"Drewden."

"They flicker."

"Excellent."

"Wait!" That couldn't be right. Eli raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr Trenton."

"What do you mean they flicker?"

The professor's eyes narrowed on Eli. "I would think that would be self-explanatory."

"But they don't," Eli protested.

"They don't what?"

"Flicker. They look like you and me."

Silence descended in the classroom. "Mr Trenton, are you telling me that when you see ghosts, they are entirely solid?"

"Yes." Eli looked around the room at everyone staring. "Isn't that how you see them?"

"As you missed the first part of this class, I'll give you a pass for not knowing this, but I'm beginning to see the problem with your identification. Ghosts form from the energy they receive from the wizard they are closest to. Necromancers in particular sometimes give ghosts a boost merely by walking near a spirit. The stronger the necromancer, the more solid the ghost. The rest of the students here have other talents and are here to learn more about the science of ghosts. You, however, are a true necromancer." Professor Lorentz's eyes lit up with excitement. "Which makes me wonder if ghosts have been feeding off your energy for your entire life. That could explain why you didn't know they were ghosts. Fascinating!"

Eli didn't know how interesting it might be, but he did feel a rush of relief over the fact that he wasn't a complete idiot. If what the professor said was true, then Eli could have an excellent reason for not knowing the others were ghosts.

"I hope you picked up your book in ghost theory?" Professor Lorentz asked.

Eli nodded. He pulled it out of his bag to show the professor.

"Good. You'll need to read the first five chapters to catch up."

Eli mentally groaned. He hated reading textbooks-they were always dry and boring and Eli's retention was crap. "Yes, Professor."

He heard Drewden snicker beside him, which only solidified his belief that they would never be friends.

The rest of the class passed with the professor talking about various kinds of spirits and how they could be banished with different techniques including even sheer willpower if the banisher were strong enough. Eli took notes but doubted they would mean anything until he read the book. All his classes were going to be a case of playing catch-up, but Eli didn't care. He was just happy at the chance of having a real future.

When class ended, the professor asked Eli to stay behind.

He bit his lip nervously as he watched his classmates leave one by one.

Professor Lorentz sat on the corner of his desk and polished his glasses while he watched Eli.

"Elijah, I think you are going to be one of my biggest challenges."

"I'm sorry, sir?" He didn't know the proper response to that statement as he squirmed beneath the professor's gaze.

"Nothing to be sorry about. You should be proud. I think it's been at least a few hundred years since a powerful necromancer wandered these halls. I have to warn you now, many of your teachers are going to want to test you and find out what exactly you can do. One of my skills is the ability to see things through my students' eyes. I'd like to conduct a test, if you don't mind."

"Do I have a choice?" Eli knew he sounded surly, but he still had several years of schooling and he didn't want to spend them as a lab rat. This new interest in his studies threw him off. No one had cared about his academics before.

"You always have a choice. But the more we learn about you, the more we can make sure you're getting the best training possible."

The professor's eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. Eli didn't sense anything darker than pure intellectual interest in Lorentz's expression. Who was he to ruin the professor's experimentation if it would help Eli in the long run?

"What did you want me to do?"

"There's a known ghost in the library. I want us to go visit her. Once we are there I will touch your shoulder. I will then be able to see what you see."

"And that will help you how?"

"I'll understand how you can't tell if they are ghosts or not. It will also help me guide your studies. I believe you could learn a lot here."

Eli sighed. He'd never get rid of the stigma of being an idiot if he didn't work with the professor. "Fine. If you think it will help."

Lorentz smiled. "You won't regret this."

Eli kind of already was.

Holding back the snide comment aching to escape, he followed the professor to the library. Luckily the library was the next building over, keeping the walk short. Eli inhaled deeply when he entered the stacks. The smell of tomes nestled together comforted him like an old friend, bringing back memories of his father's library. The one place he'd been able to hide where Frederick never found him. After all, why would the golden boy need to look at a book? That was why he had a private tutor-to spoon-feed him everything.

"She's supposed to be in the literature section."

"You don't know?"

Lorentz shook his head. "I've never seen her. I've just heard that's where she is."

Eli didn't bother asking the identity of the ghost-he had a feeling the professor was enjoying his confusion. Taking cues from Lorentz's nudging, Eli headed down the aisle indicated.

"What do you see?" Lorentz asked.

"Three students and a librarian." Eli looked around for anything unusual, but the three girls were talking in hushed tones and the librarian was putting books back on the shelf.

The professor touched Eli's shoulder and gasped. "Wow! This is amazing."

Eli sighed. "What?"

"The librarian is a ghost. With your presence, she's strong enough to lift objects."

"Oh." A chill flashed through Eli's body as if he'd been plunged into a deep freezer. "She's not a real librarian?"

"I guess that's relative. She's real but not alive."

"Huh."

The ghost turned and looked directly into Eli's eyes.

"She's watching me," Eli whispered. "What do I do?"

"I think we should leave before we attract any more attention." Professor Lorentz removed his hand. "We don't want to scare her off. She's not doing anything wrong. You'll learn there are two schools of thought over banishing ghosts. Some people believe all spirits should be sent on to the afterlife."

"Is that what you believe?" He had a feeling Professor Lorentz would be in the second group.

"No." Lorentz said, confirming Eli's guess. "I think only those who are lost, causing damage or need to pass over should be banished. Not all ghosts fall into those categories. Some are just enjoying their afterlife in the comfort of things they enjoyed when alive."

Eli thought about Porter then nodded. "I think I follow your philosophy. Maybe I'll change my mind over time, but for now I agree."

"Good, because if what I suspect is true, you are the strongest necromancer to be born in a long while."

Eli followed his teacher outside before speaking again. "So what did we learn from that?" The only thing Eli had learned was that he still couldn't determine a human from a ghost.

Lorentz looked a bit paler than when they'd first gone into the building. "I'm sorry, Elijah, I had no idea you would have that sort of effect on a spirit. I'll talk to the headmaster about having a tutor work with you on your blocking."

"I'm already meeting with a tutor, but why do you think I need one?"

"If you are open and without shields all the time, you'll become food for ghosts. All that psychic ability blazing out is like ectoplasmic candy. They'll literally eat at your energy to become stronger. You need to learn to block them so they can't use you to feed."

"Yeah." Eli's stomach gurgled uneasily at the thought. "That's a good idea. I never built up blocks because I wasn't considered a strong power. My dad is arranging for a necromancer to come train me. Maybe he can help."

He hoped he could help. Eli took a shaky breath. He needed to learn how to control this ability or he'd always wonder if he were speaking to a ghost or not.

"Great. Make sure you pick his brain as much as possible. You'll also need a mentor when you get out of school-keep that in mind when you talk to him. Everyone will want to hire you for your abilities. I'm not sure my little class can do much for you but maybe you can at least learn about the history of necromancy and ghost banishing. Whoever evaluated you as a youth should have their license revoked," Lorentz said, his tone harder than the stone Eli had in his pocket.

"I guess no one was looking for necromancy. After all, like you said, it hasn't been around for years." Eli didn't blame the tester. Everyone he talked to said necromancy was a rare gift. He couldn't blame someone else for not catching Eli's magic when he hadn't been aware of it himself. "I appreciate all your advice."

"That's what I'm here for." Lorentz patted Eli on the back. "Let me know if your tutor doesn't work out. I have connections in the community. I can pull some strings if necessary."

"Thank you, Professor, I appreciate it." He really did. Professor Lorentz's help could make the difference between a successful education and a continual struggle.

Lorentz patted Eli awkwardly on his back. "I'd like to be assigned as your advisor, Eli. I think with my knowledge and your skills we can learn a great deal about the paranormal afterlife."

He didn't exactly have professors pounding on his door to be his advisor, and at least Professor Lorentz found Eli interesting and appeared vested in helping Eli. "Thank you, Professor, I'd appreciate any help I can get."

"Good. I'll file the proper paperwork."

In accord, the pair split up for Eli to go to his next class-Magical Theory. Now he'd have to see if he could put his stone to good use.

Chapter Three.

Devin sat at his desk and daydreamed about Eli. He wished he had Eli's number, but if he'd truly wanted to, he could've walked to Eli's dorm on the third floor and talked to him. Rumor had it that Eli resided in one of the few single dorms in the entire building. After the fires last year, most people were in triple or quad arrangements, but Eli had one all to himself. Speculation was ripe that Eli's father had made special arrangements with the headmaster.

Swirling his pen around his fingers, Devin hoped Eli's misunderstanding about Mary Sue didn't ruin his chances. As much as he appreciated being the bisexual playboy, he was ready to hang up his love 'em and leave 'em reputation and pursue a real relationship. Unfortunately his past might ruin it for him.

The dorm opened and Farren walked in. "Hey, Devin."

"Hi. What are you doing here? I thought you had a class today." Devin tended to remember everyone's schedule.

Farren shrugged. "Class canceled owing to haunting."

"Seriously?"

"Yep. Something kept moving the furniture in our room. Frankly I thought the whole thing was fascinating, but our teacher just kept screaming. I had to resist the urge to set her on fire."

Devin laughed even though he knew Farren was only partially kidding. The djinn had a temper, but as far as Devin knew, it didn't extend to hurting people. "Hey, maybe they'll call Eli to go help."

"Who's Eli?"

"A guy I have a crush on. He's a necromancer." Devin pinched his lips together. Why had he shared that? He had planned to keep his interest in Eli to himself.

"Not the cute redhead, is it?" Farren asked, a sly smile crossing his lips.

"Don't let my brother hear you talking like that," Devin warned. Dan was obsessive over his lover.

Farren laughed. "I'm sure Dan is secure enough in our relationship to handle me finding another man cute."

"Secure, maybe, but I think he expects you to go completely blind to other men's cuteness now that you're dating."

"He might expect it, but he'll be disappointed," Farren replied with little remorse.

"Who'll be disappointed?" Dan asked, walking in at the perfect moment. His brother's eyes lit up when the landed on Farren. Immediately he walked over and wrapped his arms around Farren's waist as if the separation of two feet was too much for him.

"That I find that redhead in Devin's class cute," Farren replied, snuggling closer.

"You mean Eli. He is cute with those big blue eyes," Dan agreed.

"See?" Farren waved a hand at Devin's brother. "He doesn't get angry over me noticing another guy. Now if I had my hand in his pants-"

"I'd snap the fucker's neck," Dan growled. He tightened his grip on Farren, pulling him tight against his body before pressing their mouths together in a possessive show of dominance.

Devin looked away while they kissed. It wasn't that he cared they were smooching, but since Dan was his identical twin, it was like watching himself kiss someone. It was disconcerting to say the least.

After several minutes, Dan pulled away. He flashed Devin an apologetic smile. "Sorry, bro."

Devin shrugged. He couldn't blame Dan for wanting his man. "Anyway, I was trying to think of a way to convince Eli to go out with me."

"Did you try, 'Hey, wanna go out with me'?" Dan asked.

"He actually asked me out, but we were interrupted by Mary Sue."

Dan winced. "It was embarrassing how she kept hanging all over Dean last night. He didn't look the least bit interested."