Whitethorn Academy

Chapter Thirty-Two

Even after leaving, the unease that followed my conversation with Alek remained. The way he'd looked at me left me feeling off. Why bother saving me from the embarrassment of sparring with him if he was just going to be a jerk about it after?

Naomi had caught up with me, seeming in slightly better spirits than before.

"Are you ready for our next class?" She asked, a smile crossing her face.

I scrounged around in my backpack for my schedule. "Which class is next?"

Naomi leaned in closer. "Magic class."

My stomach did an odd flop. Was I excited to learn magic? Obviously. What teenage girl who loved to read wouldn't want to learn magic? But then the image of my magic breaking free in the quad came to mind. What if I hurt someone?

If Naomi noticed my unease, she said nothing as she looped her arm through mine and led me to Alpha Hall. As we stepped through the doors, an odd sensation washed over me, like a burst of cold air.

"What was that?" I asked Naomi.

"It's a barrier spell. It prevents unaware students from accidentally seeing the other classes."

"I guess that's helpful," I replied. "Are there many spells like that around campus?"

She nodded her head. "There's a fair few. Inara says it's best when people find out about themselves organically. You can't do that if you accidentally stumble into a class where everyone is performing magic."

On the second floor, I followed Naomi into a large classroom. Arranged along the front half of the room were desks, leaving the second half open. I sat at a desk next to Naomi and nervously fiddled with a notebook.

For the first time, Naomi took notice of my nerves. "What's wrong?"

"What if I hurt someone?"

"Our instructor is pretty good at making sure that doesn't happen."

"Pretty good?" I questioned.

"Accidents happen," Naomi said, shrugging her shoulders. Her nonchalant attitude was wearing on me. Between the sparring and magic classes, it felt like the school wasn't safe. How many students were injured or killed during their studies here?

Jason pulled me out of my thoughts by sitting at the desk next to mine. "Hey new girl."

"Hey," I replied, though the nerves about class still churned in my stomach.

"How are you liking your new classes?"

"It's all a little strange," I admitted. "I didn't realize that I'd be learning a different history, fighting my classmates, and learning to use magic."

Jason laughed. "It gets easier, new girl."

I didn't comment, just turned my attention to the teacher, who entered the room with a smile on her face. She was older than most of the other teachers, her graying hair pulled back into a tight bun. Her face, etched with laugh lines, was friendly. Her green eyes were friendly and crinkled when she smiled. She almost reminded me of Ms. Rose.

She clapped her hands together and a burst of white magic released, like ghostly doves that flew over our heads. Most of the students were unimpressed, except for me.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Jason said as he saw the look on my face.

"It's amazing," I said as I watched the light dance over my head. I heard someone scoff and turned to see Mari roll her eyes as she looked at me. Then she leaned toward Nadia and whispered something. Both girls instantly broke into quiet, snickering laughter.