The Final Circle

The duel was testing Jacob’s limits. The further he stepped into the darkness them ore the crowd reacted, their shock encouraging him. It felt freeing to show the world his truest form and to display the power he possessed. But part of him was pulling back towards the light, knowing that he couldn’t control his actions like this, he hadn’t mastered the dark capabilities inside of him. Voices, mutterings and echoes were telling him, commanding him to attack; to be merciless in the presence of his opponent. But in that moment of internal quarrel Jacob let his guard down, his attacks were thick and fast but he neglected to keep a consistent line of defence. All he saw next was a blinding flash of light that bore into his darkened and sensitive eyes, then, the ceiling. His first instinct was to force himself to his feet but the action didn’t come, he struggled against what he thought was gravity. But the feeling grew heavier, as if he had been pinned to the ground. Sure enough the feeling of being encased became a tangible reality as his vision was tinted blue. Waves of panic and rage overcame him and he struggled physically to break free. Jacob couldn’t reach his wand to counter the charm but with sheer force he was able to push against the spell. At first only hairline cracks appeared but he continued to struggle, even as he could feel energy being sapped away from him. Something gave way and Jacob flung himself back to his feet, wasting no time in barking a spell towards the first year “Deprimo!” sending him topping over. The barrage of attacking charms and spells didn’t let up, Jacob strode forwards towards Cael but his energy was waning. His breathing was laboured and conviction dwindling. The darkness was fading from around him when he was hit by three successful disorientations, he no longer knew which way was up; but being knocked to the floor once again reminded him. An exasperated sigh whistled through gritted teeth as the crowd roared at Cael’s victory, anger and jealousy was threatening to consume him for a second time but exhausted from the duel he couldn’t fight back. The hand offered in assistance was waved away, mumbling about being alright; it was cordial on the surface but Jacob knew there was a chance he couldn’t resist breaking a few fingers. “Thanks, it…” The disorientation had yet to fade but as he watched his opponent disappear in the crowd of medics Jacob knew this wouldn’t be their last encounter like this.

The duel was taking far longer than Felicity had expected, she had lay down across one of the empty benches to try and rest before meeting her parents again. Her ears pricked each time the crowd roared with delight or shock, the temptation to see what was happening almost too much for her to bear. A few more minutes passed before she gave in, creeping slowly down the hallway towards the arena entrance. Standing back as not to be noticed she managed to see the last few minutes. Taken aback by the ferocity from both sides, she began to wonder how this would affect the final. Cael was bleeding all over the place and Jacob looked like he had died once and was about to do so again. She had coasted through her matches so far but a niggling sense of worry was starting to eat away at her, wishing she had practiced more. Once it was clear that Cael was the winner she slinked back to the holding room and waited for both Cael’s and her own names to be announced as the finalists to duel later in the evening. Now she was free to leave she rushed to the showers, knowing that when her parents found her there would be no time. She got dressed into her regular clothes for the time being and made her way into the crowds of people leaving the arena. People she recognised and didn’t were quick to congratulate her but the general buzz was about the last duel. Finding her mother and father was, as always, bitter sweet, the pair were also quick to talk about Cael’s performance. She wondered if he would be fit to compete later, for a moment it felt like genuine concern but Felicity quickly brushed it off with a furrowed brow “He better not cop out later.” The comment earned her a slight but swift clip around the back of the head “Please Felicity, the young man is injured, it will be a privilege for you to compete against the best; try to show some respect.” her mother retorted.

The flurry of medics fussing over Jacob was considerably smaller than what Cael had received, but he was only sporting a few burns and expected bruises. He made his way quickly away from the arena, refusing anymore medical input; simply wishing to rest. As he dragged his feet back towards his dorm room it became all more apparent that everyone’s eyes were on him. Some people offered him commiserations and commented on his duelling technique but for the most part he was met with wide eyes and confused expressions. The kind faces of his parents couldn’t come quickly, his mother cutting through the crowd to hug her son tightly. “Oh Jake we’re so proud! You ever so well!” His father stood behind Lorelai but smiled warmly “Son, you did yourself proud, it’s been so long since I’ve seen you embrace…” Lorelai turned around and gave Victor a warning look before fussing over her son some more “Remember where you are dear.” All conversation of being a Shade withered away, Victor promising his son they would catch up about it at a later time, Jacob’s stomach began to knot. “But what are we doing? Go and shower, rest up and we will see you later my love. I have a few old professors to say hello to! I’m sure a few parents here were in the same year as me.” Lorelai planted a kiss on Jacob’s forehead and sent him on his way.

Climbing the staircase to his dorm corridor was almost too much for his aching legs, but the promise of a hot shower and a few hours to sleep were going to be more than worth the effort. Jacob went straight to the showers and quickly returned to his room, the winter air chilling his whole body as he was only wrapped in a towel from the waist down. Pushing the door open quickly and with bed in sight Jacob thought about throwing himself under the covers as he was but the sight of Agni made him stop in his tracks. Kindly there were some folded tracksuit bottoms on the chest of drawers closest to him, slinking out of the room he slipped them on in the hallway. His heart was pounding against his ribcage, it taking him a moment to re-enter the room. It was then that Jacob realised that she was asleep in his armchair, he let out a long sigh of relief and picked up the small slip of paper by the leg of the chair. It brought a small smile to his face, looking over to her he wasn’t sure that position could be comfortable to sleep in but didn’t want to wake her. Instead he carefully moved the heavy book of vegetables away from her lap and found a blanket to cover her with. Jacob stepped back from Agni and sat on his bed to put the necklace she had made him on, though he was sure that after a display like today, he was too tired to be haunted.

The sun that warmed the late afternoon was quickly fading in the courtyards, but flashes of light and frantic voices still filled the air. “Faster!” Christopher’s voice boomed, echoing against the frost covered stone. Felicity was quick to dodge and deflect her father’s attacks but was struggling to land any of her own. “Have you been practising? If you had practised more we wouldn’t need to do this now.” Verity called out half-heartedly, her attention not with her husband and daughter but the book that lay heavy in her lap. “How do you expect to win such poor form?” Felicity gritted her teeth, the charms she cast growing in intensity. “Do you expect me to win?” Her father laughed “Against a Whitehall? I doubt it darling, but I can’t send you out there and embarrass us.” Her blood began to boil, she lowered her wand and walked out of the courtyard despite the protest of her parents. She needed to clear her head before the duel.

Ludovic was pulled away back to the medical tent that was onsite and stripped of his shirt quite aggressively. Still high from the adrenaline of the duel, the pain was minimal. ‘Will you stop fussing. Just patch me up so I am ready for the final tomorrow.’ he grumbled. Master Whitehall, it is very unlikely that you will be able to compete for the next three days. Cael’s head snapped to where the voice came from. The senior medic, who he had seen attend to his brother, was a tall man with a stern brow. ‘What are you talking about. I fixed the bloodflow myself.’ He said, shaking his head and shrugging off another nurse. ‘Just let me look at it will you?’ raising his voice he attempted to sit up but was forcefully pushed and held back down again by four medics whilst he struggled. It was at that moment that the canvas of the tent was pushed aside by his friend. ‘Wha’s taking you so long eh? Holy crap man!’ Finn ran his hands through his hair and took a step backwards at the sight of his friend’s injury. ‘Are you alright boy?’ came the voice of his stoic grandfather from behind him until he was pushed past as Finn ran to throw up outside of the tent. ‘Ah.’ stated the elderly gentleman. ‘It looks like you are going to be out of action for a little while.’ Cael began to panic. He was not used to not being in control and being physically restrained and left to stare up at the green canvas roof was only making him more anxious. ‘What is going on? Will somebody tell me what is going on!?’ he shouted. ‘Will you stay still!?’ bellowed the senior medic in retort, making the room crackle with tension. Ludovic complied, he certainly wasn’t used to being spoken to like that, but he could hear the tone of solemnity in his voice. ‘The particular charm that made contact was a splicing charm. What that means is it cut very quickly and very deeply, on this occasion right to the bone.’ He knew what that meant, it was one of the charms his sister liked to practice on him, but there was a lot of power behind this one compared to the papercut-like charms he was subjected to as a child. ‘Unfortunately, by using Cuatro you sealed the skin on either side of the wound which dissolved the muscle tissue and left the bone exposed. What this means is…’ ‘I’ll have to grow the muscle back.’ The medic sighed. ‘Which of course is going to take a long time, even if we use the fastest of treatments it will take over 24 hours and will be incredibly painful. After that you will need a full week’s worth of physiotherapy for it to be in full working order.’ As Cael attempted to soak in the information that was given to him, a small nurse ran over to the medic with a notepad and paper and whispered something in his ear which made the senior medic look concerned. ‘Alright, sit him up. Know that if you refuse to remain calm we will sedate you young man.’ With a begrudging nod he was sat up. ‘Now, Nurse Kartin has just informed me that because of the nature of the trauma sustained we will have contacted your parents.’ Cael let out a bitter laugh. ‘I’m sorry, it’s just I think their schedules are too full for something as trivial as this right now.’ The medic exchanged a concerned glance with the nurse who began to prepare some kind of silvering liquid. ‘Your mother is on her way.’

Agni’s feet prickled with cold yet her body was aware of a change in temperature. Blearily opening her eyes, it took a little time to adjust to the darkness. First she saw that the bed she had just made up, was now messy again. Confused she stood up, but was startled by the blanket tumbling to the floor. As she tried to step out of it, her foot caught on the inside, sending her tumbling to the floor. Unfortunately in her attempt to cushion her fall, she grabbed onto the edge of a nearby table which only sent all the contents that were on top of it landing on top of her head, including the seasonal vegetable guide. ‘Ouch…’ she groaned, suddenly cursing herself for liking vegetables so much. Remembering the unmade bed, she suddenly had the realisation that it must have been because Jacob was sleeping in there. Very tentatively she poked her head over the foot of the bed to see if her suspicions were correct. Even in the dark she could see his unmistakable shape amongst the covers. She stood up slowly, tucking her silken hair behind her ear and her heartbeat began to race. Her eyes glanced over his bruised skin on his bare arms and chest and her mind floated back to the time that their skin was pressed together for warmth in the snow covered chalet. At the time, she hadn’t thought about it in that way, it was merely for his survival, but now the thought made her face grow red. She quietly began trying to pick up the things that had fallen, placing them back very carefully. She thought of her roommates and how they were probably still awake and would demand an explanation as to where she had been. The thought of it made her anxious so she thought that the only sensible thing to do would be to sleep in Jacob’s room and leave before he woke up and knew she was still there. Finding one of his large shirts, she pulled off her day clothes and pulled it on, considering what to do about her trousers before finding his escorial shorts and pulling them on, looking like a huge bundle of laundry until she pulled the drawstring around her waist. Climbing onto the windowsill that was to the right of his bed with the blanket, she settled herself to sleep again, torn between looking at Jacob, or out at the stars as she was bathed in moonlight.

Finn took a short walk around the grounds of the arena, trying to shake off the sight he had just seen. Knest was a violent sport, and he was good at it, which meant that he often had a split lip or a broken collarbone, but that amount of gore, especially since it was his best friend experiencing it, was just too much. It was only a few moments before his grandfather joined him. ‘You care about this lad.’ he said, knowingly, ‘You know he helped me a lot pappy, socially magically, he’s my best friend. Plus that was disgusting.’ His elder laughed, clapping a hand on his shoulder ‘you know, you’re a sensitive boy, despite your sheer size.’ An out of breath medic began waving and shouting at the pair which caught their attention. ‘I’m sorry…’ he puffed ‘Are you terribly busy right now? It’s just… Master Whitehall has requested you find Miss Moran, he requires to speak to her immediately.’ Finn’s stomach turned, something must be bad if he wanted to speak to his rival. ‘Is everything okay?’ he asked quietly. ‘Madam Von Whitehall is on her way, she should be here in under an hour so we need to find Miss Moran quickly.’ Finn was confused, he had never met Cael’s mother, he was pretty sure that Cael had never met Cael’s mother. He new it must be serious so said his apologies to his grandfather and ran off looking for Moran.

‘Moran! Felicity!’ he called, running up to her, oblivious of her steel’s parents. ‘Sorry, Whitehall needs to speak to you.’ He frowned at her response. ‘He’s still in the medical tent, has been since the duel finished. It’s pretty serious. I think he needs to talk to you about rescheduling… or something. I dan’ae know but you have to come now.’

‘Moran.’ Cael groaned, not wanting to expend any more energy than he had to. He wouldn’t admit it but he was sick with worry about his mother’s imminent arrival. He had not seen her alone since he was 15. The anxiety was showing in his eyes as he stared at Felicity. ‘These people, they will not allow me to… they say I won’t be fit for duelling... ‘ A lump rose in his throat which made him pause. His bloodied shirt was lying on the chair next to him but his wound was now bandaged, not for any particular medical reason as the blood had been stopped by his earlier charm, but to shield the people visiting from having to look at it. The pain was returning so his breath was laboured, sweat beading on his chest. ‘I don’t want you to have to be matched with a… sub-par opponent. You are better than that.’ He said, holding her gaze for a little too long. ‘A week. Maybe less, if my mot…’ he stopped himself, not wanting to say it. ‘I will keep you posted. I am sorry for what this might mean for you.’ ‘Alright. That’s enough. Miss Moran, I believe the professor that organised these ridiculous duels will be wanting to talk to you now. And I have been informed that your mother has arrived on site earlier than we had planned.’ The medic ushered Felicity out of the room as Cael began to look more and more worried. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, sending a shooting pain all through his arm and up to the shoulder. ‘Uhh… you should stay in bed… this is highly irregular!’ squeaked a small nurse as he ignored her and stepped down, using her shoulder as a crutch under his weakening legs. ‘It is my shoulder that is hurt, not my legs. I am not a cripple. Let me stand.’ He took in deep breaths trying to steady himself. They had given him nothing for the pain under his own instruction. He wanted to be fully awake for when she arrived. A flurry of voices approached the tent. He stood on his own, perfectly upright next to the bed as the tend canvas was held back and Annabel Madeline-Love Von Whitehall entered the space.

She was a tall woman with extremely harsh features. Her eyes were shielded behind a pair of round sunglasses even though it was already perfectly dark. She held a phone up to her ear and looked around the room, paying no attention to her son. Her black tapered suit was crisp and immaculate, her blonde hair slicked back into a low chignon. Next to her of course was her personal assistant who was a young man with no expression. The medic followed her in but there was no longer any conversation. She walked slowly towards her son, pulling off her sunglasses and handing them to her PA, revealing her stark green eyes. Cael couldn’t bring himself to look at her, but was soon forced to as she grabbed his jaw in her free hand. ‘Look at me.’ she stated, coldly. He complied, standing a little straighter. Her eyes glazed over his face as she pulled his head from left to right, inspecting every inch of skin. She dropped her hand and turned to the medic ‘Take this off.’ she ordered, motioning to the bandage. The medic looked sympathetically at his patient, putting a hand on his good shoulder to steady him. Cael ignored him, a flurry of things going through his mind. Annabel was talking to the phone quietly until the bandage was removed, when she turned back to look her eyebrows flinched, as if softening, but only for a second. ‘He is still standing.’ she said to the phone. ‘Despite his best efforts. No… No… Of course he did. No lasting damage... No not his face…’ She grabbed her son by the arm and turned him around forcefully ‘No, just some minor splicing. Yes. Elladora I believe… yes, it said as much on the system. Robin is looking into it.’ She turned him back around. ‘Yes. See you at dinner.’ Hanging up with a click she took in a deep breath. ‘I hardly recognise you.’ she said directly to him. ‘That was your father. He was… concerned.’ Cael looked down at his mother, he was only a little taller than her now, but felt so much smaller. ‘I’m sorry…’ ‘Do not conjugate.’ ‘Yes. I am sorry.’ ‘You won. That is nothing to apologise for.’ He looked away from her, feeling incredibly inferior. ‘I remember how alike you and Vladimir looked.’ She looked deeply concerned. ‘He is terribly scarred. He will NEVER look the same.’ Ludovic was attempting to keep everything inside with all of his might, clenching his jaw so much that it ached. Still tears rose in his eyes, threatening to spill over. His mother glanced at him quizzically. ‘Stand up straight boy. Are you in pain?’ ‘no.’ ‘I asked you a quest…’ ‘NO.’ ‘Do not lie to me boy. Get him on the bed.’ He was immediately lifted, his head spinning. He looked at his mother, whom he had not seen in years, she looked just as he remembered, he was bitter with the thought that it was this that brought her to see him, not his victories, not his countless wins, but this, when he was completely helpless and vulnerable. ‘We are concerned for infection.’ The medic noted ‘Our plan would be to remove the cauterised skin on either side and to apply muscle growth, stitching the skin back together.’ ‘How long would that take. He has one more match has he not. Would it not be best to let him perform there like this and then fix him at the end when he no doubt gains more injury due to his carelessness?’ The medic stood, astounded at her callousness. ‘I… no, I do not believe it would. As I already explained, infection is a real concern…’ she stood to the side of the bed as he slipped in and out of pain induced consciousness. ‘Do what you have to. He has to compete.’ She looked at him and sighed, pulling off her blazer and rolling up her sleeves. ‘Ludo… why do you get yourself in such situations. Must you be so careless?’ her voice was softer. He looked at her, his eyes bleary and reached out for her hand, gripping it tightly. ‘Mother…’ ‘Shhhh… boy.’ She reached a hand up to his forehead and pushed back his sandy blonde hair. He was sedated quickly after that. ‘Listen. It may be that you feel it necessary to judge my parenting decisions but let me make myself perfectly clear when I say that if anything happens to my youngest child not only will the school be involved in severe legal complications but I will personally seek you out and ensure that you stop breathing. Do I make myself clear?’

As the sun continued to fade the wind picked up whipped Felicity’s hair loose from its low ponytail and into her eyes. Her agitated mumblings grew into a series of curses and vulgarities as her parent’s voices were growing louder; it didn’t look like she was going to get away from them this time. She stood in place with her eyes shut tight, half expecting a smack around the back of her head for being insolent but the thick Scottish accent that met her first forced them open again. “What? Forfeiting already? He can talk to me after I wipe the floor with him later. I’m busy.” She scowled at Finn but quickly saw an opportunity to escape her parents for a while. “Oh alright, I’ll go I’ll go.” Felicity rolled her eyes and head back towards the duelling arena, picking up the pace once she was out of eyesight from Finley and her parents. She found the medic’s tent quick enough and there was far more commotion than she had expected, it slowed her down as she walked up to the entrance. “What the bloody hell have you done?” Felicity mumbled to herself before being swept up in the anxious energy and rushed to Ludovic’s bedside by a nurse.

The sight of her to-be opponent was enough for any retort, quip or goading to melt away. Her eyes widened at the sight of Cael shirtless and bandaged, he didn’t look well; there being an air of panic about him. Her focus flitted to the bloodstained shirt on the bedside chair, she didn’t move it to sit beside him “What the hell did Jacob do to you…” Felicity nodded along with what Cael was saying. “Yeah…” She couldn’t bring herself to jibe at him in his current state. Her eyes narrowed when he mentioned what it would mean for her, in being understanding for him Felicity had forgotten about her parents. She opened her mouth to reply but before she could form a sentence a medic physically removed her from the tent. As he mentioned Ludovic’s mother she raised an eyebrow, glancing back to Cael she tried to look sympathetic, the expression in his eyes now became clear. Ejected from the tent Felicity was directly in the path of a woman who could only be Ludovic’s mother, had her fight or flight instinct not kicked in she would have stood frozen in awe. Instead she almost stumbled to the right and head away from the tent as quickly as she had arrived. On the way back into the main castle building her chest was assaulted with a pang of guilt, feeling sorry for Cael being left with his mother. After finding out about his family she only hoped that he would get some sympathy from the medical staff; knowing all too well that he wasn’t going to get any from her.

Her thoughts were muddled, not knowing what to do next but finding Jacob stuck out on her mind. She didn’t have access to the Thrisdin dormitory area but was able to bully her way into the common room without much trouble. Not knowing which bedroom was his, Felicity went about opening all of the private dorm rooms until she found his. “Well, well…” Her conviction dwindled at the sight of Jacob and Agni sleeping in the same room, all being in different places. “Come on, time to break up this little sleepover!” Felicity spoke loudly and entered the room with an authoritative stride. A muttered charm illuminated the dim room with candlelight. “Sorry Ags, but I need to steal Jake away for a bit.” She smiled weakly, under normal circumstances she would have laughed at the amount of flustering going on, but her attention was taken by Jacob having not woken up. “I don’t have time for this.” Felicity huffed before standing next to the sleeping boy’s head. Taking a deep breath she crouched down and began to clap next to his had ”Bloody wake up!”
For the second time today Jacob’s peaceful and dreamless sleep was forcibly interrupted, except this time the shock was almost too much. “No!” Jacob shouted as he sat up violently, nearly taking out the witch to his right. It took another moment to realise what was going on, he took a few deep breaths before facing her. “Wha-, you shouldn’t, Somery, why?” He caught a glimpse of Agni before looking at her directly. “Oh! You were sleeping and looked cold so I… But you weren’t up there…” Felicity clapped loudly again to get his attention. “We need to go, the professors want to talk you, to us. Cael is messed up, like, messed up. I’ll wait for you down in the common room.” She stood up and left quickly, not wanting to know what she had interrupted.

Jacob jumped out of bed as his dorm room door was shut. “Oh shit…” He groaned, trying to find a shirt to pull on but leaning down to the floor made his body ache all over. “No, it’s okay I got it.” Jacob spoke quietly, wondering if Felicity was outside the door. “What did she mean by messed up… I didn’t…” He shook his head, trying to rid himself of the dark thoughts that encroached his mind and sent chills down his spine. He pulled his head through the shirt and went straight to Agni, holding her tight to his aching chest “I always seem to sleep better with you here.” He didn’t know what else to say. “I have to go now, can I see you later?” Jacob pulled away slowly before slipping on shoes and finding the Irish girl. Felicity didn’t engage in conversation with Jacob in the common room, instead she beckoned for him to follow her. They reached the long corridor that harboured their destination and Felicity pulled the taller boy to one side. “I didn’t see the duel, but that didn’t look like an accident what happened to him.” Her words were less probing and more stating the facts, she didn’t offer him a chance to speak, instead shrugged “It doesn’t matter right now, you just need to tell the truth, his mother is in the school, probably vying for your blood as we speak, just don’t give her any bait.” The door before them opened and the pair were ushered into a small room, four of their professors sat before them with worried expressions.

The severity of the situation had been laid out for both Felicity and Jacob to see very clearly. It was certain that the duel wouldn’t continue until the medics gave Cael the green light, and that depended heavily on the input of the Von Whitehall family. Whilst the meeting laid out that neither Felicity nor Cael could win until the other was in adequate health the professors’ attention were mainly on Jacob. Probing his method of duelling and interrogating his motives for taking part in the tournament. After what had felt like hours they were allowed to leave, but warned that they would both be under the watchful eye of all staff until the duels came to a close. Their sighs of relief were in unison with one another, Jacob couldn’t help but put a hand on Felicity’s shoulder as they walked back towards the main hall “Thanks for backing me up in there, you didn’t have to do that.” Felicity rolled eyes, exasperated by being touched but mainly at their situation. “Don’t mention it.” She stepped sideways and out of his reach “You haven’t done anything wrong as far as I can see, maybe been a bit harsh on Whitehall, but he could do with being taken down a peg or two…”, “But his arm…”, “Yeah but you didn’t do that, he did, and besides it gives me a week of practice so you’ve done me a behaviour by all accounts.” She grinned a small laugh escaping her lips. “See you, shade.” Felicity sped off to tell her parents the news.

Jacob was left in the darkened corridor with a heavy sinking feeling in his chest. He had entered the tournament to show Ludovic he wasn’t someone to be messed around with. He had entered to prove to Agni that he was capable of keeping her safe and protecting her. But now all he could think about was the possibility of everything being taken from him. He had shown Cael a lesson but at what cost? He hadn’t been fully in control of his actions, he would scolded himself for being so careless and caught up in the moment. He needed to find his parents and get some advice, he didn’t know what to do next. Sure enough they were sat in one of the libraries private rooms respectively reading. Lorelai’s eyes lit up, she set down her book on deformis culture and took her son into her arms “I miss you darling,” Jacob smiled meekly in reply, his thoughts were of Agni and how she was. He remembered the shock and fear from seeing him over Christmas in a less than normal state, did she have the same reaction this time? She hadn’t left his side, but couldn’t look him in the eye. “I… the charms I used, the Whitehall boy is…” Jacob was struggling to think straight, Victor intervened. Looking up from his newspaper he spoke quietly but with enough purpose that commanded the attention of his wife and son. “You need to stop dabbling, you’ve been backing away from your inherited gifts for too long. It’s high time you got control of them, of yourself.” The words hung heavily in the room, “Besides, the boy’s mother, Annabel is looking into the series of events. You need to keep your conviction and be confident in your actions. If they catch a whiff of you not having a handle on your own abilities it could end badly for you and the school.” Jacob nodded in reply, his father was right, as usual.

The dark of night had set in and with recent happenings the curfew was stricter than usual, meaning there was no escape from her parents until the morning. She had been found trying to slink out of a window. “Felicity! Get down from there this instance!” Her mother sounded more frantic than usual “The Von Whitehall’s are in the castle, and you continue to be so petulant!” Something clicked and a beaming grin curled her lips. “Oh yes, I have had the pleasure of meeting Madame.” Dropping from a considerable height, her landing was quiet and he mother’s expression softened for a moment; seeing her endurance technique shine though. “Your father is beside himself, you could offer him the kindness of keeping in line.” The all too familiar venom in her mother’s voice returned. Christopher was looking out of another window onto the main courtyard, he had dealings with the Von Whitehall family, some not so pleasant. Felicity’s ears pricked at the sound of clicking against the stone floors, she recognised the sound from earlier, “Right, keeping in line.” She motioned behind herself to Verity whose eyes widened a touch. She knew of the family but hadn’t had a great deal to do with them, business being Christopher’s speciality. She looked to her husband and wondered whether to warn him, but the angle of his shoulders told her that he already knew who was approaching.