Zodiac Academy: The Awakening As Told By The Boys
The Awakening As Told By The Boys: Chapter 2

Laughter filled the room around us as we sat in our usual spot, lounging together on the red couch in the centre of The Orb while making sure everyone around us could see just how relaxed and unconcerned we all were.

The other Celestial Heirs were putting on a show, laughing and joking, complaining loudly about how long The Awakening was taking this year and suggesting that maybe the Vegas had turned mortal during their time away from Solaria and didn’t have any magic in them anymore.

I didn’t need to put on a show the way the others did. Not that there was anything out of the ordinary about Seth mouthing off while Caleb laughed his ass off and Max bolstered the emotions which were running high all around us. But I knew there was an edge to their behaviour tonight. Because this was when everything we’d spent our entire lives preparing for could change. Not that I had any intention of letting that happen.

Seth started telling a loud and in-depth story about some pack gang bang he’d been taking part in last night and I tuned him out while every Wolf in the room panted over the details. A lot of them started batting their eyelashes, flexing their muscles or biting their lips in hopes of getting an invite to the next session, but all of that sharing shit wasn’t for me. If I was going to take a girl to bed with me, then I was going to be her one and only focus and she sure as fuck wouldn’t have time to be thinking about someone else.

I reclined in my seat, my mind wandering as I went over the conversation I’d had with my father this morning about the return of the Vega twins today. He had hoped that Lance would have been able to locate them months ago, return them to the fold. Then he’d wanted them to spend those few months in Solaria staying with the Celestial Families so that they could figure out for themselves early on that their place was beneath us now. And to make certain that they had no insane ideas of reclaiming their father’s throne.

I knew what my father had intended to do with that time. He’d been planning on filling the twins’ heads with all the worst deeds the Savage King had ever committed and making absolutely certain that they believed in his plans for the future of Solaria.

He’d even mentioned the use of Cyclops manipulation to me if it came down to it and I knew that he had more extreme plans than that in mind too. Not that he even deigned to share much of his plotting with me. But he had wanted those girls beaten before they ever came to this academy. Though of course the stars had chosen another route.

I already hated the twin girls who were currently standing beneath the stars and calling for their power to be Awakened. They’d made this last summer hell for me and my brother. Their mere existence and the fact that Lance had been struggling to track them down for so long meant that Father had been in a perpetually bad mood. 

The Celestial Councillors had been having meeting after meeting about the return of the Vega twins and what it meant for the entire kingdom. The royalists were a serious pain in our asses. They’d been fairly harmless in the years since the Savage King had died, because without an heir to the Vega bloodline, there was no one for them to rally behind. The worst we’d had to contend with was them insisting upon my father and the other Councillors fighting for dominance to see if a new king or queen would emerge between them. 

But the four families had always been evenly matched and when the tournament had taken place, that had only been proven for the whole of Solaria to see. And it had only cemented the bond between me and the three men sharing this couch with me today.

The entire kingdom had been happy with the plans for us to rule after our parents. They’d wanted it. There hadn’t been any alternative. Until now.

All of those long and clearly aggravating meetings with the Celestial Council had ended with my father in a raging temper and his return to the manor inevitably ended in a violent outburst of some kind. 

I’d taken the brunt of it during the summer, shielding Xavier and our mother from his wrath whenever I could. But now that I was back at Zodiac Academy, my gut felt knotted with concern for them, left in that house with him.

I had one shining beacon of hope for their safety though. One single purpose which my father had snarled in my face while pinning me against his office wall this morning. I needed to get rid of the Vega problem for him. He wanted them broken, unable to even raise their gaze to meet ours, let alone consider standing against us. And I was more than happy to take on that task if it meant keeping him happy, keeping my family safe from his rage.

I rubbed a hand over my jaw, imagining I could still feel an ache in the bone where he’d broken it before I’d left to return to the academy. I knew that I’d done a perfect job of healing the injury, but sometimes the echoes of the pain he inflicted upon me lingered all the same.

‘Here we go,’ Seth hissed excitedly, dropping down onto the seat beside mine and practically bouncing up and down as the first of the newly Awakened students began to file into the room.

An excited shriek drew my attention to my right and I spotted Geraldine Grus clutching what looked like a handmade welcome home card in her fist while her whole body vibrated with excitement, making me wonder if she was about to lose control of her Order form.

‘Hey, Grus!’ Max called, drawing her attention for a moment, though she looked less than pleased about that. ‘Have you been flicking the bean over this moment all week? Because you look about ready to come from excitement alone.’

‘I very much doubt you have the skills required to know when a lady is about to orgasm, you vulgar ruffian. So kindly take your eyes off of my visage and return to your lollygagging with the other mutts on the reject pile,” she replied with a dismissive wave of her arm.

Max’s scowl darkened and he flicked a hand out, using his air magic to whip the card from Geraldine’s grasp and directed it over to us. He snatched it out of the air with a wicked smirk and I glanced at the watercolour painting of two girls sitting on a throne together while a very Geraldine like figure prostrated herself on the floor at their feet.

‘Give that back you clam handed cretin!’ Geraldine cried, taking a step towards us before pausing and looking back towards the door where the new students were continuing to file in. 

There was no sign of Lance, or any twins yet but my pulse was picking up and I exchanged a dark look with Caleb. This was it. Any minute now we’d look upon the faces of the girls set to throw our world into chaos.

‘Look at this shit,’ Max growled, thrusting the now open card in front of the rest of us and I glanced down to read the note written within it.

Oh glorious queens who were lost for so long,

Where have you been all this time you were gone?

I wished on a star for a miracle to come,

And now you’ve returned, I know I got one.

I missed you more than words can say,

And I pledge my devotion to you on this day.

I threw a glare Geraldine’s way, but she’d lost all interest in us, her wide eyes now fixed firmly on the door where the new students were entering The Orb as she looked fit to burst with excitement all over again.

‘Fuck that,’ Caleb muttered, flicking a flame at the card so that it was reduced to ash in less than a heartbeat and Max laughed loudly.

My lips parted to say something, but I forgot what it had been as my gaze fell on the girl who had just stepped into the room.

My thumping pulse picked up speed for a wholly different reason as I drank her in. Long, black hair tumbled down her spine, her green eyes turned up towards the curving roof as she drank in the sight of the building she was in. Her lips were full and primed for tasting, but the set of her mouth said she was more used to frowning than smiling. She was without a doubt, the most stunning creature I’d ever laid my eyes upon and I couldn’t help but stare at her as she moved deeper into the room with the other students.

I felt a silencing bubble closing around me as one of the others tossed it up to allow us to speak freely, but I didn’t look away from her. My gaze was riveted to her as I drank in every small movement of her body and each expression crossing her face. I didn’t give a fuck about the Vegas showing up tonight anymore. I just wanted to know that girl a whole lot better than I did.

‘Holy fuck,’ Caleb murmured beside me and a deep growl rolled through my chest as I got the impression his gaze was fixed where mine was.

‘Mine,’ I snarled, the beast in me waking up and my eyes shifting into reptilian slits as if my Dragon was aching for a look at her too.

Every muscle in my body tensed and I was filled with the insane urge to get out of my seat and stride straight up to that girl and claim her in front of every fucker here. I didn’t even know her name. I didn’t know what Order she was or how powerful she was or any of the things like that which should have mattered to me. But I didn’t care. Because the only thing about her that mattered in that moment was that I was laying my claim.

The Dragon in me demanded it.

‘Well shit, I didn’t consider the fact that they might be hot,’ Seth cursed and I frowned a little at his words, trying to piece them together.

‘That’ll make things more interesting,’ Max agreed.

‘I wanna know how good they taste,’ Caleb said with a barely stifled groan.

I didn’t want to listen to any of them, but their words kept pushing in on me while I continued to stare at my mystery girl.

‘Oh great, Nova is straight in for an ass licking,’ Seth groaned just as our Principal made it to my girl and caught her arm.

I frowned, my brain finally catching up to the words of my brothers as I tore my gaze from the temptation of that beautiful creature to the students closest to her.

My heart lurched as I spotted the girl right beside her, wondering how the fuck I could have missed the fact that there were two of them while I’d been so caught up in staring at her.

The second girl looked strikingly like her sister, though for some reason I felt like I’d know which was which in the dark. I wasn’t sure what it was. But despite their equally attractive looks, my attention was pulled back towards the first girl like the stars wanted it to be on her.

Nova kept prattling on to the twins while my brothers all hissed plans back and forth between each other. Our parents had been more than clear on this. The Vega twins needed to go. We were expected to make sure that happened. That was all that mattered. My dick’s interest in getting to know one of them a whole lot more intimately had no bearing on anything.

Movement in the crowd drew my attention and I looked around on instinct, tearing my gaze from the girl I couldn’t want and spotting Lance as he slipped between the students.

The brand on my arm itched like it wanted me to run to him, hold him tight and sniff his hair just a little. Fuck, I’d missed him. Though at least the bond hadn’t been driving me towards him while he’d been away in the Mortal Realm. In fact, the bond had been so deadened by the split between realms that I’d been able to keep up a perfectly normal routine while he was gone.

Of course, I’d still missed him. He was the one person in this world who I could be entirely honest with. I loved the other Heirs, but there were things my father made certain I didn’t share with them, plus things I chose not to because I didn’t want them trying to step in. Not to mention the hobbies me and Lance took part in.

If they had a clue just how bad my father was, I was certain they’d try and do something about it or get their parents to, but I knew that would only make things worse. Lionel Acrux was my cross to bear, and I wasn’t going to be burdening them with him too.

Lance arched a brow at me, trying to convey some message while looking like someone had just taken a shit in his bourbon. He took his Atlas from his pocket and shot me a message as he headed towards the other professors at the side of the room.

I pulled my Atlas from my pocket, glancing down at the message and feeling something inside my chest crumpling away to nothing but dust as I drank in the information he’d just given me and let the others read it too.

Lance:

Both Vega twins just unlocked ALL FOUR elements. Shit is about to get interesting.

‘That can’t be true,’ Seth scoffed, looking between my Atlas and the twins who were still talking to Nova, looking like a pair of lost lambs.

None of us bothered to answer him because we could hear the rumour spreading across The Orb now as the students who had been there to see it with their own eyes all whispered excitedly about the Vega twins gaining all of the Elements.

My pulse was thundering now, my mind skipping over the reaction I knew my father was going to have to this news. I needed to go to him, be the one to tell him about this and take the brunt of his fury over it otherwise Xavier and my mom would be the ones to suffer. But as I glanced about at the gossiping students who surrounded me, I knew that wasn’t going to happen. The rumour was spreading, it would be in the hands of the press before I even managed to leave this fucking room and his wrath would only be worse if I walked out on my responsibilities here.

I quickly sent my brother a message to warn him, hoping he would have enough notice to get himself and Mother out of the house for the evening. Or even just to fucking hide until Father was forced to leave them for another meeting with the Celestial Council. Which would definitely happen once this information got to them. Because this was bad. People already knew that the Vegas were bound to be more powerful than us and now they were the first Fae to claim all four elements in fuck knew how long too. The royalists were going to have a fucking field day over this.

Darius:

The Vega girls got all four Elements.

I didn’t need to say more than that to my younger brother. He’d know exactly why I was telling him that.

Xavier:

Two steps ahead of you, dude. I already arranged for mom to take me to visit with one of her boring friends tonight. I knew them coming back wouldn’t go well, no matter what way it worked out.

I breathed a sigh of relief at knowing he was safe for now and shoved my Atlas away again.

Geraldine Grus was sobbing happy tears while murmuring, ‘All praise the heavens and their divine intervention! Today two stars were returned to walk among us and lead us all into prosperity!’

‘Fuck. This is bad,’ Max said in a low tone while making an effort to keep looking like he gave no shits.

‘Bad?’ Cal scoffed. ‘This is a fucking disaster. Every fucker in the kingdom is gonna think this is some sort of sign from fate-‘

‘No they’re not,’ I said firmly, refusing to even consider these girls as a threat. Because if they were stronger than we’d allowed ourselves to believe, if they were more capable and fiercer, then we just needed to up our game. It didn’t matter in the end. ‘We have a goal and we stick to that. We go as hard as we have to.’

My muscles tensed as I tried to figure out just how hard that might be. I’d lost a lot of my limitations a long time ago. Father had seen to that. I knew how to take all kinds of pain and I’d learned exactly how best to inflict it first hand too. The point was, that when it came down to it if I had to pick between some girls I didn’t know and my own family’s safety then there was no question of how far I was willing to go.

Besides, I did believe in this decision myself. The other Heirs and I had spent our entire lives training for our positions. Ignoring our strength and power, we were still the best candidates for the role of ruling this kingdom. We knew its people, its laws, the needs and requirements there were to provide everything that Solaria had to have to prosper. The Vegas had grown up as mortals. They knew nothing of our people, let alone how to run a kingdom and I refused to allow them to get strong enough to threaten the safety of Solaria as a whole by challenging us for our rule over it.

“Can I have everyone’s attention?” Nova called and everyone in the room fell quiet, wanting to hear what she had to say about the Vega twins.

Seth shifted beside me, his arm brushing mine in his Wolfy way and I allowed it, knowing he needed the solidarity. He leaned forward eagerly, tilting his head to one side as he surveyed them, balancing his chin on his fist as a low, warning growl escaped him, soft enough that only we would have been able to hear it even without the silencing bubble.

“This year’s attendees have been joined by two particularly important girls,” Principal Nova said, with a big smile as every fucker in the room stared, on tenterhooks. “I am delighted to announce that we have recovered the missing Vega Heirs and brought them back under the protection of our great nation. For seventeen years the Vega twins were lost to us, believed to be dead. But to our great surprise, with the surfacing of their powers on their eighteenth birthday we were able to track them down in the Mortal Realm and return them to their rightful place amongst us.”

A long, tense beat of silence fell as eyes turned our way, gauging our reaction while we held ourselves in check. Then Geraldine lost her shit and leapt to her feet, screaming and clapping and generally looking like a fucking idiot. Others joined in and some asshole got in my way, blocking my view of the twin with the black hair.

I moved before I could stop myself, leaning forward and resting my forearms on my knees as I drank in the sight of her. I knew I needed to stop, to pull my gaze from the bare skin of her waist and the tanned flesh there which ached for the touch of my tongue. I shouldn’t have been staring at the curves of her body or thinking any of the things which were currently circling through my mind, but fuck. She looked like the most perfect kind of seduction.

I dragged my eyes up and over every inch of her body, lingering on her mouth for a beat too long before finding her eyes. My fist clenched as I met her green gaze and it felt like a shot of power snapped from her soul right into mine. I was held captive there, wanting her and hating her for it. Hating her for all the reasons I knew I had to hate her, but just fucking wanting her all the same. Fuck.

There was a challenge in her gaze which needed stamping out and as she raised her chin a fraction, still maintaining eye contact with me, I couldn’t help but think up all of the best ways that I’d like to bring her under my control. The Dragon in me was shifting beneath my skin at the challenge she presented, hungering for the chance to put her in her place beneath me. And ideally if I could get her there willingly, then I could show her how good it could feel to be beneath me anyway.

People were still clapping and cheering and she moved her gaze away from mine. Not like she’d been forced to back down, but more like she was just done looking at me. And another growl rumbled in my chest at the thought of that. People didn’t do that shit to me.

‘They’re coming over,’ Seth hissed excitedly. ‘Be cool, be cool.’

‘We’re all cool, dude. You’re the one bouncing,’ Cal teased as the silencing bubble surrounding us was withdrawn.

My jaw ticked at the audacity of our fucking principal, but I was willing to let it slide, mostly because I wanted this confrontation. I wanted a chance to look at these girls up close and in the flesh and see what they were made of for myself.

“Gentlemen,” Principal Nova purred as she gave the twins a nudge towards us and they eyed us cautiously. The one with the blue tips to her hair looked like she wanted to be anywhere other than here while the darker one looked inclined to punch one of us if we pushed her the wrong way. Bring it on, baby. “These are the Celestial Heirs,” Nova went on, naming us from left to right. “Max Rigel, Caleb Altair, Darius Acrux and Seth Capella.” If our names meant anything to them they didn’t let it show, their gazes skimming over us like we were of very little interest to them and not at all relevant in their lives. But that was all about to change. “This is Gwendalina and Roxanya Vega-”

“Those aren’t our names,” the object of my attention interrupted in a hard voice which made me both pay attention and want to make her submit to me even more than I had before she opened that pretty mouth of hers. “I’m Tory and that’s Darcy.”

“I’m aware that your Changeling family gave you the names of their birth children,” Nova said, sounding amused and Caleb grinned widely as he watched the twins with interest. “But now that you’re home you don’t have to keep using-”

“I like my name,” the blue tipped one interjected.

“I’m sure as shit not going to start going by Roxanya,” my girl agreed in a tone that closed the subject for further discussion.

I rolled the idea of her preferred name around in my mind, finding I both liked the idea of that and didn’t at once. If I called her Tory, then I could let myself forget who she was. What she was. I could play pretend with these fantasies I was having and maybe let myself get a little carried away with them too. But that would be a problem. If I let the idea of her being a Tory creep into my mind then I might start to forget that she was so much more than that. So no, I wouldn’t be using that name, I’d be sticking with Roxanya. Or maybe Roxy, because that had a ring to it which I knew would roll right off of my tongue with a Dragon’s growl whenever I deigned to speak it. And the fact that she didn’t want to be called that only encouraged me further. I was starting to think that there would be worse things I could spend my time doing than making this girl all hot and irritable for me.

Principal Nova pursed her lips like she was planning to argue against the use of their mortal names, but the twins glared at her in a way that made it pretty clear their decision was made on this. She sighed like that irritated her then turned to look at the four of us again. “Well whatever names you go by, you’re still Vegas. The last in your line and rightful holders of the Solarian throne once you come of age. So long as you pass your assessments here and go on to graduate from Zodiac you will reclaim the throne from the Celestial Heirs.” She waved a hand at the four of us and my upper lip pulled back a touch as I fought against the urge to snap at her for that little suggestion. As our principal, she was in a position that demanded respect, but I’d gladly inform the Celestial Council of where our principal’s loyalties lay in regards to the throne. As Nova looked to us again, her eyes sparkled with amusement. “I do hope you hadn’t gotten too comfortable with the idea of holding the throne together. I’m sure you’ll want to be the first to offer the girls the hand of friendship as they embark upon this journey of education.”

The four of us outwardly bristled at that suggestion, my brothers’ postures shifting just as my own was and the amusement falling from us as we formed a united front without even needing to look between each other. The Vega twins were nothing more than an inconvenience to us. One which we had been tasked to deal with promptly. And we’d be getting that job done before the week was out if all went to plan.

I raised my chin, letting my eyes drag over Roxy’s figure again as I gave the two of them my most charming bullshit smile, the one the cameras loved and let me get away with saying whatever the fuck I liked.

“Did you say they’ve been hiding in the Mortal Realm?” I asked Nova curiously, like I didn’t know that already. Like I hadn’t been getting updates from Lance during his hunt for them with every little drop of information he found on them included. “Without an ounce of training at all?” 

Roxy’s eyes were on me and I flicked my gaze up to meet hers, drinking in the suspicion in those big green eyes of hers as the corner of my mouth lifted in amusement. She saw right through me. I could see it. I could see her. And the monster in her was all hungry fire and determination. 

“Well I’m sure you boys will be more than willing to bring them up to speed.” Nova patted the twins on their shoulders affectionately then strode off and abandoned them to us.

The four of us perked up instantly, each of us leaning a little closer to the two girls who still stood awkwardly in front of us, looking like they wanted nothing more than to be anywhere else. 

Seth nudged me subtly and I could feel his excitement. This was a game to him. He was a dog with a tasty snack in his sights and I knew he was looking forward to chewing it up and spitting it out. I didn’t miss how his eyes followed the one with the blue-tipped hair either, which was fine by me as my interest was locked on the other.

“Can you feel that power?” Caleb asked, leaning towards the girls with a smile playing around his lips and I knew in that moment what he was planning. I could practically feel the hunger in him and I had to force back a growl which rose in my throat at the thought of him biting them. Biting her. I wasn’t sure what it was about Roxy which kept making me focus on her. Maybe it was the fire in her eyes or the way she didn’t even seem to give a fuck about being thrown at our mercy. Or maybe I just really, really wanted in her panties. But either way, I was filled with the desire to tell Caleb and the others to back the fuck off and leave her to me.

But I didn’t. That wasn’t how the four of us worked. So despite my instincts craving that, I held my tongue, biting down on any commands I might have been aching to bark at my friends as I waited to see how this would play out.

Gwendalina stepped back, seeming to be done with us as Roxy frowned at Cal. The rest of us just watched, waiting, knowing he was on the edge of breaking that leash of control he held over his base instincts. He hadn’t fed from anyone today and now I was starting to realise why. He’d decided to get a taste of Vega.

“I guess we’ll see you around,” Roxy said dismissively, turning her back on us and making the four of us straighten in anger instantly.

We shoved to our feet and the room fell quiet as we moved to box the twins in, testosterone and anger rippling through the air as we closed in on them. No. Fuck no. They weren’t going to be turning their fucking backs on us.

“That was a little rude,” Seth growled in a low tone as he looked down at Roxy, his hair spilling forward as he pushed into her personal space.

“Cut them some slack, Seth,” I said as I stepped closer too, making sure they had nowhere to run to. Roxy bristled and I swear the flash of rage in her eyes shot a jolt of excitement right to my cock. Fuck she’d look good being bent to my will. “They don’t know how it works here yet. I’m guessing you didn’t realise that turning your back on your superiors is considered an insult?” I asked her kindly, though I could tell she knew there was nothing kind in my question. It was a warning. Plain and simple. They needed to figure out how this was going to work and fast or they’d be regretting it.

Roxy turned her gaze on me, tilting her head back to look up at me. She didn’t even flinch. Not a flicker of fear or concern on her face, just disdain and irritation as she sneered at me openly. I wasn’t sure anyone had ever dared to look at me like that before and it sent a little spike of adrenaline racing through my limbs. This girl was going to pose a challenge. I could see it already. And I couldn’t even pretend that the idea of that didn’t excite me a little.

“Superiors?” she asked, arching an eyebrow at me and making a good show of seeming wholly unimpressed. “I don’t see anyone superior to me around here.”

“Well maybe you should look a little closer, Roxy,” I taunted, baiting her, waiting to see how she liked the sound of that and wondering how long it would take before I’d have her begging me to call her it while I pinned her beneath me.

She looked around at the four of us like she was far less than impressed, her sister doing the same at her side before she shrugged. “I can’t see anyone better than us here. How about you, Darcy?”

“Nope,” Gwen replied dismissively.

I opened my mouth to continue that discussion, but before I could get so much as a word out, Roxy very purposefully turned her fucking back on me again. The two of them shoving Max and Cal aside as they started to walk away like they seriously thought we’d let them get away with that shit. 

A snarl ripped up the back of my throat, my skin heating as my fire magic flared in outrage and begged me to put them in their places beneath my heel.

“I think they could do with a lesson in how things work around here,” Max growled as they just kept fucking walking like they didn’t have a care in the world.

‘On it,’ Cal said with a wide grin, shooting forward before I could say a word against it and making my blood boil even hotter as he slammed right into my girl and threw her back against the nearest wall.

‘Cal,’ I snarled in warning, knowing he could hear me despite me keeping my voice low, but the asshole just grinned wider like he knew I’d been planning on staking a claim on her and didn’t give a single shit about it.

“Wanna beg for forgiveness?” Caleb purred, eyeing her throat hungrily.

‘What the hell are you doing?’ Gwen yelled, trying to get to them to pull Caleb away from her sister, but Max got to her first, laughing darkly as he yanked her into his arms and held her back.

Roxy still didn’t give up, trying to pull her wrists out of Caleb’s grasp while I forced myself to remain statue still and watch them, folding my arms over my chest in an attempt to hide the tension in my body.

The Dragon in me was a possessive motherfucker and all I could think of while I watched her in his arms was that I would really enjoy tearing him away from her and beating the ever living shit out of his pretty boy face. Fucking asshole. I might have loved him, but right now I would have happily torn his head from his shoulders for touching what was mine.

Only the fact that I knew that made no fucking sense and that we had an audience of Fae who would happily sell us out to the press held me in place. It wasn’t like I had a reason against putting her into her place. I just wanted to be the one doing it.

A breath of laughter escaped me as Roxy tried to knee him in the balls and Seth grinned at me excitedly as he nuzzled into my side for a moment. Sadly, Cal avoided the ball shot and managed to firm up his hold on her.

“Last chance,” he offered, toying with his food. We all knew he wouldn’t be letting her go without taking a bite now no matter what she said.

“Fuck you,” Roxy snapped and that really only made me like her more. Yeah, I could admit I liked her. She had fight in her, the kind of spirit that couldn’t be broken easily. And I could see it was going to take more than I’d expected to fulfil the promise I’d made to my father to get rid of her and her sister. But I relished the challenge in her eyes, the beast in me more than ready to go up against her and win.

“I hoped you’d say that,’ Caleb replied, dropping his mouth to her neck and biting her before she could voice any more complaints.

Roxy yelled in alarm, bucking against him and trying to fight him off despite the fact that she had no chance now that his venom was in her blood.

A crowd had gathered to watch, plenty of them keen to see the first showdown between the Heirs and the lost princesses and I was pleased to say that we were clearly coming out on top even if I was planning on kicking Caleb’s ass as soon as I got the chance.

Max kept hold of Gwen despite her thrashing and cursing him out and I could tell he was having a feast on her rage while she lost her shit.

Roxy’s gaze fell to me while Caleb continued to drink from her and for a moment the look in her eyes sent a spike of guilt tearing through my chest. She had no fucking idea what she’d just walked into by coming back here and if she thought this was bad then she was in for one hell of a ride.

I hardened my gaze, smirking at her to make sure she could see all the worst pieces of me. I could practically see the hatred forming within those big green eyes of hers. And despite the fact that that should have been exactly what I wanted from her, I couldn’t help but feel like I’d just fucked up somehow. Like I’d failed at something without even knowing what it was. But if the defiance in her eyes was anything to go by then I knew that this wouldn’t be our only showdown. So I was going to have to tighten up my hold on my feelings over this shit because it had to be done. These girls could put the whole of Solaria at risk and it was my job to make sure that didn’t happen.

So game on, Vegas. This was only going to be the beginning.

My gaze fell to the point where Caleb’s hand was pressed against her waist and a growl rumbled in my chest as I forced myself to remain still. She’d gotten the fucking point already, so why the hell was he still holding onto her like that?

My muscles locked as the desire to rip him off of her mixed with the need to see her put in her place within me and I gritted my jaw against the desire to move towards them. I didn’t know why, but I wanted this girl to be my problem. Not his. And the desire to lay that claim down was making the Dragon beneath my skin writhe with need.

But before I could make any stupid decisions like striding over there and tearing my best friend off of her, a furious snarl tore from the lips of the other Vega who Max still held in his grasp.

‘Let me go!’ Gwendalina commanded and I almost laughed at her before an explosion of energy tore from her body and damn near knocked me off my feet.

Max was hurled clean across The Orb with a surprised cry before slamming into the wall on the far side of the space and tumbling out of sight amongst the students there. I was pretty sure I heard Geraldine Grus whoop and call him a pestersome plankton.

My lips parted in surprise as Caleb jerked away from Roxy to see what the fuck had happened and Seth practically started vibrating with the desire to fight.

I caught his wrist in my grasp, squeezing once to warn him to back off as I schooled my own features. Every fucker in this room was looking at us and no doubt there were more than a few Atlases recording the whole thing too. There was no fucking way we were going to let anyone see that the half terrified looking girl standing before us had just taken us off guard. 

My gaze skimmed over the twin with the blue tips to her hair as she gaped in the direction she’d hurled Max, her hands still held up before her and the look of shock on her face making it clear she hadn’t been expecting that any more than the rest of us had.

I kept my expression flat, my mind spinning as I took in this turn of events. She may have been new to her powers, but there had been no mistaking the raw brutality of that energy she’d just used. I wasn’t going to let her know that it had been anything unusual or noteworthy though.

“You’re gonna regret that,” I said simply, my muscles bunching as I forced myself to remain still. 

Seth grinned wickedly at my side, clearly hearing the threat in my voice and more than ready to make a start on our plans against these girls.

Roxy shoved Caleb away from her, clutching her neck as he licked his lips to taste the last drops of her blood and my gaze was instantly riveted on her once more.

“What the hell is wrong with you, you psycho!?” she snarled at him. 

Caleb started laughing, several of his little fan club joining in while I painted a smirk on my face at her outrage too. It looked like the poor little Vegas really didn’t know what they were getting themselves into by coming here.

Gwen moved towards her sister, closing the distance between them with concern filling her eyes.

“Are you alright?” she asked as Roxy looked down at her blood-stained fingers and she just nodded, looking more pissed off than upset about her little bite. 

The urge to step forward and heal it away to remove the evidence of Caleb’s touch from her flesh filled me and the Dragon in me huffed with annoyance as I resisted it. No matter how much the sight of those puncture marks on her neck pissed me off, I knew it was better to leave her with them. Healing might make it seem like I cared about her wellbeing, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth.

Max shoved his way through the crowd as he stalked back into the fight, shoving his sleeves up as the crowd of onlookers parted for him quickly, not wanting to fall prey to his rage. 

“Back off,” Roxy spat at him, moving closer to her sister as if she planned on saving her from the wrath of the oncoming Fae. I ignored the tug I felt in reaction to that – I knew full well what it was like to put myself between my sibling and danger and it looked a lot like she and I held that trait in common.

“Or what?” I asked, wanting her attention back on me while Seth laughed like a hyena, no doubt having trouble controlling his excitement over the drama unfolding around us.

Geraldine Grus shoved through the crowd looking furious and my upper lip peeled back at this show of her support for the fucking royals. It was exactly what we’d feared – the royalists would all start emerging from the corners they’d been hiding in since the Savage King had died and the political stability of the kingdom was going to be unbalanced. And with the Nymphs closing in around the edges of Solaria, we couldn’t afford that kind of distraction. My father and the other Councillors had good reason to need the Vega problem dealt with quickly, and my brothers and I were more than up for the task.

“Or we’ll fight for our queens!” Geraldine cried, planting herself between the twins and Max who raised his hand anyway, looking more than happy to fight her first if he needed to.

“Multiple Element freshmen, it’s time to choose your houses!” Principal Nova called loudly and I took the opportunity to intervene. 

There wasn’t a lot to be gained by us advancing on the Vegas now. They had no training – hell, they’d probably struggle to summon any more magic at all right now, so it wasn’t exactly going to be a hot look for us to force them beneath us with brute force tonight. It would only stoke the flames of the royalists’ bullshit. I could see the headlines now ‘Heirs attack untrained Vega Princesses on their first night in Solaria.’ Fuck that. We could play a much smarter game.

Seth and Cal seemed to be thinking along the same lines as me and we shoved past Grus and her little gang of followers to intercept Max.

‘Not now,’ I growled at him, laying a hand on his shoulder and urging him to turn away. He gave in with a grunt of frustration and we moved away from the Vega twins to discuss our next move.

Nova was gathering all the freshmen together in preparation for them choosing their Houses.

‘I’m gonna take great pleasure in destroying those two,’ Max snarled, his embarrassment over being caught off guard like that clear, but hell, none of us would have expected an untrained Fae to be able to pack a punch like that, let alone call on their magic without the first bit of understanding on how to do so.

‘We’ve got plenty of time,’ Caleb said. ‘I’m personally hoping to get that blood on tap in Terra House because she tasted like fucking ecstasy.’

I growled at him and he arched an eyebrow at me, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips like he could sense the challenge in the air between us without me needing to say a damn word on the subject. The asshole always did love to push my fucking buttons.

‘I say we give them hell at the hazings tonight,’ Seth said excitedly. ‘Give them a real taste of what it takes to be Fae. They’ll run from here so fast we won’t even remember the name Vega by this time next week.’

‘I hope they choose Aqua then,’ Max said in a low growl as he narrowed his eyes at the twins across the room. ‘Because I want some payback before they leave this place.’

“House Captains!” Nova beckoned us over as the rest of the students took their seats again. We strode forward to stand before the assembled freshmen and I had to fight a smirk at the look of horrified understanding as it dawned across the twins’ faces. My gaze zeroed in on Roxy as she scowled at me and I had to fight an actual smirk. Yeah baby girl, we rule this place. Better start getting used to that. “State the name of your house and why the freshmen should pledge to join you. And for a little suspense, we’ll leave the newest Heirs ‘til last,” she said excitedly.

I fought the eye roll I wanted to offer Nova for her theatrics over the return of the Vegas. She was fucking loving this. No doubt every Fae in the room was too. There hadn’t been any chance of anyone challenging us and our power in all the time we’d been here. Hell, the day we arrived at Zodiac Academy, we’d already had years of magical training and we challenged the four House Captains for their places and moved ourselves straight into the best rooms in each of our respective Houses. No one had doubted our power then and I’d be fucked if they were going to start doubting it because of a pair of girls who had been raised by mortals. My father called Nova a power slut. She’d follow whoever held the most sway in the room and up until now that had been us. And I intended to keep it that way.

Max stepped forward first, scraping a hand over his mohawk with a challenging grin which I knew meant he was out for blood. “Water focus, House Aqua. My house is for those who have what it takes to face the deadly sea of life in Zodiac without flinching.”

“Thank you for that poetic description,” Nova said, clearing her throat before indicating for Cal to speak next.

Caleb dutifully stepped up, smiling his pretty boy smile in that way that got girls panties to combust and pissing me off even more as he dragged his eyes over my girl. “Earth focus, House Terra. And terror is exactly what you’ll get if you don’t fit in.” 

Roxy muttered something to her sister as she shot a venomous look Caleb’s way, and I was pleased to see that she at least didn’t seem to be inclined to turn all blood whore for him. If she’d started panting over the idea of him biting her again, I had to admit I’d probably have thrown down with him here and now. I didn’t know why it was pissing me off so much, but it was. I’d claimed her the moment I saw her, and I knew that with his Vampire hearing he’d been damn well aware of it. Which meant this was a challenge to my command. And of course, I should have expected that because there wasn’t a single one of my brothers who would bow to the others, but it still got me all kinds of pissed at him.

Seth pranced forwards, looking all cute and puppy like though I knew that only meant he was even closer to going for the kill. He had his heart set on playing with the Vegas tonight and this little show was all dirty tactics. “Air focus, House Aer. Life with us is a breeze.” He even gave the twins a welcoming smile and by the looks they were giving him in return, they’d just fallen for it too. More fool them. 

I took my turn next, not minding the way Roxy’s gaze fixed on me the moment I stepped forward. She was drinking me in, assessing me just like I was her and if I wasn’t mistaken, the two of us were headed for one hell of a showdown pretty damn soon. I just hoped she enjoyed the taste of defeat.

“Fire focus, House Ignis. We aren’t for the faint of heart. And frankly I don’t see anyone in this line-up who’s good enough to join us,’ I taunted, offering up a challenge which I was sure they’d be too afraid to take up while kinda hoping they tried anyway.

Nova started moving through the freshmen who headed towards the four of us as they picked their houses, waiting to see what we had in store for them, but I didn’t pay them any attention. None of them mattered. Not one. There was only a single focus for me in this room and I just waited on the two of them to take their turn picking at the end.

When it was just the twins standing there, my pulse began to quicken. They wouldn’t pick Ignis. I knew it. I’d made it clear they wouldn’t be in for an easy ride with me and the way Gwen was whispering in her sister’s ear and giving Seth a hopeful look, I could tell they’d fallen for his trap. But before they could get the words out, Principal Nova interrupted them, making the game a whole lot more interesting.

“You will have to pick differently girls, I’m afraid. Each House is very competitive and we encourage everyone to take part in the healthy rivalry. As you have so much power, it wouldn’t be fair for one House to be at such an advantage.”

I watched as Gwen’s face dropped, her lips parting and panic darting within her eyes. Roxy just looked pissed. So fucking pissed. And I couldn’t help but take pleasure in the sight of her jaw grinding and the way she gave absolutely no shits about letting us and the whole world know that she hated us. I wasn’t sure why I found it so hot, but getting under her skin was quickly becoming my favourite new hobby.

“Well that’s just perfect,’ she muttered, glaring over at us like we were a thorn in her side sent to ruin her day.

“We’ll be housed separately?” Gwen confirmed with Nova.

“Ohh are you gonna cry?” Max taunted, his amusement thickening the air so that I had to fight off the desire to laugh with him.

“I choose fire,” Roxy announced loudly, taking me by surprise and making my heart jerk in my chest. Had I heard that right? Was she seriously choosing me over the others? Why? Did she have a death wish or was she just proving how fucking stupid she was right now?

Or was it something eternally more interesting than that? Was she rising to the challenge I was laying down? Because I didn’t want that – I just wanted her to turn tail and run from here like she was supposed to. And yet…the idea of going to bat against this girl was making my pulse hammer and the beast in me stir with excitement. Was it possible that she might actually be looking to make a stand here?

Roxy stalked towards me, her gaze defiant and holding mine like she didn’t feel the least bit intimidated by me. She didn’t even move to stand behind me like the rest of the freshmen, instead taking a spot right at my side and tilting her head just the smallest fraction as if daring me to do my worst. 

I looked right back, drinking her in, taking in the fire that burned in her soul and the heat which seemed to simmer between us. This girl was going to be trouble. I could tell already. The best kind of trouble there was.

“Air,” Gwen announced, but I hardly noticed, all of my attention taken up by the girl at my side.

Roxy rolled her eyes and looked away from me, folding her arms and turning to give me her profile as she glanced around the room. Dismissing me just like that. But that wasn’t going to work for me.

‘So what is it? A death wish or stupidity?’ I asked as the other Heirs began leading their Houses away to start their initiations. I’d get to that, but for the moment, Roxy Vega had all of my attention.

She turned to look at me with bored eyes, her gaze dropping to my boots before crawling all the way up my body in a languid, lazy inspection that made my fucking dick jerk in my pants.

‘I’ve known a lot of men who talk a big game in my lifetime, but most of them are just posturing assholes who don’t have the balls to back it up. And I get the feeling that just might be you all over,” she said, her voice this rich, seductive purr which had me hanging on every word.

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‘Nah,’ I replied in a low voice just for her. ‘I don’t buy that for a second, Roxy. You didn’t pick me because you thought I was full of shit.’

‘No?’ she asked, holding my gaze and not looking the least bit inclined to back up which said a lot for her backbone. Or her idiocy. I still hadn’t figured that out yet. ‘Why don’t you enlighten me then?’

I licked my lips as I gave her the exact same kind of assessment she’d just offered me, spending more time than was necessary appreciating her curves before landing right back on that defiant flare in her big green eyes. 

‘I think you’re looking for something to wake you up,’ I said slowly. ‘Something to rattle your cage and get your heart pumping. You aren’t hoping I’m less than I make out – you’re hoping I’m all of that and more. Because that fire in you is looking for something to make it burn hotter.’

‘I can promise you, you don’t make me any kind of hot,’ she deadpanned, folding her arms over her chest.

‘Good,’ I growled, moving in closer, wanting her to break, to back up, push me back a step or even just flinch. But she didn’t. And somehow that only drew me in more. ‘You made a mistake picking my House. You won’t be able to escape me now.’

Roxy snorted, shaking her head at me like I was so fucking dumb. ‘I don’t need to escape you, asshole. I don’t need to do anything at all so far as you’re concerned because beyond this moment, you won’t even feature in my thoughts, let alone my fears. So how about you just keep out of my way and I’ll keep out of yours? Because I seriously don’t have space on my calendar for any of your drama.’

She brushed past me before I got a moment to say another word, her arm knocking against mine just enough to show me the level of disrespect I was dealing with when it came to her. 

A growl sounded in the back of my throat as I watched her walk away from me and my mind raced with all the ways I’d like to make her bend to my will. 

Father had told me I was going to have to break the Vegas when they arrived here, but I had to say, I’d never expected to hunger for the challenge as much as I was right now. Roxy Vega had just laid out the gauntlet and I’d be certain not to disappoint her now that the game was on.

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