The staff remindedme of a wand in weight, the magical conduit fitting in my hand and moving with me like an extension of my arm.
Magical swirls danced around it, tickling my skin as the source embraced me with fiery little kisses that disappeared into my cloak.
It all felt so natural, like my connection to earth, the life and darkness swirling through me with renewed vigor after having taken blood from all four of my mates.
The act of drinking from them didn’t bother me.
But I would absolutely not be indulging in their cuisine choices.
Pig. Yuck.
I’ll make you all the shroom loafs you can eat, pixie flower, Zeph vowed, having caught my thought. I’ll even add your favorite mouseberries.
Dragon steak loaf could be fun,I replied. Topped with potato frites?
Are those like French Fries?
What are French Fries?I asked, frowning at him.
Fried potatoes.
I blinked. Purple ones? Or green ones?
He glanced at me, his green eyes sparkling. We are definitely not talking about the same food.
Probably not,I decided. I almost opened my mouth to detail the flaming mush, but a disturbance within the paradigm had my focus shifting to the Academy.
Shade had shadowed us most of the way back, saving us time and energy from having to walk. We were near the main gates now and I could see the group of Quandary Bloods lurking beyond it.
The gargoyles were all agitated, as were the snake-vines, but a breath of calmness from me settled them all as we approached.
Other Midnight Fae watched from the sidelines, their expressions grim. “Go back to your dorms,” I said to them, my tone holding a command to them. It was the middle of the day. They should all be asleep despite the ever-present moon on this side of the paradigm.
Several bowed and scampered back into their buildings, giving me slight pause.
Hot,Zeph praised. So fucking hot.
All I did was tell them to go inside.
In a regal as fuck queenly tone,he said. I want you to use that on Kols later.
I almost rolled my eyes. Do you ever not think about sex?
A chorus of No sounded in my head, all my mates apparently having heard my question. Probably because it had the word sex involved.
Zakkai’s fingers locked with mine, his palm heating my senses as his power rolled through me to flirt with the embers created by the staff in my other hand.
Zeph stood on my opposite side with Kols and Shade behind us.
A united front, just like Zakkai had said.
The gates opened for me as I approached, Laki standing on the other side. He had his hands tucked into the pockets of his charcoal-colored dress pants, his white button-down shirt unclamped at the top with the sleeves rolled to the elbows on each arm.
He looked a lot like Zakkai—same color eyes, similar shade of hair, tall, lean, muscular. Their Midnight Fae genetics gave them a brotherly appearance more than a father-son, similar to how Zen resembled Shade’s older sister, not his grandmother.
But ages for fae were in the eyes.
And I could tell as I met Laki’s gaze that he had at least a millennium on Zakkai.