Chapter Eleven
Caulder
Bechora turned toward me slowly, her lips pressed together in displeasure.
Dropping my arms to my side, I stalked toward her.
She stood her ground, glaring at me as I closed the distance.
My mate's lack of fear in the face of an angry dragon pleased me.
The pride I felt in my little mate was quickly replaced by boiling rage.
She reeked of blood. It blended into the black of her training uniform, but the jagged tears in the top were enough to tell me it was hers.
“You’re injured,” I growled, smoke billowing out of my mouth with the words. “Who?”
“What? No, I’m fine. It was just a training accident,” she said, scrunching her face.
“Who?” I demanded again, clenching my hands into fists to combat the urge to grab her and steal her away somewhere safe.
“Dude, what is your damage? I told you I’m fine.”
“You are not fine. Your shirt is shredded, and you’re soaked in your own blood.” I snarled, reaching out and tugging at the rip near her shoulder.
She jerked out of my grasp and scowled at me.
“Hands off. Whatever this”—she waved a finger in some semblance of a circle in my direction—“is, I’m not with it.
I wasn’t trying to skip the meeting, I just forgot.
I imagine being mauled by a god damned bear would cause anyone to forget. You don’t get to manhandle me over it.”
She was yelling by the time she finished speaking, and all I could do was blink at her in stunned silence. Crossing her arms in front of her chest in a mirror of my own stance moments before, she tapped her foot on the pavement.
“Look, if we’re done here… I’m starving. I’d like to get something to eat from the dining hall and then shower off this awful day before I crash.”
“We’re not done here.” I scoffed. “We had a meeting scheduled. We will have it. Follow me to my office, Ms. Knight.” I turned back toward the admin building, listening for the sound of her footsteps behind me.
When I didn’t hear them, I paused. “Ms. Knight, unless you would like a detention, you will follow me to my office for our meeting.”
She let out a huff, but I could hear her moving toward me.
I continued my way toward the lone black tower that held the administration offices before heading inside and climbing the winding staircase to the fifth floor.
Bechora wisely followed behind me in silence.
While I was pleased that she didn’t cow before me as my mate, her desire to verbally spar with me made it difficult to maintain the boundaries between us.
When we finally entered my office, I moved behind my desk and motioned for her to take one of the empty high-backed chairs on the other side.
Her eyes flitted around the small space, taking in the dark decor and massive bookshelves behind her.
Smiling to myself, I stooped down and pulled a Tupperware container with homemade stir fry from the bottom drawer of my desk.
Wrapping my hands around the container, I muttered the words to release the cooling spell and called forth the heat of my dragon.
Once I was sure it was adequately warmed, I strolled back around my desk and handed it to Bechora.
“Eat,” I commanded.
She shot me a suspicious look and opened the container. “I didn’t know Tupperware existed here. Is this actually safe to eat?”
“It’s not poisoned, if that’s what you mean.” I snorted. “It’s stir-fry. I picked up the recipe during a trip to the human realm, along with a handful of those plastic containers. They’re almost as handy as magic.”
“This is real stir fry?” she asked, sniffing at the food as she removed the fork I’d attached to the lid. “It’s not some weird fairy shit that you cooked up to look like stir fry?”
“For the love of Selir, would you just eat?” I groaned. “You said you were hungry, and I would like for that to not be a distraction during our meeting.”
Bechora scoffed but did as I asked. I moved back to my chair and settled in, trying to busy myself with anything I could to avoid staring at my mate. She let out a soft moan of pleasure, and I stiffened, my eyes shooting to her face.
“This is actually really good,” she said before shoveling another bite into her mouth.
“Yes, well, I take great pleasure in perfecting recipes. I’d be truly surprised if you didn’t like it.”
“That’s surprisingly human, albeit arrogant as fuck.” She laughed.
“It’s not arrogant when it’s true.” I smirked, forgetting for a moment that I needed to maintain my distance. “Dragons are known to have a great many skills.”
“Alright, Gordon Ramsey. Whatever you say,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“I know not of this Gordon of which you speak.”
“Of course not.” She snorted before turning her attention back to her meal.
This time I couldn’t take my eyes off of her.
She was almost beastly in the way she shoveled the stir-fry into her mouth.
I’d never once found myself aroused by the way a female ate, but there was something so wild and carefree about Bechora inhaling food I’d made that it didn’t take long before I was adjusting myself in my slacks.
I wasn’t sure if it was the mate bond or her, but it was making me question my resolve.
The only thing that kept me in check was the knowledge of what would happen if anyone found out she was mine.
“Thank you for the food,” she said softly, leaning forward to set the now-empty dish on my desk. “Would you mind telling me what this meeting is about?”
“Yes,” I said, pausing to clear my throat. “I scheduled this meeting as I thought it would be useful for you to work on your shielding ability outside of classes.”
“I don’t understand. It’s a pretty common ability, from what I read before the term started.”
“Shielding is a common ability. Even those who cannot produce them on their own can create one with a spell. What isn’t common is the ability to create nearly impenetrable shields, which you did.
Your roommate told me everything she’d tried to break it, and any one of the spells she used would have broken a normal shield summoned by a novice.
” I didn’t bother telling her that I suspected the only reason I’d been able to break the shield was because I was her mate.
“Only two others on campus can create a shield that strong. One of them is Dean Femirea, the other is a third-year student.”
“Oh,” she replied, her eyes wide. “But at orientation, they said I was a fire mage.”
“It’s not uncommon for supernaturals to have a second ability. Typically, their primary ability will manifest during the orientation rituals, and their secondary will appear shortly thereafter.”
Bechora frowned, her lips pursing for a second before she spoke. “What if there are more than two?”
“It’s rare, but true elemental mages do exist. They can control all of the elements: fire, water, air, and earth.
Depending on parentage, they could have innate shielding abilities.
” I studied her reaction closely, noting what appeared to be disappointment.
“As I said, true elemental mages are incredibly rare. It’s far more common to have one or two abilities. ”
She wiggled her finger in a circle as if to physically bring us back to the point—“how do I access it? Because I gotta be honest, it would have been insanely useful in combat class today. I wouldn’t have ended up mauled by a damned bear.”
My dragon bristled at the mention of her sparring accident, and I made a mental note to have a word with Rumlock.
“We’re going to attempt a visualization exercise to locate your power.”
Bechora let out an amused snort. “Just close my eyes and go to my happy place, then?”
“Not exactly,” I replied. “But yes, it’s easier if you close your eyes.
” I waited a moment for her to do so, watching as she relaxed back into the chair.
“Most supernaturals describe their magic as feeling like a ball of energy within their core. I want you to mentally work your way through your body, starting with your toes, and just feel.”
She cracked one emerald-green eye open and pulled her lips into a frown. “This—”
“Seems silly,” I interrupted. “I am aware, but if you can recognize how the rest of your body feels, you will be able to recognize when something is different. In this case, the difference we’re looking for is your magic.”
“Fine,” she huffed, closing her eye.
I took the opportunity to study her. This was probably the closest I would be able to get to my mate until either my work with Vallynn was complete or she graduated from the academy. Even knowing secrecy and distance were necessary, I couldn’t help the pang of longing that settled into my chest.
My eyes roamed over her, taking in the way her red hair framed her heart-shaped face.
I’d learned through her file that she’d produced fire magic at orientation, and for some reason, the color of her hair made it feel obvious that my mate would control such a wild and reckless element.
My fingers itched to tuck the fiery strands behind her ear, just so that I could have even the briefest moment of connection with her.
“This isn’t working,” she groaned, her long lashes fluttering open.
“What did you feel?” I asked, forcing my eyes away from her plump lips.
“I felt nothing.” She shrugged.
“Nothing at all?” I arched a brow at her. “That’s not necessarily unusual. It may take a few attempts for the visualization to help.”
“No,” she replied, shaking her head. “It wasn’t just nothing, it was…
like a void. Just a massive, empty void.
Look, can we pick this up another time? I’m honestly just exhausted, and if this is going to take some time to actually help, it would probably be better trying it when I’m not ready to collapse into my bed and sleep for a month. ”
My lips pressed into a firm line, and I nodded.
As she slipped from my office, I mulled over what she’d said about feeling an empty void.
I’d never heard any supernatural describe such a sensation, not even their first time with the technique.
While I was relatively new at using it with Academy students, I’d spent enough time in the human realm with another dragon clan, helping their young unlock their dragons, to know it was abnormal.
It didn’t make any sense. She’d manifested at orientation and then later with the shield.
Shaking my head, I stood from my desk. There was something unusual about my little mate, and I needed to get to the bottom of it.