Not Your Average Ghost Story

Chapter 1

 Thyme

I step out the door, and almost instantly I'm soaked to the bone. Cursing, I leap back, slamming my backpack into Ant, my mother's employee, who does his absolute best not to fall over. It almost works. He ends up in a pile of soil and baby plants on the floor.

Sighing, I drop my backpack, carefully, ignoring the protesting squeaks, and help him repot the sprouts and clean up the dirt. I don't bother apologizing, though it's immensely hard not to; he'd just say it's his fault, and I don't want to get into that argument right now. "It's still raining," I mutter. "And now I'm going to be late."

Ant sets the tray of plants on an empty shelf and turns to me, brushing his hands on his already dirt-covered apron. "I thought you liked the rain."

"I love the rain," I agree. "Lia doesn't."

"Ah." He gives me a knowing look, and tries to turn away, but too late to hide his smile.

"Shut up." I feel heat rising to my cheeks, and hope my dark skin will hide it. Pulling my backpack straps over my shoulders, I stick my tongue out at him, and once again open the door. This time I'm prepared, forming a sort of umbrella from the air. The rain bounces off of it, and I stay fairly dry, though I don't bother using magic to protect my feet. The water in the streets is inches deep by now, after nearly three days of unending rain, and my legs are soaked halfway to my knees by the time I reach school.

Making my way through the warm, oppressively humid halls, I can feel my pants clinging to my legs, sucking the heat away from my body and the air around me. As I weave through groups of other students, I send a wave of warmth down to dry the fabric. Unfortunately, I'm focused more on that than my surroundings, and I run into someone for the second time in twenty minutes.

This time, no one hits the ground. Two warm hands catch my freezing fingers, and the other person uses my weight to keep themself upright.

"I'm so sorry-"

"No, I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention," I interrupt. Our eyes meet, and my blood runs cold. I suppress a shiver, and give a polite nod, pulling my hands back as gently as I can manage, trying not to seem shocked. I barely manage to hold back a gasp as I continue on as fast as I can without looking suspicious past the stranger.

Even hours later, when I'm waiting for Lia after school, there's a chill in my body. I can't shake the feeling that hit me when I looked into those eyes. They were dark. Very dark. I close my own eyes, trying to shut out the image, but that just makes it clearer in my mind.

I jump when a hand lands on my shoulder, slamming myself into Lia's locker. Her startled face fills my vision, and we both freeze, staring at each other. After a moment, we both relax and she starts to giggle.

"I'm sorry, I was daydreaming."

She shakes her head. "That's okay." I move aside, allowing her access to her locker, and wait for her to gather her stuff. "Can you believe it's still raining?" She shakes her head again, soft, pale orange hair swinging. "I miss the sunshine."

"You'd never survive in the Arctic."

"The sun shines in the Arctic. And I wouldn't want to be there anyway. I hate the cold."

I suppress my smile, and say simply, "I know."

We reach the flower shop just in time to take over for Ant. Since it's a rainy day, we're not very busy, and Lia sits on the hardwood floor, leaning against the check-out counter and reading. I tell her I'm taking my backpack up to my room. I make a pit stop in the kitchen, grabbing a container of chicken from the fridge, and then head towards my bedroom. As soon as I open the door a tiny winged ball of scales shoots at my face. I manage to throw my hands up just in time to catch her. Zaya flaps her weak, leathery wings feebly behind her and makes a purring noise. Her pupils contract and dilate as she swivels her head, trying to get a good look at what's in the container, and when she squirms, struggling to get free, I let her fall softly onto my pillow and pull off the lid, handing the chicken to her. She curls up instantly, tearing happily at it, and I decide it's safe to leave her and return to Lia, though I make a note to change my pillowcase later.