by River Ramsey
They were both in their separate corners, but I could tell if I moved an inch, they’d be back at it. Fenrir was the first to mutter under his breath and stalk off through the part that quickly formed through the crowd.
Even he seemed to know he was close to losing control. If only Hades could become capable of that kind of self-awareness.
He turned and walked off the other way, leaving me in the middle of the crowd. I wasn’t going to shift back and be naked in front of them, even though I was already humiliated.
I knew if I headed back to the dorm, I’d risk running into my father or brother, so I headed for the men’s locker room instead. There were no gym classes in session, so I expected it to be empty.
It wasn’t.
I froze on the other side of the push-in door as I found myself face to face with Dionysus, who’d just gotten out of the shower and was wearing a towel around his waist.
He stared back at me, a blank look on his face. “Loki?”
I shifted back into my human-ish form. His face turned bright red and he looked away. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“Can’t shift with clothes on,” I answered, smirking as I opened my locker and grabbed the spare change of clothes I always kept inside for just such an occasion. “It’s nothing you haven’t seen before.”
“Whatever,” he muttered, pulling the door to his locker open.
“So, is there a reason you shower in the middle of lunch, or is the water pressure just that good?”
I could feel him glaring at me as I buttoned my shirt. Getting under his skin had always been too much fun to resist.
“Ever since my roommate outed me in front of the entire school, I can’t exactly shower with the other guys without getting weird looks.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Atlas?”
He frowned, and I could tell he was trying to assess whether or not I was fucking with him. “You really didn’t know?”
“What happened?”
“Nothing,” he said, shutting his locker.
“Dionysus,” I said, stepping up to block his way out. His eyes blazed and for a second, I could see why he and Kore were so close. They both had fire running through their veins.
“Why do you give a shit?” he demanded. “We were never anything, remember?”
Having my words thrown back at me took me off guard enough that I let him go through.
Why do you give a shit? The question stayed with me long after he’d left.
I wasn’t sure.
Chapter 18
Kore
Ever since I had gotten serious about winning the Games, I’d started using every spare moment I had to train. Eventually, my body had stopped punishing me so much. I was still sore when I went to bed and got up in the morning, but the exertion was getting easier and easier.
Deep down, I was just relieved for the reminder that I was alive. It had been a few weeks since Hades had brought me back, and so far, he was right. I hadn’t experienced any negative side effects, but I could only hope that remained true.
That evening, I was out for a run, hoping to clear my head. The Games were only three weeks away and it was impossible to believe how quickly this semester gone by. In some ways, I didn’t feel like anything had changed. Then, I looked around me and realized that just the fact that I had survived a full semester as the Rabbit was huge.
Although maybe “survived” wasn’t the right word…
The path winding around the Academy offered a splendid view of Atlantis. I didn’t dare venture back into the woods, considering that I hadn’t meant to reach the other side of them to begin with. I still couldn’t shake the feeling that something had lured me out there, long before the siren’s voice had called me into the water.
At least it had all given me something to think about other than Ares.
I turned up my music, determined to push myself into a higher heart rate zone that I usually went for before I headed back. The truth was, I wanted the excuse to come in late. Hopefully Dionysus would be asleep by the time I got in.
We were closer than ever now that we spent so much time training together, but that closeness came at a cost. I could no longer deny that I was starting have feelings for him, and I cared too much about him to risk fucking it up.
I knew he didn’t feel that way about me. I knew that saying anything would only make it worse, but I lived in fear that I would trip up somehow and reveal the truth.
Then there was what I done with Hades… I wasn’t sure why I hadn’t told Dionysus. We shared everything and it felt like kind of a betrayal not to tell him something that big. I wouldn’t have said I was ashamed, but the fact that Hades hadn’t said a word to me since was playing on my insecurities and making me wonder if I had reason to be.
We were just fooling around. I told myself it didn’t have to change anything. I still hated him and he still hated me.
Even so, I couldn’t help but be curious about what the Triad had been fighting about that day in the cafeteria. Even Daphne didn’t know anything. I hadn’t seen Fenrir and Hades together since, but whatever it was seemed to have distracted Hades from making my life a living hell.
I should have been happy. Why did I even care if those assholes were fighting anyway?
I was deep in thought as I jogged, but the sensation of being watched drew me back to the present. I stopped running and looked around. The grounds were quiet, and there was no one in sight, but I definitely felt a presence. I focused until my attention shifted to the shadows of the hedges surrounding the garden, and I subtly lifted a finger to coax them into doing my bidding. I heard a startled gasp as the greenery reached out to wrap around whoever was watching me.
“Loki?” I called as he became visible, struggling against the grip of the hedges.
“Call off your Chia Pet,” he growled, still thrashing against the plant.
I folded my arms and the greenery tightened around him. “Not until you tell me why you’re spying on me from the shadows like a creep.”
“Like a creep?” he echoed. “That implies that you don’t think I’m usually a creep. I’m flattered.”
I just glared at him, waiting for a serious answer.
He sighed in defeat and stopped struggling. “I needed to talk to you about something.”
“About what?” I demanded. I didn’t trust him any further than I could throw him, but I was admittedly curious as to why he’d sought me out.
Had Hades already told the others what had happened between us? I couldn’t help but wonder if that had something to do with the fight in the cafeteria, but I quickly dismissed the thought. It felt too narcissistic.
“It’s about Hades and Fenrir,” he answered, arousing my suspicion once more. “You saw them fight, and I’m sure you know things have been tense ever since.”
“What Hades does really doesn’t interest me.”
He gave me a knowing look. “If you tell yourself that for long enough, maybe you’ll start to believe it.”
I rolled my eyes. “What does any of this have to do with me?”
“You’re the reason they’re fighting,” he accused.
I raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”
“Come, you’re not that naïve,” he scoffed. “We all know you and Hades got to third base.”
My cheeks flared with heat, but I wasn’t sure if I was more embarrassed or angry. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business. I can’t believe he told you.”
“He didn’t need to,” Loki shrugged. “We share a bond.” His eyes narrowed. “A bond that includes you now, apparently.”
“If this is about that thing I can’t talk about, you’re barking up the wrong tree. And the one has nothing to do with the other.”
“Doesn’t it?” he challenged.
“A point, Loki. Get to one.”
I released him from the hedges and he smirked, walking forward to stand in front of me. “We both know you can come between them. I’m here to ask you not to.�
�
I couldn’t believe I was hearing him right at first. “You’re seriously asking me not to fuck Hades?”
“Or Fenrir,” he said, as if that made it any better.
I couldn’t help but laugh. “You have a lot of nerve, you know that?”
He smirked. “So I’ve been told.”
“If it makes you feel any better, that was a momentary lapse in judgment,” I said icily. “It’s not going to happen again, but if it did, frankly, that’s none of your fucking business.”
Loki chuckled. “Perhaps not.”
He turned to walk away and my curiosity got the better of me. “Wait,” I called.
He turned and watched me boredly. “Yes?”
“Were they really fighting over me?”
He shrugged. “Like you said, it’s none of my business. You’ll have to ask one of them.”
Chapter 19
Kore
“Thanks for helping me with this,” I said as Daphne laced up the back of my dress. It was the night of the opening ceremony, and all the female participants had to wear some variation of the same toga-inspired dress. At least I’d gotten the chance to opt for one cut above the knee. “I’m not used to all the frilly stuff.”
Daphne just laughed. “It’s no problem. There, you’re all set,” she said, stepping back to admire her handiwork. She was wearing a similar dress, only hers was a more practical wrap style. “Truth be told, I’m a little surprised you didn’t ask Dionysus.”
I froze at the mention of his name. In the weeks that had elapsed, I hadn’t managed to come to terms with my feelings for him. We were roommates, but sometimes it felt like we were strangers.
The Games spanned a full week, and with their culmination, the semester would be at its end. I didn’t have much time left to fix things before we both went home on break.
Not that I was likely to get an invitation back to the Academy if my plan of winning worked out.
Which brought me to another unresolved matter. Daphne was already heading to the door when I called after her. She looked back expectantly. “What is it?”
“There’s something I need to tell you,” I said, knowing it might well leave me with a two-man team on short notice. I just couldn’t go into the Games with her in good conscience without telling her what Dionysus and I had planned if we won.
Over the last few months, I felt like Daphne and I had grown close. She had been a friend to me when it was incredibly politically inconvenient to be that. At the very least, she’d never piled on like the others, so I felt like I owed her the truth.
“Yeah?” she asked, growing concerned.
I took a deep breath. No easy way to say this. “If we win, I’m planning on using the speech to confront the Council about the Wild Hunt.”
Her eyes widened, but she didn’t react as hastily as I feared. “I don’t understand. The Hunt…?”
“Not just that,” I admitted. “Everything about the way this place runs, from Phrixus’s murder getting swept under the rug to the fact that there are a few students who run everything and anyone who questions it gets trampled on.”
She was silent for a few moments before finally saying, “I see.”
“I understand if you can’t go out there with us,” I said, holding her gaze even though it was difficult. “But on some level, I know you must understand. You’re not like them either.”
She looked away, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Things have always been this way.”
“That’s just it,” I said, grabbing her hand. “They don’t have to be. We could win this thing, and actually give a voice to all the people who’ve been silenced in this school since it started. Putting pressure on the right people might actually make a difference.”
She watched me closely, but I could see the hesitation in her gaze. “This isn’t just about Phrixus, is it?”
I gulped. “No,” I admitted. “But that’s part of it. A student was killed in cold blood, and everyone’s just continuing on like nothing happened even though the killer was never caught. There are never any consequences at this school. If you belong to the right group, you can literally get away with anything. Including murder.”
She grew wary. “You don’t still think that Hades…”
“I don’t know what I think anymore,” I muttered. “I know nothing is ever going to change if no one ever tries.”
She fell silent, and I could hear the announcer instructing the crowd of the Coliseum to take their places. The opening ceremonies would begin soon. “Are you with me?”
Daphne stared at me, and it seemed like she would never answer. When she finally did, I certainly wasn’t expecting, “I’m with you.”
Relief washed over me and I couldn’t help but pull her into my arms and squeeze tight. “You won’t regret this.”
“We’ll see when the headmaster gets a hold of us,” she said dryly, putting an arm around my shoulder. “Come on, let’s get out there.”
With the weight of secrecy lifted, I followed her out of the makeshift dressing room and across the lawn to the Coliseum Towers. Contestants were supposed to enter through the back, and the triumphant music was already beginning to play.
As first years, we were expected to be the first ones out. I scanned the backstage area nervously in search of Dionysus, and when I finally caught sight of him, he seemed shaken. I pushed through the crowd to get to him, latching onto his hand. “There you are.”
He gave me a tired smile. “Hey. Ready for all this to start?”
“Yeah,” I said, glancing back over my shoulder. “Daphne’s with us.”
His eyes widened. “You told her?”
“I know I should have talked to you first, but it just kind of came over me. She’s good with it.”
He eyed her doubtfully through the crowd before looking back at me. “Are you sure we can trust her?”
“If we can’t, we’re kind of screwed anyway,” I reasoned. “Besides, she’s stuck with us so far and I’m sure she’s paying the social price for it.”
He still didn’t seem convinced, but he nodded. “I trust your judgment.”
“Come on,” I said, pulling him back to our place in line. He looked handsome as ever in a dashing toga with his golden hair crowned with laurels. I couldn’t think of anyone I’d rather have at my side.
The first few groups walked out across a golden carpet to the uproarious cheers of the crowd. Even though it was only opening ceremonies, most of the parents had already arrived. Chronus wouldn’t be in attendance until tomorrow, around when my mother was scheduled to arrive. I couldn’t help but be relieved I didn’t have to worry about either of them tonight.
Their arena somehow looked bigger than it had during training, and there were torches all around it, casting an intimidating glow on the crowd. I must’ve looked nervous when it came to our turn to walk across the carpet, because Dionysus subtly reached for my hand.
The innocent gesture sparked in unnatural response, making my cheeks flush and my heart flutter. I resented myself for taking even that the wrong way. It was all the more confirmation that I had to talk to him soon.
We took our place on stage alongside the other contestants and I found myself studying the various groups, trying to figure out what we were up against. Each year’s students competed against each other in the early rounds, but the final event was a battle royale between those who emerged victorious among all groups.
Hades and his posse had made history by being the second first years to take the Games in a clean sweep, and as the three of them came out last among the third years, I could tell they thought this year was going to be a repeat performance.
There they were. Hades, Loki and Fenrir. They looked like the young, cocky gods they were, clothed in white and casually wearing crowns of laurels on their heads. This day was not so different for them than any other. They were worshiped wherever they went, so the Games were just another chance to lap up attention, honor and praise.
More than anything else, I was going to enjoy beating them if only to put them in their place.
Once all the contestants were onstage, Odin stepped up and took the microphone. “Welcome, students, parents and alumni,” he called in a booming voice that echoed well beyond the arena. “We are honored by how far some of you have traveled to witness this year’s festivities. Tomorrow, these students will begin to compete for the title of ultimate victor, and only one group will emerge supreme. However, tonight, we celebrate.”
He raised a glass to toast the crowd. “Let the Games begin!”
The arena erupted in gleeful cheers and it became obvious that a few of the spectators were already drunk. The band continue to play as we were allowed to venture offstage and over to the refreshments tables. It was more like an outdoor buffet, complete with chocolate fountains and ice sculptures. The Academy really went all out.
“Well, this is it,” Dionysus said, watching as some people swept onto the dance floor while others mingled and gossiped. “The biggest party of the year. What do you think?”
I shrugged. “Feels like an overrated New York fundraiser to me.”
He just laughed. “So I suppose a dance is out of the question.”
I blushed, surprised at his remark. Was he asking me? Before I could figure it out, he grabbed my hand and pulled me out onto the floor.
“Isn’t there someone you’d rather be dancing with?” I asked, still flustered. He was a good dancer, which shouldn’t have come as any surprise. I wasn’t usually too bad myself, but his hands on my waist were distracting me, make it hard to keep up.
Dionysus gave me a devastating smile. “No, there isn’t.”
The certainty in his voice left me sure of absolutely nothing. As we danced and I found myself trapped in his gaze, I realized this whole sorting through my feelings thing was going to be easier said than done. I had halfway worked up the nerve to talk to him when someone appeared behind him, tapping him on the shoulder.