aisle as he rose from his own seat.
“Ouch, sorry about that.”
He helped me to right myself again, but pulled his hands away at once and shoved them into his pockets, like I had somehow burned or contaminated them.
“Watch where you’re going,” he spat, and stalked down the aisle and out the door, elbowing past several of his fellow Novitiates in the process.
6
ARTISTIC TEMPERAMENTS
I STARED AFTER HIM. “What the hell is his problem?” I said, more to myself than to anyone else. Mackie followed my gaze and said,
“That’s Finn Carey,” as though that explained everything.
“Wasn’t he just telling Peyton to leave us alone?”
“Yeah, but that was probably just because he can’t stand her. They’re cousins; his sister Olivia is the other half of Peyton’s Gateway. That’s her, walking out with Peyton,” she said, and she pointed out a sharp-faced brunette who was clutching her books to the front of a conservative pink wool cardigan.
“You mean he and Peyton are actually related to each other?” I asked.
“Yeah, most of the Caomhnóir are related to one branch of the Durupinen or another somehow. I’ll explain it on the way to the East Tower. I’m heading that way anyway, and it will probably take you until next Tuesday to find it by yourself.”
“Okay, thanks,” I said. I turned back to Hannah. “So, I guess I’ll see you in a little while?”
“Yeah.” She looked so tiny and lost in the now empty section of seats. The room seemed to swallow her up.
“Are you going to be okay?”
“Yes,” she said without conviction.
“She’ll be fine,” Siobhán said, walking down the aisle and sitting on the desk in front of Hannah’s. “We’ll have a nice chat together.”
“Right,” I said, grateful that Siobhán, at least, seemed unfazed by our status as resident pariahs. “Thanks. I’ll meet you at lunch?”
Hannah nodded again, and I followed Mackie out of the room. As we turned into the hallway, I caught Savannah’s voice saying, “Folder? What are you on about? I never got a folder!”
“She’s pretty shy, huh? Your sister?” Mackie asked, cocking her head back over her shoulder. “Yeah,” I said. “She’s hasn’t had a very easy time of it, so she doesn’t trust a lot of people.”
“She’ll be alright with Siobhán. I think your aunt requested her specifically, because she’s not … y’know … “
“A total bitch?” I supplied. Mackie grinned. “Something like that, yeah.”
“What are these mentor meetings for anyway? Is it just to have someone to talk to, like an advisor?” I asked.
“For the most part, yes,” Mackie said. “The mentors are randomly assigned just so that we’ll have someone we can go to if we need advice or help, that sort of thing. But in certain cases, the assignment isn’t random at all. Some of the Apprentices have demonstrated special abilities that need to be explored, so they get paired up with a mentor that has a similar gift.”
“What kind of special abilities?” I asked. “Shit, we see ghosts! Isn’t that special enough?”
Mackie let out a bark of laughter. “It usually has to do with the way we sense the ghosts. Like me, for instance — I’m an Empath. When a ghost is near me, I start to experience their emotions really intensely. We all do it, to a lesser degree, but for me it’s really pronounced. My own mood and emotions will start to change as the first sign that a ghost is trying to make contact. I used to burst out screaming or crying for no apparent reason when I was a kid. That was how my mum first knew I’d inherited the gift.”
“Doesn’t that sort of…mess you up? It can’t be easy, getting flooded with negative emotions that aren’t even yours.”
“Yeah, it was pretty scary at first. I’d be playing in the garden, having a grand old time, and suddenly I’d be running and screaming, hiding behind the shed. But I’ve learned to sort it out, you know, recognize when
“Ouch, sorry about that.”
He helped me to right myself again, but pulled his hands away at once and shoved them into his pockets, like I had somehow burned or contaminated them.
“Watch where you’re going,” he spat, and stalked down the aisle and out the door, elbowing past several of his fellow Novitiates in the process.
6
ARTISTIC TEMPERAMENTS
I STARED AFTER HIM. “What the hell is his problem?” I said, more to myself than to anyone else. Mackie followed my gaze and said,
“That’s Finn Carey,” as though that explained everything.
“Wasn’t he just telling Peyton to leave us alone?”
“Yeah, but that was probably just because he can’t stand her. They’re cousins; his sister Olivia is the other half of Peyton’s Gateway. That’s her, walking out with Peyton,” she said, and she pointed out a sharp-faced brunette who was clutching her books to the front of a conservative pink wool cardigan.
“You mean he and Peyton are actually related to each other?” I asked.
“Yeah, most of the Caomhnóir are related to one branch of the Durupinen or another somehow. I’ll explain it on the way to the East Tower. I’m heading that way anyway, and it will probably take you until next Tuesday to find it by yourself.”
“Okay, thanks,” I said. I turned back to Hannah. “So, I guess I’ll see you in a little while?”
“Yeah.” She looked so tiny and lost in the now empty section of seats. The room seemed to swallow her up.
“Are you going to be okay?”
“Yes,” she said without conviction.
“She’ll be fine,” Siobhán said, walking down the aisle and sitting on the desk in front of Hannah’s. “We’ll have a nice chat together.”
“Right,” I said, grateful that Siobhán, at least, seemed unfazed by our status as resident pariahs. “Thanks. I’ll meet you at lunch?”
Hannah nodded again, and I followed Mackie out of the room. As we turned into the hallway, I caught Savannah’s voice saying, “Folder? What are you on about? I never got a folder!”
“She’s pretty shy, huh? Your sister?” Mackie asked, cocking her head back over her shoulder. “Yeah,” I said. “She’s hasn’t had a very easy time of it, so she doesn’t trust a lot of people.”
“She’ll be alright with Siobhán. I think your aunt requested her specifically, because she’s not … y’know … “
“A total bitch?” I supplied. Mackie grinned. “Something like that, yeah.”
“What are these mentor meetings for anyway? Is it just to have someone to talk to, like an advisor?” I asked.
“For the most part, yes,” Mackie said. “The mentors are randomly assigned just so that we’ll have someone we can go to if we need advice or help, that sort of thing. But in certain cases, the assignment isn’t random at all. Some of the Apprentices have demonstrated special abilities that need to be explored, so they get paired up with a mentor that has a similar gift.”
“What kind of special abilities?” I asked. “Shit, we see ghosts! Isn’t that special enough?”
Mackie let out a bark of laughter. “It usually has to do with the way we sense the ghosts. Like me, for instance — I’m an Empath. When a ghost is near me, I start to experience their emotions really intensely. We all do it, to a lesser degree, but for me it’s really pronounced. My own mood and emotions will start to change as the first sign that a ghost is trying to make contact. I used to burst out screaming or crying for no apparent reason when I was a kid. That was how my mum first knew I’d inherited the gift.”
“Doesn’t that sort of…mess you up? It can’t be easy, getting flooded with negative emotions that aren’t even yours.”
“Yeah, it was pretty scary at first. I’d be playing in the garden, having a grand old time, and suddenly I’d be running and screaming, hiding behind the shed. But I’ve learned to sort it out, you know, recognize when
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