Page 4

The halls of the Academy hummed with late-morning magic, and charms glittered faintly along the ceilings, reacting to the rustle of student energy behind closed doors.

Class was still in session, with just a few more minutes of bubbling cauldrons and floating quills before the corridors filled with voices and charmed lunch baskets.

I wandered slowly through the stone passageway, my fingers trailing along the ancient stone.

My thoughts, however, were already a few steps ahead.

The Moonbeam was coming soon. I could feel it pressing gently against the edges of my magic, like a tide rolling in from somewhere far beyond the Wards. I needed to talk with Keegan and everyone.

As the bell chimed, signaling the end of class, the hush broke into a gentle roar of footsteps and cheerful chaos. I waited until the students filtered past me, offering waves and warm smiles, then made my way down the east hall.

First stop would be Stella’s classroom.

Her door was flung wide, as always, and the scent of rosehip tea and cinnamon clung to the air. Inside, she was perched on top of her desk like a roosting bird, cross-legged with her red shawl draped dramatically over one shoulder. A porcelain teacup floated lazily beside her.

“Do you need an ergonomic check for your desk area?” I teased.

“Chairs are confining,” she said, without looking up. “I didn’t get to be this old by sticking to the rules, darling.”

“A chair rebel.”

“What can I say? I’m not a conformist,” she said with a wink. “So, what’s the occasion, dear? Need advice on Keegan and…” She waggled her brows and smooched her scarlet-lined lips like she was twelve.

“I’m all set there. Thanks, though.” I grinned and shook my head, realizing I didn’t have a clue about what my kiss with Keegan meant or what to do with the fact that we’d had an audience to top it all off. “I need to talk with everyone. Can you meet me by the Maple Ward in ten?”

She sipped her tea and raised a brow. “Sounds serious.”

“Seems to be.”

Next was Nova. Her door was slightly closed, but a trail of burnt sage smoke leaked into the hallway like a clue.

I pushed gently inside and found her surrounded by tarot cards, each laid out in a tight, orderly circle.

Her raven hair shimmered in the candlelight, and her green eyes flicked up the moment I entered.

“You’re not going to like the card I just pulled.”

“Why does that not surprise me?” I asked. “Anyway, I’m summoning the council. Maple Ward. Ten minutes.”

“That sounds official. Are we considered the councilors now?”

I laughed. “Only thing I could come up with for a name. If you have a better one, let me know.”

She smiled faintly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “I’ll bring the sage. It sounds like we might need it.”

Bella’s classroom was filled with soft light, with the window wide open. She sat on the ledge like she belonged there. Her gaze overlooked the Butterfly Ward below, where the flowers swayed lazily in a warm breeze. Summer was near but not quite here.

She turned as I approached, with her gaze flicking to mine.

“Something’s stirring,” she said before I could speak.

I nodded. “I feel it too. I’m meeting with everyone in the Maple Ward in ten.”

She was already off the ledge, with the grace of a fox, but the body of a human.

Last was Ardetia. Her classroom was quiet, but when I peeked in, it was empty, or at least it looked that way. I scanned for her familiar glow, but she was nowhere to be seen. She was likely already aware and watching.

Some fae had the uncanny ability to do this, and it appeared she was one of them.

“Ardetia, I’m meeting with everyone at the Maple Ward in eight minutes. Hope to see you there.”

“I’m already on it,” she said, whisking by me. The only clue was the wind in her wake.

With everyone in motion, I turned down the corridor, heart already beating faster.

Time to find Keegan.

“Where are you hurrying off to?” Twobble sided up to me with a stack of books in his small arms.

“Come with me, and you’ll find out.” He grunted and shifted his books to his hip. “Do I have time to drop these off at my room? This is brutal for a guy my size.”

I smiled and nodded, looking at his tall stack of colorful books. “Absolutely. Have you seen Keegan?”

“He was eating a scone on the main staircase, staring at the ceiling like he’d found his way into heaven.” He chuckled and shook his head. “I don’t know what gets into that guy.”

I chuckled, wondering if it was the kiss.

I left Twobble to his dramatic book shuffle and rounded the next corner toward the main staircase, where sunlight streamed through the high windows like golden ribbons.

Sure enough, I spotted Keegan halfway down the steps, leaning on the carved banister with a half-eaten scone in one hand and a far-off look in his eyes.

He really was staring at the ceiling.

I paused for a beat, watching him, and then it struck me how easily he fit here now. When we first met, he’d been all growl and mystery, like the wilderness had walked upright into my life and refused to be tamed.

Now, the Academy seemed to have softened him just slightly. Not tamed, never that, but maybe made him part of something again.

“Was the scone that enlightening?” I called out.

He blinked, then looked down at me, a crooked grin blooming across his face. “It has a glaze on top that might be divine intervention.”

I laughed, making my way up toward him. “You ready for a walk?”

“Depends. Are we talking cozy walk or walk into magical peril?”

“Somewhere in the middle,” I said lightly. “Maple Ward. Five minutes. The others are already heading that way.”

He took another bite of the scone, then dusted the crumbs from his hand and fell into step beside me. “Sounds like we’re overdue for a meeting. I’ll just come with you.”

“The Moonbeam’s pressing,” I said quietly. “I can feel it in my skin.”

He nodded, solemn now. “I can too. It’s like the world’s holding its breath. So, I take it you found out some information in the library.”

We moved together down the west corridor, past paintings that watched us a little too closely and enchanted sconces that adjusted their brightness like they were eavesdropping.

The deeper we walked, the quieter the halls became, until all I could hear was the soft scuff of our boots and the occasional flutter of distant wings, probably book sprites.

As we neared the corridor leading toward the Maple Ward, Keegan glanced at me.

“You’ve got that look,” he said.

I raised a brow. “What look?”

“The one that says you’ve made a decision and you’re about to drag the rest of us into it.”

I bit back a smile. “Not dragging. Inviting. Always inviting.”

His low laugh warmed the air. “Right. Inviting us to whatever wild idea you’ve cooked up this time.”

“I promise, no one will be transformed into a vegetable, and I won’t turn my dad into something the size of a school bus.”

“Again.” He flashed a wry grin.

“That was once. And it worked, right? We got him back.”

“And that is what I love about your type of magic.”

“You mean the kind where I don’t know what I’m doing?”

“The kind where you let your imagination run.”

“They’ll be here soon,” I said.

Keegan turned toward me, the gold flecks in his hazel eyes catching the sun from the glass ceiling high above. “Whatever your plan, you’ve got them. You’ve got us. Just say the word.”

The Maple Ward shimmered as we stepped beneath its leafy canopy.

Soft golden light filtered through the branches from the glass ceiling, casting dancing patterns across the stone path.

The sapling that had once trembled in the cold silence of neglect now stood tall and vibrant.

Its trunk had become a rich cinnamon hue, with bark glistening faintly with fresh sap.

Leaves rustled overhead like whispered applause, and the scent of maple sugar and clean earth filled the air.

The Ward was healing, just like the others.

Stella arrived first, skirt swishing dramatically as she stepped into the clearing with her teacup still in hand. Her red shawl nearly dragged behind her in a rush.

“Oh, it’s absolutely glowing today,” Stella said, looking up with a sigh of admiration. “Feels like stepping into a maple syrup jar.”

Nova followed with her usual grace, a sage bundle tucked into her belt, and her sharp green eyes already scanning the ground for runes. Bella and Ardetia arrived silently, one light on her feet, the other as silent as wind through a veil.

Keegan stood beside me as we gathered in a loose circle around the maple tree’s base, where the light was warmest and the air thick with old magic. A few butterflies drifted lazily between us, as if summoned by the unknown pulsing here.

I took a breath and stepped forward.

“I brought you here,” I began, my voice steadier than I felt, “because something is shifting. Not just in the Wards, but in me, too.”

They watched, silent, waiting. Trusting.

“I used to think we were just here to survive what came next. To patch the holes, to hold the line. Break the curse against us, but I don’t believe just that anymore.”

The leaves above rustled louder, and somewhere nearby, the sapling shimmered brighter, as if it were listening.

“I feel an urge stronger now than I ever have,” I continued. “There’s a way not only to break the curse, but to turn Shadowick around. To stop it from being a place that feeds on what’s broken and instead, restore what was once light and good. It, too, has been cursed.”

Nova arched a brow. “And you’re sure this isn’t wishful thinking?”

“I’ve been known to wish,” I said, a smile tugging at my lips.

“But this isn’t that. This is knowing. It’s magic, yes, but it’s also memory.

The Wards are growing stronger, not just because of students and spellwork, but because we’re here.

We’re connected and grounded, listening to the whispers of light and shadow and willing to search out the light. ”

Bella stepped closer to the tree, brushing her fingers over a low-hanging leaf. “So you think there’s a way to change the past?”

“Not the past,” I said softly. “But the direction the shadows want to pull us now. If we step in at the right moment… we might shift the whole story.”

Stella raised her teacup. “Well. If we’re rewriting stories, I do hope I get a more sparkly wardrobe.”

Keegan smiled faintly, but his eyes were on me. “You’ve got a plan then.”

“No. Not really,” I said, turning to them with a smile.

“But the beginning of something. And that’s enough to start.

I need your help. You all have such amazing expertise in areas that my mind has not even yet dared to dream, and we need to tap into those skills and memories and create a plan that will build back the good, but not just here. ”

“I always enjoy beginnings rather than endings,” Ardetia said, twirling a maple leaf around her finger.

My heart skipped a beat when Keegan’s eyes remained on mine. “Tell us, Maeve. What makes you so sure that Shadowick is worth saving?”

His words hit me in the gut, but he was right.

They’d done so much damage. Gideon had made his choice, but did that mean the rest of Shadowick was destined to darkness and living in the shadows?

The thought pulled at my chest. What if Celeste had been born into that life instead of this one? What if I had been?

I let out a sigh and nodded. “I know it sounds crazy, but I’ve been reading some of Shadowick’s history, and it wasn’t always based in darkness.

What if we managed to use the Moonbeam opening, not only to break the curse but to give Shadowick a second chance?

What if we step into the rays of the Moonbeam and search for the light, even in the darkest of shadows? ”

Nova and Ardetia traded glances.

“That’s a lofty goal, but I don’t even know if that’s possible at this point,” Bella said softly.

“But if we don’t have hope, what do we have?” I shrugged. “I refuse to believe that everyone in Shadowick enjoys living the way they do.”

Nova cleared her throat. “Reversed tower.”

I shook my head and looked at Nova. “What?”

“That was the card I’d pulled right before you walked into my classroom.”

I looked at Nova. “And what does that mean?”

She let out a slow and steady breath. “I choose to look at it as if we will be experiencing rebuilding.”

Ardetia studied her, and I knew she was wondering the same thing as me.

“But the card can represent…” My voice trailed off, hoping for an answer.

“Rebuilding or… a reckoning.” Nova’s jaw tightened at her admission.

My chest tightened at her words. Reckoning sounded so final. So sharp. I wasn’t sure if I had the kind of magic or courage for that. That word could go both ways.

“I like rebuilding much better.” I grimaced. “Thank you for sharing that alternative first.”

Nova chuckled and nodded. “I figured as much.”

“I think we all do,” Keegan agreed.

The thought of Stonewick facing yet another event, a reckoning, gutted me. I rather liked the idea of Shadowick facing a reckoning, but that kind of cockiness could get me in trouble.

The moment stretched... heavy with possibilities we couldn’t name yet.

Then…

Twobble burst into the Maple Ward, arms flailing for drama. “A reckoning? Heck, yeah. Gideon doesn’t know what’s about to hit him.” He smacked his fist into his palm with gusto. “I’m game. When are we leaving?”

I chuckled, realizing he was exactly what I needed.

Maybe it wasn’t Stonewick that would face the reckoning.

Maybe it was Shadowick’s turn to break and be reborn, but at what cost to Stonewick?

I shuddered at the thought and smiled at Twobble.