49. Rae
RAE
I pulled up the zipper on the workout-gear jacket I’d begged Pax to find me.
Everything else I had in my possession seemed too antiquated or stiff.
I wanted to be able to move. Thankfully, he had come back with leggings, a workout tank, a long-sleeved top, and this jacket.
He’d even managed shoes that looked a bit like sneakers.
Taking a deep breath, I had to admit there was no more stalling. Rhys and Nyx had been keeping their distance, which I was glad for, but I didn’t move anywhere without Pax as my shadow.
Unlike Rhys’s castle, I’d discovered that Nyx’s was fairly empty. There were guards and staff but no others. No friends or family. Only Odin. At least the wolf-dog wasn’t nearly as stoic as his other half. But maybe that was because I always snuck him part of my meal.
Rolling my shoulders back, I steeled myself for what was to come. Magic—or trying for it.
I crossed to the door and pulled it open. Pax was instantly on alert. He did a quick head-to-toe sweep, and his mouth quirked. “Looking very sporty.”
I smacked his shoulder. “Oh, shut up. I’m trying, okay? If last night is anything to go by, magic is pretty physical.”
A more serious expression swept across his features as he stepped back to let me exit. “You’ve got a point there. But you should’ve seen the look of horror on the seamstress’s face when I asked her to make your outfit.”
My jaw dropped. “Someone made this? Right here?”
“It’s a different world. No malls or online shopping.”
“I guess that makes sense. I’m also guessing this isn’t the most appropriate attire?”
Pax chuckled. “It’ll be good to rile folks up a little.”
“Great,” I muttered, then spotted Kyrie bounding down the hall.
“Ready for Magic 101?” she asked, a huge smile on her face.
She wore an outfit that better fit with the otherworldly vibe of Lumaria: wide-legged pants in a silvery blue with a stretchy waistband and a long-sleeved, white shirt wrapped around her in a bandage style.
Her hair was piled on top of her head in another of those braid buns.
I inhaled deeply. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
Kyrie clapped her hands. “Awesome. I’ve got Kian prepping a spot for us outside.”
“Outside?” It was freezing out there. Couldn’t we practice in a gym or something?
“You need access to light to fuel you. Honestly, anything in nature because it’s fed by that light,” Kyrie explained.
It wasn’t as if there was a lot of it here in Demilune, but the sliver of moon did cast a faint glow on the land around us. And plenty of the plants thrived. Maybe that meant I could, too.
“Okay,” I said, straightening my shoulders. “Let’s go freeze our nipples off.”
Pax let out a strangled sound behind me, but Kyrie just laughed.
We wound our way through the icy hallways, the expanse punctuated only by sterile paintings and the occasional stone-faced guard. It wasn’t just the temperature that was cool; it was the feeling of the place.
“I can’t imagine living here. It’s like a museum devoid of emotion,” I mumbled as we moved toward a set of double doors flanked by two guards.
“It’s definitely a little bleh,” Kyrie agreed. “It needs us to liven it up.”
“Kyrie…” Pax warned. “Please do not get any of us killed.”
She sent him the most angelic smile known to man. “Who, me? I’d never.”
“Gods,” Pax muttered as he shook his head.
One of the guard’s gazes flicked to me, distaste making itself clear on his face. One point for the workout outfit. When they moved to block the doors, Pax sighed.
“We aren’t making a run for it. Rae just wants to practice her magic,” Pax explained.
The guards didn’t move, but Judgy pressed something on his ear, speaking in quiet tones.
“They have tech here?” I asked, surprised.
Pax moved his hands in a teeter-totter move. “Some. There aren’t cell phones. Something about magic interferes with the signal. But we have hardwired phones. Short-distance radios. And a few other things. Most don’t like to use them. There’s an age-old view that they’re fake magic or something.”
“The place where selfies go to die,” I said, amusement teasing my words. “I’m not mad at it.”
The guard released his earpiece and then nodded as though whoever was on the other end could see it. Then, he looked at me, his disapproval clear. Stepping back, he opened the door and held it.
“Why, thank you, kind sir.” I gave an elaborate curtsy, holding out invisible skirts.
He only glowered. Like boss, like underling.
I skipped through the open door as Pax muttered a curse. “The two of you together are going to be the death of me. I just have a feeling.”
I turned and patted him on the chest as I walked backward. “At least it’ll be an amusing way to go.”
Kian let out a low whistle, making me turn yet again. He did a long, slow sweep of me. This one wasn’t assessing like Pax’s; it was distinctly appreciative. That familiar pinprick buzz lit beneath my skin, bringing every nerve ending to life.
“I vote we live in practice gear twenty-four seven.” He crossed toward me in several long strides and slid a hand along my jaw. “Butterfly, you look good enough to eat.”
A chill skittered down my spine. Not a fearful one but an excited one. A sensation that had me leaning in for more.
Kian bent his head and pressed a kiss to the corner of my mouth. “Soon, you and I are getting some alone time.”
Another shiver.
A throat cleared. “Are we going to teach our weak link to protect herself, or are you just going to stand there making googly eyes at her?” Rhys cut in.
Our weak link. Those words played over and over in my mind. Barbs that burrowed beneath my skin. Because it was true.
But that didn’t mean it had to stay that way.
I pulled out of Kian’s hold. “I think I hear some buzzing,” I began. “Like an annoying gnat or one of those flies you find on horse shit.”
Kian let out a low, throaty chuckle.
“He does resemble those flies,” Kyrie chimed in cheerily.
“Come on, Sister. Show me what you’ve got.”