by Lily Luchesi
Daphne smiled a little and said, “You might think that. But you don’t know how much brighter my life has been since I met you, Salem Sinclair.”
She pulled him down into another kiss, and he forgot every single worry he had ever felt.
Chapter 6
For the first time in his life, Salem Sinclair woke with a smile on his face. It felt almost unnatural there, but he wasn’t going to question its validity on his face. Instead, he decided to relive the previous afternoon, right up until Daphne had to rush out before Mr. Fraser returned to check on Salem.
He kept smiling as he got dressed, only wiping it when he spotted Robert by the front door, waiting to walk with him to school.
“You came in from detention smiling last night,” Robert commented. “Was organising the cupboards that entertaining?”
“Piss off,” Salem replied, but the smile crept back onto his face anyway.
“Let me guess … it has to do with a certain copper-haired Coven princess, doesn’t it?” Robert guessed, grimacing. “Mate, those Frasers are trouble. I’m telling you.”
“Maybe Frasers are. Daphne isn’t. That’s the difference,” Salem said.
A look crossed Robert’s face, one Salem couldn’t read, before he gave a small smile. “Well, then I’m glad for you, mate. But heed my advice: don’t flash your relationship around. Once Caelum Lynx gets wind of it, you’re a dead man.”
“I think Smith might be the bigger problem. After all, he’s the one who fancies Daphne. Not Lynx,” Salem commented.
“Yeah, but which one is more vicious? Lynx.” Robert arched his eyebrows. “Just saying, be careful. You and Fraser both.”
“Why do you say it like that?” Salem asked.
“Because there might be some people in our Clan just as unhappy with your association as Clan Fraser is.”
He walked ahead of Salem, leaving him in a quagmire of concern. He had been worried about Daphne possibly being an outcast in her Clan. But he knew his own Clan. He knew what they were capable of.
Hurrying off, he had to catch Daphne before classes began. They needed to talk, he needed to warn her.
When he found her, she was by the side of the castle, talking with Kimberly, with whom she seemed to have made up after their last argument, and another girl Salem wasn’t overly familiar with.
“Oh, it’s you,” Kimberly commented with barely concealed disgust.
“Were you expecting Merlin himself?” Salem snapped. “Daphne, can we talk? Alone?”
She nodded, glancing warily at him. “Yeah, of course. See you girls in class.” They walked away, but Salem waited to be sure they were gone before he spoke.
“Are you okay, Sal? You look awful,” she commented.
Salem shook his head. “No. Bloody Hell … I was talking to Robert this morning. He sort of figured it out. About us.”
Daphne shrugged. “So? I thought people were going to know about us?”
“So did I. Until he made a succinct point that chilled me. About our Clans. I was worried that your Clan would ostracise you for dating me. But he reminded me that Clan Munro will not be at all pleased to find out I’m dating you. And Clan Munro will do much more than ostracise us. You might … you could get hurt. If some Munro zealot gets it in their head that you’re a danger to our Clan… I can’t bear to see you hurt, Daph. I can’t.”
Salem’s heart was racing from fear. He hated fear. He hated that he had been afraid of others for most of his life. Fear seemed to hold dominion, both in and out of the Coven.
Daphne smirked and said, “You don’t think I can hold my own against the Dark? Then maybe you don’t know me as well as I thought you did.”
Salem shook his head. “Of course I think you can take on any foe you come across. Only an idiot would try to cross you. But I … care about you. And don’t want to see you hurt. Not because of me.”
Daphne scoffed. “You don’t get it, do you? I know that dating you will bring about some complications. For both of us. But I don’t care. I like you. I want to be with you. And everyone who doesn’t like it can go sit in a hot spring in Hell.”
Surprised laughter escaped his lips. “Are you sure? Are you sure I’m worth it?”
Her eyes softened and she took his hands in hers. “Oh, Sal, you are more than worth it. However … if you want to keep it a secret for a while, I am willing to do it to set your mind at ease.”
Relief swept through him like a wave. “Yes, I would prefer that, so we can test the waters, so to speak.”
Daphne nodded. “It’s settled then. We’ll be like Romeo and Juliet … only without the poisoned goblets.” She smiled, and his heart did a little flip in his chest.
Without thinking, in case he got too nervous, he pulled her to him by the hands and kissed her softly. Deep down, he was amazed that he was allowed to do that. That she would ever allow his Darkness to touch her Light.
Her smile as the kiss broke made him realise what he had probably known since they moment they met: he was deeply, madly in love with her.
Daphne felt heavy hearted as she exited class that afternoon. She hated that Salem had to be afraid for her, afraid to reveal how they felt about each other. While her family wasn’t keen on human forms of entertainment, Daphne had managed to procure some fashion magazines aimed at teenagers, some even from America. And she desperately wanted what she saw in those pages. She wanted to walk down the castle hallways with Salem’s arm around her shoulders, kiss him quickly at the table during teatime, pass notes with little hearts on them. It was silly, she knew that. She had never been known to be normal on that scale. She had never been interested in that sort of thing. Until Salem. Until she had someone who made her understand that love wasn’t for the weak.
It took strength to fall in love, it took strength to give your heart to someone else. And Daphne knew she was in love with Salem. There was never any doubt. Her magic told her that she loved him. The way it felt when he was around was like no one else who had come into her life. No other boys were like him.
And loving him didn’t make her meek, didn’t make her silly, didn’t make her stupid. Loving him, loving someone that she wasn’t allowed to love, made her feel strong and resilient, more so than ever before.
Once, she had been strong for herself, for her Clan. But now she had to be strong for what they shared. And that took a whole new sort of strength.
“Oi, Fraser, got your head in the clouds? Watch it!”
Daphne looked up just in time to see that she was about to collide with Draven, Michael, and Caelum. Michael had been the one to alert her. She weaved out of the way just in time.
“Maybe I wouldn’t have nearly ran into you if you three didn’t take up the whole bloody hallway!” she retorted. “Leave some room for the rest of us.”
She stalked past them when Michael called out, “Maybe if you didn’t spend all your time thinking about that overgrown vampire Sinclair you’d be paying more attention!”
“Stop, Mike,” Draven said. “That’s so stereotypical. Vampires aren’t Goth. Vampires are as normal as you or me.”
“He’s right,” Daphne said, seeing how angry Draven looked. He always stood up for creatures. “That’s really bigoted. I’m sorry you have some sort of problem with Sal, but don’t be crass.”
Michael rolled his eyes. “But being polite’s no fun.”
Daphne wondered why Caelum was being silent. He usually jumped right in, especially if it was in a Salem bashing session. But he was quiet and somehow withdrawn, looking at Draven and no one else.
“What’s the matter with you, Lynx? Ancestor got your tongue?” Daphne asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
“At least I don’t have the hots for the Coven freak,” he replied.
“Take that back!” Daphne commanded.
“Or what? What are you going to do to me?” he wondered.
“She isn’t going to do anything.”
Daphne jumped and turned around. Salem stood beh
ind her, jaw set and eyes hard and glittering in a way she hadn’t seen them before. He quickly glanced around, as if checking for Elders, and continued.
“I am going to put an end to this right now, with whichever of the two of you has the guts to step up.” Salem took a few steps closer. “A duel. Tonight. In the Watchtower. If I win, you leave me — and Daphne — alone. If I lose, then I suppose I deserve the teasing to be that weak of a wizard.”
Daphne thought for sure she was hearing things. Had Salem really just given an open, and highly illegal, challenge to his two biggest antagonists? Duels had to be approved by the King, and no one still in school was allowed to issue one outside of Duelling Club.
Caelum and Michael glanced at each other, and Caelum gave a blasé shrug.
“No,” Draven said to them. “Don’t be daft, either of you.”
“If you get caught, you’ll be kicked out of the Coven,” Daphne added. “We have Duelling Club. Just wait till Thursday, for Gaia’s sake!”
“No, we’ll do it,” Michael said quickly.
“Not both of you,” Salem scoffed. “What, do you think I am as stupid as you? I will duel one of you. See you tonight, nine o’clock.” He turned to stalk away and Daphne followed, hurrying to catch up with his long strides.
“Are you mad?” she cried. “Salem, they don’t fight fair!”
He turned and gave a small smirk. “I know. And if they don’t, neither will I.”
She gave a groan at his sudden bravado. “Fine. If you insist on this mad quest, I’m coming with you tonight.”
That made him stop walking and lose the smirk. “No way. You’re not coming.”
She crossed her arms. “Are you trying to tell me what to do?”
“No, I’m trying to protect you,” he said.
“Well, don’t do that, either. I can protect myself, and tonight I want to protect you, too. And you can’t stop me.”
Despite his facade, Salem was terrified. He had challenged the duo out of a moment of insanity, and now he had to go through with it or be forever ridiculed even worse than he already was.
He stared at himself in the mirror of the bathroom he shared with Robert and sighed.
You are an idiot, he thought to himself, and his expression in the mirror didn’t change. You’re probably going to wind up in hospital again.
Still, his expression didn’t change. He was going to do this, and berating himself wasn’t going to change his mind. As his mother was fond of saying, he’d made his bed. Now he had to lie in it. He just hoped he wasn’t going to die in it.
As he grabbed his black cloak to leave, Robert bumped into him.
“Where are you headed?” he asked.
“I got myself into a bit of a mess with Lynx and Smith,” Salem admitted. “Going to settle things once and for all.”
Robert arched an eyebrow. “Oh yeah? Well, good luck, mate. You’re going to need it.”
Salem slipped out of the house, heading toward the Watchtower. In the distance and under the bright, three-quarter moon, he could see Daphne waiting for him, her red hair pulled into a bun with loose strands blowing in the night-time breeze.
“Hey,” she said. “I really wish you would call this off.”
He shook his head. “You know what will happen to me if I do. I will probably have to move to America just to escape the torment. Let me get this over with.”
She sighed, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “I worry, Sal. You know I care about you.”
“I know,” he replied, less defensive now. “But I’m the best dueller in school. I will be fine.”
Quickly, she wrapped her arms around him and gave him a kiss. “I know. And if they try anything, I’ll hex them so badly the Mad Hatter will seem sane in comparison.”
Salem chuckled.
“Laughing already, Sinclair?” Caelum called from somewhere behind the duo. Michael was at his side, and a reluctant looking Draven followed, hands stuffed in his pockets and eyes narrowed. “You won’t when we’re through with you.”
“A lot of talk for someone who has never defeated me, in a duel of magic or wits.” Salem stood with his hands clasped in front of him. “I assume you are the one I will be duelling, Lynx?”
He nodded. “We’re both Clan Munro. If Mike fought you, you’d have him at a disadvantage.”
And not to mention the fact that he cannot duel to save his life, Salem thought.
“Let’s set up duelling rules first,” Draven said. “No killing. No dismemberment. Nothing that would be deemed illegal in Duelling Club.”
“And no one getting in the way,” Daphne added, glaring at Michael. “Just Salem and Lynx.”
Michael crossed his heart. “For you, Fraser, I’ll listen to the rules.”
Daphne groaned in disgust. “All right. Let’s hurry before we’re caught.” She led the group up the winding staircase to the windy top of the tower.
Salem took his place on one side, and Caelum stood at the other. Daphne, Draven, and Michael stood at one end, far away so as not to be accidentally hit. And to keep Michael from getting in the way and possibly harming Salem.
“Ready, gentlemen?” Daphne said. “Bow, and begin!”
Salem and Caelum bowed to each other, sweeping their cloaks behind them. Unlike Salem’s drab black one, Caelum’s was midnight blue with golden threads running through it, a sign of his stature as a Lynx.
In Duelling Club, Salem was elected president not because the others liked him, but because he was the most formidable. Caelum was always one step behind him, but that didn’t mean that Salem could coast through this duel. Caelum was a talented wizard and he was sneaky. Salem needed to stay on his toes, or he could wind up right back in the infirmary.
He knew to never strike first. Let the opponent think they had the upper hand for as long as possible. While he, in the meantime, would watch their moves, look for an opening, and strike when and where it was least expected. It was a strategy he learnt long ago, and it had kept him uninjured for the most part.
Caelum cast first, “Volant!”
The spell was something that most magicians learnt in their first year at the Coven school, and Salem easily blocked it. On the heels of that, Caelum cast a Stinging Hex. Again, Salem blocked it.
“Oh, come on, Sinclair!” Caelum said. “Can’t you make this a bit more interesting for me? Or are you too much of a coward to even try attacking me?”
“I am many things, but a coward isn’t one of them.” Salem stood back and said, “Now, do you want to keep duelling, or is it that your wagging tongue is stronger than your spells?”
Caelum’s smirk slipped and he cast another spell, “Stabilis!”
Instead of wasting a counter spell, Salem stepped to the side and dodged the spell, feeling it slip by him, stiffening the edges of his hair. That was his moment, as Caelum thought he was distracted.
“Ligabis!”
Caelum’s eyes widened as he was hit with the hex, now only able to move the top half of his body as his legs were bound together.
“Detineo,” Salem then cast, freezing the rest of him. This spell only lasted a short while, so he had to be quick. “Deturbo!” Caelum was sent careening to the floor with an exhalation of breath.
Draven covered his mouth with his hand, and Daphne was smiling. Michael, however, was smirking. That should have been a warning for Salem, but he stupidly moved closer, hoping to cast the final spell and be done with this duel.
As he opened his mouth to cast it, a burst of energy came up from Caelum’s hands, sending Salem flying backwards. His back hit against the stone wall, sending pain straight down his spine and legs and he cried out.
I forgot he can manipulate energy, too, he thought.
“Praetrunco!” Caelum cast and Salem felt the spell inside of him, and he bent over, pain twisting in his ribs.
“Consummavi!” Salem cast with a grunt and slowly the pain began to let up. Caelum, however, wasn’t going to let him get his bearing
s.
“Silentum!” This spell caused temporary speech paralysis.
Which meant that most magicians couldn’t cast spells. However, the joke was on Lynx. Because Salem was no ordinary magician. He didn’t need to speak to cast spells or use his Munro powers.
He gathered magic in his hand and let it loose, knocking Caelum back. The smell of singed fabric hung in the air, and even the edges of Caelum’s hair were smoking.
“Bloody Hell!” Caelum cried, followed by a few more colourful curses. Due to his distraction, Salem was able to get out of the curse and speak again.
Pointing at the stones in front of Caelum he cast, “Sufflatus!” The stones exploded, sending debris on top of the three onlookers, and shrapnel right at Caelum.
Caelum was hit a few times, rivulets of blood running down his sharp cheekbones and forehead, but that wouldn't deter him. “Stabilis!” The rest of the debris stilled and then fell to the ground. He turned his attention to Salem and cast, “Crus moventur!”
The spell would make Salem’s legs move of their own accord. Caelum could make him dance, or run, or even jump off the top of the tower. He knew he needed to avoid the spell, and to do so might make him vulnerable. But being vulnerable for a few seconds was preferable to the alternative.
He moved away from the spell, but he moved too fast and slipped on a piece of stone debris, sending him sprawling on the cold stone.
Caelum was on him almost like the large cat he turned into, magic sparking in his hand. Salem heard before he felt the magic burning through his clothes, hitting his skin. Then he felt it.
His flesh sparked and stung before he began to feel the burn and he screamed. His emotions caused the magic living within him to explode from his skin, surrounding Caelum. Caelum was lifted up by the magic and thrown across the room.
With effort, Salem sat up and cast, “Argentum ferrum.” It caused two small silver blades to materialise in the air. He waved his hand and the blades went for Caelum, each one cutting a small slice in his palms. A normal wizard would have been able to heal his hands with a quick spell and continue, but Caelum was half shifter. Which meant that he needed to get to the Medic to be healed from silver cuts.