Page 45 of Mistaken Magic

Itwas magical.Maybenot in the literal sense, but all of this was so almost-normal that it felt even more amazing.Whenthe class was over - and sinceLynnwas nowhere to be found -Ifigured that meantIwas done.Itfelt too soon - somethingI'dnever expected to say about school - becauseI'dactually enjoyed myself, butIhad nowhere elseIwas expected to be.Givingin,Iheaded back upstairs to change clothes and check out my text books.Iclearly had alotof catching up to do.

Justbefore six that evening, someone stopped to knock on my door.Hoppingup,Ianswered it, surprised to seeLiamon the other side.Heheld a box of pizza before him and had a plastic bag dangling from his arm.Beforehe had the chance to say a word,Istepped back, opening the door wider to invite him in.

"Howbad was it?" he asked, setting the pizza down on my desk. "Ibrought sympathy food and a willing ear."

"I'lltake the food,"Iassured him, "but it wasn't bad."

Liamjust reached for the bag, then pulled out a stack of paper plates. "Somefor pizza, and the rest are to keep in here in case you need them later."

Takingone,Ipicked out two large slices, then moved to sit on my bed.Liamturned the chair at my desk so he was mostly facing me, then grabbed a few for himself.Evidently, my "uncle" intended to stay for a bit.Itwas actually kinda nice.

"So?" he asked. "Don'tIeven get your first thoughts?Rain,Ijust dropped you into a magical school of faeries.I'mkinda waiting for the freakout to start."

"Nofreaking out,"Ipromised. "Imean, inEnglish, we talked about how a poem was related to fae history.Sure, math sucks, but that's because it's just math.IhaveHistoryofFaeriefor third period, and that was amazing.Like, the feudalism of the society was today's subject, and how humans did have a part in fae culture.Morrigans,Ithink they were called?Um, then there's biology, and whileIexpected some normal science, we learned how iron in clay makes it hard to grow fae plants.Toriankinda showed me how it messes with magic, too."

"Torian?"Liamasked.

Inodded. "Yeah,Isat beside him in biology today.Lynngave me the rundown, though.Soundskinda like more fae blood means more cool here.Whichsucks, because that also impliesI'mdoomed to be a loser.Thankfully, as a foster kid,I'mused to it."

"It'snot that simple," he assured me. "Youalso have to consider the power of the parents.Somewere nobility in the courts.Theirkids will have been raised to think they're more important than those of peasants.Thenthere's where they were born."

"FaerieorEarth, yep.Gotthat lesson,"Iassured him. "So, amIthe only human atSilverOaks?"

"No," he said. "There'sa boy who's the stepson of a renowned fae soldier.There'sa girl who was adopted by a pair of fae half-bloods.They'refamily of fae, but completely human.Likeyou, they'reLegacies."

"Cool,"Isaid, feeling a little better about being human. "Ialso got a tour of some of the available electives.I'mkinda shocked they let me pick, though."

"It'sbecause normal schools don't have comparable courses,"Liamexplained. "Ifyou're takingSpanishin your last school, it doesn't help much with learningFaeril.That'sthe official name of the fae language, so you know.Buttaking auto mechanics doesn't mean you'll do well in weapons crafting."

"There'sa weapons-crafting course?"Ok, that hadn't been oneIsaw today.

Liamleaned back with a chuckle. "Thereis.Thereare also combat courses, because faeries aren't the only things that came toEarthin theExodus.Well, that's not entirely true.Thegood fae you see here aren't the only things.Technically, these are theSidhe."Hepronounced it likeShee. "Thereare other fae things that do not look like normal people.Somefae communities need a police force to defend against the bad things which want to remove them from this world and haul them back toFaerie.Self-defense, combat options, and some survival skills are offered."

"Whatwants to take them back?"Iasked, because he'd skipped over it a little too easily. "Andhow would that happen if the gates are closed like everyone keeps saying?"

Liamjust sighed. "Ok, soI'msure you've heard of theWildHunt?"

Inodded. "Possessedpeople on horseback.Thatwas in the poem this morning, although the teacher said they aren't really being offered toHell."

"They'renot," he agreed. "Rain, theWildHuntis real.It'slimited here onEarthbecause of the magic.It'salso been trapped here since theExodus, which was in 1971.Originally, theHuntwere enchanted warriors who were compelled to find criminals and return them for punishment.Here'sthe catch.Ifthey can't take them to the ruling monarch, they are to execute the convicted.Yeah, they're convicted before theHuntis turned loose, but it's not a trial like you're thinking.Thedefendant isn't allowed to be there.It'sall about the accusations."

"Thatsucks."

Liamnodded. "So, in theExodus, theQueensent theHunthere to bring backallthe defectors.Noone knows what happened, but she closed the gates - or someone else did - and now they're locked here.Anyfae or fae descendant they can catch, they haul to the gates, find them still locked, and then they execute the captives.It'sa death sentence.Overthe last fifty years, the community has managed to break theHuntinto smaller groups, which makes them easier to escape, but they still exist.Unfortunately, they can't be killed."

"Yeah, not good news,"Isaid.

"It'sreally not,"Liamagreed. "Afew times a year, they come to theInstitute.Wedo have protections, but we also have lockdown procedures.You'llbe safe, though.Iam too, but that means we have more responsibilities when the fae have to shelter in place."

Inodded. "Ok.I'msureI'llfreak out, but it can't be any worse than going toLondonwithout warning, right?"

"Itcan," he said. "Butthat reminds me.Ihave a present for you."Heturned and dug into the plastic bag again.Thistime, what he pulled out was a box.Thefront of it had a picture of a phone. "Hopeyou likeAndroids," he teased as he tossed it over.

"Aphone?"Iasked.

"Yours," he assured me. "Iput it on my plan, butIfigured this way you can check social media, look things up, and act like a normal teenager.Justdon't use it in class, because the teachers will confiscate it.Silencedin your pocket or bag is fine.Checkingyour messages isn't."

"Understood,"Iassured him.

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