"Thomas!" Charlie called. "Don't let him turn around!"

To my surprise Thomas looked around for a moment, then right at us. Charlie had raised his voice quite a bit, but hadn't shouted. I couldn't believe Thomas could hear him. Charlie pointed and Thomas glanced to the side, then nodded ever so slightly. A guy walking by was the only thing Charlie could be pointing at. Thomas said something to Dani and Dani started rummaging in his bag. The guy walked by them without incident, and Charlie sighed in relief.

"Thanks!" he called. Thomas shrugged and waved.

"What was that?" I asked.

"Kevin."

"Kevin? Oh!" The name clicked in my mind. "The one Dani punched?"

Charlie blushed. "Actually... I'm the one who hit him."

"What happened?"

"Let's just say that he's got a bit of a flame for me and is of the opinion that what happens on the ship stays on the ship. You can only, ah... suggest how you're better than a fire elemental's significant other so many times before his temper flares. To be fair, I think it worked out better for Kevin this way."

"How is a black eye better?"

"Because I guarantee if Danio had been there, Kevin would have ended up with worse than that." He laughed as he said it, but I had a feeling he meant it.

"Do all elementals have problems controlling their tempers?"

"Depends on the kind. Fire elementals... Well, we're the worst."

"What do you—" I cut off my question as a couple of students sat down in the seat in front of us. This wasn't the sort of conversation they could overhear.

Charlie flashed me an understanding grin. "Excited for the trip?"

Even as I nodded, the bus started up. The ride to the airport was similar to the one in Ecuador. Everyone on the bus was on this trip, and we all tried to figure out which classes we shared and which trips we had been on. Beth, who seemed to have completely recovered from being fed on by a vampire, was with us. I couldn't help but wonder if he had bitten anyone else on the bus. A thought occurred to me, and I shivered.

"Charlie?" I whispered. I leaned closer to his ear. I didn't want to be overheard, but my question couldn't wait. "Will anyone he bit turn into a dhampir?"

"No. He..." Charlie sighed and looked disturbed. "If he wanted to, he could turn them. But it won't happen just from a bite."

"Do you think he will?" It had been one thing seeing TS stake a stranger. I didn't think I could handle seeing him stake another student.

"I hope not." His eyes slowed and darkened to the smoldering coals I had started to associate with worry and sorrow. "I really hope not."

We were silent for the rest of the ride. I couldn't stop thinking about the vampire and wondering just how much I still had to learn about magic. I wasn't sure what Charlie was thinking, but I could tell from his eyes that the vampire wasn't far from his mind, either. We weren't able to sit next to each other on the plane, and I spent the flight looking out at the Andes and the clouds. It was dark when we landed. Charlie and I sat next to each other on the bus from the airport to the hotel. The desert was unbelievably dark. The only man-made lights for what looked like miles around were from the bus. The only other source of light came from an incredible display of stars. We unloaded at a restaurant in the town we were staying in and ate dinner before walking a couple of blocks to the hotel. The town was like something out of a history book. Every building was a low, one-story clay structure. We walked down a street packed with people and lined with shops that were all one long building with doors cut in every few yards. The street was just sand, and by the time we stopped at our hotel, I was coated in red dust from the knees down. It was also freezing cold, so I was glad I had bundled up. I picked up my key and suitcase, and then went in search of my room. When I got there, I found that Beth, my roommate for the trip, was already there.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"We are going to be so cold," she said when I entered. She pointed to a potbellied stove against one wall with a large pile of wood next to it.

"I guess we start a fire."

It took us a while to get a nice, cozy fire burning. The problem was we couldn't feel the heat from our beds. Even worse was the two-inch gap under the door. I could hear the wind whistling in and was sure I could feel it on my feet when I took off my shoes. We were both dusty and sandy from the walk, but when Beth went to shower, we discovered that the water was so cold a shower wasn't worth it. We changed into our pajamas and were still so cold that we put our street clothes back on. We both woke up shivering in the middle of the night and saw that the fire had died down. It took us several minutes to get it burning again. I pulled on an extra sweater and a hat before getting back in bed. Beth raided the bathroom and added the towels to her bed. The second time I woke up, I had an idea.

"Beth?" I whispered. She didn't even move.

I pulled my wand out of my purse and crept over to the stove. After tossing some dry wood on it I aimed my wand at it. "Mar," I hissed. A few sparks appeared and quickly went out. It took a few tries before a sliver of wood started to smolder. I wondered if I could manipulate an already existing fire. I cast the spell again, but instead of trying to make sparks I envisioned the little sparks getting bigger. A triumphant grin spread across my face as it worked. The sparks grew larger and brighter. After two more spells, the wood had caught, and the fire was gaining strength. As I climbed back into bed, it occurred to me that casting the spells had made me tired enough that I'd probably sleep through the rest of the night, even if the fire went out again.

It was still dark out when we woke up. We bundled up before walking down to the dining room. Everyone we met on the way commented on how cold it was. Our breakfast was nothing but a single roll with a lump of butter and I was still hungry when I got on the bus.

"Hungry?" Charlie asked me with a grin. He opened his backpack to reveal the roll he hadn't eaten.

"Yeah." I hesitated. "Aren't you?"

"Already ate," he said with a wink. He lowered his voice and added, "There's really nice, dry wood here."

"If you're sure." I reached for the roll, but he held it away.

"Hang on." He tore the roll open and dropped a lump of butter in. He held it for a few seconds and then handed it to me.

I laughed in amazement; the roll was hot and the butter had melted. "Oh wow, thank you!"

"No problem."

Our first stop of the day was a large salt flat nearby. When we arrived, we got off the bus and followed the guide on foot along a path. Our guide talked about the history of the salt flats and pointed out flamingos and other birds as we walked. By the time we were free to wander on our own, it had started to warm up. I was considering taking off my jacket, when I thought of Charlie and his need to stay warm. I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it before! He could have been freezing all night and I had been more worried about myself.

"Are you alright?"

He lowered the binoculars he had been using and looked at me in surprise. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"It was so unbelievably cold last night, not to mention most of this morning," I said softly.

"Ah. I'm fine, thanks for worrying though. I'm my own personal heater. It's also so dry here that the cold doesn't make a difference. It's easier to keep a fire going on a freezing night than in the rain, right?"

I nodded.

"I'm used to New York weather, and it's a lot wetter there, so this doesn't bother me too much. Plus, if I do start to get cold, I can warm myself up. But, like when you use magic, it's tiring after a while. So, I'm only doing it when I'm cold."

He raised his binoculars again and made an odd series of hissing sounds as he scanned the horizon. It reminded me of Dani humming to himself and I wondered if there was a fire elemental language too. "Ah-ha!" he said before I could ask. He moved his head back, keeping the binoculars still. "Check this out."

I looked through them and saw nothing. "What am I looking for?"

"A salamander."

"What?" I pulled back and glared at him. "How am I going to see a salamander from this far away?"

Charlie wrinkled his nose. "I don't mean the little slimy, nasty kind. I mean a salamander. Fire creature."

I looked through the binoculars again. I slowly focused in and out with them, and suddenly I saw a large rock stand up. It was redder than the surrounding rocks and shaped like a giant lizard. It yawned, and I saw a small plume of smoke rise out of its mouth. It lumbered a few feet and then settled back down.

"Wow," I breathed. "How big is it?"

"Full grown they get around thirty feet," Charlie said. "They usually live near volcanoes, and I can sense a semi-active one over there. He'll probably sun himself until late afternoon, then head back in."

I laughed and handed him back the binoculars. As we got back on the bus, I couldn't help but smile. When my life wasn't in immediate jeopardy from a vampire, being a witch was getting really, really amazing. The rest of the day wasn't very magical, but exciting nonetheless. We spent most of the afternoon in a museum, ate dinner in a restaurant with a bonfire in the middle, and spent the evening shopping in town. I was heading back to my room for bed, when Charlie stopped me outside of mine.

"I talked to this guy who got a single room," Charlie said with a smirk. "Told him I was worried my roommate isn't comfortable with my, ah... preferences. So, now I have the single. Care to join me?"

I frowned, wondering why he was offering to share a room. "Are we in danger?"