Page 70 of Two Who Live On

The week flew by, everyone in homeroom was equally disappointed yet excited for their three classmates who’d made it into the finals. Caleb. Kenzo. Jamius. Honestly, of all the students who didn’t make it through the semi-finals, there were a handful from my homeroom I’d have expected to squeak through ahead of Caleb or Jamius. I wasn’t at all shocked by Kenzo’s placement, and neither were those annoyed by it. Some, however, like Gael, cheered louder than anyone else, so the enthusiasm evened out.

“Okay. Enough patting them on the back,” I said, ending the morning cheerleading squads. “You three need to get to the auxiliary gym.”

“About damn time.” Kenzo stuffed his hands in his pockets.

“Now? Like this exact second?” Jamius panicked.

Caleb buzzed with strategies and concerns and wonder anddelight and anxiety, and I simply had to skirt around his incessant overthinking because my head already ached enough from the crowing rooster and students talking over each other.

“We’re not going?”“I wanted to see who won.”

“It’s going to be Kenzo, duh.”“Don’t remind me.”

“It could be me or Caleb, too. Maybe.”

“I made a sign, though.”

“We’re stuck in class all day while they get to cast?”

“It’s so unfair. I want to see the beaver in action again.”

“Cl-cl-cluck!”“Is King Clucks jealous?So adorable.”

“Good luck, Kenzo. And Jamius and Caleb and tell the other competitors good luck, too.”

“Stop talking.” I glowered, biting back an angry growl. “We’re going, but the contestants need to show up early.”

“Yay!”

Their exuberant excitement exploded throughout the classroom, and I suddenly regretted unbursting their little bubbles. Whatever. I cracked my neck.

“We have an hour until the ceremony, so we’ll use that time to catch up on missing work.”

Those remaining sighed, which helped me settle back into a bit of satisfaction.

Jamius summoned three encouraging copies as they exited the classroom.

“What are you doing?” Kenzo snapped.

“Winners need an entourage,” a copy answered.

“You’ve got nineteen clones in you before you’re done for the day, and you chose to waste three of them for an entourage.” Kenzo huffed. “Guess I don’t have to worry about you.”

Jamius sulked, and his clones booed Kenzo before leading their original down the hall.

After the slowest hour of hovering beside students to make this time productive on missing work, Headmaster Dower announced over the intercoms for classes to make their way down to the auxiliary gym for the Spring Showcase Finale. We made our way there. Despite my best efforts to maintain an orderly line, the kids traipsed through the halls merging into the pack of first-year students all chaotically bursting into the auxiliary gym. The turnout was massive, so many guests, in fact, I had difficulty finding seating for my homeroom.

“This way,” I snapped, cutting off Peterson and wrangling my students into a row while his kids floundered about. “What? We don’t have all day, Peterson.”

Fighting a smirk, I joined my students at the end seat. The number of enchanters and acolytes was incredibly high. Even a few guild masters had shown up in a privately reserved seating area closer to the arena than anyone else. Carefully inserting herself among the guild masters, Enchanter Campbell made small talk. Or what I could only assume was small talk or plotting or business or whatever she’d planned. Her thoughts bubbled with concern about the demons stalking the streets of Chicago, but burying them, she focused instead on solidifying her position among these industry leaders.

How’d Chanelle manage to get the biggest turnout in Gemini history? Honestly, I’d never seen this many enchanters at a second-year showcase or a third-year gala. Though many enchanters’ minds buzzed with boredom, some held interest in interacting with one another or enchanters they’d avoided since every guild prioritized solidarity in their guild over the collaboration many had grown accustomed to.

“Well, well, well.” Milo’s thoughts tickled my nape and made my ears burn. “You look quite dashing today.”

I searched the crowd for him, half standing, while he whispered naughty words and cast naked images in his mind. My face burned.

“Are you okay, Mr. Frosty?” Gael asked.

---