Page 62 of Phoenix Academy: Mayhem

Chapter 16

Nearly an hourafter returning with my sister, I head to Headmaster Towers office with the guys, freshly showered, my blue hair darkened with water. It felt amazing to scrub the grime, dirt, and oil from my scalp after days in the woods; at one point I'm pretty sure I even pulled a dead bug out of my blue locks, though I've tried not to think about it too hard.

Lizzy was in the infirmary being checked out, but now Towers has let us know that it's time to have her phoenix self scried. My sister seemed more herself when I dropped her off with the nurses at the infirmary. She was still scared and pale, but less a shadow, and without that strange soulless anger in her eyes.

Also, her hair gradually faded to a deep silver-grey as I watched in wonder, while her eyes became a nearly colorless hazel with flecks of green and gold.

So she isn't exactly the sister she was before the Heretic caught her and killed her. Neither am I. While we awkwardly sat near each other in the infirmary, waiting for the nurses to check their tests and listen to her heart, she reached out and tugged gently at the hair near my left ear.

"It's blue now," she said in wonder. "Is that dye, or?"

"That's how it grows. Straight from the scalp, certified organic."

It was an awkward joke, and neither of us laughed at it, but we were starting to feel a little more normal. Than the academy physician arrived and requested some alone time with Lizzy to check her over more intensely. The guys and I took the opportunity to clean ourselves off, and now here we are, taking the steps up towards the headmaster's office, where my sister is apparently waiting for us.

"You did good," David tells me, as we knock on the office door and wait outside. "If you decide not to go after the Heretic right away, no one will blame you. You can take your time."

I shake my head. "We have to get him as soon as possible. Before he rebuilds his support or finds some other newborn phoenix to brainwash. It's too dangerous otherwise—especially now that witches are waking across the globe, ripe for him to abuse and kill."

The door opens before we can speak further, and my heart leaps at the sight of my sister. She's sitting in the chair opposite Towers' desk, seeming even smaller than usual, maybe because of how high-back the chair is.

As I walk over to sit at her side, I observe a few things with thanks: there's color in her cheeks now, and she looks like she took a shower, her damp hair braided back from her face. When she glances over at me she smiles, picking nervously at the plaid skirt they gave her, fidgeting in her button-up shirt.

She looks like the little girl I remember. A little older, a tiny bit taller, with wholly new powers, as well as the hair and eyes to go with them, but she's Lizzy. She's real. And she's here.

"Hey," she says softly, as the guys arrange themselves in other chairs across from the desk, instructed by Towers' new office assistant. "I forgot to say earlier... thanks."

"For what?"

"What you did." She tugs at the edge of her collar, and I instinctively reach out to unbutton the top button at her throat, grateful when she doesn't pull away from me. "I know I was a real ass to you. Everything... everything from then feels a little foggy and grey, but I remember that much. I can't believe you came back for me anyway."

"You're my sister," I tell her, heart in my throat that it ever occurred to her I might leave her there with him. "I'd do anything for you."

"Yeah. Yeah."

Towers' keen eyes are watching us, and I don't want to fall into a puddle of tears and trauma on her expensive rug, so I just silently reach out to squeezes Lizzy's shoulder. We can get into the nitty gritty of everything later. For now, there are details to figure out and arrange, so she can stay here and stay safe.

"Elizabeth Wolfe. Good to have you here."

"Thanks for having me." Lizzy cranes her head towards the desk as Towers pulls two small objects out of one of the drawers. "You can call me Lizzy, by the way. My mom only called me Elizabeth when she was mad at me."

"Very well."

I blink back tears at the brief mention of our mother, who we haven't yet jointly mourned together. Sucking in a sharp breath, I force myself to stay calm and collected. Mom is free now—her spirit has been taken care of, and I know she'll feel peace, seeing us together. It's a comforting thought that keeps me together as Headmaster Towers lays the golden bowl and small gold knife on her desk.

"This bowl," she indicates it, "reveals certain things about a phoenix: what type you are, and how many lives you have. It does so," a motion to the knife, "with a little bit of blood. Usually I prick new students' palms and squeeze a few drops out myself, but I thought given all you've been through when it comes to knives, you might appreciate getting to do it yourself."

The mention of how we were both killed makes me look sharply to Lizzy, but she laughs, like she's put it all behind us.

"Thanks for the forethought, but I don't really mind blood or pain." Scooting forward, she reaches for the knife with curious fingers. "If you have any answers for me, I'd love to hear them. My time since being reborn as a phoenix hasn't really been full of forthright information."

"So I gather." Towers picks the bowl up and holds it out as Lizzy gamely slashes the base of her thump and turns her hand over, bleeding without even so much as a flinch of pain. "I don't know how much your sister has told you about the academy, but I can promise that your life will be different here. You'll have safety. Freedom—at least, as much freedom as any students can have. And most importantly, you'll be trained to use your powers, to make you stronger and more capable."

I chime in, "All I really told Lizzy was that this is an academy for phoenix, and that you kept me safe from our father all this time. I also mentioned that I would've come for her sooner if I hadn't been gone for so long. But we didn't really get into any details."

"Very well. I'll give a brief history lesson on the academy itself, for your benefit." Tilting the bowl back towards her, Towers stares into its depths with keen eyes. "Though I have the feeling I won't need to tell you much, Lizzy Wolfe, given what the bowl is now informing me."

"What is it?" I lean forward, a little eager, while Lizzy just pokes at her quickly-healing palm.

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