Spirit of Fae Academy

by Kendal Davis

  I rolled my eyes. “You don’t need to pat me on the head like I’m some kind of kid who managed to complete a sum. I’m a lot smarter than you give me credit for. Than anybody does.”

  “Maybe,” he said. “If you’re such a smart guy, then can you tell me what it is we’re feeling from her right now?” His voice was low and on the verge of being agitated.

  I darted a look at him. What was going on? Owain was usually the unflappable member of our triad, the only one who could be counted on to look at a situation impartially and gather all the facts.

  We were close to her room now. The sense of her was growing closer, filling my mind with the sound of her voice, the scent of her hair. It was overwhelming; I had missed her so much in just two weeks.

  But there was something different, something strange happening to her right now.

  What the hell?

  As we arrived at the open door to Ciara’s new set of rooms, we saw a tableau that made my heart stop. She was standing in the doorway, kissing another man.

  Not just kissing, as it happened. The fact of the matter was that she was leaning close to him, pressing her body against his, her hands twining in his hair as she pressed her lips passionately to his.

  Well, this was going to be a little awkward.

  3

  Ciara

  My mind was a whirling, spinning mess. Any thought that I might have had that was logical or precise was pushed to the very edges of my consciousness, completely overwhelmed by the sizzlingly sexy man who was holding me in his arms. I’d never set eyes on him before, but here I was, sliding my body against his, my lips tasting his frantically. If we’d had another moment, I would have happily shed all my clothes and fallen to the floor with him right there.

  Instead, I sensed Rook and Owain in the hallway, staring at us. I broke apart from the hulking man who was standing in my doorway and took a step back. My hand came up to my lips, not to brush away the kisses, but as if I could capture how precious they were.

  It was what I’d been waiting for. It was the magical bond I’d longed for all vacation. All my life. And it was an outrage, the way he’d come to my room and enfolded me in his embrace with no words, no introduction.

  I raised my eyes to his face, letting my hand drop from my mouth while at the same time wishing I didn’t need to stop this.

  “What in the world was that?” My confusion made me sound more angry than I was.

  He looked right at me, his gaze boring into mine. His eyes were a bright green, pure and piercing. He did not answer immediately, instead taking a step toward me as if he was going to gather me to his chest again. His arms were strong and muscular, yet they had felt gentle a moment ago. Would it be wrong to kiss him again? My lips ached for him.

  Rook, though, stepped forward, moving past us into the room, as if to protect me. “Hey, who is this guy? We felt you kissing him, but I don’t have any idea what this joker thinks he’s doing with our mate.”

  Owain came in as well, looking perplexed but not as irritated as Rook. “Ciara, I don’t know what’s happened with you. Is this the one we expected?”

  I held up my hands in a shrug of confusion. “Um, I guess so. Ok, wait a second.” I stopped to take a breath, thinking I could gather my wits about me. If I’d known I was going to meet the only other person in the world with earth affinity. I would have brushed my hair first.

  Finally, the huge newcomer spoke. “I am Alder. You know that. I can feel your magic calling out to mine. Our connection has been there for me since the moment I gained earth powers. It must be the same for you. Is it not?”

  I gulped. “It is. I mean, I can feel the bond calling out to us. I just didn’t expect it so soon.”

  “I couldn’t wait,” he said simply. “You were here, so I came.”

  Rook grimaced slightly. “Do you mean to the castle, or up to her room? You may not know it, but that’s against the rules.” His lips were set in a straight line. That was a problem I hadn’t anticipated; he was jealous.

  Alder’s voice was deep and sure, like a massive tree in the forest that had somehow uprooted itself and walked up the stairs to my new tower room. “Nothing I could ever do with Ciara would be against the rules. You both must know that, as her current lovers.” He inclined his head with a serious expression, but I caught a glint of humor in his eye.

  Owain corrected him. “I wouldn’t say that ‘current’ is the correct word. Our bonds are eternal.” He was falling back on a semantic argument, which always meant that he was stressed. He was feeling protective of me, just as Rook was.

  It was quaint, but totally unnecessary.

  “All right,” I sighed, doing my best to act normal, as if I hadn’t been just about to melt into a puddle of desire for this incredibly hot man who I’d never seen before this moment. “Everybody come all the way in, and we’ll shut the door. You know I can’t set wards of privacy until the room is sealed.”

  “Privacy from whom?” asked Alder, still twinkling with fun that apparently only I could detect. “Perhaps you know already that I am a faculty member here?”

  Rook shook his head in annoyance. “That’s what I meant about breaking the rules. Teachers are never, ever allowed to visit students in their quarters. Everybody knows that.”

  Alder watched the two other fae men, lifting one eyebrow in response. “I am a teacher, true. But I make my own rules.”

  I held up a hand. “Let me get a word in edgewise, huh?” I smoothed my hand down my plaid skirt, wishing I’d had a chance to check my appearance before inviting all three of my lovers into my room. Well, two...and a man whom I hoped would soon be in my bed. I felt the hardness of my nipples against my finely knit shirt. My body was his, and we both knew it.

  Alder paused, then prompted me. “Yes? Are you going to tell me that we have sensed each other since the day two weeks ago that my fae gift became one of earth? And that you’ve thought of nothing else since then? That every minute you’ve been alone, you’ve longed for my touch on your skin?” As he talked, the curve of his lips riveted my attention and stole my breath away.

  “No.” My denial came in a flat whisper. I needed more time to get to know him before I confessed that every word he’d said was true. “I was going to say that I was pleased to meet you, though. And welcome to my new rooms.”

  Owain took the chance to try to change the topic of conversation. “We wanted to ask you about that. But first, a proper greeting.” He moved toward me and put an arm around my waist, drawing me in for a kiss. His hand caressed my cheek as he brought my lips to his. As usual, our water bond felt crisp and cool, soothing my mind and healing my soul.

  “I missed you so much,” I smiled up at him, brushing his light hair away from his forehead. “There’s so much I want to tell you.”

  Rook mock-punched Owain’s arm as he stepped forward, stealing me from his best friend’s embrace. “We both missed you like crazy,” he said. “I had to spend all of the holidays in the high mountains with my family, when I could have been with you.”

  I grinned. “Probably not. I was staying with Evana, and I don’t think her parents would have allowed me to have two guests in my bed, even if they were as well-bred as the two of you.”

  Rook laughed boisterously and embraced me, whirling me around as he gave me a long, searching kiss. “You make us sound like horses, you know. We’re not all that genteel. Some people might call us downright dangerous.”

  Alder tilted his head, considering the younger man thoughtfully. “Would they really?” His tone contained no malice, just a question.

  Rook glowered at the massive earth fae man, choosing not to answer. In all I’d seen of fae culture since I’d arrived in their land, I hadn’t noticed much of a relationship between a fae’s age and the respect they commanded from others. But on the other hand, I’d never been in this particular situation before.

  I reached out to take Alder’s hand, wishing this was going better. “Let’s start again,” I said, fl
ashing him a smile. “I’m Ciara. I’m the mortal Tithe to the fae. You might not know what that means. I hear that a lot.”

  Owain stifled a laugh, as he knew well how hard it had been for me last year to find out that nobody even knew who I was. I’d been trained all my twenty years to come to their world, with the expectation that doing well at the Academy would lead to me taking the throne as the fae Queen. It had taken me more time that I liked to admit to realize that those plans had been based on lies.

  I held on to Alder’s hand longer than was usual for a greeting. As I did, he watched me closely and repeated his own introduction. “I’m Alder. I was once an air fae, long ago. Then some things...ah, happened to me, and I found that I was gifted with earth powers. As you know, that was just about two weeks ago.”

  Owain nodded. “When Ciara battled the Queen and the Headmaster, she honed her earth powers to the point where we suspected nature would create a mate for her. We did know this was going to happen.” The last was an aside to Rook, who looked like he was still having trouble accepting that Alder had joined my life permanently.

  Alder lifted his chin with dignity. “It is true that the events you speak of caused me to become an earth fae. However, it is not a certainty that Ciara and I will become bonded.”

  I gasped at the unexpected pain his words sent through me. “But you just said...and the way you kissed me.” My voice was so petulant that I was grateful when I found I had stopped talking. I drew a breath and began again. “Ok. What I mean is that I think we would both gain strength in our magic from the alliance.”

  Rook and Owain were both staring at me now. The faint amusement I saw on both their faces made me stand taller. I was the Tithe. I didn’t have time to bow down to what other people thought of me, even if I dearly loved them. My purpose here in the land of the fae was to make things happen the way I wanted them.

  And, oh, I wanted him.

  Alder’s green eyes sparkled with humor, as if he could read my thoughts. “You wish us to be allied? That is a strangely formal way of describing what I had in mind for us.” His large hand came to his chin, rubbing it as he considered my proposal. “What about the fact that I am a professor here? As I’m sure is obvious, I attended the Academy a very long time ago as a student. I never thought to come back here at all.”

  “Did you have a bad experience here?” Owain was curious.

  “Not at all. I finished at the top of my class, as an air fae. Then I spent centuries working on various projects, including the repairs of the environment of the mortal world, as you two did.” He inclined his head to the two younger men.

  “And you’re back to teach earth affinity?” My words revealed my interest in him, no matter how impartial I tried to appear. He knew I wanted him.

  “I’m back for you,” he said brusquely. “You aren’t just my only student, you are the only thing in the world that matters to me.” His eyes were intense.

  I didn’t know how to answer that. Instead of producing something witty or alluring, I sputtered a nonsensical response, then faded into silence. My two other lovers eased their stance. No matter how awkward this might be, I could tell that they liked him.

  Alder was still holding the hand I’d given him. He turned my wrist up to the light cast by the sitting room lamps. Apparently it was insufficient, for he moved his lips in a spell and created a ball of magical illumination that hovered over my wrist. A sharp nod confirmed that he’d found what he was looking for.

  “Do you know this is here?” He jerked his head toward the softest spot on the inside of my arm, just a few inches above my golden bracelet.

  “What? My bangle? It was a gift from the Directors back in the mortal world. You know, the political handlers who arranged for me to come here. Of course I know it’s there.”

  “No,” he murmured, using his thumb to stroke the skin above the bauble. “Here, on your own skin. There is a mark, although you may not be able to see it. Are you aware that it is there?” He lifted his head to the others. “Any of you?”

  I bit my lip, pulling my hand away from his. As I raised my wrist to see it better, I understood what he’d meant. There was a tiny imprint of a five-petaled flower, like a tattoo, but with no color beyond my own flesh tone. I gasped, as did Rook and Owain.

  Alder was stern. “It is the mark of an Eternal Assassin. Did you not know it was there?” All at once, he withdrew from me. Where I’d pulled back only my hand, he suddenly seemed miles away. His hulking form stepped toward the door, ready to leave us all.

  “You can’t talk about that,” I whispered. “It’s forbidden.”

  Alder’s laugh was low and harsh. “Nothing is forbidden to me, my sweet one. Nothing at all.” With a knowing look up and down my body, he managed to indicate perfectly that I was included in that statement.

  I wanted him, true, but I also craved a little more sweet talk.

  He did not offer it. Instead, he left. Just before he ducked his head to fit through the door, he issued me a last warning. “Ciara. We feel a bond, but it is not certain that we will claim it. That will happen only if we both want it, Assassin.” Before I could answer, he left my sitting room, leaving his harsh words behind him.

  “Wow, he’s an easygoing breath of fresh air,” scoffed Rook.

  Owain reached for me, enveloping me in a kind embrace. “It will be fine, my love. We know you are a force of incredible power. He just hasn’t learned it yet.”

  I wanted to show my guys all around my new rooms, pointing out the bedroom that Evana and I shared, and gossiping with them about my speculations on who would take the other room. We’d moved from a double to a quad, and I wasn’t sure I liked that.

  But all my everyday troubles paled in comparison to the fact that I’d met the man of my dreams and all he’d done was walk away from me. I turned to the other two men of my dreams, as a thought struck me.

  They caught my question and wordlessly lifted their own wrists to the light.

  It was true. We were all marked with the flower of our fealty to Queen Hellebore. We were her Eternal Assassins. And if we were now publicly marked, then we were not just killers.

  We were in danger.

  4

  Owain

  The day dawned bright and clear. This was the appointed day that we should have returned to Fae Academy. When we’d come back yesterday, the only students around the place were those who had nowhere they wanted to go during vacation, which included almost nobody. Today, though, the castle would fill again with the bustle of term time. Rook and I had not even spoken about having come back to school a day early. We didn’t need to. It was obvious to all of us that we’d felt Ciara’s return, and followed her. She was our compass, our world.

  It had been hard enough being away from her for the two weeks of school holidays, but I’d wanted the chance to see my parents. They lived in the low country district, where water fae often made their home. We’d always resided there, as every family member I could think of possessed a water affinity.

  Our morning was designated as free time, before the opening luncheon at which the new first-years would make their appearance, and our acting Headmaster would make a speech. A twinge of regret ran through me as I remembered Headmaster Landon’s talk last year. He was an evil man who deserved the incarceration Ciara had meted out to him, but he was surely an entertaining speaker.

  The three of us were tangled in the sheets of my bed. It was my favorite way to awaken.

  “I can’t believe we went two weeks without seeing each other,” Rook groaned as he ran his hands along Ciara’s hip to wake her up. She smiled at him languidly as her eyes opened.

  “I thought about you both every night,” she said with a teasing note in her voice.

  “I hope so,” I answered her, leaning over to kiss her gently. I knew she’d meant to sound devilish, but my own response was more serious. “I could think of little else besides you, Ciara. In my dreams, and in my waking hours. Our bond has grown so strong that
I can feel your emotions along it. Sometimes, I can even hear your thoughts.”

  Rook sat up, reaching for a glass of water on the bedside table. He caressed Ciara’s hair still with his other hand, as if he were loathe to leave her side. We both were. “Well, that’s the point, isn’t it?” he asked. “That’s why we came back a day early? We felt the message from you that you were coming back to the Academy, and we knew we had to be here for you.”

  Ciara twisted around to look at each of us in turn. “Really? I mean, I did wonder last night why you were back at school before everybody else, but I forgot to ask. Things got so busy all at once. First, I had to move into the new set of rooms, and then the new professor just turned up…” She let her words fade away as she allowed her mind to remember him.

  Rook scowled. “I’m not so sure about him. You know that, right?”

  She was calm as she surveyed him. “I understand. It has been easier for you and Owain to find your way with our bond, since you’ve been friends for so long.”

  He shrugged. “I wouldn’t say it was easy, exactly, but we...well, we’re kind of like a team. We work together to take care of you. To please you.”

  Ciara’s cheeks flushed with color as she recalled the ways we’d pleased her all night long. “That’s what I was going to say next. That I got caught up in being with the two of you last night, so I never had time to ask why you’d turned up on the wrong day.”

  I cleared my throat. “Obviously, it was the right day, if it was the day you returned. That’s what we keep trying to tell you. We can feel your thoughts, your emotions, even your whereabouts now. It’s so much stronger than when we first met. And when we knew you were coming back, we transported ourselves immediately.”

  Rook nodded. “I don’t know about Owain, but I actually kept my trunks packed just in case this exact thing happened, and I needed to run to protect you. I would have left home at any time if you needed me.”