Page 58 of Bound to Three Fae Beasts

“Court Litherio wants an alliance with Court Alegro,” Freta said. “My oldest sister is a powerful fae. Maybe Flora thinks I can put in a good word for her court? Or maybe she’s hoping to pump me for information.”

“If you want to go, I’ll go with you,” I told her. “But I don’t think there’s any special reason to go. Though it is weird that Flora invited everyone, regardless of whether they’re high or low-born.”

“The food will be good,” Silas suggested. “Everyone I’ve talked to said they were going, even a few of the unbound students. It’s worth checking out. It’s not as though she’s going to poison us all, not when it’s a party hosted under her name.”

Freta nodded. “Right. Then let’s go.”

***

Freta didn’t want Flora to know she was there, just in case she made a big deal of it, so we waited an hour after the party was meant to start, then snuck through the forest around back and joined the party quietly. Flora and the other bullies lingered near the mouth of the trail that led here, greeting all the students as they entered.

She was magnificent tonight. Her glossy red hair was done in elaborate braids, and her skin sparkled like diamonds. The emerald-green dress she wore clung to her figure in all the right ways, with one arm bare. Beautiful, intricate designs were painted onto her skin.

“Damn,” I breathed. “I don’t know if I want to look like her or if I’m questioning my sexuality right now.”

“Me, too,” Silas joked.

I elbowed him, making him laugh. The party was being held in a large clearing. Magic lights already danced over our heads, music played from some unknown place, and a large table sat in the middle of the clearing, on which was a massive amount of food. Looking at how open it was, I was certain there had to be some sort of magical protection from poison after all.

It was lovely, but not as elaborate as I had expected. It was probably being kept low-key to stop things from getting too wild. It would be embarrassing for Flora if her party got shut down by the staff.

We weren’t the only outcast group in attendance. Many other unbound or low-ranking first years lingered around. As I loaded a plate with food, I caught myself thinking charitable things toward Flora. I figured that was her plan, to make the up-and-coming low-born students think about her with kindness.

“How do you think she got permission from the headmaster for this?” Penry asked when we retreated to a picnic table to eat our food.

“My guess? She just asked Quincy and he told her as long as it didn’t turn into an incident, it’d be fine.” Freta shrugged. “My older siblings told me about their times here. Well, they talked about it and I overheard. Hosting parties isn’t entirely uncommon.”

We ate for a bit, watching the other groups. At some point, Flora pulled Seb to a stage area, where they danced. My fingers itched. What would it feel like to march up there, wrap Flora’s brilliant red hair around my fist, and yank out a chunk? I hated watching the two of them dancing, their bodies so close. Seb was even smiling, making the tightness in my chest worse.

A bunch of the other high-born fae joined them, and I watched them instead. They spun and turned, looking for all the world like they’d choreographed the whole thing. It was mesmerizing. But when one of the nearest partners spun toward us, I recognized their faces.

“Oh, gods.” I slumped and turned away.

“Something wrong?” Silas asked, sipping his glass of wine.

I blushed hard as I cleared my throat. “I recognize that one couple. The other day, I snuck out in the forest to practice taking my wolf form and I stumbled onto a few … uncomfortable scenes? They were very naked.”

Penry blushed, too, but Freta didn’t look fazed. “Sex at the Academy isn’t so uncommon, either.”

My gaze drifted back to Seb and Flora. I knew he’d rejected her attempts to seduce him, but there had to be other willing women. I looked for Jasper and Gareth in the crowd. I couldn’t see Jasper right away, but I found Gareth also dancing with a pretty dark-haired girl. Was she his girlfriend?

The way Gareth moved was graceful and powerful. What would it be like to have him smile at me the same way he smiled at his partner? Would he sneak off into the forest with her? It shouldn’t bother me. I shouldn’t feel jealous of anyone attached to the golden boys. If anything, I should pity them.

But it was jealousy that curdled in my gut as I watched him whisper into the girl’s ear, eliciting a giggle.

“You have been practicing your wolf form, then?” Silas asked me, clearly anxious to change the subject.

“Yeah.”

He let out a slow breath and nodded, looking relieved. “Good. I’ve been worried that you haven’t. With Penry and I both not having our bound forms yet, I thought you were avoiding practicing to make us feel better. I wanted to bring it up, but I never seemed to have the right words.”

Penry lowered her glass of wine. “Do we know what the next trial will be?”

“No,” Freta said. “I’ve tried to find out more, but the teachers are forbidden from telling us anything.”

“We will have to keep working on our training,” I said, trying to sound encouraging. “Our potions stockpile looks good. And we’ll keep up with the hand-to-hand stuff, too. I’ve been reading about bound forms, and I have a couple of ideas of how we might get your beasts to manifest.”

Silas lifted his hand. “Please, let’s not talk about the trials now. I want to enjoy my evening.”