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Christian walked over to the empty space and faced Tasha. They regarded each other, forgetting<br />
about Lissa and me. I'd apparently interrupted something.<br />
"So why can't I just stick with the consuming spell?" asked Christian.<br />
"Because it uses a lot of energy," she told him. Even with jeans and a ponytail—and the scar—<br />
she managed to look ridiculously cute. "Plus, it'll most likely kill your opponent."<br />
He scoffed. "Why wouldn't I want to kill a Strigoi?"<br />
"You might not always be fighting one. Or maybe you need information from them.<br />
Regardless, you should be prepared either way."<br />
They were practicing offensive magic, I realized. Excitement and interest replaced the<br />
sullenness I'd acquired upon seeing Tasha. Lissa hadn't been kidding about them doing "bad<br />
things." I'd always suspected they were practicing offensive magic, but… wow. Thinking about<br />
it and actually seeing it were two very different things. Using magic as a weapon was<br />
forbidden. A punishable offense. A student experimenting with it might be forgiven and simply<br />
disciplined, but for an adult to actively be teaching a minor…yeah. That could get Tasha in<br />
major trouble. For half a second, I toyed with the idea of turning her in. Immediately, I<br />
dismissed the notion. I might hate her for making moves on Dimitri, but part of me sort of<br />
believed in what she and Christian were doing. Plus, it was just cool.<br />
"A distracting spell is almost as useful," she continued.<br />
Her blue eyes took on the intense focus I often saw Moroi get while using magic. Her wrist<br />
flicked forward, and a streak of fire snaked past Christian's face. It didn't touch him, but from<br />
the way he flinched, I suspected it had been close enough for him to feel the heat.<br />
"Try it," she told him.<br />
Christian hesitated for only a moment and then made the same hand motion she had. Fire<br />
streaked out, but it had none of the finely tuned control hers had had. He also didn't have her<br />
aim. It went straight for her face, but before it could touch her, it parted and split around her,<br />
almost like it had hit an invisible shield. She'd deflected it with her own magic.<br />
"Not bad—aside from the fact you would have burned my face off."
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