Key looked excited, his black eyes wide.
“He wants truth,” I answered for him, merely trying to annoy him. A little revenge for the way he was behaving. Key shot a glare towards me, blowing a bit of smoke as a warning. I simply ignored him. He turned to look at Elliot and shook his head, puffing out smoke to write the letter ‘D.’
I was instantly filled with delight. Eyes lighting up, I reached a tentative hand towards the smoke, watching how it curled around my index finger before giving my full attention to Key.
"Dare it is, then." I couldn't stop grinning—I was interacting with a bondmate other than my father's grouchy owl. "I dare you to…. grow as large as you can, then lift Colton into the air as far as you can go."
Key was far too happy to oblige while I narrowed my eyes at Elliot. Where exactly was he going with this dare?
Key immediately set himself on the floor, enlarging himself. He slowly got bigger, his features getting fiercer. The once cute expression turned into what others described as terrifying, his claws getting bigger and sharper. Once he was nearly at the roof of the dorm, he stopped. At this moment, everyone had to shuffle back to give Key some room.
Turning towards me and giving me an evil eye, Key reached out with his claw.
”Do it, Key,” I threatened my bondmate. ”I dare you.”
He froze, putting his hand away and instead offering me his wing. I stepped on it as he lifted his wing up, looking at the others with a rather excited expression.
“He can’t grow any more in this space,” I called out down below.
I gaped up at Key, dazzled and absolutely wonderstruck. "Whoah….." I breathed, wide-eyed.
Andreas, too, was staring, seemingly caught between fear and awe.
The others craned their heads to look up, excitement and wonder on their faces. Although their features were mixed with fear, it was satisfying to watch.
Except Elliot’s expression held nothing but awe. As if he wasn’t seeing a monster, but an angel. As if Key was the most beautiful thing he’d seen all day.
”Shrink,” I patted Key’s wing, who obeyed, letting me down carefully and shrinking himself. Once he was back to the size he liked, he coughed, jumped in the air, flapped his wings and made himself comfortable in my hair once again.
“I suppose it’s Key turn now,”
"Yeah….." I murmured, blinking dazedly. My heartbeat sped up, fuelled by a rush of need, the need for a bondmate. The thing that I'd been praying for all my life—that was what it was like to have one.
I couldn't stop grinning.
Before I could relay Key’s message, a knock on the door interrupted us.
“Your Highness Colton?” A muffled voice came from behind the door. I heaved a sigh, making my way towards the door and opening it. “Sir, the King requests your presence…”
I nodded, looking back before existing the room, the piece of caramel Elliot offered me still in the pocket of my jacket.
We all went still, the laughter dying in our mouths when the Prince opened the door. I could see my own worries reflected in the eyes of my roommates—where we in trouble? Up too late? Making too much noise?
Much to our relief, it was only a message for Colton. Still, I couldn't help but feel a tiny twinge of disappointment at his departure; strange as it had been, catching brief glimpses of the human boy behind his ever-present stony façade had been enjoyable, as had the game. I raised a hand in farewell before he left, the door swinging shut behind him.
When I returned back to the dorm, it was nearly midnight. I couldn’t hear any noise, so I assumed everyone was asleep.
Key had dozed off the second I met up with my father, and he’d been happily sleeping on top of my head. And frankly speaking, that was what I wanted to do myself. Fall back on my bed and not wake up for three days.
[TIME SKIP]
“Again,” I commanded Elliot. We’d been working on his hand-to-hand combat training since the first streak of light in the sky, and although he was good, he wasn’t good enough. He’d barely landed a hit on me. It was already afternoon, and I wasn’t planning on giving him a break unless he couldn’t stand properly anymore.
I admit it was a bit unfair. The training I had was far more intense than what he had to go through, but that was exactly why I decided to spar with him.
“One, two, three, start.”
I bit back a growl of frustration, wiping the sweat from my forehead and darting nimbly forward, feigning a right hook to distract Colton while I swung my leg up, aiming for his jawline.
We’d been sparring and forth since the crack of dawn, training relentlessly, drilling the same things over and over again, and I still wasn’t good enough. Come on, get your act together, I told myself harshly, finally connecting my foot to his face.
When he finally landed a hit, I smirked. Finally he managed to do it, even if it was just once.
“Good,” I nodded at him, touching the spot he kicked. Although it was a rather weak hit, he still managed to touch me.
I wasn’t even the one exerting his strength, but my shirt was drenched, which had begun to annoy me. The sun was blazing down at us angrily, its heat almost like a punishment. I pulled my shirt off, throwing it to the side before stretching my arms. I looked at Elliot, masking all of the approval I let for him. Now I would hit him back.
“Start again,” I ordered.
And just like that, my composure was blown to bits.
Prince Colton was shirtless in front of me. And his skin was smooth and tanned, his bare chest and abdomen muscled, and——
I swallowed hard, heat flooding my face. I didn’t stand a chance.
“Y-Yes, sir,” I stammered without thinking about the words that had tumbled from my mouth. Inhaling sharply, I shook myself both physically and mentally before springing nimbly forward, left fist swinging up towards his jaw.
I raised an eyebrow at the title he used, but reacted immediately the second he sprung forward to hit me. I grabbed his wrist, twisting it before I lifted my leg and landed a kick neatly in his side.
My shin made contact with his skin, and though I controlled the strength I put into it, I knew it would hurt. I wanted it to be that way so he knew he’d get hurt starting from now.
His face was flushed and I briefly wondered whether the heat was getting to him. Then I shook my head. He needed to bear it.
“What was that?” I scowled. “You weren’t even trying.”
“S-Sorry—“ I stammered, scrambling to get ahold of myself. While clutching my side, which hurt like hell, I fixed my eyes to the ground, panting heavily.
Calm down. Now.
It was easier said than done.
Finally, I dipped back into a practiced fighting stance, my mind painting a scene for me to envision. This wasn’t a training session, this was a trial-by-combat. I had to fight like I was going to be slaughtered for my crimes, had to perform as if my life depended on it.
This time, when Colton counted me off, I gathered the fragments of my composure and attacked with newfound energy, landing not one, but two solid punches to his stomach before dancing away.
I exhaled deeply, nodding in approval at Elliot. It seemed that the kick did wonders. It made me think whether I needed to do it more often for him to perform better.
“Those were much better than the kick,” I informed him, wiping the sweat from my forehead. “Again.”
This time, I didn’t go easy.
I shook out my limbs, doing my best to ignore the red staining my cheeks and the freckles dotting his torso. Once more, he counted us off, but this time, things weren’t so easy. My every bunch, blocked. My every slash, swatted aside. I grew impatient, frustration welling up, and made the fatal mistake of kicking high while still off-balance…
During our spar, he became impatient. Anger at zero progress blinded his thinking. He lost his balance.
I was reaching out to land a kick to his chest to finally call it a day, but quickly changed my course. Shoving my hell on the ground, I reached out for his arm, gripping it tightly and twisting it.
I slammed him on the ground, his face against the hard surface, his arm twisted behind him. I leaned closer to his ear, disappointment filling me.
“Patience,” I hissed. “Never let your anger cloud your rational thinking. If that was a real fight, you would have been lucky if you survived.”
My head spun, dizziness overtaking me as pain exploded across my cheek, forehead, and arm. I let out a cry of pain, inhaling sharply, but I couldn’t seem to get my bearings, find mental balance.
To make matters infinitely worse, Colton was practically on top of me, pinning ne down, his strong arms ensuring that I didn’t move an inch. My ragged breath caught in my throat, heard suddenly pounding for reasons other than my injuries. I opened my mouth to speak, to apologize, but my tongue went numb.
I was trapped beneath the Prince’s toned body, a wildfire tearing through me, and there was nothing I could do about it.
I finally let go of his arm after I heard no response, except the feeling of his body going stiff. Picking myself up, I walked back to grab my shirt, not glancing at Elliot’s way even once.
Pulling the shirt over my head, I ran my fingers through my hair, stretching my arms. Finally, I looked at Elliot, who had yet to utter a single word, much less pick himself off of the floor.
Was he discouraged? Was I too hard on him? I knew I was. I didn’t regret it. If I wasn’t, how was he going to learn?
“Ten laps around the field,” I commanded, my voice authoritative. “No breaks in between. Pick yourself up and get moving.”
I scrambled to my feet, my heart thundering in my chest. I could still feel the imprint he’d left on me, his large hands on my back, pushing me down…
Obviously, he had absolutely no idea about my current predicament. About how he had just pinned a teenage girl to the ground and half climbed on top of her. But there was nothing I could do but obey his harsh commands, stumbling a little as I began my laps, weak and trembling.
As I waited for Elliot to complete his laps, I summoned Key. As always, he appeared the second I called for him, enlarging himself to an appropriate size.
”The same thing,” I ordered him, still a bit annoyed at the lack of progress Elliot seemed to have been making. Key noticed my irritable mood, but didn’t comment. He opened his mouth and let out burning hot flames roaring into the sky. I responded by thrusting my hand upwards, letting the wind mix with the flames, improving its heat.
The swirling form of the wind inside the flames remained for a good few seconds before it exploded again. This time, the flames directly came on to me. Key, however, covered me with his wings, protecting me from the burn.
”Thank you,” I patted my friend, who responded by nuzzling my neck. ”Once more?”
He snorted as if to say, no shit.
In the middle of my third lap, fite exploded over Colton, sending a shock of terror straight through me. I ran faster, panicking by now, but as I approached, I realized that he was only training, harnessing his magic.
And, God, was it powerful. My breath hitched at the sight of the smoke, still hanging in the air, a breathless smile softening my features—the collaborations between bondmates got me every single time.
I didn’t stop as I passed, knowing that I’d only get reprimanded more, and instead focused on finishing the task at hand.
Finally, finally, I skidded to a stop behind Colton, my whole body shaking from exertion. Without registering it, I began to sway, a wave of dizziness pulling me under. I was weak, quaking, my lungs refusing to take any more air in—white spots began to crowd my vision.
Key looked behind my shoulder, a frown on his face. I turned around as well right before Elliot fell over.
I immediately caught him before he fell to the ground. I did it again. Pushed him over to the edge, and this time I made him collapse. Bravo, Colton.
I cursed myself, picking him up by throwing him over my shoulders. I worked him too hard. I would file in a resting day for him for tomorrow. He needed to replenish his energy.
Taking him back to the dorm, I laid him on his bed, deciding to not pull the covers over him. He felt too hot. I was such a hypocrite. I told him to not let frustration cloud his rational thinking, and that’s exactly what I did by assigning him the laps.
And he didn’t even complain.
Once I settled him in, I decided to meet up with his teacher for tomorrow. Elliot was not working tomorrow.
I drifted in and out of delirious sleep, the blackness reclaiming me over and over again, presenting twisted scenes to me that faded both from view and memory after a few seconds, until the morning sunshine on my face finally fished me out of the land of slumber.
I sat up groggily, head spinning, temples throbbing so painfully that I barely had enough room to think. At first, the only thing I could remember was training, running laps, and I grew frightened—why was I in my bed? But then it all came crashing back, and the blood drained from my face.
I had passed out.
In front of Prince Colton Miller.
Panic seized me, and I flung the covers off of me and staggered out of bed, only to fall against one wall. My whole body complained, wracked with pain, forcing me back into bed before my knees could give out.
I was a dead woman. There was no way I’d even make it to the Oath now, Colton would see how badly I had failed, how weak I was—I’d be home within the next few days.
I didn’t know why I was doing this. Perhaps it was because I still believed that Elliot would make it past the Oath, or maybe it was because I felt guilty for overworking him.
Whatever it was, I ended up bringing breakfast into the dorm. The other two were in class, so I didn’t need to worry about them. Key was doing his own business, and it was just my junior and I in this dorm.
Balancing the tray in my hand, I opened the door to his room, half expecting him to still be asleep, considering I worked him to the point where he passed out yesterday. He wasn’t asleep. He was sitting on the bed, his face pale, his body shaking.
I set the tray on the side table in his room, ignoring the look he shot towards me as I pushed the table in front of him. I got myself a chair and made myself comfortable.
“Eat,” I said, my voice gentler than what I was used to.
I stared first at him, then at the tray piled high with food, but my brain was much too overloaded with utter panic to fully link the two together.
“P-Prince Colton—“ I stammered, scrambling for an apology. I pushed my trembling hands into my hair, chest heaving. “I’m-I’m so sorry about yesterday—That was completely—I had no excuse to do that—“
Shit. He couldn’t send me home. The Academy couldn’t quick me out—I needed this. Desperation clawed at my throat, which constricted painfully.
I blinked owlishly at him. He was apologizing to me? Even though it was supposed to be the other way around?
I felt his panic, the way his trembling hands fisted his hair. I finally reached up and resting my hand on his shoulder as a comforting gesture, squeezing lightly.
“I’m sorry,” I finally apologized. “It was my fault. I was careless. I clearly gave you way too much—way more than you could handle. I didn’t notice you were nearing the end of your stamina when I assigned you those laps. As your instructor, I failed in keeping an eye on you. I’m sorry.”
I’m sorry.
The two words cut straight through my frenzied, crackling stormcloud of terror.
He was sorry? About my idiotic mistake??
The whole world around me stopped, moving sluggishly as if through thick molasses. What in the world…?
My throat eased up a bit, allowing the tiniest bit of air to slip through. And all I could do was stare at him with wide, frightened, hopelessly confused eyes, not daring to move a muscle.
“Please don’t send me home—I can’t go home—“ I said weakly, my mouth unable to form any sentences besides that.
“You aren’t going home,” I shook my head, heaving a sigh. “Elliot, if I send you home, everyone else don’t even stand a chance.”
That was the first time I saw fear in his eyes. The dread, the desperation, the hopelessness he used to conceal perfectly. Even when he saw Key’s enlarged form, he wasn’t afraid. But at the prospect of being sent home… his whole mask shattered.
It reminded of a rabbit. Though they look fluffy, strong and fierce, on the inside, fear rules them completely. Just like Elliot.
“Whatever happened was my fault. You merely did what I told you to do. I can’t send you home when I don’t have a solid reason to do so,” I patted him on the shoulder. “Now eat and replenish your energy. You must be tired.”
