11. The Hint of Something More

"Come on Jacob! Hurry the f up!" Leah shouted, bouncing on the balls on her feet.

Jacob was conducting a stream of water through a tube made out of paper. If the water touched the paper, they lost and would have to begin again.

The classroom was in disarray. Everyone was split up into teams of four competing against each other in a Rube Goldberg-esque contest. The setup was complex: a Bunsen burner sat underneath a beaker of water. Person number one had to light the burner with enough intensity to boil the water in the beaker. Person number two condensed the steam into a stream of water and through the tube of paper. At the end of the tube sat a rubber ball, the water would push the ball out of the tube, and person number three would use bursts of air to keep the ball afloat until it reach a pot of dirt. Person number four would tunnel through the dirt until the ball reach the buzzer at which point the entire area would instantaneously be reset.

Every person in the group had to conduct each element at least once. The group that finished the fastest won the grand prize of no homework for a week. The exercise was supposed to teach the students the value of teamwork and fine manipulation of their magical abilities, but Bella was sure that the professor did this for pure entertainment value.

Jacob's stream of water dipped for a second, almost touching the paper, but quickly he course corrected.

"Holy shit, my grandma can do this faster than you! And she's practically blind! BLIND, JACOB!" Leah 'coached'.

"Leah, how about you shut the hell up?! I got this!" Jacob declared just as the water touched the ball and Seth took over.

Bella laughed. They were on their last round and Bella finished up with her last element. She had advanced quickly in her first week. But out of all classes, this one was her favorite because she actually was able to use her powers albeit only small games like this, but it was better than nothing. She was beginning to find out she was a quick learner when it came to magic. It never stopped feeling good when the professor or a classmate commented on her skill. Although she would never admit it to his face, she had to credit Edward for all the help.

The rest of the class was just as fiercely competing as Leah was pushing their team. She had never seen people be as concentrated or involved as they were today. Never underestimate the power of no homework.

But despite their best effort, a winning buzzer sounded from a neighbor's team instead of their own. Now on top of the lineage project and Latin homework, they were each assigned elemental work as well, and Leah was not shy to detail the levels of her disappointment.

"Our ancestors are turning in their graves knowing we lost to a member of the McKenzie family!" Leah continued berating the group all the way through campus until they reached their car.

"Oh give it a rest, Leah. The only reason you're upset is because you wanted to watch the finale of your trashy reality TV show tonight instead of doing homework," Quil finally countered.

Leah's eyes minimized to a point. "How dare you embarrass me! I told you about that show in confidence!" As Leah began the physical abuse to accompany the verbal, Jacob turned to Bella.

"Are we still on to work on the project this weekend?"

"Yeah, come by any time on Saturday afternoon. Should be quiet enough that we can finish up the work."

"Great. Do you need a ride home?"

"That's okay, I have a ride."

Jacob's face dimmed a little when he connected who her ride was.

Jacob and Bella met up the previous weekend to begin planning their project. They spent most of the time coming up with a list of supplies, information they would need to gather from relatives, and miscellaneous to put together the full project this weekend. It was inevitable that through their small talk, especially when their project centered on lineage and family, that they encountered the elephant in the room. Anytime the conversation began to skirt around Edward and his family, Jacob would become very sullen and uncomfortable. Bella didn't feel like she knew Jacob well enough to broach the subject; however she did not look forward to having to play middleman in their difficult scenario.

"Okay then. I'll see you this weekend," he replied in a punctuated tone before ushering the group into their cars.

Bella waved to the group as they departed and let out a sigh once they were out of sight. This whole Edward/Jacob issue was going to get a lot stickier, she could feel it. However, she put the issue to the back of her mind because she had something way more fun to play with.

Bella had now progressed to traveling with her grimoire on her person at all times. Since she had some time to kill before Edward was done with classes, she found a corner tucked away from all pedestrian traffic. When she was satisfied that no one would accidently stumble across her, Bella took a seat on the bench and brought out the book from her bag. She was about a quarter of the way through the book. She was able to understand a large majority now thanks to both the school's and Edward's Latin lessons.

Not only was she learning new magic from the book, but she was learning about a side of her family that she never knew about. The scribbles in the margins of the book gave her a glimpse into personalities of people she would never meet. She found sections where family members interacted with each other; she could decipher individuals' dominance, reservations, outspokenness, intelligence, and meekness all by penmanship, boldness of letters, and content of their additions. Bella found herself smiling more than once when she could tell two members were arguing with each other by the amount of times they continued to cross out and write over one another's' suggestions.

Today, she was going to focus on a simple locator spell. The top of the page was titled invenire. To find. The instructions were short and the spell very simple.

invenire et absentis, opus fragmen

To find what is missing, you need a piece

But the truly helpful and entertaining information was found in the comments. One person wrote 'the stronger the affiliation to the person, the easier it will be to locate, don't forget a map'. Another added, 'if object means more emotionally to the person, spell will be faster'. Yet another, 'Body parts work the best'. 'Probably true, but morbid and makes me wonder how you know…' someone else commented.

Bella laughed, her family was colorful, no doubt. She came prepared and produced a map on her phone and a pair of Edward's sunglasses. Holding the phone in one hand and glasses in the other, Bella whispered, "reperio".

The phone's screen blinked, each time zooming in further and further on the map until it pinpointed to a small room in one of the buildings on campus.

"Cool", Bella said aloud. Bella practiced a few more times locating her dad, Jessica, and Angela before deciding she had the locator spell down.

It was truly amazing how differently Bella felt. Magic made her feel like she was doing something tangible. She could see her growth physically, mentally, magically with each new spell, after every class, after each practice. With magic, she felt a sense of accomplishment that nothing else in her life could compare.

She closed the grimoire and hugged it to her chest. The magic in her body and the book thrummed happily against one another. It was still just the beginning, everything new to her, but she thought in amazement how she could have ever been content with an ordinary life.

…..

Jacob arrived early Saturday afternoon with laptop bag in hand.

"I'm ready to delve deep into the dark skeletons of your past!"

"Prepare to be disappointed because I can promise you my family history is nowhere near as exciting as you're probably imaging."

Bella directed Jacob to the kitchen table. Jessica and Anglea were out for the afternoon. Angela was studying with Eric, while for any other couple that usually meant making out, Bella was sure Angela and Eric were truly studying. Jessica had already finished her homework and was spending the day shopping.

Bella already had her laptop setup and a template pulled up on her computer. Edward was supposed to come over later and she wanted to avoid having Edward and Jacob run into each other at all costs and, therefore, wasted no time in getting started.

"So what type of element runs in your family?" Bella asked.

"Earth, not to be stereotypical, but most Native American families are Earth. We are a very grounded sort of people," Jacob said jokingly.

As he setup, Jacob went into detail about his heritage. As far back as his family could recall they had lived on the reservation. He had rich history starting with chieftains of tribes, hunters, gathers, slowly transforming over the years to valued members of the community, entrepreneurs, and staples of local business. Jacob had more friends and family on the reservation than he could name. It was obvious he took pride in his culture and his people. Bella was furiously taking notes so she could use the information to shape into a respectable heritage report for the Black family. At one point it seemed like he might steer towards the Cullen debacle, but luckily he avoided it.

"Alright, Swan, you're up. Tell me about your family."

Bella hesitated for a moment. Bella's heritage paled in comparison to Jacob's enormous family.

"Well there's my dad. He was an only child. His parents died before I was born. I don't think either of them came from any distinguished individuals. Although I do think my great-great grandfather might have invented a tool to help weed faster."

"Sounds like a typical non-magic family around here. What about your mom's side? You're Earth too?"

"I am, but I actually don't know anything about the history about my mom's family..." Bella felt embarrassed to say that out loud.

"Hey, look who didn't do their homework! We were supposed to ask our parents this week according to our schedule. Why don't you just call her up now? I don't mind waiting."

"Actually, my mom died when I was little, so not exactly possible."

"Oh shit. I'm so sorry. Man, I'm such an asshole," Jacob apologized.

"Don't be, you didn't know."

"Maybe you have a relative you could call instead," Jacob meekly suggested trying to smooth over his previous comment.

"I don't have any living relatives, as far as I know. My parents moved to the city because they wanted to get away and start somewhere fresh, but my dad never really told me what they needed to start fresh from. I really don't know anything about my family…" Bella trailed off, with a small ache in her chest forming and a curl of guilt in the pit of her stomach. Bella had a strong urge to grab her grimoire, the only concrete piece of history she could trace through her family. More times than she cared to count, Bella had come back to the question of why? Why wasn't there any trace of her history? Why had her mother not left her any clues to these problems when she was able to write the letter? Even though she had found a portion of herself that she never knew was missing, why was she left on this island of magic alone to float aimlessly with no clear direction?

Jacob cleared his throat pulling Bella out of her introspection. She didn't mean to get so lost in her thoughts, but he had an understanding look on his face.

"No worries. So weeds, huh? I can work with that," Jacob recovered.

…..

Jacob pushed the laptop to the other side of the table with an exasperated sigh. "I've been staring at this screen all day. I need to do something."

Bella gave him a pointed look before she continued to type away on her laptop. She was always one of those people that once you started working, she went straight until the project was done. Jacob was the complete opposite, and was beginning his fourth break of the day.

An apple near the edge of the table began to very slowly tilt and roll on its own. Bella looked up from the keyboard and the apple went still. The second she looked down, it began to roll again this time creeping towards her. She glanced again, it stopped. But before she could begin typing again, the apple raced across the table harmlessly rolling back and forth over her hands so she couldn't type.

"Yo, Jacob! Come on!"

"You've been working nonstop, let's take a break, go outside, get some air," Jacob pleaded.

"I see how you could want a break, those other three times just weren't enough," Bella replied exasperated. She snapped her fingers and murmured 'volant' and the apple went flying towards Jacob's head. He caught it with his right hand.

Well it wasn't as if she gave him much of her family history to make for a dynamic project, so felt like she owed him a little leeway. She sighed. "15 minutes tops and then back to work. And no complaining."

Jacob thrust both hands into the air in victory like an Olympic gymnast.

"Don't make me chuck something else at you," was her retort as she grabbed a jacket from the back of a chair.

As they made their way outside, Jacob started flexing his hand. "For a beginner, your magic can really pack a wallop, I think you bruised my hand."

"I smell another excuse to not work."

"No, seriously. You're working with some intense magic. It's been a long time since I've seen someone with raw ability like that."

"Yeah?" Bella asked with a huge grin she couldn't keep off her face.

"Well don't get a big head about it."

The two naturally drifted towards the path at the edge of the complex. The entire area was littered with colorful leaves, fall hitting in full effect on the trees.

"Do you ever think about doing more with your magic?" he asked in a seemingly innocent tone.

"I thought that's the purpose of being in the League," Bella responded in only a slightly mocking manner.

He rolled his eyes. "More than what the League can teach."

"I've been in school for all about two seconds. Honestly, I've never given thought to magic outside the school. Sometimes I wake up in the morning and I'm still shocked that magic even exists."

"Well there's more, a whole lot more. The League is great for the basics, sure, but it doesn't show you the vastness of what there is to learn. I can tell we are similar."

"Are you trying to compliment me or insult me?" Bella laughed.

"Neither, I'm just saying I can see the same drive in you that I have. A drive that none of my other friends can grasp or possess. It won't be long till your caught up with your magical education and classes will begin to bore you because there's no challenge anymore."

"I'm not sure I understand…"

Jacob stopped and pivoted to fully face Bella.

"Imagine magic with no limits. It isn't as black and white as they paint it. There is an entire realm of magic; magic that people like the professors, the Dean, aren't even capable of understanding, and because they can't understand, they're afraid. But you don't have to be afraid! Here, look…" Jacob started scanning the path wildly, until he focused his sight near a bush to their side.

Jacob gestured for Bella to follow, but she didn't get very close because whatever Jacob was standing near gave a very off scent. She angled around to get a better view. It was the decaying body of a dead squirrel.

"Jacob…" Bella hesitated.

"Just watch!" Jacob exclaimed. He started chanting Latin under his breath. It wasn't loud enough for Bella to hear, but a chill started to run down her spine as the ominous words dropped the temperature of the air around them.

It was obvious the squirrel had been dead for a while. The center of its body was caved in, and the closer you got, the stronger the smell of rot would become. Its glassy eyes were perpetually stuck open staring into the abyss. Jacob's voice was becoming louder, his chanting more overexcited. Bella wrapped her hands around her increasingly cold arms as she was stuck staring into the squirrel's eyes, when suddenly the eyes blinked. Bella took a startled step back as magic began to fill the body of the squirrel. It took a breath and its stomach started to fill up, color filled its fur, and its eyes were imbued with life. It blinked a few more times before the squirrel popped up on its feet.

"Holy crap…," Bella whispered. Jacob wiped his hands on his pants and smiled at his work. The squirrel took a few testing steps, and when it found that it was steady on its feet, it joyously began to weave through the leaves and bushes. Bella and Jacob watched as it circled the trunk of a tree until it contently plopped itself on a high branch.

"How is that possible? The first thing any introductory book to magic covers is that you can't do magic like that…bring the dead back to life," Bella commented in awe with a slight twinge of fear, her eyes still tracking the squirrel as it found a nut to chew on.

"That's what I'm trying to tell you. These books don't tell the whole truth. Anything is possible! You just need to have the motivation to learn it. Once you open your mind to the magic outside the League's neat little walls, the universe is your playground!" Jacob practically shouted with elation, high off of his magic. He then sought out Bella, his tone slightly frenzied. "I can show you. I can teach you how to do that and more. More exciting magic than you can even conjure up in your wildest dreams!"

"I don't know, Jacob," but even as she said it, Bella could feel her magic perk up at the idea. She knew what he said was right. Bella was picking up concepts, spells, and lessons in lightning speed. She was a sponge, and she was nowhere near reaching her limit. And that type of influence, the potency was like the beginnings of a siren song, and the delicious possibilities made her magic purr…

"That's okay, you don't have to commit anything now. Just know it's an option. When you reach the wall the League says is your limit, I can show you how to push past that wall and help you hone strength and power you never knew existed," he finished conspiratorially.

"Well I'll settle with just finishing our projects for now, let's head back," Bella replied. However, she tucked away the offer into the back of her mind, it was intriguing, and she couldn't deny how fascinating the concept was, but for now, she other more pressing issues to focus on.

Jacob nodded in agreement and they both headed towards the apartment.

The squirrel continued to gnaw on the nut watching the two humans leave the path and walk far out of its sight. The nut was giving it particular trouble, and it was starving, so he tried to nibble a little harder, but the force of its bite suddenly made its tooth sink into its gums. The squirrel brought its hand up to its mouth to inspect what had happen, but as it did the flesh on its hand began to fall off its bones. The squirrel couldn't comprehend much, but it knew that whatever was happening was extremely wrong. Then an excruciating pain hit every nerve in its little body. To an outside perspective, the squirrel looked like it was both seizing and disintegrating simultaneously. After the most painful 30 seconds of its entire short two lives, the squirrel gave one concluding twitch before it succumbed to a final and unbearable death—all that remained was the rotting skeleton, more twisted and putrefied than it was before.

…..

A/N: About a year ago, I was presented with a problem: school, work, and FF – pick two. I am happy to say that school is no longer a factor, and I look forward to giving you all regular updates again!