Knowing

Clare feels uncomfortable with the trade-off between the two opposing forces. They are trapped in each other's magic and Clare must intervene.

Brakk

Clare pounded the table making their gazes stop and they looked away from each other. Clare looked around the library watching her especially the librarian who was glaring at her gesturing not to make any noise. Clare was instantly embarrassed by this sudden action. She covered her face with an open book then glanced at his two friends who were back to focusing on the book.

Instantly the atmosphere became awkward. Clare is happy that Zoya is no longer whining or pushing her. But this atmosphere was one that Clare didn't like.

"Zoey, Blare, what's wrong with you guys?" Clare feigned ignorance.

"Nothing." they said at the same time making the atmosphere even more awkward.

Clare looked for a topic of conversation so as not to be awkward. "Anyone want to help me?"

"So my guinea pig first, then I agree." Zoya smirks.

Clare chuckled annoyed with Zoya's answer. "All this time I've been wondering, what is my secret power? Why haven't I found it yet?"

"You don't know?" Zoya raised an eyebrow to get an innocent nod from Clare then sighed. "Unfortunately I can't predict yet."

"You're interested in divination?" Blaire scolds.

Zoya nods enthusiastically. "I want to know many things in the future and I can also get paid as a fortune teller."

"Well, he doesn't know who the real fortune teller is." Clare whispered quietly.

"I'm in Divination class, why aren't you there?" Blaire asked.

Zoya replies. "I just entered the Academy today because I was late. Imagine how miserable I will be when my points drop drastically."

"There was a Divination class earlier, why weren't you there?" Blaire asked again.

"I.... " Zoya glances at Clare.

"Didn't I tell you to go there?" protested Clare, knowing that Zoya had skipped.

"I was thinking about Luke's problem. Only this time I was quickly rejected and ignored." Zoya felt embarrassed.

"It's wrong to hypnotize random people yourself." Clare grumbled.

"I'm looking for a mate!" Zoya answered innocently.

Hearing that Clare burst out laughing while Blaire frowned at Zoya's unreasonable excuses.

"If you want to find a mate, it's better on a matchmaking site, no need to force it like hypnosis. It's just torturous." Clare giggled

"Your reasoning is illogical." Blaire mumbled back reading the book followed by Clare.

"Yeah sorry." Zoya gets embarrassed and plays with her nails. "What's your secret to being approached by 3 guys at once? Gavin, Louis, and ... Luke?"

Clare flinched at Zoya's words. Since when had he been close to those three young men? if it's Gavin that's for sure. "No really, I'm not close to them except Gavin. Gavin is in the same dorm as me, so we see each other often. For Louis, I subscribe to the bully, almost every day Louis bullied me, ordered me to a forbidden place."

"Luke?"

Clare was stunned for a moment. "I don't know, today is the second time meeting after I almost entered the forbidden room because of Louis."

"Forbidden room? Can you open the door?" Blaire said.

Clare scratched the back of her neck that didn't itch, nor did she know anything about the forbidden room. Lost in thought, Zoya flicked her finger in front of Clare's face to wake her from her reverie.

"I'm not sure either. It was really hard at first, but suddenly I was able to open it up a bit," said Clare honestly. "Basically I don't know anything."

"I think the power is starting to emerge slowly" Zoya muttered.

"How old are you?" Blaire asked.

"16, a little more 17."

"I've read that there is a secret power that only appears when you are 16 or 17 years old. It's very rare and never seen again," continued Blaire.

"Gavin had said it before, but I wasn't sure it was me. How can I who can't do anything to have that kind of power." Clare humbly.

"You're too pessimistic" Zoya said.

Clare sighed. "Where's Jules? I haven't seen her in a while?"

"As usual... Forbidden forest, Jules always tested mentally and physically to get there. I don't know what else he brought to get there." Blaire explained

"Who is Jules?" Zoya asked smugly.

"You'll find out" Clare said grinning.

After thinking for a while, a crazy idea popped into Clare's mind. Clare closed her book and put it back on the shelf then left without saying goodbye making Blaire and Zoya frown and then follow Clare's direction.

Clare walked sneakily in the direction of the forbidden forest. She doesn't realize that 2 humans are having a hard time following her silently. Clare continues walking into the woods and is confronted by a large man who Jules had a problem with, Rowler.

"What are you doing here?" he said in a big bass voice that made Clare feel caught off guard.

"Rowler... I ... I was just passing through." Clare answered awkwardly.

"Looking for Jules?" Rowler chuckled. "She should be here by now. Or don't she get caught."

"Caught?" Clare was surprised.

"There's no need to hide, you've been caught." Rowler shouted making 2 humans who followed Clare out from behind a big tree and stood behind Clare. "You guys go, maybe Jules is already outside."

They turned and stepped out of the forest. Clare sensed something was wrong, why was Rowler there? Was Jules found out?

While coming out of the forest, Clare turned her head back and gasped to see Jules beside her suddenly.

"Jules, you..." Clare said surprised as well as Blaire looked at her in surprise, while Zoya had an innocent face.

"Why? Why are you here?" Jules asked.

"Since when were you next to me?" Clare asked back.

"Just now." Jules replied then walked ahead of them.

"Where's Rowler? Why don't you come?" Zoya asked making Jules turn to her.

Jules looked him up and down carefully. she felt foreign to the girl in front of her. "Who are you?"

"Zoya, everyone calls me Zoey." Zoya said.

"Unfortunately I never saw you." Jules snorted then resumed walking.

"How arrogant." Zoya mumbled as Jules' sharp glance made her hide behind Blaire.

"Coquettish child, not at all interesting." Jules pouted again continuing the journey.

Clare glanced at Zoya who looked annoyed by Jules' words earlier. They continued their journey back to the castle, since Clare had nothing to do, she decided to go around the Academy while waiting for dinner.

On the way, he saw Jules fiddling with his cell phone in the hallway while wearing a headset. Clare approached him so he wouldn't be too lonely, Jules who knew it glanced at Clare and removed one of the headsets from her ear.

"Are you going around?" Jules scolded getting Clare's nod.

"Yesterday I met Rowler, at first I thought you were caught in the forbidden forest and Rowler's punished you. But you came back like nothing was wrong and Rowler disappeared."

"Maybe he went another way" she said nonchalantly.

"Maybe someone disguised himself." guessed Clare.

Jules was stunned for a moment and changed the topic. "Why are you talking about Uncle Rowler? I also wanted to ask, when is your friend Zoya coming? I've never seen her."

"Last night he just arrived at the Academy, it was his first day. Said Zoey came late and he lost a lot of points." explained Clare.

Jules snorted. "She looks worse than me"

"I was wondering where she parked her car, I didn't see the car at all." Clare muttered.

"It's very hard to come here by car, if I were her there would be no need to come to the Academy." Jules sneered.

"Why? You've been invited but don't look like you're going in?" Clare asked, grinning.

"Nobody cared about me, my whole family didn't care which school I went to. So I just rely on myself." replied Jules looking unconcerned.

"Why is that?"

"They were too busy paying attention to the weapons factory. All about guns and even there I only learned about guns. Since childhood I homeschooled and relaxed too much, isn't it boring?" Jules explained with emotion.

"Your family is a gun business, that means you know a lot about guns, it's only natural that you're always fiddling with Uncle Rowler's guns" Clare muttered.

"And I have to disguise myself if I want to take it so I don't get caught." Jules grinned.

"What did you take to test?" asked Clare.

"Dragon bone sword, very nice shape and I really like that one. It looks like a katana and is more powerful, very suitable for war. In one slash will knock down several enemies" she explained very well.

"You really understand." Clare muttered admiringly.

"I've tried it, so I get it." Jules smirks. It's obvious she's bragging.

Clare remembered that Rowler's had been holding a sword like a katana earlier. This made Clare even more surprised.

"Rowler also wields the sword you just described. But I also saw you carrying the same sword, how can there be 2 swords?" Clare said making Jules tensed.

Jules looked speechless, he sighed and smiled resignedly. "It's useless I have many excuses, nothing can be hidden from you. You're so thorough," she said and then paused. "It could have happened if the one holding it was the same person but in a different form."

Clare thought back and was in awe of Jules. "I see, just as you turned Jake, you turned yourself into Rowler. Nice disguise."

"It's not Jules if he's not good at disguise. Not just a weapons expert, but a disguise expert." she boasted.

"Well, so you've been using a different form all this time. Are you now too—"

Jules quickly interrupted. "Why would I disguise myself as myself? Of course this is my true form, nothing to hide."

"How long can you last in another form?" asked Clare.

"Like I like, forever can also." she said casually as he walked then her steps stopped and turned to Clare. "I was waiting for something special from you." Then she put the headset back on her ears.

Clare is increasingly asking questions about herself which still has many secrets. Then Clare thought, how can she open the door to the forbidden room when the others can't? Maybe Clare should go back there to check something out.