Relief washed over me in such a powerful wave that my knees nearly buckled. Phoenix steadied me with a gentle hand on my elbow.
“So I don’t have to see them?” I clarified, hardly daring to believe it.
“Not unless you want to. The decision is entirely yours.”
I wrapped Theo’s coat tighter around myself, trying to process. “I don’t understand. Why would Imperium go to so much trouble just to protect my feelings? At Dominion, they would have thrown me to the wolves.”
Lucas’s expression softened slightly. “Because that’s not how things work here.Volatile shields can be dangerous for everyone, not just their axis. Until there’s resolution—either through breaking the bond or reconciliation—the school stands behind the enrolled student.”
“This isn’t special treatment,” Theo said. “It’s standard protocol. Shields in crisis are unpredictable. Their magic can become unstable, especially when emotions run high.”
“But Winters made it clear they can’t stay in the village indefinitely. Eventually, they’ll either need to return to Dominion or get formal transfer approval,” Phoenix said grimly, as if he thought that’s exactly what they might do next.
I let out a long breath, feeling the tension drain from my shoulders. The relief was so overwhelming that I almost felt dizzy with it. I had time. Space. A choice.
“Thank you for going to Winters. I kind of freaked out there…”
“Anything for you. We should head to training,” he said, checking the time on his phone. “If you’re still up for it?”
“Definitely. I could use the distraction. Maybe if I hit something really hard I can pretend it’s their faces.”
The guys laughed, and Theo muttered something about Eris’s face being particularly punchable.
As we walked toward the combat hall, Rowan fell into step beside me. “You sure you’re okay?”
“I think so. I just... I wasn’t ready to face them yet.”
“You don’t have to be ready on anyone’s schedule but your own. They were wrong to just show up like that. It’s reckless, and they know better.”
The combat hall was already warm and bright when we arrived, with equipment laid out for morning training. I slipped off Theo’s coat, handing it back with a grateful smile before moving to the mats to stretch.
As I bent forward to touch my toes, I felt my mental barriers shift slightly. The Nightfall Shield was still there, their presence a persistent pressure at the edges of my consciousness, but now that I knew they couldn’t reach me, it felt less threatening.
I had a choice. For the first time since this nightmare began, I had real agency in what happened next.
“Alright—” Lucas called, clapping his hands to gather everyone’s attention. “Let’s see what our American friend can do. Jupiter, how do you feel about a friendly sparring match?”
I straightened, a small smile playing at my lips. “Who’s my victim… I meanopponent?”
Lucas grinned, and there was something adorably predatory in it. “Me, sweetheart.”
My body hummed with anticipation as I stepped onto the mat.Thiswas familiar territory.
“Show me what you’ve got, Ophis,” Lucas challenged, dropping into a fighting stance.
I mirrored his position. “Gladly.”
6
Rowan
I couldn’t tearmy eyes away from Jupiter as she faced off against Lucas. I was supposed to be doing my morning stretches, limbering up before my own training session, but my routine had slowed to a crawl as I found myself utterly transfixed.
Lucas threw a combination of strikes that would have flattened most opponents, but Jupiter slipped past them like water. When she countered with a series of blinding-fast kicks, Lucas barely managed to block them.
My body responded instantly to the sight of her. The lean muscles of her thighs flexing as she pivoted, the sheen of sweat making her skin glow under the training hall lights, the fierce smirk on her pretty lips—it all sent heat pooling low in my abdomen. I shifted uncomfortably, grateful for the loose fit of my training trousers.
For the second night in a row, I’d lain awake in my bed, hand wrapped around my cock, pumping desperately as images of Jupiter filled my mind. The curve of her lips, the sound of her laugh, the way her eyes flashed like starlight when she wasexcited. I’d pictured what it would feel like to have her straddling me, fucking me slowly as her soft breasts heaved with every breath. I imagined her moaning, her lips parted as I strummed her swollen clit until she screamed. I’d come so hard I’d nearly bitten through my lip trying to stay quiet.
