Chapter 37 | Ravinica

Chapter 37

Ravinica

I NEEDED MORE. I HAD to claim all of them. And I knew the quickest way to get my planned rebellion underway was to sync those already closest to me.

Grim and Sven had shown understanding I never expected. They filled my heart with support and hope, tossing aside my grievances as if they were foolish afterthoughts.

No, not tossing them aside. Listening, understanding, and coming to a decision. They heard me, and now that they knew I wasn't a threat to their wellbeing—and they weren't a threat to mine—we could move forward and do amazing things together.

I'd never known togetherness like this before.

And yet, they were only half of the equation.

I did not know how Arne or Magnus would respond to my admission that I had come to Vikingrune Academy under an assassin's dark veil.

What will my mother think if she finds out I got to the bottom of our familial mystery and . . . did nothing with it? That I didn't pursue our generations-long vengeance because I had fallen in love with my targets instead?

I worried my lip thinking about that, until the skin was raw. Well, she's not here now.

Whatever was happening at Selby Village was the furthest thing on my radar at the moment. Too much was going on here, in the present, that I couldn't worry about the past. Lindi, Hallan, Damon . . . they will have to wait their turns.

This is my time. And the way I spend to choose that time, how to focus my ire, and how to exact change, is entirely up to me.

It was a fulfilling thought, knowing my fate was finally in my hands. I wasn't carrying anyone else's burden on my shoulders.

Fulfilling, and also nerve-wracking. Because now I only had myself to blame for any failures along the way. I couldn't put my past, my hard upbringing, or the shit I'd had to claw my way through on anyone else's shoulders but my own.

At least I have allies. Men who would die and sacrifice for me.

A girl like me couldn't ask for more than that.

After the full moon night, and my torrid gallivanting with Grim and Sven, the weather shifted torrentially.

It was as if Freyr, our god of sunshine, fair weather, and good harvest, had donned a cloak and retreated to a cave after the moon set, and gave Hodur, the god of winter and darkness, free reign over the Isle.

The mountain air bit harder. Rain came all weekend after Friday—a premonition of harsher weather to come. The snow would soon follow, according to the second-years who had braved such weather the previous year.

It was crazy that such a magical place as this, an island set in the middle of a vast ocean, could have such a drastic change in temperature and atmosphere. Yet, even here, the seasons demanded change.

Mother Nature remained undefeated.

The gods whipped up a particularly vicious storm on Saturday, which delayed my plans to leave the academy in search of Corym E'tar. I hunkered down in Nottdeen Quarter, hanging out with Randi and Dagny while eating a fresh stock of chocolate-covered peanuts Dag had graciously picked up from Isleton the day before.

As rain battered Academy Hill that afternoon, coming down in diagonal sheets, drenching everything, I stared out the window longingly.

"What do you hope to find out there, Rav?" Dagny asked. We sat on couches in the lobby, with other ladies nearby who also frowned at the sudden changing of their plans.

Lightning cracked the sky, illuminating the purple horizon white. Thunder followed, booming and rolling over the hills, shivering the awnings and drapes of the academy longhouses.

"Answers," I said, still staring out. "Always answers."

Randi snorted. "The only answer you're gonna find out there right now is hypothermia and a bad hair day, babe."

Over my shoulder, I smiled at her. Her eyes twinkled.

I said, "How was your celebration yesterday, Ran?"

She opened and closed her mouth. ". . . Eventful."

Her wicked grin made me smile. "How about you, Dag?"

"Uneventful. Just how I like it."

I laughed and sat back in the couch. There was so much running through my mind my best friends didn't know about.

Prophecies, elves, Alfheim, assassinations, secrets, lies.

Love.

Heady subjects, one and all. I wanted a break from all this. The storm was presenting a perfect opportunity. I couldn't relax until Arne and Magnus knew what Grim and Sven had learned, and until I had a response from them—either leaving me or coming to grips with it.

As the hours waned, my boredom grew. I took a nap on the couch, drooling all over my self with my head to the side.

I dreamed of a large creature flying over the academy, its blackened wings casting shadows down through the jagged lightning bolts.

The dream was so real it startled me awake.

I found myself with my cheek on Dagny's lap.

I sat up, rubbed my eyes. "Damn. How long was I out?"

Glancing over, I saw Dagny was also asleep, her head tilted back on the couch.

Gazing out the window, gray clouds still commanded the horizon, yet the rain had stopped. They'd left a soggy sheen over the academy, darkening the cobbles and glistening the grass.

With a sigh, I stood. Randi was nowhere to be seen. Other girls were talking in hushed whispers in a corner of the lobby, and the footsteps overhead from the second story were loud—all the initiates huddling up in the dormitory for the wintry weather, to pass stories, gossip, and have one final weekend together.

The door to the dormitory swung open as I stepped toward it, freezing me.

Arne Gornhodr stepped in. His hair tumbled in gentle golden waves down his shoulders, recently permed, it appeared. The iceshaper was dressed in a deep red, button-up tunic, cuffed with gold lining at the lapel and down the seams. He looked like a medieval nobleman, shirking his typical blue "icy" clothes for this more regal look.

His getup made him more handsome and striking than pretty and roguish, and I wondered if that was by design—if he was going for a new approach since I'd halfway forgiven him after finding Corym and the Lepers Who Leapt.

He noticed my widened eyes when he stepped in, neck swiveling, and he smiled. "Ah, just the fox I was looking for."

"Hi," I replied, momentarily forgetting my words. "What are you doing here? Better hope Dagny doesn't wake up and see you stomping around in Nottdeen."

"She's a good bulldog, that kitty."

"Don't call her that," I snapped, feeling defensive on my friend's behalf.

"Sorry," Arne muttered. "She's a good bulldog, that pussycat."

I rolled my eyes, shaking my head. "You were doing so good, too."

He gave me a crooked grin and reached his hand out. "Let's go, little fox."

"Where?"

"The rain has let up. The academy might close its gates again soon. Surely after this weekend."

"That . . . doesn't answer my question."

He stepped closer, until our bodies were nearly pressed together, and the heat came off him in waves. In fact, for an ice elementalist, he was surprisingly warm. And dry.

How the hell did the rain not touch him?

Arne lowered his voice, blue eyes dancing over my shoulders to make sure no one was eavesdropping. "You asked me to find the elf. I did. You asked me to take you to him. I will. Right now, while everyone is hunkered down, readying for sleep."

"I . . ." Stopping, gulping, I tried again. "Does he know I'm coming?"

"Of course. I told him where to wait every night for a week. This will be the third evening he'll be waiting and he will miss you, unless we go now. Wouldn't want to leave the man hanging, no?"

I nodded diligently. No, I certainly didn't want to keep Corym waiting. Arne set up this whole thing?

Surely he hopes to get something out of it.

I knew he wanted my trust. He wanted my forgiveness.

Is there something more, too?

My body prickled at the thought, and it took me a moment to realize the heated sensation wasn't just coming from Arne's proximity, his fancy garb, or his glinting eyes.

No, it came from doubts, rearing their ugly head again, flushing my skin.

This was exactly how he lured me the first time. A quick notion, a silver tongue, and the changing of plans that needed to be carried out right now , or we'd mess everything up.

I clenched my jaw, steeling myself.

I didn't consider myself stupid, or even particularly na?ve. Arne had changed, from everything I could see. I didn't think he was a good enough actor to fool me otherwise.

And yet, frustration and anger already billowed inside me as I stared into his beautiful face. He was right—it was so much like Corym's, yet with humanness to his eyes and rosiness to his cheeks that the Ljosalfar didn't possess.

I missed Corym dearly. I worried for his safety with the Lepers, kept as their captive, essentially. I had abandoned him, even after he'd risked his life and deserted his family to stay and protect me.

If Arne is capitalizing on that opportunity—on my desire—then I'll know his true character once and for all. Grinding my teeth together, knotting my hands into fists at my sides, I said, "Can I trust you, Arne Gornhodr?"

He blinked. Face, unnerved. "You already asked me that, little fox."

"I'm asking again."

"Yes. You can trust me." He saluted with a hand over his heart, over the gold lapel of his red coat.

"Good. You already fooled me once with something just like this. I want you to know I don't give third chances."

"Understood." He bowed his head. There was hurt in his eyes—recognizing I still didn't trust him completely, no matter how much he tried to sway me.

Actions spoke louder than words. This would mean everything.

My eyes sank, locking with his, narrowing. "Deceive me this time, Arne, and I will kill you. Prey on my heart, and I'll end you . . . even if it's the last damn thing I do."