Gargoyle Saga: In The Beginning

Chapter Nineteen

Steam with an array of floral smells whacked me in the face when I opened the shower room. Wet feet slapped on the tiles as the first-year girls hurried around with towels wrapped around their bodies and hair. I found a free cubical and had a quick shower only to have panic flush through me like a burst dam when I ran my fingers through my soapy hair. On my head, I felt two very distinct bumps where horns would be. "Oh crap," I cried and tried to press them in, but I only ended up hurting my fingers. They weren't going anywhere except out through my head.

Still panicking, I forget whether I had actually washed my hair and quickly ran out of shampoo. Towel drying I grabbed my clothes headed back to my dorm where Sophie and Grace were left. Grace was still getting ready, curling her eyelashes of all things, while Sophie was fully clothed and in her usual bored demeanour sat up and glanced at me.

"You're gonna be late," Sophie said, lounging on her bed. "Wait, what's wrong?"

I shook my head and throwing my clothes on my bed, sifted through the ones I was going to wear today. Grabbing anything, I shoved it on over wet hair. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the clock. I had exactly five minutes until the buses were about to go. "Crap." I went to the full-length communal mirror and placed my hands over my wet hair. "Please, please work. Sicco!" My hands turned a vibrant shade of orange and my wet hair instantly became dry. My mouth fell open in shock. "Holy cow!"

"Wow, cool!" Sophie sat bolt up.

"Holy cow, it worked! It actually worked!" I squeaked. "I didn't even believe it! Unreal!"

Grace's mouth fell open and her eyes practically bulged out of her sockets. "Girl, you just did magic... magic that worked! What is that spell?"

"It turns wet things dry," I said, checking my hair then brushed over my bulb horns. "Definitely need a beanie." My eyes glanced to my cross, which I had practised ignoring it but even a beanie wouldn't cover it entirely.

The three of us headed out of the dormitory together discussing the use of magic. "You won't get in trouble will you?" Grace asked. "I mean, it was rather flippant of you."

"Hey, I'm just glad I could actually do it. I saw Von pull a stone chair out of the middle of the floor the other day and it freaked me out. I came across the spell in a basic magic book I was reading the other day. If truth be told I was going to practice it on a puddle of water but, needs must. We need to practice these things surely, or else how are we going to know them?"

Sophie gave me a sly smile as we opened the front door to a very fresh, wintery morning. "You really surprise me Verity Hobbs. And, you look cool in my hat."

"First years gather around please!" A female teacher called in a post Home Counties accent over our heads. I recognised her as the Ancient magic teacher, Mistress Sunnifer Walker. "Can boys and girls from dorms one through three go in this first bus on my right and the rest on the bus on my left. Quickly now."

I saw Perri's flaming hair get onto the left bus with Fraya while Sophie, Grace and I tagged along behind the others. The boys pushed each other on and tried to get to the very back. As I understood it all mischief-makers went to the back of the bus. It's like an unwritten law or something.

Grace and Sophie sat at the front behind the driver while I sat on a single seat beside them. Fraya and Perri were three rows back, but all you could hear was Fraya.

When the bus started us, Mistress Walker got into the passenger seat by the driver. "Right we're off everyone. Try and keep the noise to a minimum." Sitting directly behind her, I saw she conjured up a large black-rimmed hat and sunglasses out of thin air and put her seatbelt on. I was in awe! I'd read about conjuring objects but hadn't seen the spell used in such a superfluous manner. Grace turned to get Perri and Fraya's attention. "Psst, Perri!"

She poked her head over the seat. "What's up?"

"Verity did magic! And it worked." The entire bus went silent. I saw Mistress Walker glance at the rearview mirror, but she didn't say anything, or perhaps she didn't hear?

I blushed. "Shush, Grace, not so loud!" I pulled my beanie down as far as it would go, though I knew it wouldn't help.

A boy in the single-seat behind me stood up and leant over me. "You did magic?"

Averting his gaze, I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. I had seen him a few times but didn't know his name. He was just tall, straw-blond haired boy, who hung around with three other boys who I assumed was from the same dorm as they were also on the same bus as him. "Just a trouble-free drying spell, on my hair. It's nothing really interesting." I desperately tried to play it down, but this boy wasn't buying it.

"Show me," He demanded.

"She can't you idiot, she doesn't have wet hair," Grace sniped.

The boy placed his hands over my head and said, "Unda!" Coldwater cascaded down from his palms and soaked me in seconds.

Gasping and gulping for air, I suddenly found myself instantly angry and turned in my seat. "You horrible git! Why the hell did you do that?"

"Mistress Walker!" Fraya called from behind the bus. "Lauri used a water spell on Verity!"

The boys burst into laughter but Mistress Walker wasn't impressed. She simply waved her hand and I was instantly dry. "While I do not condone the use of magic as it is used in our everyday lives, I do deplore the use unnecessarily to make a point. Mr McCoy, you will go to the headmasters off at six o'clock this evening." She snapped her fingers. "He will be expecting you."

"Teacher's pet!" he whispered and sat heavily in his seat.

Sighing heavily I leant my forehead against the window and watched the morning fields pass through the blacked-out windows of the bus and wished very much to go home and forget this all happened. This was a new form of bullying I had never thought possible, the use of magic on one another. As I closed my eyes, drowning out the small din of noise I heard Grace say to Sophie, "No don't leave her. She's probably embarrassed and upset." Both were true.