Chapter 13

When the Sun has reached its height, time for Oak and Holly to fight

– The Wiccan Rede

Iwoke alone and rolled onto my back, smiling as I replayed the events of the night in my mind. As I made the bed, I saw that there was a tattoo of little dents where the posts of the bed had knocked against the wall - and ran my fingertips over them with a grin.

I pulled on my discarded pajamas and fidgeted before my wardrobe as I flicked through the sad selection of clothing for something suitable for the day. Sex was messier than I'd anticipated, and I could feel the slow seep of cum into my panties as gravity encouraged it to leave me.

I paused, worrying my lip with my teeth. Perhaps there would be a child from this? Could grim reapers get humans, even if those humans were witches, pregnant? What manner of child would we make together? The father a grim reaper and the mother a witch. Perhaps, like the Vossens who were rumoured to have taken their demons as lovers, Ender's seed would simply strengthen the power of the Vossen line…

I pushed the thought away and pulled a shirt and black skirt that were newer than those around them and took them down the hall to the bathroom. I showered, washing away the remnants of my night with Ender from my skin, and stuffed my soiled underwear deep into the washing basket, reminding myself to ensure that I was the one to load that basket into the machine, as I did not wish the aunts to notice the stains left behind.

As I stepped out into the hallway, I came face to face with Nova who frowned at me. "Are you working?" She asked. "You're wearing a lot of makeup for work."

"No," I smoothed my hands down the skirt. "I've got this thing at the Academy, meeting my tutor…"

"Oh…" Her eyes dropped away, and I suspected that Aunt Callista had been in her ear about not warning me about the Academy orgies. "Well," she looked back at me and shook her head. "You can't wear that."

"I can't?" I repeated. "I don't have much choice, I'm afraid. It's probably the best option I have."

"Come with me," she sighed a little in frustration, before turning on her heel and leading the way back to her bedroom. There, she crossed to her wardrobe which, in contrast to my own, was filled to overflowing, and began to flick through the items within.

"This will do," she pulled out a red tartan with black sett and threw it onto the bed. "And…" She crossed to a chest of drawers. "Yes, this…" She added a long-sleeved black knit top.

"Okay, thanks," I stripped off my clothing and began to get dressed in her options.

"What is that?" She caught my wrist and ran her thumb over the woven band. "Is that… hair?"

"Yeah, I guess so," I felt my cheeks heat and I hastily pulled on the black knit, the sleeves covering the bracelet.

"Whose hair?" She wondered, sitting on the bed, and holding out the skirt.

"Someone's…" I was evasive and shrugged a little. "Someone I'm…"

"I knew it," she was triumphant. "I knew you were seeing someone." And then she frowned. "Someone who knows how to do that… Is he a warlock?" She wondered.

"No…" I drew it out as I settled the straps of the overalls, and then sat next to her. "He's not human," I admitted. "I think he's…" I hesitated. Ender had evaded being called a grim reaper. "I shouldn't say."

"Why shouldn't you say?" Her eyes were wide. "What is he? A demon? Did you invoke a…?"

"Not a demon," I was pretty sure the two weren't the same. "Something else. I can't say. I think it's not allowed."

"Nyx…" She was wary. "You need to be careful about men, especially those you can't name."

"It's not like that. He's…" I twisted the hair ring on my finger. "He's special. He's sweet…"

"Mhm," her hum was derisive. "They're all sweet until they have what they want from you and suddenly…" She trailed off.

"I'm sorry, Nova," I had guessed that was what had happened. "I'm really sorry about that."

"Yeah, well," she sighed heavily. "That's the way of things, isn't it? I'd better have my shower. You look good, Nyx," she added as we rose. "Keep the clothes. They look better on you."

In the kitchen, Callista was hidden behind a newspaper. "There is nothing in here yet," she commented.

"About what," I asked as I reached across the table to pour a glass of orange juice.

"Never mind," Callista folded it closed and set it to the side. "How are you this morning Elenyx?"

"Oh, don't you look lovely," Fennel set a plate of eggs on the table. "Red suits you so nicely, my dear. Are you wearing your necklace?"

"Yes," reminded of its presence I pulled it out from under the top. When I had been wearing a shirt, it had laid beneath, but now it made sense to wear it on top. No one seeing it would think it anything other than an odd locket. "Thank you."

"There was an odd energy around last night," Callista examined her fingernails nonchalantly. "You wouldn't know anything about that, would you, Elenyx?"

"An… odd energy?" I asked innocently around buttering a slice of toast. "I wasn't spellcasting." Had they heard the bed, after all? No. I was certain that if they had, they would have come to my door. Ender had done something to prevent their hearing us together.

"Mhm," Callista slid me a look under her eyelashes. "Not precisely the energy that I was speaking of."

"I sensed it in my sleep," Fennel agreed. "A dark, old energy."

"I'm sure I know nothing about dark, old energies," I lied. That would, possibly, describe a grim reaper's magic. "I'd better…" I finished my toast and drank the orange juice hastily as I rose. As if sensing my need to escape, a horn tooted from the front of the house. "Ah, there is my ride now. Have a nice day," I blew a kiss as I grabbed my bag and headed towards the front door.

The sunlight was bright in Mal's hair. He leaned against the passenger side door, fiddling with his cufflinks as he waited for me, and looked up with a bright smile as I hurried out of the house and across the porch.

As I reached the car, he caught me by the elbow and pulled me against him. He dragged his lips and nose from my collarbone to the corner of my jaw, inhaling. "You smell like him," he murmured into my ear. "If I slipped my fingers into you, would you taste like him too?"

"Mal…" I panted, my body burning into desire, a forest fire, wild and wicked.

"I could drink him from between your thighs like wine," he purred and teased my earlobe with his tongue. "Shall we find a quiet place and find out what vintage he is? And perhaps make a blend of our own?"

"We… Have to meet our tutor," I gasped out.

"Afterwards, perhaps," his lips grazed from the corner of my jaw, brushing over my lips lightly, his tongue flicking into my mouth as if seeking Ender's flavor within. I was unaware that there was a limit to kisses or to whom you could give them, Ender's words echoed within my mind as he stood behind us and watched.

"He said that you were dangerous," I whispered as the kiss eased.

His grin lit up his eyes. "I am. Oh, that I am. And you love that about me. It makes your heart race and," his hand dropped from my hip and slipped under my skirt, skillfully delving beneath the elastic of my panties so that he could sink two fingers within me. I gripped his shoulders with a moan and hoped that the aunts and Nova were not watching through the windows as he fucked me with them, the heel of his palm pressed tight to my clit.

He withdrew his fingers and, holding my eyes, slipped them between his lips, the pink of his tongue showing as he licked me from them with relish. "Your cunt weep for me."

He did not lie. My heart pattered within me as frantically as that of a frightened rabbit, but it was not fear that I felt. I swallowed thickly, almost tasting the flavor of myself upon my tongue, remembered from the kiss with Ender the night before. "We don't want to be late."

He smiled and stepped back, resting his hand casually on the door whilst he gestured for me to step within with the other. "Your carriage awaits, my lady." His cock tented his chinos as I slid into the seat, placing it on eye level. "That's not my eyes," he added cheekily as he closed the doors, and then swaggered around the car to the driver's seat.

"This is the most fun I've had in centuries," he told me through a wide grin as he started the engine.

"I'm glad that you're enjoying yourself," I said dryly as he drove too fast along the driveway. He pulled out onto the road without seeming to look, and I clutched at the car in alarm. "Slow down! One of us, at least, is mortal."

"Don't worry, pretty thing. I will not let you die." He tilted his head slightly, his expression thoughtful for a fleeting moment, and then he burst into laughter. "Indeed, I will not let you die," he repeated and continued to chuckle over it as he whizzed across the intersection.

The silver Porsche Cabriolet drew as many eyes as Aunt Callista's Corniche and, as we passed a group of the popular girls that Nova had been hanging out with and they stared, I tried not to look as if I noticed that they watched. Normally the stares of Mortensby's people unnerved me because I knew that behind the stares was a deep-rooted hate, but these stares were ones of envy. I was in an expensive car with a handsome boy, and for a fleeting moment, they wanted to be where I was.

"Do you want me to do a lap?" Mal offered, mischievously, revealing that he knew precisely what effect he had. "Or two?"

"We'll be late," I reminded him, slightly embarrassed by the vanity that made me want to say yes.

"He'll wait," Mal slowed the car down and turned through the main street of town, which was busy with pedestrians. He slowed to let a woman push a pram across the road, and she met my eyes. Kristine Sawyer's lover's wife. This time her gaze was hostile, and I wondered what her husband had said about me, no doubt seeking to discredit me in case I ever approached her to reveal his affair.

"In the eyes of the world, you're only as good as your last sin," Mal observed. "Whatever did you do to that woman that makes her look as if she wishes to set you on fire, Elenyx?"

"Nothing," I said softly. "I'm a Vossen. We don't need to do anything to be hated."

"How dark," he enjoyed it. "And why is that my dearest hated one?"

"Because we are witches," I said as he finished his slow parade through the main street and picked up speed again as he navigated his way back towards the Academy. "The people of this town have always sought to destroy us… unless they need something from us, and then they come with fake smiles and open palms."

"I like witches."

I slid him a look from the corner of my eye and wondered what it would be like with Mal as my demon familiar. No, I pushed the thought away. I was almost certain that would be a problem for Ender.

Mal didn't seem to expect an answer and due to his speed, we were almost at the gates to the Academy. The driveway was empty of vehicles this time. Mal took a turn-off that took us back behind the school, to a car park filled with expensive vehicles – the student car park I realized from its proximity to the dormitory.

"How is it that you are a student here?" I asked him as he parked.

"Well, I applied," he said loftily as he rounded the car to open my door. "I may have fudged the details a little," he tucked my hand into the crook of his arm and led me away from the car towards the main building. "Just between you and me."

"Why?" I asked, but I already knew the answer. Because this was where I was, and he was determined to toy with me to annoy Ender.

"To study… What is it that you're studying again?" He held open a door for me.

"Comparative literature."

"How dull," he sneered. "What are we comparing about literature?"

"I can see that you're going to be a lot of help as a study partner," I sighed.

"You'll be surprised at how resourceful I can be," he led the way along the wood-paneled hallway and rapped his knuckles against a door that held the name placard "Dean Harvey Ashbourne."

"Are you sure?" I started to ask as the door opened and Dean Harvey Ashbourne's eyes went from Mal to me, his frown easing into a smile.

"Ah, I was just wondering where you were," he said stepping back to admit us. "The tea is getting cold."

"Sorry we're late," I was embarrassed. This was not the best start to a scholarship, being late to meet my tutor, especially if the Dean was that tutor.

"My fault," Mal said lightly, crossing the Persian rug to where four leather wingback chairs were arranged around a small antique table in dark wood. A Wedgewood tea set sat waiting for us on a silver tray. Mal took one of the seats and lifted the teapot. "Should I pour?"

"Go ahead," Dean Harvey Ashbourne gestured to him carelessly, before offering me his arm. "Let me show you to your seat, Elenyx."

"Ah. Thank you," I gingerly placed my hand on his forearm, unnerved by the old-fashioned courtesy. "I'm very sorry that we're late."

"It is fine," he assured me with a smile releasing me to adjust the chair a little, and resting his hands on the back as I smoothed my skirt under my thighs and carefully sat. The chair was deep. If I sat fully back, I would risk the person opposite to me being able to see up my skirt, so I perched, awkwardly, my knees firmly pressed together.

"Sugar? No, you're right. You're sweet enough, Nyx." Mal handed me the teacup by the saucer. "How about you, Mr Ashbourne?"

"No thank you," Dean Ashbourne took the seat opposite to me. "I take it with lemon."

"Of course, you do," Mal smothered his smirk as he poured, and offered the tea across the table before settling himself back into his chair with his tea, delicately lifting the cup to his lips to take a sip and sending me a wink over the rim.

"Well, now that we are settled, this is just an informal meeting," Dean Ashbourne set his teacup on the table. "To discuss the upcoming academic year. Nyx, I touched on the subject the other day with your aunt. Your scholarship included a room in the dormitory which you are welcome to take up at any time. Yes," he cut me off as I began to defer. "I know that being so local, you feel that staying at home is logical, however, there is a lot to be gained from staying on campus. The social scene is much more accessible, and study groups and various other activities are much easier to participate in if your room is just a short walk away. At least, think about it. The room will be vacant anyway."

"The social scene is really something," Mal sent me a smirk. "You should think about it, Nyx."

"Thank you, Mr. Veridian," Dean Ashbourne inclined his head to Mal in appreciation. "Your school supplies and uniform will be available to be picked up from reception within a few days," he continued to me. "If you have any questions, feel free to stop by this office at any time."

"Any time?" Mal asked on an up note, his sincerity transparently false. "Any time, Nyx. That is a very generous offer from a very busy man, such as the Dean, don't you think? Does that also apply to me, Dean?" He batted his eyelashes innocently. "Or just Nyx?"

"You are part of my tutor group, Mr. Veridian, so yes, the offer extends to you as well."

"Wow," Mal said turning wide-eyed to me. "You really should rethink that offer about a dormitory room, Nyx. It will make it much easier for you to take advantage of Mr. Ashbourne's generous offer of availability, and vice versa. I'm sure it will make you much more accessible should he need to seek you out for any reason. She'll think about it," Mal told Mr. Ashbourne with a devilish smile, all sharp teeth.

"Very good," the Dean frowned slightly at Mal, not as oblivious to Mal's oddness as he seemed. "It's important to set goals at the beginning of the year," he continued. "And so, I set you that task for this week. We'll meet at this time again next week and talk over your goals, and the hurdles you foresee to achieving them."

"Like romance," Mal said sweetly. "Romance can derail a student's achievements for the year, can it not?" He explained when both the Dean and I looked at him. "If it's with the wrong person, it could be the death of them." He found that amusing and laughed into his teacup. "Literature is full of examples."

"Mr. Veridian is correct. It is important not to let the heart distract you from your studies," the Dean nodded. "But…" And he sent me a small smile, his eyes smoldering. "That is not to say that you cannot satisfy physical needs. We encourage students to consider their health wholistically, and sexual health is a part of that which is why the school nurse dispenses contraception free and without judgement."

"How progressive," Mal approved.

"Practical," the Dean corrected raising his eyebrows with a rueful smile. "Humans will be human, after all, and we are a co-ed campus. Well," he rose to his feet and gestured to the door. "As I said, come and see me any time with queries, my door is always open, and I will see you this time next week. Mr Veridian," he inclined his head as Mal strolled past. "Elenyx," his smile was warm.

Mal claimed my hand again, tucking it between his arm and side as we headed back towards the car. "He would like to make you his very special little teacher's pet," he commented under his breath. "You might want to think about. Screwing the Dean is certainly one way to guarantee that you get the maximum out of the academic experience, and if you fuck him good, he's sure to give you good grades."