Oh Hex No

Despite Serena's reassurance, Erik still didn't feel great about teleporting into her bedroom without warning. Even after spending all night there. He felt shy and embarassed just thinking about it, though he he didn't have any regrets. If anything, it was further motivation to be successful in life so he could be with her.

He had chores to do for Jorgenson in the morning, but it was hard to get anything done while his mind was on practicing runes without his wand. He jumped in surprise when Jorgenson suddenly appeared in the doorway and cleared his throat.

"I just came to check on how that bottle organization was going," Jorgenson said. "I need my students to hit the ground running once classes get back on the proper schedule."

"Someone was murdered," Erik grumbled. "Have some sympathy."

"Excuse me?" Jorgenson snapped. "Did you just talk back to me?"

Erik was finally hitting his breaking point. He'd been pushed around for so many years and treated like garbage, he started to feel like he really couldn't do anything great. Just a few months with Serena proved that they were just holding him back. He set down an empty potion bottle so hard it cracked.

"I did talk back to you," Erik said. "And that's fine, because you don't have the power to take my wand. The headmistress does. Maybe you can't enroll me in classes, but you can't expell me without a reason. And if you try, I'm sure the city council will be very happy to hear about school misconduct and how you've been treating me."

"You insolent little-"

"I've been reading," Erik continued, cutting him off. "Not just magic, but city law and the corners Mondhaven has been cutting. I dare you to try and shut me down. And when I pass that graduation exam, you'll be choking on everything you ever said to me."

"Like you can ever pass the exams without proper school training," Jorgenson sneered.

"Wait and see," Erik said. "I'm going home."

He made sure to stay standing firm as he walked past Jorgenson and out the door. He had fucked himself with his job, but graduation exams were in four weeks. If he passed, he could find a better job. And if not... well, he'd figure it out later. Anything was better than what he was doing.

He managed the portal spell to Serena's room, only getting a little dizzy at the energy it took from him. He looked around for her, but all he found was Montague stretched out by the window and lazily lounging in the sun.

"Where's Serena?" Erik asked, kneeling down to give Montague a scratch under the chin. "She doesn't have class around this time. Is she running some errands?"

Montague just yawned and swatted Erik's hand away to inform him that now was not the time for pets. He stood up and glanced around the room, finding a note written on her desk.

Erik,

Just picking up some things to work on a size potion later. I'll be back by noon at the latest.

Serena

He frowned as he read the note, then glanced at a small clock on her desk. It was well past noon, and there was no sign of her. In the current climate, that was worrisome. He was about to leave for town, figuring she was at Markus's shop if she was picking up potion items. That's when Arthur scurried in from a little hole in the wall, holding a paper between his teeth.

Erik hadn't been sure about Serena's plans for the rat to get the exile papers, but sure enough, there it was. He took the copy of the notice and read it over. Then read it again, and then a third time. He had his suspicions of what happened to Serena, and it was bad news.

He used another portal to get to town and rushed to Markus's shop, but the door was locked and the sign said it was closed. Erik cursed under his breath and rattled the doorknob. He checked over his shoulder to make sure no one was around before using a lockpicking charm to get inside. Had Serena been there, she would have been proud. He just had to make sure she wasn't dead.

Erik snooped around the shop, but Markus was nowhere to be found. The only other place was the office. He slowly opened the door and glanced inside, seeing the candles and suspicious summoning trinkets scattered around. Then he noticed the rug slightly wrinkled. He lifted the rug to find a hidden door in the floorboards. When he opened the door, he could hear shuffling noises down the ladder in this apparent secret basement.

He snuck down quietly and let out a sigh of relief when he saw Serena alone down there. She was tied to a chair and there were little sparks around her wrists. Erik realized she was using lightning spells to try and burn through the rope. When she saw him, she gasped and tried to get out of the chair, only to flop onto her side.

Erik kept his wand drawn but ran to her so he could help get the restraints off. It was mostly burned through, but he quickly burned the rest of the way and took her ankle restraints off as well. She took a deep breath as soon as he took the gag out of her mouth, then grabbed his face and kissed him fiercly.

"It's Markus," Serena said, still holding his face. "All of it is Markus."

"I know," Erik said. "That's why I'm here. But now it's time for us to go."

"We have to tell the headmistress," Serena said.

"Right," Erik said. "Well, you. I can't step foot in Monhaven again since I told Jorgenson off. I'll tell you later. You're gonna love it."

He took her hand and helped her to her feet. He's not sure what Markus had done to her, but she was clearly a little woozy and he could feel that she was putting a bit of her weight on him.

"You okay?" he asked her.

"I'll be fine," she said. "I just need to lie down for a while."

"Or I can just put you out of your misery now."

They turned to find that Markus had appeared behind them in a cloud of black mist. He delicately held a black wand in his hands, which had a menacing aura that matched its twisted appearance. Erik held tightly onto Serena and backed up.

"We're just trying to get out of your way," Erik said. "Let us go home and we'll get out of your business."

"I'm supposed to believe that?" Markus asked dully.

"I was hoping you would."

"You of all people should understand me," Markus said, glaring at Erik. "Aren't you exhausted? Aren't you sick of how you are treated? This is for the good of us, and others like us. I'm the son of fish merchants. No one wanted me at Mondhaven. They denied me a proper education and sent me away the first chance they got. The same thing they want to do to you."

"We are not the same," Erik snapped.

"Erik could run circles around you," Serena said. "You're just frustrated you didn't have the same ambition and drive as him."

"Don't I?" Markus sneered. "Look at everything I've accomplished. My wand was taken, so I created another. Mondhaven's bullshit education did me little good, but look at all I've done on my own. Life and death are in the palm of my hands. I choose who is worthy to stay and who needs to go."

There was a growl from the shadows and Erik felt his blood turn to ice as a paw with those menacingly sharp claws melted out of the wall. They backed up, but there weren't many places to go in the dark basement.

"And from nothing but shadows, I created life," Markus continued, smiling at the creature. "Something that has never been done in over a thousand years. But I did it. Me. A man from an underprivelaged background, who was deemed unworthy by the elite. People like Princess Bellwood. And that's why you won't leave this room alive. As for you, Erik Marvell... I just don't like you."

The creature lunged at them and Serena flicked her wand at a large bottle on the table. It shattered, and the pieces shot out at the creature. It screeched as the glass shards sliced through it, but it was able to regenerate like it was made of smoke. The glass distracted the creature enough for Erik and Serena to get out of the way of the claws, but when they ran for the ladder, it suddenly snapped back up and the hidden door closed.

Serena cursed under her breath and turned around, raising her wand to try and hold the creature off with sparks and flames while Erik tried to get the door open. As soon as he reached for it, the door completely disappeared.

"Fuck, we're stuck," Erik grumbled.

"We can't be stuck," Serena said, voice cracking as the light from her flames pushed the creature back.

Erik could tell she was starting to get exhausted. He could see her wrist going a little limp as she traced the spells. It went limp enough that the spell was too weak to do anything. The creature hissed and pounced through the flames and towards them.

Erik only had time to yank Serena out of the way. He didn't feel the claws cut through him at first, but then his vision started to blur and he felt weak. He looked down and realized he was holding his stomach, then looked at his hands and saw they were dripping with blood. There were three claw marks that had sliced clean across his chest and stomach, narrowly missing his neck. He barely heard his name before he crumpled to the ground and blacked out.