My temper surged out of control. “Fucking leave it, Arron!” Lightning blasted the wall above the fireplace, leaving a scorch mark. With a muttered curse, Arron threw his hands in the air and rolled his eyes.
“Fine, whatever. I have a paper to write anyway. So feel free to drink yourself to death. I literally don’t give a fuck at this point.” He smirked as he said it, but I didn’t need mage mind magic to know my friend was hurt and annoyed at my refusal to admit why I’d lost my head.
Oh well. He’d get over it.
I gave no shits.
Now that my life was over, pissing off my best friend was the least of my worries.
7
Raven
Ayawn escaped as I followed the map in my hand. After being here less than a day, I had no clue where anything was. Luckily, I’d found a map in my student folder, as well as a lesson plan.
My first class this morning wasThe History of Magical Beings, which sounded interesting.
Adam’s library had few history books, so there were significant gaps in my knowledge. While I knew about the origin of the witches and how the original families came from Salem in Massachusetts, I knew very little about other magical species.
Last night’s storm had blown down several trees on the edge of the sports fields. It had started the minute I left the food hall, hungry and covered in tomato soup.
My mood dipped as I thought about that asshole. I hoped he had a shitty day.
But the minute the thought entered my head, my chest twinged. Why did my magic not like me thinking mean thoughts about him?It made no sense. If anyone deserved to be the recipient of my mean thoughts, it was the unfairly handsome mage.
I tramped down a gravel path, trying to ignore the pain in my chest. Was I suffering from heartburn caused by sleep deprivation? The stars knew I hadn’t slept well thanks to vivid dreams about sexy bear shifters and arrogant blond mages.
If I had time during this detention, I’d look for valerian and chamomile to make a sleep potion. It seemed likely the kitchen garden would have a section for herbs.
To my astonishment, the kitchen garden turned out to be way bigger than I expected. Greenhouses stretched along the entire length of the main academy building, filled with vegetables, herbs, edible flowers, and dozens of exotic plants.
Beyond lay a field containing rows of crops. My jaw dropped. This school was entirely self-sufficient. There was even a fenced coop and chicken house, where cute, fluffy white birds clucked and squawked in excitement as a small mousy girl tossed grain at them. When she looked up, recognition sparked. I’d seen her in the witch’s common room.
I waved and smiled at her. The witch’s peach aura brightened for a moment, then faded. Just as I was about to walk over and say hello, the teacher who’d given me detention blinked into view, her gray hair braided in coils around her head, making her look like a warrior queen. Whereas last night in the dining hall she’d worn a blazer, this morning she’d chosen loose overalls and work boots.
I missed my old overalls. There had been nothing suitable for gardening work in my closet, so I’d had no choice but to pull on some sweats with an academy-branded sweatshirt.
“Good, you’re on time.” The teacher hummed in approval. What was her name? Was I supposed to know it?
She half smiled. “You can call me Miss Windborne.” I blinked. Had she read my mind?
“Yes, because your shields are nonexistent. You’ll need to work on them, or the other students will take advantage.”
I flushed with embarrassment. Nobody had ever told me to shield my thoughts before. Stars, had the witches at home been privy to all my stupid thoughts?
Miss Windborne chuckled. “Not unless you were broadcasting them extremely loudly. Most witches need to exert a lot of energy to breach someone’s mind, so weaker witches can’t do it without casting a spell. Unless your witch friends were powerful, I doubt they’d have wasted their time and energy trying to read your mind.”
I huffed out a sigh of relief. Thank the goddess. Nobody needed to know about my sexy dreams featuring a certain… I quickly locked my thoughts down, picturing a metal door slamming in my head.
Miss Windborne’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Well done. I’m impressed, Miss Blackstone. You’re more powerful than I realized.”
Huh?
“You shielded your thoughts from me. It takes most witches several lessons to get the hang of shielding, yet you managed it instinctively with no guidance.” She nodded in approval. “But you lose focus too quickly, so we must work on that.” Her eyes went cloudy for a moment while she thought about something, giving me time to peek at her aura.
Mellow green with hints of blue and gold told me Miss Windborne was an earth witch with a water affinity. Her presence in the garden made perfect sense. Not only could she enhance the plants, but she could also irrigate them.
My magic was fire-based, but I’d always had an affinity for plants too. No earth magic, sadly. I just enjoyed being in nature; I always had.
