Her eyes jumped to Jack. "Not you?"
He shook his head.
"Why?" I asked.
The headmistress pulled in a long breath, almost as if bracing herself. "Joan didn't have an active shadow. She had her abilities. They were dark magic, but more like mine than yours are. The Crow King did not spend time with her the way you and Jack do." She paused, pressing her lipstogether. "Rain, the last Morrigan's powers were nothing like yours, and I'm trying to understand what that means."
"Morrigan!" Jack said. "Rain-Morrigan. Morrigan-Shadow. Jack-Shadow. Rain-Shadow. Rain-Jack-Shadow!" Then he nodded. "Rain-Jack-Shadow, Morrigan."
"Um, I think that might mean that me, Jack, and my shadow work together to make Morrigan magic?"
"Morrigan!" he insisted. "Morrigan, Morrigan, Morrigan!"
"Together the three of you make up the Morrigan?" Ms. Rhodes guessed.
Jack nodded once, but hard. "Morrigan," he assured us. "Rain-Morrigan."
"I dunno what that last bit means," I admitted.
"I think," she said, "Jack is implying you have the control here."
The bird twisted his head. "Jack?"
"Jack has the control?" she tried next.
He twisted his head the other way. "Rain?"
"You and Rain work together to control her power?"
He shook his head at that. "Jack. Rain. Rain-Jack. Rain-Jack, Rain. Rain, Morrigan!"
"He gave his power to me, which made me the Morrigan, but he can still help?" I guessed wildly.
"Rain!" Jack nodded. This time, it was a lot, slinging his beak as fast and as hard as he could.
Ms. Rhodes chuckled at his antics. "Ok. So how does the shadow fit in, Jack?"
"Shadow-Morrigan-Shadow," he replied.
"Not following," she admitted.
The bird pulled in a breath, then sighed before ruffling his feathers. "Rain-Jack, Morrigan. Rain-Jack-Dad-Court, Shadow. Hunt, Shadow. Shadow." He pointed his beak at Ms. Rhodes. "Shadow." Then to me. "Shadow!" And finally to the shape on the wall.
And right on cue, my silhouette lifted a hand and a tendril of darkness wafted up. Ms. Rhodes tensed so hard she sat up straight. I groaned, waving the dark - and clearly terrifying - smoke-shadow away. Jack simply extended his wings and flapped in place once.
"Are you controlling that?" Ms. Rhodes asked.
"Nope," I said.
"But that isn't possible," she breathed. "Rain, you're the Morrigan, not your shadow. It's..."
"Shadow!" Jack supplied. "Rain-Shadow."
"Yeah..." I drawled. "Jack, I'm getting the impression no one really knows what you mean."
"He does," Ms. Rhodes reminded me. "He's still someone, Rain. Never forget that. Your companion is as fae and as powerful as I am. He very muchissomeone. We simply do not speak the same language."
"Isn't there a spell for that?"
