I was confident Ivy would know what to do if I showed up as a mouse, but she’d never let me live it down. The saltwater glugged nosily into the bowl, and I tucked the empty jug away. The screw top to the vial went plinking into the Dumpster, and I winced as I massaged another three drops of blood out of my throbbing finger. But my discomfort paled as my blood hit the liquid and the warm meadow fragrance arose.

My stomach clenched as I mixed the vial by hitting the side with a series of gentle thwacks. Nervous, I wiped a hand on my jeans and glanced at Jenks. Making a spell is easy. It’s trusting you did it right that’s hard. When it came down to it, courage was the only thing separating a witch from a warlock. I am a witch, I told myself, my feet going cold. I did this right. I will be a mouse, and I will be able to turn back with a dip in saltwater.

“Promise you won’t tell Ivy if this doesn’t work?” I asked Jenks, and he grinned, roguishly tugging his cap lower over his eyes.

“Whatcha going to give me?”

“I won’t lace your stump with ant killer.”

He sighed. “Just do it,” he encouraged. “I’d like to get home before the sun goes nova. Pixies sleep at night, you know.”

I licked my lips, too anxious to come up with a retort. I had never transformed before. I’d taken the classes, but tuition didn’t cover the cost to buy a professional-grade transformation spell, and liability insurance hadn’t allowed us students to sample our own brew. Liability insurance. You gotta love it.

My fingers tightened on the vial and my pulse hammered. This was going to really hurt.

In a sudden rush, I closed my eyes and downed it. It was bitter, and I swallowed it in one gulp, trying not to think of the three mouse hairs. Yuck.

My stomach cramped and I bent double. I gasped as I lost my balance. The cold cement rushed up, and I put a hand out to stop my fall. It was black and furry. It’s working! I thought in both delight and fright. This wasn’t so bad.

Then a sharp pain ripped through my spine. Like blue flame it ran from my skull to my backbone. I cried out, panicking as a guttural shriek tore my ears. Hot ice ran through my veins.

I convulsed, agony taking my breath from me. Terror struck me as my vision went black. Blind, I reached out, hearing a terrifying scrabbling. “No!” I shrieked. The pain swelled, driving everything from me, swallowing me up.

Eleven

“Rache? Rachel, wake up. Are you all right?”

A warm, low, unfamiliar voice was a black thread pulling me back to consciousness. I stretched, feeling different muscles work. My eyes flashed open to see shades of gray. Jenks stood in front of me with his hands on his hips and his feet spread wide. He looked six feet tall. “Crap!” I swore, hearing it come out as a harsh squeak. I was a mouse. I was a freaking mouse!