Chapter 19

Anila POV

I have never before seen someone’s face change so red as they do in the cartoons, but that’s exactly what Sarah’s face did. And with the round shape of her head, she looked painfully like a tomato.

She opened her mouth, readying an argument before Xaden held up his hand, cutting her off.

“What are you going to say? That it isn’t true?” He shook his head, the calm features I was so used to seeing were nowhere in sight. “You approached so many men. Jaxon, Heath, Paul. Even Harley, and Myself.”

My eyebrows raised at the list.

“Wow, impressive,” I commented, but it only made Sarah start to tremble.

“We are just classmates… friends. Nothing more!” She barked, but Xaden gave a boisterous laugh.

“Only after you got rejected and turned down by every single one of us. ‘Just friends,’ she says. You know what is the most ridiculous? That you have this poor man believing the bullshit spewing out of your mouth.” Xaden’s tone turned angry as he gestured to Damien, who remained just as distant and detached from this situation as he did everything else.

“That’s not true!” she bumbled, before turning to Damien. His eyes slowly fell to meet hers as her hands balled up into his shirt. “Damian, you have to believe me. Why would I ever seek someone else out when I have you?”

Damien's gaze narrowed, before moving towards Xaden.

“Mind your words, mutt. Leave my girlfriend alone, and make sure your defective mate steers clear of me.”

With those words, he tucked Sarah beneath his arm and steered her away from us.

My ears were still ringing on the ‘defective mate’ part.

It stung a little more than I would have liked. Xaden’s arm curled around my shoulder as he secured me to his side.

“Is that why you didn’t answer my call?” he prodded.

I offered a slow nod, looking down at my fingers that were intertwined with one another. Xaden’s hand cradled mine, working apart my fingers so that he could tangle his with them instead. The gesture was sweet and made my heart skip a few beats as I met Xaden’s gaze.

The smile on his face could melt ice. So bright, and caring. Filled with so much warmth that I would’ve found it hard to believe Penny’s words about him, had I not witnessed his cruelty firsthand.

Which, I’m still unsure how to feel about it.

“I went to your dorm to get you for dinner, but you weren’t there. Penny said you went to the bathroom and hadn’t returned. I was worried,” Xaden said leaning against the wall with me still tucked beneath him.

“I’m sorry,” I told him, leaning my head against his chest and basking in the warmth and comfort he provided me. “I was going to wait for you, but Penny showed up with some others and they wanted to go to the dining hall together.”

“It’s okay,” he said fondly, leaning down, he kissed the top of my head causing an overwhelming and raging heat to surface on my face. “Well, if you already ate, maybe we can go into town then?”

I raised my brows at the suggestion and looked up at him.

“Are we allowed to?’ I asked him, curiously.

He smiled and nodded.

“Curfew isn’t for another couple of hours and I’m a 3(rd) year, so I’ll be able to act as your escort while we are off campus,” he said, shrugging casually.

“Okay,” I said, smiling at him. “What are we getting from town?” I asked as he guided me down the hallway with his arm wrapped around my shoulders.

“Supplies for your training,” he answered. “As Professor Howel said, we don’t have a class for your first shift, so you’ll be taking private lessons with me.”

“Will that affect your own classes and studies though? I don’t want to add to your plate.”

“Helping you is never too much, little mate,” he said with a deep chuckle that rumbled his body. “Don’t worry about my classes and studies, I do fairly well here if you haven’t noticed. There’s plenty of free time, so we will pick a time that works best for both of us.”

“Are we starting today?”

“No,” Xaden smiled as we walked out of the building and into the warm night air. “But we need to get you a magical medium.”

“A magical medium? What’s that?” I questioned, noticing we were walking towards the parking lot.

His hand slipped into mine, and I squeezed it reactively.

“A magical medium is important. Every child has one to practice with and get used to magic. Shifters require one before their first shift. After they no longer need them, they can still add a power boost.”

It wasn’t until he was opening the door to a car that snapped my head to the very current moment as I looked around the small lot with only a few cars.

“Is this your car?” I asked, rasiing my brows.

He nodded.

“My father insisted I had my own car while here,” he shrugged. “The school provides drivers as well, like the one that drove us here from the private airport. But it’s easier having your own vehicle.”

The interior was clean, the smell of leather tickled my nose as he cranked the engine, and it hummed to life. He ushered me into the passenger seat before he walked around the front and sunk into the driver’s seat, and that smell of tanned leather was replaced by blackberries and citrus.

“A magical medium makes it easier for the transition, so you will absolutely need one before your first shift. Mine is a necklace.”

He grinned, before hooking a finger underneath a gold chain and pulling out a large pendant with intricate carvings and a few stones around the edges.

“Mostly wizards wear these continuously. Or at the very least have one on them at all times. Some powerful wizards don’t even need them to cast simple spells, like Principal Rapport,” he continued explaining.

The necklace slides back beneath his shirt as we leave campus and drive a short distance to town.

I was surprised at how lively this town was so early in the morning.

“Is the town always busy like this?” I asked as Xaden parked the car on a side road.

“Not so much during the day,” Xaden answered. “This town is lively overnight. Like the school, days and nights are inverted. Most shops are closed during the day and won’t open again until tonight.”

I must have looked shocked by this because when he glanced at my face, he burst into a fit of laughter.

I followed him out of the car and tucked my hand into his. He smiled down at me before giving my hand a gentle squeeze and pulling me along with him.

He stopped in front of a small brick building, with neon lights out front that reminded me of a pawn shop. As he opened the door, a small bell dinged, alerting the workers that we had entered the store.

The space was deceptively large. It was too big to fit in the small brick building I saw outside. There were rows upon rows of glass cases, each one stuffed with precious baubles and beautiful works of art. One case was nothing but ornate knives, while another had wands and crystals.

“This is where we will be getting your medium,” Xaden said as he walked around me, leading me further in.

When I got close enough to a case, my breath was stolen as I stared at the beautiful variations available here.

When we got closer to the back, I couldn’t help but let out a gasp when my eyes landed on a beautiful necklace in a separate wooden case, the glass polished to perfection to show off every scintillating gem. It was silver, with the wires crossing and intertwining in a beautiful design as it housed garnets, amethyst, and even a few diamonds.

In the center was a large clear gem, cradled by the threads of silver.

Funny enough, there was no price tag, just an ‘inquire about item’ sign next to the box. It's just a stunning necklace so painfully out of reach.

“Something catch your eye, dear?” A new voice, one that pulled my gaze from the stunning necklace to an older gentleman with a bushy gray beard and wise blue eyes.

“I’m just… curious about this piece.” I pointed towards the necklace, and the shopkeeper opened the box, pulling the jewelry out so I could get a closer look. Within the small threads of silver were small streams of gold, a small detail I hadn’t caught before.

It’s really a lovely necklace.

“This piece is legendary, actually. Ancient thing, at least a few thousand years old. It’s finicky, too. Doesn’t like anybody,” the shopkeeper muttered, giving me a half smile. “Makes it hard to sell the damn thing. So, it’s free. I just hope one day it can choose an owner worthy enough.”

“May I touch it?” I asked, my eye never leaving the necklace. I felt a light humming in my chest the longer I looked at it, and when the shopkeeper gave a quick ‘of course’ my hand touched the metal.

It was warm, unusually warm for a necklace, and as the pads of my fingers ran over the clear gem, smoke started to build within it. The clear gem became filled with velvety smoke before clearing away and leaving only a silver gem behind.

It reminded me of the moonlight streaming through the leaves.

The shopkeeper's mouth dropped, and his eyes shined as he watched the necklace change. “Well, I’ll be. I suppose it finally found a worthy owner.”