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I had to steel myself as I headed to my next class.
History of Magic.
Which meant a class with both Mr Stiles and Natalie, without Charlotte and Lena to act as a buffer.
Though I took a deep breath, trying to assure myself that everything would be fine.
Auntie Jess had said that she hadn’t managed to uncover anything suspicious about Mr Stiles, so maybe there wasn’t anything to uncover.
Maybe the threat I was dreaming about – and that Ms Maltere had warned me about – was something else entirely.
Though, I didn’t actually know which outcome was worse. If it wasn’t Mr Stiles, then I was out of ideas, and that thought was terrifying.
And then with Natalie... Well, we were both mature young women. I didn’t see any reason why we couldn’t be grown-ups about this.
I stepped into the classroom and hesitated for just a moment before going to my usual seat next to Natalie.
She turned to me with a small smile. “Hey.”
I couldn’t help but smile back, barely managing to suppress a sigh of relief that told me just how little my internal pep talk had been able to calm my nerves.
“Hey,” I said as I sat down next to her.
“How did Basics of Spellcraft go?”
“I can turn my hair blue now.”
“Really? A glamour on yourself so fast? No wonder Ms Maltere likes you so much.”
I had to stop myself from frowning at her tone. I’d thought that her attitude was just because of Willow, but was she also annoyed that the new girl was getting special treatment?
I wished that I could explain about being Angelborn, but given that Freya was the only Angel, I knew that I couldn’t without mentioning her.
Before I could say anything, Mr Stiles stood up and started the lesson.
I don’t think that I had ever been so glad for his presence before.
Though, as he spoke, I didn’t really focus on his words. No, instead I found my eyes sliding through his glamour, far more easily than before.
Perhaps now I had cast the magic for myself, I understood it better.
Once more, I saw a streak of white through his hair, and the tattoo on his wrist.
I frowned at the design. Auntie Jess had said that it would indicate who he was married to. Had his spouse come up in Auntie Jess’ investigations into him?
Maybe that was the missing link.
Especially if he was going to such lengths to hide it.
I quickly pulled up the drawing app on my tablet and sketched the design, angling the tablet so that neither he nor Natalie would see what I was up to.
I wouldn’t have an answer for Natalie if she asked.
Soon enough, I had the design, but that wasn’t much help without someone to show it to. I supposed that I could show Auntie Jess, but she had already said that looking through his glamour would be rude. Not to mention, if she did start to think that he was a real threat, she would take me out of the school.
And then I would lose my one chance to figure out how to lift the curse on my mum.
But then, Ms Maltere had seemed to know about people being after me. Maybe if I showed her the design, she could help.
#
I HURRIED TO MS MALTERE’S classroom as soon as Mr Stiles’ class ended, tapping my hand against my bag as I waited for the snail-paced students to file out of the room.
As soon as the last student left, I hurried inside, closing the door behind me.
Ms Maltere smiled as she stood up from her desk. “Amelia. Eager to start, are we?”
“Well, yes, but also... I think I might have an idea of where the danger in the school is.” I took out my tablet and brought up the drawing, handing it to her.
She frowned at the image. “This is the sign of House Lycan.”
“House Lycan?”
She nodded. “Are you aware of Lord Uther?”
I frowned. “He tried to kill Queen Freya, didn’t he?”
“Yes. Her and her infant daughter. Queen Freya defeated him, but... There are those who are still loyal. Where did you see this, Amelia?”
“Mr Stiles has it tattooed on his wrist.”
“So, he’s married to someone in Lord Uther’s house. That’s not good, Amelia...”
I nodded. Caroline had thought that Maria Brown would be working with someone still loyal to Lord Uther.
“We should tell Ms Griffin,” I said. “If she knows, then she can get rid of him.”
“Except we don’t know if he has an excuse, Amelia. Do you really think that he didn’t consider that someone might see through his glamour and recognise the mark? Most who used to be loyal to Lord Uther disavowed him when he was defeated, and those disavowals have been accepted. There was too much risk of the Underworld falling into civil war if Queen Freya didn’t forgive them.”
“So, she won’t believe us?”
“Even if she does, I think she’ll need more evidence. This school is still new, and still mired in the politics of a cross-species experiment. Gail is accountable to other people who are invested in this school, and she will have to answer for dismissing a teacher based on who he’s married to.”
“So, what do we do?”
“Give me a few days. If he is up to something nefarious, there will be evidence. It will just be a matter of finding it. But don’t worry, Amelia. I won’t let anyone hurt you in the meantime. I promise.”
I nodded, believing her. There was just something about her... Maybe it was because she was Angelborn, but I couldn’t imagine anyone being able to get through her.
She was too powerful.
More powerful than my auntie, at any rate.
Which meant that she would be able to protect me.
Ms Maltere smiled. “For now, however, we should focus on your wand. If we can get you to full power, you won’t need protection. You’ll be able to protect yourself.”
I smiled back at the thought.
I never wanted to be as helpless as I was on the day when the Demons had caught me, trapping me in place as they cursed my mother...
I didn’t just want to lift the curse, I wanted to make sure that she was never cursed again.
I wanted to be strong enough to protect them all.
“So, what do I need to do to build this wand?”
“Well, first, we need to find the right materials. Come on, let’s go for a walk.”
#
“SO, HOW DOES THIS WORK exactly?” I asked as Ms Maltere took me to the woods at the back of the school.
“You need to find the materials that are right for you. Which starts with wood.”
“So, what? I just pick a tree?”
She nodded. “Or more likely, a branch that has already fallen. Most trees won’t give willingly. Though, with your tie to Nature, they just might for you. Regardless, I shall follow your lead, and you’ll find your way to the right place eventually.”
“So, I should just wander?”
She nodded once more.
I sighed, not a fan of vague instructions.
I spun on my heels and stopped at a random point before moving forward.
Ms Maltere followed, keeping behind me in what I assumed was an effort to make sure that I was actually the one leading us through the woods.
“So,” she said as I made my way over the rough path, keeping all of my attention on not tripping on any roots, “what exactly is it that you find so fascinating about curses, anyway?”
“Huh?” I asked, my distraction leaving the meaning of the question beyond me.
“When we went through Maria Brown’s book, you were focused on the curses, and you asked me to teach you how to lift a curse. Is that really where your academic interest lies? You don’t seem the type. Charlotte, yes. Natalie, most definitely. Curse breakers are always the quiet ones. You and me... Maybe it’s an interesting puzzle, but not enough to really sink our teeth into.”
“If you thought that I wouldn’t be interested in curses, why did you give me a book by Maria Brown?”
She sighed. “As you may have noticed when we were going through the book, very little of it actually covers curses. If you were to read the rest of the book, I’m sure that you would find other topics of interest.”
“Perhaps.” I kept all my attention on the ground, not wanting to risk falling.
“But?”
I sighed. It wasn’t as if there was a reason to lie. Ms Maltere already knew about my connection to Freya and that I was Angelborn, so there was no reason why I shouldn’t tell her about this. “Demons attacked me before I came to Ember Academy. They cursed my mother, and no one has been able to figure out how to lift the curse.”
“And you think that you can help?”
“I hope that I can.” I turned to her, expecting her to tell me that there was no chance of that ever happening.
Instead, she sighed. “I’m sure that you could, Amelia. With enough training, I don’t doubt that you could break any curse that you put your mind to breaking. Though... It is worth remembering that this is something all Witches go through.”
“Having their mothers cursed?”
“Losing their Human families. We live longer than them, Amelia. And Angelborn live longer than most. My parents both died of natural causes centuries ago, and then one by one, my sisters also died. I barely remember their faces now.”
My stomach twisted at the thought.
I couldn’t imagine ever forgetting my parents.
But would that really happen?
Is that what happened to Freya?
Is that why she never came home?
I was jerked from my thoughts by Ms Maltere placing a hand on my shoulder, bringing my awareness to the fact that I had stopped still.
“You’re not alone, Amelia. Not here.”
I nodded, taking comfort from her bittersweet smile.
No, I wasn’t alone.
Ms Maltere understood exactly what I was going through.
“If you’re really determined to lift the curse, then I will help you. Just... don’t let this define your future.”
“I won’t. I promise.”
She nodded, taking her hand from my shoulder. “Good. Because if you want to be able to lift this curse, you need to understand magic. There are two aspects to being a powerful Witch, Amelia. Your raw power, and your ability to understand magic. Those who understand magic can easily outcast those with more raw power, because those who understand magic don’t need to rely on memorising spells. We know how to achieve what we need simply by understanding magic well enough to figure it out.”
“And you think that I can learn how to do that?”
“Well, you already figured out how the binding spell worked. So, yes, I think you can. But first, you need to be familiar with magic. You need to practice it to the point that it becomes as natural as breathing. Once you do, you’ll be able to cast any spell you want. Or lift any curse you want.”
“Any curse? Even the one on my mother?” I looked away, knowing that I wasn’t supposed to say who cursed her, but Ms Maltere already knew everything else, so... “Even if Maria Brown was the one to curse her?”
She nodded, seemingly unfazed by my revelation. “I’ll tell you what, I know the book I gave you fairly well, as well as several other Maria Brown books, and dozens of general books on curses. If you tell me what exactly it is you’re looking for, I’ll search for it, while you focus on becoming strong enough to put that knowledge to good use. Okay?”
“Okay.”
I turned to continue in the direction I had been heading before, but then I spotted another path through the trees.
I headed through, finding a small clearing, in the centre of which was the largest tree I had seen so far.
It seemed almost out of place in the forest.
I stepped closer but jumped back as a branch dropped down to the ground in front of me.
“Where the hell did that come from?” I asked, looking up at the branches over my head, searching for some sign of an animal or something that could have broken the branch.
But I didn’t see anything.
“I think it’s a gift.”
I turned to see Ms Maltere approaching.
“From who?”
“That is the question, isn’t it? The tree, Nature, something else... Who can say? I don’t have the connection to Nature that you do.”
I bent down to pick up the branch.
As soon as my hand wrapped around it, a sense of rightness washed over me.
This was it.
My wand.
It was already roughly the length and thickness of the wand Gail had given me. It lacked any carvings or polishing, and I thought that it should feel wrong in my hands.
But it didn’t.
In fact, altering it felt like a crime.
But surely a branch wouldn’t work as-is.
It would probably need something else to make it a wand.
Still, I figured it was worth trying, and I aimed it at the ground.
The golden leaves beneath my feet slowly turned blue around me before I even had the chance to speak the glamour spell’s incantation aloud.
I turned back to Ms Maltere to see her grinning.
“Non-verbal spellcasting... I told you that finding your own wand would make you stronger.”
“Non-verbal spellcasting? That’s what that was?”
“Yes. Some Witches don’t need to speak a spell aloud. It’s enough for them to hold it in their head. Some consider it a sign of skill, but to be honest, some Witches find verbal spellcraft harder. Especially those of us who are Litcorde.”
I frowned. “Litcorde?”
“I believe Humans have a term for it now, but I can’t remember it. It has to do with how your mind works. I’m Litcorde, as is Queen Freya, though I don’t think you are. I think you’re a Sister.”
“A Sister?”
“Yes. It’s what we called Witches who weren’t quite Litcorde, but not-not Litcorde.”
“I mean, I have ADHD.”
“Then I shall assume that that’s the Human term for it. Regardless, it simply means that you’ll find non-verbal spellcasting easier. Which is a benefit when you don’t want someone to know what you’re casting. Or that you’re casting anything at all.” She looked down at my wand. “It’s rather old-school to leave your wand as you found it, but something tells me that you’re more than happy with it.”
I nodded. “Is it weird?”
“Perhaps. But ‘weird’ is not bad.” She took out her own wand and I realised that hers, too, lacked polish.
I grinned at the sight, more than happy to leave my wand like this if she was.