Thornhill Academy. Chapter 93

**Rhaziel**

The scent of smoke and fear still clung faintly to me from the battlefield, an echo of the nightmare creature I’d just sent back into the void. The thing had been all teeth and shadow, but it hadn’t stood a chance against me. Not tonight. Not when my every thought, my every heartbeat, was anchored to the girl I’d brought home. My Queen. As soon as the last of the creature’s shrieks faded, I turned back toward my kingdom, my shadows carrying me through the folds of the veil. Excitement, yes, actual excitement, throbbed through my veins, bubbling beneath my skin in a way I couldn’t remember feeling before. I wanted to see her. I wanted to make sure she was safe. I wanted...to see her smile again. When the gates of my keep came into view, Tully was there, standing stiffly by the entrance like a man caught doing something wrong. I frowned.

“I thought I asked you to guard her,” I said, voice low but sharp. “Where is she?”

Tully bowed so quickly his horns nearly scraped the floor. “I–I believe the new Queen needed some time to rest, my King.”

Rest. For a moment, I blinked at him, confused. Then the thought struck me like dawn through a window, of course. She had come from the mortal realm. The night there had been long, the emotions high. My little hummingbird would be tired.

“Yes,” I murmured. “She needs rest.”

I made my way up the spiral staircase, my steps light, almost a skip, though gods forbid anyone saw their king skipping. But anticipation pushed at my ribs, urging me faster. The heavy doors to our chamber creaked open with a soft moan of hinges, and there she was. Curled up in the middle of the bed. My bed. The sight undid me completely. Allison was so small, so fragile, her dark hair spilling across my pillows like a streak of midnight ink. My blankets swallowed her whole, the deep crimson of the fabric making her skin glow like moonlight. Her chest rose and fell in a rhythm that sounded far too beautiful for my cursed heart to handle. I stood there for a long moment, my throat tight, my claws flexing uselessly at my sides. No one had ever lain in that bed before. No one had ever been allowed so close. And now she was here. Mine. My Queen. My little hummingbird. I stepped closer quietly and lowered myself onto the edge of the mattress. The bed dipped under my weight, but she only sighed softly, nestling deeper into the sheets as though welcoming me. I froze, afraid to breathe too loudly, fearful that if I did, she might disappear. Then, unable to stop myself, I reached out. One clawed hand, so large compared to her delicate face, moved a strand of hair from her eyes. The tips of my claws didn’t even graze her skin, but still, she exhaled, and her warm breath brushed across my wrist. A shiver raced through me, down my spine, curling in the tip of my tail. I let out a breath that might have been a growl, might have been a purr, it might have been both.

She shifted slightly, her lips parting in her sleep, and for the briefest heartbeat, I wondered what they might taste like. What it would feel like to press my mouth to hers, to feel that warmth, that mortal softness, against me. But no. Not like this. Not while she slept. She deserved a choice. She deserved to want me, not simply be bound to me. So I lay there instead, on my side, my tail curling protectively around the curve of her legs. I rested my head on one arm and watched her breathe.

“Would you want me to kiss you, little one?” I whispered, my voice barely a rumble in the quiet. “Would you even let me?”

She sighed softly, almost as if in response, and then her eyes opened; my heart melted even further.

"You're back," She said, voice rough from sleep.

"I'm here, hummingbird," I said, my tail just as excited as I am, curled tighter around her legs.

She blinked once, rubbed her eyes and sat up.

Then she frowned. "You left me here."

Oh. Oh no. Is my mate upset with me? I sat up beside her and reached for her hands, but she withdrew hers, and I think something close to a whimper left my mouth. I'm not sure, that's never happened before.

"Hummingbird?" I start, but she cuts me off.

"Don't you, hummingbird me, Mr! You can't kidnap a random girl, whisk her off to another place, and just drop her there. Don't you know any manners?"

Her scolding hit harder than any blade I’d ever taken to the chest. I blinked at her, wide-eyed and confused, her words tumbling over themselves so fast that all I could think was—she’s angry. At me. My little hummingbird, with her sleep-tousled hair and her fire, was angry.

“I—” My voice came out more like a growl than speech. I cleared my throat, trying again. “I did not kidnap you.”

She crossed her arms, glaring at me from beneath that wild halo of hair, and the sheets slipped a little lower on her chest. My thoughts derailed instantly. The gods themselves could have smote me down, and I still would’ve been caught staring.

Her eyes narrowed. “You did, though. One second I’m at the festival, and the next I’m in this hell with you!”

“It’s not hell,” I said automatically, tail flicking like an anxious dog. “It’s the Shadow Realm. My realm. Our realm.”

She blinked at the correction, startled, then sighed like she was trying very hard not to smile. “You can’t just… shadow-nap people, Rhaziel.”

“Shadow…nap?” I tilted my head, utterly lost but fascinated by the way her mouth curved around the word. “I only wished to keep you safe. You are my mate. My Queen.”

She groaned, dragging a hand down her face. “You can’t keep saying that like it excuses things!”

Her frustration should have made me defensive—it made every creature in my kingdom cower when I used this tone. But instead, I found myself desperate to soothe her. My shoulders slumped, tail curling faintly inward.

“I am sorry,” I said, quietly, earnestly. “The nightmare beast needed slaying. I did not wish to leave you unguarded. I thought—”

“You thought you’d just lock me up in your kingdom until you could come back and play with me?” she interrupted, exasperated.

“…Yes?” I offered hesitantly.

She laughed then, a short, incredulous sound that melted straight through me. She’s laughing, I thought, utterly undone.

“I will learn,” I promised, my claws curling carefully as I reached toward her again. “I will learn what you like, what you dislike, and what manners are required. I will never shadow-nap you again.”

Her gaze softened, though her mouth still twisted with stubbornness. “You’re ridiculous.”

“Yes,” I murmured, leaning just a little closer.

The rumbling purr from deep within my chest seemed to soothe her. That much I was already learning as she reached for my hand.