The Secret of Spellshadow Manor 2 by Bella Forrest (top ten ebook reader .TXT) 📗

Jari’s head, a surprised expression appearing on the other boy’s face as cold flecks of snow landed on the back of his neck.

Alex had finally managed to convince Jari to come and spar during the lunch break, after days of stilted conversation and frosty tension. He didn’t want to speak too soon and jinx himself, but the break from the norm seemed to be doing a world of good for their strained relationship. Alex thought he almost saw Jari smile as he sidestepped a well-aimed javelin of ice.

Sparring was a slightly different beast where Alex was involved. He couldn’t simply throw his anti-magic in the direction of his opponent and expect them to snatch it away or deflect it with their magic; it would slip through their fingers, the anti-magic hitting home with a nasty sting at best, a deeper wound at worst.

To prevent accidental injuries, Alex had suggested they draw crosses in the dirt for him to aim at, with the sparring partner standing between the markings; he would try to hit the targets instead of his opponent. So far, he had only made impact once, a stray shard of black anti-magic skewering the front of Jari’s boot, fortunately missing any toes. Otherwise, he had been on target, hitting the markings with a precision and focus that surprised even him. Jari and Natalie had been taking turns firing their magic at him. Alex had to swipe their attacks toward the wall with his anti-magic or attempt to dive out of the way when it came to particularly quick spears of golden light. Pleased with himself, Alex found he could snatch the stronger balls of magic in mid-air and make them evaporate into a flurry of snowflakes, where once he would have had to duck. Slowly, he was gaining some real control over his powers.

It was thrilling to see the black and silver mingling with the gold and white as the elements crashed together in the vacant space between Alex and his opponent. Direct impact resulted in a loud bang of an explosion, the two contrasting energies hovering together for a moment before erupting into a rush of bright white light that burned the eyes to look directly into, the breeze from the blast whipping over their faces as it swelled outwards. A few times during the sparring session, Alex paused to watch it when he should have been ducking, but he simply couldn’t tear his eyes away from the sight.

A distinct improvement in Alex’s focus and the strength of his summoning was evident to all, and he felt pride in the anti-magic he could conjure beneath his palms, molding it more easily to his will. The cold ripples coiled more effortlessly from his fingers, and he found he could spend less time with his eyes squeezed shut in concentration and more time looking at his opponent, surer that his anti-magic would do what he wanted as he watched for the moves and conjurations of his challenger. He had only been struck twice that session—a new record—the blows bruising him a bit as they disintegrated into snow, but doing no real harm.

Even Jari seemed impressed as they finished up, both drenched in sweat, Alex finally on the way to being evenly matched with his magical counterparts. They stepped forward and shook hands. Alex grinned as he wiped the sweat away with the back of his forearm.

“Good match,” said Jari, giving Alex a half-smile.

“Well played,” agreed Alex.

“You are getting much better!” Natalie chimed in from the side of the cellar, clapping gently.

Alex beamed as he picked up a towel from the cellar floor, wrapping it around his neck. He felt pleased with his progress.

“I’ve had a thought,” said Jari unexpectedly as he dabbed the last beads from his brow.

“About what?” Alex asked, taking a sip from a mug of cold tea he had smuggled from the mess hall.

“About the Head.” Jari slid down the wall of the cellar, landing in a heap on the floor as he sat against the earth, his legs extended.

“What about him?” Alex felt a sense of dread at what was to come from Jari’s mouth.

“I want to know if he’s still here or not,” Jari said simply.

“It will not bring Aamir back.” Natalie spoke softly, sitting down beside Jari on the floor.

Jari shook his head. “I want to find out if the Head is still within these walls, and, if he is, what he has done with Aamir. I need to know when Aamir is coming back,” he insisted, his voice tight. “I can’t rest until I know he’s okay,” he added quietly, looking far younger than his years as he dipped his head.

“You think they punished him?” Alex wondered aloud. The thought had been plaguing him too, each night as he lay in bed, struggling to drift off, wondering if Aamir’s mouthed words to them had caused him extra trouble.

“I don’t know. I just need to find out if the Head is still here,” Jari repeated. “I have my reasons.”

“Well,” began Alex, pausing uncomfortably as he recalled the last time they had been in the cellar. “I’m having doubts about the Head leaving. He hasn’t left before, as far as anyone can remember, has he? I think it’s a trick to keep us scared.” Alex shook his head. “I don’t think Aamir has gotten into as much trouble as we fear. Or that the Head knows as much as we think he might. We’re still here, aren’t we? If he knew, we’d be gone for sure—I definitely would be. I think he just knows Finder is gone, but doesn’t know why or how,” he added, with an anxious shrug.

“He would certainly have come for us, if he knew it all,” said Natalie. “If the Head truly is out there, though, then it is strange that he should go out of the manor with Aamir. If they have both gone, I wonder what it is they are up to. Surely, they would not both need to