12. Flint

12

FLINT

The training room echoes with the sound of fists hitting pads as I work through drills in my advanced combat class. The rhythmic thuds and grunts of exertion fill the air, punctuated by occasional shouts of instruction from the professor.

"Keep your guard up, Zain!" he calls out to the lanky werewolf who's leaving his left side exposed to me.

As he moves on, correcting stances and offering advice, I tune him out. My mind wanders to Violet. I wonder how she's doing after all the new shit that has been thrown at her. The protective instinct I feel towards her is overwhelming, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

"Switch sparring partners," the professor shouts out, and we rotate.

I turn to my left and scowl. "Xaxis," I growl.

"Flint," he replies, fists already up .

There's a tension in the air that you could slice with Dragon claws. He is itching to get his own back after Thorne humiliated him the other day.

"How's your little pet project going?" Xaxis sneers, his eyes flashing with disdain. "Still playing bodyguard to the murderer?"

My jaw clenches at his words. "Watch your mouth," I growl. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't I?" Xaxis scoffs. "Two witches are dead, and she's the feral vamp who can't control herself. Dennis is still shitting himself. Wake up, Flint. She's dangerous."

Anger surges through me, hot and fierce. Without warning, I lunge forward, my fist connecting solidly with Xaxis's jaw. He staggers back, momentarily stunned, before retaliating with a quick jab to my ribs.

We trade blows, our sparring match quickly devolving into something more vicious. I can feel the eyes of our classmates on us, but I don't care. All I can focus on is wiping that smug look off Xaxis's face.

"She didn't do it," I snarl between punches. "Violet's innocent."

Xaxis ducks under my swing and lands a solid hit to my stomach. "You're blinded by your feelings for her," he spits. "Can't you see what's happening?"

I grab his arm and use his momentum to throw him over my hip. Xaxis lands hard on his back with a grunt, but quickly rolls to his feet.

"What I see," I growl, circling him, "is a bunch of cowards pointing fingers without knowing the full story. "

Xaxis charges at me, aiming a kick at my midsection. I block it, but he follows up with a quick jab that catches me on the cheek.

"The full story?" he scoffs. "What more is there to know? She's unstable, Flint. A ticking time bomb."

Rage boils in my veins. I feint left, then drive my right fist into his solar plexus. As he doubles over, gasping, I grab the back of his neck and bring my knee up to meet his face.

"You don't know her," I snarl. "You don't know what she's been through, what she's capable of."

Blood streaming from his nose, Xaxis glares at me with hatred in his eyes as the professor marches over, ready to end this. "And you do? You think you can save her, Flint? You're going to get yourself killed."

He lunges at me again, but this time I'm ready. I sidestep his charge, grab his arm, and slam him into the mat. Then I do something that is going to get me thrown into Blackthorne's office faster than you can say, Snow Dragon. I create a shield to stop the professor from approaching.

"Flint," he warns, but I ignore him. Putting Xaxis in his place will be worth every second of punishment I have to take.

Xaxis tries to get up, but before he can recover fully, I'm on top of him, pinning him down.

"Listen to me, you prejudiced piece of shit," I growl, my face inches from his. "Violet is stronger and braver than you'll ever be. She didn't ask for any of this, but she's facing it with more strength than you have in your little finger, and I'll be damned if I let small-minded arseholes like you make her life any harder."

Xaxis struggles beneath me, his eyes wild. "You're making a mistake, Flint. She'll turn on you eventually. They always do."

That's when the red haze descends. I try to be laidback and not show the power I have contained deep inside me, but this prick has riled me up far past anything has in a while. Knowing I'm already headed to Blackthorne's office, I do what I need to do.

Lightning sparks around my fist as I rise, and Xaxis scrambles to his feet. I throw it at him before he has a chance to catch his breath, and the lightning bolt strikes Xaxis square in the chest, sending him flying through the shield and across the room. He slams into the wall and crumples to the floor, twitching and groaning.

Silence falls over the training room as everyone stares in shock. I stand there, breathing heavily, my fist still crackling with residual energy.

"Flint!" The professor's voice cuts through the stunned quiet. "Blackthorne's office. Now."

"I'm not done with him yet," I snarl and move forward, intent on showing this fucker that if he has a problem with Violet, he has a problem with me.

Xaxis is on his feet and ready for me, throwing his fire Demon magick at me. But you can't fight snow with fire. At least not when one of you is the son of a Dragon Emperor. I lash out with a flurry of snow, and it hits the fire bolt. The snow and fire collide in a hissing cloud of steam, momentarily obscuring my view of Xaxis. I push forward through the mist, ready to unleash another blast of icy fury. The ice blue magick sparks through the air and hits Xaxis, who tries to deflect with a fire shield, but it doesn't work against my magick.

Xaxis slumps to the ground, his shirt front smoking.

But before I can make another move, a powerful force slams into me from the side, sending me stumbling as I whirl around. I'm face to face with Professor Blackthorne.

"That's enough," he says, his voice low. "My office. Now."

Grimacing, I nod silently with no regrets as I follow Blackthorne out of the training room, cracking my knuckles as I'm itching to finish the job I started. Xaxis's lesson hasn't been learned. He will come back fighting, and next time, he might not be so lucky.

I follow Professor Blackthorne through the winding corridors of MistHallow, my anger slowly cooling with each step. By the time we reach his office, the red haze has lifted from my vision enough to be able to think clearly.

Blackthorne opens the heavy wooden door and gestures for me to enter. I step inside, my eyes adjusting to the warm glow of the fireplace that dominates one wall.

"Sit," Blackthorne says, his voice stern as he moves behind his desk.

I lower myself into one of the plush chairs facing him, my jaw clenched tight. I know I'm in trouble, but I don't regret my actions. Not when it comes to defending Violet.

Blackthorne regards me silently for a long moment, his steely gaze seeming to see right through me. Finally, he speaks. "Would you care to explain what happened in the training room?"

I meet his gaze unflinchingly. "Xaxis was talking shit about Violet. I shut him up."

Blackthorne's eyebrow arches slightly. "And you thought the best way to ‘shut him up' was to nearly incinerate him with lightning?"

"He had it coming," I growl, my hands clenching into fists at the memory of Xaxis's words. "He called Violet a murderer, said she was dangerous. This isn't the first time he has had a go at her. I will always defend her. Expel me if you must. I don't care."

"I see. So how would you expect to defend Violet against little idiots like Xaxis if you aren't here to do so?"

My mouth drops open in shock. "What?"

Blackthorne purses his lips. "Look, Flint. I'm not expelling you, but I do have to punish you. If you weren't your father's son, you would be out of here so fast, your head would spin."

"Nepotism," I drawl. "The cornerstone of our society."

Blackthorne's eyes narrow. "Are you looking to be thrown out?"

"Obviously not, but this is ridiculous. Why is it always Violet or one of us getting punished when these jerks are going after her?"

"Oh, don't worry. Xaxis will get punished as well, and I think we can both agree that Miss Frostwick paid the ultimate price for messing with Violet."

Glaring at him, I cross my arms and slouch further into the chair. "He'd better. He started it."

"I'm going to give you a word of advice, young Dragon. You might think you have all the answers and all the power, and while you are definitely a powerful being, that isn't everything. Diplomacy and the higher road are sometimes a better form of dealing with situations like the one today."

"The higher road?" I blurt out. "You expect me to just walk away from him when he's calling Violet a murderer and dangerous to be around? Not a chance."

Blackthorne sighs, leaning back in his chair. "I understand your desire to protect Miss Violet. But you must learn to control your temper, Flint. Your actions today were reckless and dangerous."

I clench my jaw but remain silent. I know he's right, even if I don't want to admit it.

"You're not just any student here," Blackthorne continues. "As the son of the Snow Dragon Emperor, your actions carry weight. You are one of the most powerful students on campus. Whether you like it or not, the other students look up to you. You have a responsibility to set an example."

"I know," I mutter, grudgingly. "But I can't just stand by and let people spread lies about Violet. "

Blackthorne's expression softens slightly. "No one is asking you to. But there are better ways to handle these situations than resorting to violence. Ways that don't risk expulsion or worse."

I nod slowly, considering his words. "So, what's my punishment then?"

He smirks and I feel a sense of dread welling up. Whatever it is, it's going to be unpleasant. "You can help Professor Almida clean out the bat cave later on today."

The blood drains from my face. "You are joking? I'd rather you expel me."

His grin widens. "No can do on the expulsion, and not only because of who you are. Violet does need allies, and I am not in a position to leave her vulnerable. So what will it be, Mr Flint? Bat shit or apologise to Xaxis in front of the entire academy?"

You fucker.

"Bats," I mumble, thoroughly pissed off. "Definitely bats."

"Off you go then." His smug expression is infuriating but I know I got off lightly as I exit his office and make my way to the foyer to see if Eldra can point me in the direction of Almida so I can get this over with before anyone finds out about it.