I heard a grunt from Winter, then saw him now turned toward the situation, about to move off his stool to see to it.
I grasped his hand on the bar top, stilling him. “Stay your hand.”
“I can’t just—”
“Yes, you can. It’s not your responsibility to rescue the Ifrit.” I gave a shake of my head. “As much as he’s clearly come to rely on that.”
“Vaxan—”
I tightened my hold on him. “Heed my words,little death. This needs to be done.”
His eyes sparkled at the endearment that had slipped from me. Uncanny… things didn’t justslip from me; I calculated and planned everything.
He sank back onto his stool. Yet, he noticeably didn’t pull his hand from mine. In fact, he kept looking between the violence transpiring and where we were joined.
We observed as Evira strode into the fray.
The moment that happened, I had to tighten my hold on him further and I could see the strain for him to remain on the sidelines with the added presence of her.
I had been correct about his affections for the ice dragon also, then. A great deal was muted there, so it had been much more difficult to discern. They had both erected protective walls to conceal it, which made a great deal of sense given the way dragonkind saw death-touched beings.
Unlike Zayn, though, the dragon princess didn’t mean Winter any emotional harm, nor was she continually teasing and tormenting him, so I bore her no ill will. There was also the fact that she was… magnificent.
However, as she fired a blast of her frost through the colliding streams of Zayn and Keuric, which weakened both for a moment, she hesitated when she should have followed through.
Keuric made a despicable derogatory comment toward her that was extremely personal and sexual in nature that served to intensify that hesitation.
It actually had Zayn reacting on her behalf, surprisingly taking offense for her.
And then the situation worsened.
I saw others gathering, some willing the fight on, others moving to intervene.
We were in a cavern beneath the earth. As a being very familiar with that living situation, I understood well what the damage of further magical interference in an already volatile magical battle could do. Burying us all alive, for one.
I twisted my fingers, my citrine magic sparking on my fingertips.
Then I flicked it at the fools in question.
The moment it hit, it froze them both in a state of mild petrification.
It also froze their streams, and I actually took it further, forcing my power into the magic, targeting its lifeforce and fully petrifying it, turning it to stone.
Then, with another flick of my power, I crushed that stone to ash, which then littered the cavern floor.
I released Zayn and Keuric in the next moment, and then many students were between them urging them away from one another to opposite sides of the space.
Eyes were drawn toward me.
Not surprising, seeing as though I was the only Basilisk attending this academy.
Awe collided with fear.
Good.That boded well.
I snuffed out my magic, then turned fully back to Winter.
His eyes were wide as he stared at me, mouth slightly agape.
