by D. R. Perry
Logan was there, his orb absorbing Eston's. When two types of magic hit each other, the outcome varied depending on the elements. Water added to water, so Logan had no choice. He needed to throw his too-heavy orb or banish it and conjure another.
He tossed underhand, aiming at Grace, who played first defense opposite me. She dropped to the floor, flat on her face, the orb of umbral magic held over her head. It was an amazing dodge, brilliant even, because she skipped up off the floor almost right away afterward. That move right there would probably get her on the first-year team.
I was on one knee, but if I didn't launch my fireball soon, it'd be too hot to handle. I aimed for Hailey, knowing that air fed fire. She'd dodged in front of Dylan to avoid her own sister's airball, so it was possible I might get a two-in-one throw.
The fireball hit Hailey straight on. Since she had her ball over her head, preparing to throw it, my magic hit her ankyr, which flashed red. She stomped off toward the bleachers, glaring over her shoulder at Bailey, who’d somehow managed to last longer than her despite being less powerful.
"We're getting killed out here. Come on, guys!" Dylan clapped his hands. It was only then that I realized he’d launched his ball.
"Asshole!" Bailey jumped in front of Alex, taking the hit in a move similar to Kitty's.
"Language." Coach Pickman blew her whistle." If you weren't out, you would be now."
Hal sidestepped, avoiding Grace's umbral magic. In the space he’d previously occupied, Alex made his throw. The poison magic headed directly toward Dylan, who hadn't finished conjuring his next water ball yet. Grace couldn't defend him either, but Lee came to his rescue.
The wood Magus threw a brown spiky ball in an atypical play. Instead of jumping up to block the poison while holding his projectile, he tried to bump it out in midair.
Lee had amazing aim, but his throwing power left something to be desired. He didn't manage to deflect the poison all the way out of bounds. Instead of vanishing after crossing the line, the poison ball hit Eston. Lee did too, but in Bishop's Row, the ankyr and cestus are programmed to account for friendly fire without penalty.
His ankyr flashed red, and he left the court to sit next to Kitty. Faith took some initiative at that point. She'd been holding her undeath magic back all this time, in no small part because it was more dangerous than most other elements in Bishop's Row. Practically nothing but fire could beat it. And, like with poison, any player whose ankyr weren't on exactly right could end up in the infirmary if it hit them.
Faith threw at Grace. Dylan was too far away to protect her. Then again, that wasn’t his job. She was the one playing defense, and you couldn't fault Faith for trying to make what was probably her only throw count.
Grace only just managed to conjure a ball of umbral magic to block the incoming orb, which dissipated on impact. Normally this would just mean that Grace had to keep conjuring, but because Faith had held back for so long, her projectile was twice the strength of my roommate’s.
Not only did that undeath orb destroy Grace's next one, it bled through and hit her ankyr. They flashed red, and she was out—in more ways than one.
She hit the court, falling on her side, thank goodness. Lee followed up by tossing a wood orb at Faith in retaliation, striking her out, but I could see it was worth the risk.
Faith's play had totally intended consequences. She’d used strategy from the library books, which included getting in the other players' heads. With his girlfriend down, Dylan froze, a big mistake while playing this sport.
Alex struck. He wasn’t quite as fast as me with creating his orbs. That meant his projectile wasn’t as strong as mine. Dylan's air orb would block Alex's poison, but there was no way he could dodge two at the same time while he stared slack-jawed at Grace on the floor.
I left myself open to Lee's next attack, pitching on a curve. It was a long shot, but either I'd hit Dylan or Hal would. He was still in play somewhere on the court.
My fireball blazed by, narrowly missing Dylan's head as he tilted his neck to one side. Maybe it was even accidental, but that was okay.
Hal's space magic came in like a wrecking ball. He'd been conjuring since Grace's last throw, so the orb he tossed was too big to dodge. Dylan gave it a try, tensing his legs to jump over it, but he didn't leap in time.
His ankyr flashed red, and he was out. Game over.
Coach Pickman blew her whistle while Coach Chen took more notes. We were all a bit out of sorts, but otherwise okay. Even Grace sat up, not any the worse for wear after getting hit by that undeath orb.
But Hal was breathless and pale, like the day he’d ended up in the infirmary. Faith rushed away from the bleachers and to his side. Dylan crossed the court's midline. Between the two of them, they got Hal to a seat. Nin immediately bounced into his lap. Seth tried to pull the cooler over, but he was too small. Ember, Doris, and Gale helped him by pushing from the back.
"Overtaxed, huh?" Coach Pickman strode over to Hal. "Nice strategy out there, Hawkins, but you’d better build some stamina before next semester if you want us to win anything."
"What?" Hal held an ice-cold bottle against his forehead.
"You're on the first-year team."
"How?"
"The other years don't even have a space magus. They can't counter any of the plays we can do with you on defense. As long as you didn't choke out there today, including you was always our plan."
"What about the rest?"
"Chen's on that now. You'll find out after your Turkey Day break. Take a rest. Dubois, you too. Full-force undeath orbs are no joke." She turned her back to walk away but added, "Not bad, Fairbanks. Not bad."
"Who, me?" Faith blinked.
Coach Pickman either didn't hear her or pretended not to. It didn't much matter. Faith went totally silent, face pale, eyes wide, until Hal took her hand, and she blushed. She pulled him closer, tilting his head so it rested on her shoulder.
Watching them, you'd never have thought she was the second meanest girl on campus just ten weeks ago. I’d almost fought her, which would have begun a cycle of harm and retaliation that might never have ended. Hal stopped that, just by caring. It was no surprise to me. Love was important; I'd had ample demonstration of that in my family. But I’d never understood how much of a difference it could make for people who'd gone through life with the bare minimum.
Some of what you learned in school had nothing to do with classrooms and everything to do with the people you met there.
I woke and dressed in darkness the next morning, escorted through the doors by the headmaster because avoiding an attack isn’t just a strategy for Bishop’s Row. Refusing to attend one party was no big deal if it’d keep my friends and me out of trouble. On the way down Essex Street, I thought that lesson about caring from yesterday was over.
But it had only just begun.
Thanksgiving was just another weekend at home for me, but for Dylan, Grace, and Lee, it'd be time spent on campus alone. Because my roommate was Canadian, her version of the holiday was already past. The bus back to her aunt's wasn't too expensive, but she’d told me there was little point. Nobody in the UK or mainland China observed the day, either.
Hal and his family usually had dinner in the cafeteria on campus together, but this year, they'd be missing Hal's grandpa and mom. Even with the three students from abroad in attendance with them, it would be lonely.
The last thing I wanted on my mind all weekend was my friends and the headmaster rattling around on campus like the last handful of peas in a can, which was why I asked my parents if we had room for five more.
My folks said yes, so I invited everybody. Grace and Dylan accepted just about right away. Lee hesitated but decided to go once he found out Izzy and Cadence always came over to hang out after dinner. They all asked about spending time around town, but everything was closed on Thanksgiving day besides the hospital and gas stations.
Hal knew all this, of course. Technically, he was a Salem local too. He defi
nitely wanted to come but had to ask his father. He talked to me about it the next day in the library.
"I'll attend, Aliyah. Dad won't, though."
"What's up?"
"He's not saying." Hal shook his head. "But this is pretty typical for him. My dad doesn't much like going into Salem. Not since last year, anyway."
"Well, okay. As long as he knows he's welcome."
"Oh, yeah, he definitely does. It's nothing personal."
"I'm kinda surprised you're coming, Hal." Logan shrugged. "I mean, I'd have figured you'd take the train down to New York with Faith."
"Oh, I wasn't invited." Hal sighed.
"Are you okay?" Logan blinked.
"Yeah. It's her parents. They never invite guests on Thanksgiving, only family."
"Should have figured. Sorry." Logan winced. "Guess they're a bit like my folks that way. I'm dreading going home."
"By the way, what are you going to do about Doris?"
"I already asked to board her with your grandma, Aliyah." Logan grinned. "My parents had a devil of a time trying to get Gale on the plane when they sent him here with me, so they just think I'm doing things the easy way. They paid the fees, too."
"They're going to find out eventually." Faith paused on her way past our table with a book. "You can't hide something as personal as a familiar from anyone for long."
"Good thing they live in Vegas, then." Logan leaned back, letting Doris leap into his lap. "It'll take them way longer to figure it out."
"Still." She sighed. "They'll pitch a major fit, and it's gonna hurt. Are you sure you want that at some unknown point in the future instead of at a time you've picked?"
"Faith's got a good point." I nodded. "We should plan it out." Doris purred. "See? She likes that idea."
But Logan either didn't agree, or he was just not ready to think about it. At least there was time, but not before this holiday.
Chapter Thirty-Six
We had no classes on Wednesday, although the cafeteria was open so students could still have meals before heading for the airport or train stations. Logan had departed the night before on a red-eye flight, leaving Doris with Ember and me. I'd bring her to Bubbe's tonight when I went home.
In the early morning, the campus felt almost normal, but the rest of the day was an exercise in reduction. Dylan, Grace, Lee, and I waited through the day together, watching our classmates leave campus.
Hal spent every moment he could with Faith, who was pale and fidgety. Seth was nervous, too, despite Nin's and Ember's best efforts to cheer him up. He had that same snippy energy as the day I’d met him in Bubbe's office, which finally made sense.
Faith's abrasive attitude must have been defensive, designed to protect her from a toxic and apparently large family. Izzy had mentioned to me last weekend that there was a psychic Fairbanks boy at Messing who was a year ahead of her, with another to follow in the next. Apparently, the younger one was the twin of Faith's little sister, Temperance. The boy at Izzy’s school acted like the dudebro version of Charity. A bully. Ugh.
After dinner, we left campus together. It was time for Faith to catch her train, which she had booked separately from her sister. I’d asked if she felt safe traveling alone. She’d said Charity was the most dangerous person she could think of. We all insisted on seeing her off.
It was cold enough that we could see our breath. Ember and Gale got a kick out of that happening to people. Their amusement reminded me of being a kid and the games I'd play with Noah outside in winter, pretending to be dragon shifters. I held Doris part of the way, but eventually she got down. Mercats can tolerate lower temperatures with ease.
Nin rode with Seth in his tote. Hal and Faith held hands the entire way down Essex and then Washington Street. Scratch stayed tucked under Lee's overcoat instead of walking on the ice-rimed cobblestones, peeking out at times to chirp at Doris and Lune. The moon hare must have been used to colder weather than this because he hopped along like it was no big deal.
At the train station, we said goodbye, the rest of us turning to give Hal and Faith some privacy. Dylan took Grace's hand, squeezing. She squeezed back. Gale swooped overhead, chasing Ember in circles around the parking lot's streetlamps. Lune just leaned his head against Grace's foot, a common display of affection between them.
We waited until the train pulled away, waving at Faith. She'd have to switch to an Amtrak in Boston, but the Commuter Rail out of Salem only took half an hour. She could go right to bed when she got home, avoiding her siblings for that much longer. She warned us that she might be extra cranky when she returned on Sunday.
After that, we all walked back to campus. The rest of my friends would stay in the dorms until dinner tomorrow, but I went home, thank goodness. Noah had already left at lunchtime, so he'd probably been baking and helping set up tables for hours.
We waved goodbye at the school door, which was next to one of the bank's barred windows that night. After that, I walked down Essex Street with Ember on my shoulder and Doris by my side. The street was almost deserted. The only person out was Azreal. He didn't have his cart at that hour so he trotted to catch up with me, chatting good-naturedly about how Gallows Hill was having its first Bishop's Row tournament this year.
"But how?" I blinked. "You sort of need to conjure magic to play it."
"Plenty of changelings have magic, and even the ones who don't can always conjure glamour away from their appearance." Az chuckled. "It's going to make us look extra scary on the court, too. Want to see?"
"Some other time, Az." I grinned. "Probably not a good idea out here in the street. But that's cool. We find out who's on our team this year after we get back from break."
"Wait." He gasped. "They're letting first years play?"
"Yeah." I shrugged, jostling a peep from Ember. "I'm not sure why. They've never done it that way before, but I'm glad since I like playing."
"To me, it feels like at Gallows Hill, we’re practicing for something." He scratched his head. "We've got as many teams as you guys do at Hawthorn, but I don't know what they're planning, so keep your eyes and ears open on campus after break. I'll do the same, and we can compare notes another time."
"Sounds like a plan." We were at the corner of Hawthorne Street, so we said goodbye and I turned toward my house. "Thanks for walking with me."
"Hey, what are friends for?" He waved and turned back down Essex Street.
I’d never considered Azreal a close friend, but he’d looked out for the other townie kids for years. Goblin changelings can scare pretty much anyone when they drop their glamour, and he’d always used that power to chase off bullies and the crueler sorts of tourists.
I know Izzy wasn’t interested in romance, but someday, I hoped he'd find a partner in crime. He always seemed lonely, despite his many siblings. I suppose being the only changeling in the family was similar to being an only child.
I stopped at Bubbe's office, where she was expecting me. Doris padded across the threshold and down the hall. I followed, watching as she curled up on a cushion near the kitchen sink. Bubbe left a basin of water in there in case she had to take a dip at some point. I gave my grandma a hug before heading up the back stairs.
At home, there wasn’t much for me to do except clean. Everything we cooked the night before was already done, cooling on racks or stowed in the fridge, so I washed dishes, pots, pans, and utensils. I also rinsed the serving platters and bowls we only used for big meals.
When I was done, my arms were tired, my eyelids heavy, and my hands pruned and itchy from all the soap and water. Ember peeped from her perch on top of the refrigerator, where she’d surely been sneaking biscuits, judging by the roundness of her belly.
"Yeah, girl, okay. It's time for bed." I headed toward the stairs, and when I got there, I practically crawled up them. I was just that tired. I managed to put my pajamas on, though. I didn't want to sleep in my leggings and tunic, even though they were pretty comfortable. Nothing beat flannel for bedtime during Salem's brisk
autumn weather.
I hadn’t brought any clothes home from school, so there was no laundry to do. I'd just wear what I had at home all weekend. We didn't do much besides hang out around the house and go for walks around town as a family the day after Thanksgiving. I could include my friends from school in all that stuff if they wanted.
As I brushed my teeth, I found myself wondering why Noah had never invited anybody home, not last year or this one either. There were plenty of other students who lived halfway around the world from Hawthorn Academy. Maybe not as far away as Lee from China, but at least one of the kids in Noah's year came from Costa Rica, and there was a third-year from Poland.
It crossed my mind, what Bubbe said about the difference between my brother and me. How he was always afraid, and how I didn't stop and think. It was almost like we were opposites. Noah had been at the Parents’ Night dance alone, which meant he didn't have a date. I wonder if he got turned down, or if he just didn't bother asking anyone from fear of rejection.
Was Darren the one who’d asked him out, or was it the other way around?
I practically leaped out of my skin because somebody spoke. I managed to spit into the sink and not on the mirror, thank goodness.
"Oh, he asked me out." Noah stood in the doorway, which meant Ember hadn't spontaneously started speaking English and imitating my brother's voice. "And we're never, ever getting back together. Not ever."
"Okay, Noah. Back away from the protestations." I rinsed my toothbrush, watching the water carry foamy toothpaste down the drain. "Sorry about my wayward inside voice, but it was about due for an outburst."
"It happens." He shrugged.
"So, what's up?" I was relieved we were having a relatively normal conversation.