The Spirits' Guide

Chapter 21

She shoved through the crowd of students as they made their way to class. Iris grunted as another shoved back. She sighed as she stepped to the side to wait for the students to move on.

Checking a clock that rested above one of the rooms, she noticed that quite a number of them were late to their next classes.

"All of you, classes, now!" She shouted at the crowd of remaining students. She watched some flinched and all scurried away like rats on a ship.

Stepping back into the hallway, Iris continued walking. To say she was surprised by the bloody mess that came out of one of the classrooms was not an exaggeration.

"Sacrifices," Luka shrugged as Iris stared at him, eyes as wide as the moon. She licked her lips, trying to find the words for what she had just witnessed.

"Get out of my way," Iris growled, shoving Luka to the side so she could walk away.

She quickened her pace as she felt his gaze on her back. She stormed through the remaining portion of the hallway before she slammed through the doors and hastened to the carriage in the driveway.

Without glancing at the driver, she demanded, "My apartment."

She pulled herself up and into the carriage with as much grace as a three-legged donkey. The second she closed the door, the vehicle began to lumber away from the large stone building.

She didn't need to look at the tower, she already knew Josephine was watching her leave. Iris gritted her teeth, she knew the demon-woman was smirking.

She looked out the window on her left. She saw tall dark pine trees looming behind the lighter oaks that spread their branches out in the appearance of a nest of spiders.

Iris stared into the forest, shadows loomed beneath their soft canopy of leaves. If she looked closer, the shadows had eyes.

Snapping her attention away from the forest, she thought about what she would have to do next.

"How sad," a voice noted as Iris brought a hand to the bridge of her nose. She glanced around the carriage and saw no one there.

"Jinn, what do you have to say?" Iris sighed, straightening up and sitting finely on the velvet seat. She heard a whisper of a chuckle as the Jinn began to speak.

"Well, I just acquired the documents that would explain why there isn't a second spell-room." Iris raised a brow, she didn't see any paperwork or files. She had to wonder why it took years to find such things.

"They're back at the apartment," The Jinn said quickly. Iris shrugged.

The rest of the carriage ride was in silence as Iris slowly closed her eyes.

When it finally began to lumber slower, Iris knew that she was in the city.

She stretched and opened her eyes to see the crowded streets. Still resting her head on the carriage's wall, she watched the citizens of Stila go about their day. She sighed when the carriage finally rumbled to a stop.

With numb legs, she hopped gracelessly out the vehicle. Turning back, she watched the door close itself and the carriage begin to move once more. She stood on the pathway, staring at the green lock and dying devil flag as it got smaller and smaller.

Iris turned to the front door of her apartment. She shoved through it before she entered the rickety elevator. Pulling the lever to the fourth level, she waited for the box to begin moving her up.

When she finally reached her floor, she quickly got out and crossed to the third door to her left. Pulling out a key, she shoved it into the lock.

Turning it to the right then the left, then the right once more, the door finally unlocked. Shoving the squealing door, she pushed into her apartment.

Iris sighed at the sight of it. It was never clean but it was never so dusty that she could barely see the floor. She took a breath, readying herself to prepare for the pain-taken time it would take to clean. She had a fit of coughing and wheezing as she took more breaths in.

Holding onto her chest, it dawned on her that she could possibly cough out a lung before she got the whole room clean. Crossing through the dusty room, she opened the door to the shallow closet and grabbed her broom.

"Now that's ironic. I thought you said witches never use brooms?" Iris jumped as she heard the Jinn speak.

Twisting around, she gritted her teeth and muttered, "And witches with no magic of their own. I said, 'witches never use brooms unless they lack all magic of their own.' Before you quote others, know what they said."

The Jinn sighed, "Do you want to know why I'm here and not in the castle?"

"You have something?" Iris asked, forgetting their previous conversation almost instantly.

A huff from the unseen man, "Yes, that's why I'm here. The country's treasuries appear to be in stable condition, nothing to worry about if you were the king. Little corruption from the officials, although there may be one to be wary of. From the outside, it seems that everything is in order."

Iris tilted her head in thought. Narrowing her eyes, she asked, "What's happening on the inside? Is this why it took you years?"

"Well, yes. The king and his officials seem worried about an heir." Iris sucked on the inside of her cheek. Stila had a large problem if there wasn't an heir by the king's death.

He lacked children of his own. Unless he chose an heir, the country will be pushed into complete chaos. Even if he chose an heir, his bloodline would no longer continue, which would be far worse.

Although, the king could still give his bloodline in the Dans Ei, a ceremony to transfer magic and blood into another witch. It was most commonly done to witches that lacked a bloodline of their own.

"Why are they worrying about this now? The king has another twenty years before his death." Iris asked. She heard the Jinn's shuffled steps move toward the dirt-covered window.

"Thirty-two years ago, the city was attacked by a large horde of demons. We still don't know why." The Jinn muttered. For a brief flickered moment, Iris saw the large blue demon that was her familiar. She never noticed anything else, only the flash of his brilliant skin.

"You're suggesting that the king and his officials know why Stila was attacked," Iris said as she walked to the window, standing on the tips of her toes to see what the Jinn saw.

"Yes. If I were to tell you that there was once an heir, what would you say?" He whispered. Iris clutched onto the sill of the window, trying to continue her search for what the Jinn saw. Her strained toes gave way and she fell back onto the flats of her feet, not seeing a glimpse of what he saw.

Glancing at the Jinn, she thought about the question. It made sense that Iris, nor anyone else, wouldn't know anything about this heir. The king would be fearing exactly what had happened thirty years ago.

"A very likely possibility," Iris murmured, glancing around her room before saying, "What were the documents you found?"

"Evidence of an heir, the photo album is on your desk. Although, that was the only thing I found. They scrubbed almost all traces away." They spoke, his voice quiet.

"Then it's not that important. I'll look at it after I sleep," Iris yawned.

"Fine, ignore my years of work." The Jinn snapped.

"Night, Jinn," Iris murmured, pulling her clothes off.