Chapter Sixty-Two

Serene gasps as she looks at me, her eyes going wide. “Oh my god,” She exclaims beneath her breath, gripping the sides of her chair for dear life. “Do you see it?” She asks, directing her question at The Dean.

Confused, I hold out my hands and flex my fingers. They’re still my hands and I don’t see anything out of the ordinary. “See what?” I ask, hearing the tinge of panic in my voice. If it’s something that changed externally, it has better be something that Adrian won’t notice.

De Leon leans his back against his desk, allowing his arms to hang limply at his sides. “I know, I see. I can’t feel my hands after touching it,” He says with awe, rather than concern. If I suddenly lost feeling in my arms, I’d be panic-stricken. His eyes shine in the sun as it begins to wane in the sky, growing tired from lighting up the day. “My God, she’s magnificent.”

I feel heat begin to creep into my neck at the compliment, feeling my interests pique. “Well, someone had better tell me. What is it?” I demand, rising from my chair. I need to find a mirror or something to see my reflection in because their stares are beginning to freak me out. My hands shake slightly as I draw my phone from my pocket and open the front camera, peering at my face from every angle. My frown deepens as I glance back up to the two of them, finding nothing out of the ordinary about my appearance. “I don’t get it.”

Serene snaps her mouth shut and leans towards me, her eyes still alight with excitement. “Oh, sorry there isn’t anything wrong with your face or anything, you still look like you,” She starts, her voice rising in her exhilaration. She reminds me of a little kid looking through the window of a candy store, and it gives me mixed emotions. “Your aura is through the roof. Once you learn to read them, you’ll see what we mean when you look in the mirror. It wasn’t exactly dull before, but now you’re like a beacon to us Sorcerers.”

My heart stumbles a beat before catching itself and heading for a full gallop. “What?” I ask again, unable to comprehend the news. “What if someone mentions it in front of Adrian?”

Se Leon clears his throat, drawing my attention back to him. “Not to worry, I will see to it that every Sorcerer within the Academy knows not to stare or mention it while on campus,” His fingers twitch, giving me hope that the feeling is beginning to return to his limbs. He still doesn’t seem to care, though, unable to focus on anything but my supposed aura. “Simply stunning. Martin is an imbecile for keeping you hidden.”

I swallow, unsure of how I should feel. It feels like heat courses through my veins now, a plausible pulse beneath my skin. “How do I use it?” I ask quietly, holding out my arms to stare, still seeing no significant difference. “How does any of this work?”

Serene and The Dean share a look before she digs into her back and produces her Grimoire. “We could start with some simple intuitive work, but that might be too easy for you now,” She plunges another hand back into the depths of her bag and pulls it out, fingers curled around a small object. She holds the concealed item out to me. “What color is this crystal I’m holding?”

I stare at her closed fist for a long moment, feeling foolish for playing guessing games. Shouldn’t I be training instead of wasting precious time? We only have a few hours to get me acquainted with the basics. “How would I know? I don’t know anything about crystals,” I state plaining, glancing between the two of them.

Serene shakes her head. “You have to focus. The image or word should pop into your brain without having to think about it. You’ll just know. Don’t second guess yourself.”

I frown but do as instructed, looking back to the concealed item in her hand. I stare at her fingers until I go crosseyed. Just when I’m getting frustrated and about to give up, I begin to see a faint outline around her skin, almost like a barrier. Is that the aura they were talking about? I blink the tears that begin to form from concentrating so hard. “Well, I think your aura is green.”

Serene blinks in surprise, apparently taken aback by the observation. “That’s right, I guess we can skip that part of your training,” She says excitedly with a chuckle. “Have you guessed the crystal yet?”

I open my mouth to say that I haven’t when suddenly the image of a stone flashes into my mind. I can see it very clearly for only a moment before it’s gone, and I can’t seem to recall it again. I frown slightly, finding it unusual to see something like that with my eyes wide open. It was like a dream, except that I’m awake. “It’s yellow.”

Serene glances excitedly to De Leon, who seems to share her enthusiasm. She uncurls her fingers to reveal the exact stone that I saw in my head, down to the size and shape of it. “It’s Citrine. Damn, you really are a natural.”

De Leon seems proud, beaming beneath his mustache. “Imagine her potential if she had begun training from childhood,” He muses, gazing at me the way old people tend to do. “Surely you can sense things more clearly now too, correct?”

I furrow my brow as I try to focus on my surroundings, finding that the scent of magic is no longer overwhelming my senses as it had before. It felt heavy and almost sticky in my lungs, but now I feel as though I’m breathing the fresh air of the mountains. Is it possible that the lingering magic in the air is lending me its energy all of a sudden? Adrian is definitely going to find out that I was up here, I know the scent is clinging to my clothes like perfume.

Focus. A voice whispers inside of my head, not belonging to me but also not sounding foreign. Chills spider-walk across my skin as a light feeling washes over me, suddenly quelling the panic that had begun to rise at my fear of Adrian finding out what I’ve done. It’s as if it doesn’t matter anymore. I take a deep breath and exhale slowly, feeling out the energy inside of the massive room. I become instantly aware of both Serene and De Leon’s presence surrounding me, dyed in colors that I’ve never seen before. They’re so vibrant that it almost stings my eyes to look, even though my lids are closed. Concentrating even harder, I can feel the subtle energy of plants hanging by the windows that I haven’t even noticed until now, emitting soft, greenish energy that has an ebb and flow, almost like the ocean. It’s beautiful and makes me wonder what the woods below would look like.

I decide to give it a shot and expand my sense even farther out, focusing specifically on the treeline outside. I keep my breathing deep and steady as I feel out the energy surrounding the trees, which emit a similar feeling as the hanging plants, except over a much larger area. The trees seem to hum to me as if they're happy to meet me. Just as I’m growing used to the feeling, something dark and heavy bleeds into the pure energy, drowning out the lovely green tones. I turn my attention to the new feeling, cautious of the dark red aura that accompanies it. I can’t see what causes it specifically, but I catch the mental images of teeth flashing, hot breath panting against my skin, and a yellow eye peering at me from the shadows, somehow looking directly at me.

I gasp out loud and open my eyes, feeling fear wash over me like a tidal wave. It feels instinctual, as though whatever was causing that feeling of dread is something that my mind and body fear in a primal sort of way. I’ve never seen something like that before, but it somehow feels familiar and I can’t explain why. “What is that?” I breathe, searching Serene and De Leon’s expressions for an answer. They share a quizzical look as if they have no idea what I’m talking about. I gesture out the window to Serene’s right, placing a hand over my heart to try and slow it down. “In the woods.”

They both turn to look out the window, seeming to zone out as they try to zero in on whatever it is that frightened me. After a moment, their consciousness returns, and they look at each other again, their eyes widening. “It’s Jasper,” Serene whispers, gazing down at her Grimoire, but not really seeing it. “It won’t be long until Adrian finds him.”

My heart skips a beat. “What do you mean, it’s Jasper? That thing wanted to kill anything it could see. That isn’t him. It was a monster.” The heavy feeling returns to the pit of my stomach, making it churn uneasily.

Serene lifts her gaze to meet mine, her expression solemn. “That’s what the Madness is, Lydie. He hasn’t been to school in the past two days.”