Who Is She? | Jaz Anderson

• five •

Ayden's eyes snapped open. She sat up, squinting against the light shining in her eyes. The last thing she remembered...

Oh gods.

Ayden laid back down, staring at the ceiling. Was that just a really bad dream? Gods, she wished it was. But her hair in a bun and her lack of memory of getting into bed was confirmation enough that it wasn't.

A knock at the door snapped her from her thoughts and it creaked open, revealing her blonde girlfriend in the doorway. Jaz was wearing a crooked sweater vest over a gray t-shirt and light wash flare jeans.

"Oh, you're awake!" Jaz breathed. "That's good. Sadie and Carter are still out cold."

"Please don't tell me we all passed out together," Ayden begged, faintly recalling the three siblings crumpling in unison.

Jax just laughed lightly, grabbing a blue hoodie and black pants for Ayden. She tossed the lounge clothes at her and told her to get dressed, leaving the room and going just one door down the hall, where Carter's room was.

Ayden groaned loudly, rolling out of bed and landing with a thump! on the floor.

"Are you alright?" Walt's voice called.

"Just dandy!" Ayden snarked. She sat up slowly and popped her joints, trying to relieve the tension in her neck. The stupid headrest always left her with cramps. She wished she could just enchant a regular pillow.

Ayden changed and pulled her curls down around her shoulders, massaging her scalp to relax it. She stared at her reflection, trying to understand. How could she be forty-first most powerful magician in the world? It was hard enough to believe when she was sixty-eighth, but now... now she could actually make a mark. And it was up to her if it was good or bad.

"Ayden!" Sadie said when Ayden made her way downstairs. "Please tell me we just had a collective hallucination!"

"I'm afraid not," Amos said behind his niece.

Ayden whirled around, leaning against the wall and holding her heart.

"Holy —!"

"Sorry," Amos said, not looking apologetic at all.

Jaz came down the stairs with Carter, greeting Ayden with a kiss on the cheek and walking to the table.

"Do you even care that I was just scared half to death by my uncle?" Ayden called after her girlfriend.

"Of course I do! But you're fine. And we need to talk, anyway."

Ayden huffed and sat next to Jaz, pouting.

"Ayden, eat something," Carter scolded, sticking his fork at her with a piece of waffle stick on it.

Ayden made a face at him and grabbed a plate, putting on a peach and an egg omelette.

She plopped down again, showing him her plate. "Happy?"

"Eh. Sure."

She threw her hands up as Amos sat down and started talking.

"As you well know, after the battle, no one thought to check the books, as we had to appoint someone new to watch them. But when we were looking for the second most powerful, I decided to check for your names, just to be sure. I believe you girls moved up because you summoned Ma'at — Carter, likely because the three of you exiled Apophis with little to no help from gods. Regardless, I still need to give you three chaperones."

Ayden stabbed her omelette. "We're in school most of the day. Now, almost all of our magic practice is done on the weekends for longer periods of time but things we should've taught them over the course of the week. It's hard, but if the chaperones can help keep us up on lessons, say every three days and the weekends, I think we can do it."

"Good," Amos agreed. "Because Julius would probably kill me if you three were left here with no adult to keep you from killing each other or yourselves."

Ayden's lips quirked and she shared a smile with her siblings.

"I think we're past that point," Carter said. "Sadie hasn't said anything controversial lately."

Sadie threw Carter a look and turned her head away.

Ayden snorted.

Amos smiled. "None of you have."

For once, silence befell the Kanes as they ate. No one fussed, no one argued.

It was peaceful.

🪄⛲️

Phew. Only took me months.