Page 85 of The Holy Academy of Witches

“Oh my God! No!” They replied,

“Yeahhh,” I said. “In fact, I think he has a boyfriend.”

“That is SO sad.”

“SO sad,” the blonde agreed.

I smirked to myself and shuffled forward as the line moved along. Creeping ever slowly into the bathroom itself.

I paused as I felt a strange rumbling underfoot. Straightening up, I looked around, no one else was reacting at all. Probably just the music, I thought to myself as the queue moved again. Before the thought could even fully leave my mind, a huge explosion rocked the building.

The ceiling lights shuddered and blinked in and out before staying dark completely, the windows along one side of the building blew out with the force and dust billowed out from every crack and crevice. There was a moment of pure silence, save for the ringing in my ears, before the screaming started.

Magic and adrenaline rushed through my body, my gift was tearing through my bloodstream, itching for release. I closed my eyes and took a steadying breath. A cool calm settled over me as I took in the chaos, the two girls who had been nearest to me were huddled on the floor, clinging to one another. I brushed off my dress and took off my heels, dropping by five inches. I placed them in my bag with a discreet shrinking charm and took stock of the situation.

Shards of glass and rubble littered the ground, some nearby party goers were knocked unconscious - their friends trying to drag them away from the large windows.

I stepped through the glass carefully but still felt the sharp slivers slicing into my feet as I navigated my way back towards the stage. There was no immediate sign of what caused the explosion, leading me to believe it hadn’t been in this building. At least that was something. My magic was ready regardless. People were shoving past each other, their minds lost to panic. I looked around myself and with frustration, pulled out my phone to use as a torch. I couldn’t use magic around all these mortals, the risk of there being any witnesses and the subsequent headache of wiping their memories was too great.

I pushed my way through the crowds, weaving through the knocked over tables and chairs till I saw Sage, sitting on the floor, her phone clutched in her hand so tightly her knuckles had paled.

“Sage?” I called out as I reached her, she didn’t move an inch. Was she hurt? I walked around her and crouched till I was at eye level. She was frozen in shock, her eyes were wide and unseeing, her pupils blown wide despite the light from my torch. “Sage.” I repeated, lightly touching her arm.

She flinched away from me, her eyes refocusing as she looked at me. “It’s okay, it’s me… it’s Adeline. Are you hurt?”

She shook her head wordlessly, closing her eyes tightly. “We need to get out of here, okay? Can you move?” I asked gently. When she didn’t reply, I looked around for Cillian. The stage was empty, at least he wasn’t lying there hurt. “Come on, Sage,” I grabbed her arm, tugging at her to stand, which she did. I slid my hand into hers and pulled her along with me till we got outside.

The cool night air was unforgiving against my bare feet and legs, the small cuts along my calves and feet stinging. Sirens had begun in the distance and the night sky was filled with smoke and pieces of floating debris, paper and the like burning away into ash.

“Oh thank the Gods!” Cillian was upon us within seconds, his eyes searching my body, a frown pulling his brows as he took in my unclad feet.

“Heels are an unnecessary hazard.” I explained, and looked to Sage. Cillian followed my gaze and stood in front of Sage.

“Sage?” He spoke her name in a soft voice, tilting her chin up to look at him. She opened her eyes and they flashed a magnificent blue, the blue of a frozen lake in deepest winter, the blue of an early morning sky, the blue of magic. Instead of the concern or confusion I felt, Cillian showed recognition, immediately making a move to shield her, he tucked her under his arm and spoke quiet soothing words to her.

The street was crawling with police and paramedics within minutes. Cillian excused himself to go speak with one of the officers. When I looked back at Sage, her back was straighter and her eyes were roaming our surroundings with a defensive glare.

“What the hell happened?!” Sage asked.

“Presumably another terrorist attack.”

“But there’s so many mundane’s around?”

“There usually is…”

“It’s disgusting.”

Her eyes had returned to her usual hue, curious. “Where’s your jacket?”

“Dammit, it must be inside.” She turned as though to head back in. I caught her arm.

“Where are you going?”

“To get my jacket.” She said slowly, as though I was the idiot here.

“You’re not going back in there.”

“Yes I am. You’re not my mom, Adeline. I’ll be two minutes tops!” She snapped and walked away before I could say anything else. Okay, so she wasn’t scared any more.

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