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“It’s really cute,” Oleander said, voice filled with barely suppressed laughter.
“Neither one of you is helping,” I said.
“Yeah, put a lid on it,” Morgana snapped at them both. “It’s not like we’re trying to undo major magic here or anything.”
We made it halfway down the hallway before it happened. Morgana raked too forcefully against my power, and something just... snapped. One moment she was handling my magic, and the next, something large and furred was rubbing along my insides, batting furiously at the invader. Light burst like tiny suns behind my eyes, blinding me for a few precious seconds. Power scalded my skin, etching glowing, ethereal lines along my arms, burning red-gold like lightning flowers for an instant. Then they, and the shape were gone, leaving me spitting leaves and blinking shining dust out of my eyes.
I hadn’t even realized I was holding my breath until I let it out in a gasp.
Morgana was staring up at me, face blank with shock. She didn’t seem aware that she was clutching a patch of red-brown fur in one hand. It trickled through her fingers and onto the stones below. I almost cried out a warning but... there was nothing there. Not on the stones at her feet. Not anywhere I could see. As far as our light extended, the pathway was clear.
“What in Goddess’ name was that?” Morgana breathed, looking me up and down.
I shuffled from foot to foot self-consciously, very aware of the fact that I’d just plastered myself and a good portion of the hall in curling leaves and faerie dust. What a mess. Even if we got through this, we’d have to erase the evidence before leaving.
“It was magic,” Rook drawled. “Or don’t you recognize it when you see it, Grimsbane?”
“Stick a stake up your ass,” Morgana snapped before turning back to face me, even though she was still talking to him. “That wasn’t ordinary witch magic, and you damn well know it. You’ve been around enough of us to know what we’re capable of.”
“It was faerie magic,” Oleander said in a hushed whisper. He was regarding me with a degree of awe that made me distinctly uncomfortable. His tone took on a slightly accusatory tone when he asked, “Why didn’t you tell me you were part Fae?”
I shrugged. “Maybe because I didn’t know until this morning? The only hint I’ve had that I was anything other than an ordinary witch is a touch of zoolingualism that began months back.”
“And?” Oleander asked.
I shrugged again. “Zoolingualism could have meant anything. A witch mating with a shifter or a sasquatch could have resulted with a strong tie to nature, as well. It’s not like witches go around knowing their dads.”
Though the memory dredged up by the song had given me the name, Fennec. More than that, it had shown me that my mother’s relationship with my father had been a lot more serious than I could have believed. She’d been with him long enough to have two kids, and he’d been angling for a third. She’d seemed genuinely upset that they couldn’t be together. And from what I could tell, he’d wanted to stay with her, to raise Maverick and me, to keep us safe. He’d said he loved me. Part of me resented that I hadn’t grown up knowing him.
But I’d have to wait to indulge my hurt feelings. This wasn’t the time or place to ask if Oleander knew anything about my dad. Odds were, I’d get a blank look or a lecture about how not all Fae knew each other by name or sight. We had a mystery to solve, and fewer wards to tackle than before and at the moment, that was all that mattered.
“It wasn’t just faerie magic,” Morgana said, eyes round as she fixed them on me. “It was powerful faerie magic. I tapped into that magic by accident, and it overloaded about six feet of Aurea’s best wards. Granted, I’d have just deactivated them, rather than obliterating them. I’ll have to set them up again later but...” She turned her gaze to Rook, raising her chin defiantly. “You’re overruled, Chesley. She stays.”
“Morgana,” he started, but she shook her head, interrupting him.
“This should have taken hours. With Astrid’s assistance, it only took fifteen minutes. Deal with your personal issues on your own time. I need her help. End of story.”
“It’s Rook,” he corrected her, a sullen edge of defeat in his voice. It was three against one and he knew it.
I’d be joining the Scooby Gang after all. Zoinks!
“Whatever,” Morgana said, dusting her knees off as she rose to her feet. “If we can do a repeat performance on the rest of the hall, we should be able to—”
Morgana cut off abruptly, sucking in a sharp breath. A moment later, I understood why. The air had lightened to a dull gray ahead, growing brighter as a light grew closer to the end of the hall. Snippets of conversation echoed off the stone walls.
“We can’t keep it from them forever,” a familiar voice said in an undertone.
It took me a moment to place the stern alto, but when I did, my heart lurched before resuming double time. How could I mistake it for anyone else? I started my early mornings listening to Professor Hecate lecture. The voice that answered was just as familiar, and instantly set my teeth on edge. It was a touch nasal, and edged with cruelty, even at rest.
“You’ll keep your mouth shut for as long as it takes, Hecate,” Vivian said. “Mother wants it taken care of as quickly as possible. I don’t care what you have to do, but make sure this doesn’t surface. It will be a disaster if it gets out.”
There was a wealth of information in those sentences, but we didn’t have time to sit down and examine them. If we didn’t get out of here, this was going to end badly for all of us. Morgana and Rook would probably be locked in their rooms without escape for the next century or so. Oleander and I would be expelled, if we were lucky. Or maybe we’d just disappear, like the unlucky faeries. It was clear that the headmistress was more involved in this than she wanted anyone to believe.
We turned back the way we’d come. Maybe if we were swift and silent, we’d be able to get out without being caught. Yes, they’d realize someone was onto them, but they wouldn’t know precisely who. As far as I knew, I was the only Autumn faerie with any level of power here, so they’d be completely in the dark about who was responsible.
It was a good plan. Which was why my stupid, clumsy feet had to screw it all up. My boot heel caught on an upturned stone, and I tipped backward with a soft cry of fright. In a split second, Rook scooped me out of the air, hugging me to his chest before I could smack into the floor and drive all the air from my lungs. He was probably the only one who could see me properly in the gloom. Oleander and Rook had extinguished their lights the moment they’d heard the witches approach. If Rook hadn’t caught me, I probably would have bowled over Morgana and Oleander, reducing their chance of escape as well.
“Of course, Vivian but—” Professor Hecate paused then asked, “Did you hear that?”
