“Well then dear, perhaps we can move on to the Princes’ and Princess beside me.”
In my defence, I wasn’t a rude person. I didn’t actively try to be hostile. But I had been raised to fear strangers and the teachings of my childhood were so ingrained in my bones that I could not function like most people did. Even without the OCD, and subsequent childhood PTSD I was still a mess.
I was filled to the brim with social anxiety and rage, not a brilliant combination. But now for the first time ever I wished I could be something more and speak to the five curious faces of the Heirs without the anger I usually did. Because they were single headedly the most beautiful people I had ever met.
All five stared at Dari, their eyes tight and nostrils flared as they tried to figure her out. The group seemed as though they could be siblings if not for the fact they didn’t look the same. They each held a deep aura of power that radiated far across the room, alluring all who dared stand near them.
The hairs on my arm stood up as I took them all in, starting with the only girl who stood on the far left, snuggled against the chest of the boy next to her.
“This is Bette Wilder, Princess of Mordova.” The girl nodded her head and smiled, looking every inch the innocent cherub until she bared her teeth and a shock of danger flickered through me.
She was pretty in a generically stunning cover-girl way that told me she was sweet and girl-next-door. But her distressed red t-shirt dress, her dark makeup smudged on purpose, and the crown of leaves on her midnight hair made her look like a savage.
“I am a werewolf, encase you didn’t realise,” she said, her voice reminding me of bubble-gum and rainbows, “though I guess if you are more human now and not really fae, you would not know what a werewolf is.”
Bette didn’t say it like an insult, more like she thought it was a fact. It was weird.
“We’ve watched enough shitty horrors to know what a werewolf is,” Dari answered with a wicked grin, “though I expected you to have a lot more fur and be on all fours barking like a dog.” Bette tinkled out a chorus of bells, her version of a laugh; I couldn’t take her seriously in the slightest.
The boy she cuddled wrapped a muscular arm around her shoulders and leaned in closer. He was a mammoth of a boy, whose dark skin was accentuated by the white sailor shirt and skin-tight leather pants. If I hadn’t known better, I would have thought him a pirate.
His dreadlocks reached his chest and were filled with golden hoops that also matched the one on his nose. He looked like he belonged on the top deck of a burning ship and the thick golden chains around his neck were akin to a pirate’s treasure. I hated to admit it, but he was hot even if he wasn’t my type. Dari would have had a field day with him if he were not already involved with the wolf girl.
“This is Mikel Cross, Prince of Altair.”
Mikel did not smile, or wave, or do anything remotely kind. His golden eyes narrowed, and his mouth crushed into a thin line. If not for Bette hanging onto him like a limpet, I had the feeling he would have stormed off, or even laid his hands on us and threw about his weight like a child in a tantrum.
Perhaps he does not like us; or does not like Dari, from the way he is looking at her.
“Kel is a siren.” Bette said, answering the question we had before we could ask.
“Like a mermaid?” Laina asked curiously.
“I am nothing like the mermaids in your story books.” Mikel spat.
I looked him up and down, trying to work out what the cause of his incessant rage was. I could not fathom how a man could hate us so much before he even knew us. “I am a creature of the deep, who would ruin your nightmares far more than anything you have ever thought before. Do not compare me to something so childish and demure.”
His body shook with rage, and I could see the effort it took for him to hold still. It was something I recognized well. Little Mikel has a temper like I do…
“So you’re a fish then.” Dari mused, as she unwrapped a bar of gum and began blowing bubbles with it.
Mikel glared at her, his gaze turning molten.
“If you insist on looking at my sister like that, then I will have no choice but to see how well you can hold your breath.” I spoke calmly, refusing to give an ounce of anything away with my tone. “Or maybe you could pause your anger issues for a second until we leave. Because I’d rather not get wet again tonight; it took ages to dry my hair earlier.”
Mikel’s eyes snapped to me, and he looked me up and down, sizing up my small frame hidden under black jeans and a jumper, and seeming satisfied that I was nothing to someone like him.
“Maybe one day we can compare and see how well you can hold your breath too.” He replied with a dark grin. I laughed, almost clutching my side in hysteria.
“I look forward to it, pesce.” Fish. “It should be fun.”
I dismissed Mikel without another thought, turning to the man stood beside him. I said man, and not boy, because there was no chance in hell someone that huge could be anything less than a full-grown adult.
His skin was only a touch darker than mine, and his hair a shoulder length tumble of auburn locks. He was tall, over six foot, and exceptionally muscular. The only reason I knew this was the fact he had not bothered to button up his pale grey shirt, and the chiselled plains of his abs were visible for all to see.
Novak went to introduce him, but he got there first, his hazel eyes brimming with excitement.
“I’m Ember,” He smiled kindly, offering me a hand to shake, “Ember Torrin to be exact. I’m the Prince of nothing.” His full lips curled up when he spoke, like he was trying to hide a grin.
“Prince of nothing?” I laughed, as Dari shook his hand and drew his attention before he noticed my refusal to touch his skin.
Ember never said anything about it, even when Laina shook his hand too, but his eyes remained on me, and I had the strangest feeling like I was being observed. Like I was a monkey in a zoo, or maybe even a lab rat being inspected by a scientist.
“My Kingdom only has empty fields and ruins in it, so I cannot claim to be a ruler of much.”
“Oh so they gave you the shit Kingdom then,” I smirked, “maybe they should have given it to the pesce instead? You’d look better in a crown.”
Ember laughed, his voice deep and velvety.
“I actually like it being empty. It means I get all the financial and social benefits of being a Prince without the drawbacks.” He said, ignoring the way Mikel was glowering at the both of us.
“Money is a good motivator,” I replied, motioning towards my sisters, “how do you the think the Vampiro even managed to get us here. He bribed us with untold riches.”
Novak interrupted us, apologising but insisting we move along so we could get inside.
“It was a pleasure to meet you Kaida Darklight.” Ember smiled, “you too, Dari and Laina.” My sisters mumbled the same.
“You too.” I replied, moving onto the final two boys in the group.
I was almost disgusted with myself when I stuttered at the sight of them, looking hand carved by a God. Butterflies in my stomach began dancing and I almost faltered my attitude, a small part of me desperate that these two boys would like me despite not even knowing them.
They were complete opposites, but both drew me in inexplicably.
“This is Caleb Nash, Prince of Montero.” Novak pointed to the angelic boy next to Ember, who’s blonde hair was so tightly curled it looked artifice. His sparkling blue eyes were as light as the sky on a midsummer day, and his face was chiselled by the Gods, all strong features, and sharp lines.
His body was sculpted to perfection, visible even beneath his blue jeans and white t-shirt. He was not the tallest, only a few inches more than me, but he looked dangerous beyond compare.
“I’m a Vampire love, and I have to say you smell delightful.” He smiled at me, flashing off a pair of wicked sharp fangs that rest in his mouth.
I almost flinched at his double meaning, knowing he d
id not compliment my perfume. I knew enough of Vampires from books and movies to know I did not want to end up their dinner. The fear in my chest crept a little higher.
“I figured you were a Vampiro, you look like you could use a bit of time in the sun.” I motioned towards the pale white skin he had on display.
“You are one to talk; you only look a shade darker than me.” He replied with a wink.
Dari and Laina mumbled their hello’s, neither wanting to talk much to a Vampire. Novak quickly moved onto the final boy; the tall, dark, and handsome one who had spent the entire time staring at me with navy eyes filled with scorn. Where Caleb’s blue eyes were light, this boys were dark. It was like staring into the depths of the ocean and seeing nothing but your own reflection.
The same was said for his skin, which was more olive toned than both my sisters, and a stark contrast to the Vampire he stood next to.
“It’s strange to see you again Kat. You don’t seem anything like the confident little Princess I remember.” The boy said, wiping away a loose strand of black hair that he had tied up in a bun.
“Maybe because I’m not a Princess, and also I don’t know who you are.” I replied, refusing to smile or do a thing as he stared at me the same as the Vampire did. Were we friends at one point? How does he even remember me after thirteen years…?
I hadn’t been attracted to anybody in a long ass time, but here I was turning to jelly at a couple boys who were looking at me like I was their favourite meal. They hadn’t even been nice; Xavier had all but said I seemed timid and weak, and Caleb had been eyeing me up like a snack. I had always had a thing for blue eyes but that wasn’t all that captivated me.
There was a sense of something primal in the two of them, that my demons seemed to have found similar to my own spirit. I just hoped that whatever plagued them was not as bad as the things that plagued me, or else the whole school would soon suffer if we were to come to blows.
“This is Xavier King, Prince of Caledon.” Novak stuttered over Xavier’s name, her golden eyes darting between him and me as though she half expected us to start murdering each other with our bare hands.
I refused to break the stare-off first, knowing it would set a bad precedent. I would not bow down to this stuck-up brat who was already trying to intimidate me. Eventually the tension became too much, and Dari intervened.
“Wait so if you become King, you would be King King?” She snorted loudly, “That’s so fucking dumb.”
Xavier sneered, turning his head from mine as he scowled at my sister. “No worse than going by Dari Darklight.”
“Actually it’s Dari Romano, but the Vampiro over there insisted nobody would give a fuck about our surname and would use the one you guys know.” She looked at Novak, curling up her lip, “and the crazy teacher already freaked out over our first names, I wouldn’t wanna push my luck and try to change my surname too.”
To her credit Novak continued her fake happiness, waving Dari’s words off like they were nothing and she hadn’t been continually hostile.
“Well now that we know your new names, I'm sure we can all get to know your wonderful personalities in time. But for now, I wonder if you have any questions for us, on account of your slight human problems.” What the fuck are human problems?
My family shared a look, each one of us chiming in with plenty of sass.
“The only problem I have is being here puttana pazza.” Crazy bitch. Dari yawned, starting us off.
“I could do with a coffee.” Laina added. “Is that something you can sort or does this made-up land not have things like that?”
“I have a question.” I bat my lashes like a clown. “Can we get drunk?”
Laina
Since Ryder arrived my head had been half in the clouds. Not enough to completely miss out on what was going on around me, but enough to make sure I was seeing things far beyond what my normal eyes could. I felt the dangerous glares on my sister’s faces and the wondrous unease radiating from Novak as she tried so desperately to save face. She probably thought my sisters were rude unbearable heathens, but I knew better.
Like most people in the world there were certain things they didn’t like, and when those things happened, they reacted. Of course, when I was pissed off I read and napped, but my sisters resorted to anger and crude humour. Novak would learn soon enough that my sisters were the nicest people in the world so long as you didn’t cross their boundaries.
After Kaida’s last comment Novak quickly ended our introduction and practically shoved us inside the building after the four grumpy, and one seemingly nice, Heirs had gone in first. We were given vague directions and told the room we entered was called the Green Room, aptly named for the heavy foliage that covered what I presumed were the bricks it was made of. The building reminded me of a church, but the kind you’d see in those little English villages that had been around for centuries.
Once inside my opinion changed completely; it was less of a church and more of a cross between expensive sorority house and a restaurant. The room itself was a huge square, the back row filled with food and drink stations made of gold and dark wood. The rest of the space was covered with chairs, tables and various fireplaces that were dotted about along the high walls.
The centre of the room had been emptied slightly to give space for mingling and what was labelled as a coffee station had a bar running the length of the wall which were made of a sparkling white brick, dulled slightly by the dark wooden flooring that covered the entire room.
Everywhere I looked was heaving with flowers and plants in every colour you could imagine. I was in heaven. The only thing that could top it was the non-existent ceiling that showcased the unnaturally dark sky.
At first, I presumed the roof was artifice or glass but after a second glance I realised there was nothing there at all. If it rained, we were fucked. But I had the sneaking suspicion that ,considering it was still too early to be dark, that it either didn’t rain here either, or the rain wouldn’t be able to touch us if it did.
My body was tingling with the sheer power of the Green Room, and I couldn’t keep the smile off my face. Despite my sister’s trepidation I felt happy, like I had just come home after a long time away. We may have been in the middle of nowhere, confused as hell and pissed off, but we were also right where we were supposed to be. I could feel that deep down in my soul.
I had often thought I was crazy, and not in the way people thought was fun. Every time I saw things that weren’t there, or had visions of things to come, a small part of my spirit was chipped away. I could explain my ‘gift’ nor could I comprehend what it was.
It may have been useful and helped save my family on more than one occasion, but it had not been a fun thing to experience. Yet now, here I was, in a place full of fae being told I was not a freak after all.
“We still have time to run.” Dari whispered, knowing none of us would ever accept. “We could run right out those doors into the wilderness and start the new Wildling race.”
As tempting as it may have been for my sisters, we would not run. We were here for the so-called inheritance that would completely change our lives and we would not be leaving without it. We each had our own reasons for wanting money but the biggest was for each other.
When you watched those you loved wasting away from lack of food and happiness it set off a raging desire inside you to fix that. I would make sure my sisters never went hungry again if it were the last thing I did.
Of course, that was a lot easier said than done. The second we entered the room full of easily two hundred students stopped their conversations, their entire focus now on us.
“I’m not staying in here.” Kaida whispered, barely moving her lips. “I can’t breathe.”
“I’ll ask Victoria to show us where to go; she’s a guide so she must know if we can hide somewhere without being obvious.”
I waited for the girl in question to come inside, trying to convince myself that my sweaty palms and fluttering
heart were nothing to do with the fact that she had been the prettiest girl I had ever seen.
“Hey!” She said, as she spotted me at the door. “You okay Laina?”
“Hey Victoria-” I began before she silenced me and begged me to call her Tory.
I obliged and tried to pretend I wasn’t staring at her bright smile. Tory was taller than me and looked stronger than Dari could ever be. Her brown hair was cropped short to her chin and her hazel eyes were roaming around the room with ease as though she had expected the awkwardness of outside and it hadn’t bothered her.
I tried not to check her out, but it was a little harder said than done. Her dark skin was covered in tattoos and her strong nose and cheekbones begged me to come closer. Even her full lips screamed kiss me or you’ll die. Chill out Laina!
I explained our predicament to Tory, and she was more than happy to help. She knew the perfect spot in the room to hide out in, where we wouldn’t be able to be seen by most people. She sent me back to my sisters and told me to give her a second before she gave my hand a quick squeeze and left.
I didn’t think I reacted obviously to her; but my sisters disagreed.
“Laina’s in loooooooveee.” Dari sang under her breath. I elbowed her in the ribs, and she only laughed more.
“Don’t get mad Lainy-pie; she is a very pretty girl.” Kaida added, her eyes darting around the room as she searched for any exits.
CONVICTION OF THE DAMNED: SUPERNO ACADEMY BOOK ONE Page 5
