phoenix academy for extraordinary girls (camren/norminah) ➸ unfinished fic

chapter 13

"What could they possibly want with us?"

Dinah, Normani, Ally, Lauren, and Camila are all sitting on the floor of Camila's dorm. The trap sits inbetween them, and none of the girls really know where to start.

"I don't know," Camila shrugs, leaning forwards and scraping some of the dirt off of the weathered metal. "They think we're some weird mutations or something. They just want us for science experiments."

"And answers," Dinah adds. Furrowing her eyebrows, she pushes Camila's hand aside and lifts the trap up slightly.

"What is that?" Normani's eyes widen. Dinah runs her fingers over the engraved metal and nods.

"It's them," she turns to Camila and shows her the carving. It's a seal of some sort, with letters written in a language none of them recognize. Camila knows the sign. She's seen it before in history lessons.

"We really should tell someone..." Lauren whispers, exchanging worried glances with Normani. Both of them have never experienced anything like this. And they're not sure they should be trusting a group of students who they've only just met.

"We can't," Ally speaks up for the first time. "It causes mass panic. It needs to be handled behind closed doors."

"By us? We can't handle that! I barely know what I'm doing," Lauren whispers, holding out her hands as if she's innocent. "And what are we even supposed to do?"

"What makes you think we can't handle it?" Camila speaks up, a testing tone in her voice. "Why are you so afraid?" This causes Lauren's face to tighten, and she clenches her jaw to stop herself from retaliating.

"She has a right to be afraid," Normani speaks up, glancing at Lauren. "I speak for both of us when I say we only just got here. We don't know what we're doing."

"None of us have violent powers except for Normani," Lauren shakes her head. "How do you expect us to defend ourselves?"

"You don't just need powers to defend yourself," Camila scoffs and hops to her feet. She reaches under her bed to retrieve something taped to the underside. Lauren's eyes widen when the girl reemerges with what appears to be a dagger. "This is modern day witchcraft. Sometimes you have to adapt."

Camila tosses the knife in the air, catching it effortlessly in her other hand before drawing her arm back and sending it flying across the room. It looks almost fake, Lauren thinks, as the blade sticks itself perfectly in the wall beside the door.

At the same time the knife hits the wall, the door opens slowly. Ariana jumps at first when she sees the knife, but quickly hurries into the room. The small girl looks at the other guests in confusion, glancing at Camila for an explanation.

"We're planning," Camila nods, sitting back down in the circle. Ariana nods hesitantly, but Lauren scoots over and pats the space beside her, giving her somewhere to sit.

"Wait, Normani, what even is your power?" Camila asks once Ariana sits down. Everyone turns to look at girl, who suddenly tenses up and glances at Lauren worriedly.

"There's no need to keep it a secret," Dinah speaks up, meeting Normani's eyes. "Not like we discriminate or anything." She gives the girl a shy smile, which doesn't go unnoticed by the other girls.

"I, uh, well..." Normani takes a deep breath. "Have you ever heard of the Kiss of Death?"

Everyone's jaw but Lauren's nearly drops to the floor, and they all stare at the girl in disbelief.

"You weren't joking?" Dinah is the first to speak up, confusing all the other girls. Normani still looks nervous, but she nods softly.

"Two sisters with some of the rarest powers we've ever seen," Ally raises her eyebrows. "That's wild."