24. Crossroads

                                    

                                          
Lena Matthews
                          
Streamers lined the hallway in preparation for Valentine's day. Someone had cleared out the flowers in Rowan's locker to make room for a banner that advertised the "Night of Shining Stars", which looked like a talent show with a really elevated dress code.
                          
Jane-Anne had decided to take a stand and sit with Carter and I at lunch. Kiara and Taylor didn't bother to fight it, so they were stuck with us. The new friend group was interesting, to say the least.
                          
Taylor and I didn't talk to each other too much, but I felt like we had a mutual understanding. Carter and Taylor seemed to get along on the surface, but to call them friends would be a huge stretch. If it wasn't for Kiara carrying the brunt of the conversation, lunch would have been a lot worse. 
                          
"Have you heard about that Night of Shining Stars thing?" I asked. 
                          
"Yeah, it's this big talent show that happens every year." said Kiara. She answered me offhandedly, already engaged in a much more important activity: throwing goldfish in the air and catching it in her mouth. She was actually pretty good at it. 
                          
"I think you should do it." I suggested. Kiara paused to stare at me, caught off guard. The goldfish that she had just thrown in the air fell onto the brim of her fedora. 
                          
"You think I'm that good at catching food midair?" Kiara asked. 
                          
"No, I'm talking about singing." I said. "You're really good. It's insane." 
                          
"Yeah, it's almost supernatural." Carter added. He put an odd emphasis on the word "supernatural". 
                          
"Oh..." I said, slowly realizing what Carter meant. I was never sure whether Kiara was Forbidden or not since I didn't see her at the trial. I guess she was. I ran through all of the Forbidden in my head, trying to match Kiara up with one of them.
                          
Taylor seemed to know what I was trying to figure out, and tried to give me a hint. "I think that Kiara is very charmed to have such a good voice." 
                          
Charmed? That was just confusing me more. 
                          
"Encantado," said Kiara quickly. 
                          
"Mucho gusto." Jane-Anne replied. "Wait, what are we talking about?" 
                          
Encantado (n): A musically-inclined dolphin shapeshifter from Brazil known for mischief and being attracted to parties. Only one part of them can never fully shift, which is the blowhole that remains on their head.
                          
A part of that diagnosis made sense. It explained Kiara's attachment to headwear, but something didn't match. An encantado was always represented by a pale man, and Kiara was the direct opposite. 
                          
"You don't look..." Talking near Jane-Anne felt like performing a ballet in a minefield. "Like a traditional singer, but you're still really amazing." 
                          
"Thanks?" said Kiara. She threw another goldfish in the air and caught it expertly. 
                          
"I still think you should do it." I said. "You could probably win." 
                          
"Well, someone who goes to this school already has a record deal lined up the second they graduate." Jane-Anne pointed out. "Not that I care anyway." 
                          
"You have to care a little bit. I recall you starting rumors because Ivy breathed near Jacob one time." Carter pointed out. 
                          
"I'm swearing off boys until college." Jane-Anne announced. At that, we all burst into uncontrollable laughter. "Guys, I'm serious!" Jane-Anne complained, but that just made us laugh more. 
                          
I never thought that Jacob Wilde would be the most normal thing about Atalka Academy, but I also never thought that I would be sharing a lunch table with a djinn, encantado, and a vampire without trying to kill any of them.