Spellsinger (Avalon: Web of Magic #5) Read online

  “Yes.” The Fairimentals had told Adriane about the Prophecy in the Fairy Glen on Aldenmor.

  One will follow her heart

  One will see in darkness

  One will change completely and utterly

  “Adriane followed her heart when she went after Storm on Aldenmor. I saw in darkness when I led us across the magic web and back home to Ravenswood...”

  “So... the third one is mine,” Kara said, eyes opening wide. “One will change completely… but I don’t want to change!”

  Emily took Kara’s hand. “My dad always says life is change. I think he means that we’re going to change no matter what we do, if we want to or not.”

  Kara flashed on the magnificent white unicorn that had taken her to the beaches of Avalon. Fairy wraiths, the guardians of Avalon, had asked her if she was ready to become the blazing star.

  “Close your eyes, child,” the wraith told her.

  Kara closed her eyes. A soft breeze dried her tears.

  “Now open them.”

  Kara blinked and stared out across the waters. The cloud of mist shimmered in the distance, hiding whatever lay underneath.

  “Do you see any difference?”

  “No,” Kara said, confused.

  The wraith sighed, a sound like the wind crying.

  “Where is Avalon? How do we get there?”

  “There are fairy maps to guide the blazing star.”

  Only the blazing star could open the fairy map to Avalon—the one she had lost.

  Kara blinked and looked back at her friend’s warm smile.

  “Emily, something is happening to me,” Kara admitted. “How do I know what to do? What’s right?”

  The healer smiled. “When I see Ozzie, or Ariel, or Storm, or any of the other animals, and the way they look at me, they way they love me and you and Adriane… I just know it’s the right thing to help them. Because we’re friends and we love them.”

  “Yeah…” Kara agreed.

  “That’s one thing that will never change.”

  Kara sighed and walked to the window, looking for a pair of golden wings. “I wish I could believe that.”

  “Your magic is different than the rest of ours,” Emily continued. “It’s special. We all know that. But only you can choose how to change. And we’ll stick by you no matter what happens.” Emily smiled.

  Kara gave her a quick smile in return. “I’d better not change into a flobbin!”

  The two friends laughed.

  “I have to go,” Emily said. “But look over the spells and we’ll meet tomorrow at the glade to talk about what we do next. Okay?”

  “Okay.”

  Emily gave Kara a hug, then left.

  Kara smiled. She was lucky to have Emily as a friend. Suddenly the locket around Kara’s neck glowed and her mind began to drift. Kara knew she should have come clean about the unicorn horn, but she still needed it. She looked over the pages Emily had copied for her. There were spells and lessons on how to use singing to control magic. Here’s an interesting one: “Spell of Silence”—I’d like to use that on Adriane, Kara mused.

  Then she thought about the power she had unleashed behind the school. If her one little rhyme had been so powerful, especially when combined with the unicorn horn, maybe these real spells could help her make the finals.

  She wished she could get her hands on the book itself, but this would have to do.

  Kara clutched the locket close to her heart.

  She was changing, all right. And it looked like everything was going to turn her way after all.

  KARA STOOD BACKSTAGE at the school auditorium, nervously twirling a lock of long, blond hair. After running through a half dozen outfits, Kara settled on a sequined tank top, brown suede pants, and her new Valero boots. One moment she thought the outfit looked stylish beyond compare—and the next, she was convinced it was hideous. She hadn’t been truly satisfied with anything she’d tried on. Nothing would be good enough, Kara was beginning to think... especially herself.

  Even more frustrating, she had gone through every page of the spellsinging book Emily had copied for her and hadn’t been able to find a single rhyme that could make her magically enhanced singing voice last. The spells all seemed to have been created for some other purpose. She had tried to sing as soon as she had gotten up and discovered that her voice was back to normal—horrible! But not for long. She pulled her shirt down over the unicorn horn concealed in her back pocket.

  Kara stole a quick peek at the audience. Inky, who was presiding over this round of the competition, was chitchatting with reporters. Johnny was talking with folks in the front row, mostly members of the Town Council and their families, along with teachers and a few representatives of the school board. Web cam operators had set up their equipment to capture the entire event.

  Johnny suddenly turned and looked right at Kara. The instant their gazes met, she felt the locket tingle and her fear melted away, replaced by excitement. A barrage of flashes illuminated Kara against the curtain as half a dozen photographers swung their cameras into action. She produced her perfect Kara smile for the crowd.

  Touching the locket, she felt more determined than ever to be a winner and make him proud.

  A group of girls gathered around Kara.

  “That is so cool, Johnny gave you his locket!” a girl from her homeroom said.

  “Can I see it?”

  Some were just excited, and wanted to touch it, or try it on—not that Kara would let them. Several others really were jealous and shot daggers at her for wearing the locket at all.

  Good, Kara thought. Maybe some of them would get psyched out, that would make it easier for her.

  Closing her eyes and leaning against a back wall, Kara smiled.

  A loud knock made Kara open her eyes. She was startled to see Adriane standing before her wearing a black vest, stylish jeans, and black leather boots. Her hair, glistening with subtle red highlights, looked amazing.

  “Hey,” Adriane said.

  Kara nodded. “You look… good.”

  “Thanks, I just, um...” Adriane frowned. “We need to talk.”

  Kara hesitated, a sudden pang of guilt jabbing her... then she shrugged. “Now?”

  “It’s just... some strange things have been going on.”

  “You would think that,” Kara muttered.

  Adriane’s eyes widened and she looked ready to deliver a nasty comeback—then she forced a smile into place. “Look, I haven’t been myself lately. I don’t know why it became so important to win this contest.”

  Kara tapped her foot, waiting.

  “Okay, what do you think is going on?” Adriane asked.

  “Nothing,” Kara said impatiently, looking past Adriane to where the contestants were starting to line up.

  Kara had drawn her lot when she first arrived. She was number twenty-three. Thank goodness she didn’t have to go first!

  “Can’t this wait till later? They’re almost ready,” she said.

  “No, it can’t,” Adriane stated. “Listen, Kara, I know you’ve been really… busy lately.”

  “So?”

  “So, we all need to work together if we’re going to figure this out,” Adriane insisted.

  Kara restrained her urge to agree with Adriane. She wanted to trust her friend... but some instinct told her not to let her guard down.

  “I don’t know why I pushed you,” Adriane said, “I don’t want to compete with you… I mean, let’s just call a truce before—”

  Kara stared at Adriane cautiously. “Before what?”

  “Well... before something else happens,” Adriane whispered, adding, “You know it and I know it. I’ve heard you sing, you know.”

  Anger flared within Kara. “And you’re worried I’m gonna embarrass myself?”

  “What?” Adriane threw her hands up. “This contest... it was never supposed to be about the two of us. This is for Ravenswood. You’re the president, our leader. If you go out there and—”
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  “That’s it,” Kara said, her cheeks flushing crimson. She pushed past Adriane to join the others.

  “I didn’t mean it like that!” Adriane called.

  Kara stopped listening. She took her place in line and saw both Adriane and Heather take their places close to the front. Good. She didn’t want to deal with either of them right now. She was nervous enough as it was—and Adriane trying to psych her out... that was really too much to deal with.

  As the music started and the curtain went up, Kara noticed two of the other girls casting worried looks at her locket. Suddenly feeling like a prize creep, Kara slipped the locket under her blouse, hiding it from view. A minute ago, she thought it was so cool showing it off. What was happening to her?

  Then the show kicked off!

  The waiting—and the watching—turned out to be a lot harder than Kara had expected. One by one, boys and girls took the stage, and some were really good. Much better than Kara...and she knew it.

  “And now, contestant number six, the rock and roll warrior!” Inky announced.

  Adriane leaped into the spotlight, jamming on her cherry red Fender guitar. She swung the guitar back over her shoulder and sung a classic rock song. She was extraordinary! Kara twiddled with the locket again, feeling its energy course through her. Then Inky was onstage again, introducing “lucky” number seven—Heather Wilson. The redhead started to sing and the entire auditorium fell silent. Everyone backstage was buzzing—even Adriane—saying Heather not only had it in the bag to be one of the finalists, but that she would be the one to beat on Saturday during the preshow! Kara noticed several of the girls who were scheduled to go on after Heather walk away from the line and bow out. Others were asking to have their numbers reassigned. It seemed no one wanted to face the humiliation of following Heather’s amazing performance. Kara saw Inky nodding and smiling, hanging on her every note. Even Johnny was enthusiastically caught up in the performance.

  Kara knew she should support her friend, but she just couldn’t bring herself to care. Instead, she drew comfort from the warmth of Johnny’s locket. It began to pulse with light in her fingers—

  One of the teachers rushed over to her. “Kara! You’re up next!”

  Kara allowed the teacher to lead her to her place in front of the handful of remaining contestants. She nervously rubbed the locket around her neck. Several of the other girls looked at it once again—and she thought about putting it away.

  Then she saw Johnny sitting in the first row, front and center, staring right at her with his bright, winning smile. His eyes flashed with blue fire.

  No, she thought. Why should I hide it? This is my lucky charm!

  Kara was ushered onstage. The bright lights seared her eyes as she heard the music start up. It was one of Johnny’s hits, a song she knew by heart. And so far she had been the only one to pick this song.

  Two points for me, she thought, terrified. She looked out into the audience and felt her head go light, her knees threaten to turn to water. Just about everyone she knew was watching her, waiting for her to mess up...

  Well, to heck with that! Kara thought. Raising her head defiantly, she took the microphone. She looked at Johnny and saw his lips moving, as if he were singing the first verse himself.

  And then—

  The world stopped. For just a moment Kara experienced a sudden silence, a vacuum that drew all light and sound and sensation from her. She thought she was passing out.

  No, this can’t be happening!

  She reached for the power of the unicorns and felt a sparkle of fire where the locket hung.

  With a twirl, Kara stepped into a choreographed dance move, moving in sync with the beat. Her voice sang out, filling the auditorium and carrying the melody in perfect pitch. Rocking out, Kara danced up a storm as the crowd was swept to their feet with the excitement of her performance.

  She was being showered with applause. Kara shuddered, feeling disoriented.

  “You rocked, girl! Totally cool,” Inky said, taking the microphone from her. “Kara Davies, everyone!” He called out. “Everyone, give it up for contestant number twenty-three, Kara Davies!”

  The applause rose and Kara bowed, basking in the adoration of the crowd. She could certainly get used to this.

  Just before she left the stage, she saw Johnny wink at her.

  Backstage, Adriane glared at her suspiciously, but Kara didn’t care.

  The next hour passed in a blur. The other girls did their numbers, with Inky off in the corner making notes about them. Then he took the stage and announced the finalists.

  Heather had made the cut, duh there. But so had two girls Kara barely knew, along with Adriane, and—

  “Our fifth finalist, Kara Davies!” Inky roared.

  Kara raced out onto the stage, thrilled to be part of the winner’s circle. She posed with the others for photographs.

  “We’ll see you all tomorrow.” Inky waved. “It’s going to be a great day for Ravenswood!”

  Kara was ecstatic—for all of about five seconds.

  Before she could say a word, Adriane grabbed her arm and yanked her aside.

  “Okay,” the tall girl said. “I don’t know how you did it, and I don’t care.”

  “Did... did what?” Kara asked.

  “You went out there and you didn’t stink,” Adriane said bluntly.

  “Yeah, thanks,” Kara said. “I had so much encouragement from my friends.” She delivered that last word like an icy dagger.

  “And some help, too, no doubt!”

  “What do you mean?” Kara asked innocently.

  “I mean—this!” Adriane held up her wrist. The wolf stone was pulsing with strong amber light. “I know you used some kind of magic! Don’t deny it!”

  “No way.” Kara’s eyes darted back and forth, trying to see if anyone was close enough to hear them.

  “You cheated!” Adriane hissed.

  “My singing is just as good as yours,” Kara countered.

  “In your dreams. You’re bowing out of the finals!”

  Kara stared at Adriane in absolute fury. “You’ve got to be kidding!”

  One look into Adriane's eyes and Kara knew she was deadly serious.

  “I have to be in the finals!”

  “Why, Kara? Just what is so important about singing on that stage?”

  Kara stopped short. When she actually thought about it, she had no logical reason.

  “This is about Ravenswood!” Adriane continued. “The spotlight needs to be on the preserve, the animals, what we’re trying to do for them... not on you.”

  “So why aren’t you backing out?” Kara asked. “You cheated, too! You used magic to get the home court advantage. You’ve got Johnny living right next door. You think people aren’t going to talk about that if you win?”

  “I haven’t been getting Johnny’s attention every single minute. You have. I mean... look at what you’re wearing!”

  Shaking with rage, Kara clutched the locket.

  “Fine! But if I can’t sing in the contest, neither can you!” Kara said to Adriane’s face. “Or I’ll tell everyone how you practiced with Johnny at Ravenswood!”

  Adriane looked furious.

  “Do we have a deal?” Kara asked.

  “Fine! I don’t want to be in this stupid contest anymore!” And she stormed off.

  Kara turned her back on Adriane and went to talk with Inky. He wasn’t exactly happy to hear that she was withdrawing, but there were backup choices for the contest. As long as this is what Kara really wanted... well, then he’d be fine with it.

  So maybe she wouldn’t sing with Johnny as the contest winner, Kara thought.

  There were plenty of other ways to get even for what Adriane had pulled. She looked in her backpack at the photocopies.

  Plenty of other spells, too.

  KARA DIDN’T SLEEP at all that night. Now it was morning—the morning, the concert was today—but she couldn’t get out of bed. She lay buried under blankets a
nd pillows.

  The song had gone so well. Kara would never forget how it felt to stand in front of all those people, to be under the glaring lights, to hear their applause. But she had taken a magical shortcut, leaping right over the part that was really difficult, heading right to the instant reward she had craved.

  Which... wasn’t bad, right? She really had delivered on that song, and if things had gone the way they should have, the way they were meant to, she would have netted that spot singing with Johnny. Only—Adriane had discovered her secret, part of it anyway. That she’d used magic to cheat her way to winning.

  Kara was furious with Adriane, yet she also felt relieved. She hated lying and she hated being a cheater! What had possessed her to even consider such a stupid thing? What would her parents and friends think of her if they knew? She chewed her lip. And the way she had treated Heather… that was so cruel. To top it off, she had even destroyed school property! No wonder she hadn’t slept much.

  She tossed the pillows, kicked away the blankets, and sprang out of bed. She would meet Adriane and Emily at the portal field and use the dragonfly phone to contact Zach. Then she would spill it all and beg her friends to forgive her. She would return the horn immediately before something really terrible happened. She would forget singing onstage with Johnny and get back to what was really important: getting the word out to the world about Ravenswood!

  Someone knocked at her door. “Hey, sleeping beauty!” her father called. “You’ve got a visitor!”

  “I'm not here!” Kara replied. A visitor. Probably Molly or Tiffany...

  “Not here?” came another voice, light and musical, from downstairs. “Not even for me?”

  It was Johnny!

  Flying into a pile of clothes, she threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. She yanked open the door, barreled past her startled father, bolted down the steps—then stopped short. Johnny was standing in her living room. Wavy black hair brushed his forehead. His gorgeous blue eyes twinkled.

  Mayor Davies cleared his throat. “How about some breakfast, Johnny?”

  “No thanks, Mayor D,” Johnny said. “Just stopped by with a quick update for the Ravenswood president.”