The coffee steamed gently as Alexis held the cup between her hands and inhaled the delicious aroma that floated up from it. She’d already had one cup and she likely would have a third before she went to the second class of the morning.

She lifted a hand to her mouth to cover a yawn and blinked bleary eyes at the other students as they slowly filtered into the classroom. Duron, two desks away and one row back, had his head down on his desk, cradled by his arms as he snored softly, catching a moment’s rest.

Alexis felt almost bad about that. It was her fault he was so tired as she had kept her friends up all night talking as she fired question after question at them, her mind racing.

“I think I need more coffee,” Beryl said, glancing up at the clock on the wall. She chewed her lower lip until she came to a decision and looked at her roommate. “Watch my bags, I’m just going to go grab another drink.”

“Don’t be late,” Alexis said, sipping at her own coffee. “But get me one as well, please.”

Beryl laughed as she rose from her seat and hurried from the classroom. The first lesson of the day was, unfortunately, one of the dullest. It was entirely likely that without more coffee, Alexis would find herself falling asleep as she listened to the teacher drone on about the rituals and rites of the earliest witches.

What should have been a fascinating subject was made terminally dull entirely due to the teacher, a bored old witch who was spending her days in the academy in some vain attempt to avoid retirement, teaching a subject she was clearly uninterested in.

Alexis took another sip of her coffee and rubbed at her eyes with the back of her hand. It had been a long night and the lack of sleep meant she would be in for a long day.

Across the room, Poppy watched Alexis, her eyes gleaming with malice. She stood in an abrupt motion that had her coterie of followers reeling in confusion, and she swiftly crossed the room to the desk beside the one Alexis sat at.

Two students were already seated there and with an imperious gesture, Poppy had the two gathering their belongings and scurrying away, allowing her to sit down beside a bemused Alexis who had watched the interaction take place.

“Poppy,” the young witch said, holding out a hand that bore a ring upon each finger.

Alexis stared at the hand for just long enough for it to be uncomfortable, then reached out with her own and shook briefly. “Alexis.”

“How are you liking the Academy?” Poppy asked, putting on her best fake smile.

Despite how early the class started, Poppy had still taken the time to apply a full face of makeup. Her hair was washed and brushed, while her clothing was designer, from her jeans to the purse she carried.

Everything about her screamed, money, and that irritated the hell out of Alexis. Such easy wealth often came with a repulsive attitude to those without, and from the way the girl had commended the previous two students to leave, it was clear she was used to being obeyed.

Attitude, wealth and stunning good looks. All the hallmarks of someone who was used to getting exactly what they wanted without anyone ever telling them no. Judging from the way the others reacted to her, she was also someone to be feared.

A bully then.

Alexis smiled, lips pressed into a thin line as she met the gaze of the other girl. “What do you want?” she asked, deciding to cut through the fake friendly bullshit.

“Rude.” Poppy’s smile faded as she lifted one artfully plucked brow. “While honesty may be refreshing, it would be foolish to forget tact, especially when speaking with your betters.”

“Really?” She had experienced the same attitude from too many people while begging for scraps on the streets and she had not been willing to take it then either. “What exactly makes you better than anyone else here?”

Alexis made a show of looking the girl up and down with a sneer forming on her face.

“Mummy and Daddy’s money doesn’t make you better, nor do the clothes you spend it on. If anything, you were merely lucky with being born to wealth and not poverty.” She laughed in the girl’s face, well aware that every other student was watching her. “So come on, what makes you better?”

Poppy’s eyes flashed with her anger but she kept her composure as she met her gaze with equanimity. She had faced far worse than her, and would not be intimidated by another student.

“Nothing? Yeah, an easy life with everything you ever wanted being handed to you doesn’t make you better. You’ve probably never met a challenge that couldn’t be bought off. So don’t come here and think you can bully me like you do everyone else. I won’t stand for it.”

For a moment, Poppy continued to stare and then she smiled as she leaned in close, dropping her voice to a hissing whisper that barely showed her anger.

“Accident of birth or not, I will be part of a coven and you will be nothing more than a hedge witch.” She sneered as she tilted her head, lifting her chin and looking down her nose at Alexis. “There is an order to things here, Hedge, and the covens are far above your kind. It would do you well to remember that.”

“Why would I give a damn about your coven?”

Poppy’s eyes widened at that and she almost laughed aloud. While she had intended to pry a little information loose from the new girl, she hadn’t expected such ignorance to be shown, such lack of knowledge.

Beryl returned, cups in hand and stopped as she caught sight of the two girls sitting beside one another with their faces just inches apart. Her stomach lurched as she hurried over.

“Poppy!” The other witch’s gaze snapped to hers as she called the name. “Leave her alone.”

If anything, Poppy’s sneer deepened as she watched the other girl approach. “Beryl, this is none of your concern.”

“She’s my friend.”

Poppy snorted at that but drew back from the other girl all the same. “You don’t have friends, Beryl, just people who are too scared to tell you the truth.”

Alexis glanced at her friend at that, seeing Beryl’s cheeks redden. Something was going on that she didn’t understand, which was pretty much like everything else that happened at the damned school.

“I was curious,” Poppy said, looking back at Alexis as she stood up. “But it seems that I was wasting my time.”

“Curious about what?” Alexis snapped.

In reply, Poppy merely smiled and turned her back before walking back across to where her companions were seated. Beryl watched her go before sitting beside her friend and passing over the coffee.

The other students continued to stare for several long seconds before they too began to return to their own quiet conversations. Alexis kept her gaze down on the cup in her hand, not quite sure what had just happened but certain that some decision had been reached about her and one that wasn’t good.

She gave a sideways glance at her friend, who was busying herself with her books. Another mystery for her. From everything she had seen of Beryl since they had met, she was a genuine and pleasant young woman, why then would anyone be scared of her?

Alexis lifted the cup and sipped at the coffee before yelping and drawing back, wiping at her mouth.

“What is it?” Beryl asked, looking over.

“It’s hot!” Alexis could feel the sting of the burn on her tongue and lips yet the cup was almost cool to the touch. “What the hell?”

Laughter erupted from the coven kids who were seated with a smirking Poppy at their centre. As Alexis and Beryl looked over, she lifted one hand and waggled her fingers in the air.

“Bitch!” Alexis snarled making to rise until Beryl’s hand on her arm stopped her.

“Don’t.”

“Why the hell not?”

“Because it’s not worth it,” Beryl cautioned, eyes narrowing as she stared at the other group. “Trust me.”

Alexis scowled but settled back in her chair. Clearly, something had changed and she had gone from curiosity to victim as they had determined her to be not worthy of anything else. It was a familiar scenario and one she had endured long enough in high school.

That had only ended for her when she had finally had enough and beaten the crap out of the girls who had been making her life there miserable. As she looked over at Poppy and her group, it seemed clear to her that if she didn’t do something then they would torment her for the sheer fun of doing so.

Her phone vibrated, distracting her long enough to turn away from the coven kids. She pulled her phone out and pressed the decline button, staring at the number for a moment before turning her phone off entirely.

“Who keeps calling?” Beryl asked. “Seems important.”

“Yeah.”

Her friend hesitated then said, “Anything you want to talk about?”

“Not really. “Alexis sighed softly. “It’s something I was supposed to sort out but coming here distracted me.”

“What do you need to do?”

Alexis huffed as she put away her phone. “I need to go back to London but I can’t exactly do that, can I?”

“Why not?”

“You said that if I left they would wipe my memory.”

“Not if you go away for a few hours!” Beryl laughed softly, shaking her head. “If you need to do something then do it. This place isn’t a prison and as long as you are coming back they won’t care.”

“It would take more than a few hours to get a train down there,” Alexis mused, tapping her fingers against the desk as she thought. “If I go early enough I could be back the same day.”

“Or, if it’s important you could always take one of the portals.”

“The what?” She looked at Beryl who slapped her forehead, eyes widening.

“Sorry, I keep forgetting. Look, there are portals that high-level witches use to get about. You were brought through one to come here.”

“Okay, but I’m not a high-level anything.”

“Don’t worry, half the witches who use them aren’t high-level. It’s, like, a secret everyone knows about. As long as you don’t overuse them, no one will really make an issue of it.” Beryl flashed a smile. “I know someone who can help if you want.”