Chapter 7

She didn’t need me. She had Jac now. Someone else could calm the storm, take the responsibility, to share the burden. She didn’t need me.

My new merged life was perfect. No more hiding or sneaking away. Ix and Jac grew ever closer, a bond so natural it was almost palpable. Their closeness made me feel like I could finally take a full, deep breath. I spent my daylight hours nurturing each new relationships I made at Fenselle and, of course, Summer’s presence never wavered. A steady force in this new way of life, pushing me forward to imagine a life outside of duty.

The best night each week was when The Modern History of Our Life with Professor Pheme’s lecture was on the schedule. We’d developed an easy kind of routine, arriving always in the same order — Ix and Jac, me, and finally Summer, just after the lecture had begun — and in the same seats. Ix in the center sear, the nearest she could be to Professor Pheme without actually sitting on her podium, ready to absorb every word, missing no detail. I sat beside her, of course, at the heart of our ragtag little group. Jac, the ever silent one sat next to Ix and Summer always settled to my left, her eyes already distant before the professor could ever scold her for her tardiness. Somehow, we’d formed a group without ever needing to say it, a permanent fixture.

That night was no different as the professor’s voice filled the room.

She started her lecture on the Vilkatas again — always the Vilkatas. We’d covered the beginning, the failure of the Vilkatas to accept the land and safety offered by the Occult when settling and developing the land of this new planet. The discussion always, of courses veered back to the ongoing war— the war to protect the Occult and Baru way of life, to preserve the unity at the core of Marselai. The Vilkatas, we were taught were the disruption in the utopia. They didn’t understand, honestly couldn’t understand the important of cooperation to the global good.

Ix straightened in her seat, pen already moving across the paper,

summarizing each key point— and probably each minor point— the professor make. She took these lectures seriously. They were vital to her growth as a priestess, a role she’d learned to take very seriously as of late.

When Pheme spoke about the Vilkatas it was with a stern tone. She emphasized their stubbornness and their fear of adapting. To some extent, I could understand the wish to hold on to the familiar, but the Occult was the only reason Marselai existed, the only reason the Baru and Vilkatas and all other magical beings were afforded some safety from the “advancement” of humans. The Occult offered help, the Vilkatas rejected it. Simple, straightforward.

As engaged as Ix was with each statement, I watched her brow furrow and jot extra thoughts in the margins of her paper. At one point, her pen paused, hovering just over the paper before she leaned over to me. Her voice was soft. I had to lean forward to hear.

“Why did the Vilkatas need to move? Did I miss that?” She asked, her words trailing into silence. “Was the Occult just mad they didn’t get to choose where they settled?”

I chewed my lip, uncertain. Ix wasn’t one to challenge much. She was empathetic, sure, and her heart bled for every unfortunate soul she met, but there was something dangerous in her tone, uncharacteristically combative, almost.

I opened my mouth to respond, but faltered. I wanted to scold her. This was the world we needed to understand, to be a part of, and she was sounding like she wanted to pull away.

Professor Pheme kept lecturing, not noticing the shift in the room. My eyes darted to her, then back to Ix. Her eyes had returned to her notebook, but her pen moved with less fervor, confusion still stretching across her face.

I leaned further forward, her hair brushing against my cheek. “The Occult is here to keep the order, to keep things from getting out of hand.”

Ix didn’t respond write away, but her pen froze. I felt her energy rise. The pages of the notebook on her desk ruffled almost imperceptibly. Jacket sat up, turning her attention from the lecture to us.

Ix turned to me, a storm raging behind her eyes. “The Vilkatas didn’t ask for their help, didn’t they ask to be saved even. They didn’t ask for any of this.” Her words shot out a bit louder than they should have been and hung in the space between us. Jac placed an anchoring hand on Ix’s knee. The storm settled slightly, but Jac’s cheeks flushed.

I felt a pang in my stomach. I glanced over at Summer, who was still half- aware of the situation as she continued to study the ends of her hair. I shrugged, stifling down the thoughts swirling in my head. I leaned back just as Professor Pheme cleared her through, returning everyone’s attention to the lesson.

“The acts of the Vilkatas led to instability.” Her tone remained flat and matter- of-fact, as if reciting an age old story everyone knew. “The instability caused more violence to trickle out and encroach on the modern cities, a few attacks even launch on Edinaire itself. The Occult had no choice but to step in.”

Exactly, I thought to myself. There is no other way to keep the ones you love safe. Violence met with violence is only justice.

Even if there was another way, it wasn’t my place to say. I was a 23 year old girl who knew nothing about right or wrong or politics. I knew survival and it sounded like Occult knew what it took to survive.

I glanced at Ix again. She was staring at her notes, lost in thought. There was something in her eyes though. She wasn’t just questioning the history, she was questions the system. The system that she needed to appease, not push back against. If she started making waves, she was going to be in danger. From what, I couldn’t quite guess, but Diana was certain and as much as I didn’t trust her, I knew she was right. Ix needed to play nice in this system, stay unnoticed and unexceptional. Ix’s words, the look in her eye, echoed through my mind.

I squirmed in my seat.

The last few words of Professor Pheme echoed in the room before she cleared her throat.

“We’ll pick back up with the consequences of the Vilkatas’ refusal to cooperate next time. Please take the time to review your notes.”

The air in the room felt too thick, like the heaviness before a violent summer storm. I wanted to reach out to her, place my hand on her skin and feel her energy settle, but she stood up too soon. She grabbed her books in one smooth motion.

“I need to get to Diana’s,” she murmured. She glided out of the room, strands of her hair starting to lift with static electricity. My stomach dropped. Jac gave me a knowing but warning look and hurried after Ix.

I sat there for a moment longer than usual, trying to make some sense of what had just happened, letting the moment linger as the classroom slowly emptied.

Summer broke through the haze. She bumped her hip into my shoulder, jarring my thoughts awake. “I’m headed back to the house to change before Fens. You coming?”

I shook my head, pushing the odd feeling away. “I think I’ll head straight over.”

Summer gave a little understanding nod. I avoided our coven house as much as I could. With a sigh I grabbed my things. We walked out of the building together. The tension stretched behind me, slowly thinning the farther I got from that room. Whatever has happened with Ix, it was over now.

The cool winter air slashed at my face. I filled my lungs as Summer and I walked in silence until we parted ways. Fenselle would be waking up soon. The kitchen would smell of pastries, and if I was quick enough, I could watch the priestess, Delphinia, carefully walk through her morning ritual from the kitchen windows.

I quickened my step, all but sprinting across the field to the warmth of the Fenselle house and the routine of a new day.