Chapter 11.
A few weeks pass without word from Dave and it's starting to stress me out. Did he get caught? Is he ok? Max and I have a…upstanding agreement of not being in a relationship, no feelings, nothing but the fun stuff. Right now, anything more would make my life even more complicated than it currently is, if that is even possible!
I've started doing some research on all the elements of magic. Since I haven't really specialised in air, how would I know that is my element? I mean, I haven't even tested to see if I can use any of the others.
I've borrowed some books on different specialisations and simple skills so that I can try.
Max doesn't know anymore than what I have already told him before I met Dave.
I cant risk informing him of the details that I have seen in the visons and the way I can, well learning to, control the visons and when I have them. I couldn't even think of mentioning what Dave and I are up to. What if he tells someone? I couldn't imagine what Max would say if he knew we were trying to 'borrow' the ancient book. I know how he is when he goes into one of his ramblings.
"So," he says to me one morning, "Have you been doing any more research on this book and the visions? You were so invested in it before but now you've just stopped?" of course he is concerned.
"No, I kind of just gave up. It's probably just a phase, it could be my powers just flaring up into weird forms." I lie.
"Oh that sucks. Just when you were getting interesting" he smirks and I smack him on the chest and laugh.
"Hey, are you saying I'm not interesting?" I mock shock.
"Oh, trust me, you are so interesting." The rest of the conversation is cut off by our kissing.
And so that's how half of our days were spent. Max repeating the same questions and I come up with ways to try to dodge them.
Sitting in history class, my eyes are directed to the front but my focus is elsewhere. I'm starting to become more than worried about Dave. What's taking him so long? I know it's some big popular book and is in the most secured Moroi place in the world but come on, how hard can it be. I'm tapping my pen furiously against my work and I hear something about a book being mentioned and this time I really do pay attention.
"The book of magic can tell you…" Never mind. Wrong book. Though I wonder how much more information he would have on the Nesahla book and if he knows about families being wiped out in the Strigoi wars. I'll have to ask. Beside me Max is working on his family tree to get it done the end of class so he can hand it in. I handed mine in today too which is a load off my shoulders now one of my assignments are finished. I smile at his face, he has such a cute confrontation face. His eyebrows burrowed and his bottom lip sucked in. he has his head tilted a fair way down as he scribbles on his page.
Just as the class ends, I tell Max ill meet him outside after I speak to the teacher about the family tree assignment.
"Excuse me sir, I just have a few questions about one of the classes a few weeks ago."
He looks up at my approach with a surprised look on his face.
"Of course, which topic exactly?"
"Um, it was one about a book, I don't know what it's called but it was found during the Strigoi wars and hasn't been opened" I say nervously. He nods and I continue. "I was just wondering if you had any more information on it, I'm just really interested and I can't remember much about the lecture." He raises his eyebrows.
"Well sure, I can give you what I have but it isn't much, as I said, there isn't much information on this book." He says doubtfully.
"No that's ok, I'll take what I can get, thank you." We agree that he will gather the information and give it to me next time we have history. I thank him and run to catch up to Max.
Waiting in line at the feeders it seems like Ive been standing here forever. People always seem to take longer when I'm here. A few seats in front of me sits Lissa Dragomir. I start to wonder about her. She is definitely a character though but what flits through my mind is her magic element. No one really knows. She somehow gets out of every class except theory. I wonder if she has different powers…maybe like mine. I just stare at her and see if anything happens. And it doesn't. I don't know why I brother trying stuff like that, it never works. Actually nothing has happened in the last week or two, maybe it really has stopped.
I look back at Lissa when her name is called. I can't help but think about which element she has specialised in but she is the Dragomir Princess and its highly unlikely that she will be open to discussing that information with a non-royal.
Max and I decide to spend the afternoon together watching movies. This time its my choice so it's none of his fangirl movies. We snuggle up together and his fingers move rhythmically against my knuckles, it's really calming. I almost fall asleep, but as I close my eyes I hear a slight whisper in the corner of the room. I open my eyes and look around the room but I can't see anything. I hear it again but slightly louder and I sit up. Max looks startled.
"Hey, you alright?"
"Sh," I hold my hand up, I hear it again and it keeps getting louder. "Can you hear that?" I stand up just as Max replied a gentle "No" and walk around the room.
"Ve, what wrong?"
"It's the whispering, its back, can't you hear it?" I should know by now that no one else besides me can hear it. Well except Dave. As it gets louder and louder, it starts to grate against my ears. I try to clamp my hands over my ears to shut it out.
"Ve, are you ok?" he comes to walk over to me and puts his hands on my shoulders.
"Ve talk to me, what's wrong?"
I sink to the ground and whimper at the pain its suddenly starting to cause me. It's never been this loud before.
"No, it hurts, Max make it stop, please" I struggle to stand up, the pain is too much so I remain on the ground on my knees and hunch over until im almost in the foetal position.
The vibration against my ear drums is becoming so bad that I just want to scream. I don't understand what words are being whispered, I can't hear them clearly, maybe because I'm so focused on the increasing pain. It just wont stop and I wonder how long it take before my ears explode.
It continues to get louder and louder until I start to cry. Make it stop, please please just make it stop! I hear something crack in the background and Max takes a step back away from me, though I hardly notice the movement, I'm just trying to block the whole world out. Still hunched over and crying, slowly the whispers dissipate, the grating on my ears ease to a gentle hum as the whispers finally fade out.
I'm aware that Max is no longer standing next to me, something has caught his attention.
I try to focus to slow my breathing between sobs and catch my bearings. In between taking deep breaths, I manage to sit up. I look over at Max who is now staring at the TV.
Testing my balance, I successfully stand up and walk slowly over to the sink. My throat is dry and sore like I have swallowed razorblades. My head is still pounding slightly and Im sure that I have bruises on my temples where I gripped my head to keep it from exploding.
A glass of water does little to soothe the pain caused within the last few minutes but this isn't my main concern right now.
"Hey Ve, you might want to come look at this." Max beckons me over to witness what has his full attention and this time its not me that has his interest.
We stand side by side in front of the TV. It's broken and I'm not talking a single crack.
The TV is completely shattered. Glass shards poke out of the carpet and some are still hanging on sides on the TV. "I'm guessing you didn't do this." I shake my head and looked blankly at Max.
"So it's all stopped hey?" he asks. I didn't even reply, I just stood there shocked.
I share his concern but neither of us have any idea what just happened. Max walks me back to my room while mentioning that he will take care of the TV.
The next morning Max shows up at my door to accompany me to breakfast.
For some reason, he is in a particularly good mood.
"So you did you take care of…" I began to question.
"Hey, nope, you don't need to worry about that, just worry about what you're going to have for breakfast." God he is so weird sometimes.
I thank the heavens that no one shows up during the day to ask me about what occurred,
so I take that as a good sign. When I reach my history class, as promised, my teacher hands me all the information that he has on the book. Maybe there is something in here that can explain what it has to do with the Nesahlas. For some reason I can't seem to concentrate in any of my classes today and I'm so exhausted. Those damn whispers left me with a headache I just cant shake.
As if they were summoned, they start again in my head, but they remain at a much lower level this time. However, I notice this time its different. There is a few more sentences so I try to concentrate on each of them. The voices are different. It's in English this time.
"I am protected by your might,
O gracious Goddess, day and night
Thrice around the circle's bound,
Evil sink into the ground."
I quickly find a blank page and scribble down the words as the repeat in my head. I'm surprised that the language has changed but it makes it easier to understand.
Just as I finish writing down the first chant, a second comes through.
"With this pentagram, I do lay
Protection here both night and day
and to the one who should not touch
let the fingers burn and twitch.
I now invoke the law of three:
this is my will, so mote it be."
I scribble down those words as well. I still don't know what they mean, though I do know it's a female voice chanting them. A third comes through, and this verse is more prominent then the others.
"With this ripe I bind thine power,
to be mind for second or hour
to make me strong when I am weak
to give me wisdom that I seek
to give me courage as not to flee.
Thine will be done, so mot it be"
After the third, the chanting whispers stop. It doesn't fade out, it just stops abruptly and I'm left staring at the page with the three paragraphs. The first paragraph sounds like something to do with protection, the second might be a sealing chant, or to hide something.
The third sounds like something one might say to give themselves courage, wisdom and strength. I've never heard any of these before nor do I know what they mean. I turn my pages back to the schoolwork and hope Max hasn't seen me furiously writing random words in my book. I sneak a sideways glance at him and luckily he still has his head shoved in his book taking notes.
After class, I rush back to my room and type in the paragraphs from class today. The first one comes up as a protection enchantment. The second is to protect an object from prying eyes, and the third is a spell to give one wisdom, strength and courage. So I was right. I continue my research a little more to see if I can get any more information but the only thing I find is that these are all Pagan Enchantments. Why would I be hearing Pagan Enchantments?