Page 127 of Mistaken Magic

"Doyou seriously thinkHarperwould have access to something like that?"Aspenshook her head, giving me theanswer. "It'smore likely it was lost when they were buildingSilverOaks.Alot of the fae back then had just come here, and they'd carried everything of value on their bodies.Therewasn't any other option."

"Butit doesn't come off,"Ireminded her. "Kindahard to lose a ring that doesn't come off, right?"

"Nothow it works," she assured me as we headed to class. "Enchanteditems, especially ones made of nothingbutan enchantment, often decide when their task is done.Thebearer no longer meets the criteria, so the part holding it with them releases, waiting for the next person they can help."

"Yeah, butJackfound this."Ilifted a brow. "He'snot aperson,Aspen."

"He'sstill fae," she reminded me. "So, he's kinda a person."

AndJackwas another problem for me to worry about.Herefused to leave my side, which meantIhad to tell each one of my teachers about him.Luckily,Ms.Rhodeshad warned them, but that didn't meanJackknew how to act in class.Hehad opinions, and didn't mind stating them in the middle of a lecture.Usually, it was with a caw or his name - since his vocabulary was limited.

Thestudents laughed at his antics, frustrating the teachers.Itried to get him to behave, but without yelling at him,Iwasn't sure how.Jackliked all the attention.I, however, didn't.I'djust started to feel likeIwas fitting in, and now he was making me stand out again.Betweenclasses, people stared, whispering behind their hands, andIknewIwas once again the talk of the school.

ThemomentIwalked into third period,WilderandHawkeasked to see my ring.ItseemedAspenhad told them both about it.Hawkesaid the birds looked like crows, which was whatIwas thinking.Wildersaid he'd never seen anything like it and suggestedIshow it toMs.Rhodes.Iwas pretty sure that wouldbe a bad idea.Ireally didn't need any more drama, not with the end of the semester coming so fast, soI'djust ignore it.Ifthis ring was as much of a problem asIsuspected, it might be the final straw to convince the staffIdidn't belong atSilverOaks.

So, whenMs.Rhodeswalked into class,Isaid nothing.Isimply took my chair and tried to convince my crow to be quiet.Ms.Rhodesnoticed.Thefirst thing she did was addressJack, making it clear he could perch on the back of her chair, my chair, or the cabinet in the corner.Thenshe explained that if he interrupted her, he would spend class hours alone in the atrium.

Jackruffled his feathers, letting her know he wasn't pleased, but he kept the commentary to a minimum.Mostlyit was flapped wings and excessive preening.Once, he made that clicking noise, but whenMs.Rhodesglared at him,Jackstopped immediately.Ihad to struggle not to laugh.Hegot the point, though, and in biology, he didn't make a peep.

Then, in my weapons courses,BrackentoldJackto make himself at home, stay out of the way of the weapons and students sparring, but otherwise he was free to do what he wanted.Naturally,Jackfound a perch at the top of a training dummy, the wood spokes the perfect size for his feet to wrap around.Thefew timesIchecked on him,Igot the impression he was napping.

Likealways,Keiroffered to spar with me.Thatwas why he noticed my ring.Mostlybecause he told me wearing jewelry was a good way to get a finger broken.WhenIsaidIcouldn't take it off, he asked me if my "significant other" had given it to me.HemeantAspen, soIexplained it was somethingJackhad found.

"Yourcrow found a ring with crows on it?"Hethrew a punch, making me block. "Youdon't think that's weird at all?"

"Ithink it'scompletelyweird,"Iassured him. "Aring with crows, from a crow, and now it won't come off?Yeah, my first thought was thatHarperhad to be setting me up."

"Notif it's enchanted," he assured me. "Shewouldn't spend time making something like that and then give it away."

"Unlessshe made it just to get me in trouble,"Icountered. "Keir, she hates me.Shehates that you're protecting me.She'slivid that the court pays attention to me.Besides, it has crows all over it.Doesn'ttake a genius to realizeJackwould try to collect it.Crowsdo have a reputation."

"Andso doesHarper," he reminded me. "She'spretty, but she's not a genius,Rain.I'mnot saying she couldn't be, but that girl is too fixated on proving how powerful she is.Look, allI'msaying is that if it hasn't blown up yet, then it's notHarper'sstyle."

Ok, he had a point there. "SoIjust wear it?"Iasked.

Heshrugged. "Jackgave it to you.Jackis a fae of sorts.Wecall creatures like him wildlings, and they have their own power.So, who's to say it's not his way of marking you so the other crows know who you are?Kindalike that band you put on him, right?"

Whichmade so much sense.Jackhad made it a trade.I'dassumed that was just him being a crow, but everyone said he was a very special bird.Hewas smart.Hecould talk a little bit.Thenthere was how he'd held out his banded leg, making it clear he still wore theeltam, and then he'd told me to put the ring on.Thequestion was whyI'deven done it.

"CouldJackhave made something like this?"Iasked.

"Noidea,"Keiradmitted. "Couldawildling make something like that?Yes.Withouta doubt.IsJackpowerful enough or trained enough to do so?Idon't know.Ihaven't seen him doing anything magical."

"So, not all wildlings are magical?"

"Nope,"Keirsaid. "Well, yes and no.They'reall carriers of magic.Theycan't all do anything with it.Kindalike me.Ican defend, but not attack.Well, not successfully.Somepeoplecan dance.Otherssing.Ourtalents vary, and the same is true for wildlings.Andno, wildlings with powerful magic are not common.It'swhy our people ruleFaerie, because we can all use the power in some way."

Thatactually made me feel a little better.Iwas pretty sureJackhad no magical ability of his own.Otherwise, he would've used it by now, right?Butif he was a wildling - or a prince wildling - then he'd certainly recognize an artifact made by his kind.Right?So, ifAspenwas right and the ring had been lost when the atrium was being built, the factJackfound it was a lot less shocking.

ThenKeirbegan to push me a little harder.Allthroughout self-defense, he made me not only block his free-hand attacks, but also interrupt his casting.Thankfully, the few timesImissed, the result had nothing to do with paint or glitter.Hejust made glowing shields appear around me.Istill got the point.

Then, when my offensive class was over,Brackencalled for me to stay behind.Keirflopped down on a bench, clearly intending to wait, and the rest of the students quickly filed out of the building.Witheveryone watching,Iducked my head and made my way toBracken, wondering whatIwas in trouble for this time.

ButBrackenjust hooked a finger under my chin, lifting it back up. "Iwanted to say thatI'mproud of you.Liamtold me how you faced down not just a hunter, buttheHuntsmanhimself.Rain, the man on the other side of the glass door?Thatwas the leader of theWildHunt.He'sa scary bastard, so don't ever be ashamed of your fear, ok?"

"Ihad no idea what to do,"Iadmitted.

Henodded. "Andyet you stilldid.Iwant to set a time for you to be trained in our full lockdown procedure.Whatto do out here, if you're in the yard, or in the main school."Hepaused, sighed, and then gestured to a bench. "Keir, you can stop pretending like you're not listening.It'sfine."

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