by Eva Brandt
The figure seemed to come out of nowhere. One moment, the corridor was clear, and the next, the tiny, familiar figure of an imp was standing in front of me, blocking my path. He was once again reading a book, although this time, it didn’t seem Mein Kampf.
The imp looked up at me and shot me crooked grin. “Ms. Michaelis. What a pleasure to see you again. It’s been a while.”
“Err… Yes. How are you, Mr. Adolf?”
The last time I’d seen him had been in the first semester, before my seizure in the Herbalism exam had thrown my life into chaos. I’d been so confused, since I hadn’t understood the exact nature of an imp and why I kept running into them.
That hadn’t changed, and Adolf’s presence was another of those unsolved mysteries I had no idea how to address. But sometimes, the best way to solve a problem was to be straightforward about it. “Mr. Adolf? Tell me something. What are you doing here, exactly? I thought imps no longer lived at the school.”
“We don’t,” he replied. “We are on an important quest from His Majestic Highness, The Fallen One.”
He delivered that statement which such strength and determination that it was impossible to not take it seriously, even if his expression was a little too cute for a demon. “What task?”
“The answer to that question is… complicated. But we are seeking something very important, something that was lost a long time ago.”
Great. That helped me a lot. Oh wait… No, it didn’t!
“Look, Mr. Adolf, I can respect your need to keep your leader’s secrets, but if you could help me out here with some information, I’d much appreciate it. I’m going crazy trying to figure out what’s going on.”
“Because you think His Majestic Highness came to see you himself.”
I nodded. “I couldn’t have imagined it, right?”
“Well, I don’t know if you imagined it or not, and it’s not my place to monitor The Fallen One. However, I can tell you this. You’re flailing around over nothing. This incident happened last year, didn’t it? So what’s the point in worrying over something you can’t change? His Majestic Highness will act in his own time. Until that happens, you have other things to worry about.”
“I haven’t forgotten. But I feel that when it comes to my problems, they’re all pretty much intertwined.”
Lucifer had shown interest in me, to the point of bringing me my academy letter himself. Then, the teachers had claimed they couldn’t find any traces of Shiro’s murderer. They could be lying, but even if that was the case, they’d only do that for a superior. Mephistopheles, at least, would’ve had no reason to keep anything quiet unless some kind of higher power was involved.
But why would Lucifer kill my dog? Had I done something to slight him? And if I had, was he a danger for me and the others?
“I just wish everyone would stop playing games and—”
The sound of a sharp crack interrupted me mid-sentence. Both Adolf and I turned around at the same time. “What was that?” I asked, startled.
“Nothing good,” the imp replied. “Good luck.”
Without another word, he vanished, abandoning Shiro and me to our fate. Shiro tugged on my dress and I followed his lead. We hid behind one of the columns nearby, hoping and praying that we wouldn’t be spotted.
I had no real reason to be wary since even if someone saw me, I could easily explain that I’d been in the library studying and was on my way to the dorms. We had no curfew, so my presence here couldn’t get me in trouble.
Even so, it was pretty rare for a student to wander around after dark. In fact, I hadn’t seen a single person walking through the corridors for hours. I didn’t know why this was, but in a school where teachers fed on students on a regular basis, it was probably better to be safe than sorry.
“Why must you be so stubborn?” a female voice shouted. “We’ve talked about this countless time before.”
Echoes of agitated magic flowed through the ground. Shiro hid behind me, obviously anxious.
In the courtyard beyond us, two women appeared within my view. It was our two teachers, Lilith and Morrigan, and they were arguing.
“Morrigan, you cannot be serious,” Lilith said with an angry huff. “The girl is human. You can’t place this kind of responsibility on her shoulders.”
It didn’t take a genius to realize whom they were talking about. The fact that I was important enough to the teachers to warrant such an argument alarmed me to no end.
“It’s precisely because she’s human that this responsibility falls to her,” Morrigan replied, making me even more nervous than before. “I’m not the one who set this in motion, Lilith. That was you and your family.”
“And I’ve never shied away from that, as you well know,” Lilith shot back. “But I’ve long ago given up this project as a lost cause. You’re wrong, Morrigan. I like Alyssa as much as you do, but it’s just not possible.”
“You’re blinded by your guilt. You’ve always been terrible at seeing past your own faults, Lilith. You can’t deny it any longer.”
Lilith sighed, as if exasperated by the conversation. “Did your boyfriend put you up to this? He’s been extra annoying lately.”
Morrigan spluttered in outrage. “How many times must I tell you that Grim is not my boyfriend? We just share an affinity. That’s all. It’s perfectly possible for a deity and a primordial force to be friends without having sexual intercourse.”
“Yes, but that’s boring,” Lilith said teasingly. “Methinks the lady doth protest too much.”
“And methinks you’re changing the subject because you know I’m right,” Morrigan snapped at her. “This isn’t about me and Grim, but about Alyssa Michaelis.”
At that, Lilith abandoned her attempts at being playful. “What do you want me to say? Since that whole unfortunate business with her familiar’s death, she despises me and I don’t blame her for it. Until we find out who killed young Shiro, I doubt she’ll forgive me. You’re in a far better position to approach her, since you weren’t here when he died.”
“It’s not the same, and you know it. This isn’t my duty, nor is it my field of expertise. It’s yours.”
Lilith didn’t reply. She froze in the middle of the path, and I realized that at one point while I’d been distracted by the conversation, the two women had gotten awfully close to the column where Shiro and I were hiding.
“Lilith?” Morrigan asked. “What is it?”
“I’m not sure. Some kind of… energy.”
As she spoke, a surge of familiar magic coursed over the courtyard. It held none of the subtlety I’d felt before from the same source. Instead, it was almost like a volcanic eruption, making all past incidents seem like nothing more than muted fire.
At the same time, the shadows around us shifted. A male figure slid behind the column and grabbed my arm. It was Stefan. “Quickly. This way. If they see you, it’ll be bad. Callum and Mikael are distracted them, but it’s not something we can do for too long.”
The plan was risky, but I didn’t question it. Instead, I followed Stefan as he guided us out of our hiding spot, toward a side corridor.
We had to walk right past Morrigan and Lilith to enter it, but they didn’t see us. They were staring at one another, seeming enraptured by each other’s bodies. “You know, I don’t think I ever told you this, but you’re very attractive,” Lilith said. “If you’re not in a relationship with Grim, would you be interested in paying me a visit?”
“Grim is appealing enough in his own way, but I do admit that on occasion, I find myself craving something less bony,” Morrigan replied. “I haven’t had a real tongue up my cunt in over a decade.”
The imagery of Grim having sex with anyone was headache-inducing. Thinking about him with Morrigan was even weirder. Fortunately, Stefan was nothing if not efficient, and it didn’t take us long to leave the courtyard with the two enthusiastic, aroused teachers behind.
It soon became obvious that we were heading toward the dorms of
The House of Envy. Mikael and Callum met us when we were halfway there. They both looked pale, but determined. “That was close,” Callum said. “You okay, Lyssa?”
“I’m fine. You, on the other hand, look like you’re taking lessons from Professor Jones’s makeup artist.”
Callum grimaced. “It’s not easy to inflict a lust aura on Lilith and to avoid discovery at the same time. I think we managed, but it took a lot out of us.”
“Worth it, though,” Mikael added. “Better for us to take the chance than you.”
“I was just coming from the library. I don’t think it would’ve been that big of a deal if they had found me.”
“You’re too smart to think that,” Callum replied. “There are only so many concessions the school is willing to give to any student, even one as remarkable as you. Why did you leave the dorms without one of us?”
I was beginning to get a headache, and not because of my epilepsy. “Contrary to what you seem to think, I’m not a child,” I answered bitingly. “Most of the time, I can protect myself perfectly fine.”
“Yes, we know, but you shouldn’t have to,” Stefan pointed out. “In the end, you are only a human.”
I glared at him, and he quickly backtracked. “That came out wrong. I just mean that you haven’t mastered your powers yet, and there are plenty of people at the academy who still want to hurt you. We just want to keep you safe, Lyssa.”
I buried my face in my hands and sighed. I believed him, but at the same time, I had to wonder if that was just because I wanted to.
It was becoming clearer and clearer that I was very biased when it came to my lovers. I couldn’t judge them as harshly as I did everyone else. It just didn’t seem in my ability. But there were still so many things about this situation that I didn’t understand, and I couldn’t let them go, no matter how much I cared about the men who’d brought so much fire and passion into my life.
“Let’s just go back to the dorm. Not is really not the time and place to discuss this.”
“I agree,” Callum said. “We have other, more interesting things to do.”
It was easy enough to understand what that meant. The small smirk on his lips said more than his words ever could. I tried very hard to not think about everything I knew that mouth could do, but utterly failed.
I might have abandoned all caution and kissed him right then and there, but at that exact moment, through the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a white shadow. I turned, just in time to see the clear figure of a person disappear through the wall.
“What the hell?” I asked, a shiver coursing down my spine. “Is this place haunted on top of everything else?”
It wouldn’t have been surprising, considering how many students lost their lives here on a regular basis. And maybe something so simple shouldn’t have freaked me out after experiencing life at The Academy of the Devil for over a year. But maybe a part of me still had human sensibilities, because I was very concerned about what I’d just seen.
My inquiry seemed to confuse Mikael. “Not as far as I know. Usually, when people die here, Ammit consumes their souls or Professor Grim sends them on their way, so it’s impossible for a ghost to stay behind. Why?”
I stared at him in disbelief. “It was right there!” I hissed, pointing at the spot where I’d seen the apparition. “The ghost! Didn’t you see it?”
Stefan shook his head. “We didn’t see anything, Lyssa.”
Callum frowned, seeming deep in thought. “We’re pretty close to the entrance to the passage of The Scholomance. It’s not out of the question something might be down there that the teachers never bothered to hunt. And to be fair, we do know the corridors are dangerous at night. The school might indeed hold vengeful spirits.”
“Which brings us back to what we were talking about earlier, returning to the dorm ASAP,” Mikael pointed out. “Come on. We’ll be safe there, under Leviathan’s protection.”
He didn’t wait for me to reply. Instead, he took me in his arms and started to run toward the dorm. He might have claimed he hadn’t heard anything about potential apparitions present in the school, but he was clearly freaked out enough that he wasn’t willing to take any chances with my safety.
I appreciated that. I liked to believe I could fight my own battles, but at the same time, I knew I still had a lot to learn. I wasn’t proud enough to refuse my lovers’ help, especially when it meant I could get away from the creepy ghost.
We reached the dorm without incident and entered the building. Callum and Mikael didn’t bother returning to their own houses. Instead, we made our way to the room I shared with Mikael. We bypassed the common room as we walked. Leviathan waved at us with a fin from his painting and Shiro woofed at him.
“Good night, Your Highness,” I told my patron.
He couldn’t reply, but I could’ve sworn I heard a whisper of ‘Good night, little darkling’ in my head anyway.
Not for the first time, I wished things were a little more straightforward at the academy. I wished I could just ask Leviathan about all the questions I had, especially the mystery of Lucifer’s interest in me. But that wasn’t in my ability, so I decided to set my apprehension aside, at least for now.
I was too tired and quite frankly, too cranky for sex, but my lovers didn’t push me. When I collapsed in bed, fed up with life, Mikael pulled off my shoes. Stefan helped me out of my gown and into my pajamas, without allowing his hands to wander. Callum lay on the bed and pulled me against his chest. “You’ve had such a tough time lately, princess. You need to sleep and relax more.”
“Now you’re starting to sound like my doctors,” I rumbled. “That was what they always used to tell me.”
“Well, then, they must’ve known what they were talking about,” Mikael offered. “Don’t question it. Sleep.”
In a way, following his advice seemed like a waste. Because of all my classes, we couldn’t always be together as much as I would’ve liked, and a four-way relationship, while enjoyable, came with some challenges. Sleeping might be important, but like Callum had said earlier, we had better things to do.
But not everything was about sex, and there was a different type of comfort in being like this, in experiencing their warmth and affection in a platonic way. This kind of connection was rare in the demon world. It was nice to just lie there and be, to enjoy the knowledge that they genuinely cared about me.
Maybe I was worrying about nothing, I thought as Callum started massaging my temples. After all, who cared if Lucifer wanted to play strange games with me? As long as I had my lovers by my side, nothing else mattered.
The world was our oyster. All we had to do was to reach out and take it. And anyone who didn’t like that would pay the price for their defiance.
Revelatio
“Ms. Michaelis! Ms. Michaelis! Are you paying attention?”
“Err… Yes, Sir.” I blinked at Professor Jones, who was frowning at me with an almost concerned expression. I wanted to punch him in the face for daring to pretend he cared. “Of course. Apologies.”
“Did you need help with your assignment?”
“No, thank you, Sir,” I replied, gritting my teeth in irritation. “I can handle it.”
He didn’t seem convinced, but he let it go and drifted to the work table of another student. Meanwhile, I poked the leaf of the plant in front of me. It was a variety of ivy, but for the life of me, I couldn’t remember what it was called. The black vines had wrapped themselves around my work counter as soon as Professor Jones had let them out of containment. Our task for the day was to harvest some cuttings without disturbing the plant or getting ourselves killed. I’d managed the latter part, but only because I hadn’t attempted to harvest anything.
Today was just one of those days when nothing seemed to be going right. Professor Jones had refused to let Mikael into the greenhouses on some bullshit excuse that his angelic background would disturb the ecosystem. I hadn’t reacted well to this, but Mikael had told me to go along with i
t, so now, here we were.
Frustrated with myself, I tried to focus on my task. I tended to be good at Herbalism, but today, I didn’t have my usual patience. Even so, the plant accepted my touch with ease, donating its thorns for the potions we’d have to create eventually.
In a way, the act was calming, and the ivy caressed my hand as if sensing I needed the comfort. I appreciated the help, but my problems couldn’t be so easily fixed.
It had been a little over three days since I’d overheard the argument between Morrigan and Lilith. I’d yet to figure out the meaning of Leviathan’s cryptic message or find any information on Lucifer. I was beginning to think Adolf was right and I was worrying about stupid unnecessary things. Finding a way to keep Mikael safe was more urgent. But I didn’t know how to do that either and my helplessness made me want to scream.
By the time the Herbalism lesson was over, I’d finished my task, but I was also even antsier than before. I fled the greenhouse like the hounds of hell were after me, and not with the intention to fuck me until I was dead, as Stefan had so eloquently put it. Much to my surprise, Mikael wasn’t waiting for me outside like he had promised.
Had he gone to the Demonology building instead? I had another class there, and Ammit wouldn’t have minded if he hung around until my arrival.
It was a possibility, but his absence still gave me a bad feeling. He always preferred to stay with me and watch my back, and he wouldn’t have left without letting me know.
As I rushed through the corridors, heading toward Ammit’s classroom, a strange wave of wrongness struck me. I suddenly felt like I couldn’t breathe. A clawed fist seemed to be squeezing my lungs, choking me.
All thoughts of going to class forgotten, I turned on my heel, allowing the feeling to guide me. The castle’s corridors twisted around me, granting me easier passage, as if encouraging me and telling me I was doing the right thing.
I ran into the group of students on the path that led to beach. I had no idea what Mikael was doing here. I was no longer attending PE, so for all I knew all of them might have been headed to Polyphemus’s class. The reasons weren’t really what mattered to me. What mattered was that five other people had surrounded Mikael and TB, and they weren’t happy.