Asher’s chuckle brought my attention back to him, and hopping up on my tiptoes I pressed my lips to his—he still had to lower his head for me to reach. “Are we going to figure out how to fix this together?” I asked when I pulled back.
He shook his head. “You’re going to go to class, and I’m going to figure out how much power is needed to move this amount of water.” He turned to Axl. “I might need your help with the calculations.”
Axl nodded, already pulling his notepad out of his satchel … orman bag,as Calen called it.
“I want to help too,” I protested, lowering my voice. “You’re probably going to need me. I did this after all.”
“It can wait until after class,” he said, and I relented because I really didn’t want to miss classes.
“Yeah, okay,” I said, “but I’m going to be back here this afternoon, so you better not do anything until then.”
His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, but he at least nodded. For Asher, that was as good as his word. Larissa linked her arm through mine then and with vampire strength dragged me away from the guys. I really didn’t want to leave. I looked back multiple times before we ended up in the commons.
When I couldn’t see them anymore, I let out a huff of air, shoulders curving forward. “It’s going to be okay,” Larissa said, squeezing my hand tightly. “There were always going to be small hiccups while you’re figuring out your powers. Don’t despair, we all went through it. Most of us are still going through it.”
I nodded. Her reassurances rang true but they didn’t make me feel any better. “I’m scared I’ll never be able to handle this energy,” I admitted. “Maybe I shouldn’t be here, around other students. What if I hurt someone?”
Larissa ground to a halt, and even though she was much shorter than me, she was strong, stopping me as well. “This is the best place for you,” she said fiercely. “Here you will learn to harness your strength. Strength you would not have been born with if you couldn’t handle it.”
I searched her blue eyes, trying to find some unease in them, but there was none. “I’ve got this,” I said, hoping if I said it enough, one day I’d believe it.
Larissa snorted. “Girl, you’ve got this and everything else the world throws at you. Don’t dull your light for anyone. You’re the most powerful supe in this school … maybe in the world, if Louis is right. Own your awesome.”
I laughed and shook my head. “The life I grew up with … it’s hard to ever think of myself as powerful or special. But I am a survivor. I’ve survived everything that has been thrown at me so far, and I’m not ready to give in yet.”
Which meant I was going to class and I was going to figure out how to control this power.
9
Sword and Sorcery was held in the same room as last year. I enjoyed the familiar sensation of walking across the magical bark from thejujeniattree that covered the floor. It was squishy but somehow still firm, and it brought back immediate memories of last year’s classes.
“Maddi!” Simon shouted as he raced for me.
I wrapped my arms around him for a quick hug, so happy to see him again. He’d gone home over the Christmas break, as had most of the other students, arriving back only yesterday.
“I hoped you’d be in this class with me,” he said, pulling back so I could see his blue eyes, black curls dancing about his face. He looked to have filled out a little since I’d seen him last, and was over six feet now.
“How were your holidays?” I asked as we strode over to where everyone was gathering.
Simon shrugged. “Went on a few archeological digs, which was amazing, but also had to spend a lot of time with the family, which was terrible.”
Simon’s family were snobby fucks, treating him like he was this random powerless moron they got saddled with. They couldn’t see the kind, extremely intelligent supe he was. A supe who loved history just like them. A supe who had done very well at school last year despite not being the most powerful magic user around.
They were missing all of his amazing, and I knew it hurt him, no matter how dismissive he was of them.
I squeezed his hand but didn’t say anything; class was starting. Striker stood at the front of the room, near the wall of weapons. He was near seven feet tall, rocking his bald head, tribal tattoos, and badass attitude. Striker was a warrior first and a teacher second, and his life experience made him an invaluable member of the Academy faculty.
“Quiet,” he said bluntly. “I’m happy to see so many of you return this year.” His scary, overtly masculine face did not really look happy, but whatevs. “Especially the two of you who graduated last year top of the class.” He nodded at me and then Damon. My eyes met the buffed-up magic user’s and a few shared memories passed between us. Damon was someone I considered a sorta-friend. We talked occasionally and had danced together at one of the school dances before Asher swept me away, but that was as far as it had gone. All I really knew about him was that he was a competitive bastard and he was really good at this supe thing. He’d topped a lot more classes than me.
“First part of the class, we will spend with our weapons,” Striker said. “You need to go deeper with the connection until eventually it becomes one with you. An extension of your own arm, hand, leg… whatever limb works best.”
He clapped his hands, and we all moved toward the weapon wall. I hadn’t found “my” weapon yet, not really, but the bow and arrow worked well enough that I was sticking with it. I actually really liked developing skills with weapons and hoped to try some others.
Simon had his blades, and with his new longer limbs, it took him a few tries to find his groove again, but when he did, it was quite the sight to behold. His parents might want to be careful about pissing him off if he had a blade in his hands, that was for sure.
About halfway through the class—I’d managed to hit every target and not blow anyone up—Striker raised his voice again. “Shelve your weapons.”
I exchanged a glance with Simon, wondering what was happening. Striker had said only the first part of class. This must be part two.
