What kind of monsters run in that family?
He quickly pulls his sleeve back down. ‘Let’s just say you don’t have to worry about me trying to sabotage your time here. In a way, I almost envy your brother. I’m jealous I couldn’t do it myself.’
I take a moment to internalise his words. Part of me wants to defend Lukas, tell Xavier that he wasn’t the one to do it, that he’s innocent. An apology is also waiting at the tip of my tongue. Because what else do you say to someone who has been through what looks to be unimaginable pain? The way those scars overlapped tell me that whatever happened to him wasn’t a one -time occurrence. It’s no wonder he looked relieved when he was rejected from Malachite.
Kroff starts to walk around the room quizzing students at random. I haven’t paid attention to the last ten minutes of what he was saying, sowhen he skips my seat and points at none other than Xavier, my heart just about falls out of my ass in relief.
‘Mr. Davis,’ Professor Kroff calls out. ‘If I were to cast magic on a waning gibbous moon, what kind of magic would be most prosperous?’
‘Banishing and protection magic, sir,’ Xavier answers confidently, taking me by surprise.
‘Why those?’ Kroff leans against his desk, crossing his feet at his ankles and pushing his glasses up his nose.
‘Sir, the waning gibbous moon symbolises the process of slowing down, taking a look around you and letting go of the unwanted.’
‘The unwanted?’ Moira’s voice prickles the back of my neck. ‘Sounds familiar.’ A cruel laugh spills from her mouth.
Bitch.
‘Ah! Miss Davis,’ Professor Kroff pushes off his desk. ‘Since you seem so inclined to talk through my lesson, why don’t you tell me which stones are best to use beneath a waning gibbous?’
Everyone’s heads turn in her direction, except for Xavier. I glance over my shoulder just in time to witness her cheeks ripen.
‘Nothing?’ Kroff presses but she stays silent. Unable to give an answer. ‘Hmm, how about you?’ He raises a brow at Xavier.
‘Amethyst and clear quartz, sir.’ Xavier answers.
‘Very good.’ Kroff nods at him before his eyes jump to the scarlet-faced Moira behind us, who is glaring daggers at her cousin’s head. ‘Keep your schoolyard antics out of my classroom, Miss Davis, or you’ll find you no longer have a seat waiting for you when you step in here next.’
He moves on quickly, walking behind his desk to bend down and pick a box up from the floor. I don’t look back this time, but I can’t help sitting a little straighter now that I know not everyone tolerates Moira’s behaviour.
‘During a waning gibbous there are a few stones that will help aid intentional magic such as protection or banishing spells.’ Kroff reaches into the box and pulls out a small white stone with rough edges. He walks over and places it on the desk in front of a student.
‘Clear quartz!’ he announces. ‘I want each of you to take one and, before the waning gibbous has phased into the last quarter moon phase, your task is to find a way to charge it.’ He starts walking around the class, tilting the box so each student can pull one out. ‘Then I want you to write an essay on how this moon phase could benefit your unit.’
There are around twenty students in this class, so it takes him a while to get to where we are sat. He stops in front of Xavier first, who pulls a crystal out and holds it up to the light spilling in through the window.
‘Miss Nocthare,’ Kroff calls my name, tilting the box my way.
‘S-sorry,’ I murmur before reaching in and plucking one of the final stones left. It fits snugly in the groove of my palm. The stone looks rough, but as my thumb grazes over it I find smooth, glasslike indentations.
It’s … beautiful.
Kroff walks around the class until everyone has a crystal of their own, then heads back to his desk to gather his things, effectively dismissing us all with a wave of his hand.
Tilly and I start planning to figure out how to charge our crystals together as we pack up. We’re just through the threshold of the door and heading down the hallway when I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turn around to find Xavier standing there.
‘Sorry to interrupt.’ He pops his pencil behind his ear. ‘But if you were planning to charge your crystals, tonight is your best shot.’
My brows furrow.
‘I thought Kroff said we had until the next phase of the moon to do this?’ Tilly pipes up beside me, voicing exactly what I was thinking.
‘That’s the timeframe he’s given us to completebothtasks, but if we’re to charge these correctly, two days from the last full moon is when you want to do it.’
‘Which is today,’ I say slowly. Was Kroff trying to test us? Probably; he seems like the type.
‘Seriously?’ Tilly groans. ‘How are we supposed to figure this out beforetonight?’
