Chapter 5 Bechora
By the time the Academy was in sight, I was cramped, tired, and extremely cranky.
“I don’t understand why we couldn’t just portal here. That’s how Caulder brought me to the Academy to begin with.”
“We don’t know if that’s even possible right now,” Gabriel replied. “The Academy was going on lockdown when Lucifer portaled us out, and we haven’t heard from anyone since we left. We could be walking into anything.”
“Gabriel is correct, Dilectus. It’s better to approach this way, so we may prepare, than to drop into the middle of it all blind,” Zypher added.
They had a point, but I wasn’t in the mood to admit it.
Crossing my arms in front of my chest, I leaned back in my seat with a huff and returned to watching the Academy draw closer.
When the carriage finally slowed to a stop, I all but threw myself out of the door, ready to race through the gates and find my friends.
Zypher’s hand clasped my shoulder, stopping me. “Allow us to enter the gates first, Dilectus.”
My lips pressed together in a thin line, only to soften when I looked at him. I could see the tension in his muscles as he stood ramrod straight, eyes scanning ahead in search of potential threats.
“Okay,” I replied softly.
Gabriel moved a step ahead of me on my other side, and the pair of them fell into step as we strode forward.
I couldn’t help thinking the only thing missing from my surly entourage was a certain grumpy dragon at my back.
The thought caused the corner of my mouth to tick up into a soft smile as I followed behind my mates.
I couldn’t say what any of us were expecting when we entered the Academy gates, but the absolute silence and lack of students milling around wasn’t it.
Blackthorne was on lockdown, but even without news of what was happening inside, I’d still expected to see people going about their day.
Zypher and Gabriel stopped walking, scanning the courtyard for signs of life, but I didn’t bother waiting to see if they found it.
Instead, I turned toward Magus House and picked up my pace.
The pair of them caught up to me before I’d made it more than a few yards, unease thick in the air between us.
We walked in silence through the eerily quiet campus, reaching Magus House faster than I expected, with my muscles stiff and sore from the carriage ride.
I was up the stairs and standing outside my dorm room door in half the time it usually took me after a full day of classes.
Taking a deep breath to steel myself for whatever might be waiting for me inside, I opened the door.
“B!” Shadrie squealed, drawing my eyes to where she was jumping up from the floor in the communal living area. Textbooks scattered around her as papers flew into the air from her hands. “Where have you been? Are you okay?”
“Woah, woah, slow down,” I replied, closing the distance between us so I could get a better look at her. Zypher and Gabriel followed me in, the soft snick of the door closing behind them. “I’m fine. I’ve… Well, Lucifer sort of portaled us to their home, and then I was sent to Abel’s archives.”
Shadrie’s eyebrows shot up. “Abel’s archives? As in the Abel? I thought he was a myth! I’ve never heard of anyone actually gaining access to his archives!”
“I assure you, he’s quite real,” Zypher chuckled.
“Him and his dick of a brother, Cain,” Gabriel muttered.
“Miles is gonna be so fucking jealous. I swear he’s been working his way through every single book in the Academy’s library since the end of last term.
He’s probably there now. The boy’s been holed up there the entire break, to the point I don’t think he’d have eaten if I hadn’t gone to get him for meals.
” She grabbed my hand, pulling me to sit on the couch. “Anyway, tell me everything .”
Zypher and Gabriel moved to take seats as I shrugged at her.
“There’s not much to tell. Everything about what I am, in Abel’s archives, was basically what we already figured out ourselves.
When he finally found a single passage about a past Starcaller borrowing abilities without the need for touch, he basically kicked us out and said we needed to get back here to find more. ”
“Leave it to a man to be unhelpful.” Shadrie rolled her eyes before glancing toward my mates. “No offense.”
“None taken.” Zypher chuckled.
“Tell me what’s been happening here,” I said, pulling her attention back to me.
“Nothing,” she replied. I opened my mouth to respond, but she cut me off.
“I mean it, literally nothing. Aside from not being able to leave campus at all and Thrackborne being crankier and more short-tempered than normal, it’s been boring as fuck around here.
The only real entertainment I’ve had since the end of last term is making a game of avoiding your dragon. ”
My face scrunched in confusion, and I tilted my head. “Why are you avoiding Caulder? It’s not like he was really hands-on with students in the first place.”
“Girl!” she exclaimed, dragging the word out slightly.
“He’s basically taken to treating me and Miles like we’re part of his treasure hoard, since he came clean about being your mate.
You have no idea how weird it is to have a dragon shadow you everywhere you go on campus, while grumbling about having to keep you safe for his mate.
That shit was intense, but once Miles came across a scent-cloaking spell, it was funny as fuck to watch him stomp around trying to find us.
Well, mostly me, since Miles has practically moved into the library at this point. ”
I couldn’t help myself, I laughed. The image of Caulder with his resting asshole face, stomping around campus, as smoke curled from his nostrils, looking for my friend, was enough to send anyone into a fit of giggles.
Beneath my amusement was a sense of gratefulness that he’d taken to looking out for Shadrie and Miles in my absence.
It didn’t make up for him hiding the mate bond from me, but it was a start.
After a moment, my laughter stretched into a yawn.
“You should shower and get some rest, Dilectus,” Zypher spoke.
“But–”
“We’ve been stuck in a carriage for three days. All of us need a shower and sleep,” Gabriel added, cutting off my objections.
“I mean, I didn’t want to mention it, but since they brought it up, you do kind of stink, B,” Shadrie said, a glimmer of amusement flashing in her eyes. “Everything is still in your room. Shower, sleep. We can find Miles in the library before breakfast, and then you can go call off your dragon.”
I yawned again, stretching my arms over my head this time and nodded. “Good call.”
My muscles protested as I stood from the couch, the ache from the carriage ride taking hold stronger now that I’d been sitting.
Zypher and Gabriel stood as well, motioning for me to go ahead.
They followed me into my room, and my shoulders sagged in relief as I realized they intended to stay with me rather than return to their own dorms for the night.
I gathered my things while they collected what they’d left behind last term, and we made our way to the communal showers.
Exhaustion settled in deep as I stepped under the shower spray, causing time to blur.
Three days of travel in a carriage wasn’t what the romantasy novels I’d read made it out to be, the toll causing my mind to blank out as my body went through the motions of showering and getting back to my room to climb into bed.
I was drifting off before I was even fully laid down, barely noticing the shift of the mattress as Zypher and Gabriel climbed in on either side of me.
Morning came far too soon, and I couldn’t help the whine that crept into my tone when Gabriel gently nudged me awake.
“You’ll feel better when Zypher returns with coffee,” he chuckled.
I glared at him from where I sat on the edge of the bed.
For someone who started out so damned surly when we met, he was far too cheerful.
He’d even changed out of his sleep shorts before he woke me.
Almost as if he’d woken up with endless energy and enthusiasm for the day.
I slowly raised my hand, flipping him off, which only caused his chuckle to turn into a full laugh.
Zypher strolled through my bedroom door, smiling broadly and carrying a steaming cup of coffee.
“Ah, you’re awake,” he said, closing the distance to place a gentle kiss on the top of my head as he handed me the cup. “Shadrie is waiting for us so we can retrieve Miles from the library.”
At the mention of my other friend, I perked up slightly.
Taking a small sip of coffee that burned my tongue, I stood and moved to my closet.
I made quick work of grabbing clothes with my free hand, before taking another sip of coffee and sitting the cup on my desk so I could change.
I was almost– almost– amused by the way Gabriel and Zypher’s gazes heated as I stripped from my pajamas.
Zypher took a step toward me before shaking his head and clapping Gabriel on the shoulder.
“Later,” he muttered to the vampire as I pulled on the soft t-shirt and pair of jeans I’d grabbed from the closet.
Once I was dressed, we moved into the shared living area of my dorm. Shadrie was standing by the island that separated the space from our small kitchenette, wearing her signature black as she downed something from a cup.
“Ready?” she asked, setting the cup on the counter.
“As ready as I can be this early,” I grumbled.
Shadrie grinned, shaking her head, and we followed her from the dorm and out of Magus House.
Campus was still eerily quiet, but for the moment, I allowed myself to blame the early hour.
We didn’t see a single student until we entered the library.
Surprisingly, there were a handful of students scattered among the study tables, books open in front of them, as they scribbled notes as if they were preparing for class.
We found Miles tucked away at a table in the farthest corner, books piled high on either side, one stack looking like it had been haphazardly stacked and would fall over if someone breathed in that direction.
“Break time, Miles,” Shadrie spoke.
His head snapped up from the book he was reading, eyes slightly unfocused as they landed on me. The corners of his mouth ticked down into a slight frown for just a second.
“Oh… Oh! Bechora! You’re back!” he said. “What happened? Where have you been?”
“Breakfast, Miles,” Shadrie insisted. “Food, and then she can fill you in, while you explain why you live here now.” She waved her hand, gesturing toward the study table.
“Ah, right… Of course. Let me just…” he replied before mumbling something I didn’t catch. He waved his hand with a flourish, and a ‘reserved’ sign appeared on the table.
“Mrs. Fiodh gave him the spell to keep anyone from using his table or taking books off it,” Shadrie supplied helpfully. “I told you he might as well live here now.”
I let out an unladylike snort while Miles gathered his messenger bag and motioned for us to head to the dining hall.
I’d expected it to be just as empty and void of life as the rest of campus had been.
Instead, the tension thrumming through my body eased as we stepped inside, and the sights and sounds of a large number of students reached us.
Zypher led us to the table we’d claimed last term, making sure I was settled in a chair before disappearing to grab our breakfast, Gabriel on his heels to help carry the load.
Miles and Shadrie sat across from me, both of them having gotten used to Zypher’s penchant to bring back plates for all of us.
“So,” Miles started, pushing his glasses up his nose with his index finger. “Fill us in.”
I sighed and quickly told him the same thing I’d told Shadrie the night before. His excitement was palpable when I mentioned Abel’s archives, just like she’d predicted.
“Amazing! I’d heard stories,” he said, voice filled with awe. “Those archives are famous among covens in the human realm. Supposedly, they contain every spell ever created, even ones that have been lost to time.”
“I wouldn’t know. I was there to find information on… my situation , but that was pretty sparse. It seems like you’ve been doing your own research here, though. Anything interesting?” I asked, raising a brow at him.
“Other than a handful of advanced spells, I haven’t come across any new information for your…
situation . I did find something interesting that I think could lead to answers about the…
uhm… strangeness of the broadcast at the end of last term.
There are a handful of historical accounts of mages from the human realm being able to detect illusions.
They described them as seeming to shimmer the way the broadcast seemed to do, but there was nothing I’ve found so far to explain how or why they could see that. ”
“It’s a start,” I assured him as Zypher and Gabriel returned and started passing plates filled with food to each of us. “We can look into it some more, maybe ask Caulder if he knows anything since he’s fucking ancient.”
“Speaking of your dragon, Dilectus,” Zypher said.
“You should let him know you’ve returned after we’ve eaten.
If he’s been treating these two as part of his hoard in your absence, it means his beast is restless and straining against his control.
He will need to lay eyes on you to assure himself and his inner dragon that you are safe and whole. ”
Zypher gave me a pointed look as he finished speaking, like he thought I was about to argue against it. “That works for me,” I replied, causing a flash of surprise to appear on his face before it settled into something more satisfied. “Food first, dragon after.”