“Oh yeah, shoot. We have an art exhibit across campus we wanted to see before it closed. It was good to see you all. See you at school, Faye.”
“Yeah, see you,” I said. I stood still as she walked away. People continued to flow past us. Merri did not look back.
“You ready to go?” Daron said.
I nodded, and we walked out to the car. Daron and Alec spoke in low hums as we drove along the road, car lights splashing over us, the moon rising against the ebony river of the night sky.
The turn signal in the car clicked over the din of the radio station.
“You should go to prom,” Daron said.
“Why?”
“It’s an important ceremony for humans.”
“I’m not a human though, am I?”
I turned onto the road leading to my house. A street lamp rained golden light over a trash can. A cat’s depthless, glowing eyes flicked up to us. It turned and slunk into the black edges of the world.
“You were raised human,” he said.
“I’ll think about it.”
Daron shifted in his seat. Alec looked at him and he shook his head. “Alec and I will stay nearby tonight, should you need us.”
“I don’t want to stay here tonight.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I don’t want to stay in the human world. I want to go back to the Ether. Tonight.”
Daron hesitated a moment. The street lights we drove by cast him in bursts of amber light. “Okay.”
5
Daron
The grass in the camps had lushed out and brightened. They reached up and curved over themselves, scrambling for the sun of a new season. Acheus with his ebony hair loose on his shoulders strode up and skimmed his moss-green eyes over the three of us. His nose wrinkled. I didn’t offer him my hand. He wouldn’t shake it if I did.
“I wished for you to know that we’ve returned,” I said.
“Very good. I have a new mission for your team.”
I raised my eyebrows. “That is?”
“In the time you’ve been gone,” he punched out the words, disapproval hanging in the bite of his words and the sharp glint of his eyes, “more and more scouts have been sighted on our side of the Ether.”
“Typhon’s scouts?”
“Yes. What they are trying to achieve we have yet to discover. They aren’t coming near the camps or any of the protector’s strongholds.”
“How are they getting through our borders?”
“We don’t know. After what we learned during the battle,” he said, and Faye shuddered beside me, “I would guess they have shields. Have your team training, but prepare them to be ready to leave at any moment.”
“Very good,” I said.
Acheus skimmed over us once more, his lip curling, before inclining his head and leaving.
I sighed and Alec traced his fingers over my hand. I nodded toward our campsite. It sat empty, bereft of the canvas tents I would pull from the Ether. Telanes walked up, wearing the brown uniform of the protectors, the braided leather vest on top, both of his swords on his hip.
He swept his cool blue eyes over us but stopped on Faye. His eyes widened. I shook his hand.
“Faye?”
I swallowed. “She’s been struggling.”
His lips pressed together.
“You’ve called in the Ether for the new members of the group?”
“Yes, they should arrive any moment.” His eyes hadn’t moved from Faye, his expression tight.
Members flooded into the campsite. I nodded to Gibbon, Orlo, and Scyla. Many of the faces were new. And fifteen were centaurs and griffins.
I trusted Telanes’ choices, but my gut still twisted. It hadn’t been that long ago that new members of our team had betrayed us, betrayed me. And when they had attempted to kill Faye, I had taken their lives. I clenched my jaw to stave off a shiver.
Telanes joined me at the front of the group.
“Welcome back to our previous members, and welcome to our new members. Telanes is our team second,” I said, gesturing to him. “He will help oversee drills and will run the group in my absence if necessary.”
I gestured to Faye who had bowed her head, strands of her hair skittering in front of her face. “I’m sure Faye needs no formal introduction, but for those of you who have not met her.”
My heart raced, but I forced my face to stay neutral—loose jaw, relaxed eyes, slow breathing—as I cleared my throat. “And I feel it would be best to be straightforward and discuss the situation no one wishes to address. For those of you who do not know him, this is Alec. Yes, we’re in a relationship. He will be under the authority of Telanes in our group. Any questions?”
An uncomfortable shuffle undulated through the group, especially among the centaurs. Orlo crossed his arms and rolled his eyes like he was ready to get on with it. I had no idea why he was as tolerant of us as he was, he was firmly entrenched in the centaur culture, but I didn’t plan to argue over it. All of our core members had taken our relationship like a sudden rainstorm, surprising but not devastating. They remained as loyal as ever. My heart warmed at that thought.
One centaur, his russet hair loose and resting on his shoulders, lifted his chin.
“Larris, go ahead,” I said.
He hesitated a moment but held my gaze. “Will your,” he paused, his lips pursing, “relationship be apparent?”
More shifting. I nodded. Better to get it out of the way. I gestured to Alec who stood tall, his shoulders pulled back, his expression sharp.
“Alec and I take our careers seriously. When it comes to training, you’ll find we show up first, we work the longest, and we are very focused.” Nods from the group. “However, in the evenings and during our time off we will be ourselves. For anyone who wishes to change to another group, there will be no reprimand. You are free to let Telanes know before we begin drills tomorrow.”
Larris inclined his head. No one else asked questions. “Dismissed,” I said, and hoped for the best.
The sky had grown dark, the campsite easing into night.
“A minute?” I said to Alec.
His eyebrows drew together, but he nodded and walked with me away from the camp and into the thicketed woods that edged it. Shadowed branches reached and climbed against the ocean of the sky.
My stomach swirled. It was bizarre, all things considered. Gods, it reminded me of the time I told him I was in love with him. That had been terrifying. This was terrifying. Even though it made no sense.
“I was wondering if you would want to share tents,” I said. “I mean, it wouldn’t have to be my tent, we could use yours. I was just thinking…” I trailed off, words lost to me.
Alec laughed and wrapped an arm around me, his fingers pressing into my back. “You’re cute when you’re flustered.”
I cleared my throat. “Am I?”
“You are.” He smiled. “But to answer your question, I would like that very much.”
I let go of a breath. “I don’t want to pretend anymore.”
“Me either,” Alec said. He leaned in, the rough edges of his lips pressing against my own. I ran my fingers through his dark curls; they slipped against my skin like waves.