On
my first Sunday morning at WCH, I got up earlier than anyone else on campus. I
knew I was the only one awake because I did my Listening exercises right away.
Sitting cross-legged on my bed, I could feel that the sun had yet to peek over
the horizon and even the birds in the trees around the house were still asleep.
Professor
Vega was the one who had encouraged me to start Listening as soon as I woke up.
Yesterday I had stayed after class to ask her how I could move forward. She was
still trying to teach most of the others just to keep their minds quiet, and I
didn’t want to slide backwards while I waited for them to catch up.
As
I made my bed and headed to the bathroom for a shower, I tried to keep my
senses open as Professor Vega instructed. I was startled to find that I could
feel September stirring in her bedroom on the floor below. What was she doing
up this early? I was up because I had
a breakfast appointment with Professor Wilde; if it hadn’t been for that, I
would’ve slept until the robins woke me with their twittering. So why was she…?
I
closed the bathroom door behind me, and turned on the hot water in the clawfoot
tub. It wasn’t until I was standing in the shower that I realized I was still
tuned in to September and trying to figure out what she was doing. She radiated
such calm that I could feel it altering the air that surrounded her. I was so
fascinated in my ability to feel her presence in detail beyond a simple life
force that I let the water run until it turned ice-cold. My reaching senses
snapped off in shock. Shivering, I turned off the water and sat down on the
edge of the tub to think.
Somehow
I had been Listening to September moving around her room. And now that I was
reviewing the feeling, I thought that maybe she had noticed my… my what? My
presence? But I’d never detected a hint of it bothering her.
I
dwelled on the issue while I straightened my hair, but I didn’t come up with
any answers. And I really didn’t want to go knock on September’s door and get
an earful of her attitude, especially this early in the morning. So after I got
dressed I pushed everything to the back of my mind and set off for the
faculty’s houses.
The
sun was up and the birds were singing as I walked over to meet with Professor
Wilde. I was happy she had suggested we talk over breakfast and coffee so that
I would have the rest of the day to study. After the explosion in Poppy’s room
and the ensuing mountain of cupcakes we’d baked last night, I hadn’t gotten
anything done. Just the image of the stack of incomplete study guides sitting
on my desk made me anxious.
Most
of the professors at WCH lived in houses on campus quite similar to ours. At
first, this fact surprised me, but once I turned onto Teachers Row, I thought I
understood. Although all big Victorians, these houses had evidence of much more
modern styling. Most had flowers lining their front walkways and large oak
trees blocking out the rest of campus. Walking down the cul-de-sac, I had the
distinct feeling that I was entering another world.
None
of the houses were numbered, but I saw Professor Wilde almost right away. She
was standing in her yard waving her arms at me as though she was an air traffic
controller. The house behind her was painted cream and brown, and I suffered to
think of the colors of the Honeybee House. If only ours looked like this…
“Good
morning, pupil mine,” Professor Wilde said as she came out to meet me in the
road. “Ready to eat?”
“Absolutely,”
I said. I followed her up onto the wraparound porch. We sat in matching wicker
rocking chairs, and Professor Wilde made a sharp gesture with her hand. A low
table slid over to us bearing a tray laden with a carafe, cups, bread basket,
and fruit bowl.
“Muffin?”
Professor Wilde offered me the basket. Her eyes positively twinkled. I should’ve
guessed she was a morning person.
“Thank
you,” I said as I selected a blueberry muffin. It was still warm. “These smell
delicious.”
“They
are delicious. Melissa made them. Hasn’t she brought in snacks for you young’uns
yet?”
I
shook my head, my mouth too full to respond. It was the best blueberry muffin
I’d ever tasted in my life. I made a mental note to thank Professor Vega the
next time I saw her.
Professor
Wilde poured us both coffee and started drinking hers black. For a moment, she
was unusually silent, just watching me eat. I started feeling a bit
self-conscious so I put the pastry down on a plate and picked up my own coffee
cup.
“Um,
thank you for inviting me,” I started, not quite sure how to proceed.
Professor
Wilde waved her hand at me. “No need to thank me, Dana,” she said. “I’ve wanted
to talk with you one-on-one since I first saw you on campus. You should thank
me for waiting to do this until you were settled in.”
“Right,”
I said, my uncertainty rising. “Thank… you.”
“Drink
your coffee,” she replied. But her smile quickly faded into the serious look I
was now familiar with from class. “Listen, Dana, I know that WCH wasn’t your
first choice for college.”
“What?
No, I…”
“There’s
no need to pretend with me, sweetheart.”
I
shut my mouth. Our eyes met, and then I looked down at my feet.
“It’s
okay,” Professor Wilde said. “I understand better than you might be aware. I
was eighteen not that long ago.” She laughed. “Longer than I’d like to admit,
but that’s life. And when I was eighteen, I wanted to go to Salem too. Who
doesn’t? It’s the best school in the country for our kind, and all of the most
famous witches have come from there.”
I
nodded and glanced at her. She was smiling at me in the gentle way that
Professor Vega did. Where had all of her manic energy gone? This woman had more
sides to her personality than the Lernaean Hydra had heads.
“So,
Dana, what I want to know is… how can I help you?”
I
gripped my coffee cup tight in my hands to stop them from shaking. “Well, you don’t
know me very well yet, but if you could think about maybe writing me a
recommendation in the spring…”
“Oh,
honey.” She shook her head. “You need to grow a spine. That’s no way to ask
someone for help! Come on now. I know you’re smarter than this.”
I
felt my face flush, but I managed to set my coffee cup down without spilling it
as I turned toward her. “What I really want is a mentor,” I said, letting the
words come out in a rush. “I need to
get into Salem, and to do that I need more than perfect grades. I need to excel
in every way I possibly can so that they won’t be able to deny me again.”
Professor
Wilde pursed her lips. “I see. Yes, I suppose your initial application was
fairly exceptional. No need to nod, dear, I’m sure I’m correct.” She steepled
her hands and tapped her fingers against her chin. “I wonder why they denied
you in the first place?”
“I’ve
tried to figure that out all summer,” I said. “I called their admissions
office. I even tried to make an appointment with Antonia Rivers, but all of my
efforts were brushed off.”
“And
your mother…?”
“We
didn’t talk about it,” I said quickly. “She’s extremely busy.”
Professor
Wilde regarded me with narrowed eyes but didn’t bring it up again. Instead, she
stood up and lifted her coffee cup toward me.
“Why
don’t we make a deal then, Dana? I’ll help you do whatever you need to do to
get your application to Salem accepted if you’ll agree to come work for me
during the summer.”
“W-work
for you?” I said, although my spirits were soaring with her offer of help.
“Yes,”
she said. “I’m writing my first textbook and I could really use a talented
assistant. From what I’ve seen in class so far, you’re more qualified than most
of the Dedicants and Casters running around campus. And last night Valentina
told me something about you that made me sure I’m right about your casting abilities.”
It
took me a moment to remember that Valentina was Dean Dobronravov’s given name.
“I
wasn’t… I didn’t know what I was doing,” I said.
“Nonsense,”
Professor Wilde said. “I was quite impressed by your efforts. You followed your
instincts and quite likely saved your house and your Head Witch from further
damage. Being capable of such clear thinking in a crisis is the mark of a great
witch.” She winked at me. “Now, come on. Stand up! Are we going to make a deal
or what?”
I
hastily stood.
“Well?”
She smiled. “What do you say, Dana?”
My
mind raced, but what was there to think about really? I’d be gaining everything
I wanted, in addition to an amazing line on my future résumé. I stuck my hand
out with a grin.
“Thank
you so much for this,” I said as we shared a firm handshake. “I promise to live
up to your expectations, Professor Wilde.”
“Oh
no, dear. You must pass them!” She laughed. “And you must call me Natalie now. We’re
going to be partners in crime after all.” She laughed again at the look on my
face. “Just a turn of phrase, Dana! Calm down.”
Over
the rest of our breakfast we decided to meet every Monday and Thursday in one
of the classrooms in the Cauldron. I left Teachers Row feeling more determined
than ever to work as hard as I could to get into SIW. With Professor Wilde on
my side – calling her Natalie again still felt strange – I felt truly confident
in my chances at a transfer.
I
was so pumped up about everything that I immediately headed back to my room in
the Honeybee House and cracked open every textbook I owned. I was elbows deep
in studying the known techniques for introducing oneself to a domestic housecat
when I heard giggling. It was quickly followed by frantic shushing and the
sound of a window slamming shut.
Determined
to ignore what had to be the other girls making full use of their free time
with some kind of shenanigans, I got up from my desk to close my bedroom door. And
then it struck me for the first time that if I left WCH I would also be leaving
the only three friends I had in the world outside of my family.
I
glanced at my piles of books and notes, and then went down the hall to find the
source of the giggling. Nicola’s door was ajar, so I poked my head in. The
other girls (minus September, of course) were all hunkered down on the floor in
front of her window.
Echo’s
head turned at the sound of me clearing my throat. “Oh, Dana!” she said in a
loud whisper. “Quick, get in here!”
I
crossed the room and crouched down beside them. “What’s going on?” I said. Echo
was stifling giggles in the crook of her arm as Angelica peered over the
windowsill.
“The
older girls are returning,” Nicola told me. She was scribbling in her notebook.
“And Angelica took it upon herself to organize a class prank on them.”
“Class
prank?” I suddenly remembered that Angelica and Echo had been whispering
together last night while Nicola and I cleaned up the kitchen.
Nicola
shrugged and went on scribbling. “Angelica’s sisters told her prank wars
between the classes are a campus tradition. She wanted to get the jump on them
before they even arrived.”
“What’d
you do?” I asked Angelica, afraid to hear the answer.
“It
wasn’t just me,” she told me with a sly look. “I made sure someone from every
neophyte house helped.”
“Sink
or swim, we’ll do it together!” said Echo. Her smile reminded me of my sister’s
when she made up her mind to defy Mom in some way. I shook my head.
“Don’t
worry, Dana,” Angelica said. “We just filled their beds with pinecones. They
probably won’t even notice until tonight.”
“Their
beds with…?”
“And
their kitchen sinks!” Echo added brightly. “And Angie was thinking that next
time we could take some of the chickens from Speaking class and--”
“Hush,
Echo. And don’t call me Angie, huh?”
I
rubbed the bridge of my nose. Nicola gave my arm a gentle pat and whispered,
“It’s okay. Professor Carmichael keeps a close eye on those chickens.” She
turned her notebook around and showed me the sketch she’d just finished of our
housemates drowning in feathers. I laughed.
“Hey,
keep it down!” Angelica hissed. “I’m trying to spy.”
“Sorry,
sorry,” I said. I peeked over the windowsill with her. Because our house was
the closest neophyte residence to the older girls’ houses, I could see the
street was packed with new arrivals. Unlike our first day, there were no cars.
If everyone had flown, I wondered how they’d managed to transport the mountains
of suitcases I could see. I said as much to Angelica and she gave me a startled
look.
“Figures
the first thing I know about witches that you don’t would be something this
simple…” she muttered. “Yeah, everyone flies to campus if they can because it’s
so much faster. And a symbol of the fact that you learned how in your first year
here. But there’s no magic involved in how their stuff gets here, Dana. It’s
all transported by bus. Look, see? There’s Dean Lona’s kid bringing a bunch up
the hill on a cart.”
Watching
the older girls greet each other with smiles and hugs and excited conversation
was more than enough to make me feel guilty at my concerted efforts to get away
from WCH. I glanced at the girls beside me and wondered if there was any way
I’d meet a group so open and friendly at Salem. Being familiar with the
reputation of SIW’s students, I didn’t think so.
A
moment later the shrieking started. We pressed close to each other to look down
the street. The house diagonally across from ours was an Initiate residence
called Raven, and we watched with bated breath as the front door flew open. A
tall girl with flaming red hair emerged, and her eyes went immediately to our
house. She scanned it from bottom to top and stopped cold when she saw us in
the window.
Nicola,
Echo, and I all ducked beneath the sill. But Angelica stood up. And then she
opened the window!
“What
are you doing!” I said.
“She
already saw us,” Angelica replied with a grin. “Look, she’s coming over to say
hi. Hello down there….! What’s your name?”
“You
think this is funny?” The older girl’s reply was slightly muffled by the
distance, but I could hear genuine anger in her voice.
“Hell
yeah!” Angelica said. “Bet you weren’t expecting us lowly Neophytes to get the
jump on you.”
I
didn’t hear the other girl’s reply, but I did hear another window slide open.
“Far
be it for me to interrupt this fascinating conversation,” September’s voice
drawled. “But some people are trying to study.”
Angelica
sank to the floor laughing. I poked my head up enough to see that the Initiate
was stalking back to her own house.
“I’m
having second thoughts about this.” Echo’s nose wrinkled. “I didn’t think
they’d be mad about it.”
“Oh
whatever,” Angelica said. “It’s all in good fun. I’m sure that girl was just
being moody. Besides, you can’t have second thoughts now! You have to help me
plan our retaliation.”
“Retaliation?”
Nicola asked.
“They’re
bound to strike back soon,” Angelica said. Her dark eyes glimmered with
anticipation. “We want to be prepared.”
The
others convinced me to abandon my studying for the rest of the day, and shortly
thereafter we trooped off to the Cafnasium for lunch. Angelica gathered some of
the girls from the other houses over for a conference on potential retaliation
tactics. I thought it was a bit presumptuous to plan revenge for an attack that
hadn’t happened yet, but resigned myself to Angelica’s marshalling of the
troops. The professors probably encouraged us in endeavors like this in order
to build class spirit.
September
showed up when the rest of us were nearly done with our meals. I was surprised to
see that she was not alone, but walking with a gaggle of the newly arrived
Initiates. The redhead who had come over to yell at Angelica seemed to be the
ringleader, and she steered everyone over to an empty table near ours.
I
nudged Angelica’s arm and pointed out the newcomers. She looked them over and
rolled her eyes.
“Figures
we’d be the ones stuck living with the traitor,” she remarked just loudly
enough for the other table to hear. September glanced at her with narrowed
eyes, but didn’t return the volley.
“Maybe
we should invite her over,” Echo said, her forehead creasing with worry.
“I
agree,” Nicola said after a moment’s hesitation. She tipped her head toward
Angelica. “Wouldn’t it be better if she was on our side?”
“What?
And have her go blabbing all of our secrets to them?” Angelica shook her head. “Come on, guys. This isn’t fun
unless you act like there are stakes to roots for. We can be the Gryffindors to
their Slytherins.”
“I
thought you didn’t read!” Echo said.
“Everyone’s
read Harry Potter.” Angelica smirked.
I
fiddled with my salad fork, too ashamed to say that I thought as long as they
remained friends with me, September would never be on ‘our side.’ If only there
was some way I could convince her that I was none of the things she thought
about me… Of course, once my plans to leave WCH for SIW became public
knowledge, I’d never be able to convince her. Or anyone else for that matter.
“Hey.
You. You’re a Chanterelle, right?”
We
all looked up to find the red-haired Initiate standing in front of Angelica.
“Yeah?
So what?” Angelica crossed her arms. The rest of us tensed. I even noticed that
the chatter in the hall had dimmed. Great.
More drama, I thought with an internal sigh.
“My
name is Serena Welch,” the girl said with a dazzlingly white smile. “I’m sorry
about the attitude I gave you earlier. It’s just that last year, I kind of ran
the prank war. I guess I was jealous that someone else managed to start the
battle before me.” She stuck out her hand. “It was well done.”
Angelica
stood up slowly, appraising the other girl from toes to forehead. We all held
our breath. Finally, she stuck out her hand. They shared a firm handshake while
the rest of us looked around at each other, slightly baffled. The hum of other
conversations resumed around us. Apparently there wasn’t going to be any drama.
‘Welch,
huh?” Angelica said. “Are you Grace Welch’s younger sister?”
Serena
shook her head. “First cousin. But you must be Ashley and Amanda’s sister. I’ve
heard legends about them.”
“Legends?”
Angelica grinned. “I didn’t realize they were famous here.”
“Sure.
They used to pull off the best stunts. In fact, your house mate over there just
reminded me of my favorite one.”
September
crooked her fingers in a little wave from the other table, and then launched a
spoonful of mashed potatoes at us. It hit Nicola’s plate with a splat sending
her uneaten mound of peas flying in every direction. For a moment, everyone was
silent. And then every non-neophyte in the hall stood up with a handful of food
and threw it directly at our table.
Echo
shrieked. Nicola grabbed my hand and pulled me down under the table. I could
hear Angelica laughing and cursing. Applesauce dripped down over the edge of the
table and landed on Nicola’s boots. She hurried to pull them out of harm’s way.
“Rally,
girls!” I heard Angelica shout. “To me, to me!”
Were
we in a Lord of the Rings movie? I looked at Nicola and she looked back at me
with huge eyes.
“They’re
going to get us all in so much trouble,” I said breathlessly.
“Hey!”
Angelica ducked below the table. “What are you two doing down here? This is
war! Get up and fight!” She scooped up some of the applesauce and smeared it
across her cheeks with a fierce grin before disappearing again.
Nicola’s
mouth dropped in horror. I felt a smile coming on. The situation was so absurd.
“Let’s go help them,” I said. “We might as well before someone else finds us
under here.”
I
emerged from the table to find Angelica leading most of the other neophytes in
a pitched battle of flying food against everyone else in the hall.
“Hey,
Bolete!”
I
turned just in time to get another spoonful of mashed potatoes to the chin. I
wiped the offending food away with my sleeve and saw September doubled over
laughing at her table. I grabbed a roll from my plate and hurled it at her with
my best softball pitch. …But my best pitch wasn’t very good because the roll
sailed over September’s head and bounced off an empty chair. September laughed
even harder.
Echo
had pulled back from the front lines to help defend Nicola and her notebook.
She saw me and pressed another roll into my hand. “Try again!” she said. There
was raspberry jelly dripping from her ear.
I
threw the new roll and missed again so badly that I wondered if there was magic
at work. September struck a model-like pose and waited.
“Come
on, Bolete, I thought you could do anything,” she taunted. “Not so good outside
of the classroom, are you?”
Echo
pushed a whole basket of rolls toward me. I gritted my teeth and started hurling
them at September, one after another after another. September watched them fly
past her shoulder, over her head, and never moved an inch. I stared down at the
empty basket in my hands.
“You
have some kind of shield up, don’t you?” I said, furrowing my brow. Of course,
I couldn’t distinguish one with all of the other girls in the room casting
minor spells to improve their aim and so forth. Crap! Why didn’t I think of that?
“Nope.”
September smiled and although it still seemed falsely sweet, it wasn’t the
sarcastic, bitter expression I’d grown used to over the past week. “You’re just
that bad, hon.”
“Dana,
duck!”
I
barely had time to register Nicola’s warning before a girl wielding a meringue
pie got me in the face. Peals of laughter rang through the dining hall. I wiped
custard from my eyes and smiled ruefully. What else could I do?
-----
No comments:
Post a Comment