46. Zair #2
The classroom falls into a sudden hush as Tennant waves her hand, swiftly dismissing the class.
The students file out quickly, casting furtive glances at us, and I notice the way they linger as they leave, sensing something isn’t quite right.
Thea waves goodbye to them all. I realize I’ve never seen all the misfits together, and well, there isn’t a better word than misfits.
Mavrik comes over and stands beside me.
“Thea said he was cursed,” he says. “Do you need help with anything?”
“I don’t think so.” We wait as the last of the stragglers leave.
“You coming to the party tonight?” I ask.
“Oh, uh.” He looks around the room then drops his head. “I didn’t realize I was invited.”
“I told you the shifters are having a party… and didn’t officially invite you. My bad.”
He looks at me and gives me a one-sided smile.
“Thanks. That’s my first party invitation in… as long as I can remember. I have a—” he looks around the room to ensure no one else can hear us. “Livestream tonight.”
“Oh cool. What’s your username so I can share it.”
“You don’t have to do that.” He looks away shyly.
“I know. I want to. I won’t tell anyone,” I promise.
“You already follow me. You’ve sent me… messages before.” He blushes now.
“That honestly doesn’t narrow it down as much as you would think,” I joke.
“Callsign: Shadow,” he whispers.
Benson, still lost in his lovesick haze, starts talking again, rambling about how beautiful Thea is, how he loves her, how they’re going to have a hundred babies.
It’s almost too much to hear. She looks at me then, and I see the sadness in her eyes.
I don’t know what we’re waiting for until Tennant steps forward.
She raises her hand, casting a spell to block us off from any eavesdroppers.
“Explain,” she says simply, her tone leaving no room for hesitation.
“There’s a rumor that Benson and I are dating, the witch from my coven appears to have given him an enchanted object. He’s acting — strange?” she adds, glancing at me.
“Yes,” I explain. “He wasn’t paying attention in crafting, his favorite class, and kept talking about how nice the witch is. Then he kept saying how much he loves Thea, even though they’re not dating.”
Tennant starts walking toward Benson, who’s still staring at Thea with an expression of awe, completely disengaged.
“The necklace,” I add.
The moment I speak, Benson freaks out. “Don’t touch it!”
Thea’s voice softens, her tone warm but laced with a knowing power. “B,” she coos, moving closer to him. “Can you show her that handsome necklace of yours? She’s going to make me one to match.”
She gently places her hand on his face, her touch sending him into a dazed calm. His eyes flutter closed as he rests his head on her hand.
Tennant steps forward quickly, grabbing the necklace, her eyes narrowing as she inspects it. “This one doesn’t have the draining aspect, but it has a much deeper obsession enchantment. I think it’s supposed to make him obey whoever gave it to him, but also make him obsessed with you.”
Thea gives a small nod, unsurprised, and reaches for the goblin blade I’ve been holding. She takes it with a fluid motion and cuts the necklace. It turns black and brittle, crumbling apart; just like the bracelet we’d gone hunting for.
Benson blinks rapidly, as if waking from a stupor. His face shifts from confusion to a kind of sluggish awareness. Then a sharp clarity that he clearly wasn’t ready for. His gaze flickers around the room, and then he stumbles, gasping, before he drops to his knees and vomits onto the floor.
I reach over, grabbing his shoulder as Thea rubs his back, her touch steady and comforting.
“You’re okay. Get it out of your system; you’ll feel better.” The words come out with the kind of empathy that tells me she’s been there before.
It takes a little while, but Benson slowly starts to regain himself. His breathing steadies, and he looks up at us, confusion still clouding his features. We guide him over to a nearby seating area, giving him space to recover.
“What the hell happened to me? I was getting lunch, then—” His eyes widen in horror. “What did I do?”
“Nothing that we know of,” I assure him.
“Zair found you after lunch,” Thea says. “And other than visibly drooling, nothing too embarrassing.”
Benson shakes his head, clearly mortified.
Professor Tennant returns with a small bag and hands it to Thea.
“What’s your name?” she asks Benson, who tells her. She runs through a series of questions to make sure he’s free of any lingering enchantments.
“He’s clear. Make sure you bring me any others that come through, but if it gets worse, I’m going to have to report it.”
Thea gives her a small smile. “Thank you again.”
Tennant simply nods, waving her off. “Well, these things happen, don’t they?”
I can’t help but smile at the nonchalance in her tone. She reminds me of my teachers back home: efficient, no-nonsense, but with a certain dry humor that makes you wonder how many bizarre magical incidents they’ve handled over the years.
We all leave. Thea and Benson talking over each other to try and apologize.
But he’s back to normal, as we near the library he leaves us, saying he’s going to his dorm to shower off all the sliminess.
Mavrik goes with him and tells us he’ll see us tomorrow.
Both Thea and Benson say they thought he was coming to the party and his face lights up at being included.
Thea and I head to our nook and sit side by side at the table in silence for a while. Finally, I have to talk.
“It’s not your fault,” I say quietly, trying to shake some of the weight off her shoulders.
She shakes her head, looking down at the table. “Yes, it is. She did this because—” She cuts herself off, eyes flashing with a mix of frustration and guilt.
“Because you stopped wearing it?” I ask, gently grabbing her arm to lift the bracelet. What I now realize was — did Tennant say ‘without the draining aspect?’
She nods slowly, and the tension in her shoulders tightens even more.
“Is that why your magic is so uncontrolled? Because it was suppressed?” I ask suddenly appalled. She nods again. I feel sick. Fucking hell.