Page 226 of House Ignis

Gods, after that session, I was a wreck.

My muscles ached in dull, throbbing protest, my lungs felt shredded, and my head was a complete, disorganized mess.

I showered fast, scrubbing my skin until it was pink and raw, then dragged on my uniform like

I was donning a suit of armor. It was time to face the rest of the Academy.

Whether I felt like a queen or a hollow shell, the world wouldn't stop spinning.

When I opened my door, they were already there.

Ezra leaned smugly against the stone wall in full black leathers, the morning light catching the freckles on his arms.

At Ezra's feet, the bloodhound's tail started wagging so hard his entire back half shifted, Havoc looking particularly pleased with himself.

Ember stood beside them, looking entirely too bright-eyed and recovered for someone who had been trying to commit arson an hour ago.

Luna padded quietly at her heels, her orange fur gleaming.

“You guys don’t need to babysit me,” I said, shoving past them and heading into the hall.

Behind me, the immediate click-clack of boots started against the stone floor.

“I cannot be around more mutts, Ava,” Aether muttered through the bond, his claws clicking sharply as he stalked beside me. “The smell is offensive.”

“Behave,” I shot back under my breath.

His golden eyes narrowed and his tail lashed once in irritation, but he held his position.

Boots sounded behind me. Then Ember slipped up beside me.

Then Ember slipped up beside me, looping her arm firmly through mine.

“We aren’t babysitting you,” she said casually, as if she hadn't been waiting outside my door for ten minutes. “I’m just checking in on my best friend. And we’re all going to the same class anyway.”

I snorted, not buying it for a second. “Sure you are.”

Ezra appeared on my other side a second later, his pace easy and rhythmic. “I am definitely babysitting you,” he said cheerfully, his orange eyes glinting with mischief.

I stopped dead in my tracks and slowly turned my head to look at him.

His grin only widened, unbothered. “Asher’s orders, Hotshot. Direct and non-negotiable.”

My heart gave one brutal thud. Asher's orders. So he'd thought of me before he'd left. Apparently, he'd just decided Ezra deserved the fucking memo instead of me.

Ezra held up both hands in a mock gesture of surrender. “Hey, hey—don’t shoot the messenger. I’m just the guy with the dogs and the keys to the kingdom.”

Behind him, Havoc wagged his tail so hard his entire back half shifted, clearly thinking this was the best morning he’d had all week.

“I will eat them,” Aether threatened, his ears flattening against his skull. “Starting with the one that licked you.”

I let out a long, heavy sigh that felt like it came from my toes.

This was going to be a very, very long day.

•••

We walked together, me trying not to combust under the weight of the whispers curling down every hallway.