Chapter Eight
~ Raith ~
Following my mate’s scent, I move soundlessly through the academy forest. It’s easy to track Shade’s clumsily made path, and at one point, I come across a strange pyramid of food set up in a glade. The pyramid is constructed using different kinds of fruit drizzled with honey, and it’s topped with an unwrapped chocolate bar. A few of the pieces of fruit at the bottom have been nibbled on, probably by some of the smaller shadow creatures in the forest. I’m not sure of the intention behind the food pyramid, but I move on, and it’s a short while later when I spy my mate.
Nestled between the roots of a large oak tree, she’s shrouded in shadow as whisps of fog drift around her. Kazer is curled up near her legs, and the winged lion lazily opens one eye as I approach. I press a finger to my lips and give my bonded creature a wink. He soon closes his eye again, his tail flickin’ once before he goes back to dozing.
Rinoc is relaxing a little further away, the giant bear napping on the grass, and Bonfang stands in the darkness of the trees, his gaze alert like he’s keeping guard. My brother’s giant wolf watches me carefully, but he doesn’t give me away.
Without making a sound, I approach from behind, and Shade doesn’t notice me. She grips her sketchbook, her brow furrowed in concentration as her pencil glides over the textured paper. Not too far away, Arizak swishes his tail, the shadow stallion stomping one of his front hooves impatiently.
Shade clucks her tongue, pulling her pencil from the paper. “You need to stay still,” she complains before pressing the pencil down again. “Unless you want to end up looking like a stallion with a stick figure for a butt.”
A grin breaks out on my face. “You know, I haven’t seen him stay that still for anyone,” I point out as I round the oak tree. “Well, except for Galen, I s’pose.”
Shade startles, yelping and snapping her sketchbook closed before she realizes it’s me. She presses a hand to her chest like she thinks I just gave her a heart attack, and Arizak snorts at my presence. Like he takes my arrival as a sign he can move, the stallion walks further into the trees, lowering his head to graze.
“Nooo,” Shade complains letting out a disappointed sigh. “Well, I warned you. A stick figure butt it is.”
Arizak snorts like he understands her but couldn’t care less.
I huff a laugh. “A stick figure butt?”
She draws something then holds up her sketchbook. “Yeah, see.”
“Ah.” Most of Arizak has been drawn with care. In smooth strokes, there’s the illustration of the stallion with his shadow mane burnin’ like black fire, and his wings detailed includin’ the tiny horns at the tip of each wing. There’s even shading, not that I know much about art. But for the back-end, Shade has drawna few simple lines. It makes it look like the drawing was finished by a toddler. Not that I could do any better.
I scratch the back of my neck. “Damn, that’s pretty good.”
Shade snorts, placin’ the sketchbook on the grass. “You’re only saying that because you want to get into my pants.”
A low chuckle rumbles in my throat. “No point denyin’ it.” I nudge her with my arm. “Galen said classes went well today.”
She laughs, her face flushing. “He would say that, wouldn’t he?”
“Was he lyin’?”
Her expression grows thoughtful. “Did he tell you what happened?”
I grin. “Just wish I was there to watch, sunshine.”
Her gaze heats at my words, and my cock instantly hardens as she stares at me. Fuck, she’s incredible, and if it wasn’t for the prophecy, she would easily fit into our group. Knox is still warming up to the idea of her, but I know he’ll come around eventually. Shade is a second chance for us. I won’t forgive him for what he did to our last mate, but with Shade, things could be…better. Fuck, we might even be happy for a change.
Beware the bond of your beloved mate.The words of the prophecy sound in my head like a fuckin’ warning I can’t escape. But there’s no way I’m lettin’ Shade get hurt. We lost one mate, and I’ll be damned if I let us lose another.
I think of our mate from before. I only got to meet her twice when Knox pulled me into her dreams with him, but I remember her soft kisses. Remember the way she moaned when I dropped between her legs, even if it was only in her dreams. And I also remember her agonizing pain when the queen cursed us, and our mate was caught in the crossfire.
Forcing the thoughts from my mind, I step over the tree root, dropping down beside Shade. Yawning, Kazer lifts from his spot, slinkin’ off into the trees.
“Tell me why you’re out here, sunshine. You missed dinner.”
She hesitates, and I wait patiently, lazily draggin’ my fingertips along her arm.Damn, how is her skin so fuckin’ soft?
She gives me a strange look. “Yeah, let’s just say lunch didn’t go the best, so I figured it might be a good idea if I skipped dinner tonight.”
My hand stills. “What happened at lunch?”
She watches me like she’s tryin’ to gauge my reaction. “Oh, it’s nothing,” she finally says, brushing it off. “Just people being assholes.”
