Flunked (Fairy Tale Reform School, #1)(28)

“A proper lady!” Madame Cleo marvels. “Well then, shall we… Oh hi, class! When did you all get here?”

“Memory-loss spell,” Jax whispers. “Sometimes she forgets what she’s doing. Last week detention was only thirty minutes because she forgot what time we came in.”

“You were teaching the Fire Step, Madame Cleo,” Helmut says. Within seconds, his head snaps back. “Ouch! Who hit me?” I see Jocelyn smirk.

“The Fire Step! Yes, that’s right!” she says. The sound of a fast instrumental song floats through the room. Madame Cleo closes her eyes and sways back and forth. The fish around her do the same. “Done properly, the Fire Step can make all the difference between catching a prince and a prince’s footman. You don’t have many afternoons to master this dance. Royal Day is just days away.”

“Lucky us,” I mumble.

Jax looks amused. “What did the royals do to you? Steal your glass slipper?”

“Kind of.” Jax looks intrigued. “My dad’s a shoemaker, and the orders for the glass slippers he was making were handed over to Ella’s fairy godmother so she could conjure them up herself. That’s made a real dent in a family business that was barely making ends meet to begin with.” I sigh. “And yet my sister still idolizes those girls.”

“They took my father’s farm to build a summer castle for themselves,” Jax says. “I haven’t liked the royals since.”

“Typical.” I shake my head.

Cleo claps her hands and the sound echoes through the room. “Partner up!”

Jax holds out his hand. “Shall we?”

“I’m not a Fire Step kind of girl.” I stumble over my words. I’ve never danced with someone who isn’t my brother. And having your brothers dance on your feet doesn’t count.

“Gillian, darling,” Madame Cleo sings, but there is a hard tone to her voice. “Everyone must participate.”

My cheeks flush slightly. “Fine, but don’t step on my toes,” I tell Jax. “Do you even know how to—whoa.” Jax takes my hands and whirls me around the room. The whirling part I could do blindfolded, but the rest is a mystery.

“Just watch what I do,” he tells me as he double claps, then does a crisscross motion with his feet and changes direction all in a matter of seconds. He’s really good. When we get to the part in the dance where we switch partners, then switch back, Jax manages to take two, then return to me before I even do my first spin around.

“I didn’t realize you had use for the Fire Step on the farm,” I say over the music.

“There wasn’t,” Jax says. His violet eyes are practically purple in this light. “A lot of time in detention has made me an excellent dancer.”

“So I see.” I double clap, but on the wrong beat. Oops.

People glide around the room, switching directions. There’s a lot of clapping and slapping one’s heel and snapping of fingers at just the right moment, but I’m pretty sure I couldn’t master this dance even with a year’s worth of detention.

The only one partnerless is Jocelyn, not that she seems concerned. With a quick poof, a shadow appears in front of her, taking the outline of a boy. Madame Cleo looks over at Jocelyn curiously but doesn’t say anything. I guess being the Evil Queen’s sister means you can get away with a lot. Jocelyn takes the shadow’s nonexistent hands and begins to dance around the room. She bangs into me on her way by and I fall into Jax.

“Don’t let her rattle you,” Jax says.

Before I can say anything, we have to switch partners again and I’m with Helmut.

“You’re the new girl, right?” says Helmut, who looks more terrified than impressed. “I got caught breaking into the Enchantasia Market one too many times. I have a thing for the baker’s cinnamon rolls.” He blushes. “What are you in for?”

“Kind of the same thing,” I say, wincing as Helmut steps on both my feet. “Family’s got to eat, you know. I took what I needed to survive.”

“I thought cobblers just ate shoe leather,” Jocelyn says as she and her shadow dance by us.

I’ve had enough of this one. “I never have, but if you want to try eating leather, I’m happy to shove some down your throat.” Helmut gulps loudly.

Jocelyn smiles eerily. “Students who shoot their mouth off to me don’t last long.”

I stop dancing. “Are you threatening me?” Helmut slowly backs away. “I thought FTRS was all about reforming yourself.”

Jocelyn smiles evilly. “It is, but who’s to say who we’re reforming ourselves into next? Stop snooping around this school or believe me, thief, you’ll regret it.” I feel a chill go down my spine. “I have powers you can’t even dream of.”

“I’m not scared,” I say as Jax tugs on my arm to steer me away.

Jocelyn’s eyes narrow. “You will be when you see what I can do. Watch.” Her lips begin to move and a glow emits from her eyes. Jax shoves me out of the way, but he needn’t bother. I’m not the one Jocelyn is toying with. Gayle lets out an ear-piercing scream and her troll partner flies backward, hitting one of the torches on the wall, which falls and causes a small fire that short-circuits the music. Students see Jocelyn chanting and run for cover, but Helmut begins to wail and falls to the floor. Within seconds, most of my classmates are low to the ground, covering their ears. Her spell has affected everyone but Jax and me.