Braving the Elements(6)

It made no sense.
Each day after class, Stefan would be waiting in a place where I was sure to run into him. The weird link I had with him, which seemed to have gotten stronger since the last time he saved my life, hinted that he was worried. About me? About his clan? I didn’t know; but yesterday, when I finally wanted to give in and sob in defeat on his chest, that tart, Darla, had been loitering around, giving me eye-threats. No way did I want to mess with her. Plus, I looked like a rat after it’d gotten spit out of the sewer, and she looked like a super model in the middle of a runway. I wasn’t winning any glamour votes.
Day four and I still had no idea. No one gave me condescending looks anymore—now I got pity or indifference. When I pointed this out to Charles, hinting that this whole experiment into magic land was probably a mistake, he’d said, “Don’t give up yet, Sasha. We’ll get it. I’ve been thinking about when you use your magic, and I think that maybe I just need to threaten your life. That’s bound to wake your magic up. I’ll just, like, ruff you up a whole bunch. Or, I know—I’ll get Jonas in here. If there’s anyone who wants to choke the life out of you, it’s Jonas. I betcha he’ll spark your magic survival reflex.”
He meant well.
Master Bert clapped with a beaming smile as he sashayed into the room. “Okay, everyone, I have a special treat for you today. Maw, I have been reminded by the Boss himself that it is often easier to connect with the elements when we are out amongst them. He personally sought me out to tell me this!”
“Jesus, he sounds like a groupie.”
Charles smirked and rolled his eyes.
“So let’s go, let’s go. Follow me!” Master Bert gestured everyone out through the doors.
As everyone shuffled outside—the girls all throwing red faced glances Charles’s way, as usual—Charles said, “You’ve hit red, I don’t understand the problem…”
I didn’t, either.
I stepped through the backdoor of the mansion and onto a stone path. We followed the rest of the students through swaying trees, huddling in the darkness, the inky black licking my senses.
I closed my eyes as we walked, feeling that pulsing in my chest—the one I had tried to find inside, but hadn’t been able to. Now, with the night looming around me, pressing on all sides, it felt like something was released. Something inside me relaxed, the block dissolving away.
Suddenly, I felt the magic crouching in Charles where he touched my back to direct me. The darkness whispered in the form of leaves rustling, of night birds calling, of the tickle of the wind as it stirred my hair. I connected with my childhood; peering through the darkness, seeking out the imaginary people. Feeling the whisper in my body, the tickle of my senses.
It had always been magic. I just hadn’t known. And I attributed it to the night. I’d probably learned to control it, as Charles said, when on my own, feeling my way through the darkness.
Joy filled my body, sensing Master Bert now, a glowing orb burning within him. Onto the other students, many with tiny sparks, nothing more than colored winks, and only two with a small flame.
I stopped, eyes closed, feeling the ground beneath me. Shoes quickly shed, I stepped off the path, dirt at my feet, clutching Charles’s hand and dragging him with me. His inner orb felt my petting and started to dance, spinning and twirling.
The air brushed my face, wanting to be let in. The dirt at my feet wanted to climb up my body. The heat grew, the joy making me laugh. I raised my hands, my smile twisting, electricity filling the air, humidity squeezing out water. Charles stood mute behind me, his orange orb starting to flicker brighter, a deeper color, merging with my power and intensifying.
“Isn’t it wonderful?”
Was that my voice? It sounded deep and sultry, sensuous. I laughed, carefree and light, my fingers crackling with power, spikes of pain pricking my skin.
“No, Sasha!”#p#分页标题#e#
My body whipped around, brought into an iron chest and surrounded by bands of steal arms. The joy cut off by a control more fastidious. Somehow, my magic was smoothed out and balanced, dissolving the danger.
In opposition, my heart jumped, beating wildly in my chest. Heat filled me, but not from magic. I leaned my head against Stefan’s hard chest and sighed.
“What are you playing at?” His words bounced off my head.
“I don’t know, it felt wonderful. I was so happy for a minute.”
“You were trying to draw too much. You have to learn to control each element before you bring them together. Most importantly, you have to learn to cut off the draw.”
His heart pushed against my cheek pleasantly. “That’s what I did?” I backed off his chest so I could meet his intense black eyes. His handsome face took my breath away, his strength and power had me floating, his presence and charisma making me melt. It wasn’t fair, this thing he did to me. It wasn’t fair that his choice as mate was an equally beautiful jerk named Darla who didn’t deserve him.