Snowfall

Renard

After we cleaned up the mess, I cornered the blushing bunny before she could escape. With all the negative things happening lately, it's been difficult to take time to do things just to spend time with one another. There are far too many enemies between the magical rebels, her mother, the blasted mean girls, and conniving counselors. I'm not the only one feeling the pinch, but unlike Fitz, I didn't feel the need to rush.

Fate says we have a very long time to get to know one another, even if current circumstances are threatening that prediction.

Besides, Aubrey and I are far older than the cats, so our sense of time is much less urgent. We know that our lifespans are longer than they can truly fathom and suspect that theirs will all change when this bond is complete. My dragon cautioned me not to express that theory yet because there aren't many sources to cite for proof—a prey animal born of predators with magic mated to multiple predators species isn't something we can simply Google on the PredNet. Tossing two mythicals in the mix complicates it further, especially with my own connection to magic.

It wouldn't do to make people get overconfident in dangerous situations because we've said something before there's more evidence. Aine knows Fitz is already damn near a kamikaze force when it comes to protecting our girl; if he thought he was immortal, I shudder to think what shit he'd get up to. The workings of his mind are best interpreted by Dolly and Chess, followed by Felix. My mate and I are still learning how to unravel his neurodiversity using Dolly's advice—we're nowhere near experts.

" Ma petite , there is something I'd like to show you. Since we have a small lull before the semester begins and we are faced with infinite challenges, I thought today might be an opportune moment."

Her face breaks out into a bright, curious smile. "I'd love to! Are we going to your bell tower? What should I wear? Is Aubrey coming?"

Chuckling at her exuberance, I tap my finger on my lips, pretending to think. "In order: no, casual clothes but we need to go outside, and not this time."

"Oooh, mysterious. I like it. Give me a few to change, Broody Big Man." She winks and takes off towards her room.

Chess arches his brow. "Finally going to admit one of your many secret talents? Don't think I missed how fast and expertly you whipped up this petit-déjeuner, Ren."

"Yeah, Ren. How'd you do that, I wonder?" Aubrey taunts as he pulls the cover off the cushions to give to the crew for cleaning. "Such a surprise , that was."

Fucking snarky ass troublemaker.

"Fine, fine." I throw my hands up and sigh. "Before Apex opened, I was still exiled and I traveled a lot. No different than the smart-mouthed lizard over there, though not for as long. One of the things I did to pass time was take classes at Le Cordon Bleu . I was passable in comparison to the real thing, but there you go, Chester."

His mouth hangs open for a moment, then he grins. "That's fantastic! You can help me with recipes and adjusting for their training. I've been using YouTube and this is much better."

"You're not angry that I didn't tell you? I had little use for the skill before you and the tiger came around, but until our bunny, you ate at the townhouse. So it was never really… pertinent."

"Ren, you've been alive almost a millennia and Aubrey is over two. I'd wager you both have a plethora of skills or hobbies we don't know about because it hasn't come up. It'd be silly to get mad." He squints at us both, tilting his head. "Either of you know how to knit? I've been wanting to learn."

I shake my head. "Not I, mon ami ."

My dragon mate stays suspiciously quiet as he stuffs the fabric in bags and we both stare at him. Finally, he rolls his eyes and huffs. "Yes. I know how. An annoying old hag who lived near my castle in the…" He pauses and squints as he thinks, "…seventeenth, maybe eighteenth, century taught me. She swore she was a witch, but I never saw proof of that."

The cheetah blinks at him, then looks at me. "Did you know this?"

"Not at all. Remember, Chester, he's often as grumpy about his hordes with me as he is with all of you. And knowledge is definitely part of our library dragon's hordes." I grin. "Next to stuffies, squishes, books, cute things, money, music, artifacts, and of course, strays like us."

Aubrey whips his head around and glares at me with dark eyes. "Careful, Frenchie. You have obsessions, too."

Felix interrupts our verbal sparring as he returns from getting dressed. "Chess, are these two fighting again?"

"No more than usual, Felix. Lots of fun admissions, though." His gaze is curious and the cheetah shrugs. "How's the weather? I heard the door, so I figured you watched Fitz head for the tunnel. He's been itching to get to the gym."

"Still snowing. I waited for you, little bro. No one has the balls to bother my psycho twin on his way to beat things, but since you're coming along, I wanted to walk with you. Where are you two going?" Turning to Aubrey and I, he waits.

"I'm going to the new Shird with Dolly. She's changing."

Aubrey grunts as he finally stops fussing with the couch. "I'm headed into the archives. We've got the stuff from those vaults to go through still. I can contact my colleagues in other institutions who will be more willing to chat between semesters."

Felix nods as he takes in the information. "I know we're on lockdown at Cappie until school starts, but I don't trust the security outside of this building. We fortified it and made sure it's safe. I don't care what the Council or the idiot headmaster say—I don't consider this campus safe for people to roam alone. Stay together."

"Unless you're Fitzgerald?" Aubrey snorts. "He can't breathe fire, Raj."

"Neither can you if it's going to destroy everything around you, Draconis. However, I can say without reservation that my brother will tear anyone who even whispers the Princess' name to pieces and ask questions later. None of you would act that impulsively, so I worry more."

I grin and wink at the tiger. "Aw, Flames, he wubs us. Look at that."

"Oh, fine. Fuck off, you ancient assholes. Get attacked if you want, just don't do it when you have our girl with you." The tiger stomps away after he gives Chess a glare that says ‘hurry up.'

"Time for me to get ready before he loses his shit. But cut him some slack, guys. You know he only wants to keep our Angel from getting hurt—physically or emotionally. If one of us was injured or taken, she'd lose her marbles."

"I certainly would." The bunny in question appears in a warm jacket and boots with her hair in a high ponytail. "I'd be inconsolable—right before I went on a rampage that spanned the entire fucking globe until I found you. Then I'd help Fitz bleed them, rip them to tiny pieces, and feed them to corpse sniffers. And then , I might cry a little."

My lips curve. "Good to know you've got it all planned out, ma petite ."

Unfortunately, it's in the scariest, most Khan-esque possible way, but c'est la vie.

"Why are we coming here?" Her nose scrunches as we crunch through the light snowfall on the grass.

Gesturing at the Shirdal Arts Complex, I grin. "There's something in here I want to show you and I can't do it in our nest, ma petite ."

"Mmm. Interesting ," she replies as she looks around at the flakes falling around us. "I wish this started on Yule, but I don't mind it over New Year's. It's pretty."

I look over at her bundled in the pink duster and matching knee high boots Cori gave her for the holiday, her long rainbow hair covered in sparkly snowflakes, and it hits me again how resilient she is. From the second she stepped on Apex's campus, Dolly was hit with punch after punch, and she's still standing. Hell, not only standing, but thriving. She's an amazing person and we're lucky as fuck she took a shine to our misfit group.

"You are very adaptable, ma petite lapin . It's an unusual trait for someone your age." We reach the front door of the building and I wave my arm at the sensor. It's closed for the holiday, but Fitz made sure our implants would open anything on campus at any time.

Her hand smacks my chest playfully. "I know you're a bazillion years older than me, but I'm not a child, Rennie. Lots of people have to grow up fast—some because of even worse situations than mine. I had to decide whether I was going to wallow in all the bad or let it make me stronger. Losing isn't acceptable in the Drew family, so I went with the latter."

Leading her into the auditorium with a mischievous grin, I nod. "I understand, but I'm not sure you comprehend how rare it is for people to make that choice. Look at your ex-friends… a large curveball came their way when you didn't not emerge as a predator. Instead of embracing it, they chose to bully and ostracize you because they knew everyone would follow along without question."

She snorts as we make our way up the aisle to the stage stairs. "They chose that because they're terrible people who enjoy sucking the joy out of others for fun. It being easier was a side benefit."

I can't argue with that.

"Regardless, we're not here to talk about all the negative things we have to worry about next semester." Taking her hand, I lead her over to the shining Steinway D-274 in the middle of the stage. The one at Apex was destroyed in the blast, but those haughty Shirdals never do anything halfway. "We're here to spend time together doing something you love."

Her eyes sparkle as she sits on the bench, watching as I join her. "You want me to play for you? I know you love Beethoven, but I have a pretty decent repertoire now. We can do pop or jazz or musicals or classical… name that tune, Renard Laveaux."

"Mmm, not exactly," I reply as I stretch my fingers out. "I thought perhaps I'd play for you."

"What?"

Shrugging, I smile as my fingers move over the keys, playing a small section of Ode to Joy . "I've been playing since the mid-Renaissance, Dolly. I learned at the feet of masters."

I don't even see the punch in the arm coming, but it smarts. "You jackass! Why didn't you tell me? First, you're cooking like a five star chef this morning, now you're a concert pianist? What the hell, Rennie?"

" Ma petite , Flames and I have been alive for centuries . Do you not recall how vampires talk in all of our paranormal books? It gets boring if you don't use the time to learn things. Languages, hobbies, talents, knowledge—we've both done so many things in that time that unless someone asks if we know how, we don't even think about what skills we've amassed. No one is keeping anything from you… though, I'll admit to wanting to share this with you when we had time to enjoy it."

"Fine," she grumbles. "You two are masters of a million things because you're older than dirt and I'm still figuring out how to work my damn bunny. Yeah, I'm super amazing. Whatever."

My eyes crinkle as she pouts. This is when it becomes obvious that she's still young—when her self-doubt creeps in because she believes she isn't worldly enough. "You, my darling girl, are refreshingly open to new experiences and change. It makes all the things we've done seem new and exciting. That is also a gift for an older than dirt gargoyle."

Dolly pauses, then looks at me, then back at the piano as she bites her lip. "Okay. But can we do something I've always wanted to try?"

"Anything you desire, ma petite ."

"Goody!" She jumps up, tosses her coat on the floor and hops on one foot then the other to get her boots off. Left in her yoga pants and a crop top, my future mate's eyes sparkle with excitement as she bounces on her bare toes. "I'm going to go Fabulous Baker Boys on this bitch."

Oh, my.