Page 70 of Elmwood Inclusive Magic Academy
“But can’t we…”
Then I notice something. Or rather, I notice that something is missing.
Where’s Pantalaimon?
Rae
“You know what I like about you?” Finley asks, tugging on a strand of my hair. “You’re so…stoic.”
I roll over on the bed, trying not to fall off. These dorm beds are tiny, and Maggie took up less space.
Maggie.I push her image out of my mind. I took Finley to Kaenan and Tala’s room, not the room that the two of us had shared.
I frown. “Stoic?”
“Yeah, you know. So…proud and noble. A proper wolf princess,” he grins, and nuzzles my neck. “We’re going to be such a strong match. Nothing can stop us.”
I prop myself up on my elbow, uneasy. “But, what’s going to happen? Once they realize that the academy was attacked? I mean, you’ve got Professor Hall and some of the students, but the entire Hecate coven…”
“Why don’t you let me worry about that,” he coos, tracing a line down my arm with his finger.
Through the window, I can see the snow falling thickly. The moon peeks out from behind a cloud. Even if they wanted to, they probably couldn’t fly here. Right?
I try to remember the different ways witches can travel. Why didn’t I pay more attention in class? I’m sure Professor Hall talked about it, but I can’t recall. It was one of the first days thatMaggie and I went running together in the woods. Me in my wolf form, her on her broom. We were late to class and I had to go in after her so nobody would know we were together. Her face was flushed and she couldn’t stop smiling all through the lecture…
Suddenly, there’s a flash of red from outside the window.
“What’sthat?” I breathe. My instincts take over and I slip out of bed, crossing the floor in three steps.
“Probably nothing,” Finley says. “Nothing could get that high. Come back to bed!”
My old sweatshirt is crumpled up on the windowsill. As I reach for it, it moves. I almost jump back, but then I see a tiny,familiarhead pop up out of the collar.
A tiny head with big ears.
“Shhh,” Pan whispers. “Look in your pocket!”
“What?” I whisper back.
“Your sweatshirt pocket!”
Then he pokes his head back into the folds. When I reach for the sweatshirt, I can’t feel him inside anymore. I look out the window and down at the grounds below. There’s the faintest red glow. I recognize it, but I can’t remember where I’ve seen it before.
“We’re safe in here, my wolf princess,” whispers Finley from directly behind me. I jump, dropping the sweatshirt to the floor. Something hard falls out of the pocket.
Finley doesn’t notice. He reaches out for me, putting his arms around my waist. He bites my earlobe.
I push him away and crouch down. The object on the ground is a small, carved clay statue. Sort of a circle and a cross. My fingers close around it.
Now I remember. It’s the amulet that Maggie gave me. I must have put it in my sweatshirt pocket. After we had our fight, I stopped wearing it. It reminded me of her too much. It still smells like her, cinnamon.
“What’s that?” Finley asks.
I ignore him. There’s a twisting sensation in my stomach. She gave me her amulet to protect me. I can still picture her face in my mind, her light brown eyes and sweet smile. When I put my arms around her waist, I felt like I had everything in the world.
A knock on the door. Finley and I both turn as the latch opens.
“So sorry to interrupt,” grins Tala, who is not sorry to interrupt at all. She slips through the door, looking slyly back and forth between the two of us. “It’ll be daybreak soon, so the guard is changing.”
