Paper Robin looked at me searchingly. "You're bolder now. I like it. Before, you could only tell me that you loved me through the art of Glove Flirtation."
"I was a proper lady then."
Paper Robin snorted. "Says the witch who went swimming naked in the lake with me."
"We were eleven!"
Paper Robin tilted up his chin. "And who was seventeen when they went climbing trees with me in the Dead Wood?"
"I wanted to know what it felt like when you were in Mr Tailsy form. You were training me as an honorary squirrel."
He smiled at me fondly. "You made an exceptional squirrel, and I promise to make an exceptional husband."
This time, I didn't try to stop the tears. But then, movement in the cold darkness of the courtyard below caught my eye.
I frowned, as I glanced out of the window.
The Duchess who was wrapped in a sweeping coat stalked past the statues of the three Hecates towards the exit of the academy.
Black cats, she was tall.
Behind her, trailing like a smaller shadow, was Bask. His shoulders were slumped, and his head was ducked. He looked...crushed. He dragged a large suitcase behind him through the snow.
I stared at them for a moment. Then it struck me. Damelza had promised to free one of the winning side from the academy. Yet she'd never had any intention to truly free them, only return them into the hands of their cruel families, who'd first sentenced them to the academy.
I couldn't let Bask return to the incubi harem and the succubi who'd broken him. How could I fail to protect him like I had Robin?
The Duchess had said that she was inspecting Bask today but wasn't she staying for the Enchanted Ball? I'd thought that I had time to break the wards. Time to save Bask. Time to save the Princes. Time to save all my lovers.
I stood, as rage flooded me. At my side, Ghost Robin rushed around the Bird Turret in agitated gusts. The robins called out in alarm; Hecate's Tree reached its branches towards me.
I dropped the book onto the window seat. My eyes glimmered; my magic sparkled along my skin.
I'd gained Robin but I was losing Bask.
I. Would. Not. Lose. Bask.
My magic tore from me, wild and unleashed. I wrenched at it, but I wasn't in control. Was this how it'd been for Willoughby?
Would I at last become truly wicked? Was this the chaos moment?
I didn't care.
This was for my lover. I was wicked, and I'd pull down the storm if it meant protecting Bask.
I hollered, as my magic burst from me, dragging at the threads that ran through the entire academy. I was connected to all of it at the same time. Nature screamed with me, answering my despair.
Roots burst up around the Duchess, and she wailed, trapped.
Bask stumbled back, but my magic surged through him, calling to the bond inside. If we bonded, then no one could take him away.
Even out of control, my magic held back, before Bask's magic answered the request to bond, binding eagerly. He tipped back his head, and his ruby gaze met mine. They gleamed with worship and thanks.
This was it: he was mine now, forever.
I married ghosts, was the first ever female Rebel, and loved mages. I gave a witch's tit for tradition or rules on who could bond with incubi.
Bask was mine and safe from the bitch who'd broken her own bond with him, and I'd never be parted from my lover.
All of a sudden, Bask collapsed.
Shocked, I banged against the glass. My magic continued to surge through the academy.
The Duchess screamed.
Ghost Robin entwined around my magic, soothing and calming the whirlwind. But I was lost to the storm, and it was tearing me and the academy apart.
Chapter Fourteen
BASK
I ached, rising from a dark in which my Soul had been torn apart. And let me tell you, that was worse than a punch to the dick. My slinky self wasn't broken, however, because, I'd been remade with a glowing pink magic that tangled around me.
Wow, it was beautiful. Perhaps, I was beautiful inside now as well as outside...?
That would be a fine thing.
My forehead ached with a brutal pounding. I couldn't force open my eyes. Yet I was lying on something warm and soft, snuggled in a nest of...pillows. I could spot a pillow anywhere: it was my Pillow Gift. I was talented (of course, snicker).
I was also naked.
I wriggled my bare arse into the satin pillows, while curling my bare toes to sneakily edge another pillow closer because multi-tasking was winning.
My hazy mind was a wee bit unclear how I’d ended up in this luxury, but still, I had to admit that this was top level incubus care.
My brow furrowed (and frowning knocked whole points off my Pettability Level). Hadn't I been frozen before and frightened...? Then I was chilled with terror because my mind cleared, and I remembered...
I'd been bouncing on the bed, as Sleipnir had paced from one side of the Immortals’ bedroom in the West Wing to the other, waiting for the return of my foxy. I had this whole welcome home whipping boy planned, which would've been brilliant and involved dicks, sucking, and long, sweet kisses. Nile would've even cuddled him for ten...five...a whole minute.
I'd never allowed anyone to cuddle Nile before.
Did Fox think that he was just anyone? Silly human.
But then, I was the silly incubus who hadn't understood just how much Fox meant to me. I'd suffer an eternally unpettable arse for him. That's how serious I was about our love.
Unexpectedly, the Duchess had stalked into my bedroom like a violation. She’d barely glanced at me, as if my hair had become lank, and ordered me to pack because it was time to return to the incubi harem.
Despite everything, she still hadn't broken me because the love from the week that I'd spent with Fox, Slippy, and Magenta had warmed me inside. The memory would be my shield, which I'd hold deep within myself.
No one could break it.
My lovers had already saved me. I'd love them to the end for it.
Always.
What more could an incubus wish for?
As I'd struggled after the Duchess through the snowy courtyard, however, Magenta had been at the window of the Bird Turret like my wicked fairy godmother, lighting it up, and a new bond had shot through me.
Here’s the thing of it, Magenta’s claim shouldn't have been possible. Succubi could bond with anyone they desired, but full incubi were only meant to bond with succubi.
It'd be another bastard control issue like forcing us to wear gloves to regulate our skin-to-skin contact. Perhaps, succubi had a terrible fear of our seductive powers or simple dick envy. After all, they waved their tails around an awful lot like they were compensating for something.
How powerful was Magenta that she'd broken the bonding rule?
My rebel Magenta.
I scrunched up my nose, and the scent of the wild woods wound around me. The new pink magic that entwined inside me reached out like ivy to the aroma of yew trees in greeting. Suddenly, I was flooded with energy, and my eyes shot open.
I gasped, as my gaze met Magenta's. She caged me beneath her, hovering above. Her soft hair veiled my cheeks. Her gaze was searching.
She was stunning and my bonded.
Please, let her allow me to love her...truly love her...as a bonded. The Duchess never had. This sexy body couldn't take being rejected twice.