Spellcaster

At the front gates, Rafael accuses the Hallistars of wrongdoing related to the death of his wife, Isabel, and invokes their blood oath. He also suggests that Paisley is responsible for the monster attacks. The confrontation rattles Beth, and Paisley’s parents leave early. That night, Paisley wakes with the certainty that the school’s protective blanket has vanished. She sees monsters emerging from the forest and sprints to Logan’s dorm, where she finds him shirtless. Logan insists the blanket still holds. When they return to her window, the monsters are gone. He suggests she imagined it, leaving Paisley questioning her perceptions.

In History of Necromancy class, Professor Jones explains that Weatherstone was built on an old battlefield to harness ambient death energy. After class, Logan and his friend Noah begin Paisley’s physical training, insisting she must build her body to manage her power. During magical practice, Paisley realizes Logan’s proximity unlocks and amplifies her abilities. Logan admits he cannot explain their connection and calls her a puzzle he has been trying to solve since she was four. Paisley’s magical progress during this time leads her teachers to suspect she might be a late-blooming spellcaster.

That night, Paisley dreams vividly of a sexual encounter with Logan and wakes to find her hands glowing with residual magic. Moments later, a disheveled Logan appears at her door, revealing that he had the exact same dream and blaming her for it. The shared experience leads to passionate sex in her room. They fall asleep together. In the morning, Paisley wakes alone but wearing one of Logan’s hoodies, confirming that the night was real.

Weeks later during training, Paisley uses her grandmother’s crystals to amplify a spell, proving they can boost her power. Paisley and Belle continue their research but cannot find the book Belle’s father mentioned. However, they find references to “demon-witches” (262), who were executed by their own kind in the past.

That evening, at the Blue Harvest Moon Festival, students drink bootlegged witch wine. Her father, Tom, serves as a chaperone and sees her with the drink but does not intervene. Upset after Logan brushes her off, Paisley gets drunk. Logan finds her stumbling and carries her toward her dorm. As they leave, Paisley sees a flash of fire at the chapel behind them, then blacks out.

The next morning, Paisley’s siblings arrive with news that the chapel burned down, and the school has suspended Tom without pay for failing to stop the underage drinking. The family returns home, where Paisley overhears her parents discussing their worsening finances. They fear they cannot pay the coven’s annual tithe, a failure that would force the family out of the magical community.

On Monday of the final week before winter break, Professor Damone assigns Marcus to evaluate Paisley for spellcaster status. Meanwhile, Paisley meets with Headmaster Gregor, who explains that a high-ranking community member filed the complaint against Tom and demanded the expulsion of all Hallistar children. Gregor denied the expulsion but warns that powerful elders now drive the case. He also announces that the school will permanently lift the protective blanket after graduation, alarming Paisley.

During assessment training, Logan arrives and insists on partnering with Paisley instead of Marcus. At the lake, his touch multiplies her power so much that she parts the entire body of water. Stunned, Marcus confirms her status as a spellcaster. When Paisley demands to know why Logan keeps interfering, he cryptically replies their fates were set when she was four, then vanishes. At dinner, Belle offers to ask her father to help with Tom’s case, but Paisley, wary of Elder Monroe after her conversation with Headmaster Gregor, declines.

In the days before assessments, Paisley learns that the elders plan to use a truth spell in Tom’s investigation. Noah warns her that Rafael is dangerous. In the library, Marcus shares his assessment notes and admits he has feelings for her; Paisley turns him down gently. During her official assessment, her enormous power surge inadvertently snuffs a magical control flame. The assessors, Professor Haliver and Professor Garrison, identify her as a spellcaster, formally recognizing her status.

On graduation day, which falls on Halloween, Paisley arranges to meet Logan at the graveyard after dinner to get answers. At the ceremony, Headmaster Gregor announces that the magic-suppressing blanket will be lifted for the night, when the veil between worlds is thinnest. Paisley’s sisters, Jenna and Alice, graduate and receive a joint assignment to their hometown coven. The headmaster mentions that there may be three spellcasters in the class, prompting many students to look toward Paisley.

After dinner, Paisley meets Logan at the graveyard. He tells her that Rafael did not file the complaint against Tom, implying that the accuser is someone closer. As he starts to explain their shared past, Paisley’s emotions spike, and monsters flood the grounds. Paisley shouts for their attacker to reveal themselves, but Logan concludes that it is her power drawing the monsters out. Logan orders her to use her crystal necklaces, links their power, and helps her banish the creatures. Beth arrives, drawn by the surge. Logan calls her a demon-witch, which she does not deny. He declares a claim on Paisley, giving Beth one month to train her before he returns. Beth opens a portal and brings Paisley home, where Tom hands her The Reapers of Purgatory—the book that Elder Monroe advised her to read—and promises to explain everything.