MAVEN
Moments after Baelfiredisappears into Everbound Castle with Del Mar and the others, Coach Gallagher storms outside, surveying the still-smoking field with distaste as he approaches. The other legacies have regrouped, though some of them have some burns. Plenty of them are giving my quintet dirty looks.
The coach stops and glares directly at me, opening his mouth. He's an easy one to read, so I'm anticipating he'll make some histrionic statement about atypical casters being unable to lead highly-ranked legacies.
But then he sees the frigid stare Everett is cutting him and apparently thinks better of it.
Turning to all the other legacies, he snaps, "Training will begin in fifteen minutes, burns or no burns, so get yourselves patched up and prepare for one-on-one quintet combat."
I glance at Everett, noting that his ear is still bleeding.
"Hold still," I tell him, slipping off one of my gloves. My healing capabilities with common magic are pretty shitty, but I can handle a burst eardrum.
He rears away from me and brushes dirt off his clothes, determinedly not looking at me. "For the last fucking time, Oakley, leave me alone. I don't want you anywhere near me."
I arch a brow. "Tell your body that. Most people don't pop a boner when tackling someone else out of harm's way."
Everett's cheekbones turn pink, and he mutters something under his breath that I don't catch. For whatever reason, my comment also makes Silas snap to attention. He gives Everett a death glare as he finishes healing his own shoulder. The skin is still raw and red, but the worst burns have faded.
"A word,professor?" he snaps, grabbing Everett by the arm and pulling him out of earshot.
I watch them, noting that while Silas is furious, the ice elemental looks frustrated and chastened. Is Silas this mad because Everett got close to me? None of my matches have reacted like this about me getting physical with the others, so that seems unlikely.
Curious.
At the thought of Crypt, I glance out over Everbound Forest, trying to gauge how far away the wards are. I'll have to get through them to get Kenzie, but I wonder if Crypt will be able to get through the wards when he returns.
Fine, I admit it. I miss my invisible stalker more than I thought possible.
My attention is arrested when I spot Baelfire returning to the field, now clothed. Relief hits me. I must have been far more worried about what Del Mar would do to him than I even realized.
Yet, as Baelfire gets closer, I see that his face is twisted in anger. His ears are bright red as he joins everyone else on the field. I can't figure out why he looks so pissed off until sunlight catches on the shiny buckle of a leather collar around his throat.
I know plenty of things about shifters, but one thing especially: collars are considered far more degrading in their culture than they are to any other beings. It's seen as a severe insult to their inner animals. Utterly humiliating.
I'm not the only one who notices Baelfire's new accessory, as another nearby shifter gasps.
"What the fuck? Dude, what the hell? Did they actually—" he begins.
"Shove it,Keith," Baelfire snarls before stopping beside me and folding his brawny arms.
I press my lips together, studying the collar. While some unexplored part of me finds this look on him bizarrely hot, I don't like what it stands for.
I don't like thattheyput it on him.
"Take it off."
"Can't. Tried already," he grits out, staring straight forward like he's too mortified to make eye contact. "It's enchanted to keep me from shifting."
Anger washes over me. He's a fuckingshifter. He's supposed to shift. They took that away from him over a little outburst?
When Silas and Everett rejoin us, I note with surprise that Silas healed the ice elemental's ear when I wasn't looking. That seems out of character for the ruthless blood fae, but I choose not to draw attention to it. I'm just glad Everett's ear won't be a weakness to factor in during combat.
Both of them also frown at Baelfire's collar.
"About damn time," Everett mumbles. "I'm surprised they didn't add a muzzle to rein in your big fat mouth, too."
Baelfire glares at him, tugging at the collar. "You're a dick."
