Lock and Key (Nocturne Academy 1)

“The South Tower? With the Sisters?” I couldn’t keep the apprehension out of my voice.

“Well yes—why?” Avery asked.

“Nancy Rattcliff already tried to assault her once,” Kaitlyn told him. “I imagine she isn’t eager to go for round two.”

“Ooo! And you didn’t tell me? What happened? What?” Avery demanded, his blue eyes glowing with excitement.

“It wasn’t all that interesting,” I said, trying to play it off. “She basically called me a, uh, “charity case” and slapped my tray out of my hands.”

“That bitch!” Avery said with absolute conviction. “She probably felt threatened by you because you’re a Latimer and she’s only a Ratt…cliff,” he added, making Kaitlyn giggle again. “Don’t worry, Princess—I’ll walk you to your class—if you promise to tell me everything that happened.”

“If you really want to know,” I said doubtfully.

“I do—I love hearing dirt on the other Sisters.” And stopping in the middle of the hallway, he gallantly offered me his arm.

I took it hesitantly and Avery patted my hand and grinned.

“Let’s go. See you later, girls,” he called to Emma and Kaitlyn, who were going in the other direction. Then he turned to me as we walked. “All right now, newbie—spill it. I want to hear it all.”

12

Avery was immensely likable and by the time he got me to my class in the South Tower, he had me laughing so hard I nearly snorted when he told me the story of how he’d accidentally conjured a rabbit the size of a horse into the middle of his family’s living room when he was eight.

“My father was trying to teach me manly magic of course,” he remarked. “He told me to manifest a big, powerful animal. I think he was hoping for a grizzly bear or a tiger or something like that. He was so disappointed. Not for the last time, unfortunately.” He made a face. “The problem was that we couldn’t get rid of the damn thing.”

“You couldn’t just make it disappear?” I asked, wiping at my streaming eyes.

Avery shook his head.

“Nobody could. My magic is very tenacious. I wound up keeping it as a pet in our back yard—which thank the Goddess has a very high fence around it. It only lived about six months but you should have seen the grocery bill! It ate fifty pounds of cabbage a day. And if you’ve ever seen a regular-sized bunny, you know how many pellets they make—to put it nicely. Just imagine a rabbit pellet the size of a football. Now imagine that times a hundred.” He paused dramatically. “Every day.”

“Oh my God!” I laughed again. “You have to be kidding me. Could you make that disappear?”

He shook his head. “No part of this ridiculous animal—I named it Miguel by the way, don’t ask me why, I was only eight—anyway, no part of Miguel was remotely interested in disappearing.”

“What in the world did you do with all of it’s, uh, leavings then?” I demanded.

“Well, as I told you, my mother is used to doing without magic which makes her eminently practical. So she convinced some of the local farmers to buy the stuff—told them it was bison dung, of all things. And somehow she got them to believe it. The money she made just barely paid to feed Miguel—otherwise I would still be paying it back out of my allowance. My mom…she’s crazy.” He got a fond look on his face and I realized he and his mom must be really close.

I felt a sad little tug at my heart and some of my laughter leaked away. God, I wished I could talk to my own mom right about now. Had she known about Nocturne Academy? Had she attended here with Aunt Dellie when she was my age? But if so, why had she never told me? Why had I been raised without any knowledge that this whole Other world existed?

“Well—here we are—Elementary Casting,” Avery said, nodding at a wooden door bound in elaborate silver curlicues which led into the base of the South Tower.

“Will I, uh, see Nancy in there?” I asked a bit nervously. I would have liked to think I was immune to the Weird Sister’s nastiness but to be honest, I just wanted to avoid her.

To my relief, Avery shook his head.

“Oh no—she probably took this class back when she was eleven or twelve. I know that’s when I took it. I told you—it’s very basic.”

“Eleven or twelve?” I frowned. “But I thought Nocturne Academy was a high school? Do they have a middle school section too?”

Avery frowned.

“No, of course not. Nocturne isn’t divided into grades the way Norm schools are. You’re admitted when you’re ready to explore your powers and you graduate when the Headmistress and your teachers believe you have mastered them.”

“But…I’m a junior this year,” I protested. “That means I only have two years before graduation, right?”