“Sophie, if there was something wrong with the wards the professors and the headmistress would know.”
“Not if it was one of the professors that lowered them.”
The silence that filled the office was so heavy it hurt my ears.
“Sophie, that is a big accusation. One I’m not sure I appreciate very much. Have you considered that you and your friends were just out of range while you were performing your ill-thought-out stunt?”
“My father says the range is supposed to be at least a half mile.”
“We don’t know if that’s ever been tested completely. Magic has fluctuations all the time. The sound of fabrics and feet twisting in the carpet told me my friends were uncomfortable with the way this conversation was heading.
“We were right next to the school,” I insisted.
Professor Vickers shook his head. “Sophie, you have no evidence. I realize the last few months have been hard on you, but you need to listen to me. Nothing is wrong. You made a mistake. You need to own up to that and move on. Right now, the only thing you four need to be concerned about is getting across campus before the bell rings.” He shut the book and handed it back to me. Willa and Gracie filed back out of the office. I opened my mouth to protest again, but Hudson’s warm grasp on my shoulder stopped me. Once we were out of the building, I let a growl rumble through my chest.
“I know I’m right.” Hudson gave me a sidelong glance as we hustled to get to the dorms.
“It is what it is.” Gracie’s wings were opening and closing on her back. “What more can we do?”
“The school is in danger. Why would someone lower the wards? It doesn’t make sense.”
“Do you have any evidence?” Willa asked.
“No, I don’t.” At least I didn’t, yet.
“What are you going to do about it?” Hudson asked.
“Nothing. I told Professor Vickers. What he does with that information is up to him. I’m going to be a good student and go into my dorm and forget about it. I can’t risk getting into trouble again.” We made it to the dorms just as the bell began to ring out. I started to follow Gracie and Willa into the girl’s dorm when I noticed Hudson was still staring at me.
“What?”
“It’s just nice to see some fire back in you. Goodnight, Sophie.”
“Goodnight.”
I hated lying to my friends when they had just started talking to me again. Though after Willa went to her bedroom and slammed the door without saying anything to me, a familiar emptiness filled me. But I wasn’t going to let them get themselves in trouble over me. In the time between seven and midnight I kept myself busy working on a sketch. At midnight I pulled out the black outfit I hadn’t used in months and snuck out of the dorms once more.
I knew what it would mean if I was caught. I had heard the horror stories about being expelled. You were stripped of your powers and forced to live as a human, never able to do magic again. Even as my stomach dropped with each step, I knew I had to risk it. The school could be in danger. If it was evidence Professor Vickers wanted, it was evidence I was going to give him.
When I neared the weak spot in the fence, three black shadows appeared ahead of me. My heart skipped a beat. Someone conjured a flame, and it illuminated the faces of Hudson, Willa, and Gracie.
“What are you guys doing out here?” I hissed.
“We know you Sophie,” Willa said. “There was no way you were going to do nothing about this.”
“Under no circumstances are you all going with me. If you’re caught, you’ll be expelled.”
“Let them try,” Willa said. “I’m great at hiding people. There’s no way they would be able to find us. Impulsively I reached forward and hugged her.
“Willa, I’m really, really sorry.”
“I know. Listen, Hudson told us what happened. He reminded me on the way over. I know it wasn’t your fault. That was really low of your dad.”
“It is still my fault, I’m going to make this right, I promise.” Never one to miss a hug, Gracie came up behind us and hugged us both.
“Oh, I’m so happy we’re all talking again.” Gracie looked strange.
“Gracie, where are your wings?” Willa snapped her fingers, and they appeared.
“Like I said, I’m great at hiding things.” She snapped her fingers again and Gracie’s wings vanished. “Now let’s get a move on.”
I went through the fence first and the rest of my friends followed me. Hudson had one more surprise waiting for me on the other side.
“Simon!” I ran to my brother and hugged him tight. It was all I could do to not burst out crying on his shoulder. He held me at arm’s length, his eyes looking me up and down. “You do look bad.”
“Gee thanks, brother.”
“I hope you have a plan. If Animage Academy is in danger, then all the other schools will be too. The Academy has the strongest defense.”
I pulled out the sketch I had been working on. It was half of a logo. “If we can find some evidence, then we can prove the wards were down. The women who saw us had cameras. If we can get them to talk to Professor Vickers, we will have our evidence. This is all I can remember about the women’s uniforms.
“I know it’s not a lot to go on, but I was going to walk around and compare it with other restaurants in the area until I found them. It’s not exactly a foolproof plan.”
Hudson leaned in to look over my shoulder. He pulled a pencil out of his pocket and started drawing.
“If you finish this line here, and that one continues like that… it could be something like this?” He stepped back, and we all looked at his work. He’d drawn a fish inside an oval.
“Yeah, I think
