CHAPTER THIRTEEN #2
Then I turned to Asher, meeting those infuriating silver eyes.
"I'd love to hear the answer to that, Firecracker," he said, his lips curving wickedly. "Because I do have needs."
I nearly launched a muffin at his head. Instead, I smirked—sharp, royal, and dangerous.
"Of course he can. I have my own male to handle my needs."
Silence.
Everyone suddenly found their food fascinating. Asher's smirk didn't falter, but the shadows around my neck tightened, turning cold as ice.
Even Aether, perched beside the table, let out a low snort that might've been a laugh.
Asher just chuckled under his breath, shadows swirling slowly at his fingertips. "Right. Strictly professional, then."
"Strictly," I said through gritted teeth.
Gods, someone please drop a temple on me.
···
My damn glued-on bond had finally left for some mandatory Umbra training sessions.
Thank the gods. It was like being bonded to Aether—exhausting.
I could finally breathe again. For the first time in days, I wasn't being shadow-stalked or smirked at.
No blood-bound banter. No smug bodyguard reminding me to hydrate or train or not die.
It was just me.
I wandered back to my dorm, the late afternoon sunlight casting soft golden streaks across the floor.
I had a few hours before the girls would inevitably descend to get ready for the Terra party, but right now, I wanted to paint.
It was the one thing that grounded me, reminding me who I was before politics, before grief, and before all this chaos.
Only a few people knew I painted—Ember, Maddy, maybe Ryven. Not even Jeremy. It was my sacred ritual. My calm. Even Aether, curled up on the chaise like a sleepy war beast, knew to leave me alone when I pulled out my brushes.
I dragged my folded easel over to the corner where the light hit just right, propped a fresh canvas on it, and rolled out my paint cloth.
Tin cans, glass jars of pigment, and charcoal pencils were all lined up in careful chaos.
I reached for my pouch of extra pencils and finer brushes, sorting the ones I wouldn't need today into a neat pile.
I moved to open the top drawer of the desk—one I'd never bothered with before, since I always kept my own things in travel cases. It wouldn't budge. I frowned and tugged again. Still stuck.
"Seriously?" I muttered, crouching down and yanking harder. Nothing. Fine.
With an exasperated breath, I grabbed the slim, bone-white spell rod we'd been issued in potions class. I traced a quick unlocking sigil midair—a simple spell, nothing dramatic—and flicked my wrist toward the drawer.
Click.
It creaked open just a little. I smiled to myself, then slid it open the rest of the way. Inside was dust, a cracked ink bottle, a few faded notes, and a worn leather notebook. It was brown, unmarked, and a little thicker than my sketchbooks, its edges curled with age.
I picked it up, flipping it over. My fingers froze. There, in gold-etched script across the front.
Jax Pyreson.
My breath caught. I dropped it with a soft thud against the desk.
"By the gods," I whispered.
I was still staring at the brown notebook, my pulse roaring in my ears. Jax's name was scribbled across the cover in his own handwriting. My brother's. I barely had a second to think before—
Knock, knock.
I panicked, shoving the notebook back into the drawer and slamming it shut just as the door burst open.
"Hellooo, party queen!" Ember sang as she strutted into the room with a full glitter entourage behind her.
Darcy, Maddy, and Sera spilled in after her like a whirlwind of sequins.
It looked like the stars had exploded and chosen my dorm as their battlefield.
Darcy was already vaping, dressed in a black glitter tank, combat jacket, and pants—equal parts rebel and nightclub menace.
Maddy twirled into the room in a sapphire-blue glitter jumpsuit, beaming from ear to ear.
Sera shimmered in a pastel-pink blazer and shorts combo that made her hair look like a magical candy cloud.
And Ember? She was wearing a red glitter halter dress and knee-high boots that screamed "heartbreak incoming."
I stared at them all. Then at myself. Then back at them. "...Did I not get the memo on glitter?"
"It was on the flyer, Ava!" Maddy said, scandalized, already diving into my closet like a raccoon on a mission. Before I could stop her, she pulled out the dress. It was a tight-fitting, midnight-purple glitter dress—something I didn't even remember owning.
The room collectively gasped.
"You have to wear this," Maddy said, clutching it like it was spun from fate itself.
"No," I blurted, shaking my head. "Absolutely not. That's—that's Umbra colors!"
"Exactly," Ember purred, flopping onto the bed with a wicked grin. "He won't know what hit him."
"And if you make out with Jeremy in that?" Sera added, twirling a cherry around her finger. "He'll explode."
"Utter chaos," Darcy approved, exhaling a puff of smoke. "Delicious."
I stared at the dress like it was a cursed relic. Then back at them. "...Fine," I sighed, defeated. "Let's make him weak."
They screamed. Glitter literally shook off their clothes from the sheer force of it.
We walked out of my dorm in a flurry of perfume, glitter, and attitude.
My hair was braided in my signature double Dutch crown, each plait sleek and precise, falling into long twin braids over my shoulders.
Purple glitter shimmered across my cheekbones and was threaded into the braids like stardust—because if I was going to survive tonight's chaos, I was going to do it looking like a damn queen.
Confidence practically oozed from our group. But me? I was waiting for one thing: to see Asher Maddox's face.
Boundaries were just that—boundaries. And I looked like sin in purple. If he wanted to play the game, then tonight, I was going to show him I knew how to win it.
···
We walked toward House Terra, my heart beating wildly in my chest. Every step down the enchanted forest path tugged at the bond, pulling like a silken thread from my collarbone to the shadows ahead.
I had tried to ignore it while we were getting ready, but my heart betrayed me, beating faster the closer we got.
The woods around us shimmered with ancient magic.
Lanterns floated between branches like glowing seeds of life, lighting our path as laughter and music drifted through the trees.
The scent of moss, wet stone, and something floral tickled my senses.
And then—House Terra came into view. It was stunning, alive, and ancient.
The Earth House was carved directly into the hillside, looking as though it had always belonged there.
Vines wove across its towering facade, climbing columns of polished stone and thick, arching roots that wrapped around the balconies like living sculptures.
Crystals glinted from the walls, catching the lantern light in bursts of green and gold.
The entire structure pulsed faintly with elemental energy, as if the mountain itself breathed beneath our feet.
Stone walkways twisted through flowering gardens that bloomed in every shade imaginable—lilac, marigold, and deep forest blue.
A waterfall cascaded down the eastern side of the building, feeding a spring that glowed faintly with enchantment.
The entrance was framed by massive, twisting oak doors, wide open, with fae filtering in and out dressed in glitter and glamour.
Ember, beside me, breathed, "Okay, House Terra knows how to throw a party," her eyes scanning the gardens. I took a breath, willing my heart to slow down, but I felt him. He was already inside, and the bond was tugging like a live wire.
I didn't care. Tonight, I played the game.
All our boundlings had already wandered off toward the grove of ancient trees near the edge of the garden, curling up together in irritation. Aether huffed audibly through the bond. "Babysitting again? I'm a warrior, not a nanny."
"You're lucky you're cute," I muttered back, ignoring his theatrical sigh.
As we stepped under the ivy-wrapped archway of House Terra, I felt the shift instantly.
The music was low and hypnotic, pulsing from a DJ booth nestled between two massive stone pillars surrounded by glowing moss. Vines crept along the walls, blooming with soft golden petals that pulsed to the beat. It was the kind of magic that felt alive, rich with old earth and deeper rhythms.
Heads turned.
My strappy purple dress clung tighter than I remembered, the cool night air kissing every inch of exposed skin. My collarbone tingled—then flared with heat. The bond lit up. He was close.
My eyes betrayed me, scanning the crowd until they found him.
Ryven, Ezra, and a fae male from House Tideris I didn't know were standing together.
And Asher. He was leaning casually near the far courtyard wall, silver eyes locked on mine, shadows already curling at his boots like smoke licking a hungry flame.
"Hey guys," Maddy grinned, already striding toward Ryven with that familiar sparkle in her eye. Sera and Darcy peeled off toward the bar. "We'll meet you there with drinks!" Darcy called over her shoulder.
But I was frozen.
His eyes raked up from my sneakers, tracing every inch of exposed leg and pausing at my thighs, which I instinctively pressed together. The hem of my dress felt microscopic.
His gaze traveled up, over the glitter-dusted fabric hugging my hips to the deep V neckline that revealed just enough chest to tease danger.
Then, his gaze landed on my collarbone. The bond sigil flared like fire meeting oil. And then—he dropped his wall. The bond sang with approval, desire, and a low purr of heat that slithered through my blood.
"Gods," Ember whispered beside me. "I've never seen such blatant eye-fucking in my life."
I glared at her, but it was already too late—she was sauntering toward the group, swaying like she knew exactly what she was doing. Ezra let out a low whistle as she approached. Typical.