Redeemed, Heather Fledderus [early reader chapter books TXT] 📗

something, but just cutting me a little slack would be greatly appreciated. See, where I come from, what one does is what others judge them by. I didn’t murder anyone, so just let it lie.”

“Yes, thank you for keeping my students safe. I’m sure that if their parents ever found out, they would be extremely grateful. However, just because you are good with a sword does not make you harmless. So it is my duty to be your guardian during your time at this school. If I consider you to be a danger to society, I will not hesitate to have you arrested. And as you may recall from your trial, you won’t be held in some juvenile detention center like humans have. You will be sent to the real jail, to Styx, and you will live the rest of your life there.”

Zen didn’t voice her thoughts, which were running along the lines of ‘yeah, that would be bad. Good thing I’m not sticking around as long as you think I am’. Instead she shrugged. “Just sign it. I don’t think you want to risk the chance that there still is another Repeller settlement out there. And I will behave a lot nicer if that thing is signed.”

He sighed even as he drew out his pen and scribbled a signature at the bottom of the page. Zen memorized every stroke of his pen. That could come in handy. He took an envelope from a stack on his desk and handed it to her.

“What’s this?”

“It was supposed to be mailed to you weeks ago, but there was no 67 Hwrevitt Drive to be found. It just tells you what you’ll need, which in your case isn’t much, considering that the Ministry has already supplied us with your basic necessities, paper and quill, uniform. Good to see you have it already, although you are supposed to be wearing the blazer with it.”

Zen’s lips pressed together in slight annoyance. “Yeah, about that. Know that Reaver that attacked the bus?”

“Don’t tell me that it needed a makeover so you gave the blazer to it because the black cotton went good with its rags.”

“Actually, no. I managed to get some blood on it from the Reaver, so rather than have that decay strip the flesh from my bones, I took the stupid thing off. I mean, it would be a shame if a new student was the first one to die this year. That just wouldn’t seem right.”

“I suggest you refrain from those sorts of comments,” he warned, “Last year, several students were in an accident and two boys were killed while the girl is still trapped in a coma. Students won’t take too kindly to graveyard humor this year. If you want to somehow make it in a school that is so obviously ill-fitting for you, you are going to have to mind yourself.”

Zen nodded as she grabbed the paper off his desk and stuffed it carelessly back in her bag. “I’ll keep that in mind,” she promised, not even bothering to hide her crossed fingers as she slung her backpack back on and picked up her duffel. She ducked her head in goodbye as she scooped up the envelope and beat a hasty retreat.

Hilroy leaned back in his chair as the door closed behind her. This was not going to be a good year. He didn’t need to be a diviner to know that. The air just wasn’t right. He sighed, straightened, and turned his attention to the inbox on his desk, banishing thoughts of Zen from his mind.

 

 

 

Welcome Back

Until teams were made, fifth year students would sleep in the common room that was located in the center of the floor, with the hallways to the different dorms forming a barrier similar in shape to the school. Candace unrolled her academy- issued sleeping bag, for the only time that year she assumed. Her bags were placed neatly to the left. The common bathrooms were accessible to the sixth years as well, but they wouldn’t be arriving until the following day.

Rather than attract attention, she had bunked down with Jamie and the rest of the students freshly returned from their exchange program. Jillian’s was different from Belladonna and St. Malcolm’s because it had an extra semester, optional of course, that involved the more practical side of magic used specifically in Canada. Things like growth magics were frequently a part of that semester, Jamie had explained to her, since the summers were so short.

She noticed the sidelong glances that were sent her way and shrank back into herself. At least no one spoke to her, like it had been before she had started dating Fitz. It did feel strange though, going from being part of the “in-crowd” back to the fringes. People were making a point of not looking at her. As if it were her fault.

Most of the girls had already staked out their territory on the floor, and most had given her a wide berth. A few of the other fringe students were close by, but except for the occasional glance her way, they too ignored her. Most were too busy catching up with their friends anyways, talking in the way girls had the habbit of doing, conversations about vacations turned to groans about not being in the same classes anymore, to hopes raised about possible staff replacements. The volume reached a crescendo as people tried to talk over each other, trying to get their story across to their friend.

The hush started at the front of the common room first and slowly spread to the rest of the room as all eyes turned to a latecomer standing in the door. Candace actually had to stand up to see, Jamie too immersed in a book to notice. Zen stood in the door, her two small bags in hand and the sleeping bag tucked under her arm, sword still slung over her shoulder. Upon spotting Candace, Zen wended her way through the crowd to her. Halfway across the room, she stopped as if noticing for the first time that all eyes were on her. She sighed dramatically. “Yes, I’m new. Transfer from Burmesh Institute in Thailand if you must know. Been hopping a lot of schools, and this one was next on the list.” She waved her free hand airily, “You can go about your business now.”

Then she shot a dark look at Angela McGaffrey for no apparent reason[1] before resuming her journey. Slowly, conversation started back up again, although at a whisper. Zen smiled at Candace before pointedly glancing at the empty spot beside her. “Mind?”

Candace shrugged, unsure of what else to say. Zen plopped the sleeping bag on the ground and it sprung free immediately, unfurling itself in a neat row parallel to hers. Zen let her two bags slide in the gap between them, next to Candace’s things. Jamie glanced up at the shadow that was blocking out the light, a frown on her face that morphed into a friendly smile when she saw who it was.

She tucked the bookmark between the pages and closed her book before sliding onto Candace’s sleeping bag. “Hi, I’m Jamie.” She proffered Zen a hand, which Zen quickly shook before beginning to unbuckle her halberd. The action wasn’t missed by Jamie, and her eyebrows shot up.

“Yeah, thanks for pointing me in the right direction earlier,” Zen said as she sat down, curling her legs to one side. “My name’s Zen.”

“So you were on Candace’s bus,” Jamie prompted.

“Yeah, but apparently we’re not allowed to talk about that.”

Jamie laughed. “Oh, no, that’s not what I meant. I meant to ask what brings you to Belladonna.”

Zen shrugged, cradling her sword in her hands. She pulled the hilt away from the scabbard, inspecting the gleaming steel for a moment before slamming it home. “Desire for a good education,” she said at last, her lips twisting up a little bit.

A shadow fell over the three of them. Candace glanced up to see Rhilla Martin towering over them, flanked by two of her goons from the Battle Club, the students that participated in the monthly tournaments with other schools in the country. Rhilla was officially the strongest fighter in the school since Karla had graduated last year. And she had a reputation for ‘weeding out the weaklings’ as she liked to call it. She had taken it upon herself to test students to see if they were worthy candidates for the school team, even when they didn’t necessarily try out.

Rhilla’s current target was still fingering her sword, not looking up at all. Rhilla cleared her throat.

Zen glanced up with her eyes, saw who was trying to get her attention, and returned to her inspection of her sword. Rhilla’s lips curled into the perpetual sneer that was always plastered on her face. “Hello?”

Zen sighed and leaned back onto her heels and raised an eyebrow by means of a prompt. “Yes, can I help you with something?”

“You have a weird accent. I’ve spent time in Thailand, and no one sounded like that.”

Zen shrugged, but said nothing. Rhilla waved her hand. “That’s not why I bothered to come over to the loser’s corner though.” As she said it, she slid a glance at Candace. It might have been meant for Jamie, who had buried her face in a thick tome titled “Alchemy for the Youth- Abridged”.

“Oh, is that where I am? Or is the loser’s corner wherever you decide to sit down?”

Andrea, on Rhilla’s left, took a step forward, but Rhilla’s hand stopped her. She graced Zen with a twisted smile. “See, I’ll chalk that up to you being new. I’m Rhilla Martin, Captain of the Battle Club. I see you have a sword. Will I be seeing you at the try-outs this year?”

Zen smiled self-deprecatingly. “I’m afraid not. Not much use with the sword really, but this used to belong to my dad. He died in a car accident a few years back, and he used to love this old thing. Been in my family a while now.”

Rhilla’s eyes narrowed as she got a closer look at the sword. “What make is it?”

“No idea. He didn’t either. But I’m fairly certain that it wouldn’t be of much use in any sort of fight.” Zen’s face twitched, as if she had just been poked with something hot[2], but Candace was the only who saw.

Rhilla rolled her eyes as it became apparent to her that she had just wasted her time talking to an idiot. To Rhilla, an idiot was anyone who wasn’t on the team. “Well, just so you know,” she said, “Only Battle Club members are allowed to walk around school grounds with their weapons.”

“In case we get attacked by Grimwore?” Zen joked lightly.

Rhilla hmphed and walked away, message delivered. Her minions followed her. Zen’s left hand was on the hilt, her expression thoughtful as she studied Rhilla’s back.                 “I don’t recommend you try,” Candace said, attempting to dissuade her from what was obviously going through her mind. “Rhilla’s the best battle wizard in our year.”

Zen’s grip on her sword loosened and she flashed Candace a quick grin. “Wouldn’t dream of it. Far too stuck up for me