment and a couple of boys passed by, laughing and making lewd comments about Jade in a towel.
I picked up the box of chocolates and handed it to April. “Chocolate? Is this how you were trying to get Jade to like you?”
April took the box. “Not just her. I brought one for everyone. It’s a tradition in my family to give candy to everyone on the first day of school.”
“I didn’t get one.” I faked a pout.
“Oh no?” April looked apologetic and held out the box. “Here you go.”
Thirteen
The Mission
After a dinner of lasagna and salad, Gage and I wandered down to the victor’s hall to see the results of the placement class. I knew what to expect but it would look weird if didn’t show interest in the postings. Besides, I was curious about where they were putting Gage, Tomio, Ryan and April. I half-expected them to give April private coaching too, she needed it more than anybody.
The victor’s hall was just off the main lobby where gothic arches stretched high overhead and stained-glass windows speckled the stone walls and marble floors with colored coins and ribbons of light. Students milled along the hall, some alone and others in conversation with their friends. The first-year placements had been posted in the glass case at the far end. The contents of the rest of the cases were interesting too, so students congregated in front of all of them. Photographs of magi executing fiery feats sat next to plaques engraved with lists of names and the years those students earned the highest mark for that skill or class.
The top-marks-overall award-winners were given a place of honor in the largest and most central case, where a trophy rotated on a pedestal. It was a sculpture of two magi, a male and a female, carved in onyx. The man was positioned in a lunge with black flames spiraling from an extended hand. The woman was positioned in mid-leap. One of her hands braced on the man’s shoulder while the other threw a column of flame, which wrapped around the duo to meet with the man’s fire. The shining base was engraved with the names of previous year’s winners going all the way back to 1991. Apparently, Headmaster Chaplin either hadn’t had enough magi to bother with top marks awards in 1990, or he hadn’t had the idea for it yet.
Jade, Kendall, and Ryan stood in front of the placement announcements as Gage and I joined them. The first-years had been broken down into five groups and assigned a homeroom and a homeroom professor as well as a rating. Only two first-year names were rated as second-degree, the rest were all listed under first-degree.
I resisted the urge to wilt when Ryan and Jade turned hostile eyes on me.
“You’re getting private coaching.” Ryan said it like an accusation.
“Am I?” Pasting a surprised look on my face, I peered at the listing. Sure enough, my name was there under ‘private tutelage’. No professor was listed. “Cool.”
“Why are you a second-degree mage?” Jade jabbed at the case, leaving a fingerprint on the glass.
“Because she’s really good.” Gage replied calmly, tucking his hands into his pockets. “Wasn’t it obvious in class?”
“She’s not any better than you, or Ryan, or me,” snapped Jade.
Both Ryan and Kendall shot her a look at that comment. Jade’s skills had been an obvious step behind the twins.
“Tomio is a second-degree mage, too. I don’t see you barking about him.” Gage shrugged. “Besides, only some of the skills were visible. Others, like the detection one, we have no idea how accurate anyone was. Saxony and Tomio must have aced those.”
Jade grunted and her frown deepened as her gaze swept over the list. “And while Saxony and Tomio get private attention, the rest of us are stuck in the same classes as that Brown girl. I mean seriously? She doesn’t know a flame from her pigtail. I don’t even know what she’s doing here, let alone how they thought placing her in the same classes as the rest of us was appropriate.”
So, April had been put in with all the others.
“I’m sure the instructors here know what they’re doing, Jade,” I murmured.
“I smell favoritism.” Jade sniffed.
To my surprise, Ryan disagreed. “It’s not favoritism. If that was the case, Gage and I would be getting private coaching too. We’re Basil’s godsons.” He canted his eyes to me. “What makes you special, though?”
“Leave her alone,” injected Gage with a good-natured tone. “She is where she’s at. So what? It’s not a personal affront to anyone else. I don’t see why you two have your panties in a bunch.” He sent a smile and a wink my way. “It just means victory will be all that much sweeter when you win the top marks award over her.”
Another group of first-years came down the hall toward the case and we shuffled aside to let them find their names. They whispered about the fact that there were two second-degree mages among the first-years but they sounded more impressed than annoyed.
“Who are Saxony and Tomio?” one of them asked another, a petite boy with a Peter Pan face.
His companion, a lanky fellow with a pair of thick glasses, shook his head. “I think Tomio is that martial artist from Tokyo. Pete was telling me about him. Apparently, he’s a big deal back home. Maybe his MMA skills are why he’s a second-degree.”
“This is Saxony.” Gage wrapped an arm around my neck the way footballers do with each other after scoring a goal—like he wanted to lovingly choke me—but the pride in his voice made me blush.
The boys turned wide eyes on me. The tall one adjusted his spectacles for a better look. He had artfully arranged dreadlocks. The hairstyle was a charming combination with his bright blue, thick-framed glasses. “You’re a second-degree mage but a first-year student? How did that happen?”
Embarrassment warmed my cheeks.
“She’s just good. That’s how you get labeled second-degree,” Gage answered.
“Can we see your mage-mark?” Peter Pan asked, eyes yearning.
Ryan took a step closer. “Yeah, Saxony. Show us your mage-mark.”
I crossed my arms as a twist of nerves clutched at my stomach. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“It’s not ridiculous.” Ryan pulled his shirt sleeve back from his wrist. “Here’s mine. See? It’s not that hard.”
I rolled my eyes but the tall, black kid with the cool hair was already pulling up the hem of his shirt. “Want to see mine?” He revealed the mark next to his belly button.
“Dude. That’s just a mole.” Peter Pan laughed.
“No, it’s not. I swear.” He produced a phone from his pocket. “Look, I’ve been documenting it as it changes color.”
He panned through a series of images showing the mark going from nearly invisible—a mark which could have been mistaken for a freckle—to the slightly darker speck it was today.
“I’m Darius, by the way. Call me Dar.” He pushed his glasses up his nose. “I worked with my fire every day for a year before applying. Progress has been slow, but...” He shrugged. “That’s what we’re here for. Who knows what we’ll all be capable of by the time we graduate.”
Peter Pan nodded. “Exactly. No need to be shy. I’m Zack by the way.” He was addressing me. “Mine isn’t much darker. It’s annoying that I have to look into a mirror if I want to see it, though.” He raked up a sleeve and lifted his arm to show us the light brown blotch on the tip of his elbow. “I’d like to see how dark yours is by c
omparison. Maybe it’ll give us some idea of how much work we need to do to reach second-degree.”
“Sorry.” I spread my hands. “Not happening.”
“Why not?” Ryan sneered. “What are you trying to hide?”
“Let up, Bro.” Gage put his hand against Ryan’s shoulder and made him take a step back. “What if it’s on a boob or in her butt crack? Just leave her alone.”
Zack grumbled but Dar said, “Fair enough. Good luck in class, guys.” They moved away.
“You, too.” I replied, relieved.
“I say we talk to the headmaster about it,” Jade’s sudden declaration brought my attention snapping back, but her gaze wasn’t on me, it was on the list.
“About what?”
“About April,” she huffed. “There’s no way she should be in a class with us,” she gestured to herself and Ryan.
“Ms. Cagney?” I turned to see Professor Hupelo approaching our little crowd. “Headmaster wants to see you.” The Fire Science instructor strode by without waiting for an answer. Jade’s gaze never left his muscular form until he disappeared around the corner. I half-expected to see drool run down her chin.
“Hungry, Jade?” I asked.
She reluctantly dragged her eyes back from where Tyson had disappeared and looked at me. She actually licked her bottom lip. “Starving.”
“Shameless.” Gage shook his head while Ryan snickered.
“See you later, guys.” I headed for Basil’s office, resisting the urge to skip through the school and run up the stairs two at a time.
Finding his door open, I poked my head in. He was nowhere in sight but there the bookcase behind his desk was standing ajar. A secret door? Another one of the villas many surreptitious features.
“Hello?” I crossed the room, neck stretched for a peek inside the secret room.
Basil’s head appeared. “Ah, you’re here. Good.” He pulled the door closed. When it was shut, the door looked exactly like a full and immovable bookcase.
“What’s in there?”
The headmaster came around his desk and gestured that I should take a seat. “Just some of my more precious and private items.”