“You have the potential to do so many amazing things. I love your drive to succeed, and I hope you never lose it. Inside of you is an incredible will to persevere. It’s to be commended.”
Growing increasingly embarrassed with Vadimas’s effusive praise, Delaney needed to return to their original topic. “Thanks, but you were saying about my future?”
“Trying to get me back on task. Very well, let’s discuss it. I don’t want delays in your education. I won’t have you punished for lacking the resources of many of your peers. I was considering keeping you here at the Academy, which wouldn’t have been too much of a big deal. Other students stay well into their twenties—they just haven’t reached the heights you have, but recently a new avenue has opened that I thought you might want to consider. I don’t want you to feel like you must do it, though. It’s only an idea.”
“You can’t dangle things in front of a person who can’t stand mystery,” Delaney said with a chuckle. “Tell me.”
“The Grand Warlock has recently been found. I’m sure you heard all about it on the news.”
“More like the Internet, but yeah. The Grand Warlock and the Grand Summoner are alive, and the Coven of Warlocks was reinstated in the Council. It’s awesome to know their entire race didn’t die out. Not only did their parents found the Council but all that magical knowledge. I hope someday when I’m High Arcanist I can meet them.”
“Grand Warlock Dra’Kaedan D’Vaire has also met his mate. He’s a dragon in Court D’Vaire. It’s a small court, and I’ve had the pleasure of visiting. I found everyone very friendly, and I hope to spend time there in the future getting to know them better. The Grand Warlock went through a rather harrowing experience and without the intervention of a great many people would be dead. The reason I’m telling you all this is because the D’Vaire family has recently opened a sanctuary. The Council approved it as the first multi-race one, and I thought you might consider applying.”
Delaney was taken aback. A sanctuary had not once occurred to him as an avenue to explore since he assumed he’d wind up in a wizard-controlled refuge. He loved who he was and the type of magic he used. However, his people were—as Vadimas pointed out—still becoming accustomed to the idea of a dark caster in their midst. It left Delaney as an outsider. “Aren’t sanctuaries meant for people who have suffered abuse or have been victims of disasters or something?”
“Some of them, but this one is geared toward people who are outcasts. They’re seeking people who want to be a part of a family. That’s the priority in their home and as I mentioned, there aren’t a great many who live there. They share a house, have meals together, and that sort of thing. It would be a great refuge for you, and you’d be able to stay focused on your studies.”
“What happens when I become High Arcanist? I’m supposed to help you lead the Spectra Wizardry. I’d have to leave the sanctuary.”
“Why? It would be your home. Being High Arcanist doesn’t require you to give up your lifestyle or your family.”
Delaney’s mind became fixated on the word “family.” He secretly desired the unconditional love he’d always heard came from being in one. The only other avenue for love that existed in his life was that of a mate, but Delaney doubted Fate was ever going to match him up with anyone. Although she rewarded him as a powerful dark wizard, she’d made him a freak in the process. Delaney did not want to meet the person—whom he was mostly positive would be a guy, though he lacked any experience—that was supposed to be his other half, only to be rejected. It was far better to never meet him than to be spurned by the man. “Where’s the sanctuary?”
“Not far from Las Vegas at all. It’s in Arizona.”
“You really think I should apply?”
“I do. I think it would be a perfect place for you.”
The thought of family and finding somewhere that expected him to be a freak was too tantalizing to resist. “You haven’t steered me wrong before, Vadimas.”
“So you’ll apply?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I think I will.”
Vadimas smiled. “Wonderful. I don’t want you to be deterred by the length of the application. Be as honest as possible. I know things haven’t been easy for you growing up at the school—not that you’ve ever complained—but it’s important they know how you’ve been treated. I’ll let them know you’re filling out the form and what an asset I believe you’ll be to their family.”
“Thank you, Vadimas.”
“You’re an incredible young man, Delaney. You work hard, and you’re a joy to be around. The Spectra Wizardry’s lucky to have you. A dark wizard is a wonderful thing, and you’ve done an excellent job of charting new ground.”
Delaney ducked his head in embarrassment. “Thanks.”
“Now, go up to the computer lab, and fill out that application.”
“Yes, Prism Wizard.” Delaney was given another hug; then he sped out of the room. It was a heady feeling to consider having a family, but Delaney wasn’t going to get his hopes up. Just because he filled out the application didn’t guarantee that he would get into this new sanctuary. If he did make it through the doors, it wouldn’t mean they would automatically like him, but it was sure nice to imagine the possibility of being somewhere where he could be himself without restraint or judgment.
Chapter 4
“Welcome to Draconis Court of D’Vaire and the home of our sanctuary, Dra’Kaedan’s Coven,” King Aleksander said as he shook Delaney’s hand.
“Thanks, and thanks again for accepting me,” Delaney managed as he stared up at the handsome dragon shifter. The man was at least five or six inches over six feet and had black hair which hung all the way to his shoulders. Peeking through the strands was what appeared to be a full layer of navy blue. Both colors were also apparent in his eyes, which were marked with a silver line around the pupil by Fate when she gave him a kingdom.
What no one could explain was why he also had a gold circle which should have been given solely to the Emperor—who oversaw not only the dragons but the entire Council. Aleksander was extraordinarily good-looking with his strong jaw and defined cheekbones. Delaney was doing his best not to drool at his feet. He hoped his gorgeous face didn’t mean he was a jerk like that asshole Conrad at school.
“Absolutely our pleasure, Delaney. We’re so glad Vadimas believed you’d be a good fit for us, and we’re so excited that you’re our first sanctuary resident.”
“It’s pretty exciting for me too,” Delaney answered as he continued to gape at the dragon shifter.
“And Greggory, you’re our second sanctuary resident,” Aleksander told Delaney’s familiar as he petted him. Greggory was behaving himself and resting comfortably on Delaney’s shoulder, but the inquisitive dragon wasn’t going to stay put for long. The D’Vaire mansion was enormous, and Greggory would be nosing around every square inch once he had the chance.
“Now that you’ve dropped your stuff off into your new space, would you like to come into the living room and meet everyone?” Brogan asked from Aleksander’s side.
“I’d love to.” Delaney had teleported to the porch with his small amount of stuff after being sent a photo of his new home. The door had been opened by Duke Brogan, who was standing next to Aleksander. Like the D’Vaire king, he was handsome, although Delaney was finding he preferred the intense black of Aleksander’s hair to the duke’s brown tresses.
Delaney trailed after Aleksander and Brogan as they turned the corner into a vast living area that included a family room, kitchen, and dining area. Fully prepared to try and memorize tons of names, Delaney only found about a dozen people sitting on the comfy looking furniture in front of a massive two-story stone fireplace.
“Everybody, this is Master Wizard Delaney D’Vaire. Delaney, I’m going to let them all introduce themselves,” Aleksander instructed.
Not knowing what else to do, Delaney waved. “Hi.”
“A dark wizard. How cool is that? I need to pet your dragon,” a blond man said
. His navy eyes were full of mischief, and he was seated next to a man who resembled him a great deal. Delaney sensed they were magickind, but he didn’t recognize their race, which could only mean they were warlocks.
“The rude guy on my right is my familiar, Renny,” the other blond said. “I’m Dra’Kaedan.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Grand Warlock. Grand Warlock Familiar, you can pet Greggory if you want. He’s very friendly and affectionate.”
“Don’t worry about titles, we check them at the door,” a dark-haired man sitting to the Grand Warlock’s left remarked. “I’m Dre’Kariston, and this is my familiar, Derwin.”
“Hello,” Derwin offered, then turned his attention to the phone in his hand.
Greggory swooped off Delaney’s shoulder and sprawled himself over Renny’s lap. “He’s the best,” Renny crowed as he rubbed the little dragon’s belly.
“He’ll be your best friend forever if you give him cookies,” Delaney told him.
“Noir, we’re going to need cookies. Lots of them,” Renny told a raven-haired woman who resembled Aleksander.
“I’m Noirin. I’m responsible for keeping all these pigs fed.” She placed her hand on the back of the man sitting next to her. “This is my younger brother, Duke Dravyn. The beautiful gardens outside belong to him.”
“I can’t wait to see them. There was a garden at school, but it was really small,” Delaney responded. He’d always been fond of flowers; roses were his favorite. He liked their strong perfume and the beauty of their petals.
“You’re welcome to it whenever you want,” Dravyn told him.
“Thanks, do you grow flowers or like vegetables and stuff?”
“A little of everything,” Dravyn replied. “I like to experiment and create hybrids as well as new flower types.”
“After you see the amazing garden you can find me, and we’ll start decorating your room,” a woman with the orange eyes of a dragon invited. “Hi, I’m Larissa. What are you, like five foot nine?”
Delaney shrugged. “Yeah, I guess so.”
“Great, I’ll get started on your pajamas right away,” Larissa replied. “This is my mate, Madeline.”
The blue dragon shifter offered him a smile in welcome. “Nice to meet you, Delaney.”
“You too, Madeline.” He turned his attention back to Larissa. “Pajamas?”
“I make them for everyone,” Larissa said with a nonchalant wave of her hand. “So…your room. We’ve been working on Gedeon’s. He’s the sentinel over there in the jeans. It’s teal and green. What colors are you thinking?”
“I was only in there for a minute, but there was already plenty of furniture. It’s probably the biggest bedroom I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“Well sure, there’s stuff, but none of it’s you. It needs to be personalized, and I’m thinking maybe an area dedicated to Greggory?” Larissa continued.
“Oh, good idea. We could make him a private area with a bed and maybe some shelves,” a gray-eyed woman said. Delaney recognized her as a necromancer.
“My room really is turning out nice,” the sentinel named Gedeon remarked. The only other sentinel in the room was sitting several feet from the rest of the crowd and wearing the traditional gray uniform of his people. His eyes were a bronzy brown, and Delaney could not shake the feeling that he was sad, which was weird because sentinels were elite assassins.
If he could kill anyone in a second with a deadly poisoned blade, he didn’t think he would let anyone make him miserable. He would just slit their throat and be done with it. Delaney swallowed down a chuckle at his silly thoughts. Maybe I need to stop watching so many horror films.
“Blodwen, you didn’t introduce yourself,” a hybrid man sitting next to her commented as he adjusted his glasses. “I’m her mate, Trystan. Her sentinel is Gavrael, he’s to your left.”
“Sorry, Delaney. I was excited about decorating and forgot to say hello first,” Blodwen apologized.
“It’s nice to meet all of you,” Delaney said after Gavrael nodded. Sentinels did not touch people, so he didn’t offer his hand to the only person in the room who hadn’t said a word. “Can I ask when I’ll get to meet the rest of the D’Vaires?”
“You can ask whatever question you want,” Aleksander replied as he took a seat in an oversized blue chair. “And you’ve met all of us. This is the entire Court D’Vaire.”
“Wow,” Delaney said. Vadimas mentioned that the D’Vaires were a family, and Delaney had heard that dragon courts generally numbered at least a hundred or so. Vadimas had called D’Vaire small, but he had no clue this was it. He hoped they all liked him; it would be impossible to get lost in the shuffle in such a tiny household.
“So, back to the room. What’s your favorite color?” Larissa asked.
Delaney remembered when he was four years old and Vadimas asked him the same question. At the time Delaney had no real idea—despite being coined with the name Scary—how his favorite hue would affect his future.
“Larissa, seriously? Wizards are like dragons. What’s your favorite color?” Dra’Kaedan asked.
“Orange. Duh. It’s my dragon.”
“Delaney’s magic is black, so that’s his favorite color.”
Larissa lay back against the sofa cushions and closed her eyes. She lifted her hands up to her temples as she spoke. “I haven’t had the opportunity to do a black room before. What am I seeing? Greggory’s a dragon. We’ll need dragonskin.”
“Velvet too. Magickind uses it on their cloaks, and can you imagine it in jet black?” Blodwen enthused.
“Tufted headboard and footboard. Silver buttons.”
“Nope, gotta be gold. He’s going to be High Arcanist,” Renny corrected.
“We’ve got to paint at least one wall black,” Blodwen said.
“Do you think a chandelier is too fussy, Delaney? Something about you is screaming full-out elegance,” Larissa remarked.
“Um…uh, I guess it’d be okay?” He did not understand how she could look at his scruffy sneakers and messy hair as elegant, but he didn’t want to argue with her. Delaney liked her ideas; he simply had no clue how they related to him.
“Larissa, he just got here. You’re freaking him out,” Aleksander said.
She patted the cushion next to her. “Have a seat, Delaney. We’ll figure it out. It’s going to be awesome.”
Delaney cautiously did as he was told. He glanced over at Greggory, who was still in rapture in the Grand Warlock Familiar’s lap. Though he’d learned a lot of things in his life, he hadn’t once considered designing a space. He didn’t have a single clue where to begin or what to do if he got it wrong. “I don’t know anything about interior design.”
“You don’t need to. We want a place where you feel comfortable. A sanctuary inside a sanctuary. So, if you don’t like something we pick out, tell us. We’ll find something that suits you better, okay? Gavrael had no clue what he wanted when he got here either. We made it easy on him and designed something that would remind him of his home at the sentinel compound. Right Gavrael?”
“Correct,” Gavrael intoned.
“I always thought having black sheets would be cool,” Delaney confessed.
“Consider it done. Are you opposed to plaid or any other pattern?”
“I don’t think so.”
“I’m thinking something fiercely masculine.”
“He’s going to have a mate someday, keep that in mind,” Dra’Kaedan cautioned as he walked over and sat in Brogan’s lap.
“Delaney, you want us to throw in a feminine edge for your mate?” Larissa asked.
“Well…actually, I’m gay,” Delaney confided.
Larissa clapped her hands. “Perfect! Fiercely masculine it is. When he shows up, if he wants to change anything, we’ll worry about it then. We’ll know he likes black, he’ll be mated to you.”
“You think so?”
“Oh yes, Delaney. He’ll like everything about you. I guarantee it. I mean look at me,
my dragon’s orange and I like to spend my time making pajamas out of the craziest fabrics I can find. Both strange things and my mate loves both about me the best.”
“It’s true,” Madeline confirmed. “So you can blame me when she fills your entire room with more pajamas than you can wear in a lifetime.”
“Okay.” Despite their words, it was difficult to imagine someone showing up happy to be mated to the biggest freak in the wizard world, but Delaney kept his gloomy thoughts to himself. He wanted the D’Vaires to like him, and no one was fond of someone who was pessimistic all the time.
“Did you enjoy school?” Gavrael asked.
“I like to learn. I’m looking forward to being able to set my own pace now, though. I get a little bored when I’m not challenged.”
“Have you gotten much chance to spend time with the Prism Wizard?” Dre’Kariston inquired. “We’re really enjoying his company and getting to know him better.”
“I met him when I was four, and he’s always made it a point to visit me regularly. I really like him. I admire him—he works hard but he doesn’t make a big deal about it. I want to be High Arcanist. Not only for myself but to help the Spectra Wizardry, and although he hasn’t mentioned it to me, I know he needs a wizard to ascend before he can accept his color.”
“I was stunned the first time I met him. I couldn’t figure out why he appeared so aged. It was news to me that if a wizard denied their color that would happen,” Dra’Kaedan said.
“As far as I know, he’s the only one like that. At least among Council wizards. Who knows what goes on with all of them within the Consilium Veneficus.”
“How do you feel about that?” Dre’Kariston asked.
“It’s weird. The most powerful of my people have their own form of government on another continent. I know we’re taught to obey Fate, so it must seem crazy to everyone else that the Spectra Wizardry exists. Fate chose the Arch Wizard and he rules the Consilium, but from what I’ve learned, they aren’t fair to their people.”
“Doesn’t seem strange to me. Fate chose Arch Wizard Egidius, but he led his people down a path of cruelty and injustice. Since his death, the new Arch Wizard has continued his policies. There are no real laws, and justice is done on a case-by-case basis. They have pockets of other magickind and shifters within the Consilium, yet they aren’t given a voice. It’s the wizards who get to make all the decisions. It’s quite extraordinary and not in a good way,” Trystan said. “Sorry, I tend to go off on tangents when the subject comes up.”
Becoming D'Vaire (D'Vaire, Book 11) Page 3
