Chapter 5 Raven
Raven
Dozens of pairs of eyes stared at me when I walked into the common area of our dorm house. A few of the witches sitting on chairs and sofas seemed friendly, but most looked wary or downright hostile.
Not at all comforting, but maybe this was normal. I had no reference point to compare against since Adam had never let me enroll in the local school.
“Hi,” I said breezily, trying not to feel self-conscious in my academy-issued pink sweats and sweatshirt as my gaze drifted to the table of snacks along the back wall.
My stomach grumbled loudly, reminding me I’d eaten nothing all day.
Where was a witch supposed to find food anyway?
Maybe they expected me to conjure my own food out of the ether? I almost snorted at the thought.
“Raven, hey.” Moira, the witch who’d showed me to my room, appeared from nowhere. I blinked in surprise. How did she do that? The mage had performed the same trick. Was this advanced magic?
Moira smirked, and I realized I’d voiced that one out loud.
“Not advanced magic, no. Some witches can teleport instinctively. It’s useful for sure.” She scanned me from head to toe. “You might find you have that skill once your full powers are unlocked.”
I shook my head sadly. “Nope. My powers are weak.”
A few of those listening to our conversation lost interest at that point. I guessed they were the elitist types who only fraternized with the more powerful magicals. Well, that was fine with me. I planned to serve my time and keep my head down. The sooner I could graduate, the better.
“Don’t be so sure, Raven,” Moira said. “Starfall doesn’t take the weakest students. Those people go to a mainstream magical school. If you’re here, you’re in the top five percent of witches in terms of power.”
That made no sense. Adam always told me I could barely light a candle.
And given I’d had zero success at doing the more complicated spells, I’d believed him.
He had no reason to lie to me. A more powerful witch would have been far more useful to him.
As it was, I’d always been a burden. Another mouth to feed.
It was why I’d put so much effort into learning about herbs and the natural world. I figured if I knew how to use the herbs and plants we had access to, I could help with the potions we made and sold.
“The mage who brought me here must have made a mistake.” I shrugged.
Moira shook her head. “Okay, whatever. Guess we’ll find out once you begin lessons.”
“Even if she does have some power, she’s way behind now, so it won’t matter,” scoffed a pretty blonde witch sitting nearby.
Her gray aura told me all I needed to know.
She flicked her shiny hair over her shoulder and smirked.
“We don’t need more weak witches at the academy.
” I noticed a small, mousy-looking witch with a soft peach aura cringe at the blonde’s words before she shrank down in her chair and hid behind a book.
“Fuck off, Demelza,” Moira snapped. “Nobody asked your opinion.”
Demelza glared before casting a spell at Moira. A cushion burst into flames next to Demelza. She shrieked before someone threw water over the mini inferno.
“You reap what you cast, bitch.”
The blonde cussed up a storm while furiously mopping up water from her scorched, wet white jeans. Her aura darkened ominously.
“You’ll pay for that, you ginger whore!”
“Goddess, please do try to come up with some new insults before tomorrow,” Moira said with an eye roll while I tried not to laugh.
So these two were not friends. Interesting, but also unsurprising.
Demelza seemed unpleasant. Probably not best-friend material.
Oh well. I’d try to find less nasty witches to be friends with.
“Sorry about that,” Moira said with a sigh. “Demelza has a personality defect. Ignore her. She’ll most likely leave you alone.”
I tried not to frown. Catching the attention of a bitchy witch was hardly a good start, but not my most pressing problem.
“Is there somewhere to get some food?” I still hadn’t read the student handbook. After sleeping for hours, it seemed a poor use of my time when the day was almost over.
Moira checked her watch. “Yeah, the dining hall will still be open. Come on, I’ll show you where to find it.”
The dining hall had high, vaulted ceilings and tall windows overlooking a grass lawn behind the school. In the distance, trees stretched as far as the eye could see, with snow-capped mountains looming skyward behind them.
Where was the school? I hadn’t thought to ask.
The land around our compound was dry and sunbaked most of the year, with rainfall sporadic.
It had been hard to raise crops, but I’d managed it by choosing heat-loving varieties.
The climate here seemed very different. Cooler.
My body shuddered at the thought of acclimating to freezing temperatures.
Maybe I could use my magic to create a warm bubble around me when I stepped outside? That would be amazing.
If so, magic for the win.
“The kitchen serves food from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m.,” Moira said, leading me across to the long serving counter where an enormous selection of hot and cold dishes awaited. My stomach groaned loudly as I stared at all the appetizing food on offer. There were so many delicious things to choose from.
At home, we mostly lived on simple stuff like squash, lentil and bean stews, salads, and fruit. We ate meat only on special occasions, like Samhain and Beltane.
“Take your pick. Everything is free.” She walked away, leaving me to manage my decision paralysis alone.
Everything looked amazing.
Just as I picked up a bowl of steaming tomato soup after deciding something light would be best because of how late it was, a large male body shoved me out of the way. My soup bowl went flying. Literally.
Red soup splashed all over my chest and sweats before the white ceramic bowl hit the floor and shattered.
When I looked up, still shocked at the mess I’d made, the male who’d barreled into me stood smirking at my now-red chest.
“Oops,” he laughed before reaching for a chicken sub and a bottle of chocolate milk.
I stared at him in disbelief. What a dickhead! “An apology would be nice.” While I preferred to think the best of people, this prick was now on my shit list.
“Nah.” His gaze dipped down and lingered on my tits when I folded my arms across my ruined sweatshirt. The male sneered when he finally focused on my face. “I haven’t seen you before. Are you new?”
Icy green eyes looked down at me with no hint of empathy.
For such a pretty male, he sure had an ugly personality, but I decided it was a good idea not to voice that thought. My fingers tingled with magic as something tugged in my chest.
He frowned and rubbed his own chest. Above us, several lights sparked and exploded. Glass tumbled down like confetti, and flames licked over an adjacent table. Two students nearby yelled in alarm.
“What the actual fuck?” We stared at each other for a moment. Goddess, with his symmetrical features and chiseled cheekbones, if he ever bothered to smile, really smile, he’d be devastating. I took in the muscles that filled out the navy-blue shirt he wore. Was he a shifter?
As he tensed under my scrutiny, my gaze snagged on the way his fingers tapped his muscular thighs. To distract myself, I focused on his aura: silver and gold with strands of violet. He smelled of rain, power, and ozone, like the aftermath of a storm.
This guy was a mage. A powerful one from the buzz of magical energy swirling between us in excitable strands.
The more I stared, the more I realized his aura was trying to merge with mine, like it wanted to be a part of me. My magic wanted the same thing. Almost without realizing it, I leaned toward him.
More lights shattered, one of the tall windows cracked, and outside, the trees began swaying, buffeted by a strong wind. Small sparks flickered around my fingers as the table burned brighter.
I couldn’t take my eyes off the mage. Something about him drew me closer. I needed to touch him, which made no sense whatsoever. Heck, I didn’t even know this guy, and besides, he’d made me spill soup all down my clean clothes because he couldn’t wait until I’d moved out of the way.
Why would I want a guy like this?
The double doors flung open and two males wearing uniforms stormed in, quickly extinguishing the table fire with a dampening spell. Glass shards sparkled around our feet, floating in puddles of red soup like blood-soaked jewels. I tried to move, but my legs remained locked in place.
“Alaric Vane, this better not be your work! We’re still fixing the gymnasium from your last tantrum!” I half turned to see an angry female with a severe gray chignon storm across the room.
“Nope, it was her.” Alaric, the hot blond mage, pointed at me with a smirk and sauntered off like butter wouldn’t melt in his sexy mouth. As I opened my mouth to defend my innocence, the female waved her fingers in the air above my head.
“Congratulations, Miss Blackstone, on beginning your time at Starfall Academy in style. You now have detention for the rest of the week. I’ll expect to see you at the entrance to the kitchen garden tomorrow morning, 6 a.m. on the dot.”
I smiled brightly at her while inwardly seething with rage. The minute I found some poisonous herbs, Alaric Vane would live to regret the day he threw me under the bus.