“Okay,” I say slowly. “I guess I’m with you.”
“Good,” says Samantha. “Things between humans and shifters haven’t always been peaceful, though. There was a period of time when even the humans who knew about us seemed ready to take action against us.”
“Why?” I ask, finding myself intrigued even though what they’re telling me is absurd.
“They were afraid, I think,” Samantha answered. “When we started becoming more common, it shook up relations between shifters and humans. Many of us didn’t even know we were shifters, and our abilities were unstable and unpredictable. It looked like things were going to get ugly, especially with the possibility of shifters forming an army and making a move against them. But it wasn’t like they could get rid of us, so eventually, our two societies came to an agreement.”
Josie met my eyes. “The humans founded a series of schools on every major continent, academies where newly-discovered shifters can learn to use their powers under supervision. There, they are taught how to coexist with humans, how to keep their powers under control, and how to keep the secrets of our society safe. Samantha and I are representatives of the English-speaking branch of Shifter Academy.”
“So let me get this straight,” I say, my sarcasm just barely masking my confusion. “You guys are… what, recruiters? And somehow your witchy powers told you that I had transformed, so you came here to pick me up and bring me to this Shifter Academy. Do I have this right?”
“That’s the long and short of it, yes,” says Samantha.
“Shit,” I mutter, staring down at the floor. “You guys realize how insane this sounds, right? I mean, it does. It sounds insane.”
“I know,” Samantha says, and I can see sympathy in her expression. “We realize this is a lot to put on you. The truth is. A lot of shifters are like you: orphans or transients, who either didn’t know their parents or were abandoned by them after they found out what they were. Not everyone can handle the truth of what we are.”
My eyes widen. “Are you saying that’s why my parents left me in the hospital when I was a baby? Did they know what I was?”
Josie and Samantha exchange a look, and something that I can’t identify crosses their faces. “That’s not clear to us,” Samantha says, not looking at me.
“But how did you know my name, then?” I ask. “You must have more information about me.”
“We only know your name because we sensed it,” Josie replies. “We’re highly trained in the use of our witch powers. They allow us to get bits of information about the source of an unexpected burst of magical energy. We’ve been following you ever since you left your house. That was when your shifting magic first appeared on our radar.”
I think back to the incident with Mark, nodding. I had to admit it made sense. There’s a long moment of silence as I struggle to process everything they’ve just told me, but soon it becomes clear that it’s going to take longer than a few minutes to come to grips with it. “So what now?” I ask at last, looking back up at the two women.
“Now,” Samantha says, “you’re going to come with us. The Academy is waiting for you.”
Chapter 5
I wish I could properly put into words the combination of thoughts and emotions that are swirling around in my head when Samantha tells me this. The look on her face is irritatingly calm, like she’s a parent patiently waiting for her kid to grasp a simple math concept. But my mind is a mess. I find myself thinking back to the fact that yesterday morning I was waking up at home in bed, the only worries on my mind was the fact that I had an upcoming history exam and that we were out of instant coffee. Now here I am, sitting across from two strange women with magic powers who are telling me that I, too, have magic powers.
Secret societies. Magical boarding schools. Supernatural beings. And I still haven’t even fully processed the fact that I breathed fire a few minutes ago. It’s all too much. I drop my head and cover my face with my hand, my shoulders slumping. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so tired. “You have to be kidding,” I mumble into my hands, not looking at Samantha or Josie. Suddenly the idea of meeting their eyes is too much for me.
“We’re not,” Samantha says, “but I can see that you’re feeling a little overwhelmed.”
“A little overwhelmed?” I ask, lifting my head. “A little overwhelmed? You’re telling me that you’re going to whisk me away to some kind of boarding school for shapeshifters, and you think I’m just a little overwhelmed?”
“Okay,” Samantha concedes, “fine. Very overwhelmed. But trust me when I say that with time, this will all stop being so scary. Once you’re at Shifter Academy, things will start to feel more normal. I promise.”
“You’re assuming I’m even going to go with you,” I say slowly, my eyes narrowing. “I never agreed to this.”
Josie raises her eyebrows. “Are you saying you’re not going to come with us?”
I shrug my shoulders, even though I can already feel myself making up my mind. My world has been turned upside-down already. I’m not about to shake it up any more. “Are you going to force me?”
The woman exchanged another one of those cryptic looks, and it’s enough to make me want to scream. It feels like this is all a joke, and I’m the punchline. “If you’re asking whether we’ll take you there against your will,” Samantha replies slowly, “the answer is no. We’re not authorized to do that. Even if we were, we wouldn’t
