Night World : Spellbinder Chapter 1

Expelled.It was one of the s motorcariest oral communication a high school senior could stretchk of, and it unploughed sonority in Thea Harmans mind as her grandmothers car approached the school building.This, Grandma Harman express from the front passenger seat, is your pull through chance. You do realize that, dont you?As the device driver pulled the car to the curb, she went on. I dont screw why you got thrown erupt of the last school, and I dont require to know. that if in that locations one whiff of trouble at this school, Im going to give up and send both of you to your aunty Ursulas. And you dont want that, now, do you?Thea shook her head vigorously.Aunt Ursulas house was nicknamed the Convent, a olden fortress on a deserted mountaintop. Stone w altogethers everywhere, an atmosphere of gloom-and Aunt Ursula watching every move with thin lips. Thea would rather die than go there.In the backsideseat next to her, Theas cousin Blaise was shaking her head, too-but The a knew better than to hope she was listening.Thea herself could precisely concentrate. She felt dizzy and very untogether, as if half of her were still back in New Hampshire, in the last principals office. She unploughed realizeing the await on his give that meant she and Blaise were nigh to be expelled-again.But this prison term had been the worst. Shed neer forget the trend the police car come out of the closetside kept flashing red and blue through the windows, or the way the smoke kept rising from the charred remains of the music wing, or the way Randy Marik cried as the police led him off to jail.Or the way Blaise kept smiling. Triumphantly, as if it had all been a game.Thea glanced sideways at her cousin.Blaise looked beautiful and deadly, which wasnt her fault. She always looked that way it was part of having smoldering gray eyes and hair wish well halt smoke. She was as different from Theas soft blondness as night from solar day and it was her beauty which kept getting them in trouble, but Thea couldnt help love her.After all, theyd been raised as sisters. And the sister bond was the strongest bond there was to a witch.But we cant get expelled again. We cant. And I know youre thinking rectify now that you can do it all over againand pricy old Thea will stick with you-but this time you re wrong. This time Ive got to stopover you.Thats all, Gran verbalise abruptly, finishing with her instructions. Keep your noses clean until the end of October or youll be sorry. Now, get out. She whacked the headrest of the drivers seat with her stick. Home, Tobias.The driver, a college-age male child with curly hair who had the dazed and beaten expression all Grandmas apprentices got subsequently a few days, muttered, Yes, senior high Lady, and reached for the gearshift. Thea grabbed for the door handle and slid out of the car fast. Blaise was right behind her.The ancient Lincoln Continental sped off. Thea was left stand with Blaise under the warm Nevada sun, in front of the two-story adobe building complex. Lake Mead High School.Thea blinked once or twice, trying to kick-start her brain. Then she turned to her cousin.Tell me, she said grimly, that youre not going to do the same thing here.Blaise laughed. I neer do the same thing twice.You know what I mean.Blaise pursed her lips and reached pull down to typeset the top of her boot. I think Gran overdid it a subaltern with the lecture, dont you? I think theres something shes not telling us about. I mean, what was that bit about the end of the month? She straightened, tossed back her mane of dark hair and smiled sweetly. And shouldnt we be going to the office to get our schedules?Are you going to answer my disbelief?Did you ask a question?Thea shut her eyes. Blaise, we are running out of relatives. If it happens again-well, do you want to go to the Convent?For the first time, Blaises expression darkened. Then she shrugged, direct liquid ripples down her loose ruby-colore d shirt. Better hurry. We dont want to be tardy.You go ahead, Thea said tiredly. She watched as her cousin walked outside, hips swaying in the trademark Blaise lilt.Thea took another breath, examining the buildings with their bowing doorways and pink plaster walls. She knew the drill. Another year of living with them, of walking lightly through halls knowing that she was different from everybody virtually her, even while she was carefully, like an expert pretending to be the same.It wasnt hard. Humans werent very smart. But it took a accepted amount of concentration.She had just started toward the office herself when she heard raised voices. A little knot of students had gathered at the edge of the parking lot.Stay away from it.Kill itThea joined the periphery of the group, being inconspicuous. But thus she maxim what was on the ground beyond the curb and she took three startled steps until she was looking right down at it.Oh how beautiful. Long, strong body patient of head and a string of rapidly vibrating horny rings on the tail. They were making a noise like steam escaping, or melon vine seeds being shaken.The snake in the grass was olive green, with wide diamonds down its back. The scales on the face looked shiny, almost wet. And its black tongue flickered so fast. A contestation whizzed past her and hit the ground beside the snake. Dust puffed.Thea glanced up. A kid in cutoffs was backing away, looking scared and triumphant.Dont do that, somebody said.Get a stick, somebody else said.Keep away from it.Kill it.Another rock flew.The faces around Thea werent vicious. Some were curious, some were alarmed, some were filled with a sort of mesmerised disgust. But it was all going to end up the same for the snake.A male child with red hair came running up with a duple branch. People were reaching for rocks.I cant let them, Thea survey. Rattlers were actually pretty fragile-their backbones were vulnerable. These kids talent kill the snake without eve n meaning to.Not to mention that a couple of the kids might get bitten in the process.But she didnt have anything no jasper against venom, no St. John root to soothe the mind.It didnt matter. She had to do something. The redheaded boy was circling with the stick like a fighter looking for an opening. The kids around him were alternately warning him and cheering him on. The snake was swelling its body, tongue-tips flickering upand down faster than Theas eye could follow. It was mad.Dropping her backpack, she slipped in front of the red-haired boy. She could see his reverse and she heard several people yell, but she tried to block it all out. She needed to focus.I hope I can do this.She knelt a foot away from the rattler.The snake fell into a striking coil. precedent body raised in an S-shaped spiral, head and neck held like a poised javelin. Nothing looked so ready to lunge as a snake in this position.Easy easy, Thea thought, staring into the narrow catlike pupils of the yellow eye s. She easily lifted her hands, palms facing the snake.Worried noises from the crowd behind her.The snake was inhaling and exhaling with a violent hiss. Thea breathed carefully, trying to radiate peace.Now, who could help her? Of course, her own personal protector, the goddess closest to her heart. Eileithyia of ancient Crete, the mother of the animals.Eileithyia, Mistress of the Beasts, please tell this critter to hush down. Help me see into its little snaky heart so Ill know what to do.And then it happened, the wonderful transformation that even Thea didnt understand. Part of her became the snake. There was a strange blurring of Theas boundaries-she was herself, but she was also coiled on the warm ground, fierce and excitable and desperate to get back to the safety of a coal-tar creosote bush. Shed had eleven babies some time ago and had never quite vulcanised from the experience. Now she was surrounded by large, hot, fast-moving creatures.Big-living-things way too close. Not responding to my holy terror noises. Better bite them.The snake had only two rules for dealing with animals that werent food. 1) arouse your tail until they go away without stepping on you. 2) If they dont go away, strike.Thea the person kept her hands steady and tried to pound a new thought into the small reptile brain. Smell me. Taste me. I dont smell like a human. Im a daughter of Hellewise.The snakes tongue brushed her palm. Its tips were so thin and delicate that Thea could hardly feel them flicker against her skin.But she could feel the snake drop down from maximum alert. It was relaxing, ready to retreat. In another arcsecond it would listen when she told it to slither away.Behind her, she heard a new preventative in the crowd.Theres EricHey, Eric-rattlesnakeBlock it out, Thea thought.A new voice, distant but flood tide closer. Leave it alone, guys. Its probably just a bull snake.There was a swell of excited denial. Thea could feel her connection slipping. Stay focused.B ut nobody could have stayed focused during what happened next. She heard a quick footstep. A shadow fell from the east. Then she heard a gasp.Mojave rattlerAnd then something hit her, sending her flying sideways. It happened so fast that she didnt have time to twist. She landed painfully on her arm. She lost control of the snake.All she could see as she looked east was a scaly olive-green head driving in advance so fast it was a blur. Its jaws were wide open-amazingly wide-and its fangs sank into the blue-jeaned leg of the boy who had knocked Thea out of the way.