Zodiac Academy 6: Fated Throne

I woke up with a groan, my Atlas alarm telling me it was time to move. But no matter how much of a morning person I was, nothing could make me want to get up today. I’d only gotten three hours sleep since we’d been out hunting Nymphs half the night.

A weight shifted on my bed and my hands slipped into soft fur as I rolled towards the comforting heat of the body beside me. Seth’s Wolf form was damn huge, but he still managed to somehow fit in my single bed and leave me with enough room to breathe. I hadn’t asked him to stay with me, but I also hadn’t asked him to keep me company at the palace all summer and he often had. All the Heirs had.

Another groan in the room told me we weren’t alone and I cracked my eyes open, peering through a swathe of white fur to where Max was passed out by the window in a nest of blankets. I snorted at him as he pushed himself up onto his elbows.

“Why didn’t you go back to your room when Darius and Caleb left?” I asked through a yawn as I sat up.

“I was gonna, but then I touched this blanket and it was so soft. What’s it made of, fucking clouds?” Max brushed his fingers up and down it. “Anyway, I made this nest like some sort of Tiberian Rat and camped here. So…this blanket is mine now, yes?”

I blew out a breath of amusement. “Sure, take it.”

Seth was still dead to the world, laying upside down with his furry head crammed between the mattress and the wall and his tongue lolling out. Ridiculous mutt.

We’d stayed here talking last night after the Nymph hunt, trying to come up with new ways to save Tory, new ways to destroy Lionel, but what had been on all of our minds was Xavier. He had three freaking Elements. And from what the Heirs had said, Lionel was happy as hell about it. But as pleased as I was for Xavier, anything that made Lionel happy was just another kick in the teeth.

I’d been heartbroken to find out that Tory had been at his Awakening too. Right on campus. And now she was gone again and I didn’t know how to reach her. Going on the Nymph hunt had been what all of us had needed to keep our minds off of things. The problem was, no distraction ever lasted. It had been bad enough waiting for the Heirs to finish hazing all the freshmen before we left; it had served to remind me of my first night at Zodiac, and made me miss Tory something fierce.

I picked up our latest Tarot card from Astrum which was sitting on my nightstand, twisting it between my fingers. The words seek the fallen hunter gazed up at me in shimmering silver letters. As Orion’s name was the constellation of The Hunter, Darius had spoken to him about the card. They’d guessed it might have something to do with Orion’s dad and the diary he’d been gifted from him. Not that Orion had made any progress with decoding it as far as I’d heard. I never spoke with him directly, but Darius kept me updated. And I guessed that was the new normal. Living as though he was wholly separate to me, like he’d never owned my heart, like I’d never pledged to love him no matter what.

My chest ached at the thought of term starting today without Tory. The summer had been long and painful and I’d had to find ways to harden my heart against all of that. The loss of Orion, then losing Tory after had nearly broken me. But the one thing I’d found to hold onto amongst it all in the end was a purpose. I would do whatever was in my power to destroy Lionel and ensure he never sat his hateful ass on the throne. And I’d rip my sister out of his control and burn the shadows out of her too. Just as soon as I figured out how.

I’d been practising on Darius for months, but no matter what I did, I couldn’t seem to work out how I’d rid myself of the shadows. Seth had been dying, Clara had been about to kill us all. It was hard to replicate those circumstances, but Darius had been willing to try anything. It just hadn’t worked yet. But it would. And as soon as I could do it to him, I could do it to Tory and Xavier and…Orion.

My heart yanked and pulled in several directions and I pushed out of bed, not willing to stay there and drown in the misery lurking in my soul for a single second longer.

“Geraldine’s arriving this morning,” I told Max and his brows arched, his excitement clear before he shrugged and ran a hand over his hair, playing it cool, like he didn’t bring her up at every given opportunity. He’d grown out the mohawk recently, his hair short all over and giving him a more mature look.

“So?” he asked, getting to his feet and stretching his muscular arms above his head. He’d stripped down to his boxers which had schools of fish swimming across the navy material and I smirked.

“She’ll like those,” I teased then slipped into the bathroom and shut the door.

I stripped out of my pyjamas, showering and washing my dark blue hair, wondering for the millionth time if I should just dye it red or green or strip it all out and go dark again. But whenever I bought new dye, I couldn’t make myself go through with it. It wasn’t about Orion. Screw Orion. But there was still something holding me back. Maybe I didn’t want to let go of the girl I’d been before the two people I loved most in the world had been ripped away from me. But perhaps it was time I accepted that girl was dead and buried, this new version of me fitted with a heart that lived in a fortress and who hungered to take the throne to ensure Lionel never got his hands on it.

The Heirs had been helping to train me up in combat, but nothing could beat the education I was gaining at Zodiac to really become powerful. Some things took time. And I needed to be here so I could continue fighting for my sister. I’ll find a way to free you from the shadows, Tor, just hold on.

“See you at breakfast, little Vega!” Max called through the bathroom door as he left.

“See you,” I called back, tearing my gaze away from the mirror at last. I liked my hair dammit, so why should I change it? The new me could give it a new meaning. It didn’t have to be anything to do with him anymore. Like he said, blue meant royal in Solaria. “And to me, blue means you.”

Get out of my head.

I wrapped a towel around myself, pushing the door open and cursed as I found Seth lying just where he had been before only now he’d shifted, so his naked ass was planted on my bed and his junk was in full view.

“Seth!” I snapped, snatching a pillow from the nest Max had been sleeping in and slapping it down on his dick to hide it.

He bolted upright with a doggish yelp, snatching my wrist before I could draw away.

“Balls,” he wheezed. “How dare you?”

“If you don’t like covering up your dick then maybe you should sleep in your own bed sometime.” I arched a brow at him and he cocked his head, giving me the puppy dog eyes.

“But you need me,” he said.

“I don’t need you, Seth,” I laughed but he gave me a serious look.

“You talk in your sleep these days, you know? You’re all ‘help me Sethy, come hug my cute ass. Oh ravish me, Sethy, ravish me!’”

“Yeah, right.” I moved to my closet, taking out my uniform and sighing as I ran my fingers over the crest on the blazer. My throat closed up as I thought of Tory. She should be here. I don’t want to do this without her.

The ache in me over her loss was like a knife twisting in my gut. I never felt whole anymore. Without her, I was half a girl. We were meant to be together. It was how it had always been and always should be.

“See,” Seth said darkly. “Whenever your mind drifts it’s onto her, or him. That’s who you really talk about in your sleep.”

“We don’t talk about him,” I muttered.

“I know, but…that doesn’t mean you’re okay.”

“I’m fine,” I growled. “It’s done, I’m over it.”

“Pfft,” he scoffed and I rounded on him as fire prickled along my veins.

“Oooh you’re getting the flamey eyes.” He chuckled, getting out of bed and casually dropping the pillow before tugging his boxers on. “You must be really thinking about him today.”

“Stop it,” I snarled, but he was right. I’d dreamed of him again, holding me, kissing me, not betraying me. You know, all the good stuff. Shame he had to ruin it.

“Darcy,” he said gently. “You know you can talk to me about him, you don’t have to bottle it up.”

I shook my head, the wound over Orion begging to split open in me again, but fuck that.

“How about I tell you a secret in exchange for one of yours?” he offered enticingly and I frowned, gesturing for him to turn around so I could get dressed. He did so and I figured what the hell, that offer was too intriguing to ignore.

“Go on then, tell me,” I said.

“Swear you’ll tell me yours after,” he said firmly.

“Fine,” I agreed. “Now go on.”

“You can’t tell anyone,” he said in a growl and I became even more intrigued.

“I swear it on the stars and all that jazz.”

“I might have to actually make you swear it on them in a minute,” he said in a low tone.

“Sure.” I pulled on my underwear before running a hand through my damp hair to dry it with air magic.

“Okay so…I have this crush. It’s a really secret crush.”

“God you’re gonna start talking about the moon again aren’t you?” I said in exasperation. Ever since he’d visited the damn moon over the summer, he wouldn’t shut up about it. Like he was some sort of moon wizard now. I mean yeah, it had been cool to hear about it when he’d first gotten back, but four weeks on and the shine had kind of worn off of his moon stories.

He chuckled. “No, but that reminds me of when I was on the moon and I stuck my dick in a moon hole. I have literally fucked the moon.”

“I know,” I said exaggeratedly, laughing as I tugged on my skirt. “And you have literally told me every detail.”

“Right yeah, well anyways, it’s not about my moon crush. It’s another crush.”

“Okay…” I waited as I pulled on my shirt, but he didn’t go on. “Seth?”

“It’s kind of a big deal.”

“Every crush you have is a big deal, you had a crush on a cookie the other day and didn’t eat it for like eight hours.”

“The chocolate chips were arranged into the shape of a dick!” he defended himself and I snorted. “Anyway, this isn’t like that.”

“What is it like?” I pressed, pulling on my blazer before grabbing some knee high socks and sitting on the edge of the bed to roll them on. Seth glanced over his shoulder at me then turned around fully when he realised I was dressed.

“It’s like…a crush on my friend,” he said coyly and I swear if he’d been a Wolf right then his ears would be flattened to his head all cute like.

“Oh yeah?” I frowned.

“Yeah… Caleb to be exact,” he said shyly and my lips popped open.

“No way,” I gasped.

“Way,” he said with a lopsided smile. “I mean, I always thought he was hot but lately, I dunno…” he ran a hand through his unruly long hair and I jumped up and hugged him.

“That’s so perfect. Have you told him?”

“Perfect?” he scoffed. “It’s very imperfect actually on account of the fact that he’s straight. So obviously I haven’t told him. And if you breathe a word in his direction, babe, I will spank your ass red.”

I laughed. “I won’t.” I offered him my pinky and hooked it around his. “Promise. But you should tell him despite all that shit.”

“Nah.” He waved me off, but I gave him an intent look.

“Seth Capella, life is not guaranteed and with the shit we do most nights, you will regret it if anything happens to him and you don’t get the chance to tell him the truth.”

“We won’t die,” he said with a shrug. “We’re the Heirs and the Savage Princess. Darcy and the dudebros. Wolfman, Bitey C, Fish Fury, Dragzilla, and the Phoen Dream.”

“Okay firstly, never call us those things again, and secondly, we’re not immortal, Seth. Just…don’t take this time for granted, okay?” I implored. “You never know when the world could just be pulled out from under your feet.” My heart knotted up in my throat and I took a shaky breath.

Seth stepped forward, brushing a lock of hair behind my ear with a whine. “We’re gonna be okay.”

“I don’t know that anymore,” I admitted. “I used to think everything would just work out one way or another, but now…” I dropped his gaze, trying to ignore the void living inside me, but it was a hungry thing. Sometimes it felt like it was going to consume everything inside me and leave me hollow. If it wasn’t for the will to save my sister and my desire to see Lionel brought to his knees, I was sure it would have done so already.

Seth gripped my chin, tilting my head up to look him in the eyes. His irises were deep and earthy brown, full of a hope and positivity I hadn’t felt in a long time. Looking at him pulled on some instinctual piece of my soul these days. I’d always felt a connection to Seth, but I’d never really understood why that was when he’d been treating me cruelly. Now, my enemy had somehow become someone I deeply cared about. And though there was still an echo of hurt that lived between us, my hate was now saved for someone much more worthy of it in Solaria. 

“You owe me the truth, babe. And you’re not walking out of this room until you give it to me.”

“I could just put you on your ass, Capella,” I warned and he smirked.

“Just try me.” He gnashed his teeth together and I blew out a breath, knocking his hand away from my face. “So what’s your truth? What are you really feeling after all this time away from Professor Dipshit?”

I didn’t walk away like I wanted to. I had made a promise after all. So I swallowed thickly, holding his gaze. “The truth is, I’ll probably dream about Lance for the rest of my life. I’ll miss him and long for him, but when I wake up, I’ll continue as if he was never here. Because that’s what he asked for when he betrayed me. And now he’s gone, he’ll never get back in. No one will. I just can’t trust anyone anymore.”

“You don’t trust me?” Seth whimpered.

“No. There’s only one person I trust in this world and she’s currently being held by a monster. But as soon as I have her back, I’ll keep her close and that’ll be enough.”

Seth reached for me but I knocked his hand away again, hating the look of pain in his eyes or the way I felt that pain scrape up the centre of my being.

“It won’t be enough,” he breathed sadly and I set my jaw, ignoring the agonising hole in my chest that agreed with him.

“It will,” I growled, stepping past him, grabbing my bag and hooking my Atlas off the nightstand before pushing out the door.

Seth followed me out into the hall in his underwear, abandoning the rest of his clothes in my room. I swear if he started trying to keep stuff in my drawers again like he had at the palace he was going to get a dick punch instead of a pillow slap next time.

My gaze shifted to Diego’s old room across the corridor and my stomach clenched, a burning sense of grief driving through me before I forced myself to look away again. I didn’t know what had happened to his stuff, but his room had been emptied out and there was no trace of him left behind. Some freshman had probably moved in there last night and it would soon be like he’d never existed. Fae died all the time in Solaria, so it wasn’t like there would even be a lot of questions about him. I’d told Sofia and Geraldine over the summer. They knew everything now. I didn’t see the point in keeping it from them, and frankly, with Lionel on the rise I’d rather they were prepared to face whatever might come their way.

Geraldine had been distraught and had announced that she would note him down as the first official A.S.S. casualty to die in the War of the Reborn. When I’d asked her what the hell that was, she’d said it was going to be the official name for the fight for the throne which would be remembered by historians for all of time. She also said we’d only just begun to tell the tale of our rise to power. It seemed insane to me, but she was keeping official records ‘for posterity’ whether I liked it or not and I knew better than to try and change Geraldine’s mind when she’d decided on something.

We made it to the stairs where we paused to say goodbye, but as Seth leaned in to hug me, a noise of anguish met my ears. I frowned, glancing up the stairway, spotting Kylie there in her uniform, her lips parted in shock and her eyes full of betrayal as she gazed between us. I remembered her on the stand in court, spitting vicious lies about me and Orion and venom seeped through my blood.

“So you’re officially together now?” she demanded, her lower lip quivering.

“Did you hear something?” Seth mused and I turned away from Kylie with a shrug.

“Nope, must have been the wind,” I said. “See you later.”

“Bye babe,” he purred in a voice designed to taunt Kylie and I heard her pleading with him to stop shunning her as he walked upstairs.

My Atlas buzzed in my pocket and I found that my name had been mentioned in a news article entitled Roxanya Vega Renounces Her Claim on the Throne.

My heart stopped working, my lungs decompressed. As I stepped out of the door at the bottom of Aer Tower, several lost-looking freshmen bumped into me while I just gaped at the screen, a voice screaming No! in my head.

I clicked on the article, knowing I was going to regret it, but I had to know. Oh my god, what has she done?

Roxanya (Tory) Vega has spoken last night in an exclusive interview with The Celestial Times renouncing her claim to the throne of Solaria and aligning herself fully with High Lord Lionel Acrux. The Vega princess openly distanced herself from her sister Gwendalina (Darcy) earlier this year after it emerged that a feud between the two of them had sent them spiralling down different paths.

After rumours of Gwendalina setting fire to Stella Orion’s house surfaced in July, her growing instability became apparent. Was this a vicious attack on Lance Orion’s mother in retaliation for Stella’s interview which stated that her son was better off in prison than with a Vega? Perhaps we’ll never know. (See page 23 for more information on the Orion/Vega scandal and an interview from Honey Highspell who claims Lance Orion is a victim of a dark Vega plot).

All in all, it seems Roxanya had no choice but to break away from her own flesh and blood stating that Gwendalina was both ‘volatile’, ‘temperamental’, and ‘aggressive’ towards her in the following months.

Witnesses who attend Zodiac Academy with Gwendalina have confirmed that she has been hoping to make a bid for the throne independently for quite some time, savagely cutting herself off from her sister in the process. Roxanya bravely took a stance to distance herself from Gwendalina and is now keeping company with the Acruxes. Some are naming this move as both honourable and respectful to the Councillors who have ruled Solaria peacefully since the times of the Savage King.

It is unlikely that Gwendalina will ever fulfil her dreams of taking over the kingdom, but it cannot be ruled out. We must simply pray that she wouldn’t follow in the violent footsteps of her ruthless father if she ever-

I stopped reading, my blood pumping hot and fast through my veins as I stuffed my Atlas away and released an honest to shit growl. I stalked my way to The Orb, fuming at what Lionel had made Tory do. He was twisting everything, making out that she wanted him, that she’d chosen him over me. It was sick. I wanted to tear his goddamn head off for it.

Fire flared hotter under my skin as my Phoenix reared its head, desperate to be unleashed. A flash of movement in my periphery made me flinch and fire burst to life in my palms as Caleb slowed to a halt beside me.

“Woah, chill sweetheart. I guess you saw the article?” he asked and I put out the flames.

“Yeah,” I snarled. “How dare that asshole do that to her, he had no right.”

He frowned sadly. “We’ll fix it. We’ll get her back.”

“We’ve been saying that for months,” I said, my breaths coming heavily and I cast a quick silencing bubble around us. “Even if I could burn the shadows out of her, how are we supposed to get near her?”

Caleb pushed his fingers into his curly blonde hair with a sigh. “Darius can get us inside his house.”

“So what? She’s locked somewhere we can’t reach her. And even if we knew where she was being kept, I doubt we could get near her without setting off a ward or – or-” I shook my head in dismay.

We’d been over it all before anyway. We weren’t getting near her unless Lionel chose it. And that truth was unbearable.

Caleb knocked his arm against mine and I looked up at him with a sad smile.

“We won’t give up on her,” I breathed and he nodded seriously.

“Never.”

“Maybe Gabriel will see more?” Caleb said, his voice heavy. Gabriel had come to me over the summer after inviting all of the Heirs and Geraldine to the palace, announcing it was time to tell them the truth. They’d proved their friendship to the Vegas, and we’d entrusted them with our secret. That Gabriel was mine and Tory’s brother. And he was the son of the greatest Seer of the century.

“I hope so,” I sighed and he gave me an encouraging smile, though there was a darkness in his eyes that spoke of his doubts too. With Clara and the Nymphs keeping Lionel’s movements hidden, it was impossible for Gabriel to see anything tangible that might help us save Tory. Especially with her so far away, lost to the shadows. Darius said we couldn’t use the shadows to spy on Lionel anymore either because Clara could sense it. It was infuriating.

I disbanded my silencing bubble as we walked up to The Orb and Caleb opened the door, letting me head inside first. The place was packed and freshmen were clustering together in groups, looking wide-eyed and unprepared – which I imagined was exactly how I’d looked when I’d started here too. Plenty of them glanced our way, nudging each other and whispering. My gaze snagged on the group of the Heirs’ siblings holding court at a table beyond the Heirs’ red couch. Xavier wasn’t among them though and I frowned as I hunted for him before my view was blocked by Geraldine climbing onto the A.S.S. table with two bagels clutched in her hands.

“My lady!” She strode over the table, sending bagels flying everywhere as she used Justin Masters’ head to help her climb down on this side then ran towards me like a runaway train.

I laughed as she collided with me, hugging her tight, the scent of butter and fresh coffee hanging around her.

“See you later, Darcy.” Caleb shot off to get some coffee as I was crushed into Geraldine’s large breasts, wheezing as she squeezed the air out of me.

“It’s good to see you too, Geraldine,” I rasped.

She pressed me back, looking me over then burst into tears, covering her eyes and turning away from me with a wail. “Oh mangos on a merry-go-round you’re so broken, I can’t bear it. Your homologous half, your synonymous sibling, your tantamount twin – gone! There has never been such woe as this. To see you here alone, walking through the door of destiny which leads you down a separate path to hers. It is a travesty!”

“Shh.” I patted her back, feeling eyes on us from all around. “We’ll work it out.”

Geraldine wailed, spinning on her heels to look at me again, her eyes red and her face blotchy. “That diabolical, dastard of a Dragoon! I would give him what for alright. I’d pluck his eyes out and fry them up in a funnel cake!”

I steered her back toward our table where the A.S.S. all looked concerned. Justin rose from his seat, wrapping her in a hug and she sobbed loudly against his shoulder.

“It’s alright, Grussy,” he cooed.

I looked to Sofia and Tyler across the table, their brows pinched in worry as I mouthed a hey to them.

“The fuck?” Max appeared, shoving Justin away from Geraldine and gripping her cheeks in a punishing hold. “Why are you crying?”

“Get off of me, you heinous halibut,” she demanded, pushing him away and sniffling as she pulled herself together. “Now go back to your salmon pond and leave me be.” She shooed him away then walked off around the table with her chin held high before dropping back into her seat.

Justin dusted off his shoulders like Max had left a mark on his clothes, pushing his fingers into his blonde hair and puffing his chest up as he tried to appear as big as the Heir he was foolishly facing off with. “Don’t you tell Grussy what to do,” he said firmly, planting his hands on his hips. “I won’t stand for it.”

“Oh yeah?” Max snarled, squaring up to him. “And what are you gonna do about it?” He lifted his chin, emphasising his several inches of height on Justin and to his credit, Justin didn’t flinch.

“Perhaps I’ll write a strongly worded letter to your father,” Justin said haughtily.

“Oh do sit down you valiant woodlouse!” Geraldine cried to Justin. “I appreciate the sentiment, but I am quite capable of sending strong words directly to this cantankerous cuttlefish myself.”

Justin dropped into his seat with a pout, but Geraldine patted his hand and his expression softened a little.

Max grumbled something under his breath and walked away to the Heirs’ couch. I slipped into my seat as chatter broke out around the room again. Plenty of silencing bubbles went up and it wasn’t hard to guess what they were all talking about.

“Did you see the article?” I asked Sofia and she nodded sadly while Tyler looked pissed as hell. He’d put on about twenty pounds of muscle over the summer and his hair was now dirty blonde all over, floppy and glinting with silver glitter.

“My mom will run something in The Daily Solaria to counter it,” Tyler promised. “We can do another interview.”

I nodded as I picked at a bagel. I’d been putting out as many interviews as I could to try and counter the damage Lionel was doing with Tory, but the plain fact was, all signs pointed to his version of the truth. If we could only expose him for using dark magic and harbouring the shadows then maybe my efforts would be worthwhile, but doing that could possibly mean dragging Darius, Tory and Orion down with them, which I was never going to risk.

I pushed a piece of the bagel into my mouth as I sighed. I was on strict orders to eat three meals a day from Darius after he’d figured out I’d been using healing magic to skip meals back in August. Food just didn’t taste of anything these days, but I also knew there was no sense in depriving myself either. I needed to be strong enough to keep fighting the Nymphs, to go after my enemies.

I’d put back on the weight I’d lost when Orion went to prison, but I was all defined abs and muscle tone now considering half my time was spent either training for combat or in combat.

There was nothing quite like destroying members of Lionel’s Nymph army to ease some of the tension living in me. It was kind of frightening how easy killing them came to me these days. After Diego’s death, I knew they weren’t all soulless monsters. But the ones we faced were wholly team Lionel. And I didn’t feel guilty about burning them up in my Phoenix flames or watching as the Heirs destroyed them with the weapons I’d gifted them. Combining Dragon and Phoenix fire caused one helluva pretty bonfire too.

There were stories being told about the Nymph hunters in the news. The FIB were looking for information on them i.e. us. Some people whispered excitedly about the vigilantes out to save the world, others claimed they were a secret division of the FIB and others claimed we were a bunch of foolish idiots who would end up dead on the end of a Nymph probe one of these days and would only end up making the Nymphs more powerful when they stole our magic. It was illegal as shit what we were doing. But I didn’t care. None of us did. We had to kill as many of them as we could to try and land a hit on Lionel that really mattered before it was too late. The FIB weren’t doing nearly enough to strike back against the Nymphs whenever they attacked and we all suspected they were being fed false information by Lionel and Stella as they secretly aided them. We’d even put in several anonymous tips to the FIB suggesting Nymphs had been sighted near Stella’s house and it hadn’t once been raided. Fucking Lionel.

So we took our job to go up against them seriously and took out whatever small groups of them that we could find. Barely a night had slipped by over the summer that we hadn’t gone after them, but now we were back at school I didn’t think it was going to be as easy. I had to concentrate on my studies, advance my magic. It was crucial.

Tyler suddenly tensed up and released an aggressive, horse-like snort and I frowned at him in surprise.

“You okay, Ty?” I asked and he lifted an arm, dropping it around Sofia’s shoulders and yanking her closer.

“Hey,” Sofia snapped as she lost her grip on a bagel and it went bouncing back onto her plate, but Tyler didn’t look at her.

I followed his gaze to the door. Xavier Acrux had just walked in, his dark hair messy and his expression saying he was out of his depth. A group of girls dove from their seats nearby, crowding around him asking for autographs and his eyes widened before he nodded and started signing anything they thrust under his nose.

“He got three Elements, did you hear?” Angelica said as she dropped down beside Geraldine with a cup of coffee.

“Yeah and he chose Ignis House,” Sofia said, her cheeks turning rosy.

“He’s in your house?” Tyler balked and she shrugged, making him snort angrily again.

“Um, Tyler, what’s going on with the snorting?” I asked before pushing another piece of bagel into my mouth.

He tore his eyes off of Xavier and looked to me with a pout. “I hoofed down Davros and Brutus yesterday. They arrived on campus early and I beat their asses in Pegasus form. I’m officially the Dom of our herd now.” He lifted his chin, holding Sofia tighter.

“Which means I’m his now,” she explained, looking at him with a proud smile that said she didn’t mind that so much, but then her eyes flitted back across the room to Xavier and I suspected there was something else going on here. “But Xavier Acrux is like…serious Dom material.”

“He’s gonna fucking challenge me, I just know it. And I only just became Dom. I got one day and now mini-Acrux is gonna try and take it from me.” Tyler stamped his foot under the table and I bit my lip to hold a laugh back. I swear I was never going to get used to the ways of all the Orders.

I glanced back over my shoulder just as Xavier broke free of his fan club and his eyes met mine. I waved and his expression brightened as he started heading toward us.

“Oh my stars, he’s looking at Sofia,” Angelica squeaked.

“Quiet Angelica, we mustn’t interfere with the ways of their magnificent kind,” Geraldine whispered loud enough for everyone to hear, holding her breath as she gazed from Xavier to Sofia then Tyler.

Xavier reached our table and no one said anything which was super awkward so I smiled at him encouragingly. “Congratulations on your Elements, Xavier. How’s it going so far?”

“It’s pretty fucking sweet,” he said, his eyes flicking from Sofia to Tyler and the tension in the air almost made my ears pop.

“Hey Sofia,” he said, smiling awkwardly then nodding to Tyler. “Hey man, I’m Xavier.”

“Tyler,” he replied, assessing him. “You’ll be looking for a herd, I suppose?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Xavier shrugged, scratching the back of his head. “Anyways um…see you around?” He was looking directly at Sofia again and I couldn’t help but smile as she turned scarlet.

“Yeah, we’ll catch up soon,” she promised.

“Great.” He nodded to me and headed away to join the other Heirs’ siblings.

Max and Caleb were sitting on the back of their couch as they spoke to them and I suddenly realised how absent the place was of key H.O.R.E.S like Mildred and Marguerite. It was pretty damn nice actually.

“Do you know him or something?” Tyler asked Sofia with a frown and Sofia cast a silencing bubble before the two of them started having a tense discussion.

I shared a look with Geraldine who cleared her throat loudly, waving her hand and casting a fog of water that surrounded them too, cutting them off from sight. Subtle.

My gaze drifted to where Diego used to sit, his spot now filled by some new A.S.S. member. My heart rose into my throat and I quietly cursed the stars over his death. I didn’t have his hat which he’d told me to take; it was almost certainly somewhere in the woods at Stella Orion’s house, but getting in there would be all but impossible now with the Nymphs guarding it. And whatever secrets lay with it were lost unless we could figure out how to reach it.

It had been hard to focus on anything else but Tory over the summer and how Orion was rotting in a jail cell. It was like the stars had cast all of our fates to ruin in one fell swoop and laughed as they watched the shattered pieces fall. Now all the Heirs and I could do was try to pick up the pieces and find a way to fix what had been broken. But sometimes that seemed like an insurmountable task. And it weighed on my heart like a tonne of lead.

As always, when my mind drifted, I started spiralling into the pit of despair that lived inside me. So I cut myself off from it once more and forced the pain away. If there was one thing this whole shit storm had taught me, it was that tears saved nobody and dwelling on regrets was as useful as cutting my own hands off. Darius was the only one who understood fully, and together we’d found a way to keep moving, because giving up wasn’t an option and talking over and over our woes did nothing but bring us down. One small mercy I’d been gifted was that I’d found a bond with him I’d never expected to have. And though trust was something I doubted I’d ever feel again for anyone besides family, Darius Acrux came surprisingly close. And so did the other Heirs sometimes.

Geraldine suddenly dropped a bagel that was halfway to her mouth, her eyes stretched wide. She released a noise like a strangled peacock then flew out of her seat. Another bagel shot out of her grip as she brought a hand to her forehead and it smacked Justin in the face, the cream cheese making it stick. “Grapefruits in a snowstorm, it cannot be!”

I twisted around, my gaze falling on the girl who’d just walked in the door, my heart lurching, my breath catching, a ringing filling my ears. Her face was pale and everything about her seemed endlessly dark, but it was her. Tory was here.

I sprang out of my seat, rushing toward her as my heart pounded right up into my skull. I couldn’t think or breathe, no rational thought entered my head as I collided with her, crushing her against me in a fierce hug while she just stood there.

I half noticed Mildred and Marguerite trailing behind her among more of the H.O.R.E.S and grimaced as I dragged her away from them.

I leaned back to look at her, tears burning the backs of my eyes as I tried to form a question, absorbing the fact that she was really in my arms.

The door opened again behind her and Darius appeared, halting dead in his tracks, his lips parting and suddenly he was upon us, wrenching Tory from my arms and twisting her around to face him.

“You’re back,” he rasped.

“How did you escape?” I managed to get out, pushing one of Darius’s hands off her so I could get close again. I realised The Orb was utterly silent and one look to my left told me Max, Caleb and Geraldine were closing in on us and the rest of the students in The Orb were watching intently.

“Come on, let’s go somewhere private.” Darius tugged Tory’s arm but she yanked her hand free, straightening her sleeve where he’d ruffled it with a pinched look of disgust.

“No thanks,” she said, brushing past us and leaving us there in her wake.

I ran after her, pulling her around to face me again, holding onto her when she tried to continue walking. “Tory, it’s me, it’s Darcy. Look at me,” I demanded, desperation clawing at my insides.

Muttering broke out but I didn’t care, my heart was trying to climb out of my chest. I’d never expected this. Why would Lionel let her come back?

Tory’s cool gaze moved to my face, her expression bored. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”

Marguerite shrieked a laugh and Mildred sniggered somewhere behind me, making my hackles rise dangerously.

“Tory,” I growled, shaking her, drawing my Phoenix flames under my skin, trying to urge them into her to burn out the shadows keeping my sister prisoner. “Hold still.” The flames reached the very edges of my flesh and a deep, burning creature in me called for the Phoenix that lived in her, but no answer came in return. I gasped, realising what that meant, my grip on her firming.

“Let go of me.” Tory tugged her arm away, a swirl of darkness in her eyes making determination storm through me. I will set you free.

I reached for her again and Tory raised her hands as if she was about to fight me. But I didn’t care. I’d fight through every force in this world to save her.

“Darcy,” Caleb shot to my side, pulling me back. “Not here.”

Tory looked between us with her nose wrinkling then walked away, heading off to a table full of H.O.R.E.S with Mildred dropping down at her side, smirking darkly back at me. Xavier had risen from his seat, staring from Tory to Darius with a look of horrified surprise written into his features.

“No,” I snarled as Caleb gripped my arm tighter.

Darius marched past me after Tory, but Max intercepted him, pushing him back.

“Not. Here,” Caleb hissed and I met his gaze, my heart splintering up the middle. But through the fog of emotion clouding my mind, I could see he was right.

I nodded, straightening my spine and fighting not to shake with anger at seeing my sister like that.

Max spoke into Darius’s ear and he finally gave in with a growl of frustration, turning back and the two of them headed toward the door.

Caleb moved at my side as we followed and Geraldine raced after us with tears still streaming down her cheeks.

“Oh, my Queen, what will we do?” she begged of me.

I didn’t have an answer, but I was going to damn well find one. “I don’t know yet, but we’ll figure it out.”

She nodded several times, tears still flowing freely down her cheeks.

We bumped into Seth outside and he howled to the sky as Caleb explained what was going on. Then we all started moving across campus in a tight group, heading to King’s Hollow. The Heirs had increased the amount of protection spells on their hideout tenfold last night, keeping it a haven away from other students or teachers.

When we arrived at the huge tree that gave access to it, we headed up inside the hidden stairway while Geraldine muttered under her breath about barbequing Lionel Acrux and serving him up to a pack of hungry dogs.

My heart blazed with the flames of my Order as I was torn between being distraught by Tory turning me away and relieved that she was here. Because now we had a real chance to get close to her. And that was what we’d been hoping for for months.

We headed into the large lounge at the heart of the treehouse and I looked to Darius, seeing my own pain mirrored in his eyes.

“There’s something we can do to help her,” I announced and everyone turned to me hopefully. Darius took a step toward me like I was the answer to everything he’d dreamed of all summer.

“Her Order is being suppressed. I couldn’t sense her Phoenix, that must be what it is,” I said firmly, needing it to be true. Because I knew there was a way to fix that.

“Holy tartlets,” Geraldine gasped and Seth howled again.

“Shit, Lionel must be giving her Order Suppressant shots. They can last a few days,” Max said and the others nodded.

“But there’s an antidote right?” I asked anxiously. Gabriel had told me about it in a bunch of his stories from when he’d attended Aurora Academy.

“Yeah,” Darius confirmed, his eyes lighting with hope and I felt it too, brightening up the dark void living inside me.

“Hm, where can we get some of that? It’s not exactly something we can buy,” Seth said thoughtfully.

“I know exactly who can get it for us,” I said confidently.

“Who?” Darius asked with a frown.

I smiled, feeling like we finally had something that could really save Tory at long last. “My brother.”