I tucked the schedule into my bag and couldn’t help thinking that Yasmin reminded me a lot of Maci. They were both so organized, not only for themselves but for me.
“Thank you again for this, Yasmin. I don’t know what I would do here without you.”
“It’s my pleasure. I’ve always wanted to mentor someone,and you’re super great to work with, so honestly, you’re doing me a favor.”
Just then, two other girls came and sat beside us. “B, this is Coral and Aurielle. They’re both first years with fern affinities, so they’ll be in your classes as well as your Friday Affinity Studies, if you end up having a lead fern affinity.”
Coral, her dark-brown skin smooth as silk, waved. “Hey, B.” I caught a trace of a Southern accent.
“Yes, we need more people in ferns!” Aurielle said, smiling at me in greeting before diving into her dinner. Her soft blond waves framed a round face that was sporting a slight sunburn.
“Nice to meet you both. I’d be happy to have a fern affinity like you all.”
The ferns in the corners of the courtyard began to rustle.
“I know Yasmin has affinities for mosses too. How do people determine what affinity group to study in on Fridays if they have multiple affinities?”
Coral was the first to answer. “You typically study whichever your strongest affinity is. We call that your lead affinity. You can train your trailing affinities as well, but most students only have one trailing affinity, if any. I’m a one-trick pony with ferns.”
I couldn’t help but smile at the slight twang in her accent, and she quirked an eyebrow at me.
“You’re wondering where I’m from, aren’t you?”
I smiled. “I wasn’t going to ask, but…”
She rolled her shoulders back and grinned. “It’s not a problem. Proud Louisianan here. Though I have to say, I like studying around the lakes here rather than the swamps back home. There are far fewer bugs too.”
“I’m from Connecticut,” Aurielle offered.
“And I’m from Arizona,” Yasmin said.
Aurielle and Coral looked at me expectantly. “I’m from here.”
“California?” Coral asked.
“Yep, but alsohere. Weed.”
Their eyebrows rose in surprise.
“Woah. A local. Your family must have moved here at some point because of the academy?” Coral asked.
I shook my head, questions swirling through my mind. Why did they assume there had to be a connection between my family and the academy if I lived here? Despite the friendly tones of the group, discomfort twisted in my stomach. There was still so much about this world—and myself—that I didn’t know.
I smiled at the three girls and stood. “I better get going. I live off campus, and my aunt is expecting me home before it gets too late. It’s great meeting both of you.”
Yasmin joined me on the walk to the entrance atrium. “I hope you didn’t feel like too much of a specimen back there. It’s just rare to have a local attending school here, so they were being a little nosy. Botanical magic runs in families, but most move away after finishing their studies.”
My head whipped toward her. “Botanical magic runs in families?”
She raised her eyebrows. “Of course. It’s a genetic trait. Professor East didn’t tell me much out of privacy for you, but he did mention that you were… new to all of this. So, you don’t know which of your parents it came from?”
My mind reeled. There was no way my father was a magicalbotanist. We’d only met a handful of times, but deep down, I knew it wasn’t possible. And my mother… My brain went wild at the thought. Though she’d loved plants and nature deeply, she’d never mentioned—and I’d never noticed—anything out of the ordinary.
Had my mom been a magical botanist? If so, what had been her affinities? My thoughts shifted to Aunt Vera, my mom’s twin sister. Didshehave plant magic? I blew out a breath, suddenly feeling unsteady.
“I’m sorry,” Yasmin said, seeming to sense my discomfort. “I didn’t realize you didn’t know your magical heritage. Typically, affinities run in families too. All of the recent generations of the Ortega family have also had affinities for mosses and ferns, so they’ve been able to pass down some tips.”
“Maybe that’s why we haven’t discovered any affinities for me yet. There’s no way it came from either of my parents. Wouldn’t there have been signs if they were magical botanists?”
