"In 1467 CR, the Hexamogue Council convened for the third time, ratifying the treaty that united the Six Houses. Can anyone tell me who presided over that council?"
My dark bronze hand shot up before Professor Laochlar's mouth finished moving. Scattered snickers and huffs emanated from the students around me, but it was the way Laochlar ignored my hand that hurt.
"No one? That might be a problem once your exam comes around. The answer-"
"It's actually a trick question. There were two heads over the Hexamogue council, Sir Wylan Dahr and the Prime Sorceress, the heroes of the Battle of Chalyst."
Had these words come from anyone else, Laochlar's frizzy beard would've broken into a smile as he gave a rare compliment. But the answer had come from me, so instead the old man glared at my hand until I pulled it back down.
"Ms. Emberwylde, I don't believe I called on you just now. Your other teachers may excuse your outbursts, but in my classroom, students respect etiquette, not status."
A wave of chuckles washed over me as I stared down at the scratches in the desk, trying to stay calm. He was right to say that. I shouldn't have talked out of turn. Just because I know the answer doesn't mean I have to give into the urge to say it.
"Sir, I have a question about the Battle of Chalyst."
"Yes, Ms. Tannar?"
My eyes flicked back up to find Merylda twirling a lock of her platinum-blonde hair between her fingers. She shot me a smirk before continuing.
"How exactly did it lead to the council in the first place?" she asked.
She was baiting me, Merylda always was. It was such an obvious question, and she knew I'd be straining not to blurt out the answer. I squeezed my hands into fists, reciting the calming mantra Johan had given me as magick buzzed in my fingertips.
"An astute question." Laochlar lied as Merlyda's sycophants tittered, "The Battle of Chalyst was the climactic event of the Four Month's War, between what we now know as the Six Houses of Magic and the armies of the Nemesis. It was fought on the slopes of Mt. Chalyst, hence the name, with tactics derived from..."
And Laochlar was off in his own little world, leaving his bored students to lean back and watch the clock slowly tick down to their freedom. I used to be fascinated by the great battles and treaties of history until Laochlar ruined them. It was amazing how he could turn the most gripping duel into a dry lecture that went on for hours on end.
A wad of paper ricocheted off my red hair, sliding down its wavy contours as I fought down another pulse of magick. Just ignore them. You have ten minutes left.
A muted giggle broke my mantra, and I couldn't stop my powers from strengthening my ears. I would've hummed to myself to block out Merylda's words as she sneered to her trio of followers, but Laochlar had gotten on to me about humming already.
"I know, she's such a freak. The only reason they haven't kicked her out is because her mother protects her. Can't let mommy's little princess be anything less than special!"
I squeezed my eyes shut to block out the flash of my mother's face, but her disapproving eyes still seared like winter. Try as I did, her icy words bubbled to the surface as well, cloaked in her haughty tone.
"Remember, Raven, you're not just representing the family, you're representing me. So be good... okay, sweetie?"
My nails scraped into the desk, leaving scorch marks as I banished my mother's perfect face. I looked down, wishing I could undo the damage as Laochlar rambled on. But for all my monumental power, I was helpless to undo my own flames.
"Oh, don't get me started on her body! She's always flaunting her oversized boobs like we're supposed to be impressed. She is such a whore."
"Don't forget her fat butt. I'm surprised that chair can even hold her weight!"
Merylda preened herself at her entourage's words, and I redoubled my efforts to de-enchant my ears. I dressed as modestly as my figure allowed; it wasn't my fault magick had shaped my body the way it did. Merylda and company weren't exactly fit to throw stones either considering how they spent their weekends.
"She's so vain too. 'Oh look at me! I'm so pretty because my hair falls halfway down my body and comes out perfect every time! Worship me!'"
A lock of hair fell in front of my eyes as it began to frizz from the tips, and I tucked it behind my ear as smoothly as my shaking fingers would allow. Almost there, just a few more minutes and I get to see Johan.
"I just want to take a pin and pop those bloated lips of hers. It would be doing her a favor, really. I would die if I had to go around looking like a fish!"
"Her nose is what needs deflating! It's like an onion!"
Merylda shot me a smirk from her side of the room, as if aware I could hear every word of her gang's whispered conversation. I fed magick through my hair to get it to lie flat and wavy again, but I could tell it was frizzing up all around.
"And those caterpillar eyebrows! Come on!"
"Don't forget that clump of weeds she calls eyelashes!"
I looked at the clock above the blackboard, hoping that it was about to herald my escape. But we still had five minutes to go, and Laochlar wasn't against keeping us when he went long. I wasn't sure how much longer I could hold back from-
"Ms. Emberwylde, I believe I asked you a question."
I snapped back to reality to find Laochlar in front of me, withered lips curling as Merylda and company stifled giggles. I apologized and asked Laochlar to repeat his question, and he sighed loudly to ensure the entire class heard.
"Never mind, Ms. Emberwylde. I would hate to pull you away from whatever deep philosophical debate you were having with yourself under your breath just now. Ms. Tannar, would you share why the Hexamogue Council formed this academy?"
Merylda whipped back her hair, letting it settle over her face for a moment before answering. "Up until the Nemesis War, mages and shifters often came into conflict with one another over territory and magickal secrets. The Nemesis's defeat, however, caused the two sides to realize that needed to put aside their differences for the greater good. Well, shifters like myself understood that anyway."
For once, I wasn't the only one angered by Merylda's subtle jab. The mages in the class glowered at her, which only prompted her to taunt them. Her skin shined to a lustrous polish and took on the shape of shimmering scales, her hair glittering like the waves on a lake as her legs melded together.
"That will be enough, Ms. Tannar. You know the rules, no shifting in class."
"Of course, Mr. Laochlar." Merylda said, changing back as if she hadn't broken several school rules. "You know how difficult it can be to control sometimes."
Wood scraped beneath my nails as Merylda gave me a haughty look that dared me to complain. For all her talk about my mother protecting her, she had the leadership of an entire house shielding her from any form of discipline, and she knew it.
"That aside, Ms. Tannar, you are correct. Both mages and shifters organized themselves into three houses to sign the treaty and found Mistmoon academy in the hopes of achieving a lasting peace and safeguard Kharakna from forces like the Nemesis. However, this treaty was tested in 1478, and again in 1481 when..."
"Your scales are so beautiful, Merylda!"
"And your hair! I wish mine flowed like that!"
I frowned up at the clock, but we still had two minutes left for Merylda's sycophants to coo about her every little detail. At least they'd stopped picking on me.
"I can't claim all the credit, girls. I mean, I am from one of the proudest lineages this sad excuse for a school has ever known." Merylda simpered as she checked her nails. "The coursework is so simple that I'm able to spend my time selecting the best mate to carry on my family's magick to the next generation."
I snorted quietly as I felt the magick ebb back into my body to slumber. If there was anything Merylda liked talking about more than how much she hated me, it was the current soon to be ex-boyfriend she had her sights set on. Naturally her cheerleaders ooed and awed and begged to know who it was she was targeting next.
"Welllll, I have a few candidates. There's Tovan MacYrden, for one. He has the brawn if not necessarily the brains, but I can fill that in for both of us. And it might just be a flight of fancy on my part, but I've kind of been watching Johan Graybriar for the last few days. I know he's a Null, but I've always had a thing for werewolves."
I shouldn't have looked up at Johan's name. I shouldn't have let my eyes lock with Merylda's. And I certainly shouldn't have allowed the roaring flame within take control of me as Merylda shot me a look that told me what she planned to do to him. I tried to squelch the magick as it sprang to life, but it was already too late. Searing crimson flames burst from Merylda's head and ate away at her hair as she screamed.
Mr. Laochlar was on Merylda in an instant, multiplying the ambient moisture in the air to douse her in an arcane deluge. Thankfully, her hair had received the worst of it, but Merylda wasn't one to waste a crisis. Crocodile tears flowed from her eyes as she collapsed to the floor, fear on her face as she backed away from me.
"What did I ever do to you, Raven? Why don't you go bully someone else!"
Her entourage was quick to surround her as I tried to assemble an apology, but it was far too late. Angry mutters and shook heads were aimed in my direction, and the word I'd learned to dread more than any other swirled around me.
Freak. I'd heard it all my life, yet it still hurt as much now as it did back then. It didn't matter that I wasn't fully in control of my monumental powers, nor was it ever reckoned that maybe I didn't enjoy being the best at everything I tried. No, I was always that horrible perfect girl who was a danger to herself and everyone who dared associate with her. A monster and a failure all wrapped up in one.
"That little stunt just earned you another month of corrective classes, Ms. Emberwylde." Laochlar hissed as he tended to Merylda. "Same time, same place. And rest assured, your mother will hear about this latest outburst of yours."
The distant thunder of bells signaled the end of class, and I let the others shove me aside in their haste to put distance between us. If I'd just held out another minute, I would've made it through my last class and been free to spend the afternoon with Johan. Now I had a month of detention to look forward to on top of the five I was already facing for similar incidents.
"Never forget, honey, you're a prodigy. You're special."
I slammed my books into my bag as my mother's voice echoed in my head. She knew more than anyone else how much I hated the hand fate had given me, and yet she never failed to remind me of it every chance she got.
I looked up to find the classroom empty, and after a moment, my feet carried me towards the hall on automatic. I bathed my body in heat to make me disappear from sight like a desert mirage, the one reprieve my powers gave me from the endless stares and whispers that followed me.
I wove through oblivious people until I reached the courtyard where I told Johan I'd meet him, but to my sorrow, he was missing. I waited until I was sure no one was looking, then snapped my fingers to change the temperature in the air around me.
As per usual, Johan was clever with where he left his invisible writing. He knew I liked showing off my deductive skills, so he always made it a challenge. Despite my gloom, I felt my lips turn upwards as I checked errant rocks and displaced patches of grass. Finally, I realized one spot beneath a pine tree has been flattened as if someone had been sitting there, and I crouched down unseen to look up.
It took a bit of twisting, but when I lowered my head just right, a series of scratches in the branches above linked together to form a message: "Fight with Urlan. Got sent to correction this afternoon. Sorry I won't be able to see you."
I shot to my feet, driven by equal parts concern about the fight and reluctant glee at this turn in our collective fortunes. But there'd be plenty of time to help Johan recover tonight, I assured myself. Better yet, no one would be able to get between the two of us as we cleaned the lower corridors for the umpteenth time.
Especially not Merylda, I thought as I ran unseen through the crowded halls of Mistmoon Academy. Tonight might just turn out well after all.