The Adventures of the Junior Phoenixes, Part 1: The Pendant of Life

Chapter 26: Broken and Unbroken

Chapter 26

     November came nearly to a close. The first snowfall began to land on the ground as the town of Salem buzzed again at the advent of Thanksgiving. The pilgrim history and festivities in Boston were infectious, both for Muggles and for Magical people. Many of the shops in Boston, Salem, and the surrounding areas began to offer pumpkin treats and turkey meats of all sorts.

     As the towns were gearing up for the upcoming holiday, Shade and Jinx recuperated in the hospital wing at Salem Academy.

     Jinx was very malnourished. She was severely dehydrated, had cuts and lacerations all over, and she had lost weight. She was put on bed rest, which normally she would have objected to, but she didn’t even recall the days or month it was, and she didn’t remember the last time she got sleep.

     Shade was hurt worse than he initially thought. He had two cracked ribs, a broken nose, and a bad concussion. Professor Anita Bloodgood, who was the Native Medicine and Healing teacher, was also in charge of the hospital wing of Salem Academy. Master Blessed was the overseer of the hospital wing.

     Once Sherman brought Jinx to the guard tower, Shade took her to the hospital wing. Professor Bloodgood and Master Blessed insisted that Shade stay as well.

     The students were officially on vacation. Many of the students left for their homes and traveled back to wherever they came from. Master Wolf personally escorted Dareo, Polly, Ignatia, Rose, and Nymphara back to Derby Wharf. He brought with him Master Bullavin to make sure that the students didn’t encounter any unwanted attention.

     Rain Fox and Sky Heart remained behind. Sky Heart declined going to the tower for dinner. She decided instead to go with her new friends to their cottage in the hills of Virginia to have Thanksgiving there. So only Rain Fox and Cedrique Devereaux would be joining Shade and the others at the dinner table.

     Dareo was originally going to stay in the States, but he decided that, since he was old enough to make his own decisions, he would go back to England. Shade wondered if he was going to return after the holiday break.

     The other students came by to visit Shade and Jinx in the hospital. Jinx slept for almost two days straight and the kids just left flowers for her. Star, though, instead left a box of Bertie Bott’s Every-Flavored Beans for her.

     Two days before Thanksgiving, Shade was lying in the hospital wing sleeping. His ribcage was wrapped up to protect it. Even though Master Blessed and Professor Bloodgood had mended the cracked ribs, there was a lot of bruising, and Shade was instructed to take it easy. His nose was fully healed and the concussion subsided.

     Shade awoke, to find Jinx standing over him and looking at him to his face.

     “Jumpin’ Jellylegs, Jinx!” Shade said, with a start. “What are you doing?”

     “Waiting for you to wake up,” Jinx said.

     “What? Why?”

     “So I can give you this!” Jinx said, and she punched him in the arm.

     “Ouch! Dang it, woman, what did I do now?”

     “Don’t you ever take your sweet time looking for me again or I swear I will turn you into a turnip and feed you to a goat!”

     “Take my sweet time?” Shade said. “I had to figure out for myself that you had gone missing! Keleigh never told me anything and it was Sherman who informed me about you! I figured Turan was watching you and making you cut off contact from me, or just sent you out on assignment so that you couldn’t tell me about Scorn.”