Chapter 57

The academy was in some ways utterly unrecognisable from the campus I had once found so peaceful and ruled over so childishly with my brothers. It seemed insane to me that I could still count the months and even the weeks since that time if I wanted to. That not so long ago we had held court in The Orb and been more concerned with Pitball than the state of the kingdom as a whole.

I wondered if the Vega twins' return had sparked Lionel into action with his plans or if his timescales had always been running to this pattern. Was their presence here the catalyst which had thrown us to this destination, or would his rise have come by now regardless? Would we be entirely without hope of resistance if it weren't for the return of the Vega line to our realm?

It was hard to say. And even if Lionel wouldn't have yet risen up without their return, I didn't think that I would have wished to change anything about them coming back to us. This war had been started long before now, back when Lionel had been manipulating the Savage King and collaborating with Nymphs in secret. Hell, it pre-dated him murdering his brother. His rise had been slow because he couldn't truly claim to be any more powerful than my mother or the other Councillors and he had needed to ally himself with others who could bolster his false claims of supremacy.

I was angry with my mom for that. For not seeing it. For not stopping it when there had been opportunity. But was I any better really? Lionel had been adept in hiding his malicious intentions and nefarious plans from them and no doubt had smothered any suspicions with charm and denial.

I, on the other hand, had known in my gut that Darius had been playing with dark magic, sneaking off to fight Nymphs and fuck knew what else. But I'd trusted him. Of course, I didn't regret a moment of that trust and I knew he was well deserving of it, but what if his intentions had aligned with his father's? What if the bond which I felt so keenly between us had been an act? It didn't seem possible or even plausible, but I knew that was how my mom had felt towards Lionel. At least initially. And perhaps by the time things started to feel off balance, by the time suspicions had begun to niggle at her, it had already been too late. But that didn't seem good enough to me.

I gritted my jaw, looking out from the clifftop beyond Aer Tower which had once only offered a view of the ocean and perhaps Draco Isle on a clear day. Now the floating mass of land which had been carved from the body of Solaria itself to house the Vegas' army dominated the darkened view between me and the horizon.

I observed the glittering lights of the encampment which sprawled out around the glimmering pinnacle of Rump Castle at the centre of the land mass. The survivors from all the Nebula Inquisition Centres were still arriving, offering to fight in the army or seeking refuge from the war.

Earth Elementals had added more land to the island, the magical wards that the Vegas had put in place to protect us extended all over again. And still, I knew it wasn't enough.

I thought on how we'd celebrated just one night ago. Partied and cheered our victory. I'd smiled until my face ached from it and drank until I couldn't see straight, then spent what little was left of that night groaning in pleasure in Seth's arms. After we'd met with Orion and the others at King's Hollow, Seth and I had spent the entire day together, only pausing in our passion for each other to breathe and eat. We'd slept so long after that, it was only when I'd woken in the middle of the night that I realised how exhausted I'd been from the past few days. I'd drained myself physically and emotionally, then given everything left of myself to Seth because each passing hour felt like it could be our last. Yet somehow, I'd woken to another dawn, the night sky just beginning to pale with the promise of a new day.

My lips were still bruised from the force of Seth's kisses, my neck scratched raw from the bite of his stubble, though I had no intention of healing the small wounds away. They were the marks of his claim on me, the secret stolen pieces of evidence that pointed to my ruin for him.

The wind was blowing hard from the north now, the chill a slap to the face and a sobering hiss of the harsh reality which belonged outside that night and day of debauchery. I wondered if we would ever again party like that. All of us alive and full of vitality, bolstered by our victory and screaming promises of an end to this war in our favour.

But that wind. It knew the truth of our plight. It knew that our army was still half the size of Lionel's at best. It knew that the Guild Stones still offered us nothing which might answer the promise of that prophecy we had all so foolishly pinned our hopes on. It knew that the dawn might have come for the Vegas, but the night would always claim the sky from the sun in the end.

We were running out of ideas. Worse, we were running out of time.

I checked my watch, knowing that despite the unsociable hour, my mom would be awake. She had celebrated as hard as the rest of us the other night, all of my family had, but I'd caught her eye across the crowd in the midst of the party, seen the way she gripped my little sister's hand so tightly in hers and I knew she saw the end coming for us too. The great rebellion, fighting for what was so plainly right and yet destined to crash and break against the might of the Dragon King.

I shot her a message on my Atlas, stating nothing other than a location; the beach on the far side of the island which housed the rebel army. I didn't wait for her reply, stowing my Atlas in my pocket then shooting away from my perch at full speed and racing to the beach.

The world blurred as I shot through the rebel camp in the dark, small houses crafted from mounds of earth, ice and rock hastily built one against another for them all to use for shelter.

I passed through the area closest to the academy grounds first where the cries of small children mixed with the laughter of an old man. Washing lines were strung between structures and wildflowers had been coaxed along by earth Elementals to brighten up the place. This was where the refugees had made camp, the safe haven they'd created in this bubble hidden away from the war. It was bright with signs of hope and a longing for better times. Messages had been scrawled across bare walls, praises for the True Queens and prayers to the stars to bring a brighter future to the faithful.

A symbol caught my eye more than once; a pair of Phoenix birds taking flight for the sky through the centre of a golden crown. Above them a single star perched as if awaiting their arrival. Below, flames cleansed all they left in their wake.

The people had created a banner for their queens.

Beyond the sprawling, chaotic layout of the refugee camp, the crisp, uniform lines of the army encampment reigned.

I paused in the wide gap that marked the boundary between here and there, survivors and warriors. Of course, the Fae who had chosen to enlist were free to visit the refugees and along this line of division, bars and market stalls had sprung up, many Fae rising to the challenge of entertaining and providing for the thousands of soldiers who were preparing for battle.

There were earth Elemental stalls laden with blankets and difficult to grow fruits and vegetables. Fire stalls with everflames of various sizes trapped in jars, some better suited to cast a glow of light while others would provide an ample heat source.

I cast my eyes over the talismans which were on sale at another stall, many of the usual gemstones and herbs aligned to luck and valour, but there were others which caused me to pause, making the old woman who was sitting behind the stall perk up hopefully.

"What's this?" I asked, pointing to a fork which looked in no way special to me.

"Tool of The Resurrected," she breathed mysteriously, squinting up at me in the darkness.

I doubted she would recognise me in this light with my hood pulled up and the moon at my back. It wasn't like the Queens' inner circle tended to travel out this way before dawn. "He ate from that very utensil; his essence imbues it with the power of the unknown. It is said that any who possess such a thing will themselves be shielded from the eyes of death and so prosper during battle."

I frowned, noticing the little card which sat above the fork. ‘Genuine item blessed by Darius Acrux'.

I snorted as I realised what she was referring to. Someone had taken to stealing any utensils Darius had used and were selling them as talismans against death. Well, either that or someone had taken to pretending this came from Darius's plate, but as I glanced at the sign behind her, announcing that she was happy to provide proof of all claims via Siren, Cyclops or any other form of interrogation, I had to assume this had once been used to deliver food into Darius's mouth.

My eyes ran along the row of cutlery, pens, napkins and even a bloodstained bit of cloth which had an eyewatering price tag and claimed to be blessed with the blood of Queen Roxanya, offering whoever possessed it the protection of the royal bloodline. There were mostly items relating to the Vegas and Darius, but all of us were represented in some way, including a withered vine which had apparently been cast by Seth during the attack the Nymphs waged on us outside the ruins of Mount Lyra which, when boiled into a drink, claimed to offer up a hint of his strength and bravery in battle.

I wondered whether I should call bullshit on all this superstitious nonsense, but I hesitated short of doing it. What harm did it really do? If the Fae purchasing these items believed they gained luck, strength or a chance to avoid death and survive this war then who was I to take that little bit of hope from them? The stars knew we needed what positivity we could cling to right now.

I turned my eyes from the talismans and instead pointed out a stone at the other end of the stall, picking the best among them and thanking her as she wrapped it in a velvety leaf. I paid her twice what she'd asked for it, grinning as she gushed her thanks, then I shot away to meet my mom.

Racing between the rows of the army encampment was far easier than navigating the sprawling refugee camp. Neat lines left clear walkways between the regimented tents made of cloth, wood or stone in matching fashion to their neighbours. There were small signs of individuality as I passed between them, slogans scrawled onto the walls depicting the marks for the various squadrons. Flags snapped and whipped in the frigid wind, each depicting that same symbol of the rising Phoenixes bursting through the crown but with them were signs for Orders from Pegasuses to Tiberian Rats and everything in between, displayed proudly and with honour.

These were the Fae who had suffered most under Lionel's rule and their desire for revenge filled the air with a tempest of barely restrained emotion. Unlike in the refugee encampment where hope and fear underlined all that was there, this place felt poised and ready to fight, eager for it even.

It bolstered my own hope to get a taste for how hungry our army was for this win. I only wished it meant more in the face of our odds. History never told the tale of wars that were won by the wrong side, their victors repainting the records to show themselves in the greater light. Would people one day talk of the madness of the Savage Queens? Would they mutter prayers to the stars that those heathenish girls had lost the war and bless Lionel Acrux's name for bringing about a new era, sweeping mention of persecution and genocide under the rug?

I ground my teeth at that thought.

Not if I have anything to do with it.

If we were going down then I planned to scorch this world with my name and force it to remember me as I was, fighting for what was right and giving everything in my resistance of that tyrant's brutal reign. I would be myself entirely. I wouldn't be forced to sway at the whims of others.

I sped through the camp, passing those who slept, those on guard and those who simply sat waiting for the inevitable.

When I made it to the beach, Mom was already there, standing on the pebbles and looking out to sea where the waves were gilded silver by the moon and the horizon whispered endless promises.

"When we were at the academy, your father used to bring me down to Aer Cove to look out over these waves," she said, knowing I was there despite my silent arrival. "I indulged him because our parents were so keen on the match, but of course, I didn't let him have my heart until some years later."

I'd heard this before, how they'd been something of an arranged marriage, not forced into it but presented as an option, my father one of the most powerful Vampires of their generation, his family flush with wealth from the import business they ran. Mom had resisted initially, wanting to find her own path to love, but for Dad, he claimed to have known it would be the two of them from the moment he laid eyes on her. They both enjoyed recounting tales of his tireless efforts to convince her to give him a chance, and luckily for me and my siblings, eventually she did.

"Are you feeling nostalgic because you think we're all going to die?" I asked, the question bald, no bullshit, its utterance a slap in the face of the fragile lie we'd all been telling ourselves over and over again.

Mom turned to look at me, her eyes roaming over my features, a hurt in her gaze which made my throat thicken as she drew closer.

She reached for me, her fingers trailing down my cheek until she cupped my jaw.

"They tell you how hard it is to be a parent," she murmured. "How many sleepless nights and temper tantrums it will take to survive those first years, how testing it is to cope with teenagers, but no one mentions the bit which is the hardest of all."

"What's that?" I asked and she smiled sadly, her thumb brushing over my cheek as she studied my features.

"How very difficult it is to admit that they've grown up." A tear spilled down her cheek and I frowned, raising my hand to cup over hers, holding her palm against my skin. I had so many memories of those eyes, tucking me in at night, shining with pride when I succeeded, crinkling with mirth when I laughed.

"I don't know that anyone ever truly grows up where their parents are concerned," I replied. "Some part of me will forever be toddling around in diapers and causing havoc in the grounds whenever you turn your back so far as we're concerned."

She breathed a laugh, a second tear splashing onto my fingers as she leaned in to me and I wound my free arm around her.

She was such a powerful force, not only in my life but in the whole of Solaria, and it never failed to surprise me how easily I could fold her into my arms now, how I towered over her by more than a head and was almost twice as broad. Some part of me would forever be the little boy who used to crawl into her arms and make forts beneath her desk when her work made it hard for her to carve out all the hours we needed for our games.

It hurt, this moment. Even though we both knew it had come, it still hurt. And in some ways, it wouldn't change anything between us. Our love was far more than position or power. Our bond was one which could only ever be shared between mother and son, and whatever else we might be, we were that first.

"Don't go thinking I'll go easy on you just because I'm emotional," Mom laughed against my chest, squeezing me tightly and letting the moment drag on just a little.

"I wouldn't forgive you if you did," I replied, placing a kiss against her blonde hair and exhaling, letting the boy in me take a back seat as the man I had grown into raised his head.

We released each other as one, sharing a rueful, ready smile and I nodded.

The ground broke apart beneath me in the blink of an eye and I yelled out as I fell, not into a pit but a chasm, the entire beach seeming to have dropped away to nothing as the world disappeared overhead and I plummeted into the dark.

Magic burst from me, vines whipping out and shooting for the walls of dirt which receded rapidly, stabbing deep into them and anchoring despite how quickly my mom was breaking them apart.

I hit the vines, the six of them cradling my weight as they took it, stretching downwards before snapping back up again like elastic bands and launching me skyward.

I burst from the hole in the beach, pine needles tearing out from me in a deadly cloud, shooting in every direction while I focused on regaining my feet and locating her.

Pillars of earth formed to catch me and I started leaping from one to the next, my gaze scanning the pebbled beach for her, zeroing in on a flash of movement to my rear.

I leapt aside as one of the waves surged from the ocean, spearing for me on my pillar and reminding me that choosing the beach as a battleground against a dual Elemental with earth and water magic might not have been the best idea I'd ever had.

I crashed to my feet and shot away, skidding on the pebbles before I drew them under my influence and forced them to form a solid path.

She'd taken chase; I could feel her behind me like a whisper on the back of my neck, and I grinned as I let the ground open up at my heels.

Mom leapt over the pit, pillars of earth forming beneath her feet to keep her out of it, but I'd already whirled around to face her, fireballs bursting from me and pummelling her from every direction.

She was forced to shield with water, steam hissing up in a great cloud that obscured the sky as the might of our magic met and battled for dominance.

I let the fire distract her, veering towards the water where she'd least expect me to go and gathering power in my fists, forging a beast of teeth and claws, strongly built from stone but adorned with a coat of flames.

I directed the beast straight for her, my heart thrashing as I watched it collide with the shield, tearing through the magic to reveal-

"Oh fuck," I cursed, whirling around as I realised she'd already escaped that trap, but I wasn't fast enough and a whip of water coiled around my ankle beneath the waves.

I was yanked off of my feet and dragged out to sea at such speed that my whole world became nothing but bubbles and salt and darkness, all sense of direction abandoning me entirely.

Panic threatened but I ignored it, twisting my hands sharply so a ring of fire engulfed me, severing the lash of water and dumping me on the seabed as the force of it evaporated the water around me. I'd given my position away, but I sank into the sand and silt before she could take advantage of the fact.

I scrunched my eyes shut and held my breath as I forced the dirt and grit to propel me back towards the shore beneath ground, launching myself skywards again only when I was certain I was back on the beach.

Pebbles became missiles as they were fired away from me, Mom's cry of pain both a thrill and a shock, but I didn't let up.

I shot towards her in a blur, fire racing ahead of me while spears of earth rose at her back.

Ice exploded from her, neutralising my flames and shielding against the attack from behind too but as I threw more power at it, a great crack ripped through its heart.

Again we collided, our power ripping the beach apart, the crash and boom of magic drawing people to watch us, the hill beyond the beach slowly filling with Fae who stared on in awe, but I couldn't waste any energy on them.

Seconds fell to minutes which fell to an hour then two, both of us bloodied, bruised and panting with the exhaustion of our battle, both of us refusing to relent. My time had come. I had to prove it.

As the time wore on and we found ourselves matched over and over again, I began to notice a pattern to her defences, one which she had repeated often enough for me to think I might just be able to exploit it.

A spear of ice javelined for my chest and just as I was shooting aside to avoid it, I spotted the opening I needed. My heart leapt as I advanced, the beach rising at my power, the pebbles pelting her with such force that she had to shield.

The ground broke apart beneath me and I shot into the chasm I'd opened up, racing at full speed as she cast a dome of ice around her, hiding her from view.

When she dropped beneath the ground to escape unseen, she found a monster waiting for her in the dark.

My arm banded around her waist as I dragged her back to my chest and the magic I'd been holding in reserve crashed from me, clay coating her hands where they clawed at my arm, fire baking the clay in the next breath as I immobilised her.

"Clever boy," she panted in surprise, and I barked a laugh as I launched us back out of the dirt and onto the beach, releasing her and letting her turn to face me.

"Yield," I demanded, my voice carrying to all who were watching, flames rolling up my forearms even though I knew it was done.

Mom looked at the impenetrable clay that had solidified around her hands, locking down her power and ending our fight.

Her mouth curled into a victorious grin which was utterly full of pride, and my chest hollowed out at the love I found in her eyes, seeing me not just as her boy, but as a man who had grown into his power and come to claim it for himself.

"I yield," she replied loudly. "And I am very much looking forward to seeing what you do next, my boy."

She dropped to one knee before me and my heart lurched as the reality of what I'd done collided with me. I'd challenged her for her position and I'd won. I was a Celestial Councillor. And I answered to no one but my queens anymore.

I fell to my knees before her, throwing my arms around her as a sob broke in my chest.

"I love you," I told her forcefully, knowing this could never change that in the slightest.

"I love you more," she promised, her forehead falling to mine as we knelt there panting and bleeding, exhausted both physically and emotionally, forever changed and yet forever as we were.

Cheers erupted behind us, bodies pressing closer as the Fae who had been watching ran down onto the beach, slapping me on the back and calling out congratulations while exulting over the ferociousness of the battle and how impressed they'd all been by the magic.

In the centre of them all, I met my mom's eyes and she grinned at me, her split lip dripping blood onto her chin, her normally perfect blonde hair hanging wildly around her shoulders, stained with dirt. She'd never looked more beautiful to me.

"Go on," she urged in a voice just for me. "Go tell the world to get fucked, my beautiful boy. I know that's at least half of why you chose this moment. So if you mean to shake the foundations of all we stand upon then I'd say that now is the perfect time."

I blinked at her in surprise, wondering how she knew what else I intended to do, and why, after all she'd said to me before she suddenly seemed very much in favour of me doing it.

As if she could hear that question in my mind, she scoffed lightly. "A mother always knows these things, sweetheart. But sometimes, if you want to change the world, you have to do it yourself. And I think you're ready now."

"You…could have saved yourself this whole thing you know," I laughed hopelessly but she shook her head.

"This war is a vast and uncertain thing. We don't know if we will live to see tomorrow let alone the dawn of what will come after it. A new age is rising one way or another. Now is the time to stand up and fight to be a part of its creation. Now is the time for fates to change and something else to begin. I've played my part. It's time for you to step out of my shadow, and you just proved that I was right to think so."

I threw my arms around her, squeezing her tightly while letting my magic fall away from her hands, freeing her to embrace me in return.

I exhaled a long breath, feeling a knot loosen around my soul and knowing exactly what I needed to do.

I pressed a kiss to her cheek and then I was gone.

The waning moon had sunk towards the waves while we fought and the icy silver of its light where it hung fat and wide in the sky lit up the encampment and academy grounds beyond it in sparkling light.

I sped back the way I had come, racing at top speed for The Orb where I knew everyone was converging in the early hours to discuss our progress and the latest plans for the war.

Exhaustion beat my body like a drum, the dregs of magic which remained to me like a simmering ember to the flame I usually carried. I needed blood, but I needed him more.

I skidded to a halt outside the enormous golden dome, my eyes roaming over the patched repairs to its roof, the scars of the war marring even this immovable object.

How many times had I walked through these doors? How many times had I seen him here? And yet now, when it mattered the most, I found myself hesitating before them, that familiarity seeming like pressure all of a sudden, the countless times I hadn't done this mounting up against me now.

Despite all of that, it wasn't fear I felt as I lingered with my hand on the door, my pulse hammering wildly, my palms slick with expectation. No, it wasn't fear, it was anticipation which consumed me now.

I wrenched the door wide, Geraldine's protection spells swelling over me, checking my magical signature, making sure that I was who I appeared to be and allowing me to pass the threshold when I satisfied the inspection.

My confident stride fell away and I paused as I found the Vega twins standing before a camera, Orion, Darius, Max, Seth and Geraldine all in the background of the shot while they spoke passionately about the war, urging Fae to rise up and join the rebel army.

Seth caught my eye, jerking his head in a way which was obviously visible on camera and I realised that I was supposed to be up there with them. I winced, remembering Geraldine's demands for my attendance to this rally thing today, but my mind had been so full of what I needed to do that I'd fully forgotten about this.

Everyone standing in that line up looked polished to perfection, wearing armour and holding weapons, powerful, poised, all of those things which I, half covered in dirt, the other half drenched, my clothes torn, bloodstains marking my body and my fangs out because I was fucking ravenous, did not look.

"This oppression cannot continue," Tory snarled into the camera. "That tyrant cannot be allowed to survive."

Yeah, I was definitely not dressed for the occasion and yet for some reason, my feet were moving, my gaze locked on Seth and all the very sensible reasons for me to stay the fuck away were falling to nothing as I looked into his eyes and stalked closer.

My hand fell into my pocket and curled around the item I'd bought from the vendor outside the army camp, the cold stone centring my thoughts and my decision already made.

I'd spent the morning fighting for this, I'd claimed my mother's position, and I couldn't spend a single second longer lying about who I was and what I wanted.

"I don't care about rules or laws when it comes to us," I said my voice hard and unyielding, my steps certain and unfaltering.

The twins fell silent, Geraldine gasped, clutching her pearls but Max caught her arm as she made to intercept me, holding her back with a wide grin on his face as he read my intention in the air.

"And I won't be told I can't have you by anyone."

"Me?" Seth breathed, glancing to the others as if any of this could ever be for anyone but him, as if he still wasn't certain that I wanted him and him alone, and that I was sick of lying and half-truths, pretending and concealing.

"I challenged my mother and claimed her place," I told him. "And if my queens try to tell me no on this then I think I'll just have to go ahead and commit treason. You are in my head morning, noon and night, your presence invigorates me and your absence leaves me aching. I dream of you whenever I sleep and burn for you whenever you are near. I can't hide it anymore. I won't hide it anymore. I want you to be mine, Seth, I fucking need you to be mine."

I offered him the rose quartz which had been carved into the shape of a crescent moon and hung from a chain of silver, and he blinked at it for several achingly long seconds while all of our friends stared and waited for his reply.

Then he grabbed hold of my shirt, yanked me towards him and kissed me like the sky might cave in if he didn't.

I groaned into his mouth, fisting his hair, kissing him harder, devouring his lips and inhaling his breath as everything I had been aching for finally fell together. I was his. I had been his for far longer than I'd been willing to admit, but I couldn't keep lying about it. I couldn't keep hiding him like he was something to be hidden when really he was something I wanted to shout from the rooftops and claim beyond all else.

"About fucking time," Darius laughed loudly, clapping me on the shoulder while Darcy said ‘at last' and Tory whooped. Geraldine exclaimed about the live broadcast still rolling and I decided I was done with public declarations.

"Let's get out of here," Seth panted against my mouth, and I grinned as I kissed him again, hoisting him into my arms and shooting away without another word.

I didn't release him as we made it outside, bathed in the moonlight and racing for King's Hollow.

We collided with the door, magic sparking around us, a gasp scraping my throat raw as we unintentionally power-shared in our desperation to unlock the door.

It sprung open behind us and we half fell through it, only my speed stopping us from hitting the floor. I heaved Seth back into my arms and shot for the room I'd claimed ownership of here, not stopping until we were in it and my mouth was pressed to his, his body crushed between mine and the wall.

Seth shoved me back, panting as he stared at me, his pupils wide and expression shocked.

"You took on your mom for me?" he breathed like he couldn't quite believe I'd done that.

"Yeah," I admitted, smirking at him as I took in his swollen lips and rumpled shirt. Aside from that he looked perfectly put together in his white shirt with his hair drawn back into a knot and stubble shorn to nothing on his jaw. By contrast, I looked positively feral after my fight with my mom and it amused me to see our usual roles reversed. "It was fucking hard, too."

A breath of laughter parted his lips and he touched the rose quartz chain at his throat as though checking it was really there.

"I was sick of the world getting to decide what you could or couldn't be to me," I told him. "So I took a leaf from our queens' book and burned it all to hell."

Silence fell with the possible repercussions of what I'd just done, with the question over whether I could even hold my mom's position permanently now at all. But if someone else wanted to seize it from me then they would have to fight for it. I was willing to sacrifice whatever it took to claim Seth for my own, but I was also planning on having it all if I could.

"Come here," I said, offering Seth my hand and he didn't hesitate to take it, letting me draw him to the sliding door to the far side of my room and out onto the balcony beyond. I led him along it, glancing at the trees as I hunted for a spot between them which might offer up a view of the sky.

We had to cross one of the little bridges which led over to an adjoining tree where a curved bench sat nestled in the branches, concealing the platform it sat upon.

"She told me to do it," I said, pointing between the canopy to the moon which winked out at us, low and heavy in the sky, its light seeming brighter than it should have been while dawn fast approached. "I looked up at her tonight and knew that I was done pretending with you. You're all I want Seth, you're all I've wanted for far longer than I was brave enough to admit and I-"

"I love you," he said, taking my jaw in his hand and drawing me close so that I could taste those words as he spoke them, brushing against my lips and sinking into my skin.

"You stole my line, asshole," I growled.

"Then try it again."

"I love you, Seth Capella, even more than the moon loves the sky."

He slapped a hand over my mouth, eyes wide and jerking to look at the moon as though she might have heard and taken offence.

I grinned beneath his hand then sunk my fangs into the side of his palm.

Seth growled at the sting of pain and I groaned at the rush of his blood over my tongue, basking in the exhilaration of taking in his magic and letting it fill every dark piece of me with his exuberant light.

Seth let me bite him, leaning in to press his own mouth to my neck, trailing kisses down my throat while his free hand worked to loosen the buckle of my belt.

I groaned louder, my hands flying down the buttons of his shirt before wrenching it off of him, exposing the solid lines of his chest which I explored with roaming fingertips before opening his fly.

I swallowed thickly, drawing my fangs from his palm so I could tip my head back and indulge in the feeling of his mouth on my skin.

Seth ripped the already ruined shirt from my body and I grinned cockily as he dropped to his knees before me, pushing my pants down and drawing my cock between his lips.

I groaned with pleasure, working my fingers into his hair and knocking it free of the knot he'd tied it in as I drew him down over my dick, letting him take me to the back of his throat, loving the way his fingers bit into my ass as he pulled me closer.

I thrust my hips in time with the movements of his head, moonlight gilding my skin and casting him in a perfect light.

I was so hard that it practically hurt, only the sweep of his tongue and steady pressure of his lips around my shaft stopping me from losing myself entirely to the need I felt for him.

"More," I gasped, wanting him so badly that even my heart seemed to thunder to the sound of his name.

He growled at the request, taking my cock to the back of his throat and sinking a finger into my ass at the same time.

"Fuck," I panted, my fingers tangling in his hair, the dual sensations making my blood riot in my veins. "Again."

This time as he sucked me deep, two fingers drove into me, pressing against some sensitive spot which had me jerking, my cock thrusting to the back of his throat and euphoria rushing for me.

He pushed deeper, sucking hard, and I growled his name as my cum filled his mouth, the explosive force of my orgasm striking the breath from my lungs and making my knees buckle.

I dropped down to kneel before him, kissing him hard when words failed me, my pulse thrashing like it had fallen prey to a lightning strike, my body trembling with the force of my release.

"Fuck, Caleb, I wanna be inside you so bad," Seth groaned against my lips.

I froze for half a second, that final line between us still uncrossed, though I didn't really understand why. There was nothing between us which seemed off the table anymore and as I slipped my hand into his pants and began to stroke the thick length of him, I knew I wanted it too.

"Don't tell me, show me," I demanded, moving back so I could lie beneath him, letting him press his weight down on top of me as I kissed him again.

We fell into a frantic race to remove the last of our clothes until finally he was pressing down on me, his bare flesh scalding hot against my own and the moonlight spilling through his hair where it fell around his face.

Seth looked down at me, cautiously at first, but his expression turning hungry and feral with desire as he found no doubt in my eyes.

He kissed me again, softer, sweeter, his hand roaming down my side until he was drawing my knee up then caressing the back of my thigh.

His cock drove into my other leg, solid and throbbing with need. I wrapped my fist around it as he caressed my ass, slipping his fingers to my opening and working first one, then two inside me.

Precum beaded the tip of his cock as he drove his fingers in and out and I smeared it over the head, feeling him shiver at my touch, wanting him to take all the pleasure he could from my flesh.

I groaned as he stretched me, his hand withdrawing momentarily as he fetched a bottle of lube from the pocket of his pants. He kissed me again as he slicked my ass with it, fingers driving in and out, our hips grinding against one another as we both began to ache for this.

But still he didn't give me his cock, teasing me with his hand, adding a third finger and making me pant with need beneath him until I was fucking desperate for it.

"Please," I gasped, using my grip on his cock to move it between my legs, arching my hips to give him better access.

Seth drew back, taking hold of his dick and dislodging my hold on it. My own cock was rock hard again between us and I fisted it on instinct, needing more of this unearthly pleasure, wanting to feel him inside me so fucking bad.

His eyes stayed glued to mine as he rolled the head of his cock over my ass, dipping his hips just enough to push at that barrier before retreating again.

I groaned, gripping his shoulder with my free hand and drawing him down, needing all of him.

He smiled at me, that rueful, soul-destroying smile which I should have known would be my undoing from the very first moment he turned it my way. And then he was sinking into me, filling my ass and growling my name.

I was blinded by the feeling of it, how fucking full my body had suddenly become, how for several seconds I couldn't breathe at all, my muscles tensing, my heart pounding with the certainty that I couldn't take so much of him at once.

But before any of those thoughts could even begin to settle into me, he sank deeper, filling me impossibly more and groaning in bliss while I echoed him, because holy fuck it felt so good.

Seth looked down at me in question, his cock deep inside me, his eyes bright with love.

"You really are mine, aren't you?" he whispered, his words like a prayer and I could only nod.

"All yours," I agreed. "From now until the end."

He smiled wolfishly, his gaze dropping to my hand which had fallen still around my rigid cock, and he licked his lips. "Fuck your hand while I fuck your ass, pretty boy. I want you to howl with me when I finish."

His voice was full of grit and the utter command of an Alpha. I was helpless beneath the spell of those words and all the pleasure they promised me, so I nodded and began to move my fist as he started to roll his hips.

At first, the sensation of him moving within me was overwhelming, my body uncertain of how best to move with his, but he went slow, waiting while I adjusted to it, letting me take the lead until we had fallen into a rhythm of undeniable bliss.

His arm hooked around my knee as he held me right where he wanted, then he began to fuck me like the heathen I knew him to be.

Seth's mouth swallowed my groans, licking the pleasure from my lips and tasting every sin-filled thought I'd ever had about him between our kisses.

He was brutal and beautiful and entirely mine, and my cock jerked in my fist as I tried to hold out beneath this utter inhalation of my flesh.

Seth cursed my name, sinking in deeper, faster, then finally howling as he came inside me, my body exploding into pleasure again just as a burning sensation seared behind the back of my ear.

He pressed his full weight down on top of me, kissing me deeply, my cum smearing between our bodies which were already slick with sweat.

After an achingly long kiss, our hearts thrashing powerfully against our ribcages so we could feel each other's pulses, Seth rolled off of me to lay panting at my side.

"Five minutes to catch our breath then we're going again," I told him, grinning up at the trees overhead, their leaves painted silver in the moonlight while they danced back and forth in the wind.

Seth sucked in a sharp breath, shoving my head aside and running his fingers over something behind my ear, reminding me of that momentary pain amid my ecstasy.

"What is it?" I asked, shoving his hand off me to touch the tender spot myself and as I looked at him, I found him touching the same place behind his own ear.

"Ho-ly fuck," Seth breathed. "The moon just made us…"

He couldn't seem to finish that sentence but as I knocked his hand aside and looked at the spot behind his ear, I found a perfect, silver crescent emblazoned on his skin.

My lips fell open as I recognised it for what it was, my eyes finding Seth's and a wide smile spreading across my lips.

"Mates," I finished for him. "We're Moon Mated."