Chapter 273

The rest of us burst into laughter as Jesse skitters like a wet cat, panting as he looks down at himself, soaked to the skin with freezing water.

“Anyone else?” Cora asks, grinning around at the group of us. We all just keep laughing, shaking our heads no, I think all kind of thrilled at the change in professors. I mean, I know that Cora and mom don’t know much about the practical theory of magic – at least, as far as I know – but we do know that they care and will try their best.

“I will have my revenge on you, mother,” Jesse snaps, flicking water at her with his fingers as he strides away towards the bathroom, his boots squelching ridiculously as he goes, sending the rest of us again into another collective fit of laughter. “I have shadow magic now!” Jesse calls over his shoulder. “I’ll…do something with that!”

“Can’t wait to see what you’ve got, baby,” Cora calls to him, dry, as she waves over her shoulder.

Rafe sighs and heads over to Jesse’s chest of drawers, clearly planning to get him a dry uniform to change into. “We’re all having a very nice lunch and all,” he says, dry. “But could we please try to come up with a plan? Ariel was seriously attacked by a dark god this morning,” he reminds us, his voice a little frustrated. “We need to…think about what it means that he was here, this whole time, apparently lurking and learning about what the five of us can do.”

We all turn back to each other then, properly chastised as Rafe carries the clean uniform to the bathroom and raps on the door, trading the clothing to Jesse for a towel with which to sop up the water on the arm chair. But to his surprise – to all of ours, really – Cora just flicks her hand and evaporates the water on the chair into another little rain cloud and then sends it whipping towards the window.

“Could you open that, Rafe?” Cora asks, her voice peaceful.

Rafe gapes at her for a second and then walks to the window, opening it and letting the little cloud zoom out. “I didn’t know you could do that,” he murmurs, watching the cloud go, I think as impressed as the rest of us.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me and what I can do,” Cora says with a happy sigh as Jesse comes back out of the bathroom, changed but with bare feet. She looks around at the rest of us with interest as my cousin and my brother settle back down in our little circle. “Now. Let’s talk about what you can do.”

We go around the room then, bringing mom and Cora up to date on our magical skills and our progress. Even Jackson confesses willingly, letting Tony in on the secret of his magic that he’s been keeping close to his chest all year. Then Cora and mom quiz us about every detail of what happened this morning – both about Jesse’s power development as well as the appearance of the dark God. By the time we’ve finished turning over every detail, hours have passed. We’ve mostly cleared the table of its food, night is falling outside the windows, and honestly…I’m feeling myself a little ready for dinner.

And even though we’re all feeling a little exhausted, Rafe looks down into his lap more frustrated than the rest of us. I sigh, looking at my brother, hoping his frustration at being the only one who hasn’t developed his gift yet isn’t eating away at him too much. Mom puts an encouraging hand on his knee but otherwise ignores him, I think realizing that to talk about it with everyone would just embarrass him right now.

“You guys are all so cute,” my mom says, beaming around at all of us and shaking her head. “And so powerful and so rich with potential. But mostly cute.”

“Aunt Ella, you’re our professor now,” Jesse says, comfortable again and lounging across his chair with one leg over the arm like he usually does. “It’s creepy for you to call us cute.”

“No it’s not, I’m a Queen, it trumps professor. I can say what I want. Plus, you all really are so cute.” She clasps her hands beneath her chin and sighs with happiness.

“Tony is creeped out,” Jesse says, pointing at Tony. “So is Jackson.”

“No, I’m not,” Jackson counters immediately, even as he smirks.

“Ridiculous,” mom says, wrinkling her nose at Jesse and then Tony in turn. The way Tony grins back at mom I can tell that he, like Jackson before him, is already falling under her spell. “Besides, I can’t wait to work with Tony. His magic is more akin to mine – connected to the body.”

“Yes, you take Tony and Jackson,” Cora says thoughtfully, looking around the group. “I’ll take Ariel and this bag of bones,” she says, leaning forward to smack Jesse’s foot as it hangs over the arm of his chair and making him grin.

“What about me?” Rafe asks with a sigh, looking up between our mom and our aunt.

“We’ll pass you back and forth,” Cora says happily, beaming at her nephew encouragingly. “Until we figure something out to spark your gift.”

“Well, what is that going to be?” Rafe asks, casting out a frustrated hand. “Nothing’s worked so far.”

“Actually,” Cora murmurs, leaning forward and peering between us all. “I kind of…have a theory about that.”

“Really?” Rafe asks, eager. “Well, what is it?”

“Oh, we’ll discuss tomorrow,” Cora says with a sigh, standing up and stretching her hands up over her head. “I want to take the evening to compare notes with my sister and co-Professor.”

Mom’s eyes go wide. “We were supposed to take notes?”

Cora laughs, reaching a hand out for her. “Mental notes are fine, Ella. Come on, let’s go eat dinner and get some rest, check in with our husbands and let them know the heir, the spare, and the profligate duke are alive and well.”

“The wordplay,” Tony murmurs from his spot on the couch, looking between Cora and Jesse, “makes more sense now.”

“You haven’t met his dad,” Jackson replies, dry. I grin and press myself more completely to my mate’s side as Cora crosses to mom, holding a hand out.

“Why do we have to go?” mom whines, looking around at all of her favorites. “We were having fun – we can have dinner here!” she nods eagerly, looking around at all of us. “Maybe call Daphne up? I haven’t seen her in…”

Mom’s words fade off as Rafe looks bitterly away, as the rest of us – Tony excepted – go quiet.

“Who’s Daphne?” Tony whispers to Jackson. But Jackson just quickly shakes his head no and Tony gives a little grimace.

“Ella,” Cora says, raising an eyebrow and further extending her hand. “Time to leave the children alone. They have a draft to do in the morning and these two -” she points between Rafe and Jacks, “have a lot to think about.”

I whip my head to Rafe, my mouth hanging open because – is that seriously tomorrow!? I groan again, angry at myself, because – as the Captain rightly pointed out – it’s my job to ensure that I know these details.

Still. Would have been nice if someone had bothered to keep me up to date. I’ve been very busy.

“But I like them,” mom says with a pout, looking sorrowfully up at Cora even as she takes her hand.

“And why you tell them that is a great mystery to me,” Cora sighs, pulling mom to her feet, even as she grins. “You know you get more from them when they fear you and crave your love.”

“You are a dark sorceress,” mom sighs, giving Cora and little glare and then opening out her arms to us. “Hugs, all around, from the good witch in the group. And then we’ll see you tomorrow.”

I’m in my mom’s arms first, giving her a big hug, whispering to her that I’m very glad that she’s here, clinging to her a bit. Mom – she really does make everything better, and after our rather harrowing morning I have to admit that I don’t really want to see her go.

Still, Rafe peels me away from her after a minute, wanting his own goodbye.

I sigh, crossing my arms and looking up at Tony, who I find at my side. “Sorry if this was weird,” I say, grimacing a little. “But…welcome to the group, whether you wanted it or not.”

“Oh, I want it,” he says quietly, looking down at me with his eyebrows raised. “I’m not sure I knew I did but…” he sighs, running a hand through his black hair, I think putting his thoughts together as he does. “There’s something about this little magical group, isn’t there? I’m at home here in a way I’m not elsewhere.” He shrugs and then blushes a little, I think embarrassed to have admitted so much.

I grin, though, delighted to have him here, and I lean closer to him, knocking into him with my shoulder. He stumbles to the side a little, laughing, and I’m quite gratified that he moved at all. Tony is lankier than the other Alphas in our group – slimmer and less muscled, though still quite tall. “We like you, Tony.”

He looks down at me with a grin. “I like you too, Ariel. And the rest of them. Although…” he frowns a bit, looking towards my brother. “Rafe, I think, is not sold on me yet.”

I look around at the rest of the group as well, noting the way that Jesse stands close to his mom, an arm casually around her shoulder as they chat, clearly deeply connected in their own way despite her pranks and his swears of revenge. And then to Rafe and my mom, and Jackson standing with them, the devotion between all three. Happiness and pride swells through me at the sight of them all.

“Rafe is protective,” I say with a shrug as mom shifts her attention from Rafe to Jackson, standing on her toes to give him a hug as well. “Just…give him time.”

“If you say so,” Tony says with a sigh. But then, as mom releases Jackson and turns towards Tony, he gives me a wink and moves forward to shake my mom’s hand. He laughs, though, when she swats his hand away and wraps him up in a hug as well.