Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 73252 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 366(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73252 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 366(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
It’s magic.
Rows of chairs face the altar, and there’s more pagan and voodoo-themed artwork decorating the walls. The place smells strongly of sage and has a rather calming air to it, which is a striking difference from any feeling I’ve ever gotten stepping inside a Christian church.
“We have formal meetings in here,” Marie tells me. “Anytime there’s important news or an important decision for the coven to vote on, we meet here.”
“Okay.” I nod, my mind reeling as I try to take everything in.
“The school can accommodate several hundred children,” she goes on. “There are dormitories on either side, divided for boys and girls. Classes, of course, are mixed. We start with third grade. That’s typically the age when most active powers make themselves known.”
“So if a magical family had a kid, they wouldn’t necessarily know if they had powers until that age?”
“Powers usually make themselves known pretty early on, but typically,” she says as she closes the doors so we can step away from the gathering hall, “the majority of the coven doesn’t have active powers. We all have the ability to cast spells, tap into our intuition, and see or hear things non-magical people can’t. But powers like telekinesis aren’t something everyone here can do.”
“Really?”
She laughs at my genuine shock. “Really. I meant it when I said it, Wren. You come from a line of powerful magic. For as little as you’ve been allowed to tap into your powers, look at what you can already do. I can sense so much greatness inside you. It saddens me to know that you’ve gone nearly thirty years of your life suppressing who you truly are.” She puts a hand on my shoulder, then laughs. “Now, don’t go getting a big head and thinking you’re some prodigy.”
“I’m far from it.” I resist the urge to ask if she can just go ahead and locate some of the Blackwoods on the East Coast and see if I can go to their Covenstead instead. But the words quickly die inside me when I realize I wouldn’t only be meeting my family.
I’d have to tell them what I just did. Or undid, I suppose.
“Let me give you the rest of the tour, though since it’s late, I’ll save the dormitories and faculty areas for the morning.”
I follow Marie down a hall before we enter a large cafeteria. Like the gathering hall, this room also has large windows. They overlook a grassy field behind the building. Even though it’s dark outside, I can see a dimly candle lit garden full of flowers and herbs, with benches and swings tucked along the paths.
“The students eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner here,” she says, “but we also use this room for other social gatherings. The coven really is one big family. Since probably ninety percent of our students are legacy students, it’s quite the tight-knit community.”
She quickly adds, “But we’re always open to new members.” She points toward a door at one end of the cafeteria. “There’s a kitchen through there, which I believe is locked at this time of night. And those closets contain cleaning supplies. Trust me, I know.” She gives me a knowing smile. “I was put on cleaning duty multiple times when I was a student here.”
“You guys can’t just wave a magic wand and have everything clean itself?” I ask, only half joking.
“If only life were just like Harry Potter.” She chuckles. “It won’t take you long to learn some simple spells to make your life much easier, though. Being able to manipulate energy can be pretty handy. You’ve already proven to have a decent grasp of that all on your own.”
“Yeah, I can see how it’d be like having an invisible helping hand around.”
I tip my head, thinking.
“If I drop the remote, I can just do this.”
I hold my hand out, imitating the motion I’d make if I were telekinetically zooming a remote back into my hand.
“Exactly. And you’d never have to worry about being too short to reach something on the top shelf.”
“I didn’t even think about that.” Though to be fair, I am above average height for a woman.
“Okay, now this way.” She motions for me to follow her toward the left side of the cafeteria. “This leads to our student areas. This hallway will take you to the library and then to all the classrooms and dormitories. I’ll definitely bring you back to the library during its open hours. It’s one of my favorite places, and somewhere I think you’ll find most helpful with researching and learning who you are.”
We step into the hallway, which is dimly lit by period-appropriate sconces along the walls. It takes me a minute to realize they’re not actual candles but fancy LED bulbs. I suppose it makes sense. If this place was built two hundred years ago, of course they’d update it for modern times as the years passed. The library is several yards down the hall, behind large wooden double doors. Marie looks up and down the hallway, then turns to me with a sly smile.