The sky was still dark when Paige turned the shower on and stepped beneath the water. Water travelled down her back as she washed her hair and tilted her chin towards the flow of water.

It was early, a few hours before school started at the very least. She had woken, much earlier than usual, and she couldn't remain in bed. So she took off, strapped on a pair of shoes, eventually found her way to the paved trail her dad mentioned, which was deserted and only a mile or so away, and she pushed herself much harder than she had for a while. Her lungs still throbbed and her legs felt like noodles, but it felt good to have an aching body.

It kept her mind preoccupied, but now that she had slowed down, she couldn't help but think about all the magic she's used recently. All unintentional. All without meaning to summon her own magic.

The lights exploding at school.

The creepy painting going up in flames.

Even the feeling of magic rearing its ugly head whenever she was near Aaron. Or thinking about him.

Her magic felt off lately. She couldn't explain it, but her connection to her magic felt closer. Stronger. More unstable.

Paige's eyes snapped open as she felt the water pelting down on her shift. It was an odd sensation, a swelling, bubbling sensation raising from the pit of her stomach. As the sensation of magic grew, the more the water surrounding her changed.

The water from the faucet seemed to flow slower, moving in ways that defied gravity. Bubbles of water glided across her skin, water wrapped around her naked body, pressing down on her bare skin until she was coated in a thick coat of armour.

It felt warm and good and she almost wanted to laugh as her body was consumed with magic. It felt so natural to use magic this way, no basic, simple spells. She wanted more. Much more. She knew if she called for it, her magic would answer hungrily and be happy to boil over the walls she's always put around her magic.

The magic came to an abrupt stop when a door slammed somewhere downstairs. Almost with a flick of a switch, the magic ebbed away. No more armour of water. The faucet continued to flow freely and naturally, no longer affected by any magic.

Suddenly no longer feeling the need to wash her worries away, Paige snapped off the flow of water and stepped out of the shower so fast she dribbled water on the white-tiled floor. Wrapping a towel around herself, Paige rushed back into her bedroom and pulled on a pair of jeans.

Once dressed, she fixed her hair into a slightly messy braid and pulled a cute beanie over her ears that matched the blue jacket she wore. Breezing through her morning routine of moisturizer, foundation, eyeshadow and mascara, Paige grabbed her backpack and headed downstairs, ready to leave through the door at a moment's notice when the time came.

Paige met Shane in the foyer, a rolled-up newspaper in his hands as he nudged the front door closed. He raised an eyebrow at Paige's early appearance. "You're up early," he said, stifling a yawn. "And dressed too?" He eyed her suspiciously. "What are you up to?"

Paige faked what she hoped was a wounded expression. "Where's the trust?"

"Outside in the trash. Right alongside the portraits of the two girls."

Paige felt her face twist into a grimace. "You saw that, huh?"

"I don't know what happened or why you set fire to that painting," he said. He looked around the foyer. "But the house doesn't seem damaged. And neither do you. That's all I care about."

Paige hesitated. She knew her dad suspected the worse. That she took a match or something to the painting and watched it burn. He believed she was a troubled teen, and perhaps she was, but she wasn't into purposely burning things. In the end, she decided the truth would be better than whatever thoughts he was currently having.

"Sorry, Dad. I didn't mean to. It's just, my magic . . ."

Shane held up a hand. "No more needs to be said, Paige. I get it. You're strong and you have a lot of magic. Sometimes it doesn't go according to plan."

Paige felt the need to laugh. If only Shane actually knew. Just minutes ago, her magic took on a mind of its own, working without ever being summoned. Why? Why could she do this? She never understood it. Every other witch needs to use some kind of channel, supplies or something, but she never did. Magic just showed up.

"That's why it's important to use your magic correctly," Shane finished. Paige no longer felt like laughing. He was still on the subject of Ms. Schade, and now he believed she wasn't living up to her magical potential.

Stupid, over-involved teacher.

***

Paige spun the combination to her locker and pulled the metal door open. She had a few minutes before History, and as always, Classical Studies had been a total waste of time. She unloaded her Classical Studies textbook into the locker and found the textbooks for her next two classes.

She had just found them and was stuffing them into her backpack when a pair of perfectly manicured fingers slammed into the locker beside her own. The blood-red and razor-sharp tips were jarring, but not nearly as menacing as the snarl that masked the pretty blondes face.

"New girl," Joanne said, her tone as dark as the look in her eyes. "I don't think we've been formally introduced. I'm Joanne."

Paige eyed her suspiciously. She seemed pissed. "I know," she said slowly, trying to figure out what game this werewolf was playing. "We share classes. What do you want?"

Joanne was surprised with her direct nature. "You're not very friendly, are you?"

Paige slammed the locker and shifted the backpack on her shoulders. "Not usually, no."

Joanne's mouth twisted into a smile that seemed more menacing than the snarl that previously occupied her face. "I'm not that surprised, considering you're a Solace Academy dropout. That school doesn't exactly breed civilized people."

Paige couldn't help but flinch at her harsh words. She felt the confidence ooze out of her body so fast it was dizzying. How could this girl know about her academic past? Her records weren't exactly on public display.

Paige had nothing to say to this girl. It was clear that Joanne only wanted a fight. Fighting is what landed Paige in a bucket-load of trouble at her old school. She didn't really feel the need to spend her senior year in detention. Joanne certainly wasn't worth it. Silently, Paige turned her back on the werewolf. She wasn't concerned, Joanne didn't scare her.

Paige hadn't made it far down the hallway until she was jerked to a stop. Joanne's fingers were wrapped around her wrist so tight her nails dug into her skin.

"I'm not done with you yet," she snarled. "We're just having a civilized chat."

Paige eyed the fingers wrapped around her hand. It was beginning to hurt but she wasn't about to let Joanne know that. "If you don't let go, now, I'm gonna become very uncivilized."

Joanne wasn't alarmed, but she did pull back her lips as a growl erupted from her throat. Paige didn't need to sense magic to know that Joanne was close, very close, to letting her magic out.

"Really?" Paige kept her voice normal. "You're gonna shift? Now?" She made a big show of glancing around the hallway. The bell was seconds away from ringing, but students still swarmed the hallway, some deeply invested in what was quickly escalating into a fight. "A lot of people here to watch me kick your ass."

Joanne's magic was reaching its peak. Any second now and Paige would be tangling with a very pissed off, fully shifted wolf. Without transforming, while in her human form, Paige knew Joanne posed no real threat. She was practically human while in her current form, but in her wolf form, she could tear Paige limb from limb.

Joanne seemed enraged, which was odd considering Paige never even spoken to this girl before. This level of anger had to fester from some other source. True, Paige's freak-level probably just skyrocketed with the announcement she used to attend one of the worst magical schools in the world.

"Just stay away."

"From you? Gladly." Paige tried to free herself but Joanne's fingers only tightened. Okay, now the circulation was compromised.

"From what's mine," she snarled, inching closer.

"Yours?" The only time she's ever been face-to-face with Joanne was . . . in History, when she was all-over a very handsome werewolf. Joanne didn't have a very pleasant look then, either. "You mean Lucas?" She almost felt like laughing.

Her eyes narrowed. "You talked to him. Twice."

Paige tilted her head. "Three times, actually. Maybe you should keep better track of your boy-toy."

Joanne yanked Paige forward and hissed. "You're a witch. You have no business talking to him."

"He talked to me, remember? And you're right. I am a witch." This time, Paige didn't fight it. She dropped the barriers around her magic, and for the first time all week, she wanted her powers to reveal themselves. Maybe even cause some damage. Make some chaos.

Whatever Paige felt from Joanne's magic was instantly squandered from the sensation of her own magic. She watched as Joanne's eyes grew wide as a sudden gust of wind submerged them in a whirlwind. The breeze was strong enough to cause a few lockers down the hall to slam shut. Their hair whipped around their bodies angrily, one blonde and the other dark.

Joanne finally released her tight grip. She looked panicked, as if she realised her mistake, but Paige wasn't done with her yet. Paige inched forward until Joanne was cornered against a locker.

Paige leaned forward as she spoke. "I don't care about you or your bloody boyfriend. Stay away from me." Just to prove her point, Paige raised one of her hands. She felt her magic whizzing through her body, waiting to be called on, waiting for a direction, a target. Paige gave it a target.

The binder clutched in Joanne's slender hands caught fire.

Paige couldn't help but feel brazen as she watched as Joanne shriek and throw the burning bundle of papers down the hall. Her fire magic was coming along nicely. It was quickly becoming one of her favourite types of magic. Easier to use too.

The hallway of students seemed to freeze and hold their breaths as they waited and watched for what would happen next. Another magical attack? Or would Joanne come to her senses long enough to summon some of her own werewolf magic and transform into her primitive state?

Paige wouldn't wait around to find out what Joanne would do next. With one more placid glance at Joanne, Paige turned away from the anxious werewolf, but she never had the chance to move very far.

Aaron stood in her way.

Even from where she stood, Paige could smell him. He had this intense scent. Had to be some kind of cologne, something earthy. His dark eyes met hers and it felt like the rest of the world simply vanished.

Aaron tilted his head to the side as his eyes left her face. Roaming over her body, the dark orbs hesitated over her breasts and hips, before making their way back to her face. There was a look in them, something she didn't think she'd ever begin to comprehend, but she could tell there was more within him than his exquisite exterior.

His eyes swirled to Joanne, and with a jerk of his head, he dismissed the werewolf. Joanne may have been obsessed with Lucas, but she wasn't oblivious to Aaron's alluring nature. With one last hate-filled glare at Paige, Joanne disappeared down the hallway.

Paige didn't have any time to feel content with her latest deed of magic before Aaron focused on her again.

"Well, you are trouble, aren't you, Little Witch?" There was a puzzled tone in his voice. Paige didn't know him well enough to know what that meant, but she guessed Aaron was the type of guy that never really faced anything he couldn't control or understand.

"You don't know me," she snapped. Okay, Paige knew she was being overly defensive and harsh to someone she barely knew, but she couldn't help it. Around Aaron, there was just something . . . something she couldn't explain. She didn't like how he made her feel. So vulnerable and exposed.

Aaron chuckled and Paige couldn't help but notice the slight stubble along his jawline. "No, I don't. I'm starting to think that no one really knows you."

Her forehead creased into a frown. "Why'd you say that?"

Aaron stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans and leaned forward. "Just a feeling, is all."

Paige's relaxed her facial muscles as she extended her senses. The residual magic leftover from her confrontation with Joanne was still waiting patiently nearby, eager to be used again. It didn't take all that much to convince her magic to take hold again.

Her senses heightened to a point her body vibrated with sounds and smells. Her mind cleared as she pushed her magic outwards, towards Aaron. Paige had no intention of using her magic on Aaron like she just had with Joanne, but she was curious, more curious than she's ever been.

Aaron's magic hugged his body, and strangely enough, his magic was active, which was odd. He certainly wasn't in his wolf-form, but magic pulsed off him in dark waves. Paige rubbed her temples as the sensation of his magic washed over her. She swayed and had to lean against a locker to regain her composure.

When Paige glanced up at Aaron again, it was almost as if she could see his magic. Darkness surrounded him, clinging to every chiselled surface of his perfect body. The darkness extended, like tentacles, towards her. It wanted to hold her. Smother her.

Paige backed away slowly, her wide and terrified eyes never leaving his. She backpedalled into the lockers, the loud clang as she made contact with metal echoed down the near-deserted hallway. The bell had come and gone, but she still remained in the hallway, the thought of classes far from her mind.

"What . . ." Her throat felt tight as she fought to control her frantically beating heart. "What are you?"

***

When Paige sat down at her usual desk, she drew her notebook out of her backpack and tried to hush the whispers that seemed to follow her around. She exhaled roughly as another pair of eyes landed on her and stared at her with curiosity.

Her latest magical incident with Joanne was a much-discussed topic. Unfortunately, her stint at Solace Academy was the hottest gossip around.

If only she could focus on the latest gossip loop.

Her mind was reeling with thoughts. Paige couldn't stop thinking about Aaron and how his magic felt. There was something wrong. She's never felt magic like that before. It belonged to a werewolf, but it was different. Unnatural.

What are you?

With a groan, Paige flopped her forehead on the desk. She couldn't believe she said that to Aaron. Aaron, hot, popular, well-known. He never hid what he was, she doubted there was a soul in school that didn't at least know about him. Everyone knew he was a werewolf. She had no idea where those words even came from, they just slipped out.

Kendall entered and hesitated in the doorway. Her eyes were locked on the desk she had previously shared with Paige. Paige didn't need to be a mind reader to know the thoughts circling her mind. The uncertainty on Kendall's face said it all.

No doubt Kendall has heard Paige is an ex-Solace Academy student. She was probably evaluating her new friendship with Paige.

Kendall must have made up her mind as she slid silently into the empty desk beside Paige and drew out her workbook. Keeping her eyes on the paper before her, she started to write.

Paige stiffened and looked back at her own notebook. If Kendall was going to become cold towards her, Paige could be just as unfriendly back. It did sting a little, though. Kendall had been one of the few people here she didn't truly dislike.

Ms. Schade spent the next half an hour reviewing water magic from A Guide to the Elements. It wasn't as difficult as controlling fire, but water-based creatures excelled at this element more so than any witch ever could.

Mermaids. Sirens. Water druids.

Towards the end of the lesson, she had the class pair up and choose a water-based creature and note down what they knew about them. Paige was in no mood to be friendly towards someone who hasn't even glanced her way since the lesson started. She was, however, prepared to say as little as possible towards Kendall. Kendall must have felt the same way, judging from her expression, but she wasn't about to protest her buddy.

"Mermaids – obviously, the fish tale." Kendall began the conversation, scribbling down facts faster than her mouth could recite. "Pretty, long hair. Able to send psychic impulses to sea life. They do need oxygen every once in a while, but mostly its water for these guys."

Feeling the need to contribute, Paige racked her brain for any mermaid lore she had stashed away. She almost came up empty. "Er – hypnotic song?"

Kendall looked up from her notebook and had a small smile on her face. "Actually, no. That's more siren style. And they actually have a hypnotic voice, not just a song. Their words can be as mesmerising as any song."

Paige slumped down in her seat and leaned her forehead against her forearm. Face buried in the desk, she paid half-attention as Kendall continued the conversation, not bothering to look up until the bell had released them.

***

The next two days moved by uneventfully. Paige was still the most discussed topic at school. People seemed to move on from the magical event with Joanne, but they were obsessed with her Solace Academy life. People seemed to avoid her like she had a plague, but at least no one bothered her that much.

Paige didn't speak to Lucas again, and it had nothing to do with Joanne, but more because she just didn't have the energy to deal with anyone, and he wasn't exactly going out of his way to approach her.

Paige did, however, see Aaron again. That part was unavoidable. They did share three classes together, but she always managed to slip past him with her head down low. Cowardly, she knew, but she couldn't help it. Every once in a while, she could feel his eyes on her and whenever his dark eyes crossed her path, she could feel her own magic leap inside.

Things took a turn for the worst when, halfway through the week, Shane met her outside the doors once school ended. Paige approached the car cautiously. Shane only ever picked her up if it was raining. Paige didn't mind the walk. Sometimes, she'd even change into her gym clothes and take a jog before heading home.

"Where are we going?" Paige asked as Shane pulled out of the parking lot.

Shane glanced sideways at her. "What makes you think we're going anywhere?"

Paige narrowed her eyes at him. He was being deflective. "You should be at the office. I thought you have back-to-back meetings all week." His week-long vacation had ended and now he was back to work. He had a lot to catch up on.

Shane didn't say anything more and after a few minutes, he pulled into the parking lot of a large building with high windows. Shane reached into his suit pocket and handed her a business card.

"You have your first meeting today."

"With Dr. Noelle?" Paige crumbled the card and threw it on the dashboard. "Are you serious?"

"Paige," Shane said in a voice that offered no arguments. "Room 307. Play nice." He said no more and gave her a pointed look until she opened the door with a heavy sigh. "Text me when you're ready to be picked up."

"Thanks," Paige muttered, slamming the car door. "But I'll walk."

Dr. Noelle, it turned out, wasn't a child shrink, as Paige first thought. Her clients weren't just kids, they were anyone from any magical race. A supernatural shrink. Just great.

Paige at first thought that Noelle would be supernatural. All her clients were, but it was a massive surprise when Paige sensed the woman was actually human. It was odd, at first. Paige couldn't understand why a human would treat supernaturals, but as Paige stared at her for longer, Paige could detect swirls of magic hidden within the doctor.

Humans didn't have magic. Not usually, anyway.

Certain humans, rarely, were gifted with certain abilities or powers. Noelle had to be one of these humans.

"So, let's talk about school."

Paige leaned back into the oversized chair and resisted the urge to kick her feet up on the armrests. "Why?"

Noelle peered at her over her pale-rimmed glasses. "It's a new change for you. A big one. People have trouble with small changes, and you're going through a lot of big changes at the moment."

Noelle didn't look that old, with her flushed skin and pale blonde hair, but judging from the degrees in psychotherapy, child psychology, and supernatural behavioural studies, she must be older than she looked.

"You're almost finished your second week at your new school, haven't you? How's that going?"

Paige almost rolled her eyes. "Great," she said sarcastically. "If you forget the part where the whole school knows I went to Solace Academy."

Dr. Noelle wrote something in her notebook before she continued. "And that's a problem?"

"Duh," Paige exclaimed. "Now the whole damn school knows about me. They look at me. They gossip about me. I was close to making a friend here, now she looks at me like I'm a bomb about to go off."

"That's because they don't know you."

"And they never will." The longer she stared into the doctor's eyes, the better she gradually felt. Her irritation, her anger, her resentment, it all just faded away. It was weird. Pieces fit together and her eyes narrowed.

"Stop that!" She demanded, pushing herself as far back into her chair as she could possibly go without tipping it over. "You're doing this. Don't do it again." Nothing changed, her emotions still felt numb. "Stop screwing with my emotions. You're an empath. I know you are doing this."

Dr. Noelle looked started with being called out but she did as she was asked. All of Paige's emotions slammed into her hard enough to rattle her teeth. "My apologies. You looked like you needed to be calmed down."

"Not like that." Paige watched her wearily. "Don't manipulate my emotions like that again."

***

Paige walked through the front door and sensed magic inside her house. It wasn't as strong as other magic she has sensed before, but even through walls and doors, she could tell there was another witch inside her house.

Paige dropped her bag hesitantly by the front door and crept down the hall. "Dad?"

"Down here, honey."

His voice floated through the open doorway across from the bottom of the staircase. Paige swallowed a nervous lump as she descended the staircase to the den. Her den. The space she claimed as her own for her magic. She never left the door open. Shane had no reason to be down here.

Shane was speaking to a tall woman with dirty-blonde hair. Their whispering ceased the moment Paige stepped away from the stairs. Shane was edgy and kept flexing his fingers.

Paige focused on the uninvited witch. She couldn't help but have mixed feelings for this woman. Mostly negative feelings. "Why are you here?"

Carol Penn offered Paige a friendly smile. It didn't remain long. Paige has been nothing but hostile to this woman in the past. All with good reason. Carol was the social worker assigned to Paige after her powers manifested. Paige was adopted young and she didn't really have a social worker until that moment.

Carol was really involved at first, and then her meetings decreased to monthly when Paige first moved to Solace Academy. After two years, she only saw Carol once every few months. She really shouldn't be that surprised that Carol showed up now.

"I wanted to see how you're settling into your new school," Carol said. She glanced around the den. "Your dad was just showing me your set up."

Paige crossed her arms and tried to keep her face neutral, but it was hard. She never liked this woman. She made it very clear that Paige shouldn't remain with Shane. She'll never forget Carol's words to the Judge when they were deciding what to do with her.

He's human. A human cannot possibly care for and support a young witch to reach her full, magical potential. She's better off with her own kind.

Carol was the reason Shane almost lost custody. Why Paige almost ended up at a group home somewhere for supernaturals.

"You have quite a stock," Carol continued, turning back to Paige. It was one of the main concerns. That Shane would neglect Paige's magical history. Not that he ever did that. If anything, Paige would be the one happy to forget it, but Shane was never willing to do so. He was always afraid he would do something wrong and loose custody over Paige entirely. "Not cheap either."

"Yeah, well, my dad's got lots of money." Paige's eyes tightened. "What do you want, Carol? I'm almost eighteen. You can stop with your visits now."

Carol sighed with exasperation and rubbed circles into the side of her temple. "You're not quite eighteen, Paige, so we still have a few more months. As for today's visit, I'm here because you have moved home. To a new school, as well."

Paige forced a fake grin on her face. The type of smile Shane always said to use when speaking to someone you disliked who was in a position of authority. "I'm doing fine. Thank you for your concern." She couldn't keep the sarcasm out of her voice. "Judging from the cheap boots you're wearing, I guarantee I have more of an expensive stock of magic supplies than you do, so you can get the hell out of my house."

***

An hour later, Paige sat on her bed, with her phone resting in her cupped hands. She hadn't been sent to her bedroom. Shane was seething, she knew that, but there was no way her dad had sent her to her bedroom, for what, a time-out.

So, why did it feel like that?

Carol didn't remain long after her outburst, but she did spend the better part of half an hour inspecting all the items in Paige's magic supplies. She left satisfied that Paige's magical history wasn't being neglected. After all, if you don't use your magic enough, it could become wild and unpredictable. Hard to control.

Ha. Like she wasn't already there.

Paige knew she crossed a line. Carol could pull strings, and Paige could find herself in a group home for her senior year.

Is that what you want? Her dad had asked once Carol had left.

Of course it wasn't. She just got so angry. She never knew when to shut up.

With a loud sigh that was teeming with frustration, Paige flopped down onto the bed and rolled onto her stomach. With her mind elsewhere, she dialled Heather. Her sister didn't pick up straight away, and by the time the phone rang three times, Paige was fretful she wouldn't answer.

"Come on, Heather. Pick up."

After the fifth ring, the phone switched to voicemail.

Hey, you reached Heather. You know what to do, and I'll get back to you . . .

At this point in the recording, Paige switched off her phone and resisted the urge to hurl it against the wall. Shane did say that he wouldn't replace another phone broken in a fit of rage.