A Charmed Life | Coven Corner #3

Chapter Six

The first week of school dragged by, day after day. Phoebe continued to be strong-willed in her refusal to perform any magic in Hazel's company.

During recess on Thursday, Hazel was seated at a picnic table overlooking the meadow where her students were playing. Bryony sighed as she sat down beside her, legs stretched out in front of her.

"That Phoebe Butler is a stubborn one," she said.

Hazel laughed. "You have no idea."

"It's terrible to say but I'm glad she's in your class and not mine. Seline was telling me how Phoebe won't even pick up her wand, let alone cast spells."

Hazel's gaze settled on Phoebe at the edge of the meadow, sitting alone. She had her back to Hazel, hunched over...something.

"You haven't told me how the date went by the way," Bryony said with a nudge of her elbow.

Hazel huffed. "It didn't."

"What?" Bryony said sharply. Her eyes darkened and her mouth went tight, shoulders tense. She was on the war path, prepared to defend Hazel if she'd been stood up.

"Not like that," Hazel amended. "It just never really...got underway. The babysitter called as soon as Nick showed up. Said that Phoebe took sick."

Bryony snorted a laugh. "And he fell for it?"

"Well, she was sick. She cast a fever spell on herself."

Bryony shook her head. "Seline uses those sick hexes on herself all the time to get what she wants. They're not effective anymore. We ignore her now. She's overdone them. She just makes herself miserable and she doesn't get the attention she's looking for."

"Nick would never ignore Phoebe."

"Daddy's little girl?" Bryony offered.

Hazel nodded. "I think they're very close. Phoebe's mother left when she was three years old."

Bryony winced. "Ouch."

Bryony, of all people, understood what it was like to have a parent walk out. Her own father had left when she was little, never to come back. She had a stepfather now and a steady boyfriend, but those memories had carved a lasting impression in her mind that affected her even to this day as a grown woman.

"Also, Nick is human," Hazel said.

"Ah, there's the rub. Humans are extra gullible. And that little girl knows it."

Hazel fell silent, watching Phoebe. Her anger was a shield to protect her, to push Hazel away and keep her father close. But Hazel intended to be a steady force for Phoebe, a solid teacher when it came to magic. Whether Phoebe wanted her to be or not.

"What is it?" Bryony said. "You just went quiet on me. Did I stick my foot in my mouth again?"

Hazel dragged her thoughts back to the present.

"No, not at all. You're right, actually. Phoebe needs a steady presence of magic. Her mother is gone. Her father is a normal human, incapable of casting magic. Phoebe will be a handful. But she's not any different from the other children I've worked with."

Bryony squinted at her with a skeptical hum.

"I know that look," she said.

"What look?" Hazel said, a note of defensiveness slipping into her tone despite her best efforts to hide it.

"The sour-lemon look. You're not telling me something."

"Bryony..." Hazel sighed.

"Better just spit it out now. I'll pester you for days on end until you do."

Hazel smoothed her skirt down and tore her gaze away from Phoebe to look at Bryony.

"I got off on the wrong foot with Phoebe," she said. "I didn't think about what it might mean for her if I went on a date with Nick." Hazel blew out a breath of frustration and pressed her hand to her forehead. "I can't believe it never even crossed my mind. I was so..."

"Moony-eyed?" Bryony offered. "Besotted? Smitten?"

Hazel shot her a look. Bryony shrugged with a grin.

"I thought you weren't the romantic one," Hazel said. "I expected this sort of talk from Sky. Not you."

Bryony leaned her elbows back on the table, tilting her head to the side.

"I'm just finding this amusing," she said. "You're usually so put together and...implacable. Invincible. Never thought you'd go weak in the knees for anyone. But you really shouldn't beat yourself up about it."

"I'm her teacher. She's my concern, my charge. I didn't think of her well-being. I was selfish and thought of my own desires without any consideration toward her. That was wrong and it could have caused serious damage."

Bryony fixed her with a level look. "But it didn't."

"No. And it won't because I'm not dating Nick."

Bryony sat up a little straighter. "I thought you liked him?"

"I do. Very much. But Phoebe has enough adjustments to make without my intrusion upon her personal life beyond her education."

Bryony studied her for a moment. Hazel could see a protest forming in her eyes. But in the end, she decided against it.

"If you believe that's the best course of action," Bryony said with a nod. "Then I'm sure you've considered all angles. How did Nick take the news?"

Hazel glanced down at her hands, tracing the line of one palm with her thumb.

"You haven't told him?" Bryony said, incredulous.

"Not directly, no."

"Why? You're usually so straight forward and no-nonsense about these kinds of things. You don't lead anyone on."

"I'm not leading him on. I just..."

Why was she stuck on Nick Butler? They hardly knew each other. But Hazel continued to be drawn to him. To pine for a relationship that never even had a chance to take root. What was wrong with her? She never behaved this way before.

But she didn't have time to consider those questions any further.

A shout made Hazel's head snap up in alarm. Smoke like a giant claw was curling up toward the sky, black and monstrous.

The schoolhouse was on fire.