Page 42 of Bearly Bewitched

“At least, it’s never boring,” Sabine said, shifting back to tiger form. She paused at the door, whiskers twitching. “Vail, Kaine’s heading this way.”

FORTY-ONE

Vail’s shoulders relaxed slightly. One less worry, at least for the moment. But as she turned back to the task of saving her school, she couldn’t shake the feeling that this was only the beginning.

Tomorrow’s eclipse loomed like a shadow on the horizon. And somewhere out there, Ledger prepared to unleash power beyond anything they’d imagined.

Once the group had done everything they could to stabilize the academy, they met up at the entrance.

“All right,” Madame Zephyrine clapped her hands. “My house. Everyone.”

“What’s going on?” Daisy asked.

“We are going to feed you all,” Neve grinned. “Not just food. Tonight, you all used a lot of strength and power. We’ll help you restore some of it and feed your energies.”

“Okay, I’m in,” Romi said. “Xabir is too.”

“Yeah, I agree,” Ren sighed. “All the witches used up so much magic that we need to help you restore your energy.”

“You’re so bossy,” Sabine grumbled into his side. “I like it, though.”

“On that note,” Rook shook his head. “Let’s go.”

Madame Zephyrine’s Victorian mansion blazed with warmth against the gathering dusk. Magical lights twinkled in every window, and the scent of her famous restorative soup wafted from the kitchen. Inside, their ragtag group of defenders still covered in stone dust from the academy’s near-collapse had taken over the spacious dining room.

“I can’t believe you have dragon-shaped soup bowls,” Romi said, examining the ornate porcelain with delight. Lightning still occasionally crackled in her hair from overuse of storm magic.

“Birthday presents.” Neve stirred more restorative herbs into the soup pot. “From that lovely Chinese dragon family we met during our travels. Do pass the bread basket, dear.”

Sabine reached for it, then winced. Ren’s hand shot out to steady her, concern flickering across his usually stoic features. “Your shoulder?”

“Just a bit sore,” she assured him with a soft smile. “Though I wouldn’t say no to one of your magical massages later.”

“Get a room,” Rook called from where he sat with his arm draped protectively around Clover’s shoulders. She’d nearly depleted her earth magic stabilizing the academy’s foundations.

“Right, okay. But you’re the one who purrs every time Clover scratches behind your ears,” Xabir drawled, earning a bread roll thrown at his head. He caught it easily, years of shifter reflexes on display.

Vail watched her friends’ banter with tired amusement, grateful for this moment of normalcy after the day’s chaos. Her own magical exhaustion made even lifting her spoon feel like a monumental effort. A warm touch on her arm drew her attention to Kaine beside her.

“Eat,” he said quietly, sliding the bread basket closer. “You used too much power fighting the corruption.”

“Says the bear who spent hours battling shadow monsters,” she countered, but took a piece anyway. Their fingers brushed asshe reached past him for the butter, sending a different kind of warmth through her tired muscles.

At the far end of the table, Felicity and Daisy had spread the restoration diary between their soup bowls, still excitedly comparing notes. “See?” Daisy pointed to a particular diagram with her spoon. “The energy always flows toward balance like it’s trying to fix something.”

“Not destroy hybrid magic—restore it,” Felicity mused. Her earlier uncertainty had been replaced by scholarly focus. “As if there’s some artificial division that needs healing.”

“Which explains why it resonates with the academy’s original design,” Burke added from his position by the fireplace. He’d refused to sit until he’d done a security sweep of the entire property. “The founders clearly understood something about magical integration that we’ve forgotten.”

“Or that someone deliberately obscured,” Madame Zephyrine said significantly, exchanging another loaded look with her sister. “There are older magics than what the council sanctions, after all.”

“Speaking of things the council should know about,” Romi said, stirring her soup, “what are we going to do about Ames? After what happened in the vault...”

A heavy silence fell over the room.

“He tried to warn us,” Burke said quietly. “At the end, before the crystal took full control. He was fighting it.”

“Where is he now?” Clover asked.

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