Zodiac Academy: The Awakening As Told By The Boys

One measly message from Darius telling me to stay away was all I’d had since last night. I’d hunted the whole of campus for him and had finally given up as evening drew in. When the moon was high and the darkness was deep, I headed down to the beach of Air Cove to consult with the shadows.

Pain was ricocheting through my body with every step I took. His pain. And the Guardian bond begged me to find him, to heal him, but he clearly didn’t give a fuck about what I wanted.

I’d called Francesca late last night and found out exactly what he’d been off doing, but if he’d gotten himself hurt in a Nymph fight why wasn’t he fucking healing himself?

I resisted the desire to call him again and glanced up and down this rocky part of the beach, knowing coming here was always a risk, but our secrets were hidden well enough and could only be unveiled with a draining dagger.

I used my blade to slice open my thumb before cutting through the spells to allow me access to the cave. I cast a Faelight as I walked inside and ensured the dark concealment closed up behind me like curtains drawing together. I sank down on a flat rock with a hiss, clutching my side where the flare of pain in Darius’s flesh flared within my own. His ribs were bruised badly for sure, probably broken but this pain was nothing compared to the agony the bond was causing me over not being able to help him.

I scrubbed at my eyes then raised the dagger to the centre of my palm, wanting the shadows to draw me into them and seek their dark guidance of what was coming. Maybe I’d finally see something that could assist us in defeating Lionel, but part of me simply wanted to escape into their embrace. I hesitated before I made the incision, thinking of my father’s advice to never slip into the shadows with a fraught mind. And my mind was particularly fucking fraught right now.

My hand began to shake and I curled it into a tight fist as anger slammed through the centre of my chest. The call of the shadows was like a Siren’s song in my head, begging me to give into it, to let it take away all of my pain. And it was so star damned tempting. Maybe it would be a good thing to let them take hold of me. Maybe I’d find some peace if I just…

With a surge of willpower, I stood up, hurling the dagger with all my might so it hit the wall, the sound ringing through the air like a bell tolling my imminent fucking end.

“Darius!” I bellowed so loud I swear it ripped my lungs in two. I couldn’t go on like this. I had to heal him. I had to make sure he was alright. I was losing my fucking mind and I didn’t know what to fucking do. How long was he going to avoid me for? How long was I going to endure this?

I shot across the cave, snatching up the dagger and pressing it to my palm. Fuck it. Maybe the shadows will show me where he is, or maybe they’ll at least give me some relief from this torture. I could handle them. I was trained to handle them.

Before I made the cut, Darius’s voice echoed through the cave, making my heart cease to beat. “I’m here.”

I swung around, dropping the dagger and shooting forward, colliding with him so hard I knocked him back against the wall at his back. A pained curse slipped from his lips as I pinned him in place with one hand, the other sliding up his shirt and seeking out the bruised flesh as I released a wave of healing magic from my body into his. He groaned, his fingers knotting in my hair as my forehead fell against his, but it wasn’t enough. He didn’t understand what he’d done. And now I had to fulfil this bond as fast as I could or I’d be driven to insanity. I ripped his shirt off his chest and he swore as I did the same to my own in the next second, pressing my flesh to his as my magic swelled against my skin and demanded he meet it with his own. He gave in to what I was asking, letting his magical barriers down so our power washed together in one furious storm of energy that made both of us groan.

I healed every mark I found on him, seeking out each bruise and cut, the cracks in his ribs and mending all of it while he clung to me and the tide of magic rolled between us.

“Fuck you,” I said through my teeth. “Why’d you stay away? Why have you done this?”

“I deserve every wound,” he said bitterly and I caught hold of his chin, searching his eyes and finding nothing but an empty grave there.

“What happened?” my anger twisted into concern and he shook his head, his gaze sliding away from me. “What happened?!” I barked, needing to know as my heart thrashed against my chest as fiercely as his own was thrashing.

“I found the group of Nymphs we’d been after and destroyed them,” he said and my mind spun over that. “Then I went home and saw Father,” he said simply, still not meeting my gaze and I instantly forgot about the Nymphs.

“It’s more than that,” I softened my voice as I realised Lionel must have done something terrible. Darius could withstand his beatings. He’d done so countless times. This was different. Something had changed, and I was terrified of what it was.

His throat bobbed as he looked back at me, looking so broken it shattered what whole pieces of my soul still remained. “He hurt Xavier.”

My teeth snapped together in anger over that and Darius tried to turn away again.

I stepped back, breaking the contact between us despite my hunger to stay closer.

“He wants me to deal with the Vegas,” he continued, his tone so hollow it frightened me. This wasn’t my friend. This was the creature Lionel wanted him to be. His leashed monster.

“We are dealing with them,” I tried, but maybe I knew that wasn’t exactly true. What had either of us really done to ensure they were no longer a problem to the Heirs? I’d watched as Darius had danced with Tory Vega and I hadn’t said a damn thing. I hadn’t even thought of anything except my own forbidden desires for the other Vega girl. We were failing so spectacularly at trying to get rid of them that we were ending up compromised because of them. And now Darius and Xavier were facing the price of that.

“We’re not,” he ground out. “Not even close. But we will. The Heirs and I have a plan.”

“What plan?” I demanded but he shrugged past me.

“It doesn’t matter. Just leave it to us.”

“So you expect me to stay out of this?”

“Yes, Lance,” he growled then his features softened and I saw the friend I loved rather than his father peering at me through his eyes. “I need you to trust me.”

“I do,” I rasped. “But…”

“But what?” he asked sharply.

I forced myself to keep talking, walking the line of what I was really saying here. “But it’s not that simple, is it? Those girls aren’t savage like their father. They’re just…girls.” And one of them has reached into my chest and taken hold of a cord tethered to my soul.

“It doesn’t matter what they are,” he muttered. “I won’t risk Xavier being tortured by my father. You don’t understand…”

“I don’t?” I scoffed, shooting in front of him as he tried to turn his back on me and smacking a palm against his chest to hold him still. “I watched your father steal my sister from this world.” My heart shredded in my chest as I fought to keep talking. “I heard her screams and I couldn’t go to her because of him. And trust me when I tell you, I will do everything in my power to ensure the same fate doesn’t befall your sibling, Darius.”

His features pinched and emotion blazed in his eyes. “I’m so afraid for him, Lance.”

“And I’m afraid of what you’ll become to save him,” I said in a low tone. “Because I would have cast my soul into damnation for Clara, and I see you on the brink of doing the same for Xavier. But there must be another way.”

Darius looked conflicted, hunting my eyes like he hoped he’d find an answer there. “What if there’s not? We’re just players in this game, and maybe it’s time we admitted we’re always going to lose because he’s the master of it. And whatever move he wants us to make, he’ll find a way to force us to make it so because he creates the rules.”

“Don’t talk like you’re giving up,” I growled, desperate to find that fire in him which always ignited in this cave. When he worked to learn everything I could teach him about dark magic so that he could one day use it against his father. But now his eyes looked empty and I couldn’t see any sign of the fight in him.

“Darius, please,” I said gruffly, gripping the back of his neck and yanking him closer. “Talk to me. We can find an answer together.”

“There is only one answer, Lance. There always was, we were just too fucking hopeful to see it before. All of this…” He gestured to the cave, to the draining dagger on the ground. “It was a way to fool ourselves into thinking we ever had a chance against him.”

“We do,” I snarled because it was all I had to hold onto. Without this drive to destroy Lionel, this purpose, what did I even have? The bottom of an empty bourbon bottle staring back at me. “Please don’t give up,” I fucking begged, losing all dignity as I clung to this need in me, desperate for him not to take it away. My revenge plot for Clara, my reason to get up in the morning. My soul was sewn together by these final worthwhile things in my life and without them it would be cast to the wind. I’d have nothing. I’d be nothing. And worst of all, Clara’s death would mean nothing.

He looked so defeated, it turned my heart to glass and smashed it into razor sharp shards.

“I’m sorry, Lance,” he said, looking me in the eyes and clearly meaning it with all of his being. “Really. I’m so fucking sorry for everything. But I would do anything to save Xavier from my father. And this is the price.”

He squeezed my arm, a war fought and lost in his eyes, then he dropped his hand and started walking away, leaving me there with my only remaining purpose in life torn clean from my chest. I was a husk with no more direction than a dandelion seed in the wind.

And I swear I could feel the stars coming loose from the sky, every one of them threatening to fall.

***

Sunday was a haze of booze and sleep. When I was conscious, I was drunk. When I wasn’t, I was stuck in nightmares where my sister screamed for help in a room full of black veils and every one I tore down to find her only led me to another.

Monday arrived and I dragged myself through classes on autopilot, taking my rage out on my students to try and satisfy the wild animal in me. But nothing did.

I headed to Pitball practice after hours, hoping to find some joy in training, but the Heirs were sombre and I somehow missed Grus’s enthusiasm on the field as rain beat down on us and I barked orders at all the players until my throat was hoarse.

Darius had descended into a dark mood that hadn’t seemed to have lifted at all since our conversation in the cave and I knew there was little I could do to change that. The Guardian bond burned at me, begging me to please him but there was nothing within my power that could help. So we trudged our way through training and when everyone was thoroughly miserable, I dismissed the team and remained out in the pouring rain, gazing up at the black, unforgiving sky and wondering if the stars were laughing beyond the storm. Maybe we were their playthings here on Earth, doomed to dance in a show they called life. Their entertainment on tap.

I didn’t want company, so I used the speed of my Order to shoot to the locker room and collect my bag before tearing back out of it and exiting the stadium. I shot all the way back to Asteroid Place, shoving the gate open and tearing up to my chalet. Inside, I dripped water on the floor and let my bag fall from my hand.

I grabbed the TV remote, switching it onto the news. I’d been checking all day for any updates on the attack on Grus. The Nymph attack hadn’t been announced and I had to assume the Councillors had bought themselves time to prepare for the attention that would be turned their way. But it looked like their time was up because the newscaster was revealing it to the world now, interjecting it with statements from the Councillors who were promising the kingdom that the problem was a rogue incident. Which was utter bullshit, they just didn’t want a panic on their hands.

My gaze fell to the empty bottles of bourbon sitting on the kitchen counter, then to the three new ones lined up beside them. The news report changed to some dull story about a Pegasus kid who’d Emerged super early at six years old. She was singing the colours of the rainbow while glitter tumbled from her hair and I lifted the remote to turn it off. “-and yellow and pink and green, orange and purple and-”

“Blue,” I gasped, tossing the remote and shooting out of the door with a curse, tearing across campus towards Jupiter Hall.

I made it inside, slowing to a walk as I rounded into the corridor that led to my office and found Darcy standing outside it looking pissed. My heart crashed against my ribcage like a trapped animal and anger rose in me as I stared at the sum of all my problems. Her and her sister had no idea about the trouble they were causing. They’d fucked everything up and now I didn’t even know what Darius was going to do to try and deal with them. It set me so on edge, I didn’t know who to be angrier at or if I should just throw all of my rage at the stars and tell each and every one of them to get fucked.

I kept my eyes firmly off of her as I jammed my key in the lock of my office, pushing it open and stepping inside without a word. Screw her, dammit. Why did she have to be like this? Why couldn’t she be a bitch? Or at the very least, ugly.

I stalked up to my desk, trying to block out the roaring drone in my head and wishing I’d had the forethought to drain a glass of bourbon before I’d come here.

My door suddenly flew open so hard it smashed into the wall and I didn’t even bother to look back as I dropped into my ottoman chair and started siphoning the mud and water off of myself, trying to focus my thoughts so I didn’t completely lose my shit.

After a beat, Darcy cleared her throat and I waved a hand, throwing the door shut with air magic, using as much force as she’d opened it with.

“Stand on the desk,” I commanded, my voice flaring with Coercion. How weak are you still? Or are you finally learning to hone that power of yours?

I looked up at her at last, finding her eyes shut as she concentrated and I stole every forbidden second staring at her face. I never got to just look at her, always having to turn away, to steal every little glance. But now I was taking what I kept craving, my eyes travelling down the smooth apples of her cheeks, the slope of her small nose, the bridge of her upper lip and the fullness of her bottom one. I tried to figure out why that face was endlessly tempting to me beyond her obvious beauty. Then I suddenly realised she wasn’t moving. She wasn’t obeying.

She released a long breath, opening her eyes and I swear her gaze sent a needle driving into my heart. I kept my features neutral, giving nothing away on how impressed I was at her fighting off Coercion as powerful as mine.

I clucked my tongue like it was nothing, even though it was absolutely the opposite.

“Good. Let’s get on with tonight’s session.” I glanced at my watch to see how late I really was. Well fuck me. “All thirty five minutes of it.”

She dropped into the seat opposite me and my jaw began to tick as her proximity felt like a vacuum drawing the air from my lungs. But there was to be no more sinful thoughts of this girl. I was done with falling under her spell. I was stronger than that. I had a will made of sun steel and no girl – no matter how alluring – would tempt me into treacherous thoughts again.

“Geraldine’s doing better,” she said, eyeing me closely like she thought I might have something interesting to stay in relation to that. I didn’t.

“Yes, thank the stars,” I said hollowly. “She can go back to annoying us all by preaching about the ‘True Heirs’.” I air-quoted those words, falling back on my finer talents of being an asshole. It was unfortunate such a skill wasn’t a class here at Zodiac or I would have passed it with flying colours.

“Any idea who attacked her?” she asked airily. Her hair was curling from the rain, the sheen of the blue ends like nightglass. It was a rare substance made when a Storm Dragon’s lightning impacted with sand. There was a place out near Alestria where it could be found, but the ruthless Oscura gang had claimed ownership of it. I possessed one piece of it though, gifted to me by Gabriel.

“Whatever I know or do not know about that incident is none of your business.” I stared her down, hoping she’d flinch, but she didn’t. I wanted her hate, I wanted to push her until she withdrew from me. Until she stopped sitting there with her accusing eyes.

She scrunched her fingers up in the black skirt she was wearing, drawing it further up her thighs and my gaze fell straight to her bare flesh. I pictured spreading those legs, driving her down on my desk and making her take my cock like a good girl.

Then I crushed my teeth together and leaned back in my chair as I slapped on a cool expression that gave nothing away of how much my cock was thickening at the thought of Darcy Vega laid bare for me on this very desk.

“So, how is Order Enhancement coming along?” I stacked my hands on my stomach and her eyes dipped to where my shirt was riding up above my waistband before snapping back up to meet my gaze. Fuck she was pretty when she was flustered. And I really didn’t want to be amused, but a muscle in the corner of my mouth dared to twitch.

“Well I know I’m not a Werewolf,” she said with a shrug, composing herself fast and that word on her lips brought my mood crashing back down to a furious zero.

“Yes, a great way to figure out if you’re a Werewolf is dancing with one of them like you were paid for it.” I gave her a long, hard stare that let her know I’d seen her. I’d seen and I’d heard and I knew she desired that asshole. A fact I’d made a point of ignoring ever since Friday night. But now she was here, bringing it up and my insides were on fire again, doused in rocket fuel and lit up like a bonfire.

She shifted nervously, seeming uncomfortable of my assessment. And I started regretting saying it. It wasn’t professional. Why should I mention it at all? But at the same time, I was so fucking curious as to whether she’d gone through with what she’d clearly wanted from him on that dancefloor. Had they fucked? Had he had her beneath him moaning his name?

I couldn’t stand the thought of it. It made me want to hunt him down and rip his head clean from his shoulders. And I knew that was irrational and so much more besides, but I was on this path and I couldn’t get off it. I had to know. Had he had her? Would I have to accept that that strutting prick of a dog had laid a claim on her which I could never hope to?

Her cheeks were flushed as my gaze became no less intense and I didn’t back down from the question that was hanging in the air between us. And why not ask it? Put a voice to it? It was there anyway. And perhaps I could ask in such a way that didn’t hint at my interest in the subject. I simply couldn’t read the answer from her expression, so fuck it, I was going to ask.

“And screwing him didn’t bring out the wolf in you either?” I said completely calmly, not giving away the stormy sea inside me that brought cliffs down into its waters. It was just a simple question, meant to mock. I was an asshole teacher, that was what she’d think. Nothing else.

Her lips pressed tightly together and anger flashed in her eyes like lightning. “I didn’t,” she hissed. “And it would be none of your business if I did.”

Relief hummed like a song in my veins. It echoed through every inch of me and I didn’t let an iota of it show on my face. But I scooted my chair forward until our bare knees brushed together and the smoothness of her skin made me ache for more contact. I was supposed to be rational right now, but it was the last thing I was. This man was bordering on insanity and she was the voices in my head, telling me to do the unthinkable.

I leaned forward and her lips parted, the breath she drew in seeming to draw me in too. “It’s my business as your Liaison to look out for you. The Heirs will chew you up and spit you out, Miss Vega. Just a friendly warning.” I said it in a way that was anything but friendly, my fangs extending as I hoped to drive the point home. Run for your star damned life, Blue. I cannot protect you and I wouldn’t even if I could.

She rested her palms on the desk, leaning closer rather than retreating from me and my dick hardened for her the moment her scent wrapped around me. She was the sweetest fucking fruit I’d ever seen, hanging there so ripe and appetising that my mouth was watering for a bite. Just one, lingering bite.

I trained my ears on her heartbeat, finding it pattering out a frantic tune that gave me a hit of power, helping my head clear as I realised she wasn’t as confident as she looked.

“Funnily enough, sir, I’ve taken an interest in your business too lately.” She didn’t blink, delivering those words carefully like she’d constructed them in her mind before now. We were playing her game, but I was already crowned the winner. She just couldn’t see it yet.

I cocked my head, my mouth tugging up at the corner as I enjoyed the confident look on her face while knowing she had nothing on me. “Well don’t keep me in suspense, Miss Vega. I’m dying to hear the speech you’ve written for this occasion.” I smirked darkly, knowing what she was angling at. That I was out for her and her sister’s blood, that she thought me capable of murder, and of course therefore believed Geraldine Grus’s attacker was right in this chair. She’d already accused me of plotting her and Tory’s deaths and if I was in her shoes, I’d probably have drawn the same conclusion. But the problem with Darcy’s little Poirot moment, was that she had no evidence and she clearly hadn’t watched the news recently.

She eyed my expression, realising I’d already figured out what she was about to say and folded her arms as she glared at me. Well you did have a speech planned, didn’t you, Blue?

Her eyes were full of hellfire and I had to admit I was enjoying getting her riled up like this. She raised a hand, counting off her points one at a time. “You and Darius have been against Tory and I since we stepped in the door. You meet up in secret and you talk about going on killing sprees like it’s completely normal. You chat with some stupidly hot model in a bar who is apparently in the know about your killing sprees and then you corner me in a women’s bathroom like a psycho. Then later that evening both you and Darius go conveniently missing just before Geraldine turns up almost dead in a strange attack. Oh and who happens to be the first on the scene? You. Covered in blood and smelling like cinnamon.”

That was a lot to process. And my brows had taken a flight towards my hairline as I picked each of those points apart, focusing on two that perhaps should have been the least relevant, but to me were very interesting. Stupidly hot model? Am I totally fucking deluded in thinking the way she said that sounded like jealousy? And holy shit, has she been smelling me?

A grin ripped across my face, a traitor in itself but I couldn’t stop it as I realised Blue might actually have some interest in me beyond her witch hunt. “Cinnamon?”

“Yes,” she said firmly, but her cheeks were getting red and she was growing more flustered, more fucking edible. “Geraldine smelled it and that’s what you smell like so…” She raised her chin like she’d made a great point, like this was some undeniable evidence against me, when in fact all it was was a confession that she knew what I smelled like and apparently it was worth noting.

“And how many people have you told this, Miss Vega?” I asked casually which seemed to piss her off more. I was doing it on purpose, delighting in getting under her skin. Because if she looked this cute while semi-composed, I simply had to know what she looked like when she lost it completely. And I was enjoying this so much that I didn’t even let myself think of all the reasons why I shouldn’t be toying with her. Not least the way the head of my cock was throbbing.

“Enough that if you lay a hand on me, the whole school will know what you’re up to before midnight.” Triumph spread over her face, and it was so fucking cute I almost wished she wasn’t about to be cut down to size. Not enough to stop me from doing it though.

“Well it seems you’ve been spending a lot of your time spying on me – and smelling me apparently. But I’m still waiting for you to plant the evidence on my desk?” I gazed at her hands, pretending I was looking for it when I knew full well she had absolutely jack shit on me. “No?” I taunted. “No video, photo, audio recording? No evidence at all?”

The colour in her cheeks started to drain and I calmly took my Atlas from my sports bag, placing it under her nose and showing her the news report that had recently gone out.

Wounds on Zodiac Academy Student Now Confirmed as a Nymph Attack.

Professor Orion (the head of his field in Cardinal Magic at Zodiac Academy) is expected to be awarded the Noble Crest after his act of bravery saved her moments before her death.

Her eyes fell to the words and I watched, drinking in every second as embarrassment radiated from her.

“Oh,” she breathed.

“Yes – oh. Now can we return to your session or do you have any more wild accusations you want to throw around? Is Principal Nova dealing drugs under the bleachers at the Pitball Stadium? Or is Professor Pyro starting fires in The Wailing Wood?” I laughed at my own words, though the sound stuttered out as she shoved to her feet, knocking her chair over in her haste as she aimed a poisonous glare at me.

“You know what? I’m done with these sessions. I know what I heard, sir. And maybe you didn’t attack Geraldine but I know you’re up to something.” She strode toward the door and in a split-second decision, I decided that that girl was currently the only thing making my life seem remotely enjoyable and if she left, she wouldn’t come back in here. She wouldn’t bring her light to me anymore. I’d be alone in the dark again and with everything that had happened lately I needed her to stay.

I flew in front of her with my speed, blocking her way out and trapping her, knowing it was crazy, stupid, a selfish desire. But I wanted her in this room. With me. For as long as I could keep her.

“Don’t bite me,” she snarled, stepping back in a rage. “You took almost everything from me the other day and I’ve only just got my full power back.”

My brows knitted together in surprise as a jolt ran through me. “You got it back? How?”

She shook her head. “I’m not sure.”

“Well pay attention next time.” I stepped forward and she slammed a hand to my chest, the heat of her palm almost making me curse.

“Don’t,” she commanded, her eyes flaring with how much she didn’t want my fangs in her. And I was surprised by how much that stung.

“I wasn’t going to bite you,” I muttered and her shoulders sagged with relief, making my stomach knot tightly. I just don’t want you to leave. Because when you do, I’ll have to return to reality. And my reality sucks so fucking much, you have no idea. I stepped back and pointed to her chair, flicking a finger to force it upright with a gust of air. “Stay. Finish the session.” Please.

She glanced at the door uncertainly, looking unsure if she even wanted to stay. And I couldn’t really blame her. I wasn’t exactly a barrel of laughs. “Will you answer something for me first?”

“Depends what it is,” I said in a low voice. Because there are some secrets I can never tell. But to keep you right now, I think I’d tell them all.

“Do you want me and my sister dead?” She gave me a hard look that spoke of how much she needed this answer, staring into my eyes as she waited to try and assess my answer, to seek the truth from my eyes.

My gaze travelled over her beautiful face and there was only one answer I could really give, because no matter what happened from here on out, I was sure that I didn’t want to see her or her sister die. To see this girl perish would break something in me I didn’t even know existed until I met her. “No, Blue. I don’t.”

Silence spanned between us and a heavy breath left my chest the same time it did hers. She frowned at me like she couldn’t work out what I was thinking and honestly, I wasn’t sure I even knew. My head was messed up over Darius, but it was messed up over her too. At this moment in time, I felt torn in two directions, and part of me wanted to lock the door and remain in here for as long as I could get away with. For as long she’d stay.

“So…what do you wanna teach me?” she asked, clearly still pissed at me over how her accusations had gone down.

My fingers flexed with the urge to take hold of her, but I jerked my head in a command instead, figuring it was best to keep some distance from her. “Sit down.”

She did and I walked around, opening a drawer in my desk and taking out one of my favourite tomes. The Illustrated Guide to Orders and their Gifts.

The cover was hand painted, the Order constellations delicately brushed onto its black surface in gold and glittering gemstones marked the stars.

Darcy reached out to touch it, her fingers brushing mine and her eyes igniting with a spark I remembered from my days studying at this academy. She was hungry for knowledge and I had the quiet urge to feed her every scrap I had even if that was a dangerous idea. Because knowledge was power and power in Solaria was everything. Still…I was her teacher, her Liaison. So there was no harm in playing the role a little.

I slid the book towards her and she sucked her bottom lip into her mouth as she opened it, the sight doing more to me than the best porn in the world. I took the opportunity of her distraction to sit down and rearrange my dick in my shorts, shifting closer on my chair, but not close enough for our knees to touch again.

“Here,” I said, my voice coming out hard and rough around the lump swelling in my throat as I pointed to the contents page, every Order laid out with a tiny symbol of their kind beside each. “These are the Orders.” The list in this book was as close to a complete encyclopaedia of every Order ever known to exist as you could get. There was always a chance there could be a new, strange and rare Order form discovered, but so far as anyone knew at this moment in time, this book had it all. I’d given them a short list of some of the more common Orders to study in my Cardinal Magic class, but this right here had every single Order listed in it, which had to mean hers lay between its pages too.

“There’s so many,” she breathed in awe, turning page after page of the contents while I watched with rapt attention to every tiny movement of her eyes, her lips. She was entirely captivating to me and I was caught off guard again as her gaze flicked up to meet mine, a smile lifting her mouth that wasn’t for me. It was for that book. And the idea that it made her happy had my heart beating to a fierce tune, demanding I show her more, every favoured one in my damn collection. Which was absurd because I coveted those books and I’d never cared to share them with anyone. But if each one delivered me a smile as natural as that then it seemed inevitable that I was going to show her them all. Not fucking sensible though.

I cleared my throat, realising she was waiting for direction and I reached out to turn the page, revealing the first Order. The Aalarian Aardvark.

On the left hand page was a skilled painting of the creature in full colour, its bronze and rust scales shimmering on the page, the artwork so realistic it looked as though it could walk right out of the book. On the right hand page were stats about its size, its needs, its gifts and what it required to recharge its magic.

I pointed to that part of the text, showing that an Aalarian Aardvark needed to curl up and roll down hills to recharge its power, silently thanking the stars I didn’t have to do anything so ludicrous to recharge my own power.

“I want you to look through these pages and read each of these,” I instructed. “If you find anything that resonates with you, then you will note down the Order and I shall conduct some tests to see whether we are getting closer to discovering which one you’ll Emerge as.”

She nodded, turning the page, her eyes widening at the Abada there, a rare Order which was like a small, wingless Pegasus with two crooked horns and a boar’s tail.

“However,” I continued. “It is worth noting that some Orders have little known about them because they are either too rare or extinct. There are some colonies of Muskian Tigers for example who live independent of society and covet the secrets of their Order, but what is known will be found between these pages.”

She nodded, looking anxious to keep going as she turned another page.

“If you have any questions, then feel free to ask,” I said, but she was lost in her own world now, turning page after page, her head cocking and her nose getting closer and closer to the book as she let it fill up her field of vision.

I let myself watch, finding peace in her naivety to our world, and with the chaos raging outside of this room, I allowed myself to indulge in it. Because this was surely the calm before the storm and I had no idea of the damage that was going to be caused when it came. So for now, I’d steal this moment of quiet, finding the ache in my soul lessening as her glow seemed to fill up the entirety of my office. It felt like a truce during a war, our weapons temporarily put down and in a moment of insanity, I wondered what it would be like to leave them cast aside.