The Legend of the Eight: The Gifted

8: Thicker Than Blood Knots

EIGHT: THICKER THAN BLOOD KNOTS
JANUARY 4
NICOLE BRADLEY

SINCE SHE ARRIVED IN THE World of Magic, Nicole Bradley's life had changed dramatically. She was away at boarding school (which felt a lot like living on her own) and everything she thought she knew about the world was wrong. Magic was real and her new school reflected that. Runes and Archaic Symbols replaced Calculus, History of Magic replaced American History, and the Study of Magical Beings replaced Biology.

But with all of that excitement came heartbreak. Her sister was dead, killed by a radical student doing the dirty work for some Dark Wizards. And just that morning, Nicole woke up to a powerful burning on her hip and a strange scar there.

After two of her four classes on Monday, Nicole was supposed to join Kate in the Dining Hall for lunch but excused herself to the bathroom beforehand. She hadn't had a moment to herself since arriving at the Academy and she was beginning to feel overwhelmed. Luckily, the bathroom was empty when she walked in and she stopped at the sink to catch her breath.

"Get it together, Bradley," she said to herself and her eyes locked onto her reflection in the mirror. "You belong here. You're a wizard."

She pointed an index finger out and wracked her brain for a spell. She'd read plenty of grimoires in recent weeks (courtesy of the extensive reading list from Queen Clarion). Surely she remembered one of them. Nothing too big. Just a little spark. There was magic all over the Academy and there was magic in her, too. She just had to find it.

She remembered a spell called Conversus, meant for turning things on and she channeled every ounce of magical energy down to her finger—now pointed at the faucet.

"Conversus."

But nothing happened. Frustration crept up her spine and she huffed. Then she straightened her finger and more forcefully, tried again.

"Conversus!"

The handle squeaked, turning ever so slightly before a louder squeak sounded and the faucet switched on full force. Water shot into the basin powerfully, splashing out and puddling onto the marble floor below. When the pressure became too much, the cap on the handle shot off and the stream shot straight up to the ceiling, sending water everywhere.

Nicole shrieked and reached through the water to shut it off but the faucet was stuck. Hard as she tried, it wouldn't budge. Water rained down from the ceiling and Nicole started to panic because of the limited spells she knew, fixing this problem was not one of them.

Moments later, the door flung open and before Nicole could see who it was, she heard the girl curse,

"What the hell are you doing?"

Then she waved her finger and muttered something that sounded like Rescindo, causing the water to cease. The last few drops puddled to the ground like the very end of a rainstorm and Nicole stopped to catch her breath. She pushed her blonde hair out of her face and looked up at the girl who'd saved her from her magical mishap. Then she became breathless for an entirely different reason.

"Wil," she said with wide eyes and if she was being honest, she wasn't even sure if she was allowed to call the princess Wil. Sure, she called Kate Kate but they were roommates. What if the rules were different? Nicole looked around at the mess, searching for the right words.

"I—" But she didn't know what to say.

"Trying your hand at free magic?" Wil guessed, stepping through the puddle to the towel dispenser where she began drying herself off.