Reckless Magic (26 page)

“
Well maybe you could double
with Talbott?” he suggested softly. “He doesn’t have a date yet.”
This was getting ridiculous.

“
Yeah…. maybe,” I laughed
sarcastically, “Thanks, but no thanks your majesty.” The bell rang
and I was thankful to be done with Kingsley, at least for the
day.

“
That’s not funny,” he said
defensively. I gathered my things, hoping that this conversation
was over. If he followed me out the door and Principal Saint saw me
talking to him, I was going to be in big trouble. “Eden, please
wait,” he grabbed my hand gently and I turned to look at him.
Something in his eyes looked sad, like he was sorry for
something.

“
I just think that you would
have fun if you came to the dance,” he gave me a saddened version
of his custom smirk, and his eyes twinkled a little bit. The rest
of the class was quickly leaving and I was afraid we would be alone
in a second.

“
Really, I can’t dance. If I
went, it wouldn’t be fun for anyone…. trust me,” I tried to sound
sincere, but my voice was breathy as Kiran pulled me a little
closer, his fingers left my wrist and intertwine themselves with my
fingers.

“
Eden, are you ready?”
Avalon was beside me and in an almost defensive stance. Oh no. I
remembered my promise to Avalon and felt guilty for indulging
myself with Kiran too long.

“
Yes, almost,” I turned and
smiled at him, refusing to drop my hand from Kiran’s. What was
wrong with me? My magic flared at the memories of the last time we
were this close and I regretted the fact that we were at
school.

“
Come on, let’s go,”
Avalon’s voice was anxious and I was surprised that he was so
impatient. The usually focused and clearer sensory perception that
came from being around him felt tense and put me on edge. Avalon
glared at Kiran, but every once in a while he turned to give me an
impatient frown.

“
She said she’ll be right
there Avalon,” Kiran pulled me closer to him, blocking me with half
of his body, and took an equally defensive pose. I could see
Talbott out of the corner of my eye begin to make his way over from
where he had been waiting for Kiran in the doorway.

“
Let go of her,” Avalon
nearly growled.

“
No,” Kiran growled back and
Talbott took his side, clearly protective.

“
Alright, everybody just
settle down.” I made my voice light, trying to soften the mood.
What was going on?

“
Back off Avalon. I wouldn’t
do anything that would get you into trouble if I were you,” Talbott
tried to step in front of Kiran but Kiran didn’t let him. He
stepped forward as if he to challenge Avalon. Avalon mimicked his
movement and stepped forward too.

“
He’s right Avalon, you
wouldn’t want to get into trouble.... again,” Kiran mocked
him.

“
Are you sure about that?”
Avalon threatened in a deep, growling voice.

“
Alright, I’ll see everybody
tomorrow,” I dropped Kiran’s hand and headed for the door quickly.
I was not going to get in the middle of some ridiculous boy
fight.

I could feel Avalon’s presence behind
me, but I refused to turn and acknowledge him. I headed straight
for my car as fast as I could, hoping he’d get the hint.

He didn’t and continued to follow me,
but he also didn’t try to say anything until we reached my car. He
never even tried to walk beside me, although his long legs could
have easily outpaced mine. He stayed behind me almost as if he was
protecting me from whatever else was back there. I became even more
irritated.

“
I’m sorry about that Eden,”
Avalon finally broke the silence as I searched for my car keys deep
inside my book bag. “He just, ugh, he’s just so infuriating,”
Avalon punched one of his fists into his other hand and I watched
him clench his jaw.

“
Well, he’s not the only
one,” I gave him a fierce look and dug deeper in my bag for the
keys to my Land Rover.

“
Why do you even bother
talking to him? I thought you weren’t allowed,” he looked at me
with an intensity that I didn’t understand.

“
It’s not like I try to talk
to him. He is just always there! What do you mean I’m not allowed?”
I defended myself, but wondered at Avalon’s use of the word
“allowed.” I searched through my memories, trying to remember a
time when I had been outright forbidden to talk to him.

“
Oh nothing, I mean, it’s
just that, like the whole betrothal thing,” he blurted out and I
didn’t know what he was talking about.

“
What do you mean?” I
repeated.

“
The betrothal between Kiran
and Seraphina. I thought everyone knew. They are betrothed to be
married,” I stared at him confused until he continued, “I thought
that was the whole reason he was at this school; he’s like supposed
to get to know his future wife.” And then the meaning of the word
“betrothal” sunk in. Kiran was going to marry Seraphina; no wonder
she thought she was his girlfriend: she was. In fact she was more
than his girlfriend, she was his freaking fiancée. Freaking
monarchy with their freaking tradition. What century did we live
in? Betrothal? Out of control.

Talbott’s warning suddenly made sense,
in fact, a lot of things suddenly made sense and I felt like such
an idiot. He really was just using me for entertainment this entire
time. I felt sick; how could I have not known.

“
Oh,” was all I could
manage, and my lips stayed formed by the word. But my heart dropped
into my stomach.

“
Hey were you planning on
going to the Fall Equinox dance?” Avalon asked out of the blue,
changing the subject quickly.

“
Not anymore,” I reminded
myself to breathe and willed myself to forget the nauseous feeling
rising in my throat. “It’s not really my thing anyways.” I said
softly, hoping I wasn’t letting him down. My mind was still reeling
from the wedding news.

“
Oh good…. Yeah, those
things are dumb anyways,” his face looked visibly relieved and I
didn’t understand why.

“
We could hang out though;
you could come over tomorrow night and we could like rent a movie
or something,” I said, not wanting to sit at home, alone on a
Saturday night, when the guy I had kind of liked or kind of hated
or whatever I kind of felt was out having a great time with his
future wife. Ugh.

“
Oh no, I can’t, sorry, I
already have plans. But you should definitely stay home and not go
to the dance,” his expression was completely serious, and I was
completely confused. “I hear it’s going to be really terrible. See
you Monday, Eden,” Avalon turned and walked away to his car,
leaving me standing alone, completely baffled. Boys could be so
confusing.

25.

“
Eden…. Eden,” A gentle
voice encouraged me to wake up and I tried, but I found myself in a
very heavy sleep.

“
Eden, come with me,” I
grudgingly opened my eyes slowly and took in my surroundings. I was
in the middle of a forest, unlike any forest I had ever seen
before, although vaguely familiar at the same time. Tall flowering
trees surrounded me; all unique, all yielding a distinct, but
beautiful blossom of every color imaginable. The forest floor was
covered in wild flowers as unique as the blossom’s on the tree.
Butterflies and dragonflies buzzed energetically around me, never
intrusive, but fun to watch.

I found myself sleeping on a long
boulder, but I was not uncomfortable, in fact I was very relaxed
and felt slightly sedated. A carpet of vibrant, green grass
surrounded me, layered with the petals of flowering trees. The
petals in all different colors floated tenderly down to the earth
like a beautiful and colorful snow. The sun shone brightly above
me, warming my skin and casting rainbows on the rock. I felt
completely at peace.

“
Eden, come with me,” the
voice beckoned to me again and I forced myself to stand, legs
unsteady and my head somewhat dizzy. I did not want to leave this
enchanted place. However, I followed the voice into the trees,
searching for the body it belonged to. I noticed I was wearing my
pajamas and felt faintly out of place in a black tank top and
plaid, baggy bottoms.

In the trees it was slightly darker,
the blossoms blocked out the light of the warm sun. The petals
continued to fall around me, tickling my arms as they made their
way to the plush ground. Bursts of light shone their way to the
forest floor through gaps in the trees, illuminating the way for
me. I heard a stream nearby and the sound of the water rushing over
rocks gave a soothing lullaby to this perfect place.

I wandered aimlessly, forgetting about
the voice. This place seemed familiar, but new at the same time.
Vaguely I realized that I was dreaming, but the magic still rushed
through my veins awakening my mind more and more.

I walked through a patch of flowering
trees and found the stream. The water was breathtaking. The aqua
river glistened and sparkled as it flowed over rocks and a shallow
bottom of golden sand. The stream itself wasn’t very wide, but
created a treeless path that allowed the sun to freely shine down.
On the other side of the brook were more glorious flowering trees
and behind them I could see the beginnings of foothills.

I dipped my foot in to the cool water
and let my toes sink into the sand. The sand glistened like
diamonds over my toes. I thought about crossing the river to wander
among the trees on the other side, but got distracted by a
butterfly that landed on my hand. It floated effortlessly from my
fingers to my shoulder and then back into the trees; I contemplated
following it, but was interrupted.

“
There you are,” Kiran
stepped out of the trees and approached me. He had never looked
more beautiful. His dirty blonde hair glistened from the sunlight
and his perfect blue eyes were clearer than the water. He stood
tall against the background of the forest. He was wearing a t-shirt
and athletic shorts and his muscular build was clearly defined. I
smiled, taking him in and realized that I was not at all surprised
to see him.

“
Where were you?” I asked as
if he should have been here all along.

“
I was looking for you,” he
smiled, taking my hands. “Should we go for a walk?” he asked,
pulling me along, intertwining our fingers.

I leaned close to him, stepping out of
the water and laid my head on his shoulder. I inhaled his scent,
sweet yet masculine, and felt as though this were the most normal
thing I had ever done. He wrapped his arms around me tightly,
pulling me even closer. I heard him sigh sweetly; the same sigh I
heard during our kiss.

“
What are you hiding from me
Eden?” his voice was sweet, almost laughing.

“
I’m not hiding anything,” I
replied without emotion. A feeling of paranoia crept up my spine
sending the magic shivering through my veins. But I refused to
leave his embrace. Whatever his question meant was not important
enough for me to let go of him.

“
Hmmm…” he sighed,
contentedly, pulling me away from him so that we could continue to
walk.

We moved silently through the trees; I
allowed him to lead as he seemed to be walking in a specific
direction. His fingers tightened around mine and I felt his body
stiffen. My magic became more and more alert, awakening my senses
and sending suspicion through every blood vessel.

“
Where are we going?” I
tried to keep my voice even, but it cracked with
anxiety.

“
We haven’t got much time,”
Kiran replied breathlessly. “Eden what are you hiding from me?
Quickly, I need to know,” he stopped moving and faced me, taking my
other hand in his. His sapphire eyes searched mine, looking for the
answer to his question.

For a few seconds I pondered his
question, deciding what to tell him. With my hands in his I began
to feel a sense of calm wash over me. My magic slowed down to a
normal rhythm and my suspicion began to fade. My senses seemed dull
and slow and I couldn’t think of a good reason not to tell
him.

I opened my mouth, not sure of what I
would say, but nothing came out. I didn’t know what I was hiding; I
could feel there was something that I shouldn’t tell him, but I had
no idea what it was. His cobalt eyes gazed into mine intently,
willing me to speak, but I remained silent.

“
Eden, what is it? You have
to tell me so that I can keep you safe. I need to protect you,
love.” He begged quickly.

“
There’s nothing to tell
you,” I stepped back from him, trying to free my hands from his
grasp, but he held on tightly.

Suddenly my senses were clear again
and the magic pulsed through me at an alarming rate. Immediately I
became ready for battle; my muscles flexed and I tore my hands away
from Kiran’s. A hooded and cloaked figure stepped through the trees
and I immediately was aware that he meant us harm.

“
I am stronger than you in
this place,” Kiran spoke calmly and measured, but I could hear the
underlying current of rage in his tone. At first I thought he was
speaking to me, but when I looked up at him, he was facing the
masked man, arms stretched out as if shielding me.