Nova, who has slightly more freckles on her face than Neve, looks down at my book. “I love spell casting. We’re both in Magi.”
“It is really fucking cool. But also kind of complicated.”
“Don’t overthink it,” Nova tells me.
“Overthinking is a staple human characteristic, and I’m still operating as one.”
“We can help you,” they say at the same time.
“Really? You’d do that?”
“Totally.” They both come over and sit at the table with me. Neve peers over at the book.
“Have you tried any spells yet?”
“Just two. The light summoning spell and the locator spell.”
“And?”
“They worked.”
“On your first try?” Neve wraps a tangle of hair around her finger and I nod. “That’s impressive.”
“Max said the same thing.”
“Max? As in Maxon Bellator?” Neve turns and looks at her sister, whose eyes gloss over a bit.
“Yeah. He’s supposed to tutor me. Did you also hear what happened with him?” I ask carefully, not wanting to gossip. I’m the kind of person who likes to know the drama. Give me some popcorn and a two-hundred-comment thread on a Facebook post any day. But I’d never comment back. Hell, I wouldn’t even like any of the comments I agreed with. Dad used to warn me about how nothing good came out of gossip. If it wasn’t my business to tell, then keep my damn mouth shut, as he put it.
“We did,” Nova whispers. “It’s true?”
“Maybe? Depends on what you heard.” I try to act nonchalant.
“We heard that he opened a portal, went to the human world, and fought a demon. But the demon almost got the best of him until some superhuman saved the day. And that superhuman was you.”
“Well, that’s pretty much what happened. Only, I’m not superhuman. I don’t have superpowers, just the ability to communicate with spirits—lost souls, as you call them here—so I was able to see the demon and then a reaper.”
“That’s incredible.” Nova rests her arm on the table. “What’s the human world like? It sounds amazing. I think human men would be fun to play with.” Her blue eyes sparkle.
“Maybe.” I shrug, feeling distinctly uncomfortable now. “I didn’t date much before.”
Understatement of the year.The few times I’d tried to start a relationship with a guy had ended in disaster thanks to my ability to attract ghosts. After a while, I’d just stopped trying.
“Why not?” Neve almost looks upset by the news. “Just the thought of that makes me want to jump in a body and have a night or two off.”
“Jump in a body?” I ask.
The sisters look at each other. “You don’t know?” Nova asks slowly.
“Know what?”
“When we travel to the human world, we’re in spirit form, existing on the same plane the souls and demons exist on. In order to interact with humans, we need to have a body.”
“Like possession?” My jaw might have fallen open.
“Yes,” they answer together.
“Wow…I…I did not see that coming.”
