“Okay…” I started with Air, manipulating the particles around him so that I could feel the resistance of his body against my powers. I didn’t feel any magic, though.
“Maybe if I pushed my magic toward you, so you could feel it easier,” Marcus suggested. “That way, you can see what it feels like.”
“You can try.”
I don’t know what Marcus did, but after a moment, I felt a tingle against my Air magic. I couldn’t describe it, because it wasn’t like I felt it in my body. It was a different type of sensation, tied deep into my soul— wherever the hell my magic resided. It was like my magic surged for a moment, but in a way that didn’t feel like my own.
“I felt it,” I remarked. “Keep going.”
The tingle of magic grew more intense, but when I tried to take it from him, all I did was draw my own magic back, breaking the connection.
“Let me try again,” I said.
Marcus took a deep breath and relaxed, like he was willing to give me all the time in the world to figure this out. I sat there for a while, just trying to get a feel for his magic. It felt chaotic, but was somewhat soothing. I waited until the feeling became familiar to me, until I could imagine it as my own.
This time when I drew back, Marcus’ magic came with mine. I was filled with a high-frequency buzz that seemed to rattle around in my chest.
This is boring as fuck,Marcus’ voice sounded in my head.Oh, shit. I know who I’d like to fuck. But like, not in afuckingway. I’d love her tenderly. I’d respect her. I think she’d like that.
“Hey, I did it!” I cried. I’d heard Marcus’ thoughts, and taken his mind-reading abilities, if only for a second. Although Marcus had told me before he could only read dirty thoughts, so I wasn’t sure how useful that was going to be.
“You did?” Marcus sounded proud. “Oh, yeah, I can kind of feel it. My magic is weak. Can you cast a spell?”
“What’s a good thing to start with?”
Marcus shifted, as if looking around the room. “No one’s looking. Try a battle orb.”
“I don’t know what I’m doing, but okay…” I lifted my hand and searched for that magic that wasn’t quite my own. I felt it travel down my arm like a tiny electric current. Then pain shot through my fingers, like I’d just touched a hot stove.
Hell, that hurt. I yanked my hand back on instinct, then shook it out.
“You made a spark!” Marcus cried.
I panicked for a second, then lowered my voice. “I can’t do this in front of everyone. It could expose us. Also, that hurt like hell. I’m not trying that again.”
“It must take some getting used to,” he said thoughtfully. “We can try reading thoughts. No one will know.”
I smirked. “I already can. You’d like tolove Kallie tenderly?”
“Shit.” Marcus sounded embarrassed. Meanwhile, Oberi snickered in my mind.
“Never mind that. Try it on someone else,” Marcus suggested.
I listened closely to the other people in the room and honed my attention on a guy playing an old arcade game in the corner. His voice rang in my ear like he was sitting right next to me. Somehow, I couldfeelthe energy of his thoughts and justknewthey belonged to him.
It’d be like that porno I was watching when Mom walked in on me, he thought.I’ll be the pizza delivery guy, and she’ll be the—
I instantly drew back, not wanting to hear the rest of that thought. Instead, I focused on other people, but I couldn’t connect with most of them. I figured they had to be thinking dirty thoughts, since those were the only ones Marcus could read, and it washismagic I was using.
I wonder what he looks like under those trousers,a female across the room was thinking.I bet he’s even bigger in dragon form. I’d like to get him out in the prison yard and—
“I’m done. These people are sick,” I complained. I pushed my magic outward again and severed the tie between Marcus and me. “Also, I don’t needtwovoices in my head. Oberi, would you shut up?”
He couldn’t stop laughing.Don’t think just because you’re my Elementai you can tell me what to do, you limp biscuit.
“Ew, Oberi. Do you have any idea what that means?” I asked.
Ava calls you that all the time, he cracked. I didn’t think he was serious. Or at least, I hoped not.
