by D. R. Perry
"I'm sorry, everyone. I didn't lie exactly, but I failed to report something. You have to disqualify me. Put Lee or Faith on the court in my place. This is my fault, not a malfunction."
"How?" The headmaster leaned forward.
"I thought I could control it just for one game. I was going to step down later. But now I have to say this in public."
"Say what, exactly?" Noah stepped forward. He was as pale as a vampire.
"Shh." Elanor put her hand on his arm, shaking her head.
"I'm an extramagus with solar magic." I raised my head, which felt weightless. "If that disqualifies me from Bishop's Row forever, I understand. If it's grounds for expulsion, I'll appeal through the proper channels with my parents."
"You're certainly not expelled, Miss Morgenstern." Headmaster Hawkins stood. "The athletic staff makes all the team decisions, including ability-related accommodations. However, I can't allow you to continue to play in this tournament."
"Somebody could've gotten hurt." Alex stepped forward. "If my equipment hadn't held up, I'd have second-degree burns by now."
"Not true." Coach Pickman snorted. "You were perfectly safe, Onassis. This court's got extra safety wards. I insisted after Morgenstern made the team. I hadn’t forgotten the cafeteria incident that first day. Had you?"
"She lied. Won't she be punished?" Noah's question shocked me.
But it made sense. He was hurt again. I had blown my chance to tell him over break about all of this, and only a person completely bereft of empathy wouldn't realize Hal, Grace, and Dylan already knew my secret. My brother always caught the feels.
"Wouldn't you feel punished if you got disqualified for the whole tournament? They've been practicing for months." Coach Ives, the fellow in charge of Noah's team, punched his shoulder. "I believe that's sufficient. At least, I'm satisfied on behalf of my players."
"It's settled, then." Headmaster Hawkins nodded. "Coach Pickman will retrieve a new set of equipment for Mr. Onassis and choose a reserve player to replace Miss Morgenstern, who will accompany me to my office."
"Father." Hal tilted his head, wringing his hands. "Please stay."
"I don't know what this development's about, but I'll grant that request, Harold. However, Miss Morgenstern sits with me, not on the reserves bench."
"Thanks, Dad."
The headmaster led me to the sidelines, then toward a section of unoccupied bleachers. It was far away and not at the best angle, but at least we could watch the rest of the game. Probably, he wanted to make sure I didn't hurt anyone. Ironically, I felt like less of a risk to the people around me now than before my hasty confession.
Coach Pickman tapped Lee to take my place. I'd been hoping for Faith since she might have been able to help Hal if anything happened and he ran out of energy. I understood her strategy, though. With Elanor and Noah both capable of fast conjuring, she needed someone with speed. Faith was pretty fast, but nothing like Lee.
It was a jungle out there, in no small part because Alex was even angrier now. He played with a ferocity that could only come from extreme rage. I was worried about how the rest of the semester would go, sitting in classes with him.
I used to think he was neutral, like Switzerland, and this whole year, I had felt like the only person living a lie. I had been wrong. While my secret was a condition beyond my control, Alex took actions of his own volition. He hurt other people on purpose.
I knew there was a difference, but contemplating intent didn't make this easier. I had still lied, and people I loved were still in the dark. I sighed.
"How long have you known?" The headmaster kept his voice low even though the roaring crowd obfuscated it from eavesdroppers.
"Since the first lab." I hung my head.
"You're not the first extramagus on campus, you know."
"What?" I froze.
"Your grandmother had a brother. Same elements and everything."
"I've never—she's never spoken of him. Not once. There aren't even pictures."
"And you haven't told her." His voice was as deep and gentle as a cup of herbal tea. "Am I correct?"
"Yes." I nodded, wiping the tear off my cheek. Bubbe would have understood, after all. "Do you think she'll forgive me?"
"Peep?" Ember put her paws on my leg, peering at my lap, a signal she wanted to sit in it. I moved my arms to make room for her.
"There's only one way to find out. I want you to go home this evening after dinner. Talk to your family."
"Are you sending Noah home too?"
"That's up to him. But if he chooses to, I'll give you a head start. It's your responsibility to tell your parents, not his."
"Headmaster, th—"
My expression of gratitude was cut off by something horrible.
The whistle blew. Hal collapsed.
I didn't remember us rushing to his side, but that must have been what we did because we were there like no time had passed. Faith arrived first, then the headmaster. I stopped to stand with my friends, unsure what good my presence would do.
There was a tension in the gymnasium, one that could erupt into panic at any moment. I couldn’t do anything to counter it because I might have been one of the sources. What was scarier than a magus collapsing due to an unknown malady? An extramagus standing up and taking initiative, of course.
So, I stayed back and left it to someone else to pick up the slack. And just like on Parents’ Night, Logan Pierce stepped up and saved the day.
He dashed down off the bleachers, stacking equipment chests and standing on them so everyone could see him. After that, he opened his mouth and let out a cacophony of sound. I'd never seen anything like it, but somehow, I knew what Logan was doing.
He was talking to everyone's familiars like Doctor Freaking Doolittle.
Magi were subject to mob mentality like mundane folk or any other extrahuman. A group of us incensed or frightened could cause serious harm, but when you added magical creatures into the mix, especially nervous ones with their emotions magnified in the echo chamber of bonds with magi, you had the potential for epic levels of disaster.
The noises Logan made were soothing somehow, despite their alien nature. He’d mastered practically every critter call in the book: peeps and chirps, warbles and coos, barks and growls, howls and meows, even whinnies and bleats.
The critters paused. One by one, I saw them relax. The airborne ones landed, and the landbound ones sat or laid down. Some cuddled together like the best of friends, while others ignored each other in comfortable silence.
The calm spread, overtaking the sea of troubled magi in moments. Each found his or her familiar nearby. It wasn’t entirely silent in here since that was impossible in a gymnasium, but there was enough time and space for everyone helping Hal to do their jobs. For him to breathe.
Nurse Smith and Zeke lifted Hal on to a stretcher, an oxygen mask covering the lower half of his face. Seth jumped up on it, cuddling up with Nin. Faith kissed his forehead, then returned to the court and put on her equipment. She’d finish the game for him.
But the headmaster wasn't staying, not in the middle of his son's medical emergency, so neither could I. I followed him, joining the procession to the infirmary.
Once Hal was in bed with the transfusion tube in his arm, Headmaster Hawkins finally took me to his office. Instead of sitting at his desk, he stood with his back toward me, leaning on one of the built-in bookcases behind his seat as though he and the school held each other up.
I remained standing too, with Ember curled around my neck. It just felt wrong to sit when he hadn't yet. He was the ultimate figure of authority at Hawthorn Academy, but he was only extrahuman. This was his first year in this job, and his son was gravely ill, maybe dying.
He's weak. Use that. Prove your worth.
"No."
"Excuse me?"
"I said no, but not to you, sir." I walked toward the desk, then past it. Once I was beside him, I spoke again. "What I meant to say was, how can I help?"
“Are you sure there's nothing I can do?" I turned my back and leaned against the bookcase, looking up at him. "My grandmother's got all kinds of medical connections. I can ask for her help."
"I know about the anonymous test." His Pharaoh’s Rat peeked out of his blazer pocket, holding a yellow slip in his mouth. It had a serial number on it, the one from Hal's vial. I'd seen slips like this before. The courier service used them. “The diagnosis, too.”
"Oh."
Headmaster Hawkins was a space magus. Their power went beyond just moving things around. I should have realized he'd know where his son was at all times and be able to track something as personal to him as a vial of blood.
Now he'll punish you. Perhaps even make you vanish forever.
He did nothing of the sort, of course. Most of the time, that evil inside voice was the biggest liar in the world. Thank goodness.
"Thank you. But that's about the extent of what your grandmother can do. The divorce designated my ex-wife to handle Harold's medical care. He’s supposed to ask her."
I thought about my mother—the clipping she’d brought to Seder, and how it represented liberation from her toxic family. She’d called out a wrong when she had the chance. My friend needed some of that energy now, but his father had to know the truth.
"Hal says his mother's kept him from medical care even after he asked for it." I clenched my fists. "Isn't that abuse?"
"That's not how she tells it." He sighed.
"So, ask him." I closed my eyes, remember helping Grace. "Sometimes the people who need help the most have the hardest time asking for it."
"I will." He cleared his throat, then turned to face me. "It's time you go home, Miss Morgenstern. I'll send a message ahead to your family. Professor Luciano will expect you in homeroom tomorrow morning."
"Thank you, Headmaster."
He clapped his hands, and just like that, I was on Essex Street outside one of the Ambersmith's shops with my knapsack dangling from my arm and Ember on my shoulder.
Chapter Forty-Nine
Our team lost. Faith managed to tag Noah out, though, and Dylan didn't go down until it was just him and Elanor Pierce left standing. They all got to show the school that first years weren't fooling around when it came to Bishop's Row.
I got grounded, of course. That was what happened when you lied to your parents for months on end, doing everything you could to cover things up. That meant I couldn't stay at school on the weekends since I was responsible for all sorts of chores around the house. Seriously big messy ones too—the spring-cleaning kind.
"You should have told us." Mom set a cardboard box beside me so I had somewhere to put all the dust bunnies. "I understand waiting the week out to be sure, but you came home the first weekend and told us all about that Charity girl and the fires. So, what happened?"
"It was because of that incident when we walked in, Mom. The Hopewell business." I leaned forward, reaching along the side of the dryer. This was the one in the basement that Bubbe used for all her medical linens, so it was extra dusty. "I didn't want you to start being afraid of me."
"I understand. But Aliyah, it's dangerous to go it alone as an extramagus." She sighed. "I suppose we could have done a better job of informing you and Noah, all things considered."
"Thanks, Mom."
"She's the one cleaning, and she thanks me." She smiled. "See? You're a good kid at heart."
"Less chatter, more dusting." Bubbe set a basket of dirty towels beside the washer.
My family still loved me. As far as the heavy chores went, I’d earned them, so while I didn't do all of the work with a smile, I completed every task using my best effort. Sometimes I fudged it a little, using my magic to help.
Bubbe wasn’t ready to talk about her brother yet, except to tell me Dad had named Noah after him and that he’d died during the Boston Internment. That had me totally curious, but between working at home and all the homework from school, I was too tired to snoop around or do extra work to dig up info on the other Noah. She promised to give me the scoop this summer.
School wasn't much different on the punishment front. I was on honest-to-goodness detention, which wasn't anything like Familiar Bonding, unfortunately. Instead, I painted the bleachers in the gym and re-shelved books for the Ashfords in the library.
I had time for meals, class, and studying, and that was about it. The one silver lining was Alex couldn't mess with me. Kitty even kicked him out of her Truncheons and Flagons game. Neither could Charity Fairbanks. I noticed the two of them spending an awful lot of time together in corners around campus. Mostly, they whispered and pointed. At least she'd graduate and be gone next year, so I'd only have to deal with the poisonous magus.
But one thing happened that got me worried.
I was outside the lounge when I saw them, so I stepped back to the side of the doorway. It was shadowy, an ornately carved pillar framing it. Even so, I worried they’d see me until Grace joined me. With a wave of her hand, we were shrouded in shadows, courtesy of her umbral magic. Our concealment was so complete, Faith almost walked right into us. I dragged her into the occluding bubble, making a zipping gesture over my lips.
“I mean it, Charity.” One corner of Alex’s mouth tilted up, his eyes narrowing. “I’ll do anything to show them we’re better.”
“Academic probation is no joke, kid.” Charity was shorter and still managed to look down her nose at him. “You’ll be on thin ice, just like Morgenstern, but for different reasons.”
“I can handle that.” He snorted. “I’ll pass the classes easily.”
“Okay, then.” She unslung her oversized Hermes bag from her arm, setting it on the chair beside her. “Tempe’s in charge, but you’ll do the grunt work.”
“And that’ll let me get direct comeuppance?”
“On her and those pathetic sub-races she calls friends.” Charity wrinkled her nose. “Ugh. I can’t believe they’ll be all over campus next year. But you and Tempe will do the right thing with the new crop of students. Add them to our cause.”
“Will that be enough?” Alex chewed his lower lip. “Half of next year’s graduating class doesn’t understand that magi are meant to be the masters.”
“You’ll have no trouble if you play your cards right.” Charity dropped him a wink. “They scare easily and freeze up. If you keep them out of it, the right side will win. That’s why I’m entrusting you with this.”
She opened her bag and removed one of those paper shopping bags, the kind with handles. It was shadowy, so we couldn’t see what was inside. At least not until Grace pointed at it and called up more of her magic.
It was the Slayer’s garb, the costume from the Night Creatures concert. Now that I saw it like this, I knew it was authentic. The Fairbanks were dyed-in-the-wool magisupremacists, extrahumans who’d hunted their own during the Reveal and even before it since magi can pass for mundanes.
Faith hung her head. Grace clenched her fists and ground her teeth. I stared, watching my evil ex-boyfriend reach into the bag and stroke the fabric with more affection than he’d ever shown his familiar.
“Oh, yeah.” Alex hadn’t smiled this much since the dance. “I’ll rule the school next year.”
“Tempe will.” Charity’s smile could have curdled milk. “You’re behind her throne, not on it. Stick to our agreement, or I will break your name. You’ve got so many nasty little secrets.”
“Understood.” His grin was too broad, eyes too wide. She’d startled him.
“Have a great summer.” She slung the large handbag over her shoulder and turned her back on him, tossing a tiny wave in his general direction.
Alex Onassis blinked after her for a moment. Once she was gone, he sank into the chair, rubbing his temples. I almost felt sorry for him, but almost didn’t count.
“We need to tell the Headmaster.” Faith’s voice was hus
hed, which was good because even umbral shadows didn’t hide raised voices. “If we go now, he’ll catch Alex with that.” She pointed at the bag by his feet.
“No, he won’t.” Grace shook her head. “We only see it because of my magic. That’s a cloaking bag, magipsychic. He won’t even know it’s there.”
“You can show him, though?” I waved my hand at the shadows above our heads. “Faith’s right. Let’s go.”
“Good point.” Grace nodded, directing us toward the wall so Alex wouldn’t see us when she dropped the cloak.
But Headmaster Hawkins wasn’t in his office. We didn’t end up seeing him for the rest of the year. Professor Luciano said he was away from campus, dealing with a legal matter, and I couldn’t be angry about that since maybe it had something to do with Hal’s health.
Noah stopped talking to me again. It had me down, but not in a funk. Part of this was because it was my fault this time. There was no wondering why or second-guessing. Nobody to blame but myself. I had to atone, which meant both apologizing and trying to make it up to him. If I worked hard and showed him I cared, he might forgive me by the time Yom Kippur rolled around next fall.
Even with all the extra work and responsibility, I finally felt free. I might be days late to celebrate liberation, but at least I was nowhere near a buck short. None of my friends at school or at home were angry. Lee, Kitty, and Eston treated me the same as ever. I called a meeting in town to tell Azreal Ambersmith. Izzy and Cadence pretended this was the first they’d heard of it for his sake.
"I'm precognitive." Izzy rolled her eyes. "Saw something big coming, should have guessed."
"I didn't." Cadence elbowed Azreal, who was trying to steal some of her French fries. "But everyone in both worlds has secrets. I'd better learn how to handle that, especially if I want to be a good reporter someday."
"It's no big deal to me." Az shrugged, sticking to the food on his own plate. "Variety is the spice of life. Anyway, we've known each other practically forever. If magic starts giving you brain gremlins, we'll notice and help."
"I don't understand." I shook my head. "Being my friend could get super dangerous. I appreciate it and all, but I have to ask. Why put yourselves at risk?"