The Witch and the Assassin

I’ve always thought that memories were curious little things. There’s just something about how any sensation, even ones you previously thought to be meaningless, can take you back to a specific time or place or moment. In a way, memories are almost like magic, and I would know a thing or two about that being a witch and all. Even now, years later, the smell of spicy, sweet citrus takes me back to an early November morning under a grove of bergamot trees. It was a day that would change my life forever. It was the day I met him. 

The grass was wet with morning dew and soft on my bare feet. I rarely wore shoes when practicing magic to everyone’s dismay. Other witches might disagree, but I always felt more one with nature without them. As I tiptoed through the grove I breathed deeply, inhaling the crisp scents of fall. There was a light breeze blowing, but despite the fact that it was November and my shoulders were bare, I wasn’t cold. In the center of the grove there was a round clearing that had once been a small garden complete with stone benches and an intricate waterfall centerpiece. The waterfall had long since stopped working by the time I claimed the abandoned area as my own. It had been overtaken by ivy and was more green than the original silver, but I always thought it looked rather pretty like that.

I sat down, cross legged, on one of the moss covered stones in front of the fountain and closed my eyes. I could feel the warmth of the morning sun shining down on my face, and it was that same warmth that sent energy coursing through my body. I could practically feel the power buzzing at my fingertips. It was also at this precise moment that noticed a presence hiding in the larger trees that were sprinkled throughout the grove. My eyes flew open, and I raised my hands in front of my face in a defensive gesture and cast my first spell of the morning. At the same moment as a small disc of light formed in front of my head, a bronze dagger clattered against the stone path that I stood on, having been reflected by my small shield. 

“Impressive,” a boy’s voice called out, but even though I was looking in the direction where the dagger came from, I couldn’t find its owner. 

“Who are you?” I asked but received no answer. 

I did, however, sense movement to my right and threw up another shield. A second dagger, identical to the first, hit it and stuck. I cursed under my breath as fractures splintered up my shield like a spiderweb. I never had been a defensive witch. It was one of my weak points in school. I could throw up a light shield quickly, but they shatter after just three attacks.

“Not very lady like,” the voice commented with a laugh. 

I watched as my shield faded, leaving the dagger to join its twin on the ground. “It’s hard to be polite when knives are flying at your face,” I replied.

I knew I had to do something. My light shield could only take one more attack, and then I would be a goner. Quickly, I devised a plan. I uttered an incantation under my breath as I threw up my shield one final time. I didn’t stick around to watch the dagger shatter it though. Time seemed to slow as I sprinted in the direction of the throw, hoping to take my attacker by surprise. 

It seemed to work as I caught a glimpse of him moving swiftly to his next location, the branches of a large oak tree. By the time he noticed me it was too late. As I closed in on him, I pushed both palms outward, sending a large white hot ball of light in his direction. The spell smacked into his chest causing him to fall from the tree’s branches, landing with a thud on his back. 

I stumbled towards him then, feeling exhausted from the exerting so much magic power at once. My teachers always warned against putting too much energy into one attack, but I didn’t see another way to win. As I got closer to the boy, I noticed that his shirt had slightly burned away, but his skin hadn’t been touched. It was his face that intrigued me more, though, if I’m being honest. Standing over him, I was instantly struck with how handsome he was with delicate yet sharp cheekbones and steely gray eyes. His golden blonde hair was longer than the boys’ at my school, falling just above his chin. I watched his chest rise and fall slowly as he blinked rapidly. He was so perfectly still that these were the only signs that he was alive at all. I knew what was going on of course. A spell like the one I hit him with is meant to blind the opponent as much as it’s meant to hurt them.

“It’ll wear off in a couple of seconds,” I remarked. “I wasn’t aiming for your face.”

His eyes closed at my words. “I hope you’re right. I rather like being able to see.” 

I huffed as I flopped onto the ground beside him. “I wouldn’t be a very good witch if I didn’t know the effects of my own spells, now would I?” 

“I suppose not,” he replied opening his eyes once more, and this time they seemed to focus on my face. A grin worked its way across his lips and I felt my cheeks get hot. “Well, hello there, Miss Alisa Faraway.”

My eyes narrowed as he sat up. “Mind telling me who you are, how you know my name, and why exactly you were trying to kill me?”

“Nothing personal really, just a class assignment.” He winced as he examined the scorched tatters of his shirt, which looked more like light body armor when I got a closer look at it. “You really did a number on my gear. Tally’s gonna chew me out when he sees me. This is the third set of armor I’ve been issued this month.” 

At that point my confusion had reached an all time high. I felt my head spinning as I tried to keep up. The boy must have noticed the lost look on my face because then he continued talking.

“Ah sorry,” he apologized, “Tally’s head of the support class. He’s in charge of all things weapons related or anything we need to do our jobs, really.”

That’s when the realization finally dawned on me. “You’re an assassin. You must go to Lakewood then.” 

The boy grinned. “Soren Valentine at your service.”

Lakewood was the sister school of Creekside academy for magical beings, where I spent my days normally. Lakewood was meant to be a school where students who wanted to protect our kingdom, Auera, but had no major magical power, or powers at all, went to train. Students who graduated from Lakewood were known as assassins. 

Knowing where Soren was from didn’t make me trust him though. “That still doesn’t explain why you were chucking daggers at my head.” 

Soren laughed and I felt a hint of annoyance. “I had to test your skills. I can’t be partners with someone’s who’s just going to hold me back. You understand right?”

“Partners?” I asked because, really, that was the most ludicrous thing he’d said all morning. 

Soren looked at me quizzically. “Yeah, partners. You are a third year student, aren’t you?” He shook his head in disbelief. “Man, what are they teaching you guys in that school nowadays.” 

I felt my temper rising. I didn’t like being made to feel stupid or clueless. “You’re saying that you’re the assassin assigned to be my teammate?”

“Point to the witch!” Soren exclaimed clapping his hands together. 

Now, I was really getting mad. All third year Creekside Academy students are paired with a third year student from Lakeside. Those teams are expected to work together after graduation in whatever role assigned to them by the kingdom. I wasn’t stupid for not knowing what he meant. 

“But we aren’t supposed to find out our teammate until tomorrow at the ceremony.”

Soren winked. “Lucky for you, you’ve got a partner who can pull a few strings. I-” He stopped abruptly his eyebrows furrowing together. “Did you know you’re glowing?”

I looked down at my skin and sure enough a faint light was illuminating off of it. I sighed, feeling slightly embarrassed. “That happens when I get mad. If you couldn’t tell, I’m a Sol witch.” 

Soren’s confusion turned to delight. “A sunshine witch!” He laughed. “No wonder you got to me so fast. I can already tell that we’re gonna have a lot of fun.”

At the time I couldn’t have disagreed more, but I warmed to him eventually, and he was right. We really did have fun together. Soren had a major impact on my life and my abilities as a witch. He’s my best friend, and the reason I’ll never forget that fall morning underneath the bergamot trees.