The next step… What should be the next step? I’ve already done some digging, but I’m not any closer to learning about Jaidos or his plot.
Time has gotten away from me, and it’s getting late. Maybe I should try to get something to eat and find a place to lay low for the night.
But I have no money, and I’m too anxious and uptight to be ready for sleep anytime soon. It’s possible that some of the professors from Magical Hunters Academy might be leaving about now. If I can catch them off campus grounds, maybe they’ll be more likely to talk to me.
Or maybe I could just listen to them talk to each other.
Or maybe I’ll be able to peek into some of their minds.
The last doesn't seem very likely, if I'm honest. Yes, I have a talent for it, and it should theoretically be easier to do off campus versus on academy grounds with their protective spells set in place, but still. The professors at the academy are called masters for a reason. They're incredibly powerful and intelligent, and who knows how many of them had been working for Jaidos and are involved in the cover-up of his death.
Unless I see them leave the academy grounds, though, I’m not sure how else I can be certain that they are professors. Keeping that in mind, I head back toward the academy and watch and wait.
In ones and twos, people start to leave, but for whatever reason, I don’t feel compelled to approach any of them. What am I waiting for? I don’t know. Maybe I’m too frightened to make a move. Maybe I’m a coward. No. Even if I am afraid, I won’t back down. I can’t. Sophie needs me.
Sophie. My heart aches, and I rub my chest, wishing the pain I felt would leave. The ache is a constant reminder that I need to help her.
A woman leaves. She wears a dress that I suppose wouldn’t catch the eyes of a human as unique. She does have a crescent moon tattoo on her upper chest that is visible above her neckline. As if she knows something is looking at it, she rubs her hand over the tattoo, her nails painted black. There are strange markings on her fingers. Her hair is white, but she looks young, and I find myself waiting for her to draw closer before I fall into step beside her.
Yes, beside her. Not behind her to try to read her mind. I'm not even sure why I think I might be able to get anything out of her. Maybe it's because I was thinking about Sophie right before this professor left, but I need to stop waiting and start doing.
“Hi,” I say to her.
“Do you need something?” she asks.
“Don’t we all?”
“Indeed,” she murmurs. “What is it you need, fairy?”
I flinch. My glamor has my wings still concealed, but she can sense my magic enough.
She laughs, the sound soft and non-threatening. Despite that or possibly because of it, I’m even more ill at ease.
“I am Master Lavina Everbleed,” she says, “the professor of Magical Powers 301. If I cannot detect a paranormal being in my presence, I would make for a very poor professor, wouldn’t I?”
“Yes.”
“Well, then, fairy? What do you need?”
“Answers.”
“To what question?”
“The headmaster and his activities.”
“Why are you concerned with him and the academy? Do you wish to attend?”
“The headmaster has other activities than just the academy.” I stare at her, critically appraising her reaction.
“Fairy—”
“I will tell you my name.”
“Don’t.” She holds up a hand. “I do not need to know, but you do need to know this. Do not go down this path.”
“Why? Because it will lead to death?”
The professor lets out a breath. "It could very well lead to yours… or another who looks as you do."
Sophie.
My mouth turns dry, and my tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth. I swallow hard and cough slightly. “When one is pushed to the limit, one has no choice but to fight back.”
“Or one could burrow into the pixie dust and hide until the events blow over.”
“I’ve never been one to hide.”
“No? You and your sister would hide well when you were young.”
“We cheated!” I exclaim before I realize that she is in my mind. Just how much can she see?
“I am trying to warn you to keep you alive. If you go down this path, you may or may not die, but if you do survive, a part of you still may die. You might not like who you become.”
“What if I already don’t like who I am?”
"Then, I would say you have more problems than anything involving the headmaster."
I open my mouth and then shut it. She has a point.
With a sigh, I admit, “I can’t turn back.”
“You might want to reconsider.”
“I can’t. I’m not the only one involved.”
“I know, but she is out of reach.”
“Not forever.”
“If you persist, maybe forever.”
“Do you have premonitions too?” I blurt out.
“No.”
“Oh.” I swallow hard. “Do you know about them? Can I ask you a few questions?”
“Two.”
“Do people that have premonitions, do we get the same ones? Will someone else have had the same premonition as me?”
“No.”
There goes the hope that others know how corrupt Jaidos is. I might be the only one outside of his circle of immorality to know about it.
"Do all premonitions come true, or can the future be changed so they don't come to pass?"
“That’s technically two questions in one,” she says dryly.
I smile wanly.
“You need to be very careful who you ask questions.” She exhales. “Premonitions are tricky, very tricky.”
“That doesn’t answer my question,” I protest.
“I’m afraid no one can. Each premonition is different. Some are fixed. Others can be altered. Only time will tell.”
I open my mouth.
“I must be going now.”
“I was just going to thank you,” I protest.
“You are welcome, fairy, but please, heed my advice. Let what happen come to pass.”
I say nothing because I cannot lie, but she has to know I will not be a bystander in the coming events. There’s no way I could even if it weren’t for Sophie.
Still, I’m thankful she spoke with me, and I feel a little better despite everything. As I head back to my hiding spot behind the tree, I feel as if some of the heavy weight burdening my shoulders has lifted some.
Fewer people are leaving, and I begin to wonder if I've lost my chance to overhear or try to peek into some of the professor's minds. A trio leaves, but they quickly fade away. Ghosts! I didn't know there were any ghost professors there!
Right when I’m about to give up because no one has come by in five minutes, a man leaves the academy grounds, and I shiver. His hood covers his head, and I swear there’s something off about him. When I shift to hide better behind my tree, he stares at me. His eyes are a deep red. Seriously, what is it with red eyes lately? There’s a scar over one eye, and the scruff on his face makes him look rugged and dangerous. He pushes up his sleeves to reveal runes carved into his arms.
This man is powerful. I do not want him as an enemy.
In the blink of an eye, he stands before me. “State your name and business,” he demands.
“I’m a prospective student, and I was just wondering if I could see the grounds,” I say, almost nervous enough to start stammering. “I-I haven’t worked up the courage to actually step foot on the grounds, and—Are you a professor? What do you teach? Is it a good school for fairies? I don’t think many fairies attend, and I was wondering why that is.”
He says nothing, does nothing. He doesn’t blink or even breathe.
“Are you a witch?” I ask.
“Yes.”
“What kind of magic—”
“You ask a lot of questions.”
“I seek a lot of answers,” I say lightly, trying to hide my nervousness. He frightens me.
He smirks and makes a slight scoffing sound. “I am Master Gaian Wraith, divination professor.”
“So you seek answers too,” I say.
“Answers to the right questions provide illumination. Answers to the wrong questions, well…”
“They can lead to death, can’t they?” I ask boldly.
“Indeed.”
The way he says that one word makes my skin crawl.
“I fear one such as you doesn’t know the difference between the right questions and the wrong ones. I suggest you stay away from the academy. It is not the place for you.”
“Why not? Is Magical Hunters Academy prejudice against fairies? Is that it?”
“Maybe because fairies tend to leak their magic everywhere they flap their wings even if they’re concealed.”
I swallow hard. “Are you… You aren’t…”
“Am I what?” he tilts his head to the side. The hood starts to slip, but he tugs it back down to conceal most of his face in shadows.
I just shake my head. I can’t ask him if he’s threatening me. That is the very definition of a wrong question to ask, and besides, I already know the truth.
He is.
“I don’t mean anyone harm,” I say.
“Only if they mean to harm you first,” he says dryly.
I lift my chin. “Anyone who says differently is lying.”
"You need to go," he says. "Fairies have been flying apart lately, or is it merely one fairy?"
As best as I can, I try not to react, but if anyone can see through me, a professor of divination can.
“Fly away, fairy,” he snaps. “Fly away and do not return.”