Zodiac Academy 3: The Reckoning

“FAIRRRRY FAIIIIIR!” SOMEONE CROWED outside my room and I laughed. It seemed everyone in the Academy was going to the Fairy Fair today and I was brimming with excitement after acing my final trial.  Curfew had been pushed back until eleven pm tonight to allow students to enjoy the fair, but from the gossip in the halls it sounded like that was because most of the faculty wanted to attend it too.

My hair was half pulled up with a silver clip and I wore a knit black dress with pantyhose, long boots and a leather jacket. I didn’t bring anything but my Atlas, keys and some cash for the rides.

Although this was technically a mission to talk to Diego about his dodgy uncle, that didn’t mean we weren’t going to have a great night. And who knew? Maybe it would cheer him up. He’d been in a mood all week knowing Sofia was going to the fair with Tyler, but I was determined to take his mind off of it. And maybe give him a straight talk about asking her out instead of dancing around the matter.

Tory was going with Caleb and though I was a little worried about her spending so much time with one of the Heirs, it did sound like he was treating her okay when they were alone. I couldn’t believe he’d actually stood up for her against Darius the other day. It wasn’t exactly an apology, but he was making some effort at least. And besides, Tory knew how to handle men. I’d once seen her kick a six and a half foot biker to the curb because she was (and I quote) ‘done with screwing a guy who had smaller balls than her’. That was Tor. And I damn well loved her for it.

The one thing casting shade on my evening was the fact things were still broken between Orion and I. I’d been avoiding him to focus on my trials but that had gone a little too smoothly. He hadn’t messaged me, hadn’t come up to me in the halls, hadn’t even shot a glance in my direction whenever I’d come close to bumping into him. I was owed an apology, but if I wasn’t going to get one then had to try and move on from him – no matter how much that process would suck. I sure as hell wasn’t going to let myself dwell on that tonight, though. I was owed a bit of fun. 

A knock came at the door and I pulled it open with a bright smile. Diego had a smart white shirt on with a grey jacket and jeans. He’d cut his hair so it was shaved at the sides and swept back stylishly over the top. My mouth parted as he gave me a crooked smile. He looked good. Better than good. Diego looked hot. What the crap?

“What do you think, chica?” He brushed his hand over his new hair and my smile widened.

“Sofia’s gonna eat her heart out,” I teased and he released a laugh.

“Maybe. Come on then, my carriage awaits.” He held out his arm and I laughed as I took it, pulling my door closed and locking it as we left. 

I felt his eyes lingering on me and gave him a curious frown. “What?”

“You look like la luz de las estrellas.”

“What does that mean?” I asked, heat rising up the back of my neck.

“Like the light of the stars,” he said and I glanced away, waving a hand to brush off the comment. It was awkwardly nice coming from a friend, though I did sometimes sense Diego liked me more than that. But I hoped I was wrong.

We headed out of Aer Tower where students were moving across campus towards the parking lot and shuttle buses. The night’s sky was clear and the air crisp, my breath rising before me from the winter chill.

We walked to Earth Territory and I felt eyes on the back of my head as we headed along the path. I glanced over my shoulder and my heart clenched as I saw Orion taking the path toward Asteroid Place. He stared at me for a long second, his eyes flaring as he took in Diego’s arm linked with mine. I pressed my lips together, turning away. I didn’t know why he looked so damn angry, he was the one who’d asked me to dig up the dirt on Diego’s uncle. 

We fetched Diego’s rusted red car and it chugged along the road that led out of campus, my excitement growing as we left Zodiac behind.

“One day I’m gonna make something of myself, you know? I won’t drive a tin can or ever have to answer to anyone again,” Diego said, a fire in his eyes.

“Oh really?” I asked with a grin, glancing over at him as his hands tightened on the wheel. His arms flexed and I noticed actual muscle there. Had he been working out?

“Yeah. My mamá called me last night,” he revealed and I wondered if this was my in to ask about his uncle. “She said she was proud of me, Darcy. She’s never said that, you know? If I pass The Reckoning tomorrow, she said she’ll come and visit me.”

“That’s great, Diego. So I guess your uncle told her how well you did in the Air Trial?”

He glanced at me. “Come on, we both know I hitched a ride in that trial. And I’m so grateful for it. But my grades are good and I’m getting better at casting air so I guess he told her that.” He shrugged one shoulder and I had the feeling he wasn’t telling the whole truth.

“He seemed a little…uptight,” I said carefully, not wanting to overstep the mark.

Diego’s features twitched into a dark expression for a moment, one that spoke of fear. But it was gone as quickly as it came. “He’s um…”

I waited for him to find the words, sure if I pressed him too hard he’d shut down this conversation.

“Well he’s a bastardo is what he is,” he snarled and the ferocity of his tone made my heart beat a little harder.

“Oh?” I breathed.

“He puts pressure on my family, makes them do things…”

“What things?” I gasped and his shoulders tensed as he glanced over at me.

Some horrible memory flashed in his eyes and he swallowed hard. “I shouldn’t really talk about it.”

“I’m your friend,” I said gently. “You can tell me anything.” A knot in my stomach reminded me that I was supposed to pass this information on to Orion. But would I really betray my friend like that? I didn’t know if I could. And it wasn’t like Orion deserved my help right now. But then if Alejandro was up to something dangerous, it could be disastrous if I didn’t pass on what I learned…

“Alejandro is el diablo,” Diego hissed. “He uses my mother, his own sister, and my father for his work. When I was younger, they’d go off for days together and leave me at home with mi abuela.”

“What’s his work?” I asked.

Diego rubbed his chin, firmly looking out the window. “I don’t know,” he muttered and I was certain he was lying. The setting of his jaw said this conversation was done and I hoped I’d be able to bring it up again later.

I sat back in my seat and Diego soon put the radio on, our conversation shifting to the fair. It wasn’t long before we pulled up on the outskirts of Tucana in a sprawling field set up for parking. Beyond it, the fair was lit up in neon lights and a smile dragged up my lips as excitement flitted through me.

I hopped out of the car, bobbing on my heels as I waited for Diego and we joined the crowd which was heading toward the entrance. A large Ferris wheel and rollercoasters sparkled with lights beyond rows of stands and anticipation built in my chest. I’d never been to an amusement park in my life and I’d always loved the idea of the rides. Tonight, I’d be going on all of them.

I cast an eye around for Tory, wondering if she was here already. There were plenty of students and teachers amongst the crowd and I even spotted Washer up ahead, creaking along in his leather pants with a turtleneck red sweater on. His arm was around a woman with dark hair and my heart nearly stopped when I realised it was Principal Nova. She laughed at something he said, swatting his chest playfully and he grinned at her.

“You’ve got to be kidding me?” I muttered to Diego, pointing them out. “They’re together?”

“No wonder he gets away with murder at Zodiac,” he replied.

We headed to the lit up archway with the words Tucana’s Fairy Fair in curling letters over the top of it. Diego took the lead, paying the entrance fee for us both before I could utter a word of refusal, then caught my hand and tugged me through onto the grass between the first row of stands.

“Thank you,” I said. “Drinks are on me.”

“I like treating you,” he said and the intensity in his gaze made me look anywhere else.

We headed past the stands which were selling an array of strange food and crazy-looking drinks which sparked and bubbled. There were sweets of every kind, from huge cotton candy which changed colour every few seconds, to popcorn which steamed and was coated in melted chocolate, to huge tubs of every flavour ice cream including Faeberry Ripple and Rum and Faeson.

We passed a drinks stand which was selling steaming mugs of hot honey cider and I bought two for us, passing one to Diego. It tasted like a dream, so spicy and sweet with the kick of alcohol burning all the way down into my gut and warming me through.

The next row of stands we came to was a long line of games and I hurried over to one where the prize was a four foot Pegasus stuffed toy. Its horn glittered and every part of its coat shone like stars.

“Ooo,” I cooed.

“I’ll win you it,” Diego said, puffing out his chest as he planted his cup down on the counter. A long-barrelled red gun sat at the centre of it, chained down to stop people stealing it. There was a single large target at the back of the stand conjured by magic, suspended in the air and slowly rotating.

The shady-looking guy behind the counter sidled closer. “Are you going to have a go, missy?” he asked.

“Sure,” I said brightly.

“I’ll do it,” Diego insisted, passing over the money before I could.

I sighed, folding my arms and settling in for the show as Diego picked up the gun. “I just have to hit that target?” he asked the man.

“You have to hit it three times. You get thirty seconds and unlimited shots,” the guy confirmed with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Ready?”

Diego nodded and the guy grinned, stepping aside. Diego lifted the gun and shot at the huge target. An explosion of red light burst from it with a powerful kickback that made him stumble away from the counter. The target shot sideways and the blast exploded into a shower of sparks as it missed. Diego cursed, raising the gun and firing again. This time the target shrank to the size of a pea and Diego missed once more.

“That’s impossible,” I said with a laugh, but Diego looked deadly serious as he lined up the gun. He took shot after shot, the target darting left, right, up, down, becoming huge, then tiny, elongated, then round like a ball, pinging all over the place.

Diego didn’t get a single shot and slammed the gun down in annoyance.

“Move over,” the deep voice made my heart churn up and turn to mulch.

Orion pushed Diego aside, dressed in a black shirt and jeans with a leather jacket that looked way too good on him. Behind him, was Francesca.

She looked like the Bonnie to his Clyde, wearing a fitted red dress which hugged her curves and a long black jacket which screamed class. She tilted her head, resting her hand on Orion’s arm. “For me?” she asked and I wanted to scream.

Orion paid me zero attention, curling an arm around her waist and tugging her against his hip. “Do you want the blue Pegasus or the silver?”

Diego caught my sleeve to draw me away but something kept me there, my jaw set as I watched the two of them. So close to each other, her fingers caressing him like they’d done it a thousand times.

I thought you were single, jerkface?

“Blue,” Francesca decided.

“My favourite colour.” He kissed her nose. Kissed her goddamn nose while saying how much he loved the colour blue. Why did that hurt so much?

Orion pressed the end of the gun to his shoulder, aiming down the sight. The weaselly man behind the counter restarted the game and the target shot sideways. 

Bang. It exploded into a shower of multi-coloured sparks as Orion hit it dead on.

The target reappeared in a tiny form, whizzing about like a bee. Orion shifted the gun so fast I barely saw the movement. Another bang and a display of sparks followed as he hit it again. The third time, I blinked and he’d done it. Won the damn game.

The guy unhooked one of the huge blue Pegasus toys from where it hung on a rack, handing it over to Orion who passed it straight to Francesca. My heart crushed to dust as he slung his arm over her shoulders and walked away, the two of them looking like some movie star couple as they headed toward the drinks stand.

I turned to Diego, slapping a painfully bright smile on my face. “Let’s go on all the rides until we puke.”

“Er…okay,” he said and I snatched his hand, a small and bitter part of me knowing I was doing it to get back at Orion. I despised playing games, but I wasn’t going to have him dangle Francesca in front of me and not bite back. It was humiliating.

I towed Diego onto the first rollercoaster we found – which happened to be the biggest – and guided him into the front row. Diego turned sheet white as the bar locked over our waists, his hand gripping mine for dear life.

We shot off so fast, a scream tumbled from my throat and adrenaline surged through me like a forest fire.

Before I knew it, the ride was over and I was laughing my head off, feeling a thousand times better already.

Screw Orion. He’s made himself clear. He’s done. And I’m not going to let it ruin my night – even if I do go home later and cry into a pillow until I choke. That’s later’s problem. Now, I’m gonna have a damn good time.

We queued for another rollercoaster even though Diego still looked a little pale from the last one. I spotted Tyler and Sofia getting off the ride and waved to catch their attention. They didn’t notice us, but I’d drawn Diego’s eyes to them, immediately hating myself for it as Tyler grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into a fierce kiss.

I turned to Diego, feeling shitty that I’d helped set those two up. Especially now I was getting a taste of my own medicine. His eyes were dark, but his response was curling an arm around my waist and drawing me closer. And I let him. Partly because it was freezing and I couldn’t refuse a hug and partly because I was hurting hard. Besides, we were using each other. He wanted Sofia and I wanted Orion. Might as well slap on a smile and pretend neither of us gave a shit.

I looked up at Diego and a flame in his eyes roared, like he did want this. And I was so unprepared that when he dipped his head and pressed his lips to mine I just froze. Totally, utterly froze.

I spluttered, stepping back, unsure what to say. Did he like me? Or was this to get back at Sofia? Even if it was, he should have asked.

We were ushered forward to get on the rollercoaster but suddenly I didn’t feel like it.

“Let’s get some food,” I said quickly, turning and nearly having an aneurism when I spotted Orion near a stand beyond the queue, his eyes drilling into me. His face was an unreadable mask but his gaze told me everything I needed to know. He’d seen Diego kiss me.

I pushed through the queue, my blood too hot as I forced my way out. I needed to talk to Orion. Just for a second. Just to explain. We might have been on bad terms right now but I hadn’t meant for that to happen.

“Darcy!” Diego called after me.

There were so many bodies in my way, I just needed everyone to goddamn move. Air burst from my palms, forcing a path into existence and people stumbled aside in annoyance. The path cut directly to Orion and pain branded a permanent mark on my heart. He held Francesca against the side of the stand, one hand tangled in her hair, the other locked around her waist as he kissed her. She clung to his jacket, her fingers scraping across his beard as her tongue pushed into his mouth.

Diego caught my arm and led me away, not even noticing Orion there. Because to him it meant nothing. It wasn’t the sky falling down, but to me it felt like every star in the heavens were descending and crashing into the earth around me.