Page 6 of Evergreen

But I wasn’t going to just work myself to the bone either. No, no. I didn’t give up that easily. The situation sucked, but that didn’t mean it had to be more difficult than necessary. If magic got me into this mess, then magic could get me out.

Weather magic was my specialty, however, with the Dean’s threat still lingering in the back of my mind, I figured I should probably avoid that for now. Besides, a storm couldn’t rebuild a greenhouse. However, there was magic for forging metal and glass. Or at least, I assumed there was. Up until now I’d been goofing off in most of my classes, scraping by with just enough to pass. For almost two years I’d avoided the library completely.

But tonight… Well, tonight I was in dire straits. So I headed for the library. Surely they would have some blue collar magic book lying around about fixing such things. How hard could it be to learn? I was a gifted witch. My family, though not particularly well-known amongst the other high-profile witch families, was still respectful and powerful. There should be no reason why boring, mundane magic shouldn’t be as easy as tying my shoes.

The library was mostly empty at this hour, which suited me fine. I didn’t need anyone seeing me frantically searching through spell books like some kind of desperate freshman. I made my way past the circulation desk, nodding at the student worker who barely glanced up from her enchanted ledger, and headed straight for the section I vaguely remembered from my one mandatory library orientation tour back in first year.

Practical Magic. Elemental Workings. Advanced Transmutation. The spines of the books blurred together as I scanned them, my fingers trailing along the leather bindings. Most of them looked ancient, bound in materials I couldn’t identify and labeled in languages I couldn’t read. This was going to be harder than I thought.

“You look lost.”

I spun around, my heart rate spiking. Standing behind me was a giant of a man, at least seven feet tall with green skin, short dark hair, and the most intense gold eyes I’d ever seen. And he wasn’t just tall either. He was fucking thick. The dude looked like he could tackle the entire football team by himself.

He was smiling. And not just like a polite smile, but a genuine just-happy-to-be-alive sort of smile. The moment I saw it, it irritated the piss out of me.

“I’m not lost,” I snapped, that corked up anger inside me bubbling dangerously.

The giant’s smile didn’t falter. If anything, it got wider. “Right. So you’re just standing in front of the Transmutation section looking like you want to set it on fire, which is totally normal behavior.”

I felt my eye twitch. Great. A smartass. Exactly what I needed right now.

“Look, I don’t need your help,” I said, turning back to the shelves. “I’m fine.”

“You’re definitely not fine,” he said. It wasn’t a retort, he was just stating a fact. “You’ve got soot in your hair, you smell like a campfire, and you seem like you’ve had a really bad day.”

I clenched my fists. “Did anyone ever teach you that some people don’t want to talk to big green strangers?”

“It’s okay,” he said, stepping up beside me and scanning the shelves with those unsettling gold eyes. “I’ve had a really bad day too. But I’m not really a stranger, am I? We’re both students at Widdershins. We’ve probably had at least one class together.”

I turned to face him fully, taking in his massive frame, his green skin, the way his muscles seemed to move under his shirt like they had a life of their own. I had no idea what kind of creature he was. Witches didn’t usually mix with the monsters too much. And after the Purity Front attacks last semester, the division between the groups was even worse. Everyone was on edge.

So why wasn’t this guy?

“We haven’t had any classes together,” I said, not looking up at him. “Now will you just leave me alone?”

“Are you sure you don’t want some company⁠—”

“Are you stupid or something?!” I barked. “Leave me the fuck alone!”

He shut his mouth immediately. There was a look of hurt on his face, but I didn’t care. I’d already had the worst fucking day of my life and I didn’t want some big green idiot bothering me. I had enough on my mind without some himbo getting in my way and making it worse.

“Okay,” he said at last. “I… I hope your day gets better.”

“Gee thanks,” I grumbled, turning back to the shelf.

Behind me I heard him lumber away, looking like a kicked puppy. But I just couldn’t drum up the energy to care. Not now. Not when I had an entire semester of forced labor staring me in the face.

I spent the better part of an hour flipping through books, trying to find just one that would help me. In the end, I managed to find several passages on fixing household items or enchanting taps to make hot water, but nothing about making glass or molding metal. Finally, with one final huff, I tossed the books into a pile on the floor and left them there. Useless fucking things anyway.

Storming out of the library, there was only one thought on my mind.

Tomorrow was going to be a fucking nightmare.

Chapter 4

Linden

The greenhouse was still smoldering in places when I stepped into it with Professor Paulson at my side. For the first time since I’d started at Widdershins Academy, she wasn’t her usual chipper self. She was, for lack of a better term, fucking furious. I could feel it rolling off her in waves like heat on pavement.