by Jody Morse
“It’s something that’s being driving me crazy ever since it happened,” Kaden explained. “I’ve considered probably every single theory and possibility out there. But there are a few that really stick out to me.” He paused. “Does Headmaster Crane know you’re The Chosen One?”
I nodded. “Yeah, Brett told me that the Headmaster knows.”
“Okay, so check it. You’re The Chosen One. That makes you a hell of a lot different from any other student at Paranormal Academy. The thing is, I’m not exactly what you would call normal, either. I’m half-warlock, half-witch. That means there’s some good in me and some bad, probably. So, here’s my theory.” His blue eyes met mine. “What if Headmaster Crane is afraid that if the two of us combine our powers, we’ll do crazy things? Unimaginable, unthinkable things?”
“That seems like a pretty good possibility,” I murmured. It made sense… a lot of sense, in fact.
“My other theory is probably a little far-fetched,” Kaden continued. “What if Headmaster Crane just has a huge crush on you and wants you all to himself?”
I wrinkled my nose. “I’m pretty sure it’s not that. Nothing about him has ever given me the impression that he has a crush on me or anything like that.”
“It just seems like he might be really invested in you, for some reason.”
“Well, it has always felt that way. Now, I’m sure it’s probably because I am The Chosen One. But from the first week of school, he’s called me to his office a lot more than he has other students,” I explained. “I know a lot of that had to do with not knowing what my paranormal race was, but honestly? He knew the entire time I was The Chosen One, so why didn’t he just tell me that? Instead, he left me entirely in the dark, which makes it all so much shadier.”
“Wait, so he doesn’t know that you know you’re The Chosen One?” Kaden questioned.
I shook my head. “Nope. He has no clue that I know I’m The Chosen One or that I know he’s The Chosen One. And I plan to keep it that way.”
“Sounds like that’s probably for the best.” Kaden sighed. “You know what the craziest part about all of this is?”
“What?” I asked.
“I actually want to go back there,” he replied. “I know it’s just asking for punishment. I’m sure Headmaster Crane will only catch me again. But something about that castle just calls me to it. I feel like I’m supposed to go there again and that if I dig deeper, I’ll find something else. Something significant.”
“Kaden, you have to promise me that you won’t go back there again without me,” I told him, meeting his blue eyes.
“I promise.”
“No. I don’t trust you. You broke your promise last time. If you break this promise this time, I will never speak to you again. Do you understand? I can’t care so much about someone who’s so willing to put his own life in danger.”
A smile crept onto his lips. “You care about me?”
“Of course I care about you,” I replied with an eye roll. “I wouldn’t be here with you after you completely ditched me last year if I didn’t care about you. But I really don’t want you to do anything that could potentially put your life in danger. Going to that castle isn’t safe, and going there alone is even less safe. So, I just want us to make a pact. If either of us gets the urge to go there, we either go together or not at all.”
“Sounds like a deal to me.” He paused. “I’m sorry that I went without you, Juliana. I’m sorry I broke the promise.”
“I forgive you,” I replied, glancing down at the time on my phone. The time had completely flown by. “We really need to get to Water Magic class or we’re going to be late.”
“Well, that’s the last thing we need. I’m not even supposed to be hanging out with you at all. Showing up to our Water Magic class late together will just make me look like I’m not doing that.”
I groaned as we rose to our feet. “I hate that we have to keep this friendship a secret.”
“So, we’re just friends?” Kaden asked.
I glanced over at his steel blue eyes, noting the hopeful look behind them. “What do you want us to be?”
“More than friends,” he replied. “Let’s face it, Juliana. The two of us have never been just friends. There’s always been more between us. Deny it all you want, but I know you feel the same way.”
The truth was that I did feel the same way.
I swallowed hard. Every ounce of my being wanted to tell him that I wanted the same thing. I had felt torn last year.
I had mostly been uncertain about what I had wanted when Avery had been a part of this world, but now that he was gone, everything had changed. Being with Kaden finally felt… right. It felt like the two of us were supposed to be together.
But I also couldn’t ignore the fact that he had completely fallen off the planet… well, my planet… for months. What type of message would I have been sending if I told him we could be more right now? He needed to work for that. He needed to gain my trust back.
So, I found myself saying, “We’ll see what happens with time.”
“That,” Kaden replied, “seems like a fair answer to me.”
He grabbed my hand then as we headed through the Enchanted Forest together. It brought a smile to my face. But in the back of my mind, all I could seem to think was that we could only hold hands like this when we were here, alone, in our place. Our place, which was completely off-limits and that could have ended up getting us expelled if we were ever found out.
But in that moment, underneath the trees, with the stream glowing bright pink and fireflies dancing all around us, it just felt right.
Chapter 8
Kaden and I tried to keep a safe distance from one another as we entered the pool room where Water Magic was being held. It was a simulation room, but not the same room where Professor Ryan had given me her one-on-one lessons in the past.
This room looks like a wide, open beach. There was a huge stretch of sand that spanned for miles in either direction, and a large ocean that lay before us.
There were about fifteen other kids standing where the tide broke against the shore. Draia hadn’t been kidding about this class being extremely selective. It wasn’t just selective; it was small, too. It was, by far, the smallest group of students who I’d ever had class with.
A woman who looked like she was probably in her twenties, with long, straight dark brown hair, came to stand before us.
“Welcome, students. I am Professor Hart, and this is my first time teaching this course. This course was originally going to be taught by Professor Tate, but I’m sure that most of you are aware by now of his tragic death. It’s such a shame. He was a close friend of mine.” There was a tone in her voice that made me wonder if the two of them had ever been more than just friends. I wasn’t trying to be jealous, but for some reason, I got those vibes from her.
“Anyway, I am going to try to teach this class as well as Professor Tate would have. He has left behind a legacy that’s going to be hard to live up to, but I’m sure we will do fine. I’ll try my best, anyhow, and if you have any questions, I want you to know that you can come to me at any time—day or night. I am living in the Professor’s Living Quarters this semester, as I get settled in. I don’t want any of you to ever hesitate to reach out to me. If it’s two a.m., don’t be afraid to know on my door.”
She paused and then stared out at us. “The reason each of you has been chosen to be a part of this class is because you have already demonstrated a strong affinity for both water and air. You see, water and air are both necessary components for water magic. The Headmaster believes that each of you is most likely to leave this school with the most effective water magic skills, which is why you have been placed into this course. Even though there are many, many students who also wish they could be here, the truth is that this class isn’t a good fit for just anyone.
“You might be wondering how much more you can really learn in Water Magic class. Chances are, each of you has already per
formed a trick or two with water magic. Maybe you can make it rain or you’ve caused a few waves before. But we’re going to take your water magic to the next level in this classroom. At the end of the semester, your final task is going to be to start—and stop—a tsunami.”
I swallowed hard. I wasn’t going to lie. Just the thought of starting a tsunami made me feel sick to my stomach. The only bright side was that no one in this classroom was a mortal, so I couldn’t actually end up killing anyone in the process.
“You’re also going to learn how to start and stop floods, create rogue waves, and end a drought.” She paused. “Most of you have also probably heard of the Bermuda Triangle. What you might not know is that the Bermuda Triangle was formed by magic, and it is completely possible for you to create a Bermuda Triangle of your own. That’s another thing you’ll learn how to do in this class. Today, we’re going to start off with learning how to manipulate the tide. It might surprise you to learn that you actually won’t be manipulating the water when you interfere with the tide. You will actually be manipulating the tidal force, which essentially means manipulating gravity. And although tide manipulation technically isn’t directly using your magic on the water, it is one of the most basic skills and essential for advancing in water magic. So, let’s begin. I want you all to put your feet in the water. This isn’t going to be necessary going forward, but I find that, for beginners, it helps to be engulfed in the water you wish to spell.”
Stepping out of my flip flops, I dipped my toes in the water.
“I ask each of you to maintain a distance of about eight feet apart,” Professor Hart went on. “There are magical fields spaced out through the water so you can each learn to perform your magic. What this means is that your own manipulation of the tide won’t affect the person next to you. You will each be controlling different water movements and different tides.”
I glanced over at Kaden as we spaced ourselves even further apart from one another.
Honestly? I didn’t like being apart from him. With every extra foot of distance that we put between us, the more my heart broke a little bit. And I didn’t like that. I had gotten through an entire summer without him just fine, but here we were, speaking again and just feet apart, and my body was craving him like there was no tomorrow.
“Next, I want you to think about what you want the tide to do,” Professor Hart continued. “If you want there to be a low tide, in which the water moves away from the shore, I want you to picture that. If you want there to be a high tide, picture that. As a magic user, you can also change the speed of the tide. You can determine how quick or slow you want the tidal force to be, which also determine how quickly the current moves. So, close your eyes and picture it. Picture what you want the tide and currents to look like.”
I could fully visualize it in my mind: The currents were moving rapidly, tugging at my feet at a high speed—much faster than I had ever seen currents in the ocean move.
“Now, open your eyes,” Professor Hart instructed.
I could feel the current moving and pulling at my feet even before I had opened my eyes. The current was moving just as quickly as I had envisioned it to, quickly pulling the water all around me and carrying it out to sea.
Glancing over at Kaden’s area, I could see that his water was moving even faster than mine was, the current quickly pulling the water from all around him.
“Very good, Juliana,” Professor Hart said as she approached me.
“How do you know my name?” I asked her with raised eyes.
“It’s just one of my abilities. I’m able to sense someone’s name before I even meet them,” she replied with a shrug.
“Can I ask you something?” I questioned.
“Sure, but let me move to stand in front of you.” She pointed her chin at the water around me. “Maintain your focus or you’re going to lose control.”
I nodded and then stared out at the water, doing my best to continue to control it.
As she moved to stand in the water in front of me, she asked, “What’s up?”
“You mentioned that you were close with Avery—err, I mean, Professor Tate. Did you stay close with him until he died?” I asked her.
“Fairly close,” she replied with a nod. “He was actually my stepbrother.”
“Oh, wow.” I hadn’t known anything about Avery’s family situation; I hadn’t even known that he had a stepsister. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
“Thanks.” She paused. “Was there something else you wanted to ask?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Professor Tate was working with me really closely before he died. A lot went on, but… I was just wondering if I could talk to you sometime about it all.”
“He did mention some of it, Juliana.” Her eyes met mine. “I could have figured out your name anyway, but the truth is that Avery described you so well that I would have been able to figure you out even if I didn’t have this weird name intuition thing. My brother was very fond of you.”
“I was fond of him, too,” I replied with a smile. I wasn’t sure if I could tell her just how fond I was, but did it even matter anymore? Professor Ryan knew, and there was no way Avery could lose his job now that he was dead. I didn’t want to broadcast it to the world, but I had an inkling that Professor Hart actually might have been aware of some of the stuff that had gone on between us.
“Let’s get together sometime next week to talk about it, okay?” She touched my shoulder gently. “You’re doing a great job controlling the tide, by the way. Not that I expected anything less from you. Your magic really impressed Avery.”
I smiled as she moved onto Kaden.
Then I stared out at the water that lay before me, continuing to control the current and tides.
I wondered then if there were any sea creatures in this water, or if it was just an empty ocean.
At that moment, I watched as a long, extremely large serpent-like monster plunged out of the water. The thing looked like a beluga whale mixed with a dragon and a snake. It let out a loud hissing sound—igniting a scream from the girl next to me.
We all began to scurry out of the water, heading up the beach, away from the sea monster.
All I could seem to think of was how strange and oddly coincidental it was that I had only just been wondering if there were any sea monsters in this water and then one had appeared right before my eyes.
Was that my intuition kicking in? Maybe I was going to end up having psychic abilities, after all. I knew it wasn’t uncommon among magic users, hence why Draia had such a good sense of intuition lately. Maybe this new ability was beginning to awaken within me.
Professor Hart moved to stand before the ocean and raised her hand in the air. Pointing one single finger at the water where the sea monster had been, I watched as it was lifted into the air. She spoke some words in the witch language, and with one zap, the sea monster was shredded into a million pieces.
When she turned back to us, Professor Hart looked completely horrified. “Which one of you conjured the sea monster?”
No one raised their hands. The professor stared around at us for a few long moments.
“This type of conjuration isn’t funny. We all got very lucky, but this could have potentially been very dangerous. If you are the one who conjured this, I would appreciate it if you don’t do this again. And please, if you would like to discuss this further, don’t hesitate to come to me after class or during my office hours.” She glanced around at all of us one final time before saying, “You all may go.”
As the other students began to head in the direction of the door, which was at the very top of the beach, I walked over to Professor Hart.
“Professor Hart, can I talk to you?”
“Sure, Juliana. What is it?” When she glanced over at me, the look in her eyes told me that she was expecting me to ask her another question about Avery again… even though I wasn’t.
“Are you sure that the sea monster was… conjured?” I asked her quietly.
&n
bsp; Her eyes met mine with surprise. “Yes. There are no sea monsters in this ocean. It also died too easily. It was definitely conjured.”
“Well, here’s the thing.” I swallowed hard. “I don’t really know if I conjured it or not. I wondered if there were any sea creatures in this water, and then the monster just suddenly appeared. I don’t know if it was an odd coincidence, or if I’m the one who conjured it. But if I did conjure it, it was completely accidental. I definitely didn’t and wouldn’t mean for this to happen on purpose. That was pretty terrifying.”
Professor Hart just stared at me. “It sounds like you did conjure the sea monster, simply by wondering about its existence. Sometimes when we question if something exists, it appears. It’s extremely rare for it to conjure something—especially something so large—but it can happen, usually only for the most powerful of magic users.” She paused for a moment. “But there is something that I’m very concerned about.”
“What is it?” I asked.
“Juliana, have you ever dabbled in dark magic?”
“No, of course not. I’m a witch, not a warlock.”
Professor Hart frowned. “It’s just that the sea monster was conjured with dark magic.”
Her words sunk in. “What are you saying?”
“I think that you might have used dark magic without even realizing it.”
Chapter 9
“I don’t even understand what this means,” I told Kaden as he walked alongside me, in the direction of the House of Mage. I knew that the two of us shouldn’t have been walking together, but honestly?
I didn’t even care. I dared Headmaster Crane to say something to either of us.
The truth was that I actually sort of needed Kaden right now. I couldn’t tell Ambur and Draia about this. Even if I did accidentally perform dark magic, I knew they would still accept me and love me. But I needed to deal with the possibility of this on my own before bringing anyone else into this. Except for Kaden, since he was half-warlock and everything. I knew he would never judge me.