Magicae

Chapter 19: Magic Class (Finally!)

Penny was in magic class.

And she was failing miserably.

"Focus on fire!" the teacher, Mrs. Amicus, said.

Penny screwed up her eyes and thought about flames. She thought back to her days staying with her grandparents and their giant fireplace.

Somewhere deep inside of Penny, something flickered. She reached for it--

"No need to look like a constipated duck while using magic," a voice sneered.

Penny opened her eyes, the spark disappearing. Emma effortlessly conquered up a mini snowstorm and moved the blizzard over to where Penny stood.

Mrs. Amicus brushed snow off of her shoulders. "Emma, please. Penny hasn't been here as long as you. No need to be rude. And please move the winter elsewhere."

Emma sighed. "Yes, Mrs. Amicus." The storm cloud disappeared. When the teacher walked away, Emma rolled her eyes.

Geneva leaned over and whispered to Penny. "Don't let her get to you. You can do it!"

Penny gave a weak grin. "Thanks."

Mrs. Amicus came back over. "Now, Penny, I heard that you have controlled fire once before."

"Well... yeah, but that was because I..." Penny's voice trailed off. She didn't want to share the details of her outburst with this teacher.

"Yes?" Mrs. Amicus said paitently.

"I, er, I got mad at someone and my arm caught on fire. And I don't know if I really controlled it... more like it controlled me."

Mrs. Amicus nodded. "Fire is a very volatile power, and it is very much tied to your emotions. The trick is to learn to use it without a strong emotions to trigger it. When your fire is summoned because of a strong emotions, it may seem more powerful. But it will be nearly impossible to control."

Penny nodded. "You know a lot about fire magic. Is that your power?"

Mrs. Amicus laughed. "No, it isn't, but I have a lot of experience with fire. Last year, we had a new student whose power also was fire. He had some trouble controlling it as well. You know what..."

The teacher wandered over to her desk and dialed someone on her phone. "Hey, this is Mrs. Amicus. Could you send Bane over please?" She paused. "Thanks!"

Mrs. Amicus walked back over to Penny. "He'll be here in a couple minutes. In the meantime, why don't you keep practicing?"

Penny nodded. As the teacher walked away, she closed her eyes again. Penny reached for that spark she had felt before...

It was easier this time. She found the spark and tapped it.

Someone behind her gasped. Penny's eyes flew open to see her fingertip blazing like a candlestick.

"I did it!" Penny yelped, excited. As she did, the flame grew larger and engulfed her hand.

Excitement turned to terror. "How do I stop it?" Penny asked Mrs. Amicus.

"Don't worry, Bane will be here soon." Mrs. Amicus sounded like she was forcing herself to remain calm.

Penny had to keep from screaming as the flames marched up her arm, just like they had with Alex.

The other student were all backed up against the wall, trying to get away from the heat radiating off of Penny.

Emma stepped forward. "Here, let me freeze the flames."

"No."

The class turned to the source of the voice, but Penny was afraid to look away from the flames.

"Okay, take deep breaths. I know you're scared, but you can't let the fear control you. If you let your emotions rule you, then so will the fire. Breath." The boy's voice was calming.

Penny did so, inhaling a shuddering breath. The fire seemed to shrink a bit.

"Good. Keep doing that. Remember, the fire can't hurt you. Everyone else is out of reach, so it won't hurt them."

"But what if the school catches on fire?" Penny asked shakily.

"It won't." The boy said it firmly, and Penny believed him. Slowly the fire shrank down to nothing.

Penny turned to thank this boy, but when she turned, her heart nearly stopped.

He was nearly as pale as Geneva, but had long and shaggy dark hair that hung in tatters past his ears. His eyes were a pale yellow that brightened when they saw Penny.

Penny froze.

It couldn't be.

"Al?" she asked, her voice cracking.

He smiled crookedly. "Hey, Nickel."