The Curse ✔️

Chapter 24: Party of Four

The main hall erupted in havoc. Questions came from every direction.

"What do you mean breached?"

"What does that mean?"

"Why are we still here? We should have been evacuated!"

"That's right! Why haven't you evacuated us?"

"What about our wards? Are they safe?"

My father took a step forward and every sound in the hall died out. His face remained expressionless; stoic. I watched the teachers behind him, all sitting at the edge of their seats, ready to jump out like cats and put an end to chaos. Only Thar's head stayed bowed, and I squinted in his direction, noticing his finger twitching. Like he was writing something.

I looked around the table.

Amma clutched her notebook on her chest, like repetition and homework would keep her from harm. She wasn't paying attention to it, her wide azure eyes glued to my father.

"Winston Academy's wards were much weaker than Hunt Academy's wards." My father said, and some of the students sat back down in their seats. "Winston Academy had no black magic users to reinforce their wards."

Another set of questions ensued, but I ignored them and reached for Amma's notebook.

"Give me that."

"What, why?" She held onto the little book like I asked for a piece of her soul.

"Just give it. I'll tell you later."

She handed the notebook, her expression suspicious.

I opened the beige leather cover, skipping Amma's meticulous notes on magic and H. Academy, and finally reached the first blank page.

I need to talk to you. The words read loud and clear, written in cursive.

When I looked up, Thar's gaze was focused on my father, not even a glance in my direction. I swallowed the sudden anxiety.

"Why haven't you evacuated us?" Someone asked, pulling me right back into the moment.

"Because schools are warded." My father answered readily. "You'd be easy pickings outside."

The crowd settled into quiet murmurs, but the desperation grew louder.

His use of pronouns rubbed me the wrong way. We'd be easy pickings, not him. He simply did not fit into that category. I wondered if he thought white magic users were that much weaker than him.

"No one's telling us anything about what attacked us! We deserve to know!" Someone shouted.

"What we know so far is that you're the safest within school property." My father answered in his diplomatic tone. "There is no reason to panic. Wards are secure. Nothing can breach through them."

I took Amma's green pen and scribbled words down in her notebook, hoping no one, especially my father, would pay attention to the small amount of magic needed to transfer the message. But before I managed to send it Thar's way, words formed on the paper.

Meet me in the training room in half an hour.

Briefly, our eyes met from across the room. Part of me hoped he would want to talk to me about what the hell happened last night, but I knew this was about demons and whatnot.

"We simply ask of you to welcome new students into your school." My father continued. "They lost their safe haven and need your support."

"Has someone been attacked?" Morta's voice rang through the room, pulling every gaze towards her, including mine.