“To determine the status of a faerie ring, all you must do is wave your hand over it, and say the word ‘reveala’. It’s a basic indicator charm that I placed on the circles in case I forgot where the previously discovered ones were located. If someone has discovered the ring already, it will glow a soft lilac hue. If it’s an undiscovered ring, which would surprise me, the charm will do nothing. Active faerie rings do not glow unless a fae has recently passed through it.”
I wonderedhow Ms. Seeley had come up with her own charm, and if this was really as basic as she thought. After two-and-a-half months of school, we’d only covered a few incantations, most of them in Conjuring class. In our practical classes, we’d largely stuck with learning how to manipulate our innate, raw magics. It was magic that all witches were capable of—the basics. They considered charms more advanced, since they could intensify our natural powers, similar to how totems and familiars worked.Of course, many people already knew over a dozen spells because their parents had taught them before they arrived at Spellcasters.
I was not among those people, and hoped we’d learn more charms soon. Knowing a few more magical words might give me a boost during my first trial.
“Oh, and one more thing.” Our professor smiled, and two sweet dimples appeared in her cheeks. “The teams that find a faerie circle will receive a reward green-lighted by the headmistress herself. Best of luck to you all.” Ms. Seeley swept her arms wide, and we trudged into the forest.
Chapter Fifteen
Alex led the way into the woods. The evidence of Fall became more obvious and enchanting the deeper we trudged into the forest. Whereas the academy lawn was still pure green, thanks to concentrated magic floating in the air around the main building, inside the forest looked very different. Many of the leaves on the trees were now various shades of flaming reds, vibrant oranges, and golden yellows, which made my heart quicken. In L.A., we didn’t have four distinct seasons, so experiencing a traditional East Coast autumn was amazing.
All of a sudden, Alex whirled around with a pointed stare, ripping me from taking in the pleasant scenery, and making my heart skip a beat.
Whoa, calm yourself, ovaries. You may be stupidly attracted to him, but he hates me, remember?
“Did you hear that?” Alex asked.
I turned away to enhance my concentration. After a moment of standing in silence, nothing obvious hit my ear.
“What was it?”
“I thought I heard . . . faint humming.”
My eyebrows furrowed, and Alex rolled his eyes.
“Don’t you remember what Ms. Seeley said about looking for faerie rings?”
My mind raced, but nothing I recalled seemed to fit this scenario. “I only remember her saying it would glow lilac with that charm.”
He shook his head. “Not earliertoday. When she first introduced the concept. All the discovered faerie circles around Spellcasters have been charmed closed. People have been searching for decades, and they’ve only found twenty. Twelve were discovered by Ms. Seeley because—well, she has a special connection. But Iswearthere was humming, and that’s a sign of anopenfaerie circle.” Alex spoke slowly, like he thought I wouldn’t get it, but I brushed it off in light of the interesting information.
“But we’re not very deep into the woods. Wouldn’t they have found something this close to the academy a long time ago? Especially with Ms. Seeley’s connection?”
Alex chewed his plump bottom lip. A vision of me reaching out and stroking his jaw to relieve his worries arose in my mind before I pushed the dream away.
Dammit, why do all the hot ones have to be so frustrating?
“You make a decent point, Legacy,” he gritted out.
My hands landed on my hips. “I don’t appreciate—”
A sound hit my ear, and my mouth snapped shut as I whirled about.
Alex rushed to my side. “You heard it, didn’t you?”
I nodded. “Do you think it’s one of our classmates screwing around? Or maybe Ms. Seeley is trying to throw some people off? Make the hunt harder?”
“I don’t think so. Can’t you sense the magic in it?” For the first time since I’d known him, Alex’s tone didn’t sound short or hold the slightest bit of disdain for me.
I closed my eyes and listened. It came in fits and spurts, but every time a low note reached my ears, I realized he was right. There was a power to the music, a resonance and energy my bones recognized, like when I used my magic—but alien.
“Yes. Holy hell, Alex! This could be amazing! What would the professors do if we found an active faerie circle?”
Alex almost looked like he wanted to smile, but instead he took a step toward the sound. “Let’s find out.”
We followed the hum deeper and deeper into the woods.
“Alex? Where does Spellcasters’ property line end?”
