together and
battling as one combined force instead of as uncooperating, separate parts.
Lisabelle had helped her.
Sip sighed and plopped onto one
of the blue couches. Keller and I sat together on another.
“Sip, are you okay?” Keller
asked. He too had noticed that she’d been acting strangely on and off since we
escaped the latest demon attack.
She shook her head. “No, I’m not
okay, not really. I watched a committee member die, then had a bubble shoved in
my face about it. That doesn’t qualify as okay. Not all the good food in the
world will make that loss of life alright.”
Keller nodded sympathetically. I
could see he was quietly trying to check her vitals. When he was satisfied, he
sat back on the couch and wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
“Classes start for us tomorrow,”
said Lisabelle quietly. “We can’t have a meeting of the Sign of Six before
then. In fact, we might want to keep that organization under wraps this
semester.”
Sip looked aghast. “It’s the one
thing that will help me heal,” she protested, glaring at Lisabelle, who leaned
against one of three mantels in the room. “I’m not going to keep my head down
and hide like I’m afraid. The Nocturns would love that.”
“Do you think Faci will try to
attack us this semester, with Golden Falls being so opposed to violence?” I
asked.
“I think Faci will get someone
else to do his dirty work if possible. Isn’t that the Nocturn way?” said
Lisabelle bitterly. “If that doesn’t work, then maybe he will. I think Golden
Falls will have to kill him to keep him from doing violence, and since they
aren’t willing to use violence, well, it gets complicated.”
“He’s perfectly happy to hurt
innocent creatures in the shadows. Let’s see how he feels about fighting
something that knows how to fight back in the light.”
“Are you going to be okay here?”
I asked. It was something I’d been worrying about since we arrived. I hadn’t
realized how much Falls disliked darkness, and Lisabelle was chock-full of it.
Lisabelle looked at me sharply,
her face taking on the now familiar unreadable mask. “What do you mean?”
I looked away, around the
beautiful suite we’d be calling home for the next few months.
“Darkness calls to darkness,” I
said. “Golden Falls hates darkness. I’m just worried that they’ll try to trap
you, or something will happen with the little darkness around us.”
Lisabelle nodded. “You’re right
to be worried about it.” Her concession surprised me. “Golden Falls is a
dangerous place for any darkness mage. My plan is to just keep my head down and
not draw attention to myself.”
“My plan is to be five feet
taller by Friday,” Sip muttered. “You know what they say about the best laid
plans. . . .”
Despite our worries, we all went
to sleep with high hopes for Golden Falls.
Chapter Fourteen
Our first day at Golden Falls
wasn’t an unmixed pleasure.
First, I didn’t see Keller at
all, not once, not even at meals. He had said they would keep him busy learning
the ropes, but I hadn’t realized that he would be so busy he wouldn’t have time
for lunch. Second, all the students stared at me. I had forgotten that that was
likely to happen. Third, Faci. Enough said. Fourth, Golden Falls was like the
twilight zone. I had seen incredible things since magic became a part of my
daily life, but nothing like the splendid castle of Golden Falls. It wasn’t
bad, but it was an adjustment. And lastly, something very strange happened with
Kia.
As we headed to breakfast, the
small pixie was nowhere to be seen. The rest of us filed quietly out of our
suite, having bathed (no showers, just, yes, you guessed it, gold bathtubs) in
piping hot rose water. Both she and Camilla had been gone when we got up in the
morning.
“Can you believe we’re sharing a
suite with Camilla?” I muttered, glad that Cale’s former girlfriend was nowhere
to be seen.
“I’m just impressed she
battling as one combined force instead of as uncooperating, separate parts.
Lisabelle had helped her.
Sip sighed and plopped onto one
of the blue couches. Keller and I sat together on another.
“Sip, are you okay?” Keller
asked. He too had noticed that she’d been acting strangely on and off since we
escaped the latest demon attack.
She shook her head. “No, I’m not
okay, not really. I watched a committee member die, then had a bubble shoved in
my face about it. That doesn’t qualify as okay. Not all the good food in the
world will make that loss of life alright.”
Keller nodded sympathetically. I
could see he was quietly trying to check her vitals. When he was satisfied, he
sat back on the couch and wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
“Classes start for us tomorrow,”
said Lisabelle quietly. “We can’t have a meeting of the Sign of Six before
then. In fact, we might want to keep that organization under wraps this
semester.”
Sip looked aghast. “It’s the one
thing that will help me heal,” she protested, glaring at Lisabelle, who leaned
against one of three mantels in the room. “I’m not going to keep my head down
and hide like I’m afraid. The Nocturns would love that.”
“Do you think Faci will try to
attack us this semester, with Golden Falls being so opposed to violence?” I
asked.
“I think Faci will get someone
else to do his dirty work if possible. Isn’t that the Nocturn way?” said
Lisabelle bitterly. “If that doesn’t work, then maybe he will. I think Golden
Falls will have to kill him to keep him from doing violence, and since they
aren’t willing to use violence, well, it gets complicated.”
“He’s perfectly happy to hurt
innocent creatures in the shadows. Let’s see how he feels about fighting
something that knows how to fight back in the light.”
“Are you going to be okay here?”
I asked. It was something I’d been worrying about since we arrived. I hadn’t
realized how much Falls disliked darkness, and Lisabelle was chock-full of it.
Lisabelle looked at me sharply,
her face taking on the now familiar unreadable mask. “What do you mean?”
I looked away, around the
beautiful suite we’d be calling home for the next few months.
“Darkness calls to darkness,” I
said. “Golden Falls hates darkness. I’m just worried that they’ll try to trap
you, or something will happen with the little darkness around us.”
Lisabelle nodded. “You’re right
to be worried about it.” Her concession surprised me. “Golden Falls is a
dangerous place for any darkness mage. My plan is to just keep my head down and
not draw attention to myself.”
“My plan is to be five feet
taller by Friday,” Sip muttered. “You know what they say about the best laid
plans. . . .”
Despite our worries, we all went
to sleep with high hopes for Golden Falls.
Chapter Fourteen
Our first day at Golden Falls
wasn’t an unmixed pleasure.
First, I didn’t see Keller at
all, not once, not even at meals. He had said they would keep him busy learning
the ropes, but I hadn’t realized that he would be so busy he wouldn’t have time
for lunch. Second, all the students stared at me. I had forgotten that that was
likely to happen. Third, Faci. Enough said. Fourth, Golden Falls was like the
twilight zone. I had seen incredible things since magic became a part of my
daily life, but nothing like the splendid castle of Golden Falls. It wasn’t
bad, but it was an adjustment. And lastly, something very strange happened with
Kia.
As we headed to breakfast, the
small pixie was nowhere to be seen. The rest of us filed quietly out of our
suite, having bathed (no showers, just, yes, you guessed it, gold bathtubs) in
piping hot rose water. Both she and Camilla had been gone when we got up in the
morning.
“Can you believe we’re sharing a
suite with Camilla?” I muttered, glad that Cale’s former girlfriend was nowhere
to be seen.
“I’m just impressed she
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