Page 6 of Zero Happily Ever Afters

“What can I say? I don’t like it when students block the hallway all lounged out.” I brushed a hand through my hair, knocking the long, brown locks behind my ear. Dramatic flair, but something about Gael’s angst brought it out of me.

“Who knew you had those bad bitch moves.” Gael nodded approvingly as he swaggered into the classroom with his familiar on his shoulder.

I rolled my eyes. Only Gael.

As they shuffled inside, I counted down the seconds until the bell rang. All the minds in the air today made it difficult to focus, though that might have more to do with the tug from my branch, searching far and wide in a barren city. A city without Milo.

“Morning, Mr. Frost.” Tara stopped in front of the door, rifling through her bag. “Here you go.”

Still the beautiful, leggy blonde with the features and build of a model. She wore perfectly styled accessories and makeup like the first time she walked into my class almost two years ago, but she didn’t wear a fake smile now. No mask to hide her pain. This smile was genuine. The ocean in Tara’s mind still existed, but the storms didn’t seem overwhelming like they once had. It was almost like Tara had finally found herself, found a way to live with her depression, and hang onto those happy moments in between.

“Well, well.” I held up the updated fledgling permit Tara had gotten. She couldn’t take the test over winter break, but I didn’t expect her to find an open slot on such short notice—usually, even the academy had to reserve review times months in advance. Guess the Whitlocks really could do anything they wanted.

“I’ll make a copy of your newly approved branch and then return this by the end of the day.”

Tara nodded, more annoyed she’d have approval for her fifth branch than stressed by the idea of mastering five branches. As her magic continued to blossom, so did her confidence.

“Tara!” Katherine darted down the hallway. Her athletic build helped her weave between others in the hall as she waved goodbye to a group of friends.

Pining permeated the air off the classmates she stepped away from when racing toward Tara. Most students at the academy seemed captivated by Katherine’s presence. Whether because of her sweet smile, her genuine interest in other’s conversations, or her highly competitive skills that didn’t come with the same cocky personality as most students in the top ten. Even though Tara was kind, she was so reserved that most confused it for an air of arrogance, whereas Katherine’s giddy, extroverted personality shined through, and that attracted friendship.

Sunlight shimmered through the windows, dancing along Katherine’s light brown complexion and resonating with the bright yellow of her aura. “So glad I caught you.”

“You realize we have class together?” Tara quirked an eyebrow.

“Right.” Katherine bopped her head. “I’m super scattered today, but I managed to make the updated sigils. Sorry it took so long.”

Katherine retrieved a small cube, similar to the weighted blocks Caleb trained with, though the enchantment sigils differed. Unlike his that helped hone root casting, Katherine had created this block to absorb casting from Tara’s magics. Each side represented a different branch, allowing her to continuously train without the casting disrupting or destroying anything nearby. That’d helped a lot with Tara’s confidence. I’d seen it. The way she discreetly trained, always happiest when the pressure of everyone’s eyes didn’t fall on her.

“You know I don’t actually need an updated enchantment box.” Tara retrieved the one she currently used for casting practice. “I really only need this for the three that are overlapped. Otherwise, it’s just harder to train all three at once.”

Tara’s overlap caused her shadows, her sealing, and her intangibility to become tangled together, which made it impossible for her to use one without using the other two in tandem. It didn’t help they weren’t the most compatible. Still, I’d watched her flourish since arriving at Gemini; even when the new branches she awakened worried or intimidated her, she kept strong and determined.

I believed that overlap caused so much stress in Tara’s youth that she inadvertently suppressed her other branches. How many she currently had suppressed, I had no idea. But it reminded me of how I had the tendency to suppress the magnitudes of my telepathy branch, going most of my lifewithout realizing the full extent of my casting ability. I wouldn’t allow that to happen to Tara, not if I could help her learn from the mistakes I never had.

Katherine grimaced, then adjusted her glasses in some effort to stop staring at the worn scuffs lining the corners of the enchanted box she’d created while she judged herself for sloppy work on the sigils that she considered so basic a five-year-old with her branch could compose better spell work.

“This one is sturdier than the last one and takes into account your fifth branch.” Katherine laughed, handing Tara the cube. “Try not to get too many more branches—only one unused side left to the cube. But it’s not unused. I added a rejuvenation protocol, hence the better reinforcement. Also, totally add as many branches as you want. I can just make a second block. Caleb’s got four. Well, four for school. Then there’s his home set, work set, and… And, yeah, I know he can just use the same set everywhere, but you wouldn’t believe how much he burns through the weighted blocks. Practically destroyed the first set in like a month. So, I find it easier to make a couple sets for different places, which helps keep the wear and tear minimal. Thankfully, you’re not as rough in your training, but if you need another set or want another set or just—”

“Thank you so much, Katherine.” Tara forced a smile; the desire to smile was genuine, but the action took great effort onher part. The action made Tara anxious, flushing her fair skin with reddened cheeks.

“Anytime.” Katherine adjusted the grimoire strapped to her side and looped her arm around Tara’s. “Seriously, anytime, because you have no idea how much this is for my own benefit. Like, yay, helping people and training? Oh my god, don’t even get me started…”

And with that, Katherine walked into class arm and arm with Tara.

Serene confidence cut through the hallway, drawing my attention as a bright neon blue aura of skylight happiness shined. Carter’s smile had this infectious effect, as I fought to maintain a frown despite his many peers smiling when locking eyes with their classmate who strode down the halls without a care in the world. That wasn’t true, though. I could hear his thoughts, the deep whispers tucked in the back of Carter’s head. They ached to be heard, they craved the rattle of paranoia sparked by their presence, but they held no power in Carter’s mind.

It’d taken more than a year, but I finally saw Carter return to the jovial young man he was before the fateful day when trauma nearly consumed him. The day he’d altered the purpose of his branch to heal my fatal injuries.

I rubbed the scar along my neck, remembering the splotchy, red face Carter had that day. The way every breath I tookfrightened him, fearful it’d be my last. All that seemed like a bad dream. Dream, not a nightmare. Nightmares were powerful things that haunted and consumed. Dreams faded faster.

Carter had cut his hair shorter, almost shaved like Caleb’s, but blonder and with a silly duckbill of gelled bangs in the front. This accounted for a lot of the attention he received walking the hallways. That and he’d landed some awe-inspired winning shot on the boy’s tennis team. Ugh. I’d forgotten the few athletes we had scrambling to enjoy the fun extracurriculars while they still had time. I’d have to start bursting bubbles and reminding them they came here for guild success, not athletic careers.

So, despite his branch being perfect for draft picks or whatever, I’d be steering Carter to spend this final semester more wisely.

Carter smiled and high-fived nearly every person whose path he crossed, much to the discontent of Jennifer, who trailed behind him, ready to hiss or pounce on anyone foolish enough to strike up a morning greeting in her direction. Okay, maybe not that exactly, but Jennifer’s angry eyes gave off complete and total cat energy. I knew there was something aside from her gothic wardrobe that I admired.

“He’s gonna be impossible today.” Jennifer rolled her eyes and abandoned Carter to his adoring crowd before wincing at the doorway.

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