It’s easy to forget the ceremony happening in front of me and just bask in the joy and laughs of my newfound friends. I haven’t felt this good in a while.
Suddenly, a sharp tug in my gut catches me off guard, followed by a pleasant burning sensation that spreads from my chest and down my body. It feels like a flame bursting outward, like when a log gets thrown onto a bonfire. It covers me with warmth and light. The sensation gathers and meets in front of me, visible.
A small sphere of golden light.
For a moment, I wonder if my sin is manifesting.
My hopes are crushed as the light shoots forward, trailing a glimmering thread that connects to my chest.
I watch in awe as the light streaks across the room and attaches to a man on the stage. Time seems to slow; he moves through the arch as if wading through water, each step taking an eternity. I feel the light reach him, a twinkling rope connecting us and soaking into his body.
My heartbeat quickens as if the light is drawing a piece of him back to me, filling my soul with an energy that completes me. It feels like the empty holes that I never knew existed inside me are being filled.
The cord snaps, abrupt and sharp, it flicks back into me—not painfully, but with an unfamiliar sensation.
There's no doubt in my mind:this is a bond tether.
Like time unfreezing, everything flips back to normal.
He walks down the stairs, oblivious to the fact that he just shifted my universe. He’s far, but I can tell he is young for a faculty member.
"Oh my universe, it’s Professor Delicious," Holly squeals.
"Nice, Holls…" Sly says next to her, shaking his head.
"Oh, I definitely just bonded," Tabby drawls. I look at her in fear for a moment, wondering how that could be possible before I realize she’s kidding.
Thankfully, all the girls' comments about this professor have taken any attention away from the alarm on my face. Brix seems to pick up on it, though. "Hey, everything okay, Arwen?"
"Oh yeah! Sorry, I was just surprised that a mage that young is a professor at the academy. Everyone I’ve seen so far looks old enough to be my father." I laugh.
I feel terrible for lying to my new friends again, but I need to think this through, to process what it means. For a normal person, this would be the most blessed gift. A mate. A bond. This is no normal situation.
He's a professor—my professor.
That alone could get me kicked out of SinVail. I have little reliable information on student and staff bonds, and Dean Bellows didn't say we had to report it, but I'm sure the faculty is under strict orders to do so.
I don't even know what faction he's in, and I'm sinless, likely to be exiled within the year… He's about to have a very bad day.
My heart races as I contemplate the implications. My academy adventure could end before it even begins—not even a full day. I glance at the people sitting next to me. I was a fool to think I could build friendships here, a life here.
A sharp cry draws me out of my spiral. I realize that they’ve moved onto the seniors during my mental absence.
A freshman girl stumbles forward from the back of the auditorium. Hunched over, clutching her stomach, shaking, and crying, she moves towards the stage. The boy who just passed through the arch slows, confused and searching for the source of the commotion.
The reality of the situation silences the laughter and joyous tone of the room, reminding us of the potential detrimental circumstances of a bond ceremony.
A nurse on standby rushes forward and takes the girl to a chair on the side of the auditorium, away from the crowd. Another nurse grabs the arm of the boy.
"What the hell was that about?" Brix asks next to me. "Do you think she had a boyfriend?"
"No," Holly replies. "We’ve known someone who found their bond outside of their relationship. It’s different…" She pinches her face and glances at her boyfriend, Sly, who looks anxious.
He grasps Holly’s hand in his, but they don’t elaborate on the difference. "She must have felt the bond, but also knows she can’t stay at the academy if she is weaker."
"Different factions…," Brix murmurs, understanding.
"One of them will be sent away from their friends and family, kicked out of the academy and forced to deal with the bond separation while the other finishes school," Cleo says, sounding a bit choked up.
