Page 36 of Baneful Magick

“No,” he answered, his weight shifting from foot to foot. “It’s just interesting. Anyway, never mind. I’ll see you around, witchling.”

He spun on his heel and walked away. Passersby veered to stay out of his way as he slowly ambled off to wherever he was going next. I chewed my lip, all sorts of confused when it came to him.

‘You young people are all confusing.’

‘Confusing?’I questioned as I made my way toward the dining hall. Groups of supes were spread out all over the quad, talking and studying. It looked like a game of soccer was being organized on the far side of the grassy expanse, but I didn’t see anyone I recognized.

‘His hot and cold attitude. He should have apologized more thoroughly for how he treated you,’Cassius replied, sounding miffed on my behalf.

‘At least he didn’t act like a complete asshole. Regardless, it’s just one class. I can handle him.’

‘But canhehandleyou?’

‘Most people can’t.’I tried to joke lightly, but the sting of previous rejection was too fresh for it to come off as nonchalant.

My last ex-boyfriend had said I was too much when we broke up. Too much personality. Too loud. Too invested. Too…everything. It really stuck with me even though I didn’t want it to.

‘He was an imbecile, beastie.’Cassius’ voice was unusually soft.

‘He was,’I said, forcing myself to sound cheerful, but it was so damn fake, even in my own head.‘Regardless, I’m not dating or trying to date Bones, so it doesn’t matter.’

Cassius didn’t say anything in response, so I shook it off. After snagging some pad thai and thai iced tea to go, I wandered back outside. There was a hint of rain in the air that meant I probably wouldn’t be able to enjoy it later tonight, so I’d savor the fresh air now.

Not wanting to deal with anyone right now, I walked toward the forest, breathing in deeply once I was surrounded by the trees. An easy smile spread across my face as I stopped just long enough to take off my boots and socks. There was nothing like walking barefoot in the dirt. A soothing lull hummed in my bones as I felt the magick of the Earth welcome my own magick.

I found a small clearing and sat at the foot of a big pine tree, leaning back against the trunk and starting to eat my lunch. A few big bites in, I figured it would be a good time to check the paper from Demir.

Surprisingly, I found a response to my message that he must have sent my way during class. His writing was much more relaxed than before, the cursive flowing across the page rather than the tight small print I had found last night.

You’re lucky I saw this because I was about to shift and make my way to Greywood when you wrote me last night. I guess I’ll accept you were in class already… though I plan on yelling at you when I see you again. How is it going there? Mom and Ma say hey and to contact them when you can.

I snorted at his response. Mom and Ma never just said “Hey.” What a way to shorten it, Demir. Leave it to a man to not send the whole message.

Luckily, I didn’t need anything special to write on the enchanted paper, so I grabbed a pen from my bag and scribbled a response to him.

You would have liked my self-defense professor. A centaur with zero fucks given… Well, you would have liked him or hated him instantly. You horse people really are stubborn. But it’s been good so far. Made some friends, and my suitemates are great. Two incubi really do make for some funsituations, but the witch and wolf I met are at least a little more stable than the two of them.

I knew that last bit would annoy Demir, so I had to add it in. The clenching of his jaw as he took a deep breath to calm down… Man, I wished I could be there to see it. Guess I’d just have to wait for his reaction instead. But I’d take telling him about Echo and Aizel over trying to explain Bones any day. Or really anyone else I’d met here. I didn’t know enough about Wells to mention more about him, and Zhara wouldn’t bother him. Annoying my big brother was a requirement as his sister, a responsibility that I took seriously, so I’d focus on other things as they popped up.

“Well, look who we found all alone,” a familiar voice sang out, followed by two sets of steps.

“If you try to take my lunch, Aizel, I will not be responsible for my actions.” I glared at him as he flopped down beside me with a loud laugh.

Echo sat down on my other side much more sedately. The brothers were casually dressed in dark jeans and t-shirts, nothing as nice as what they had worn yesterday. They had brought their own lunch from the dining hall, and without preamble, they made themselves at home and dug in.

“Where’s Zhara?” I asked between bites.

“Asleep,” Aizel answered. “Her love of mornings was tested with a herbology class at eight in the morning.”

I shuddered at the thought of a class that early. “Yeah, fuck that,” I muttered. Aizel nodded in agreement while Echo laughed at both of us.

“Better than Supernatural Politics which is what we had,” Echo commented, gesturing at himself and his twin.

“Thank goodness I don’t have that class,” I replied, face scrunched up in disgust. “I had my Advanced Herbology class this morning, but at a more reasonable time. Now, I just have Forbidden Magick later.”

“Advanced already?”

“Itismy speciality.” I shot Aizel an amused look. “Are you taking basic sex magick classes?”

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