CHAPTER 4 #2
The male across from me immediately stopped laughing, but his black eyes continued to twinkle with merriment as he replied, “Sorry, man, but you never told me she had Bambi eyes. You know how twitterpated I get for the innocent look.”
Heat swamped my face, no doubt giving away how mortified I was by his words.
Not because he’d compared me to a deer but because Thorne had told him about me.
Then again, I knew far more about Thorne and his close friends than he would approve of, thanks to his sister.
I even knew that the mocking male before me was Riku Tanaka, an exceptionally gifted Air Elemental.
Terrified by what Thorne might have revealed to him, I felt the darkness within me stir.
Use meeee.
For a split second, I almost gave in. Almost allowed it to slip free for my own self preservation. Memories quickly crowded in, ones filled with pain and terror, and I instantly felt ashamed for my weakness.
Hurriedly tamping down the darkness once more, I rose to my feet on trembling legs.
Whether or not I was about to be condemned in front of the entire student body, I was done being publicly ridiculed.
But as I collected my tray and turned to leave, I nearly collided with a tall blond male blocking my path.
Instinctively, I took a step back. And immediately realized my grave error when my spine bumped into something hard. Something huge.
ZAP.
The contact sent a swift electrical charge through me, just like in the great hall earlier.
I went poker straight, not from the sharp shock, but from the sound that rumbled above my head, equal parts growl and irritated hiss.
Dear ancestors, I was doomed. Thorne was for sure going to kill me this time.
It was one thing to invade his school and sit in his seat, but violating his personal space?
Unforgivable.
“I’ll kill you!”
The words he’d roared at me the last time we’d seen each other rushed back to me now, and I flinched before I could stop myself. The movement was small, almost imperceptible, but this close to me, there was no way he could have missed it.
Feeling raw, like my insides were exposed for all to see, I wanted nothing more in that moment than to fall apart.
To prove to the entire student body that they were right about me, that I didn’t belong here.
The demons of my past were too big, and if I stayed here any longer, they were going to eat me alive.
But I didn’t move a muscle. I stood my ground despite how pointless, how foolish it was. Thorne’s shadow completely engulfed me, and with my unprotected back to him, he could end my life in an instant.
I waited for him to do just that, certain he would. It had been stupid of me to think that I could stay out of his way. The second I’d stepped foot inside Heartstone, I’d practically handed my life to him on a silver platter. And no one would fault him for killing me, not even the professors.
They might not know my secret, but Thorne did. And once he told them, it was game over for me anyway. I might as well let him do the honors since he more than anyone had a right to.
For the second time today, I closed my eyes and prepared for the inevitable. My hands still shook with fear, my heart frantically pounding, but I wouldn’t cower or beg for my life. My dignity might be in shambles, but I was still a Mayweather. I would stand tall as I faced death. I would—
“What do you see, Oz?”
I wrenched my eyes back open as the blond warlock still blocking my path answered Thorne, “Shadows. Her aura is shrouded in them.”
“She’s a Darken,” Riku lightly scoffed. “They’re all shrouded in shadow.”
“Not like this,” Oz replied, reaching up to adjust his dark-framed glasses.
Combined with the perfect curl on his forehead, he looked like a blond Clark Kent.
I recognized him as Osmond “Oz” Parrish III, a talented Oracle and Thorne’s other best friend.
“The shadows emanating around her are darker. It’s like they’re blocking her aura, and they feel malevolent.
You were right about her, Thorne. She’s dangerous. ”
At that, the dining hall erupted into chaos once more. All the blood drained from my face when I caught words like “unhinged” and “crazy.” Witches deemed unstable didn’t just get locked in a padded room. No, their punishments were much, much worse.
I trembled like a leaf as the shouting continued, my fear so great that thoughts of portaling back home consumed me.
The odds against me were too great. I couldn’t survive, not with Thorne here.
Not when an Oracle could see my darkness.
The little hope I had of hiding, of keeping my secret, was fading before my very eyes.
The last thing I wanted to do was disgrace my family name even more by quitting, but I didn’t see any other option.
It was either that or surrender to a fate worse than death.
Why, oh, why had I come here?
I was just about to cave under the insurmountable pressure when a female voice rose above the rest, snapping, “Silence!”
As the buzz died down, I glanced over to see that a professor had entered the dining hall. She was standing in front of the buffet area, her nostrils flared as she took in the student body with a heavy frown. At the sight of her, my knees immediately weakened with relief.
Wearing a black skirt suit that was tailor-made to fit her curvy figure, the woman waited for the commotion to completely subside before saying, “Everyone, take your seats. Winter, there’s a spot for you at the first year table over there.”
She pointed to the other side of the room, but her brown eyes stayed fixed on me.
When they crinkled warmly, some of my trembling faded.
As everyone moved to sit down, I finally unglued my feet, slipping out from between the two warlocks to claim my new seat.
I landed at the far end of the table, not failing to notice that the spot beside me remained empty.
Hostile eyes followed my every move, but now that a kind face had arrived, I latched on to her like a lifeline, ignoring everyone but her.
The professor waited for the room to settle before continuing in a much more even tone, “For those who don’t know, I’m Professor Venetia Holt, the vice-chancellor of Heartstone Academy.
Although I don’t believe in freezing the entire student body in order to get their attention, I will not tolerate riots at this school and will punish those who instigate them.
From now on, there will be order in this dining hall.
You are all adults, but if you refuse to act as such, you will be treated like children and sent to your rooms hungry. ”
Pausing for a moment to let that sink in, she went on, “If you haven’t noticed yet, there’s a hierarchy on this campus.
The more trials you complete, the more privileges you earn, with those who finish last receiving the least. Since Heartstone has only been open for two years, our third years receive the most privileges.
Their dining accommodations and living quarters far surpass that of a new first year, because they’ve earned those rights.
We reward diligence and dedication here, two qualities that the future leaders of our community need to possess.
With that said, here is the list of students who completed the Initiation Trial from first to last . . .”
As she pulled a slip of paper from her jacket, my stomach dropped.
Please don’t be last, please don’t be last, I silently pleaded, already dreading what my “reward” would be if I was in last place.
“In the number one spot is Alma Ramirez. Congratulations, Alma,” Professor Holt said, focusing on a girl several spots away at my table. When I saw who it was, my stomach dropped even more. It was the Water Elemental who’d nearly drowned me. Of course she’d arrived first.
Professor Holt started to clap. A few of the other students politely joined in, but the majority didn’t react—including every third year at the fancy table I’d been kicked off of.
My gaze briefly landed on Thorne who was now sitting in the seat I’d vacated. His hawk familiar was nowhere in sight, probably out catching his own dinner. Even so, his broad shoulders rose above the rest, allowing me to clearly see his face. A face that was currently fixed on—
I nearly swallowed my tongue as our eyes collided.
For a terrifying second, I couldn’t look away, caught in the storm seething in his blue irises. But Professor Holt started to speak again, and I managed to wrench my gaze free, focusing on her like my life depended on it—which it did.
“For earning the first place position, Miss Ramirez will receive her pick of available living quarters. She’ll also be able to choose her roommates if she desires them, which I strongly suggest. You all might be competing against each other, but it’s essential you don’t isolate yourself.
We all know that a witch cannot survive without a coven, after all.
The more allies you have, the higher your chances of surviving to graduation. ”
Great. Just great. She was looking at me while saying the words, as if warning me specifically that I wouldn’t survive on my own. I needed trusted allies, ones that would watch my back. Problem was, everyone here would rather stab it.
The professor went on to name and congratulate the other first years, their rewards lessening the further down the list they were. I barely breathed the entire time, waiting for her to call my name. I waited and waited, my heart sinking with each name she uttered that wasn’t mine.
“And finally,” she said, carefully folding the list and tucking it back into her jacket pocket, “the last place position goes to Winter Mayweather.”
No one clapped. Not even Professor Holt.