The Coven - Academy Magic Complete Series

by Chandelle LaVaun

  “Do you miss it?”

  She opened her mouth then shut it. Then she chuckled. “Believe it or not, but no. I meant it when I said I was just happy to be alive. Since July, I watched four of my Coven-mates die. Granted, we luckily got one back. But I know firsthand just how short a Card’s life can be, so I consider myself the luckiest girl. Even when Tenn finally kicks me out, I’ll be okay—”

  “Oh, he won’t.” I shook my head. “He’s my brother, so I’ll make sure of it. Promise. Besides, you already have a room here, and your boyfriend is still a Card. So you can’t be kicked out.”

  “Thanks, Bettina.” She laughed. Then she leaned forward. “Honestly, it’s a relief to not have dead people popping up on me every other second. The privacy is refreshing…and the not being startled. Sometimes it felt like I lived in a haunted house.”

  I shuddered at the thought.

  “Paulina— Oh, hey, guys!” Braison waved from the bottom of the landing between the first and second floor.

  Jackson waved. “They start yet?”

  Braison shook his head and held his hand out for Paulina. “Nope. But you’re the last to arrive, so I’m sure we’ll start now.”

  I cringed as the four of us went down the stairs. “Shit, my bad. Is he mad?”

  Braison chuckled. “At you? Girl, I think you’ve got a get out of jail free card for quite a few years.”

  “Don’t tell her that,” Jackson said with a chuckle. “Her and Tegan don’t need the encouragement.”

  “Hey, I heard that!” Tegan yelled from out of sight.

  “But he’s right,” Cooper shouted back.

  We rounded the corner and walked into the living room where everyone else had already gathered. Some of them were fully dressed, and others were in pajamas and fluffy socks. The energy in the room was a level of calm that I didn’t think I’d ever felt before. And everyone looked the part, too.

  Even Haven. He and Tegan were sharing the same recliner chair, their legs all tangled up together. I met his eyes and smiled. He gave me one back. We hadn’t talked about last night yet; we both were too raw. I’d basically gone straight to bed afterward. But he looked okay now; he looked more like himself again. And he was wearing Uncle Tim’s favorite red and black flannel, and that made me overwhelmingly happy.

  I glanced around the room until I spotted Uncle Timothy. He sat at the dining room table, but thanks to the open floor plan, that was only a few feet away. Katherine sat beside him. I liked the way they were smiling at each other. I also liked that he was wearing a different flannel, similar to the one Haven took.

  Constance walked around the opposite corner and into the room. “All right, so everyone’s here now.”

  Royce stretched his back like a sleepy cat. “So, what’s next, boss?”

  Constance went over and sat at the dining room table next to Daniel. “That’s you, Tenn.”

  Haven smirked. He rubbed his face with one hand. “Well, I’m gonna go around Majors’ houses and make sure everything is okay. Check on the demon situation, see where we’re at. Salem seems like a million years ago at this point, but we gotta get back on that cleanup mission.”

  Tegan nodded. “And I’m coming with you.”

  “Whether you like it or not.” Haven chuckled.

  “Yeah, but…” Easton said with a big yawn. “What about the rest of us?”

  Haven looked to his left. “Constance and Daniel, we need to get Edenburg ready for next semester. Do you need assistance with that?”

  “I’ll help,” Lennox and Warner said at the same time. Then they giggled at each other.

  Mona raised her hand. “I’d like to stay and help. What do you think, Kessler?”

  Kessler pursed his lips then nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, that sounds good.”

  Bentley cleared his throat. “Daniel has a request.”

  Daniel paled. “I do?”

  “Yes.” Bentley nodded. “Go ahead.”

  “Uh— Um— Uh…” Daniel licked his lips and pushed his glasses up his nose. “Well, I was wondering, and it’s just an idea, but I was wondering if there was any way I could step down from Headmaster and just be a teacher?”

  Jackson frowned. “You don’t like being Headmaster?”

  “I was already a teacher here, and I loved it.” Daniel shrugged. “So, at the time, I was the best option available for the position, but I know someone else would run this school a lot better than I am. I just am exhausted from making decisions I don’t feel confident in making.”

  Jackson turned to Timothy. “I think I know of someone who’d be great at it.”

  Haven’s eyes widened. He sat forward and looked to our uncle. “That’s a great idea.”

  Uncle Tim pointed at himself. “Me? Headmaster?”

  Yeah. For sure. I smiled at him. “Couldn’t think of anyone better.”

  He blushed. “Oh, well…yeah. Yeah, that’d be… That’d be cool.”

  “Then it’s settled.” Haven leaned back. “But I want Daniel to be like deputy Headmaster, or whatever you want to call that.”

  Daniel chuckled. “I like that.”

  Haven nodded. “Perfect. Uncle Tim, you’ll stay here and get ready for that. Katherine, I’d really love for you to stick around.”

  “Oh, I wasn’t leaving.” Katherine grinned, completely unashamed.

  Everyone laughed, but I noticed Uncle Tim blushed just a little.

  “Nice. Okay, next…” Haven looked around until he spotted his next target, then he pointed at him. “Cooper. Please do me a huge favor and go to Salem. Find Saffie. She’s been gone too long. I want her back with us.”

  Cooper smiled. “Cool. I’ll go find her.”

  Bentley raised his hand. “Can I go to Crone Island and check on Kenneth?”

  Haven looked to the Bishops. “Hunter? Devon? I feel weird making decisions for a small child. How do you feel about that?”

  Devon chuckled. “You’re Coven Leader. He’s a Coven member. It’s your right to boss him around.”

  Hunter shook his head at his wife. “The three of us can go together, if that’s all right?”

  “Works for me.”

  Emersyn flicked her wrist, and the fireplace roared to life. “Deacon and I need to go back to Manhattan. I feel like we dropped them in with the sharks then left.”

  Deacon nodded. “I agree. I’d like to go back.”

  “Perfect, I was going to suggest it anyway.” Haven smiled. “This is easy today.”

  Easton snapped his fingers, then gestured to everyone else. “What about us? Where you want us?”

  Haven took a deep breath, then let it out. “Honestly? Home. Go home. It’s been a long few months, and you deserve a break.”

  Willow gasped and sat up straight. “Really? Like home home? Florida home?”

  “Yes. Go see your families. Relax. Get a tan or some shit.”

  Chutney narrowed her eyes at him. “For how long? Don’t we need to help you?”

  Haven shrugged. “I’m just doing homework right now. We’ll regroup for the Yule Ball on the solstice.”

  Lily frowned. “Um, Edenburg was evacuated?”

  Lennox twirled her wand between her fingers. “Everyone still wants to party. My phone has been blowing up with questions about the Yule Ball.”

  Tegan grinned. “So we have it.”

  Constance cocked her head to the side. “Here?”

  “What about at SOMA?” Deacon tapped his fingers on his knees. “It might be nice to host the ball there to christen the school?”

  “I love that idea. Invite everyone and anyone.” Haven gave him a thumbs-up.

  Chutney twirled her hair. “Will people travel all the way there?”

  I shrugged. “Tegan could open up portals from each Major’s house.”

  Tegan looked at me with a smirk. “Pimpin’ me out, bestie? But yeah, I’ll do that.”

  “All right, it’s settled.” Haven stood up, lifting Tegan up with him. He set her on her feet, then
stretched. “Tegan, open up a portal back home to Tampa and get them out of here. I’ll see all of you in Manhattan on the solstice, and I’ll have a game plan for us by then.”

  Tegan snapped her fingers, and a white portal box opened. “Anyone who’s ready now, go on through.”

  I chuckled and turned to face Jackson. “I’m gonna go pack up some stuff, okay?”

  He kissed my nose then nodded. “I’m ready, so I’ll meet you down here?”

  “Okay.” I pressed my lips to his for a second, then turned and rushed back up the stairs.

  I was taking Jackson back home to Charleston to meet my parents for real. Plus, I missed them. All of the anger I’d harbored for them was gone. I was done being angry about my past, and I only wanted to focus on the present. And they’d been good to me for twelve years. It was time to focus on the happy things in life.

  A few days of relaxing sounded perfect. After Christmas, Jackson was taking me back to London. He promised we’d actually see London this time. The fun parts. No quests. I hadn’t told Haven or Uncle Tim about that plan, but I didn’t think they’d stop me once I did.

  There was a knock on my door.

  I dropped a pair of fuzzy socks into a bag then looked over my shoulder. “Come in.”

  The door swung open, and Haven strolled inside. He looked up at the ceiling and the hanging mood lanterns, then his gaze landed on the doorway between Tegan’s room and mine.

  He laughed and shook his head. “Adjoining rooms. Of course.”

  I stopped packing and turned to him. “Hi. Are you okay?”

  He smiled and shrugged. “As good as I can be, yeah. You?”

  “Same.”

  He nodded toward my bag. “Charleston or London?”

  I bit my lip. “Charleston…then London after Christmas, if that’s okay? I was going to talk to you about it before I went.”

  “As your Coven Leader, I see no problems with that—emergencies excluded.” He shoved his hands into his black jeans pockets.

  “As my brother?”

  He smirked. “I kindly request you travel by Tegan’s portal only, for my own sanity.”

  “Deal.” I grinned. Then I thought about what he’d said downstairs. “Haven, you two need a break, too. You need a chance to relax.”

  “I’m Coven Leader. I’m afraid I don’t get the same comforts as you do.” He sighed. “You weren’t here for Salem, so you didn’t see the amount of demons we let inside. I have to check on the state of our civilians. And Tegan is the reason they’re here, and she feels equally as pressured to check in.”

  “I will throw a bitch fit until you two take a break. You know that, right?”

  He threw his head back and laughed. “Noted.”

  “Good.” I smiled and eyed him. “So…what’s up?”

  He walked to the door. “Come with me. I want to show you something.”

  “Oh, okay.” I skipped over to the door.

  When he opened it, there was a portal sitting in the hallway right outside my room. Waiting for us.

  I glanced up at him. “Tegan on the other side?”

  He smiled and grabbed my elbow then pulled me into the portal…and onto a residential street. I frowned and looked around. It was just a row of normal-looking houses, like ones families would live in. To my right, there was a cul-de-sac at the edge of a forest. To my left was a stop sign and more houses.

  I frowned and looked ahead of me—and gasped.

  It was our house. The one we grew up in. I recognized it instantly. It wasn’t huge, but a quaint little wooden house with stone accents and a red brick pathway. The front door was turquoise, and it made me grin. Haven and I had picked that color. After hours of debating. Uncle Tim had been so calm with us that day. Every day.

  I took a deep breath. “This is home.”

  “Home.” He nodded. “I wanted to bring you here, with me. I wanted you to see it.”

  My chest tightened, yet a huge grin spread across my face. Home. I’m home. This is my home. I couldn’t believe it. The front lawn was covered in red and yellow leaves from the trees all around our house. As I looked down at them, I remembered that time Haven and I piled all the leaves into one lump and then dove in it. Repeatedly.

  I remembered the day Dad hung the swing from the big oak tree out front.

  I remembered the Slip ‘N Slide Kessler brought, and how Ellis was obsessed with it.

  I remembered Mom and I feeding bunnies in the front yard while Dad taught Haven how to ride his bike—the one with the big training wheels. I remembered snowmen and snowball fights with Uncle Timothy…and hot chocolate by the fireplace. They weren’t full memories, just flashes of images, but they were there all the same. I leaned against Haven’s shoulder and wrapped my arm around his.

  My time in this house was short, but I would cherish every single memory. There was sadness attached to every one, yet the happiness I got was overwhelming. I couldn’t wait to go inside and see what else I could remember.

  I grinned. “Thank you for bringing me here. I wouldn’t have wanted to come here without you.”

  His cheeks flushed. “I didn’t want you to come here without me either. So, what do you say. Wanna go inside?”

  “Is it— Did they…change it?”

  “It looks just the way we left it.”

  “Is that a bad or good thing?”

  He looked down at me and smiled. “Both.”

  My stomach flipped, and butterflies danced around. I swallowed nervously. I wrapped my hand around his elbow. “Lead the way, big bro.”

  Together, we walked up the brick pathway to the front door. With each step, my pulse beat a little faster. I couldn’t believe I was here. Home. I was just so happy to have this little piece of me back. Everything was finally clicking into place, and my life made sense now.

  Haven stepped in front of me, then pushed the door open. He gestured for me to go in first. I nodded and walked inside with my heart in my throat.

  The lights flashed on— I gasped.

  “SURPRISE!” Tegan shouted and threw confetti at me.

  There were balloons everywhere. Hanging from the ceiling was a long banner that said HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOPE! Behind it, on the coffee table in my living room, was a beautiful cake covered in red and pink roses. Presents wrapped in glittery silver and gold paper sat next to it. My jaw dropped. Uncle Timothy and Jackson stood next to the table, wearing those triangular little paper hats and looking absolutely adorable.

  I giggled and covered my mouth with my hands. Oh my God! This is amazing.

  “It’s my birthday,” I breathed and shook my head. I’d completely forgotten. Of course I’d been raised with a different birth date. But this was the real one. Today was my birthday.

  “Happy birthday, Hope,” Haven said softly behind me.

  “Oh my God.” I turned back to Haven. My face was burning, and I knew I was blushing. My jaw stung from how wide I smiled. “Oh my God. You did this?”

  He chuckled. “Well, Jackson and I did. I told him today was your real birthday, and we knew we had to do something for it. Most of this was him, though. But I helped. And I definitely got you a present.”

  My eyes watered, and I threw myself at him. “Thank you, Haven. This is amazing.”

  He squeezed me tight, then stepped away. His cheeks flushed a bright pink. “Well, it’s your birthday, after all. I couldn’t just let it go by.”

  I kissed his cheek. “Because I wouldn’t have realized it until like three days from now and then be pissed that I’d missed it.”

  “Precisely.” Tegan laughed, then skipped over and pulled me in for a hug. “Happy real birthday, bestie. We always said there was no way you were a Gemini.”

  When she jumped back, I laughed and pushed my hair back. “Oh my God. We did say that, didn’t we? Because I’m really a Sagittarius! It all makes so much sense now!”

  “Yeah, well, my present is the best sooo…” Uncle Timothy ruffled my hair then hugged me tight. “Ha
ppy birthday, Hope.”

  “Thank you, Uncle Tim.” I kissed his cheek. “You’re alive, and that’s already the best present ever.”

  I smiled then turned to Jackson. He was leaning against the wall, right under my name on the banner. My heart fluttered the same way it always did when I saw him. He had pink confetti in his golden bronze hair, but it was the smile on his face that took my breath away. Our lavender soulmate glyph sparkled through his white shirt. My Lancelot.

  “You did this?” I gestured around to all the decorations and the cake and shook my head. “All of this, in one night?”

  “Gotta love magic, right?” He shrugged but was grinning from ear to ear. “I mean, it’s no fancy gala—”

  “It’s perfect.” I wrapped my arms around his waist and looked up into his gorgeous face. “I have cake. My family. And you. Everything I love, right here. It’s absolutely perfect.”

  Chapter Sixty-Five

  Bettina

  The cab rolled to a stop on a dark, quiet street in Manhattan’s Upper West Side outside of a red brick building. Jackson reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his wallet. I didn’t have pockets in this gown, and I’d always been terrible about purses. They usually wound up lost. As Jackson paid for our fare, I opened the door then climbed out.

  A gust of ice-cold wind ripped through the tunnel-like street and rushed over me. I smiled and soaked it in. The cold really didn’t bother me anymore. Even though the television in the taxi said it was about eight degrees outside, I knew I could stand on this sidewalk all night without freezing. And part of me wanted to. Snow fell from the dark sky all around me, collecting on every surface it touched. They were predicting a bit of a blizzard, though I was going to ask Tegan if she had anything to do with that.

  I glanced up and down the street and grinned. This city was gorgeous. Christmas lights twinkled from everywhere I looked, glistening against the snow-covered streets and sidewalks. I sighed and tipped my head back then stuck my tongue out.

  “Bloody hell, you are not.” Jackson chuckled behind me.

  I laughed and spun around to face him. “Oh, I am.”