Fate Hollow Academy: Term 3, page 21
“Very well.” Birch nodded his head.
“I also wanted to discuss the war in Kalista,” I brought up again, feeling like a broken record. Though, Father’s usual reasoning about the war in the fae realm was null and void now.
“We can speak more on this after the coronation,” Father answered. “If you are king, you can do whatever you wish, but if Birch is king, you will have to take it up with him.”
“Don't worry, Thorn.” Birch gave me a reassuring blast of ice. “I wouldn't let our counterparts in Kalista die senselessly if we can do anything to stop it. We hate humans just as much.” He winked at me.
Mother and Father chuckled, and our family’s magical energy calmed in a way it hadn’t harmonized together since before the war.
But a wave of agony washed through me, and my wings exploded from my back as I gasped. “I need to go. My mate is feeling some very strong emotions.” I stumbled back out of my chair and bowed to my mother, father, and brother. “I will see you next week.”
“Go check on your sweet mate. Let us know she’s okay,” Mother murmured.
“Tell her we’re happy to help if she needs anything!” Birch yelled at my retreating back.
“You're not completely out of your responsibilities yet, Thorn. You're still a prince,” Father hollered. “But our mates come first!”
My heart swelled at their understanding, and I burst through the palace doors and bumped into Madison. She gripped my arm with a pleading look in her eyes, and I jerked my arm from her grip.
Wren tugged on my bond, calling me to her.
“Thorn, can we—”
“I need to get to my mate,” I clipped, phasing away from her and into the fae portal.
Madison wasn’t always so pushy, but she had feelings for me since we were younger. With our parents arranging our marriage so young, she had it in her head that we’d be mates. While I understood that, it didn’t excuse her attempts at reconnecting with me when I had a mate I was utterly in love with. Even when Wren wasn’t my mate, she was the only one for me—and I needed to get to her now.
Phasing through the portal and to Rowan’s room, I materialized and saw Wren sprawled out on the bed with everyone surrounding her. Even Nightshade was curled up on her chest. She didn’t seem to have any external injuries, but I did see a journal on the nightstand that reeked of humans.
I picked it up and thumbed through it. Pain rippled through me at what my sweet mate had read about her father. She must’ve been in agony over it. But her other mates had been there for her when I couldn’t.
Thank Fates.
“Thorn,” she murmured, eyes cracking open slightly.
I put the journal down and smiled at her. “Father is giving Birch a chance to prove he can be king. We probably won’t have to worry about it anymore.”
A blissful smile spread over her lips as relief swooped down our bond. “Thank Fates. Come here.”
I shrugged out of my royal garb until I was in my underwear and slid into the mess of bodies, leaning my head on her shoulder. “Get some rest, Kit. Everything’s going to work out.”
She yawned, snuggling against everyone, and Nightshade huffed as he readjusted. “I know it will, because I have all of you.”
THIRTY
Alister
Tossing the tourmalyke up in the air, I caught it again with a low hum. Humans must have been working with a powerful warlock to be able to change the magical properties of a crystal. That they were able to set up the energy to feed off solar energy constantly to charge was incredible. Sure, solar energy could charge most crystals, but this got a lightning fast charge. A shiver swept over me at the power it must’ve taken. What was a warlock gaining from working with humans anyway?
My fangs descended as a craving swirled in my stomach for Wren’s blood. Groaning, I set the crystal on my desk with a sigh. Seeing her face when she found that journal about her father had been one of the hardest things I've ever witnessed, but Wren stayed strong when we were at the facility.
She didn't break down until she was alone, and when she did, we all felt it through the bond when we shut that door. We could barely get through the events of what happened at the facility because all of us were thinking of her. Of course we were. She was our mate.
I flicked my tongue over my fangs. Bitterness coated my tongue, and I swallowed hard. Wren had been so innocent when she came here. She grew up isolated in that damn village, shunned away from others. But she never broke because she thought that was normal. When she came here and saw the difference, she had to learn to cope with that.
Rhett seemed to think everything that had happened since coming here had stirred up a lot of childhood trauma she didn’t realize was trauma, along with the death of her parents. But my sweet ruby was strong, and she would continue to be strong. I knew that with every fiber of my being. Wren could handle anything that was thrown at her. She handled the bloodshed at the facility easily. Granted, she didn't have to do anything with us there, but her training with Simmons and Damien had truly progressed things for her.
Pride thrummed down my bond to her. Fuck, I was proud of her.
Snatching a paper from a pile of essays from my reading auras class, I started to grade it with a red pen.
My tablet rang out. It was an unknown number flashing orange as the screen lit up. I had never seen the color orange for a call before.
I set the pen down and answered the call.
“Alister Vespertine. Your father was a renowned archaeologist, and you were right there next to him before you quit that path to follow education.” The male voice came through hushed, and I didn’t recognize it.
“Who is this?” I clipped, standing up and scanning the room for any abnormalities.
“Who I am doesn’t matter. I assure you that I am no harm to you. I was a friend of your parents,” he said cryptically. “There are humans digging around the site where your father was killed, and they are looking for a supernatural relic… Alister, you cannot let them get their hands on this relic.”
A tightness formed in my chest, and I rubbed it. “How do you know this?”
“I can't say.”
“What do you expect me to do about it?”
“You know what to do. You are your father's son, but you are also your mother's son.” The call ended, and sweat beaded on my temple.
What had that been about? I had poured over my father's journals, and I did remember him searching for a supernatural relic in that area. He had left instructions for me to find it if anything were to ever happen to him—and I tried, but I couldn't find anything of the sort.
Once I had hit my limit, Rowan brought me to the academy. What was a supernatural relic doing in the human territory anyway?
I let out a groan and stormed out of my room, slamming the door shut behind me. Using my vampire speed, I sped into Rowan's office and plopped down on the seat across from him, my ankle over my knee as I leaned back.
Rowan lifted his tired eyes from the stacks of paperwork in front of him to meet mine. “Alister, why do I have a feeling this is not a friendly meeting?”
“I just got an interesting call on my academy tablet from someone who claimed to be one of my parent’s friends. He said there’s a supernatural relic in the place that my father died. Apparently, humans are trying to discover it, and we shouldn’t let the humans get it.”
“Do you want to go and investigate it?” He rubbed the scruff on his chin. “You have plenty of archeology knowledge, and you’ve stepped away from it for long enough. I’m sure you can find it.”
I sighed, pinching the brim of my nose as I smelled Wren coming through the bedroom door. My fangs eased out, and she paused with a smile. She wore an adorable matching pajama set that consisted of a silky top and shorts.
“You're going to human territory?”
“I'm going to my father’s last dig site apparently.” I flicked my tongue over my fangs, wanting so badly to sink them into my mark on her neck.
“Do you want me to come with you?” She gathered her hair to one side, showing off my mark.
“I’d love that, sweet ruby.”
“I'm coming too.” Damien stepped into the room with a smirk.
“That's a given.” Rowan waved his hand. “Do you have any idea what state the dig site will be in?”
I shook my head. “Humans could’ve already infiltrated it or not at all. I have no idea.”
“I can check,” Damien purred, pressing his lips to my mark on Wren, and she mewled, pressing up against him.
“Do that now,” Rowan growled, reaching down and fixing himself as Wren’s pheromones leaked into the room.
“I’ll be back to finish this, little bird.” Damien pouted but stepped into the shadows.
“Bring Lachlan along with you since he has an affinity for earth,” Rowan told me. “You’re going into a rocky area.”
“Done.” I smirked at Wren, who smiled back. “We’ll go after Rhett’s class tomorrow.”
I was just happy to take her mind off everything else—even if it was for another apparent disaster waiting to happen.
THIRTY-ONE
Rhett
“The goal is finding something that centers you and keeps you from completely losing yourself within the trauma.” I strode over to my desk and grabbed a water bottle, twisting off the top and throwing it back to take a few gulps before continuing. I set the water bottle down and walked back towards the center of the room.
My gaze zeroed in on Wren, who was sandwiched between Lachlan and Damien, seeping pheromones—much like I tended to do.
Wren’s pheromones had made her sex-crazed, affecting her just like they affected us. She needed to learn how to control them, but I had to admit I enjoyed them.
“Did anyone find a good outlet for their trauma that they did not have before?”
The male student, Skip, raised his hand. “Yeah, I actually figured out if I meditate and wrap myself in my magical energy, it really eases a lot of my anxiety and depression.”
“Good work. Now that most have figured out a healthy way to cope, we need to explore how to prepare ourselves to be traumatized. When fighting a war, there is no way to avoid being traumatized.”
Wren shifted in her seat, and Damien and Lachlan shifted with her. Their arousal hit the air, and I noticed a few students awkwardly stealing glances at them. Lachlan and Damien had their hands inching up Wren’s thighs.
I clasped my hands together and cleared my throat. “Remember, facing trauma doesn't have to be as scary as it was the first time. You can program your minds to face the trauma of war and not be so shell-shocked that you freeze. You need to be able to fight in war. It just takes telling yourself over and over again, and it takes training. Put yourselves in the situations that make you face trauma.”
A knock sounded on the door, and it cracked open. Alister slipped inside, and I grinned at the students.
“That's my cue. You're free to go.”
The class seemed to get up and practically run out of my classroom, and I wasn’t sure if it was because of our trauma lesson or the thick scent of arousal in the air.
We covered a heavier topic today, and it had made several students uncomfortable, which was to be expected.
Alister slammed the door shut as the last student scurried out and locked it before strolling over with his hands in his pockets. His smirk grew into a large grin, his fangs peeking out. “It smells like arousal in here.” He broke into a run with his vampire speed, but Lachlan was the one who grabbed her first, pushing his hands into her hair and capturing her in a deep kiss.
Damien whined. “Why does he get the first kiss?”
“Don't be jealous,” Wren murmured against Lachlan’s lips. “There's plenty of time for everyone.”
“She's got a point,” I mused, crossing my arms as I watched Wren move on top of Lachlan in the seat. Her pheromones oozed out, affecting all of us in the classroom.
I was thankful that Alister had interrupted when he did, because I didn’t want everyone seeing how Wren was affecting her mates. Plus, Rowan would kill us if anyone witnessed Wren turned on.
My pheromones were also kicking up the heat in the room, like a leaky tap. My fingers yearn to touch her, and I so badly wanted to taste her. I was frozen to my spot in front of the classroom, watching her make out with Lachlan as Damien and Alister waited next to her like predators.
“Little bird, you’re going to have to handle us all right now.” Damien let out a ragged breath.
Wren broke the kiss with Lachlan with a gasp, and his mouth trailed down the column of her throat before he moved to his mark, sucking at it.
“Sorry, sweet ruby, but I can’t wait to taste you.” Alister growled, moving behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist in an instant, and his fangs pierced his mark on the other side.
Wren’s head fell back with a moan, and her mouth parted as her eyes rolled back. Her pheromones were the sweetest of all.
I prowled closer, coming up next to Damien as we watched Wren’s hips rotate on top of Lachlan. Alister's hand reached around and slipped down her shirt, gripping her breast and making her moan as he fed from her.
A powerful force passed between the three of them, a wild sexual heat that Damien and I were clearly being left out of. We let out low growls, that primal instinct to be noticed by her—our mate.
There was a pounding need to be inside her that drove my pheromones around us. She was stunning, and her scent was intoxicating—she was ours.
Damien played with his telekinesis, undressing the three of them in one rip of their clothes. They gasped slightly, noticing us as they realized they were naked. Damien took his chance to step behind Lachlan’s seat and crush his lips to Wren’s.
Alister’s other hand snaked around and grabbed the other breast, seemingly thrilled at her lack of clothes as he rolled the nipples between his fingers.
She cried out, her desire palpable in the air and through the bond. Her eyes glittered as Damien pulled away with a groan, and she slid a hand between her and Lachlan, positioning him before sinking down on his shaft and moaning.
“Fuck, tiny fox. You feel so good.” Lachlan moaned with her.
Pure sex and pheromones thickened the air in the classroom. We were all mad with lust, surrounding our mate as she rocked her hips up and down on Lachlan, who moaned incoherent praises.
Alister’s fangs were still embedded in her neck, pumping his venom into her veins as he played with her budded nipples.
Her gaze locked with Damien’s as she rode Lachlan, and Damien's shadow snaked forward, flicking at her clit.
“Shit,” Lachlan cursed under his breath before stilling and spilling himself inside of her. “Tiny fox, why are you so perfect for us?”
Alister pulled out of her neck with a gasp, her blood trickling down his chin as he moved one of his hands and stroked himself just a couple of times before he exploded all over her back. “Sweet ruby, your blood is the sweetest thing.”
Wren’s pleasure-filled cry pierced the room as Damien's telekinesis hauled her up from in between them. He took a seat in the row behind them and pulled her down on top of him.
Moans and soft cries fell from her lips as she threw her head back. His hands gripped her hips, and he thrust up inside her roughly.
“You’re such a good girl,” Damien leaned forward and caught her nipple in between his teeth.
“Rhett!” she cried out, and I snapped out of my lust-haze before yanking myself out of my pants and rushing behind her.
Damien stilled as I coated my tip in the arousal drenching her thighs and slipped between her cheeks. “I'm going to take you now, okay, baby?”
“Okay,” she gasped out as I slid my way inside. My pheromones wrapped around the three of us, and a tsunami of pleasure tore through us from our magic merging.
Her back arched, and her head fell on my shoulder as she moaned and screamed wildly. “Don’t stop!”
“Not until you come, baby. You’re taking us so good,” I whispered in her ear.
Damien and I matched our rhythm, moving in and out of her at the same time.
“Come for us like the good girl you are,” Damien told her, and she listened.
She came with a scream, and her pheromones exploded, causing Damien and me to come one after the other.
“Wow,” she murmured, eyelids fluttering shut.
A fireball of pure bliss raged inside of me as my pheromones sank back into my skin. Hers trickled back into hers slower than mine.
Wren slumped forward, and Damien's arms wrapped around her.
I pulled out before sweeping my gaze over the guys. “We're going to have to keep better watch of her pheromones,” I muttered, and they chuckled.
“She's worse than you are.” Damien pressed a kiss to her forehead, and she murmured something incoherent.
“It’s because we’re her mates.”
“Can you shadow travel us to Rowan’s room so we can all take a shower? Then we'll head to the dig site,” Alister requested, wiping Wren’s blood from his chin.
I groaned, rolling my eyes. “Take me for the shower, but screw you guys for leaving me behind again.”
“Hey, it's not our fault you have so much responsibility with the mental stability of our students,” Alister teased.
“It's war time. Of course the counselor’s going to be busy.” Lachlan snickered, and I shot everyone a glare as they chuckled.
Wren’s pheromones were more potent than mine, and that would probably become distracting—thank the Fates they only affected her mates.
THIRTY-TWO
Wren
“There were humans here yesterday, but it looks like they’ve done a ton more fucking work,” Damien growled, his horns growing as his tail flicked behind him. He glared at Alister as if it was his fault.
