Ardetia stiffened. “Here?”
I nodded.
“Can it be reversed?” Stella asked.
“I don’t think it’s that simple,” Nova said. “This isn’t magiccast. It’s magicinvited.”
A chill ran down my spine.
Keegan stepped closer. “How long has it been happening?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I only noticed it tonight. It started with the lanterns. One by one.”
“They weren’t just going out,” Nova added. “They werevacating.”
“Someone cleared the light,” Stella whispered, catching on. “So it couldn’t reflect what was there.”
Twobble crossed his arms, eyes narrowed. “Someone wanted the shimmer to go unnoticed.”
No one spoke.
Until Keegan asked, “Do we stop the field trip?”
I didn’t answer immediately as my mind spun with what tomorrow promised. Stonewick was just beyond the Academy’s safe bounds, the students were excited, and the promise of a normal day waited just over the hill.
But this?
This wasn’t normal.
This was a door creaking open, so softly that no one noticed.
“I don’t know,” I said quietly. “But I think it might be safer to go than to stay.”
Nova nodded once. “We’ll double the shielding spells on the Academy when we leave. Ardetia and I can anchor two of the Wards tonight to ensure they're solid.”
Keegan looked at me.
“I’ll keep my eyes open,” I said. “Everywhere.”
We all knew something had begun.
And it wasn’t just about the Academy anymore.
It was about what was watching from beyond the shimmer.
And what it wanted to let in.
That was when it hit me.
Whatever it was had already come inside.
But the question was...
Could we get it out?
Chapter Twenty-Six
Morning unfurled across Stonewick like a quilt being pulled over sleepy shoulders. Sunlight dappled through mostly bare-limbed trees, feeling like spring had finally gathered the courage to knock.
