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Chapter Forty-Four

T he next night was the winter solstice, and we donned our warm coats, picked up our lanterns, and made our way into the woods for the evening meal.

The long rectangular table that ran the length of a large clearing in the woods was even more spectacular than I remembered.

It was covered with flickering candles, greenery, and of course, mountains of freshly prepared food.

I had helped my fellow harvesters bake bread earlier that day, and the aroma of the fresh loaves had my stomach growling now.

The gingerbread houses were on display along the table, and Coral moaned as she looked at it. “Beat out by the herbs. Seriously, how?”

All three sets of eyes shot to me, and I lifted my hands. “They made spices fall from the top of a snow globe like real snow. It’s incredible. But why are you all blaming me? I wasn’t the only judge.”

“With Hollis and you, we thought ferns would have it in the bag,” Coral said.

“I loved the fern house and marked it high, but Brie provided an entire spreadsheet scoring system with weighted values and math involved. I didn’t even know what winner I picked, just the various scores I gave.”

“The herbs one is really creative,” Yasmin admitted.

I glanced around and spotted Callan near the other end of the table, sitting with Hollis and some of his tree affinity friends. Meadow was two seats over, swatting something out of his hand.

Professor East rose, and everyone turned their attention to him.

My eyes briefly flicked to Nash, Hollis’s dad, who was seated near him with the other instructors.

“Good evening, botanists. Normally, I give a speech about enjoying the season we’re in or about the changes our plant friends undergo at the tides of the year, but tonight, I want to thank you all for the unique spirit each of you brings to our academy.

There is no academy without our wonderful students, our dedicated professors, and the spirit of collaboration and scholarship that we all share.

As the seasons shift, I encourage you all to remember these things and that there is more that unites us than separates us.

Now”—he lifted his glass—“for the toast. To the returning of the light.”

We raised our glasses in return, each of us calling, “To the returning of the light.”

I leaned over to whisper to Yasmin. “Did that feel ominous to you?”

She nodded. “And we have another visitor from the board.”

“They seem to be rotating through. That’s Hollis’s dad. I met him at the gingerbread competition yesterday.”

“He talked to you?”

“He said he hoped Hollis could give me a tour of the fern conservatory.”

Yasmin nearly choked on her drink. “Guess he doesn’t know you’re basically taken. If the undertones weren’t so possessive, I would encourage you to take him up on the offer.”

“All the interest from the board is giving me the creepy-crawlies. Can’t they just focus on saving the Earth or something like that?”

“I think that’s what they’re all hoping to get you for,” Yasmin said pointedly.

We didn’t discuss it further as students reached for the bounty on the table, and the feast began. I listened to the conversations of those around me while occasionally shooting glances in Callan’s direction.

With the verdant shield recharging happening tonight, I couldn’t help but remember with a spark of excitement and longing that it was exactly a year ago that my magical powers had been identified.

I thought about my field studies with Petra and the dozens of antidotes we had tried.

If we could only find one that worked, I could experience that magic here on campus again.

“Boy, if you say that one more time!” Coral roared with laughter, and I saw that her mirth was directed at Waylon, who was shaking his head with a self-satisfied grin on his face.

“Looks like things are going okay between those two?” Yasmin whispered. I glanced over and saw Coral’s hand on Waylon’s arm, their legs pressed together under the table.

“Seems like it,” I said.

“I guess it’s just us three,” Yasmin said a few minutes later as we noticed Coral and Waylon head to the pools together.

I glanced toward the other end of the table to see Callan, Hollis, and Meadow breaking from the other students, presumably off to charge the shield.

I tried not to let a hint of unnecessary jealousy creep in at not being part of that particular group.

They were a tiny percentage of the student population at Evergreen Academy.

I was hardly the only one left out. And besides, wasn’t I just bemoaning being the center of a board member’s attention?

Staying away would put space between me and Nash, who I had been avoiding all night.

Once at the pools, we changed into our bathing suits in the trees then climbed into the whirling springs, steam and citrus filling the night air around us. I let my body relax into the warm, bubbling water.

“Let’s hear everyone’s New Year’s resolutions,” Yasmin said before rattling off items on a list of her own, all of which were practical and attainable. “And finally, I want to drink more green tea. The health benefits are unmatched.”

I smiled at that one. As if the students at this school couldn’t drink the English under the table with their tea habits.

“Mine’s to keep the cartography club open. We’ve put together a thick file to justify it, but I’m nervous,” Aurielle said.

“There’s no way they could deny that your documentation of the microecosystems around campus isn’t valuable,” Yasmin said.

“I think you have a really good chance of approval. Apothecary Arts, on the other hand? Depends who from the board evaluates their evidence and if they care about skin care or not.”

We all sighed, and I sank deeper into the hot spring, letting it massage my shoulders.

“B, did I tell you that we found another of those fairy doors? That’s three total so far,” Aurielle said.

“You did?” I asked, keeping my voice casually interested.

“Let me guess. There was moss growing around each of them in a cute little arch?” Yasmin asked.

Aurielle nodded.

“Had to be created by the mosses. Maybe it was an art installation one year,” Yasmin said.

I considered Aurielle’s findings, not letting on how invested I was.

If the pattern held with this one, that “fairy door” was another petal portal and another entrance to the academy that very few knew anything about.

Even the Root and Vine Society had only been aware of one portal until our initiation.

How many were there? And did the Board of Regents know about them?

“Did you include those in your evidence for the submission to the board?” I asked, hoping the twinge of anxiety in my voice didn’t come through.

“No, do you think I should? I thought they might find that too fanciful and have a reason not to approve us. I kept it very scientific and ecosystem based.”

“Good,” I said quickly. “I think that was the right call.”

“What about you, B? Any resolutions?” Aurielle asked.

I wrenched my thoughts from the petal portals and struggled to form an answer. My goals were all over the place.

Make Petra proud in my field studies work.

Decide if I was still going to pursue an art degree.

Try to make the quill work for me.

Find the Vanished Compendium .

Get my powers back on campus.

Prove to Callan I could handle myself so that he wouldn’t have to protect me and we could finally be together.

Okay, a few of those were a stretch, but with the upcoming mission for the Root and Vine Society, they weren’t impossible. But I couldn’t tell Yasmin and Aurielle about those particular goals.

“Just figure out my future, I guess. I know, it’s not exciting,” I added before either of them could protest.

“How about keep the tendrils of all board members off of thyself ,” Yasmin said before closing her eyes and sinking deeper into the pool.

She wasn’t too far off the mark.

Half an hour later, I felt a surge of energy through my emerald ring, letting me know that the verdant shield had been successfully charged.

We climbed out of the hot springs, and a tree affinity classmate walked by and swooshed some warm air in our direction, drying us completely.

Then, as I was slipping my clothes over my bathing suit, I heard a rustling.

Twisting around, my eyes fell upon a small pool of leaves swirling around my feet .

I leaned down and picked up the paper that was floating with the leaves. On its crinkled surface was a note in handwriting I would recognize anywhere.

Meet me in the treehouse?