Page 46 of Bound to Three Fae Beasts

For generations, our ancestors hunted the shape-thieves. Some were able to be contained. They had not devolved so far into the chaos that their magic could not be bound. Rites were used to bind them to a singular form, and they were allowed to exist in our society. Others were so far gone, the only option was execution. But even those who were bound were not allowed to create children of their own, for fear that the deformity would be inherited. But the efforts of the past have been fruitful. The last shape-thief was killed centuries ago.”

“What about the prophecy of the last shape-thief?” That had been the first time I’d paid attention to Penry.

If that wolf had been the same as Seb’s, what did that make me?

Chapter 21 - Gareth

Night was always my favorite time. Ever since I was a child, I preferred prowling the hallways under the cover of dusk to the light of day. It was not so uncommon in Court Thunderwood. We were built for the night, to move about in shadow and hide our approach.

Which was why I chose nighttime to slip into the fifth-year potions room to steal their potions. My eyes could see in the dark, so I didn’t bother with a light when I entered the room. I’d snuck a few potions over the past few weeks, and I searched the shelves for the ones that I wanted. A fae with a beast form as powerful as mine would be ridiculed for using potions, but if I was going to achieve my mission here, I needed every advantage.

A slight shuffling noise came from behind me. I grabbed a handful of random potions to sort out later and retreated to my corner. Seconds later, a student I knew all too well stepped into the closet. Her hair was pulled into a bun at the back of her head, and she moved cautiously as she shut the door behind her.

It was only Azriel Jones. The girl so unremarkable that the interest Seb showed, and Jasper tried to hide, had made me study her over the last few weeks. She didn’t even realize how close I’d been, watching her as she spoke with her friends, how well she did in class, and when she visited the library every day. There was something fascinating about her, I’d give her that.

She lit a candle, glanced around, and jumped when she saw me. I leaned casually against the wall.

“What are you doing here?” she hissed, sounding affronted. It made my smile widen.

“I could ask you the same thing,” I drawled.

Azriel’s gaze flicked up and down, calculating. Then she scoffed and headed for the far shelf, to the healing potions. “I didn’t think one of the golden boys needed to steal potions.”

“Golden boys?” My smile widened. What a way to describe us! It made me chuckle as I resumed my search. The fifth-year students had learned how to sabotage their potions, making it more difficult to find exactly what I needed, but I collected a few more possibilities and hid them in my pockets.

With Azriel here, I wasn’t going to risk revealing the secret passage, so I meandered over to her. “Almost done?”

She stuffed the potions into her pockets and blew out her candle. I had the strange urge to reach out and take her hand, to guide her out of here. A slow smirk crossed my face as she fumbled toward the door. With the lights out like this, I could take her all the way back to my dorm, then cause enough of a ruckus for Seb and Jasper to see.

I chuckled as I imagined the looks on their faces if they saw that, but shook my head. It wasn’t worth everyone else who would also see.

I brushed past Azriel and opened the door. Immediately, light came pouring into the closet. My stomach dropped and I cursed myself as four faces peered in at us. They were all high-born fae, including Rusco of Court Manilow. I hesitated, considering the possibility of escape if I took the secret passage.

Too late. Magic whipped out, wrapping around Azriel and me both. We were jerked from the closet and Rusco quickly cast a binding spell on me, preventing me from using my beast form. Two of his buddies slammed me into the wall, while the third one grabbed Azriel’s arms behind her back. She whimpered, struggling weakly.

“Looks like we found the little rats that have been stealing our stuff,” Rusco said, ignoring Azriel. She had gone limp, her head bowed, still whimpering.

A surge of something went through me. What? Protectiveness? As though I was going to waste my energy on a half-fae! Even if she showed a powerful bound form during the last trials, she had shown no sign of magic since then. Just because she had a wolf form didn’t mean it was actually powerful. Yet, I still had a strange resistance to seeing her harmed.

Even though these men wouldn’t do anything but rough her up a bit. Killing was as forbidden for them as the rest of us, and accusations of any sort of sexual misconduct would be investigated with all seriousness. All parties, accused and accuser, would be made to take a confession potion, which in turn would reveal the truth.

So no, neither her life nor her body were in danger here.

“Gareth of Court Thunderwood,” Rusco sneered, looming over me. “Rumor has it you didn’t even need to attend the Academy because of your prowess. And yet you’re sneaking around, stealing from me?”

I lifted one shoulder and let it drop, smiling at him. These types were predictable. All I had to do was get him mad enough that he attacked me and I’d be able to break free. “The way I see it, either the rumors were greatly exaggerated, or I wasn’t stealing it for myself. Or maybe I was just looking for a place where I could feel up the girl without getting caught.”

Rusco glanced over his shoulder. “Oh, is that a girl? I couldn’t tell.”

At that moment, Azriel struck. She stomped on the instep of the student who held her, and threw her head back to break his nose. As he was yelling out in confusion and pain, she freed her arms and flipped him over her shoulder into Rusco. Rusco yelled and reached out with his magic, but she disappeared down the corridor before he could do anything about it.

I laughed, amused not only by Rusco’s face but how easily Azriel tricked them. Rusco whirled, fist clenched, and drove it into my stomach. My laughter cut short as the air was driven from my lungs. Bile was forced up my throat and I choked on it. The two holding me laughed, holding me upright.

“You fucking rat,” Rusco yelled. He punched me again.

Excellent. I feigned more pain, going limp. The two adjusted their holds on me, but I’d already gotten the physical contact I needed. Rusco’s magical binding on me snapped. I reached out with my magic, wrapping it around my stomach and ribs. I forced my lungs to expand while I shielded myself from further blows.

Then I took my panther form. I slipped from their hands and pounced. I batted Rusco aside and grabbed the shoulder of the one who’d been holding Azriel. I threw him over my shoulder and whirled as the other two came at me. Rusco sent a spell at me, and I threw my own magic up in defense.