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“My mate turned us into toddlers. My mate can use magic in places no one else can. My mate can destroy monsters with a wave of her magic finger. She can do anything, so I’m way more worried about our survival if shit goes down than hers.” He scoffed. “I’ve dealt with it.” He smiled a bit wickedly and added, “I kinda like her being in the role of the hero, you know?”
“Maxine is a villain. In her true form, she is—”
“I’m not exactly built from sunshine and rainbows myself.” Braz snorted a laugh and I winced. Okay, I had lived with him long enough, known him well enough I didn’t really judge his character based on his genetics. “And I think it’s good for you. I like the balance. Ellie doesn’t have all the devious little thoughts about things like I do. She works for good, sees good, and makes good. Even out of bad, so you will have to be the balance for Maxine like Ellie is for me.”
“And what if I fail her?” I ask because I had failed my seahorses. They were beheaded and I was excommunicated for treason. They could not leave the waters like I could. Their deaths would haunt me forever. It didn’t matter how many people we saved on that vessel. At the end of the day, I still battled with whether I would have bothered to save even one had I known my friends, they were more than pets to me, would die because of my do right, do good actions. A lot of good it did in the end.
“First things first. Let’s get the water out of the way, then we can talk about strategy. I have a feeling no one would take too kindly to anyone, even her father, waltzing through the doors of Blackthorn and making life and death decisions about the student body here.” He indicated with his head toward the door. I stood as I nodded.
True. I hadn’t really considered what that would do to the institution’s reputation. And it wasn’t like just anyone could arrive without plenty of warning. The reason the water did not acknowledge me here was because it was loyal to this place, not my kind. All of the creatures great and small that thrived in this ecosystem carefully cultivated would defend their home. From the townsfolk to the chirping birds, everything relied on Blackthorn for stability.
Mission number one. Don’t get expelled. I wasn’t sure it was going to work, but Braz had more faculty connections and an unblemished reputation. Plus a succubus-witch hybrid girlfriend who could drain the magic from anything and use it for herself.
I felt better about my chances every step closer to the administration offices we took.
CHAPTER 13
Maxine
“Hey.” Ellie tilted her head and gave me a weak smile. “Everything… o-kay?”
“I’m a little overwhelmed,” I admitted as I tried to fit the last of some cabin stuff in a suitcase that was already at capacity. The room was no longer a mess, but it still had more stuff in it than before.
“Let me help.” She adjusted her shoulders and lifted her wand. I was both happy and jealous because within a few taps, swirls, and a spacing spell later, I had one trunk that once opened led into what looked like a storage closet. “Sort.”
All of the items went flying into the trunk and into their place as miniatures if they were large or in actual size if they were of small size. The trunk top closed and Ellie asked, “Now the cleaning is done, you ready for dinner?”
“I’m not going if he’s going to be there.” I dropped to the edge of the bed and glared at the closet as though Thurst might walk through it. I was also a little upset with Case. Why didn’t Case let me know it was too much? I didn’t even know it had a limit! I’d never needed to pack up most of my life in one afternoon, though. All my precious treasures and secrets were small compared to the blankes, the mugs, the books. So many books. I had a little library in that trunk all properly shelved again. Probably more academically sorted than by cover color, but still. I had them all.
“Hey.” I felt it as she settled next to me on the bed. “Talk to me.”
“I’m a monster,” I admitted thinking of my mother, wondering how much time she had. Why couldn’t she come through the portal with us?
Ellie snorted and said, “Tell me something I don’t know.”
I gaped and then we giggled. I leaned forward and hugged her. “Ellie, things are not going the way I planned them.”
She hugged me back and said, “Welcome to my world, Maxine Mayhem. You’ll learn to love it here.”
I shook my head, but still laughed. “No. I… I can’t be with him. It’s too dangerous.”
Her brow shot up and she asked, “Dangerous?”
“I don’t want to put you at risk, either.” I looked at my hands. But I would need help and who else could I trust if not Ellie? Thurst. But I needed to protect him, too.
“Too late.” She took my hand and squeezed it tight. “It’s too late, Maxine. You are my best friend. If you are in trouble, I am going to be right there beside you to face whatever it is.”
“My father.” I looked her in the eye. She nodded. “Ellie?”
“Might be nice to have a challenge.” She winked at me. I gasped.
“That demon is influencing you isn’t he?” I smiled. I couldn’t help myself. The Eleanore that started off this semester with me would not have been so bold or wicked. This one was… confident, exceptional. She winked at me and I allowed the realization to settle in that we had flipped stations at this school.
I had arrived a very powerful witch and tonight, I could barely sort my own belongings with or without a wand. I had never needed a wand before. Maybe I will now. Maybe when my mother gave up her powers, something happened to mine, too. Something happened to Case. It was exhausted for the first time in my life.
“That demon has also influenced our dinner plans, so the pub it is.” She shrugged. “Get up. Let’s go.”
“I don’t want to see him.” I stood up and followed her to the door. I looked a mess and I didn’t even care.
