“We’resupposed to bring it back to life?”
“But maybe it transferred out into another bird before—”
“Stop. You are giving me a headache,” Mrs. Chen said. “Humphrey, I’m taking them back right now, before things get too far out of hand. I think the FBM can take it from here.”
Humphrey raised an eyebrow. “We’ll do our best,” he said, and then turned to the five students. “You guys have been wonderful. I remind you again not to talk about that cube outside your little group, and if you have any more shared dreams, let me know! Thea…” He glanced at her wrist, where a long sleeve covered her keypad bracelet, and then deliberately gestured at the professor’s computer terminal. “Be my guest,” he said.
Thea hefted her borrowed books, walked over to the computer, and leaned over the keyboard long enough to type in a couple of words. “Ready,” she said after a moment.
“Come on, then,” Mrs. Chen said.
“Will you let us know what happens with the cube?” Thea said, turning back to Humphrey.
“Absolutely,” Humphrey said, and allowed hisglance to rest once again, for just a fleeting moment, on her wrist. The implication was unmistakable: You know how to get a hold of me if you need to.
Thea gazed for a moment at Rafe, who wore a noncommittal, pleasant smile; then she sighed and hit ENTER .
The professor’s study blinked out, and Mrs. Chen’s office at the Academy rose up around them. This was no Elemental house—this room definitely felt crowded with six people. Mrs. Chen quickly took charge.
“Your teachers know you’ve a day of work to make up,” she said. “Please speak to them directly about any assignments you may owe. You did well,” she added, almost as an afterthought. “Now get out of here, all of you. I have work to do.”
“She doesn’t know about the keypad, does she?” Ben said, the moment they were out of the office and the door had closed after them.
Thea shook her head.
“Why do I get a bad feeling about that?” Ben muttered, staring down at his shoes. “Thea, back at the house…”
Magpie stirred, raking the hallway with a suddenlyfeverish gaze. “I’d better go find Fi or Bella or Gary before class,” she said. “They can tell me what I missed.”
“I should go back to the computer and see if I can’t make sense of those printouts of Humphrey’s,” Terry said. “I’ll report back tomorrow. You coming, Ben?”
Thea watched Ben and Terry duck out the entrance of the girls’ hall on the way to their own quarters. Magpie took the stairs two at a time, the long bleached strand of hair suddenly glaringly obvious again.
“I gotta go too.” Tess, standing beside Thea, stirred and gave Thea an apologetic grin. “It was nice, though. The dream was freaky, but the rest of it was cool.”
“What if they need us again?”
“It’s the FBM,” Tess said, shrugging. “They probably won’t. Pity. I’d like to go back to that house for breakfast sometime.”
Thea managed a quick grin. “If the chance comes up…”
“Gimme a call,” Tess said. “Maybe Rafe will be there again.”
“Hey,” Thea said.
“Later, then,” Tess said, and left the residence hall.
Thea climbed the stairs slowly and headed to her own room. Her mind was still roiling with everything—the cube world, her encounters with Tesla, even the brand-new parameters of being an Elemental mage herself. Instead of grabbing her schoolbooks and racing to class, Thea kicked off her shoes and curled up on her bed with the Tesla books, poring over improbable photographs of him holding balls of fire in his hands or reading tranquilly while behind him a wheel of fire spun with the fury and splendor of a fireworks display, showering his dark hair and sloping shoulders with sparks.
Fire mage .
“How could he bear it?” Thea whispered hoarsely, her finger tracing the wheel of fire in the photograph. “How could he bear to rip this out of himself?”
A couple of hours
“But maybe it transferred out into another bird before—”
“Stop. You are giving me a headache,” Mrs. Chen said. “Humphrey, I’m taking them back right now, before things get too far out of hand. I think the FBM can take it from here.”
Humphrey raised an eyebrow. “We’ll do our best,” he said, and then turned to the five students. “You guys have been wonderful. I remind you again not to talk about that cube outside your little group, and if you have any more shared dreams, let me know! Thea…” He glanced at her wrist, where a long sleeve covered her keypad bracelet, and then deliberately gestured at the professor’s computer terminal. “Be my guest,” he said.
Thea hefted her borrowed books, walked over to the computer, and leaned over the keyboard long enough to type in a couple of words. “Ready,” she said after a moment.
“Come on, then,” Mrs. Chen said.
“Will you let us know what happens with the cube?” Thea said, turning back to Humphrey.
“Absolutely,” Humphrey said, and allowed hisglance to rest once again, for just a fleeting moment, on her wrist. The implication was unmistakable: You know how to get a hold of me if you need to.
Thea gazed for a moment at Rafe, who wore a noncommittal, pleasant smile; then she sighed and hit ENTER .
The professor’s study blinked out, and Mrs. Chen’s office at the Academy rose up around them. This was no Elemental house—this room definitely felt crowded with six people. Mrs. Chen quickly took charge.
“Your teachers know you’ve a day of work to make up,” she said. “Please speak to them directly about any assignments you may owe. You did well,” she added, almost as an afterthought. “Now get out of here, all of you. I have work to do.”
“She doesn’t know about the keypad, does she?” Ben said, the moment they were out of the office and the door had closed after them.
Thea shook her head.
“Why do I get a bad feeling about that?” Ben muttered, staring down at his shoes. “Thea, back at the house…”
Magpie stirred, raking the hallway with a suddenlyfeverish gaze. “I’d better go find Fi or Bella or Gary before class,” she said. “They can tell me what I missed.”
“I should go back to the computer and see if I can’t make sense of those printouts of Humphrey’s,” Terry said. “I’ll report back tomorrow. You coming, Ben?”
Thea watched Ben and Terry duck out the entrance of the girls’ hall on the way to their own quarters. Magpie took the stairs two at a time, the long bleached strand of hair suddenly glaringly obvious again.
“I gotta go too.” Tess, standing beside Thea, stirred and gave Thea an apologetic grin. “It was nice, though. The dream was freaky, but the rest of it was cool.”
“What if they need us again?”
“It’s the FBM,” Tess said, shrugging. “They probably won’t. Pity. I’d like to go back to that house for breakfast sometime.”
Thea managed a quick grin. “If the chance comes up…”
“Gimme a call,” Tess said. “Maybe Rafe will be there again.”
“Hey,” Thea said.
“Later, then,” Tess said, and left the residence hall.
Thea climbed the stairs slowly and headed to her own room. Her mind was still roiling with everything—the cube world, her encounters with Tesla, even the brand-new parameters of being an Elemental mage herself. Instead of grabbing her schoolbooks and racing to class, Thea kicked off her shoes and curled up on her bed with the Tesla books, poring over improbable photographs of him holding balls of fire in his hands or reading tranquilly while behind him a wheel of fire spun with the fury and splendor of a fireworks display, showering his dark hair and sloping shoulders with sparks.
Fire mage .
“How could he bear it?” Thea whispered hoarsely, her finger tracing the wheel of fire in the photograph. “How could he bear to rip this out of himself?”
A couple of hours
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