by K L Rymer
Soon the earth shakes, and I don’t believe it.
Earth-shattering sex. Literally...
It’s only when I hear those loud, simultaneous roars when I finally realize...
Well, it’s not our earth-shattering sex...
Somewhere, our dragons are doing it too.
Chapter 31.
Life is perfect once again.
I have my Mattie back, and now colors and smells are so much stronger as the world becomes a happier place.
And just like that, the misery of last year is all but forgotten.
Brynmawr and Gwyneira reignited their love too, and now they’ve become local celebrities.
The people of Camelot not only give The Red Dragon a cow offering now, but the White Dragon too, and the oversized lizards are soaking up the five-star treatment.
They’re like the new King and Queen of Camelot, and good for them. But when Brynmawr demanded an elephant offering, I had to tell him off.
He’s not that special.
I had a word with Myrddin to give Mattie his powers back, but the wizard still thought that it was best to hold on to them for the time being.
It was worth a shot. Sure, he may have convinced me he’s a changed man, but he has a long way to go with the others.
Felicity says she believes Mattie’s changed, but she’s only doing that to make me feel better.
I just wish they could have been there that night we had sex. Well, not in a creepy kind of way, but if they had seen the passion that I spotted in his eyes, then maybe... they would see he has changed too.
Matthew is like a closed book. I know he loves me and he wants to be with me, but whenever I bring up the topic of his mother, he turns silent.
I don’t blame him. Mattie virtually being here means that he is giving up on saving his mom, and I just wish my friends could see that. He is sacrificing her for the greater good.
Matthew Senior will cut that delicate thread connecting her life to this earth when he finds out that his son betrayed him. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if he already had.
The monster... I can’t wait to beat him.
He is completely outnumbered. We not only have Merlin, the antichrist, and an epic samurai mage on our side now, but we have two dragons too.
And let’s not forget the shoe-stealing pixie, the bubbly gorgon, the nerdy shifter, the silent titan, the angry dwarf, the deadly vampire, and the twisted Unseelie.
We’re so going to win.
And when we beat Matthew Humphrey III, we will go and find all those dragon eggs.
I think I finally understand what the eastern dragons meant. I will be the one to bring dragons back to the west.
All of us will bring them back.
I’m sure Gwyneira and Brynmawr will be pleased to have other dragons. They could even raise them and have their own nursery.
Of course, these new dragons are going to start off as babies, and my heart beats with excitement.
I’ve always wanted to hold a baby dragon...
I lay side by side with Mattie in my grandparents’ yard, watching as our dragons swirl in that great, blue expanse above.
Felicity and Damien are up there with them.
The pixie has really helped the dragons out. She has taught Gwyneira how to be feminine and ladylike and Brynmawr to be more of a gentleman, and now the three of them are inseparable.
It’s like our dragons have forgotten about us and gone and found themselves new riders. The traitors.
From this angle, Gwyneira and Brynmawr look like regular buzzards as they spin round and round, but I know better.
The sun is on full beam so I can see their scales, and they almost resemble the Dancing Dragons of the school crest.
“Well, would you look at that?” I note.
Mattie shifts his head my way. “Look at what?”
I angle my own face towards him, smiling. “It’s our academy’s emblem. Look.”
I point at our dragons.
Sadness flickers across his features. “It’s not my academy anymore, Bryn.”
My chest pangs as his words sink in and I budge up closer. “Don’t be silly. I’m sure Myrddin will allow you to come back.”
He sighs. “I highly doubt it. Not after what I did. I burned down his school. Put it this way... I’ve definitely lost my place in Audacious.”
I chew my lip. Well, he’s not wrong there. Burning down the school is not audacious in the slightest. It’s more mendacious.
Myrddin has told us Mattie should have been mendacious all along. Not because he is evil per se, but because he has a human mother.
I haven’t cared to mention it to Matthew that we know of his true origin. I think he has already put two and two together, yet still. I just wish he could talk about her.
I want to know what she was like.
I scoff now. “Maybe when Myrddin finally accepts you and gives your powers back, he will let you be in Mendacious. Our house isn’t all that bad. Things have actually improved since Angelina joined. People came to our Halloween party last year.”
That handsome smirk plays across Mattie’s mouth. “A party at Mendacious? I’ll believe that when I see it.”
I giggle and snuggle up closer. I can’t get too close because my grandparents are watching us.
Funnily enough, my grandparents welcomed Mattie with open arms, and they have let him stay at the cottage along with Brynmawr and Gwyneira.
The rest of us go back to the academy, well, except for Angelina. She won’t leave Mattie alone. In fact, the vampire is spying on us right now in the shadows like a creep.
Everywhere I go, I see those glowing, blue eyes...
She doesn’t approve of me getting back with Mattie. She even went bat-shit insane and cursed me for being such an idiot, but I waved her off.
It’s none of her business who I decide to have sex with. Matthew even joked and told her she was free to join us in a threesome, and the vamp nearly bit his head off.
I’d rather she didn’t anyway. I know Mattie loves me now, but I do not want to compete with a girl who could put an airbrushed Victoria Secret model to shame.
My grandparent’s wave at us next and we return the gesture. Mattie chuckles softly.
“Your grandparents are adorable. Your Gran Gran leaves sweets on my pillow.”
I roll my eyes. “That’s just grandmas for you, I guess.”
Matthew pulls a face. “Though I hate it when she squeezes my cheeks and calls me “Handsome Boy.” Tell her to stop that. It hurts.”
I snort. “Nah, I’ll leave her to it, Handsome Boy...”
I pinch his cheeks, but before Mattie can protest, our dragons crash land beside us, causing the earth to shake.
Just like the time they had sex...
Felicity slides down from Gwyneira and bounds toward me. Damien remains slouched on Brynmawr’s back, chillin’ like a villain. He even blows smoke rings from his mouth as he places his arms behind his head.
He’s around his fellow fire-breathers now. He must be in his element.
“Bryn, it was so wonderful!”
I rise up and catch the pixie in my arms. “We were so high up. We could see the whole world!”
“Not the entire world, Tinkerbell. Just Camelot,” Damien replies, slipping down to his feet at last. The demon pats my dragon’s flank. “Thanks for the ride, Bryndog, and if you ever need any more tips... I’m just a stone’s throw away.”
Oh, right. Damien has been helping Brynmawr brush up on his sex drive, giving him pointers, while Felicity was the one who taught him how to be the gentleman.
It takes a beast to know a beast after all. They even have nicknames for each other now.
I hate Bryndog though. I wish Damien would stop calling him that.
Bryndog... I mean, Brynmawr nudges the demon with his snout. “No problem, D-boy. I’m here too if you want tips on what flowers the ladies like.”
The demon blushes and hides his face with his coa
t. Felicity cocks her head curiously.
“Yeah... I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Damien mutters.
The Red Dragon roars in laughter as Damien comes to stand by Felicity, and now both dragons fly away to have more sex.
Damien and Felicity barely acknowledge Mattie as he stands to his feet, brushing off his pants, and it’s a far cry from that lovely picnic we had last year.
The pixie raises a hand and waves to him. “H-hi, Matthew...”
Mattie smiles tightly without looking her way. “Hello to you too.”
Damien burns the mage with his eyes. I forget that Mattie once made Felicity swoon in the cafeteria way back at the start of first year (after he threw mashed potatoes at her first, of course), and I can see the demon is still reeling over it.
The demon’s eyes taper. “Humphrey...”
Matthew nods. “Hellborne.”
A tense silence passes between the four of us, and I just wish the dragons would return to break the ice. It’s odd that they’ve all began to trust Gwyneira now but not Matthew. Really, really odd.
She’s just as evil as he is after all. It was her breath that burned down the school, but why are they accepting her and still rejecting Mathew?
Am I missing something?
Felicity sighs, stepping up beside me. “Well, Bryn. We’re going back to the academy. You’re free to join us if you like.”
I look to Mattie and he smiles, and it’s a genuine one this time. “Go on. I’ll be fine. I have your Grandparents after all.”
Still... I can’t bear the thought of leaving him,
Damien starts walking away, his coat billowing in the breeze behind him. “Hurry up and decide, Bryn, we’re leaving.”
Felicity huffs, stamping her foot. “Give her a little longer, Damien!”
The demon turns her way, nonchalant. “You too, Tinkerbell. I’ll happily leave without you. There’s a certain mage I can’t stand to stomach right now.”
Felicity’s big, blue eyes expand, and then she looks to me sheepish. “S-sorry, Bryn. But I’m going to leave with Damien.”
I don’t bother to stop her as she runs after her demon, and the two of them vanish up the path toward town. I can hear them bickering in the distance.
Matthew shakes his head, and I peer his way glumly. He gives another tight smile. “I don’t think your friends like me all that much.”
I’m not sure what to say. He’s right. It will be a long, long time until he completely earns their trust.
I go to take his hand, but he pulls away, running it through his brown hair. “It’s all right, Bryn. You can go.”
He offers me his back, and I know I’m not going to get any more from him. So I silently start making my way back to the portal.
On my way to the gateway, I spot those blue eyes in a bush and grind my teeth.
To hell with my friends. I don’t want to have to choose between them, but when it all comes down to it, it has to be Mattie.
I need to get through to him.
It’s the only way we can both save the world from his father.
Chapter 32.
I made a mental note to have a word with my housemates, but the opportunity just never came up.
We have a lot of finals in May, so students are isolating themselves in their rooms and studying.
And my housemates are no exception. Even Damien and Felicity are keeping time apart from each other.
As a result of my looming exams, I see Mattie far less now. Since he doesn’t have a phone (Myrddin confiscated all of his contacts to the outside world), I have had to stay connected to him the old-fashioned way.
By letter...
I was born in 2000. All I’ve ever known is text and email. Maybe I should get myself one of those feather quills and go really old school.
Angelina finally left Mattie’s side to do her exams, and thank god. She was starting to creep me out.
The vampire obviously has some unresolved issues she needs to settle. He did dump her for me after all, but since she likes me now, I’m off the hook.
I enter the common room the first morning of our written exams. Gelert crawls beside me, panting heavily.
I’m the first one up, but that’s because I couldn’t sleep.
I never can the night before an exam, but it’s also because I’ve got a lot on my mind.
Everything just sucks, but at least after the exam period is over I can spend more time with Mattie again. I have decided to stay with my grandparents and help rehabilitate him this summer.
Someone comes down the stairs after me, and I spin around.
Damien hovers in the threshold.
I fold my arms. “Since when did you start using stairs? You always traveled via shadow.”
The demon keeps that lingering, red gaze on me, leaning against the door frame. “You won’t get through to him. I thought I may as well tell you now before he hurts you again.”
I match his glare. “I never asked for your opinion.”
He smirks. “Well, you’re going to get it. Felicity would be pissed if she knew what I was telling you right now, but watch out for him, Bryn. I’m not saying he isn’t innocent, but I know a conflicted soul when I see one. He’s still at odds.”
I step closer, gazing into his devilishly handsome face. He’s not handsome in the chiseled kind of way that Mattie is, but damn he’s still one hot demon. His natural eye color is a dark-forest green after all, and coupled with the long, jet black hair...
Felicity really is one lucky pixie. I’m just not a fan of the guyliner and scruffy, backcombed hair.
A lighter set of footsteps bounds down the stairs next, and now Felicity arrives, dressed in her pink blouse and skirt. She wears her black blazer on top.
“I’m ready! I’ve got all my pencils!”
The pixie holds up a furry pencil case with brightly colored pencils inside. One pencil has a feathery top.
Not that I was alive, but her pencils look like something the 90s spat up. (I’m pretty sure Cher from Clueless had that same, feathery pen.)
Damien scoffs, rolling his eyes. “Seriously, Tinkerbell...”
Felicity blinks, passing him the pencil with the feathery top. “Oh, I’m sorry, Damien... Did you want a pencil?”
I don’t think D-boy’s eyes could roll back any further, and now he makes a move for the spiral staircase. “Exam starts in forty-five.”
I widen my eyes. It’s not like Damien to get to an exam on time.
Felicity startles, dropping her pencils all over the floor. “Oh! I’m... I’m coming.”
She gathers her stationary quickly and runs after Damien. The demon waits for her in the threshold, and now I listen to them both as they descend the stairs.
“What poor, pink animal had to die so you could have that pencil case, hey, Tinkerbell?” Damien utters, never sounding so bored in his life.
Felicity squeaks, offended. “It’s not real fur, Damien!”
They continue that way as I decide to hold back, patting Gelert’s head. It’s way too early to leave.
Not even Thomas has left yet, and he’s the nerd of our house.
I drop into a chair and glance out the window. Gelert rests his head on my lap.
Just a few more weeks to go. Then I can finally be by Mattie’s side again.
...
I reread the sentence for the millionth time.
The words just won’t sink in. My mind is somewhere else.
I peer around. The rest of my housemates are already writing. Felicity’s little hand is flying over her desk. Even Damien is lost in concentration, his face pulled into a scowl as he writes with one of Fel’s glittery pens.
It turned out he needed one after all.
Nora chews her bottom lip as she erases one of her answers, sweat dripping down her temple. Jack is silent, scribing away at his paper, and Thomas is already finished.
And Angelina too at that. I don’t think she even had to study since she absorbs
information without listening, and now she looks about herself bored out of her mind.
My eyes find Zahara sitting across from me. She spots me spying and scowls, covering her paper, and I don’t believe it.
She thinks I’m trying to cheat.
The Unseelie smirks and points at her desk, telling me to get back to work.
I haven’t even answered the first question yet. It’s not so bad. It’s multiple choice. All I have to do is use the process of elimination.
Except there are two answers that look like they could be right. Fuck.
They really do know how to trick you.
I pick up my pen and start crossing off answers. Before long another half hour passes, and I finally make it to the last question.
I think I did all right.
The old witch calls out. “Drop your pens—”
She stops next, looking out the window. I follow her gaze, sucking in a sharp breath.
A large, black shadow passes over the school like a storm cloud, landing on the roof, and then the unmistakable roar of a dragon shakes the entire building.
The hair rises up on the back of my neck.
It doesn’t belong to Brynmawr or Gwyneira.
A third dragon...
The room breaks into pandemonium. All at once, students scramble to their feet, running out of the room. The old witch tries to calm them down but everyone ignores her. I even hear Macson calling out over his shoulder, “Shut up, bitch!”
I don’t even have time to laugh as the witch sends a curse his way, and now Macson shrinks into a frog.
Another roar and debris falls from the ceiling. Yet I’m not surprised to see that only Mendacious remain seated. Even Audacious have already cleared the room, and a few Magnanimous push people out of the way, thinking only of themselves.
They really don’t embody their houses’ spirits.
We’re Merlin’s army in the end. We’ve sat at the frigging Round Table. We can handle this new threat, whoever they are.
I stand. “Everyone, follow me to Myrddin’s office.”
My housemates nod in unison and calmly rise to their feet. Felicity starts gathering her pencils, her fingers fumbling as she can’t stop shaking.
Just as I’m about to yell at her to leave her stupid, goddamn stationary alone, the chandelier crashes down from the ceiling.