Kingdom of Scourge and Shadow (The Sightstone Series #1)

Chapter Fourteen: Judith

"It is my firm belief that the Allmother was the only person who could unite our kind. Witches have long kept to the shadows, and only someone with extraordinary leadership and charisma could lure them out. I pray that the future leaders of the New Army might have half as much of her power, or our kind will scatter once more."

-from the Codices of Saint Caroline the Heretic

***

When she and Grace returned to their suite, Judith found a girl she didn't know perched on one of the empty beds, methodically unpacking a suitcase, her back to the door. Elizabeth was sprawled on her bed, still wearing her red robe, leafing lazily through a book and studiously ignoring the newcomer.

The new girl was built like a dancer, all lithe muscle and delicate gracefulness. She had impossibly long, straight hair that hung down past her waist in a shining tumble of inky darkness. Her bronze skin suggested Rajan heritage, and already she wore an Elemental's blue robe. The silver embroideries at its collar and cuffs were those of a stormwitch, someone who could control water and air.

Elizabeth looked up as Grace shut the door softly behind them, and her eyes widened when her gaze landed on the blue robe that Judith wore. Her eyebrows snapped together in a dangerous frown, and she slammed her book closed and she cast it angrily aside.

"You?" she drawled, her voice harsh as ice. "You're the one everyone's talking about? Really?"

Her disbelief and disdain couldn't have been clearer. Judith just shrugged and crossed over to her bed to put away her other uniforms, deliberately turning her back on Elizabeth as she did. She didn't want to be sucked into a fight right then, not when she still couldn't believe it herself.

The new girl rose gracefully from her bed as Judith passed, her dark eyes level as they took in Judith's blue robe, then darted over to Grace and back. Judith found herself studying her expression, looking for any traces of Elizabeth's disdain, but she didn't see it, or anything stronger than a brief flicker of surprise.

"Hi," Grace said, giving the new girl a slight wave. "I'm Grace Lin, and that's Judith Craven. I guess you already know Elizabeth."

"Nice to meet you," the girl said, and the cadence of her voice was almost musical. "I'm Rani Chatterjee."

There was no pretension in her voice, no judgement, a relief after Elizabeth. Judith had begun to dread that the rest of their unit might take after her. She couldn't imagine having to deal with more than one Elizabeth. Judith smiled at her, and Rani returned it.

"Anyway," Elizabeth drawled from her bed. "If that you're done playing getting to know you, I'm supposed to tell you that Sergeant Burns stopped by. The Welcoming Ceremony is starting soon and we're supposed to report to the auditorium in full uniform, including robes."

"How long do we have?" Judith asked, wondering if they would get in trouble if they were late. Probably they would, even if they were only late because Judith had been picking up her uniform.

"Five minutes," Elizabeth said, and there was a note of spite in her voice, as if she was daring them to be late so she could blame it all on them–or, more likely, all on Judith.

Grace let out an alarmed squeak and yanked a grey Healer's robe out of her closet. "Why didn't you say something sooner?" she demanded, whirling the robe around her shoulders. "Damn it, Elizabeth. If we're late, I'm blaming you."

Elizabeth just rolled her eyes and, adjusting the collar of her robe, strode out of the robe. Grace hurried after her, and Judith glanced over at Rani, who gave a languid shrug and gracefully strode after them, tossing her long ponytail over her shoulder.